Words About Things

Ever since I read Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas I have wanted to travel across America in an open topped sports car, seeing the film cemented this desire. I don’t plan on ingesting a car boot full of drugs but driving cross country really appeals to me. Unfortunately I don’t have an attorney to take with me but I’m sure I can improvise. Las Vegas is the obvious choice for a final destination in particular Circus Circus although if it’s anything like it is in the film I may have to make a hasty retreat.

There are plenty of great books and films which use the wide expanses of the American landscape and a backdrop to events. The great thing about a road movie is that the constant movement drives the action forward so there is never a dull moment. Jack Kerouac’s On The Road is another fine example, a vibrant narrative driven by a cross country journey in a beat up old  Hudson. On The Road was written on one long roll of paper in a stream of consciousness style aided by large amounts of coffee, its physical dimensions referencing the endless highways which cross America horizontally.

I have always wanted to hire a car on one side of America and drive all the way across to the opposite coast stopping anywhere that seems interesting. I have even gone so far as to look into car hire in the USA to see if this is possible. Clearly this couldn’t be done in an ordinary car, it would need to be a convertible and preferably red, a Dodge Charger or a Ford Mustang would do fine.

Some of the best movies of all time (and some not-so-good ones) have featured road trips: Easy Rider, À Bout De Souffle, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and of course SpongeBob SquarePants The Movie. The possibilities of the open road mean that anything can happen, the constant travel propels the story forwards and the characters always arrive home a different person.

“We were all delighted, we all realized we were leaving confusion and nonsense behind and performing our one noble function of the time, move.”

Jack Kerouac – On The Road

That might be slightly more than most of us want from a holiday but you get the idea: take to the open road and see what happens. You can’t do this in a Mondeo though, you need a Cadillac or something similarly retro. At the very least car hire is necessary so that you can get something big enough to pick up hitchhikers or sleep in the back if you can’t find anywhere to stay. You also need a video camera to record your adventure, a budget one such as a Flip will do and leaves more money free for car rental. Good Luck!