CA CA - Bryce Laspisa, 19, Castaic, 30 Aug 2013 - #3

[LaborDayRN]

Cape Blanco State Park is 115 mi west of the Interstate 5. It's on the 101. Beautiful area.

Just wanted to add....not a straight 115 miles but a road with curves. Approx. 2.5 hours drive time. Seems like quite a detour if your traveling up the I5.

 

[Flutterflies]

I remember a previous discussion on Bryce's thread about air bags, and if I recall, a few posters described being in a roll-over crash that did not deploy airbags. Maybe it's an issue of front vs side air bags? I would think that side air bags would go off if the vehicle rolled, but maybe not front air bags?

I agree. Also, what year was his vehicle? Some vehicles do not have side air bags.

 

[Trackergd]

I agree. Also, what year was his vehicle? Some vehicles do not have side air bags.

Good point.

 

[sclemens]

2003 Toyota Highlander

 

[gitana1]

I'm really hoping the sighting of Bryce in Oregon somehow pans out. It just doesn't seem likely to me. While his disappearance has reached at minimum almost 12k people, and many differerent states. For some reason it seems hard for me to believe he was spotted in another state by someone who happened to see him and his story. While it is possible it just seems unlikely to me.

I feel like his very fair skin and red hair are so uncommon that it is easy to mistake him for someone else. I hope that from now on if people are spotting someone that looks like Bryce, that they are able to confirm the large tattoo.

The other thing I wanted to mention and I'm sure will probably anger a few people, are the updates. Many of us have spent countless hours daily volunteering and trying to bring Bryce home. At the very least we should be getting more updates. I feel like the less we are hearing the more the attention will die down. Even if there are no updates, that's an update in itself. There's still a lot of questions left unanswered and I feel like the community should be hearing some sort of update rather than a generic we need your help.

Just my 2 cents.

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What makes me hopeful about this sighting is that the man did not know about Bryce when he saw the person. It was afterwards, when he saw the missing persons report that he put two and two together. So that means he didn't have a "sighting" when already predisposed to spot Bryce.

 

[Trackergd]

2003 Toyota Highlander

Looks like driver and passenger front air bags. No note of side air bags.

This model also has it's lowest rating in rollover protection.

 

[Whiteorchids]

Grandpa said same face and hair 5 days ago? Well he's been missing almost a month wouldn't he be scruffy, unshaven and hair grown out? Not to mention a large obvious tattoo which I believe a man would have noticed. Grandpa might not have been wearing his glasses and got it wrong. Always sightings in missing persons cases LE has to weed through the ones that sound credible or not. If LE checks it out they think its credible if not they wont. Have they investigated this?

Also did LE ever mention the amount of money in his wallet left behind? Maybe he was waiting in Buttonwillow for someone to bring him some cash. He could have had it on his person maybe in his pocket.

 

[gitana1]

Grandpa said same face and hair 5 days ago? Well he's been missing almost a month wouldn't he be scruffy, unshaven and hair grown out? Not to mention a large obvious tattoo which I believe a man would have noticed. Grandpa might not have been wearing his glasses and got it wrong. Always sightings in missing persons cases LE has to weed through the ones that sound credible or not. If LE checks it out they think its credible if not they wont. Have they investigated this?

Also did LE ever mention the amount of money in his wallet left behind? Maybe he was waiting in Buttonwillow for someone to bring him some cash. He could have had it on his person maybe in his pocket.

His facial features and hair color wouldn't have changed though and that's what I took the man to mean. He apparently reported it so we will see. It is odd enough that it could be connected. How many red headed men would be walking around lost in a pretty remote campground, asking for directions at 5:30 am. In fact how many people period would be there under such circumstances, on foot?

Look up this state park on google maps and see how it's really in the middle if nowhere. I'm really getting a dissassociative fugue vibe here. Reminds me of the old man who walked 2000 miles in two weeks when he forgot who he was.

But if it is Bryce, anything can happen to him out there alone on the road. He needs to be found.

 

[gitana1]

I was reading the comments on the FB page and someone stated this sighting makes sense as it is very close to a truck stop.

 

[AmandaFast]

The whole trucker thing never sat right with me. While again it's possible. I would hope that something he said during the trip would make the trucker concerned enough to check into him.

I know they can be very friendly but castaic doesn't haven't a truck stop. We have a weigh center. Its kind of weird to flag a trucker down at a weigh station. Also, trucks don't travel down that road in Castaic so it takes hitchhiking out of the picture as well.

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[RoseGarden]

Lots of trucks use this gas station for a fill up. This is a short walk in the dark for someone aiming for a familiar fast food location or gas station signage glowing just down the road - I used the "walking guy" from Google, turned left out of the Castaic lake area...

