Alice Ramsey's Cross Country Drive

Q: How long did the trip take?

A: We will leave New York City on the morning of June 9 and we arrived in San Francisco in the middle of the day on June 17. That's about 8 ½ days of driving.

Q: How many hours a day did you drive?

A: We plan to travel 10-12 hours a day, including stops.

Q: In what ways was your trip be different than Alice's?

A: Our trip was different from Alice's for many reasons. First, with the Mercedes, we were able to travel a lot faster, since our car had over 300 horsepower and Alice's only had 30. Our car was also very advanced technologically too- the Tele-Aid system and the navigation system are good examples of this. Also, there were two of us, instead of four women, like in Alice's adventure. Plus, we will both drive, which will make it a lot less tiring than driving all that way by yourself.

Q: To what extent will you really follow Alice's actual route?

A: We followed Alice's route as closely as we could on the roads that exist today. We looked at Alice's book (called "Veil, Duster and Tire Iron"), the original journal from her trip, and a children's book by Pat Hyatt ("Coast to Coast With Alice") to learn all the towns that Alice traveled through. We drove through each of the towns that Alice says she went through. To make our route, we circled all the towns Alice went through and then highlighted the roads that connect them. This wasn't exactly the same as Alice, because many times there was no road for Alice to drive on, but it was very close!

Q: How and when did you get the idea to make this trip? / How did you first learn about Alice Ramsey?

A: The idea started in the summer of 1998 when we started talking about driving cross-country together. A month or so later, Sue was on hold during a phone call to a limousine company in New York City. She heard a recording of automotive trivia and learned that Alice Ramsey was the first woman to drive across the U.S. in 1909. After hearing the message, Sue talked to Tara and we decided we wanted to learn more. Once we learned what an adventurer and a pioneer Alice was, we both knew that recreating her journey was something we had to do.

Q: Why did you recreate Alice Ramsey's adventure?

A: Alice was a remarkable woman that we both identify with and admire. Her adventurous spirit made her quite daring-from participating in local automobile competitions to being the sole driver in a group of four women on a transcontinental journey across the United States. Although she received the title of "Woman Motorist of the Century" from the American Automobile Association's and was named "First Lady of Automobile Travel" by the Automobile Manufacturers Association, very

little has been written about her. Yet, she was a pioneer both for women and in the automotive world. By recreating her journey 90 years later, we hoped to share Alice's accomplishments and her spirit of adventure so that she may inspire others the way she has inspired us. The awareness raised from our trip was part of the reason that Alice was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2000, the first woman to be inducted since the award began in 1967.

Q: What are some of the things you look for in a good car?

A: This is a hard question to answer because what makes a car "good" can be different for different people. Some people want or need a car that can carry many passengers, lots of cargo and maybe even tow a boat. Other people want or need a small car because it's easy to park, gets better fuel economy and or is more sporty and fun to drive. Some buyers want luxury features in their car, like leather seats (some versions even come with heat to warm them and fans to cool them), concert hall quality audio systems (radio, cassette, CD and 10 speakers, for instance) GPS navigation systems and a built-in telephone. There are two-wheel drive, all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive models to meet different needs and interests, as well.

That's why manufacturers make many different models that range from small two-seater sports cars to five-passenger sedans to minivans, sport utility vehicles, small and large trucks and full-sized vans that can carry up to 14 people and their gear. These are called "segments" or "divisions" of the auto market. As an "automotive tester or evaluator," when we compare cars, we compare them in their segment. For instance, we would compare all the mid-sized sedans to each other and not compare them to a minivan. The Honda Accord is a mid-sized sedan. Cars are sold and grouped in divisions, for instance Acura is the of the "luxury car division" of Honda Motor Company. The Acura RL car is a luxury car.

Today, for most people who buy a car, safety is the number one concern, whether their car is small or large. The most important things to look for in the safety area for a new car are airbags (now there are front, side and head airbags and some companies even have knee airbags), head restraints (to protect your head and neck in an accident), height-adjustable seatbelts (so that they fit all passengers), antilock brakes (these work better than brakes that the driver has to "pump" with their foot) and traction control systems (these systems use a computer to help prevent skids and loss of traction or control on slick or slippery surfaces, like snow and ice). Some people think that daytime running lights (this is when your car's headlamps are on all the time, not just at night) are also important to safety and that all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive is better than two-wheel drive.

