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I watched a program last night on PBS that really inspired me. It was called 'Horatio's Drive.' It was about the first guy who drove a car across North America.
He did it on a whim... a $50 dollar bet. He did it because he wanted to, and wasn't sponsored by a corporation.
He was a young man in love with his wife of four years. Much of the tale was recalled by the letters he wrote to his wife at every opportunity along the way. He obviously missed her greatly, but she supported him in the task he 'needed' to do.
He encountered every difficulty imaginable on the 67 day journey. He got lost, had flat tires, broke down many times, got stuck, had bad weather, ran out of gas and a thousand other things. He just plain had to work his buns off every day to do the journey.
Every letter he wrote told his wife of his daily challenges but also expressed his optimism that the worst was behind him. He was living a great adventure and he relished every moment of the journey.
In the end he succeeded. He never bothered to collect his bet... for that wasn't why he did the trip.
His optimism and drive allowed him to accomplish what many others had tried and failed. He encountered the same difficulties and problems that everyone else had experienced. His life wasn't charmed in any way. He just kept going when others threw in the towel... He didn't know the meaning of quit.
Horatio was my kind of guy.
-dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8761 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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"Wonder if the dude saw any old BURMA SHAVE signs!" --------------------- C'mon, Bob! Horatio was the first. Burma couldn't have anticipated his route, because he didn't know either.
That program hinted at a little-known fact of transportation economics in 1903: Horses were very expensive, and most people didn't have one. There were 14 million horses in the US and 74 million people. That's not the idea we get from too many cowboy movies. Today there are 235 million cars for 280 million people; almost enough to go around.
What surprises me about Horatio is that he chose an open car without even a windshield, instead of an enclosed coach body. Consequently, camping out became an ordeal, and he kept losing things--his glasses, for instance.
I do admire Horatio for refusing help from his car manufacturer. The mfgr had no interest, until Packard and Olds sponsored their own teams and were fixing to catch up.
-------------------- Bruce Williams Lexington KY Posts: 945 | From: Lexington, KY, USA | Registered: Mar 1999
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Dan, thanks for your post. I saw that documentary last week. Your post brings back the pleasure i had of getting caught in the story of the first Road trip and how it was made.
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