"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to slide across the finish line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, and shouting GERONIMO!!!"
AND
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body,but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming -- WOW-- What a Ride!"
Attributed to Bill McKenna, Anonymous and in a Nissan ad.
"Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will not forget you." ~William Arthur Ward
Posts: 1914 | Location: New England | Registered: 11-30-00
velatropa24.com attributes "Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting GERONIMO!"
to "Bill McKenna, professional motorcycle racer, Cycle magazine Feb. 1982"
Posts: 2 | Location: Sterling, VA | Registered: 05-30-06
hey i have no clue who wrote this but i've also heard it this way:
life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sidays totally worn out shouting "HOLY SH*T...WHAT A RIDE!" im guessing people have changed it alot since it was first wrote.
to "Bill McKenna, professional motorcycle racer, Cycle magazine Feb. 1982"
I obtained the Cycle magazine issue of Feb. 1982 in order to verify this. This quote does not appear in the issue. This is a false attribution that is floating around the web and people keep repeating it.
Originally posted by Anonymous01: I just re-read my copy of Hell's Angels by the late, great HST, and that quote was nowhere to be found. Does anyone know where it really came from?
Look farther up the page and you'll see that Zendam has posted a QL Link to the answer.
Ask me anything on Charles Dickens. Mrs. Micawber to young Copperfield. "Boy, as I have frequently had occasion to observe, When the stomach is empty, the spirits are low."
Posts: 5102 | Location: Scotland, United Kingdom. | Registered: 12-15-02
The quote is absolutely by Hunter S Thompson and it is from the book "Gonzo". The book Gonzo was published in 2007, however it is a collection of Thompson's 'Gonzo Papers', which he authored between 1979 and 1994.
The exact quote is as follows:
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!” -Hunter S. Thompson, "Gonzo"
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body,
but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming -- WOW-- What a Ride!" First heard of this sentence.This message has been edited. Last edited by: Mrs. Micawber,
I wrote it for my MySpace 'about me' so long ago I can't remember. When this debate was first brought to my attention by a friend who saw my quote in another form, I thought I was going crazy! Had I written something from a subconscious memory of something I'd read earlier? But I clearly remember taking forever to write it. Fighting over the words I wanted to use. Choosing 'braodside' over 'cross sideways', thinking my son wouldn't understand the latter and I'm a huge fan of the old multi-mast sailing war ships, hence "broadside". There's even a paraphrase that substitutes "WOW WHAT A RIDE!" for "GERONIMO!" My nick! Geronimo5555 on MySpace. I copied it to FaceBook when it became popular and MySpace began to fade.
Robert Garry P.S. It's fine if you prove me wrong. But when I wrote it, I thought I was being original if that counts for anything.
I also clearly remember why I wrote it. I smoke, I drink and I live my life doing dangerous things. That day someone had said something to me about how my life style was going to kill me one day. I thought about all the people living life cautiously so it would last longer. I just felt sorry for them. When I was 30 years old, I was amazed at all I had done, I thought if I died tomorrow, what an amazing life I'd had. The thrills, the experiences, the tears and laughter...all richer to me because I lived outside the safe bubble. When DEATH comes for me, he will not find a reluctant victim, sorry to leave this world. He will find a grateful youth, awed by the opportunity he was given to experience this life, this great adventure.
I believe you. It's a great quote, that I have been sent often – always attributed to a different "famous" writer, which means it was more likely just found on the internet. Keep up the fight, and find your original post if you can. - N
I have seen many versions of this quote, with the very first one calling for a cigar and a mixed drink or a whiskey instead of chocolate and a Chardonnay.I began noticing the change as smoking became unpopular. Since the the point of the quote is to live on the edge, it would seem more appropriately done with cigar and a whiskey. I mean how dangerous is chocolate and wine? I have no comment on those claiming to be the author, I am just offering my observations and opinion. Here is the version I first saw many yeas ago. ago. "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways , cigar in one hand, whiskey in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO-HOO, what a ride!!!" Original Author Unknown
Another more refined version was published by Sir Walter Scott.
"“One hour of life, crowded to the full with glorious action, and filled with noble risks, is worth whole years of those mean observances of paltry decorum, in which men steal through existence, like sluggish waters through a marsh, without either honour or observation.”
I must add that my search tonight is the first time I have seen the versions sported by those into motorcycles and that explains sliding across the line and leaking oil. Whatever version is truly the original, I don't believe it was one of these. Personally, I Storm Chase and have been proud to post the version from my previous post for many years as it it fits my passion for life perfectly. I wish you all well and a long life. Glenn
It's a really interesting exchange but I'm struggling a bit with the timescale.
Geronimo5555 claims to have written the quote in 2004-2006. MySpace was founded in 2003 so that's the earliest date.
The first post in the associated thread which quotes the Geronimo variation dates from 2002. (03-15-02 09:53 PM) Could this date possibly be wrong? This site seems to have started in 1997.
The first post in this thread, which quotes the non-Geronimo version, dates from February 2004 (02-24-04 02:45 PM) so doesn't disprove Geronimo5555's memory except his original 2005 estimate.
If Thompson wrote the papers between 1979 and 1994 but they were published in 2007 as "Gonzo" one obvious explanation would be that the paper in question had already been published by 2002 elsewhere.
But I wonder why the "cloud of smoke" disappeared?
Brilliant observation! I must retract my claim and surrender that I obviously had to have read this quote some time earlier then rewrote it from memory thinking it an original thought. It's scary how our own brain can fool ourselves.