You might have heard or read about the size of a car and safety. This is another consideration for some people buying a car today. There has been a lot of information about this because so many Americans are buying bigger cars - especially sport utility vehicles and trucks. These larger vehicles are safer in an accident because they have more "mass"- this means sheet metal, engine, tires, etc.--and are taller and therefore they protect their occupants better than a small, short car. The new

Volkswagen Beetle is a really fun car and it's very safe for its size. But, how do you think the Beetle would make out if it was in a head-on collision with the GM Suburban that is long, tall and heavy and carries nine passengers? How do you think the GM Suburban would do if it were in a collision with an 18-wheel semi-truck?

Q: When did you begin to like cars?

When I was growing up, I didn't think about cars very much. They were simply a way to get someplace. But, when I was 16, my brother and I bought a small motorcycle (it was a Suzuki 185). It had "knobby tires" and rode well on the road and also in the backwoods, which I liked a lot. We lived in the mountains of Massachusetts and there were lots of places to ride that were really fun. Then, when I was 17 and living in Washington, DC, I had another small motorcycle (it was a Honda 50) that I rode to school everyday (except when there was a lot of snow or it was really cold!). I loved it very much. I didn't really start to like cars a lot until I was asked to help "test or evaluate" sport utility vehicles and trucks for Four Wheeler Magazine in 1989. I was on the first crew of testers that included women. Before that, only men gave their opinions and voted on what they thought was the best new vehicle each year. Now, I love cars and trucks and have driven hundreds of them and have learned very

much about all types of vehicles. I have driven cars all over the United States and in 30 counties around the world. Today, I'm on a jury that votes for the best new car and new truck each year.

When I was young, I didn't pay all that much attention to cars. My dad liked to work on car projects, so growing up I remember many times watching my dad work on a car in the garage. He was very interested in all kinds of cars and he dreamed one day of owning a "street rod." A street rod is a car that was manufactured in 1948 or earlier that has been modernized, usually with some alterations to the body and a modern-day engine as well as many other details. When I was in high school, my dad began to build a street rod. It was a 1929 Sedan Delivery that had many modifications including bright yellow paint and a 400 cubic-inch Chevrolet engine. I wasn't very interested in cars then either, until the first time my dad went for a drive. I went along for the ride and I loved the sound of the engine and all the "thumbs-up" signs we got from people on the street. By the time we returned home, we had decided that we would build a 1932 Ford Truck for me. When we started building my truck, I didn't really know anything about cars, so there was a lot of things to learn. We started with a truck cab from 1932 and did A LOT of work to make it in good condition. (There was a tree growing out through the rusted floor when we bought it!) All the other parts on my truck are reproductions- the fenders are fiberglass and the hood and pick up bed is steel. It took us almost two years of working together to finish my truck. It has a 350 cubic-inch Chevy engine, gray upholstery, a modern stereo system and mint green paint. Just a few weeks after my truck was first finished, I went to York, Pennsylvania (about a 10-hour drive from where I lived in Massachusetts) to one of the biggest street rod shows in the country. There were over 4,000 street rods at the show and mine was chosen for an award! This was very special because only about 20 awards were given to cars. It was very exciting! Today, my husband Jeff and I drive my truck almost every weekend and it still gets lots of "thumbs-up" signs.

Q: Do one person do all the driving?

A: No, both of us drove the Mercedes-Benz S500, switching drivers

regularly, with each of us driving for a few hours and then taking a

break.

Q: How is driving a Maxwell different than driving a modern day car?

A: You can't imagine what a wonderful sight it was to see the 1908 Maxwell glistening in the sun outside the carriage barn in Bennington, Vermont when I (Sue) went for my first driving lesson. Alongside of it were the two mechanics, Jim and Justice, who restored it to running condition with proud smiles because it hadn't run since 1947. Driving a car from that period of history is very different although many of the steps are the same as driving a car today. The first step was to make sure the Maxwell was in neutral, because you have to stand in front of the vehicle to crank start it. Jim remembers that some of his relatives who drove old cars were run over by the car because it was in gear.

Here are the steps:

Put it in neural. Retard the spark. Turn the ignition to on. Turn the crank (this is not easy and requires some arm strength, I learned!). When the car starts, pull the timing lever toward the rear. Hopping in, you then put in in gear. There are two forward gears-low and high-with a space for neutral in between each and a reverse gear also. These are operated by a hand lever. There is a small throttle pedal to make the car go and a small brake pedal (both on the floor) to make the car stop. It can probably go 25-30 mph. I drove it probably 20 mph but there is no speedometer. The brakes are external band drum brakes that are on the rear wheels only. They are not as good as brakes today but I was able to stop fairly well. The steering is rack and pinion and is operated with a small steering wheel located on the right hand side of the car. It is actually quite precise.

I loved driving the 1908 Maxwell and loved its noisy engine but quickly realized how different cars are today from cars of the past. I also realized that Alice Ramsey drove and maintained this car for 3,800 miles! I admire her even more now!