Listen to our conversation with Mark Gessler.
What better way to celebrate the100thbirthday of the Great American road trip than torecreate that very first journey.
Mark Gessler and Casey Maxon of the Historic Vehicle Association are traveling across the country in a restored 1915 Ford Model T touring car, following in the path of 21 year old Edsel Ford, son of Henry Ford.
The original trip took Ford and his boyhood friends from Dearborn to San Francisco for the World's Fair. And they recorded their journey with photos and a daily log of the trip, which provided the inspiration forGessler.
With a top speed of 35 mph, Gessler's journey won't include freeways and will be over a month long.
"We are on the backroads of America and we are taking every dirt road that we possibly can," Gessler says.
And he is enjoying the relaxed speed, saying it allows him to fully appreciate the sights and surroundings.
He hopes the trip can draw attention to America's automotive heritage and the importance of preserving this important part of our country's history.
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