Volume 5

Private Motor Coach, Inc.: The Alternative Choice When You Don’t Want to Fly

“My husband and I are interested in having you drive us from Greer, North Carolina to Beaver Creek, Colorado and pick us up two weeks later to return home…We normally fly but since September 11 are reluctant to do so.”

This email was dated September 29, 2001.

And, so it was that Dee and Lloyd Benedict chose Private Motor Coach, Inc. as an alternative to flying in the post 9-11 months. Their ride began on January 7, 2002. President Ed Lonsbary welcomed the couple aboard “Patty’s Charm” in North Carolina.  They traveled cross-country arriving at Beaver Creek Resort for their annual ski vacation. 

Beaver Creek has celebrated over 22-year of outstanding skiing, snowboarding, and resort excellence and is advertised as “Colorado’s best kept secret.” This resort village design combines the influences of renowned resorts such as St. Moritz in Switzerland, Cortina in Italy, and Val d’Aran in Spain – all known for mountain excitement and luxury.

Twelve days later, after indulging themselves in winter recreation and the resort charm of Beaver Creek, the Benedicts made the return trip home without having to board a plane.

Battlefields, Baseball, Bar-b-que, and Rock & Roll Add up to Fun traveling aboard “Patty’s Charm”

“The Great Elvis Presley – Memphis Heritage Tour and Pilgrimage” did not come from the pages of a travel agent tour book or a regional brochure. The Tour and Pilgrimage evolved from three elements. First is the available window of time August 9 – 18 free from career and family obligations. Second, add a shared common interest and love of Minor League Baseball, bar-b-que, blues, rock and roll, Southern culture, and Civil War history and above all else – having a great time. And third, add the chemistry of four good friends: Wiley Pearson, Tom Corcoran, Ron Arslanian, and Rick Lieb. In eleven days, these middle age guys touched each area of interest, some more than once, as passengers aboard “Patty’s Charm,” the Private Motor Coach, Inc. house on wheels bus conversion/motor home. Also aboard were driver/escort and company founder Ed Lonsbary and mascot “Rusty” – a six-year-old Cardigan Welsh Corgi. 

Their itinerary began the evening of August 8, 2002 with a send-off party at Rick’s home in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Wives, family and friends joined the festivities. The next morning, Tom, Ron and Rick stowed their luggage and refreshments aboard the private coach then headed down the highway. That first leg of the trip took them from Valley Forge to Frederick, Maryland to pick-up Wiley Pearson. Then, with the group complete, they went to Sharpsburg, Maryland for a tour of the Antietam National Battlefield. This Civil War site marks the end of General Robert E. Lee’s invasion of the North. This battle claimed more than 23,000 men killed, wounded and missing in one single day – September 17, 1862 – a record that stands until this day. The battle also led to Lincoln’s issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation granting freedom to all persons held as slaves.

From Antietam they motored through Waynesboro, Lynchburg and Roanoke, Virginia. They traveled along Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway, a 105-mile road that winds astride the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains and through Shenandoah National Park. They paused often to take in the spectacular vistas of the landscape to the east and west with Rusty at their feet. The Blue Ridge Parkway carried them through to Asheville, North Carolina. Continuing on, they enjoyed the scenic views of the Great Smokey Mountains, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge to Chattanooga, Tennessee.

A tour of the Chattanooga National Military Park brought to life the clash of Union and Confederate Armies in the fall of 1863 and some of the hardest fighting of the Civil War. Historically, the prize was Chattanooga, key rail center and gateway to the heart of the Confederacy. Following the Battle of Chattanooga, or sometimes called Chicamaugua, which occurred on September 19 and 20 in 1863, Union Armies controlled the city of Chattanooga and nearly all of Tennessee. The next spring, General William T. Sherman used Chattanooga for his base as he started his march to Atlanta and the sea. Chicamauga refers to an opening in the Great Smokey Mountains, which allowed the Union armies to cut the Confederacy in half and eventually take Atlanta.

On the lighter side, Wiley, Tom, Rob and Rick satisfied their love for baseball by watching the Minor League Baseball team Chattanooga Lookouts play the Mobile Bay Bears. Then, a day later, the men toured the Jack Daniel’s Old Time Distillery, which was established in 1866 in Lynchburg, Tennessee. On the tour, they saw whiskey filtered drop-by-drop through ground charcoal contained in huge 10-foot high wooden vats. Their distillery guide told them that the whiskey’s trip from the top to the bottom of the vat takes about two-days. After this journey, the whiskey is then put into 55-gallon oak barrels and left to age for three-years. The barrels are stored in 50 six-story warehouses scattered over 500-acres of land. Each warehouse houses a million gallons of whiskey.

