My Summer of Hugs and High5s

Hi Everyone,

With the help of Advantage Rental Car and Duke Cannon Soap, I was able to take a 77-day drive throughout the continental 48 united states this summer. 

Driving cross country is always a cool trek but..it was the hugs, high5s and smiles I got/gave that morphed this mere trip into the experience of a lifetime. That’s right,  I said it: The Experience of a Lifetime.

How else would you describe a summer trip where you received positive interactions from almost 14,000 people - and you aren’t a movie star, musician, a part of a reality show or a social media sensation??

Nope, I am none of those.

I am just a regular, old dude who hugged all types of people from newborns to 96-year-olds - from sworn bachelors to newlyweds - from nomadic hitchhikers to US Senators and every type of person in between. 

I high5’d some people in two different cities and even hugged one person in 4 states….at the same time- figure out that riddle. 

I interacted with people from 57 countries- see full list below- which means I heard, “when are you coming to my country” 57 times in a ton of different accents.

I hugged hip-hop legend KRS-1, rock god Michael Anthony of Van Halen, that dude from the Apple Commercials -Justin Long and Bryan Wilson, The Texas Law Hawk.

And the landmarks...I embraced people at The White House, Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, The Sturgis Motorcycle Festival, the Four Corners Monument, The Field of Dreams, The Bridges of Madison County, Wrigley Field, The Oklahoma City Memorial, Dodger Stadium, Grand Teton, Twitter’s HQ, Mount Rainier National Park,  Dartmouth, Brown, Ohio State, The Mall of America, 12 state capitals and more.

I even came within a whisker of ringing the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

The seeds for my 48 state journey were planted this past January when I came up with the whacky idea of hugging and high5ing people at the geographic center/heart of the country on Valentines Day - as a way to give people a good story to read.

My time at the center of the country -Lebanon, Kansas population 195- was everything that I hoped it would be but, out of the 105 people I embraced, one really stuck with me: a guy that drove 400 miles from Wyoming...just to get a hug.

He read an article about me and greeted me in Ladow's Market with, “I drove all the way from Wyoming for this.” 

“For what?” I said.

“A hug.” 

“For real???” 

"Yeah.”

And with that exchange, we embraced.

Knowing that Wyoming was 400 miles from Lebanon, I kept an eye on this guy as I hugged other people in the market.

I watched him hug others in the market, watched him smile as he ate and watched him walk up to me again for another hug but what I really did was listen to him when he said: “Keep going, man. This is awesome...I gotta go."

And with that, the man that drove 5+ hours for an embrace was gone.

As I traveled back home to Philadelphia from Kansas, I thought about how far this guy came for a hug. 

'Surely there was someone within 400 miles that this dude could’ve embraced??' I thought.

‘Maybe not,' I concluded.

With this in mind, I pitched Duke Cannon Supply Company, a men’s soap company, on February 20th. 

My pitch was simple: I will hug the whole country, just for a moment, but the scent of Duke Cannon soap will be in the nation’s nostrils for the rest of the day. 

They bought it!

We set a start date of June 26th which left me minimal time to prep for where I was going to hug people, routes and press but I worked like a fiend to plan out all that I could.

Advantage Rental Car got involved, right before the tour began and when asked what they wanted me to do said, “Just keep doing what you do, Dave, and make people happy.” 

While I’ve put together tours in the past, I never had the major details fall into place like this before so I began this tour feeling extremely validated and boldly went after smiles across the nation.

But, as the tour went on, and especially after the events in Charlottesville,  I found myself going after positive interactions with even more aplomb.

I walked into a random frat house in New Hampshire. 

I visited the Birmingham's 16th street Baptist Church, a Greek Orthodox church in Rhode Island, a southern California synagogue and Colorado's oldest Mosque.

I picked up twelve different hitchhikers.

I hugged multiple generations of families at reunions in Mississippi, Iowa, Texas and Oklahoma.

I gave a talk at a women’s recovery group in West Virginia. 

I high5'd people on land, sea and air!!

I ambled up to two motorcycle club parties in Oregon.

