The White Bronco

I just saw an item on the OC Register site that brought back a few memories:

June 17, 1994 is one of those iconic days where you’ll always remember where you were: O.J. Simpson, suspected of murdering his wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman, went on the lam in his white Bronco, a slow-speed chase that mesmerized the nation.

At 7 p.m. tonight ESPN debuts a new documentary titled after that day – “June 17, 1994″ — which looks at Simpson’s ride and puts it in context with all the other big sports news that went down that day: golf legend Arnold Palmer’s last round at the U.S. Open, the New York Rangers celebrating their first Stanley Cup in 54 years, and the opening of the World Cup in Chicago to name a few.

But O.J. and that white Bronco proved the overarching memory of the day, as Simpson and his buddy Al Cowlings, instead of surrendering to police as promised that day, left Simpson’s Brentwood home, cruised down to Nicole’s grave in Orange County and eventually back to L.A. where he finally turned himself in.

Do you remember where you were? We do. We were driving to San Francisco for a wedding, listening to music all the way, and didn’t find out what we were missing until that night when we caught a glimpse of O.J. and the pursuit on a TV through the window of a Union Square bar.

I remember exactly where I was. I had taken my family to Anaheim to attend my mom's retirement party at a hotel across the street from Disneyland. As the event was ending I was carrying stuff out to the car and heard the sound of many helicopters overhead. I looked up and the sky was full of choppers from law enforcement as well as every TV and radio station in Los Angeles, all slowly moving north along the nearby I-5 freeway. It wasn't until we all got in the car to head over to Disneyland that I heard on the radio that they had all been following the infamous White Bronco with OJ Simpson and Al Cowlings.