Well it has been announced in the Grizzly. A sad day for all the old time locals and many of the newer ones as well. Those who were lucky enough to know Fred would have bet this day would never come.

It is an end of an era in the valley. And I doubt there will ever be another like him.

Rest in peace, Fred

Denis Knickerbocker

WOW. I knew Fred. He aways had some great stories to tell.

I saw all the stuff that was going on there knew it must have been big as they where there hours.

May you rest in peace, Fred. I will miss you.

Todd C.

There were a lot of people that did not get along with Fred. I, for one, enjoyed listening to his stories and his knowledge of the valley. Fred has owned a plane at the airport for as long as I have been there. He always helped the Airport out when we needed it. He will be missed.

Wingnut

Ransom Engineering — from building ski lifts, installing the airport beacon lights, cutting in roads around the valley — the man did it all. Others may claim they did it, but the truth is, it was Fred that would do the actual work and got it done. Big Bear’s Paul Bunyan has passed.

Jerry Bennett

It is a sad day. I knew Fred and he always helped me when I was a single mom trying to make it up here. I never knew why people didn’t like him I always did and he treated me with respect. A gentleman you could say.

Yes he was onery but he’d smile at you when he was messin’ around.

A real Icon.

BG He went out just as expected. I’d seen him lately getting on that motorcycle and thought man he’s a little to old to be doin’ that!

You will be missed by me Fred. Have fun up there! I’m sure you will!!!

Cat

Sad day for sure...He is a huge part of big bear history and always will be. RIP.

Clint

UNBELIEVABLE! I am at a loss for words!

Cricket

Thanks for a lifetime of memories. God speed, my friend.

BSF

I felt the same. I can’t think of a better way for him to go then doing something he loved.

I think everyone has people that don’t like them but those who really knew Fred knew he was a good guy.

Like Jerry said he and his crane, and welder have been in on about every big job in the valley for the last 50 years; recovered plane wrecks from the lake, under ice, and on top of mountains.

I think the tater bug was his masterpiece and riding with him in that was one of the highlights of my life

I have heard many of the stories over the years and one that I can repeat was how when he would get a traffic ticket he would do his homework and fight them in court and usually, if not always, win.

Denis Knickerbocker

That man had nine lives, I swear. He did not let the grass grow beneath his feet. As Dennis mentioned, he was in that wacky plane crash. He’s lucky he did not die with that. Then, he was brutally beaten up at Chad’s and survived. The man did not know fear and danger was something he looked upon as a foreign subject. He lived life beyond the limits and had fun while doing it. I took a tour of his property on NS a fews years back and was truly amazed. Eccentric does not even begin to describe this man. He had the greatest dog, too. I can’t remember his/her name, but Fred loved that dog more than anything in the world. Oddly, he was married and nobody really knew it since he never went anywhere with his wife. I am sure she just could not keep up with him. But, then, who could?

I wonder what they are going to do with “his stool” at Teddy Bear’s? Nobody sat in Fred’s chair when Fred was around, which was a lot.

While Fred may have been one of the craziest people to come out of BB, he was also one of the most generous you could run into as well. He did a lot of things without the fanfare and bragging. He will be missed. Another BB legend is gone. We will now only have the memories of Tom Core, Arra Moon, and now Fred Ransom. Dennis, I am not including your grandfather, Gus Knight, Mr. Maltby, Lucky Baldwin, and the other early pioneers as they were mostly legends from another time. I would classify Fred Ransom as a living legend who most of us long-timers knew. We have a few living legends left but I will not jinx them and mention their names. Dennis and other BB mainstays know of whom I speak of. A former female member’s grandma is one of them.

3B

After I posted the fact in chat that there was a death in chat I got some reports that it might not be. I immediatly thought of some of the times he had survived impossible situations plane crash, exploding oxygen cylinders, etc. It would be just like him to have cheated death again. If just to make me a dunce again. I was hoping I would have to correct myself.

When he was younger there were several couples around his age that would go to the show together, go to ski beach, and other events as a group. His wife was stunning. Most never saw them together, but she is on the hill (last I heard). In recent years, Fred was usually alone when he went somewhere and alone when he left. I don’t think he was ever lonely. Everywhere he went there was someone to greet him. He enjoyed playing pool at Chads. I understand that he did not drink.