In Memphis, they dined at Jim Neely’s Interstate Bar-b-Que, acclaimed by USA Today as the “Best place in America for a pork bar-b-que sandwich.” Interstate Bar-b-Que is world famous for its award winning taste of real hickory barbecue, prepared southern style from a secret recipe. Although Rusty, the Private Motor Coach, Inc. mascot, did not sample any Jack Daniel’s, he sampled the lip-licking barbecue and barked for more!

While in Nashville, they also visited the Grande Ole Opry known for its 75-year legacy, as the best entertainment and pageantry country music has to offer. As was the custom, the boys took in the Minor League Baseball game between the Nashville Sounds and the Portland Beavers.

Another day and more miles, the group traveled in the modern coach “Patty’s Charm” from Nashville to Tupelo on the Natchez Trace, an historic stagecoach and wagon road some 285 miles long between Vicksburg, Mississippi through to Tupelo and Jackson. In Tupelo, the fellows stopped to see the most significant landmark of the town’s modern history. The site is the 2-room house where Elvis Presley – “The King of Rock & Roll” – was born on January 8, 1935. The Elvis Presley birthplace is part of the Elvis Presley Center including the Elvis Presley Museum and Memorial Chapel. The museum houses a unique collection of long-hidden treasures from Elvis’ early life as well as his illustrious career. Themed - “Times and Things Remembered” – the museum contains hundreds of articles of clothing and personal mementos such as motorcycle boots and a jumpsuit from Elvis’ Las Vegas act.

There was more good eating at Hagy’s Catfish Hotel. Established in 1938, the “Catfish Hotel” is one of the oldest family owned restaurant in America and is located close to Shiloh National Military Park in Hardin County Tennessee. This nationally known restaurant is famous for its “All You Can Eat” Catfish Dinner. Today, a third generation of Hagy’s maintain the tradition of quality food and hospitality.

The foursome’s love for history took them to another Civil War Battlefield – Shiloh National Battlefield in Shiloh, Tennessee. Shiloh commemorates the two-day battle - April 6 and 7, 1862 – which proved to be a decisive victory for federal forces when they advanced and seized control of the Confederate railway system at Corinth, Mississippi. Shiloh is historically significant because it is the first major battle in the Western theater of the Civil War. The battle resulted in nearly 24,000 killed, wounded and missing.

On August 15^th, they arrived in Memphis, Tennessee for events commemorating the life of Elvis Presley. A seminar they attended at the University of Memphis asked them to ponder “Is Elvis History?” Zoe & The Alexander Band entertained them and a candlelight vigil honoring Elvis. On the 16^th, they participated in more Elvis Week Events: George Klein’s Elvis Memorial Service and The 25^th Anniversary Elvis Concert. The concert commemorated the sound and style that uniquely combined Elvis’ diverse musical influences – pop, country, gospel, and R & B. - and created a whole new era of American music and popular culture. Still trying to get their Minor League Baseball fix they watched the Memphis Redbirds take on the Iowa Clubs.

There was more bar-b-que in Memphis at the famous “must-eat-at” Beale Street Bar-B-Que. Then a tour of the 14-acre estate Graceland gave them insight into the legendary career of Elvis Presley. The highlight of the Graceland mansion tour was Elvis’ trophy building, which houses his enormous collection of gold records and awards along with an extensive display of career mementos, stage costumes, jewelry, and photographs. The tour ended in Meditation Garden, where Elvis and members of his family have been laid to rest. Elvis died in his Memphis home, Graceland on August 16, 1977 at 42-years of age.

Another solemn visit took them to the National Civil Rights Museum, located at the Lorraine Motel where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was tragically assassinated April 4, 1968. The museum offers the world’s first and only comprehensive overview of the civil rights movement in exhibit form. Through a series of vignettes of key events in the civil rights movement, the visitors gained a deeper appreciation of the history, struggle and personalities involved in the civil rights movement.

The return from Memphis to Bethesda, Maryland took two days making a full roundtrip totaling some 2,038 miles or more. The days flew by, as did the miles and venues. Many stories of the past were told and retold. New stories were added. Bonds of friendship between Rick, Tom, Ron, and Wiley were again cemented. For a eleven precious days these men were free to roam fulfilling their hopes and dreams. Their parting words to each other were: “Let’s do it again!” 

