Eric Wegryn - Road Trips

I bought my first car in March 1989. It was a black and gray two-door 1984 Cutlass Ciera, with 59,000 miles on it. I sold it five years later in Springfield IL, with 168,000 miles on it, for $75. In between I had driven it through 45 different States and 7 Canadian provinces. I had been stranded in three of those States, and as a result had to rebuild the engine twice. The last time it broke down, in Springfield on my move out to Arizona, I finally gave up on the old war-horse and put it out of its misery. I had driven it 109,000 miles in five years, from L.A. to Nova Scotia, Seattle to Key West, to the top of Loveland Pass in the Rockies, and to the bottom of Death Valley. Let's face it - I drove that car into the ground.

When I bought the car, I was living in Ann Arbor, finishing up my Bachelor's degree at The University of Michigan. I didn't have much of an idea what I was going to do after graduation, but I knew I wasn't going to stay in Michigan. A road trip to Chicago (less than 300 miles away) had given me a taste for travel, for setting out on the open road to explore places unknown. By the end of my first summer out of college, I was dying to explore the rest of the country. My failure to find a job despite my B.S.E. in Aerospace Engineering, and a failing relationship finally drove me to the point where in September 1989 I just packed everything I owned into the trunk of my Cutlass, said goodbye to family and friends, and set out westward.

I had no particular destination, no job waiting for me, no place to live lined up, and only about 500 dollars to my name. It was one of the most foolish, and one of the smartest things I have ever done.

When I arrived in Los Angeles 8 days later, I was unemployed, homeless, and flat broke, but the journey had been well worth it. Needless to say, I eventually got a job with Rockwell International and got back on my feet, but my affinity for road trips had been sealed. Whenever I could manage I took the old Cutlass on the road, exploring all of the western States. Three years later, when I left Rockwell and moved back East, my Oldsmobile carried me back across the country, after which I proceeded to explore the eastern States. Then in August 1994 I prepared to move to Tucson and began another trip out west. The Cutlass made it as far as Springfield, and then died.

Now I own a motorcycle, and although I have taken it on a couple of trips, I have not been on the road nearly as much as when I had my Cutlass. Of course I have driven on several geology field trips with my classmates from school, but I still miss having a car. Someday, when I have the money, I will buy a 4WD sport utility vehicle, and then . . .