I take no offense at putting him in his own class as it was a different age with different challenges and Fred always seemed to come out on top. His passing has had a bigger effect on me then I would have ever thought. Though it had been expected for several years. I had been working through a friend to try to get him to write an auto biography, but as far as I know it never happened. Too bad, a lot of Big Bear history is now gone.

Beside his wife, he leaves 2 sons, Ray and Mike and my heart goes out to them and his many friends.

Denis Knickerbocker

My only contact with him was back in the early 60’s when I was bike riding with a friend and we cut through his property. He came chasing after us in a big old truck. We thought we were going to be killed. He sort of chewed us a bit, told us that there were some dangerous areas on the property and go have a good day.

That was my only contact with him, but I have often read about him. RIP.

socalman

What a shock! He was a staple to BB. Seemed to be everywhere and oooohhh the stories. One may think they were more ledgend then real, but with Fred you always knew it was real. A truly cantankerous old man who you had to love. I understand he was actually a nice guy but on a short fuse.

Ok- Favorite memory: That cell phone. Dear God you would think he would get the new one since they were free, but it seems since the rubberbands were still holding it together he didn’t see a purpose. I was waiting for someone to tell him how to use the on/off button for the speaker phone. That or maybe he was hard of hearing and needed to put the phone to his ear with the speaker phone on. LOL

Definately will be missed.

bbmtnbb

Fred was a neighbor of mine for the last seven years. It took a few years to get to know him, and I’m really glad I did. And I found out he really wasn’t the scary old guy. He was a very nice and caring, proud man who I had the pleasure of meeting. Instead of blazing trails on the mountain, he’s blazing trails to heaven. God rest your soul, Mr. Ransom.

crazycanuk

I am still really upset, but still laughing thinking about him. Story number two...a contractor friend of mine used his crane service to fly a HUGE Beam for a very large addition up and over the existing house. This is over on Elgin close to the lake where the trees are VERY tall. He gets his crane and lifts it sky high, but those darn trees get in the way. So what would that engineer crane operator do? Just put the beam over the trees and let them beeeeennnnddd! OMG the trees are gonna snap. They are leaning over touching the ridge of the roof. Just when you think it is a goner, that beam is in place and he is laughing....oh I know these trees...they have a lot more give than anybody knows. That was Ransom. Could build ANYTHING! Could do anything. Again...as everyone says..he will be missed.

bbmtnbb

I can’t believe how the Grizzly (posted today) was so focused on the negative things in Fred’s life! They have no idea how many people wanted Fred’s property and harassed him trying to get it!

Fred woke up every morning (even in advancing years) and said there’s stuff I need to get done today. He was a powerhouse.

He was the only one that asked how my daughter was after she was hit by a drunk driver and almost lost her leg. He kept showing me his mended leg that had a wild shape and saying she’ll be alright. He always asked about my son when he was in Iraq. He never forgot the details of my life. And he was like an adopted Dad to me. I will always be grateful and will always miss him.

See ya on the other side, Fred.

ede1957

What a great picture of Fred. I would always see Fred at the Teddy Bear having a meal. He was such a character. Fred helped my mother Virginia with the Foxes when they pelted the herd in the mid 50’s. My niece Lisa had an interview with Fred just last year talking about the Fox Ranching Business. We have it typed up some where in out history records. I will dig it out and share with all of you.

Fred you will be missed. I will always see your empty chair at the Teddy Bear when I go in to eat. I can still see you trying to park your motorcycle out in front and you always backed the bike into the space.

Linda McDougald

OMG, Tink. John and I knew Fred many years ago and even my Dad knew him. So damn sorry to hear this. Our prayers immediately go out to the Ransom family. Please keep us updated as we don’t always get the news.

Patti McClane

Very, very, sorry to hear about Fred Ransom. Hubby and I are both very sad. He was certainly a colorful part of Big Bear history and lore. Most of the whacky stories about him are true (like towing his airplane down the highway over to the Moonridge straight-away to take off), and a lot of the bad stories about him are not. Not surprised that he would finally go in this manner - might even be how he would have wanted to go, on his motorcycle - but it is still sad. Thoughts and prayers to his family and friends.

