It was 1976, I was 23 years-old, single with a decent amount of cash saved-up from working in the paper mill.  The time seemed right for me to embark upon a road-trip which would incorporate airlines, hitch-hiking, trains and finally my 1974 Mazda 808.

Technically, this adventure may not be classified as a “road-trip” because part of the time was spent in the air and rails, but believe me, I saw plenty of the roadways.

In my early college days I had spent hours of reading Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road”, “The Dharma Bums” and “Big Sur”. The influence of Kerouac spurned me to drop out of college and become a counter-culture gypsy. Though I have since paid my dues for giving-up an education, and in return, working jobs which I haven’t felt a calling to, I don’t regret the times of carefree living, landscapes of grandeur and bleak starkness along with unforgettable characters . The accompanying photo for this article is me standing on a cattle grate which was mentioned in Jack Kerouac’s novel, “Big Sur”.

This entire intro about me, leads-up to a recent project conducted by Randy Olson, a Ph.D. candidate at Michigan State University. Randy has devised an algorithm where a travel crazed individual with an attention deficit disorder can visit various national landmarks in the lower 48 states in 9.33 days. This whirlwind tour includes no bathroom breaks, motel stays or stops at the local diner; it is strictly driving with no breaks. Does this bring-up visions of the former NASA astronaut Lisa Nowak, when she drove cross-country in a diaper to stalk a former boyfriend?

To get the entire skinny on this potential crazed tour of the lower-48, you can visit http://www.npr.org/2015/03/21/394427979/the-definitive-road-trip-its-data-driven for all of the details.

It may not be a good idea to include your spouse and kidz on this trip, but for a bucket list fulfiller, go for it!

 

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