Sometimes the everyday challenges of life need to be countered with bold action – something different, or daring, even fun.
Like a road trip.
And that’s exactly what three women from Canada decided to experience first-hand, with the help of a generous and thoughtful Dodge dealer.
Angele Lafond, Ann Bacciaglia and Barbara Dundas – all ardent social networkers from Ottawa – were looking for a way to attend the annual BlogHer conference in New York City.
“We met through Twitter and tweet ups in Ottawa,” Dundas said. “We hadn't spent much time together until we hopped in the van. It's amazing how much you can talk with near strangers and all of a sudden, you're not strangers.”
Wait a minute … we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. The story about how the ladies were able to secure a vehicle for a long summer weekend is a good one, too.
“I first made contact with Barbara (Dundas) during the Ottawa Auto Show in March of 2012,” said Sean Gibson, automotive dealer at Ottawa Dodge. “I saw her tweets and gave her a personal demonstration of our products and sent information that she was looking for. We have exchanged tweets and comments since then.
“Barbara contacted us via Twitter wondering if I could arrange for a vehicle to the BlogHer event. Since the conference is sponsored by Dodge, and she had already expressed interest in a new minivan. I thought this would give us the opportunity to make her another happy Dodge owner.”
The ladies were loaned a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan R/T with all the amenities, like leather seats, dual-screen DVD system, backup camera, power sliding doors, liftgate, and MyGig multimedia and navigation system.
"I haven't been on a road trip in ages, and BlogHer was the perfect excuse to run away for a few days,” gushed Lafond. “I love the friendships and bonds that are formed on such trips - and taking a few days for 'me' was a much needed luxury with two kids and a third one on the way. I love an adventure and this might just be the best one yet!"
The ladies planned a whole schedule of tweets and blogs to their followers, and they were all set to depart the Ottawa area this morning, but then …
“The excitement took over, and all of a sudden we were planning an overnight trip that had us leaving 8 hours early,” said Dundas. “It was entirely out of character for three women with kids. But the moon was full and the drive was fun. It's good to be impulsive.”
And smart. The ladies seemed to think of everything. They even had a letter from the dealership explaining the unique vehicle loan-out, just in case they were stopped and questioned about it at the U.S. border.
It proved not to be necessary, though. Our three adventurers arrived safe and sound in New York City early this morning, and after a little shut-eye, started catching up on tweets and blogs to friends and followers.
“Going on a road trip to New York City with two girlfriends is the sort of thing most people do in university, but I was too ‘old’ for that,” said Dundas. “Twenty years later, thanks to Dodge, that's exactly what I'm doing. We drove through the night to maximize our time in New York. The navigation system guided us easily along the unfamiliar route. The driver's seat was comfortable for driving and the backseat let me have a good - but short - sleep."
“This road trip is a first for me,” said Bacciaglia. “I am attending to participate in great sessions and meet my Tweeps in real life. The Dodge Caravan was a great choice for a road trip. After that drive we arrived feeling relaxed and ready to conquer NYC.”
Now that they’re settled in, they’ll be joining thousands of bloggers who are coming together to connect, learn and inspire. When BlogHer 2012 begins on Friday, it will have close to 4,000 attendees, and about 90% of them will be women.
The Dodge brand ran a “Journey to BlogHer” contest targeting mom bloggers, with two lucky bloggers winning a trip to the 2012 BlogHer Conference. The program was designed to build awareness of the Dodge Journey and its product features to an important audience – the mom bloggers who entered the contest and the thousands that will attend the conference.
The Grand Prize winners are Emily Vanek of “Colorado Moms Blog” (http://coloradomoms.com/) and Laura Franklin of “Better in Bulk Blog” (http://betterinbulk.net/).
And this one-of-a-kind “road trip” will certainly end on a high note for Angele, Ann and Barbara. They are invited to the exclusive Dodge Decompression Session spa event Saturday afternoon, and following the close of the conference that night, a free Dodge Journey shuttle will take them to Times Square for a head start on a night out on the town they won’t soon forget.