Jo Tunnell

Thank you Tink, for letting me know about Fred’s accident. John and I feel more awful than I can express. I now have friends to contact about it that are no longer on the mnt but have known him for many, many years. This is a very sad day for his family and friends and sleepless nights for all.

My heart goes out to everyone. I’m extremely sad.

Patti McClane

So very sorry for family and friends. And thanks to shoes for letting me know about it on another thread.

TNKRBLLinBB

Sorry for all of you that knew him and his family..its so hard to lose either family or friends..night everyone..off to rest and watch a movie..

Claire

Fred was an ornery old yahoo, that was my friend. He will be missed by many. Rest in peace, Fred.

shoes

RIP Fred!! A great friend and real gentlemen. What a great guy. Prayers to his family.

Off to his next journey. Have fun Fred!!

Cat

I never thought he’d leave us. For sure that man had more than 9 lives. He was a hell of a man and lived an incredible life. I’m going to miss seeing him around town. They broke the mold with that one! I’m so proud to have been aquainted Fred!

Susan Johnston

He was my older brother. My heart goes out to Pat, Ray and Mike. God bless you. So many memories and questions not asked.

Carol J.

Labeling Fred Ransom as iconic is more than apt. He was truly a legend in his own time. I concur — he did so many things over his lifetime that you would have sworn were going to be the death of him that it seems surreal that a “simple” traffic accident on the Boulevard was to mark his last day. I first met Fred as a child (which is over 50 years ago!) when I walked by his house back and forth from home to work in the shooting gallery. He was an enigma to me, but certainly classified as Big Bear color. Just knowing he was still around taking care of business, exuded a sense of stability. I am so sad to hear of his tragic death, but just know that he is fixing and inventing and building in his after-life to the joy of all who preceded him! My condolences to his family.

Mamie

I grew up with the stories of Fred as both of my parents were close to his age and went to school in Big Bear. I would often get to go out to Fred’s house with a family friend and got to ride in the Tater Bug in the seat next to Fred with the front wheels in the air while in traffic. The legend lives on in my mind.

Mark Eminger

Fred Ransom was one of the most decent, kindest employers that I’ve ever had the pleasure of working for. I worked for Fred for several years at his place on Garstin. He let me take my 3-yr.-old son to work with me and taught him work ethics as he got older. He helped many people in this valley but he would’nt admit it. And yes the stories are true. Fred may be gone but his name lives on!!

BRIandPAT

I spent my childhood seeing Fred as a bigger than life kinda guy, and through a family friend, I often used to get to go out and spend time with Fred and Billy (who were friends since childhood). I was quite young, and I can tell you when these two guys got together it was cool. I know that the Tater Bug can drive around Big Bear on 2 wheels because I rode in the front seat smiling and hanging on. I knew Ray, Mike and Patricia years ago when i was a child. I hope people remember it’s guys with Fred’s spirit that helped make America the kind of place that it is, whatever you thought of him. I always smile when I think of him.

Mark Eminger

I can’t believe there is so much focus on the fights that Fred had with those who would love to take the land he protected and property owner rights since he was a boy.

He was the only one in Big Bear who asked how my daughter was when she had six surgeries in 4 months to save her leg after being hit by a drunk driver and the only one who offered me rides to work when I had nothing. He even gave me a place to stay when I had none.

He never asked for anything in return unless you made a deal with specific terms or he hired you. You worked cause he worked! Even in advanced years Fred woke up everyday and said something needs to be done today.

He contributed to the economy, history and community of Big Bear and was one of the best men I ever knew and I knew him for 23 years.

I would like to send my thoughts and prayers out to Patricia, Mike and Ray and thank them for sharing this inspiring man with the rest of us.

ede1957

An icon is gone...........But his legend will live on. R.I.P. Fred.

chibsh

Fred had a gentle soul and I — an avid animal lover — always enjoyed visiting with him. I took a photograph of Fred with his beloved dog, “Ugly” (that to me is an absolute beauty — a Wolfhound mix) and I gave him a copy. When I did, I remember he looked at Ugly and said, “Hey Ugly, look at this— we’re famous now.” If there is a way I could share this photo in Grizzly, I’d be happy to do so. Be free Fred, you consistently reinforced the idea that one must always be true to oneself.

