Submitted by Adam Yamada-Hanff on Tue, 10/25/2011
Joe LoCicero a 53 year old man from Norway, Maine has done the unthinkable. He has driven his 1990 Honda Accord over 1 Million Miles! To celebrate this extremely amazing accomplishment, Honda threw a surprise parade in Saco, Maine for “Million Mile Joe” as he as come to be known.
The parade, along the Main Street of Saco, was complete with a giant odometer float powered by six people spinning life-sized hamster wheels. An airplane flew over with a banner that read “Way To Go Joe.” Local schools got involved as well, as students from Biddeford High School made floats to honor Joe. One of the creative floats was a replica of Joe and his 1990 Honda Accord nicknamed, “True Blue” due to its light blue color and a road adorned with banners marking special life occasions like Graduation, Just Married, Another Road Trip, and Million Mile Joe! The Westbrook High School marching band and color guard performed, and the Saco Middle School Marching Band performed as well. Shoestring Theater stilt walkers were part of the parade. Over-the-top costumed characters walked the streets, which included one person dressed in a number "1" costume with six other people dressed in "0" costumes, maps of Maine, and a pine-tree car air freshener. Joe and his wife, Sharon, happily waved to the crowd.
The parade interrupted a brief press conference where Joe received an oversized key to a new 2012 Honda Accord EX from Ashley Marble, Ms. Maine. The new car is a well earned gift from Honda to Million Mile Joe, but what is in store for “True Blue?” Joe is uncertain about what to do with his 1990 Honda Accord since he has new Honda Accord, complete with a lot of safety features and creature comforts his old Accord lacks. He was going to try to sell it for $1 million to a Honda dealership so they could showcase Honda's reliability, durability, and longevity but so far nobody has taken him up on his offer. (ummm.... really?!?)
“We at Honda are extremely proud of Joe. His accomplishment is really a testament to the reliability of the Honda Accord,” said Jessica Fini, a Honda PR spokeswoman. Tom Peyton, Honda's brand manager adds, "Joe's journey is a testament to his Honda's reliability and how people have come to count on Honda for more than 50 years to get them to where they need to go.”
A normal driver clocks around 10,000-15,000 miles on their odometer every year. It took Joe 15 years to get 1 million miles driving 62,500 miles a year. It would take an average driver 66-80 years to get to 1 million miles. That is farther than the average lifetime of 7 cars. Additionally 1 million miles would take you around the globe 40 times, it would be 4 trips to the moon... and back, and it would cost you $2 million in a taxi fare.
According to Honda, Joe is the the first person officially documented to have put 1 million miles on a Honda vehicle. Joe should feel quite proud of his accomplishment. Congratulate him on the Honda Facebook page
Way To Go Joe!
Source;
http://www.torquenews.com/1070/million-mile-joe-honored-2012-honda-accord-and-parade