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Military vehicle group driving a bit of history on 90th anniversary
By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 08:34 p.m. EDT, Jun 16, 2009
WOOSTER: Harry Fike has been on a pretty amazing journey the past 85 years.
Most of it great.
He and his wife of 62 years, Betty, produced six children. That led to 20 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.
Some of it not so great.
In World War II, Fike as an Army tech corporal took part in men killing men during a three-year stint in the Pacific Theater.
But it wasn't until last Saturday that Fike embarked on what he calls the ''most emotional trip'' of his life.
Fike is riding in the lead car — a 1918 Dodge that served as an Army staff car in World War I — in the Military Vehicle Preservation Association's 2009 Transcontinental Motor Convoy.
The convoy, which includes about 60 vehicles at any given time, left Washington D.C., Saturday with the goal of retracing the route of the initial convoy 90 years ago when it attempted to link the East Coast with the West Coast in 1919 via the then-unfinished Lincoln Highway.
The 56 vehicles that arrived in Wooster at 8 p.m. Monday were on display at the Wooster Fairgrounds. The convoy is scheduled to pull out around 8 a.m. Wednesday.
''The reception from the people on the route along the way has just been fantastic,'' Fike said. ''People are standing 10 deep in some places. The way we are treated in the cities we've been in . . . has been truly outstanding.
''And then it got even better when we got here to Wooster.''
The original convoy stopped in Wooster — according to some accounts, at the behest of Dwight D. Eisenhower, then a young captain traveling as an observer. Eisenhower had a friend from Orrville whom he played football with at West Point.
After being elected president in 1952, Eisenhower championed the creation of the interstate system.
The vehicles attracted a large and diverse crowd at the fairgrounds. Owners and drivers were on hand for most of the day to relate history to visitors.
The American Legion Post 68 of Wooster put on a barbecue chicken dinner for the participants in the convoy today.
Fike and the 130 or so other drivers and passengers of the historic vehicles will have plenty of time to do a lot of thinking before they arrive in San Francisco on July 8 to end the trip. The vehicles top out at about 30 mph. The longest scheduled one-day drive is 231 miles.
Fike, who lives in Chambersburg, Pa., was offered his ride earlier this year by Army Sgt. Mark Ounan, who owns the historic Dodge car that Ounan said is valued at about $35,000.
''It's been a great ride so far,'' Fike said. ''It's only stalled a couple times, but the brakes smoke a lot when we go downhill.''
There are a lot of Jeeps and trucks and a few motorcycles, including a 1942 Harley Davidson. There also is a World War I ammunition truck produced by the Four Wheel Drive Auto Company of Clintonville, Wis., in 1918.
There also was an Army utility truck with a crane for hoisting engines.
There was an engine rebuild going today.
''We lose a couple vehicles each day,'' said Lee Holland, spokesman for the preservation association. ''But we tend to pick up a couple as well'' as new vehicles join the convoy along the route.
Fike said the convoy has been a trip back in time for him.
''I can't begin to put into words what this trip means to me,'' Fike said. ''It's probably a last run for me. I'm enjoying every minute of it regardless of how slow we're going or hot it gets.''
Bill Lilley can be reached at 330-996-3811 or blilley@thebeaconjournal.com.
WOOSTER: Harry Fike has been on a pretty amazing journey the past 85 years.
Most of it great.
He and his wife of 62 years, Betty, produced six children. That led to 20 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren.
Some of it not so great.
In World War II, Fike as an Army tech corporal took part in men killing men during a three-year stint in the Pacific Theater.
But it wasn't until last Saturday that Fike embarked on what he calls the ''most emotional trip'' of his life.
Fike is riding in the lead car — a 1918 Dodge that served as an Army staff car in World War I — in the Military Vehicle Preservation Association's 2009 Transcontinental Motor Convoy.
The convoy, which includes about 60 vehicles at any given time, left Washington D.C., Saturday with the goal of retracing the route of the initial convoy 90 years ago when it attempted to link the East Coast with the West Coast in 1919 via the then-unfinished Lincoln Highway.
The 56 vehicles that arrived in Wooster at 8 p.m. Monday were on display at the Wooster Fairgrounds. The convoy is scheduled to pull out around 8 a.m. Wednesday.
''The reception from the people on the route along the way has just been fantastic,'' Fike said. ''People are standing 10 deep in some places. The way we are treated in the cities we've been in . . . has been truly outstanding.
''And then it got even better when we got here to Wooster.''
The original convoy stopped in Wooster — according to some accounts, at the behest of Dwight D. Eisenhower, then a young captain traveling as an observer. Eisenhower had a friend from Orrville whom he played football with at West Point.
After being elected president in 1952, Eisenhower championed the creation of the interstate system.
The vehicles attracted a large and diverse crowd at the fairgrounds. Owners and drivers were on hand for most of the day to relate history to visitors.
The American Legion Post 68 of Wooster put on a barbecue chicken dinner for the participants in the convoy today.
Fike and the 130 or so other drivers and passengers of the historic vehicles will have plenty of time to do a lot of thinking before they arrive in San Francisco on July 8 to end the trip. The vehicles top out at about 30 mph. The longest scheduled one-day drive is 231 miles.
Fike, who lives in Chambersburg, Pa., was offered his ride earlier this year by Army Sgt. Mark Ounan, who owns the historic Dodge car that Ounan said is valued at about $35,000.
''It's been a great ride so far,'' Fike said. ''It's only stalled a couple times, but the brakes smoke a lot when we go downhill.''
There are a lot of Jeeps and trucks and a few motorcycles, including a 1942 Harley Davidson. There also is a World War I ammunition truck produced by the Four Wheel Drive Auto Company of Clintonville, Wis., in 1918.
There also was an Army utility truck with a crane for hoisting engines.
There was an engine rebuild going today.
''We lose a couple vehicles each day,'' said Lee Holland, spokesman for the preservation association. ''But we tend to pick up a couple as well'' as new vehicles join the convoy along the route.
Fike said the convoy has been a trip back in time for him.
''I can't begin to put into words what this trip means to me,'' Fike said. ''It's probably a last run for me. I'm enjoying every minute of it regardless of how slow we're going or hot it gets.''
Bill Lilley can be reached at 330-996-3811 or blilley@thebeaconjournal.com.
Comments
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Posted 07:11 AM, 06/17/2009
My dad worked on the Lincoln Highway in PA.
Have a safe trip and enjoy the ride. I wish I could go along.