Wolfzone

A man and his legendary stories — Your Point of View

Published: Wednesday, September 23, 2009 9:29 AM PDT

My mom used to waitress at this restaurant where she had to wear an old-fashioned red dress and people drove for miles to eat Gladys’ secret pie recipe. She brought home stories about the cast of characters who ate there, like the guy with pins in his hat who was an angel living in Big Bear on an assignment from God.

As I got older and developed a taste for off-color humor, she used to say my mouth was becoming like one of her regulars named Fred Ransom. I didn’t know Fred, but as time went on I came to recognize him walking into the cafe while I was eating a Bear’s Best, take off his cowboy hat, give and receive hellos to George or Larry or whoever else, and sit at the counter spot by the register.

It seemed the waitresses knew what to bring him without words, but the new ones not in the know would receive scowls or mutters from his scarred and leathered face. Presence, they call it. Stories began to surface to my eardrums from contractors and firemen and grapevines about pistol threats and airplane landings on the boulevard and the barstool stamped RANSOM in the local saloon where he was stabbed in the back.

One night in the last summer of Clinton’s reign, Fred strolled into the Teddy Bear around 10 p.m. for his pre-pool-playing-at-Murray’s-or-Chad’s snack. A little intimidated, I introduced myself as the son of a former waitress. “Oh yeah,” he said. “Nice gal, your mother.”

And soon it was 11:30 p.m. and I’d just heard about how the spotted owl activists covered up the beacon light at the top of the mountain that he’d built a road to, how to fight four guys sitting in a car at once and the best way to round up Texan rattlesnakes. Stories .... As the years went by, I’d bump into Fred and he’d ask me where I was going next, and he’d tell me his own tales or his disapproval of the flowers on my boardshorts.

At some point, I thought it would be cool to interview some of the people that make Big Bear what it is, Fred being at the top of the list. It led to reading a brass plaque on Fred’s front door that read Beware of Occupant. Several Sunday afternoons I stopped by the house he’d been living in since he was left alone at 12 with a couple cows and chickens to fend for himself.

I was full of questions. The answers flowed out. That’s my dog, Ugly. Check out this picture of my pet raccoon. We took our rifles to the schoolhouse. It was a lucky shot, but I got me that mountain lion. It just feels good being on those machines moving the earth. We fell in love. She was the best lookin’ girl in town.

His somewhat gnarled fingers made chords on the frets and old country tunes vibrated off his vocal chords. He spun true yarns about plane wrecks and bar fights. We walked around his property the county was battling with him to clean up. There were airplane fuselages and army trucks and motorcycles and muscle cars and cranes and his custom Tater Bug. There was half a house and a dirty hairy pig and a machine shop with a sign that read Mickey Mouse Headquarters.

We went into his office attached to the garage where the oxygen bottle blew up. The wall was covered in photos of old friends and the ski lifts he built for Tommy Tyndall. He would answer phone rings with a drawled, “Ransom Engineering.” It would be business or an old friend he’d chat with asking about minute details from their last conversation.

I stopped by to tell him goodbye last December. “Colorado, huh?” Then he told me stories and shook my hand and sent me off with his classic, “Take ‘er easy out there.”

On the wall of the coffee shop in the village that Fred ate at almost every day for 50 years is a painting of a Marlboro looking cowboy painted by an artist with work up in the White House. It’s the picture of a faulted and glorious local who in his own words, didn’t ever do nuthin he didn’t wanna do. Including ride a motorcycle down the boulevard at 78 years old that most 22 year olds would have been scared of.

Shane Lee

Big Bear celebrates a legend
Fred Ransom — 1931-2009

Published: Thursday, September 24, 2009 11:11 AM PDT

If the greatness of a man is measured by the impact he has on his community, environment and everyone he meets, Fred Ransom was truly a great man.

The man locals like to talk about, in coffee shops, pubs, and even an occasional run in at the grocery store. Fred Ransom had already achieved legendary status by the time I met him at the Teddy Bear Restaurant in 1983.

Fred spent most of his life in our Valley having a crane operating business. He had a hand in building a great deal of our town as well.

