"Can you imagine yourself driving across the USA in 1903?"

Can you imagine yourself driving across the USA in 1903 in a single cylinder 12 -horse power automobile through the deserts of Nevada and Utah, the muddy plains of the Midwest and over the Rocky Mountains? You encounter rivers that you have to traverse.

It is the dawn of the automobile era. There are very few roads, and those that do exist are for the most part horrendous! Detailed road maps are unheard of and you pretty much are on your own in figuring out how to arrive at your destination. Forget about gas stations, there are very few! Most of the time, in order to refuel, you have to arrange for someone to continually send cans of gasoline by train to be picked up at the various railroad depots. Your automobile is roofless, and you have to wear goggles to keep the wind and dust from getting into your eyes. The mosquitoes are treacherous! As you drive from one small town to the next you encounter all kinds of people, some of whom are downright nasty, as they are not too receptive in ushering in the automobile age.

This venture actually happened when a gentleman by the name of Tom Fetch accompanied by two companions, Marcus Krarup and N.O. Alleyn, drove an automobile called "Old Pacific" across continental USA in the summer of 1903. One of the participants, however, N.A. Alleyn did not have the perseverance of the other two to stick with the team until the very end and he quit in disgust.

Author, Dan Spencer, has based his enchanting novel Four Wheels Good on this unbelievable feat illustrating how a courageous individual braved the elements and persisted until his objective was attained. Spencer asserts at the end of the book that although his novel is a work of fiction, it is closely based on the actual events. He also indicates that he has tried to be as accurate as possible in his depiction of the various characters portrayed in the book.

The novel recounts how the Packard Motor Car Company egged on by their competitor, Winton, decided that it would be a wonderful publicity stunt to be the first automobile company to lay claim that they were successful in driving an automobile from San Francisco to New York City. This would convince all of those non-believers in the usefulness of auto travel in reaching distant destinations. The Winton Company had engaged two individuals, Dr. H. Jackson and Sewall Crocker to attempt to accomplish the same feat.

However, the Fetch crew would be taking a more direct course, as they would be following as much as possible the South Pacific railroad route. The Jackson expedition would be taking a more northerly path. The question was which team would reach New York City in the shortest time span?

Spencer cleverly uses realistic, "folksy" and simple dialogue in enabling the reader to feel, smell and experience the era when this event transpired. He also exhibits a profound perspective and understanding of small town USA at the turn of the century and its reluctance to accept new ideas and inventions. As one of the spectators remarks, "you boys must be either braver than soldiers or dumber than mules." However, little did they realize the profound changes that would take place due to automobile travel.

"Copyright 2002, Bookideas.com. Orginally published at Bookideas.com"

Reviewed by Norman Goldman
Courtesy Bookideas
Posted May 20, 2002