Tradition says, “The Show Must Go On.” “Patty’s Charm” Became a Sleeper Coach for the Cirque Éloize Stage Crew

The Tour Logistics Coordinator for Cirque Éloize faced a challenge.  How do you move a troupe of performers, directors and stage crew to 40 venues for over 80 shows throughout the United States September 2002 through January 2003?

Marie-Caroline Bergouignan worked out the logistical details for all the components of the five-month tour with only one gap: Florida. Through the Internet, she found the web page for Private Motor Coach, Inc. – www.privatemotorcoach.com.  She picked up the phone and called Ed Lonsbary.  When she explained the task, Ed listened and responded, “No problem.”

The arrangements evolved. Ed outfitted the coach with two additional sleeping pads to accommodate the six passengers.  Now, the stage crew for NOMADE, the latest creation of Cirque Éloize, could sleep aboard the motor coach while Ed drove them to the next city. The crew would wake-up around 8 AM to begin setting up the theatre stage. After the evening show and the stage was dismantled, about midnight, the crew would again board the coach “Patty’s Charm” to sleep and travel to the next location. Before each midnight ride, Ed offered them bedtime snacks.  In the morning, he thrilled them with his homemade bread.

This routine began on November 19^th with the first show at the Philharmonic Center for the Arts in Naples, Florida.  The next stop was a day later in Sarasota at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Center. And the last stop took the crew to the Raymond F. Kravis Center in West Palm Beach. 

Aboard were: Technical Director Nicholas Descôteaux, Stagehand Daniel Waddell, Riggers Antoine Mercure Gagnon and Tiago Chasqueira, Sound Man David Wirteger, and Stage Manager Marc Laliberté. These are the men are behind the scenes of the Cirque Éloize, a contemporary artistic troupe of performers, who combine theatre and poetry with acrobatic feats, song, dance, music, juggling, and circus thrills.

NOMADE mystified audiences during its five month United States tour.  Reviews describe the performance as “a dreamlike adventure, a celebration of the wandering imagination at the heart of the human experience.” Private Motor Coach, Inc. was pleased to help the Florida “show go on.”

“New York, New York”: A Special Occasion in Whitehouse, Texas

Scenes of the New York skyline transformed the Whitehouse Senior High School cafeteria into an evening of enchantment on Saturday, December 7^th for the Winter Formal 2002.  And, “Patty’s Charm” of Private Motor Coach, Inc. played a role in the evening activities too! Suzie Wassel, daughter of Ed and Patty Lonsbary, had asked Dad to provide the wheels for she and her date Adam Ritchie.  With a smile and a big hug, the answer was, “Yes.”

Participation on the high school cross-country team brought Suzie, 14, and Adam, 15, together as friends.  Athletic shorts, tee shirts, and jeans are the typical apparel for these teens; but for the formal, they appeared as an elegant young couple.  Suzie wore a red satin gown and Adam, a tux.

Their evening began in the Lonsbary living room for lots of photos.  Then, the couple boarded “Patty’s Charm” for a ride to the Olive Garden in Tyler, Texas for dinner. Adam had selected Suzie’s favorite pasta restaurant for their meal. Other couples headed to the formal too greeted Suzie and Adam throughout dinner, then groups posed for more photos. 

By nine o’clock, Suzie and Adam arrived at the school for dancing and entertainment.  Family cars, SUV’s, and pick-up trucks paraded to the school lot, but there was only one motor coach.  The couple arrived with a flourish of excitement. The school was alive with dancing and entertainment.

At midnight, Cinderella – a.k.a. Suzie – picked-up her cell phone and summoned the coach, “Dad, we’re ready to be picked-up.” Adam’s parents accompanied Patty and Ed for the ride from the school to the Lonsbary home so we could all share the fun and hear about the enchanted night “New York, New York.

“Did Someone Say Road Trip?”

The most frequent passenger aboard Private Motor Coach, Inc. always rides for free.

He has left his mark over 32 of states.  From the eastern shore to beyond the Mississippi River into Iowa, and from as far north as Ontario, Canada to as far south as Dallas, Texas, he has covered the miles aboard a luxury house-on-wheels.