What we talked about most was what some called his many lives. Airplane crashes, motorcycle wrecks, and an explosion that left him with burn scars and bits of metal buried in his skin. He was stabbed twice in a bar fight when he was in his late 60s. (Fred loved to play pool). He was even bitten by a rattlesnake when he was 5 years old in Landers just north of Giant Rock in 1936.

How many of us, remember seeing Fred on his motorcycle with a great big cast on his leg, and crutches strapped to the side of his bike still driving like the devil was nipping at his heels, after breaking his foot in a prior accident? Or popping wheelies over on North Shore in his Tater Bug?

Fred took me flying in his Piper Cub once. I didn’t know that planes could fly that close to the ground. When I got home and my mother and all of the neighbors were all talking about the crazy man in an airplane that was flying under the telephone wires. I realized maybe it wasn’t quite ordinary for planes to fly like that.

Just to set the record straight, Fred wasn’t landing his plane on Moonridge Road, in that infamous legend we have all heard about. He was taking off!

There wasn’t anything ordinary about Fred Ransom. I think after knowing the man for 25 years, it was the shear force of his personality that really grabbed us. Fred always said exactly what he thought, which some found offensive or politically incorrect. But, like a big old mean, junkyard dog, he usually wasn’t challenged. When he was challenged Fred wasn’t a man that backed down from a fight. You’ve heard of the term going postal? Well, that’s nothing, next to having Fred go Ransom on ya.

I got into arguments with Fred many times at the Teddy Bear, where I work and where Fred ate every day for 30 years or more. I’m not one to back down from a fight ether. I told him once I thought that it was rattlesnake venom that made him so dang mean. Lucky for me I was a girl, and all he did was get that big lopsided smile on his face.

The thing about Fred was he only liked people he respected, and he only respected people who stood up to him. (Cowards need not apply).

He had a sense of selfworth that was forged in steel. He didn’t care what anyone thought. He seemed to think rules and laws didn’t apply to him, and he lived his life accordingly. He got away with whatever he could. He was larger than life in every way, even in size. Fred was a big man!

It was rumored Fred had a sweet side reserved for the people he cared about and his animals. Last winter, he told me he tied a tarp around old Pepper (his horse) ‘cause Pepper wouldn’t go into the barn and Fred was worried about him getting wet.

If he liked you, he had a gleam in his eyes and a big ole grin that could kick the wind right out of your sails. I know, I couldn’t stay mad at him. And a compliment from Fred Ransom went a long way.

Every moment spent with Fred was some kind of adventure. Just sitting at the counter and listening to him tell stories about Big Bear in old days was fascinating. He was intelligent, witty and had a memory like a steel trap.

A man of legendary qualities? Not too long ago, he had a lung infection and had to be on oxygen. Who else in the world, at the age of 78, would strap an oxygen tank to a GXS R 1000 Suzuki, (a crotch rocket) and drive to town to have cup of coffee and a buckwheat pancake?

For those of you that never knew him, I’m sorry. Men of courage, formidable will and individuality, are rare these days. Greatness is seldom touched or even seen.

For those of us who did, on Oct. 18, we have the opportunity to celebrate Fred’s life and memories at Snow Summit. We will gather in the parking lot, and at noon, we will set off for a drive around the valley. All street-legal vehicles welcome. Don’t forget to put gas in your tank.

When we get back to Snow Summit, approximately 1 or 1:30, we will have a memorial service to remember the man, we will never forget.

Shirley Martin
RSVP me at (xxx) xxx-xxxx [Phone number redacted]
Just so that we can have an idea, how many people to expect.

Born too late

Published: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 7:22 AM PDT

I’ve known Fred Ransom since high school in Big Bear. Yes, he was rough, tough and gruff, but a truly intelligent man. When it came to anything that needed engineering or any kind of mechanical problem, Fred was your man. He was a genius that was born 200 years too late. He could have invented the gas engine or the light bulb or who knows what.

He put the first rope tow and snow making equipment at Rebel Ridge. No one in Big Bear could weld aluminum. Fred could and fixed my door at Eminger’s Market in the 1960s.

He still called me Skinny at the Teddy Bear last week.

Rest in peace Fred.

P.S. — I wrote an obituary for Fred 10 years ago when the oxygen tank blew up into his chest. One of his nine lives kicked in — didn’t need it.

JOHN EMINGER
Big Bear Lake