I even ventured into a few establishments with confederate flags hanging outside and engaged people in a conversation - not necessarily to change their mind - but to have a good exchange and open their mind.

….and yes, I did get hugs and high5s each time.

I pushed every boundary I possibly could on this tour because, in light of our nation's latest tragedy,  we need smiles and good vibes more than ever right now in order to reclaim, revive and reestablish trust in each other.

We need to smile and see others smile right now.

 We need to connect - I mean, actually connect and not just give a “thumbs up" - right now.

We need to reach out to hug as well as feel safe within an embrace's warmth right now,

And everyone could use a high5 right now.

So, look through my Instagram images - @thehumanhigh5 - and when you do; pay close attention to the smiles.  

Pay attention because those grins and good vibes are what made all the difference this summer as well as what makes all the difference in our daily lives.

In closing, I want to thank the 13,986 people that I hugged and high5'd this summer; your warmth and encouragement brought me more joy than you realize and your life stories gave me persepctive that will fuel me on to new heights- blessings to you.

I also want to thank the many people around the world that I didn't embrace on this tour but who stayed in touch with me throughout my journey: you honor me as well as motivate me to see more and be more.

To the four indivdiuals I met on this trip who went on to NYC and took the time to take a picture of my friend Kevin Bowser's name at the 9/11 Memorial: the touch of your gesture is beyond measure, Thank you.

You may be wondering if, after hugging 200,000+ people in 49 states and 36 countries in 16 years, I am done.

Not at all.

I am planning another trip as we speak - so stay tuned and trust that I will hug you soon:)

And with that, I say, thank you for reading and if you want to talk or book me to speak call me 267.252. 1974.

Hugs and High5s 

Big Dave 

Experience of a lifetime, baby!

This summer, I hugged people from ______ in ____________

1. Austria ???? in DC
2. Australia ???? in Nashville 
3. The Bahamas ???? in Las Vegas 
4. Belgium ???? in Fort Worth 
5. Belarus ???? in Waco
6. Bulgaria ???? in Las Vegas 
7. Brazil ???? in Primm
8. Cameroon ???? in Los Angeles 
9. Canada ???? in various places 
10. China ???? in various places 
11. The Republic of the Congo ???? in Peterborough
12. Cuba ???? in DC 
13. Denmark ???? in Providence 
14. El Salvador ???? in Charlotte 
15. France ???? in various places 
16. Germany ???? in various places 
17. The Republic of Georgia ???? in Milwaukee 
18. Greece ???? in Cranston 
19. Guatemala ???? in Louisville 
20. Hong Kong ???? in various places 
21. Iceland ???? in Chicago 
22. India ???? in various places 
23. Israel ???? in Fort Worth 
24. Ireland ???? in Falls Church 
25. Italy ???? in various places 
26. Jamaica ???? in Oklahoma City 
27. Japan ???? in various places 
28. Kenya ???? in Orlando 
29. Latvia ???? in Nebraska
30. Mexico ???? in various places 
31. Lebanon ???? in Rochester 
32. Nepal ???? in Nantucket 
33. New Zealand ???? in Nashville 
34. Panama ????in Lefore County
35. Pakistan in Chicago 
36. Peru ???? in Charleston 
37. The Philippines ???? in Dallas 
38. Poland ???? in Nashville 
39. Russia ???? in Nashville 
40. Rwanda ???? in Nantucket 
41. Saudi Arabia ???? in Austin 
42. Sint Maarten in Chicago 
43. Scotland in various places 
44. Singapore ???? in New Hampshire 
45. Slovenia ???? in Bismarck 
46. South Africa ???? in Wichita 
47. South Korea in Hanover 
48. Spain ????in various places 
49. Sweden ???? in Las Vegas 
50. Switzerland ???? in Jackson
51. Syria ???? in Mobile 
52. Thailand ???? in Lincoln 
53. The United Kingdom ???? in various places 
54. The Ukraine ???? in NYC 
55. Turkey in various places 
56. Vietnam ???? in Hanover 
57. Zimbabwe ???? in San Antonio 

….and obviously The United States ????