His birth certificate shows his name is Waldsee’s Exeter, but everyone just calls him “Rusty.” You might say that he is a unique breed  - “The Queen’s Dog,” Welsh folklore references to the breed as a dwarf dog and friend to the Leprechauns…a red and white Cardigan Welsh Corgi.

Rusty was a puppy with noticeably big ears when he joined our family five-years-ago. His first ride in an aging Crown Vic took him from Hudson, Ohio to the North Hills of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on the lap of our daughter Suzie.  Little did Rusty know this was just the beginning of many road trips. Sure, there were daily rides in the family cars, but it wasn’t until 1999 that Rusty experienced a real luxury ride.  

Ed Lonsbary dreamed of a life on the road and a new option for travel.  He acted on this dream when he created a business plan for the company that he founded:  Private Motor Coach, Inc.  ( www.privatemotorcoach.com )

Private Motor Coach, Inc. is a unique travel company offering luxury travel aboard an MCI 40-foot by 8-foot bus.  This in not a seated coach.  Inside there is a living room, kitchen, bathroom with shower, queen-size bedroom, plenty of storage, and even a washer and dryer. Ed is the owner/operator.  He takes only two to ten people aboard for vacations and sometimes business trips.  Ed is the driver and escort, taking people anywhere there is a road to travel in the Americas.

Ed’s typical human passengers prefer sitting on the couch or lounging on the bed.  Rusty, however, likes riding with his head resting on the three-inch step leading into the living room with his long body stretched on the carpeted floor between the driver and passenger seats.

One word describes Rusty’s first motor coach trip:  Hot.  He accompanied the Lonsbary Family (Ed, wife Patty, Christopher, and Suzie) to Iowa for the Family Motor Coaching Association summer rally.  For several days the temperatures soared and humidity rose.  Even air conditioning couldn’t bring the temperature to bearable levels.  Only the night air or a ride with the windows down in the Acura tow car brought relief.  The entire family rejoiced when we left the Iowa heat and pulled into a state park along the Mississippi River.  Rusty doesn’t bother with a swimsuit, so he immediately jumped into the muddy Mississippi for its cooling relief.

Since that first trip, Rusty traveled aboard Private Motor Coach to Canada where he cheered the elderly at Oxford Manor Retirement Home.  He has gone to Niagara Falls; accompanied a group of fisherman to New York for a Lake Erie excursion; visited the First Monday Event in Canton, Texas; and helped escort Mrs. Virginia Williams, mother of the current mayor of Washington, DC, on a day tour of the nation’s capital.  Rusty has become a welcome companion and Private Motor Coach mascot.

Rusty’s most recent trip started August 5, 2002 covering 6,377 miles.  The first leg of the trip deadheaded (without paying passengers) Rusty with Ed from Whitehouse, Texas to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.  There, they welcomed aboard Rick, Wiley, Tom, and Ron and off they went on “The Great Elvis Presley-Memphis Heritage Tour and Pilgrimage.”

With Ed and Rusty as escorts, these four long-time friends visited Antietam Battlefield and other Civil War battlefields including Chattanooga, Shiloh and Chicamauga. They traveled along Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Parkway with scenic overlooks, then the Natchez Trace to Tupelo, Mississippi.  They stopped at the Grande Ole Opry in Nashville, a minor league baseball game, and then traveled onward to Memphis for Elvis Week Events and a Graceland tour to memorialize the “King” Elvis Presley. 

Rusty joined the group for the battlefield walking tours. He appears in their scenic mountain photos. And, he gladly accepted samples of some delicious barbecue throughout the South, a tasty change from his typical meals. This roundtrip returned the travelers to Bethesda, Maryland.

Just when it seemed time to turn south, an unplanned occurrence sent the coach and Rusty to Greensburg, Pennsylvania to visit Patty’s family for a week.  Logic followed that since the coach was already so far north, why not keep rolling north.  So Ed and Rusty continued onward to Ingersoll, Ontario to see the Lonsbary family, with a short day stop at Edinboro University to help Christopher settle into his college apartment. 

The return from Canada to Texas took five days.  The entire round-trip, August through September, put many miles under Rusty’s paws bringing him back home to his second most favorite spot – the family couch.

There will be other trips on which Rusty will likely stowaway.  For sure, he is headed to Alaska for five weeks starting in June 2003.  Unlike his first luxury coach trip to the hot fields of Iowa, Rusty will need his fur coat for those Alaskan nights.

Our motto is... "Anywhere - Anytime"