August Rider Stories

 THE DISNEY PRINCESS: There are some rides that I would pay for and it almost doesn't seem right for me to make money having so much fun. My female rider was in her mid 20's and she had worked at Disney World when she was in college.  She also got married in the wedding pavilion at Disney World at the beginning of March. She had 70 people who joined her there to celebrate.  We spent 30 minutes talking about all her experiences, traded Disney stories, did Disney trivia and could have spent a few hours talking "Disney."  She told me that her grandfather had always told her Mom and Aunt that he had brought them to Disney World and Disneyland many times, but when he went to her wedding in Disney World he said, "I've never been here."  She said that "if he's within a few years of remembering something we give him credit for it." She said her wedding was "magical" and she was up for 24 hours straight and she loved putting her grandfather on the Soarin' ride.

She worked in costume design at Disney and loved it. She told me a story I had never heard before. "The day before Disneyland opened, Governor Ronald Reagan brought his kids who wanted to go on the monorail and Walt Disney said yes.  The monorail hadn't been working and the driver did not know how to stop it. Somehow it worked and the driver was able to stop, but the secret service wanted to sue Disney for kidnapping when they found about the problems." When I dropped her off I saw her Disney suitcase and her Disney mask and a shirt that said, "Dreams Do Come True."  As I pulled away I was just thrilled with the ride and moments later I realized she had as much fun as I did because she gave me an $18 tip. I really should share the tip with Walt!

THE BAG: Frequently I tell riders that I deliver boxes during the week and people on the weekend and it's a lot more fun delivering people.  This ride was the first time I got to be a courier and an Uber driver at the same time. I went to pick up a woman at the Hilton and she leaned in the window and told me that she wasn't riding with me.  She had to get her phone back to her Dad and handed me a bag and said that he would be waiting for me in a golf cart. I drove 32 minutes with a bag.  Although passengers can't sit in the front due to the virus, I put the bag in the front seat and put a bag of masks on top of the bag to cover it safely. I couldn't make any suggestions to my rider and I got no laughs.  I arrived and saw the father sitting in the golf cart. I said to him, "what's your daughter's name and you better get this right?"  He did laugh and replied correctly.  Of all the Uber drivers she could have gotten to deliver a package she happened to get a courier, what are the odds of that happening?

TURNING 50: What are the odds that a woman 90 days from her 50th birthday, has a list of 90 things to do that she's never done before and she gets picked up by an Uber driver who has a list of 60 favorite foods he's working on eating before he turns 60? The odds are not high, but it did happen.  The woman was a social worker from PA who was here for a three day fishing trip with a male friend of hers. It was her friend's dream to take this trip and he wound up with an expensive, non-refundable ticket, so he invited her.  She got on the plane first, but he was not allowed on the plane because his driver's license expired 6 hours before he tried to board. She arrived in Myrtle Beach alone, with no fishing equipment since it was all his.  I picked her up at Wal-Mart and helped her unload all her stuff for her fishing trip which may have been with all men.  She was determined to enjoy the experience.  One of the things on her list of things to do is skydiving and the only problem is that she's afraid of heights.  She was delightful to talk to and we had a great time getting her mentally and physically ready for her experience.

DRIVING HERCULES: You really never know who is getting in your car and what they are going to say.  My rider was a 35 year old male who worked as a fabricator and installer the past 15 years.  Apparently, lifting granite and heavy things has given him almost superhero strength.  He thinks he can lift 400 pounds and his younger co-workers are amazed at how strong he is.  The guy is not tall and his arms are not big; where his strength comes from I have no idea.  He wasn't bragging, he was pretty humble, but he was also funny.  "Before my car accident I was ripped like Jesus."  He said, "Did you ever notice he always had a six pack-he even looked good on the cross."  "After my car accident the EMT told me to squeeze his hand while they gave me pain killers for my other hand that was broken.  Later at the hospital he told me that I squeezed his hand so hard he was getting X-rays, because he thought I broke his hand."  What really got me laughing was when he told me, ""I tell new workers that after six months of doing this heavy lifting, if you squeeze yourself hard, you'll turn purple."  Before he got out of the car he showed me his arms and they looked a lot like mine, yet he has the strength of Hercules, maybe I'll get super human strength too?

THE DISNEY COUPLE: Only two weeks after an incredible "Disney" ride, somehow I was fortunate enough to have another one.  A young couple in their early 20's were renting a car at the airport and they were driving to Disney World.  It did not take long for them to tell I was excited about their trip and I told them that my trip to Disney World was canceled last month.  They said, "why don't you come with us?" I would have loved to, but with my son visiting and work, it would have been difficult to do.  They met on a dating site five years ago and their first date was in Disneyland since they live in California. Since they didn't know each other they decided to talk on the phone the day before their first date, so they did for 12 hours!(really) The girl graduated from high school the day after their first date and I said, "that's one great week you had." One of their goals is to visit all the Disney parks in the world and they told me about their trip to Paris Disneyland where they ate all kinds of amazing French food throughout the park.  I gave them a number of suggestions about Disney World and I'm pretty sure when I dropped them off they wished they were already at Disney World.  I know they had as much fun as I did, because they gave me a very generous $20 tip.  Thanks again, Walt!