Wes Kelley

Riding the Rabbit Wes Kelley

The Grey Rabbit Bus Line began servicing its customers in 1971 with a single Volkswagen camper and a hopeful, whimsical name: The Traveling Magical Universe. Its routes were limited to the West Coast, and passengers could travel from the San Francisco Bay Area to Seattle for about $35. By the early 70s, the little enterprise had become a modest fleet of ten decommissioned school buses and retired Greyhound coaches. Renaming itself several times, and often called The Rabbit by frequent travelers and those who enjoyed its hip charm, the company was an example of American innovation, providing no-frills, cross-country treks for those with an adventurous spirit and a limited budget. Several competitors followed, but The Rabbit was the first of its kind. Its Founder, Lester Rall, achieved an enviable urban mystique as a maverick of counter-culture capitalism by cleverly avoiding the licenses and permits deemed necessary by the Interstate Commerce Commission to operate his company legally. For years, The Rabbit kept a safe bunny-hop ahead of regulators and competitors like Greyhound and Trailways, who would have loved to see Lester go out of business, and whose corporate images were the very thing that aggravated Rall. The Rabbit's wily owner employed various evasive tactics to stay out of trouble, from schooling passengers to claim they were friends on an outing rather than riders on a for-hire bus, to the creation of "The Church of World Community Consciousness," where the drivers were ordained as 'ministers' and bus fares were reported as church 'donations.' Rumors abound whether or not Lester voluntarily chose to sell his company or that his shenanigans finally caught up with him. In 1983, The Grey Rabbit Bus Line was purchased by its chief competitor, The Green Tortoise. What made riding The Rabbit special was that the majority of its seats were removed in favor of inexpensive innerspring mattresses often wrapped in colorful tie-dye fabric, making coast-to-coast travel comfortable and attractive. Travelers provided their own bedding. Anyone bringing aboard a guitar, flute, ukulele, or hand drum often transformed the interior into an impromptu gathering filled with lively music floating on the earthy aroma of sandalwood incense or the skunky-sweetness of freely-shared Sinsemilla. Strangers often became friends, and friends occasionally became lovers. Anything seemed possible when you rode The Rabbit.