Thought I would try "walking" the road from the ramp area, via Google's little walking guy. I found myself turning left at the corner of Ridge Route and the main road as it was "closer" and there were buildings visible. With a little hike, I wound up at the Shell Station (left side) where all of the truckers pull off and refuel. (In the Google snapshot, a truck from Idaho was right there - funny.). So it is possible that he hitched a ride at the station. Plenty of truckers there, day and night. Here's that view, if interested: http://goo.gl/3dSYn3 So posting in locations and sites where truckers go might be a great idea. If he hitched a ride with a truck there, it may be in another state, and the driver unaware that this is now a missing person case.... Just postulations, thoughts, my own opinions!

If he hitched a ride there, that could take him North... IMO, hope that helps. PS: If you wait a few seconds, the street view does pop up from that link. Takes a few seconds tho'...

 

[gitana1]

The whole trucker thing never sat right with me. While again it's possible. I would hope that something he said during the trip would make the trucker concerned enough to check into him.

I know they can be very friendly but castaic doesn't haven't a truck stop. We have a weigh center. Its kind of weird to flag a trucker down at a weigh station. Also, trucks don't travel down that road in Castaic so it takes hitchhiking out of the picture as well.

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I'm not sure why the lack of truckers on the road by the lake would eliminate the possibility of hitch hiking. A person can hitch a ride in something other than a truck. Also, Bryce could have walked for many miles. Truckers stop in various areas near Castaic all the time, to eat, or whatever. He could have asked someone for a ride down the road.

And you know, in other cases I have posted about where the person had a form of amnesia or another mental issue, then disappeared only to reappear days or weeks or months later, they were able to associate with people without causing anyone to suspect something was wrong.

But my fear is that most trucking companies probably don't allow their drivers to pick up hitchers- for insurance reasons. So if one did, he would be unlikely to report it.

In any event, while it's true that most cases like this end badly, I'm choosing to have hope and focus on ways to find this young man alive. Because there are some pretty significant exceptions to the stats and why not Bryce?

And that latest sighting has started a firestorm of social media activity with people sharing his story and posting his flyer and alerting friends and family all over the west.

I'm praying hard for Bryce.

 

[kevsrebla]

The whole trucker thing never sat right with me. While again it's possible. I would hope that something he said during the trip would make the trucker concerned enough to check into him.

I know they can be very friendly but castaic doesn't haven't a truck stop. We have a weigh center. Its kind of weird to flag a trucker down at a weigh station. Also, trucks don't travel down that road in Castaic so it takes hitchhiking out of the picture as well.

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mmmmm, no truck stop in Castaic? I see two on a google search

Castaic Truck Stop
31611 Castaic Rd, Castaic, CA ‎
(661) 295-1374

Pilot Travel Center
31642 Castaic Rd, Castaic, CA ‎
(661) 257-2800

link to pic of my google search

http://crazylife98.tumblr.com/image/62078689097

 

[AmandaFast]

Those are small rest areas. They aren't major truck stops like you imagine in most areas.

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[Whiteorchids]

I was reading the comments on the FB page and someone stated this sighting makes sense as it is very close to a truck stop.

So has LE checked this out and commented? I'm sure if they think this could be him they would immediately talk to Grandpa in a heartbeat. Any comments that they have?


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[AmandaFast]

Just want to clarify that I meant truck hitch hiking. Its very possible a regular car picked him up.

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[AmandaFast]

I was just contacted by BLs parents regarding holding a candlelight vigils. The media and attendees should be pretty simple and straight forward however I'm not sure about location. Could any locals give there input?

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[sclemens]

IMO, the northern area of Castaic is one big truck stop. It would be easy for one to walk down Lake Hughes Road (from crash site, for example) to the intersection of Lake Hughes and Castaic Road. From there, the possibilities are endless, even at that time of morning. I have lived here over ten years. I have many times driven to Ralphs, noticed a hitchhiker at the northbound I-5 onramp and on my way home from Ralphs, they're gone. It happens all the time. Certainly not saying that's what happened with Bryce, but it's completely within the realm of possiblity.

 

[gitana1]

So has LE checked this out and commented? I'm sure if they think this could be him they would immediately talk to Grandpa in a heartbeat. Any comments that they have?


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I have no idea. I know it was reported to Oregon LE. I doubt there have been any comments because I think official comments would be reported on the fb page.

But lack of cOmments doesn't mean much to me. I've learned way more about this case from fb and Dragracerz than from LE.

 

[sclemens]

I was just contacted by BLs parents regarding holding a candlelight vigils. The media and attendees should be pretty simple and straight forward however I'm not sure about location. Could any locals give there input?

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I think the Sports Complex on Castaic Road would be ideal.
31320 North Castaic Road Castaic, CA 91384