Ted Coombs
Encyclopedia
Ted Coombs is an American technology author, futurist, artist, and scientist. He set a Guinness World Record
for Roller Skating
across the United States in 1979.
He was an early author of the "...for Dummies
" series as well as over a dozen computer books, and a portrait artist. He is a futurist for the web site Futuristyx (formerly known as Future News Network) and information security expert at Risk Mitigate.
. One evening, while practicing roller skating
, he had the idea that he would like to roller skate across the United States
to protest the 1979 energy crisis
that was causing long gasoline lines and gas rationing in 1979. He contacted KZLA Radio
in Los Angeles, then an adult contemporary format station, and told them about his idea. They contacted United Artists
who was then marketing Lorimar Productions
' first movie, Americathon
, a movie starring Harvey Korman
and John Ritter
. United Artists saw this as a way to promote the movie and sponsored his venture.
He later learned that Clinton Shaw had already roller skated across both Canada and the United States breaking world records. He decided to skate further, returning across the United States. He left in May 1979 from a Hollywood gas station, converted to appear like a restaurant attended by stars from the movie, including Harvey Korman, to begin his trip across the US and back. He was followed by a van driven by his friend and musical partner, Brian Douglas.
Along the way he broke the record for miles skated in one day by skating 120 miles (139.121 kilometers) non-stop from Breckenridge, Texas
into Dallas, Texas
. He headed North and was given a parade in Chicago followed by Playboy Bunnies
skating in costume to greet the mayor of Chicago, Jane Byrne
. (Dorothy Stratten
, Playboy's Playmate of the Month for August 1979 and Playmate of the Year for 1980, appeared uncredited in the movie, Americathon as a stage dancer.) He headed East again through Columbus, Ohio
and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. He fell for the first time in the dangerous curve fronting the Pennsylvania restaurant, Noah's Ark, on a hill where you can view several States. With only minor injuries he headed to Washington, DC where he spent the day with Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill
, presenting him with a pair of roller skates.
The biggest event on his trip was entering New York
. The New York Tunnel Commission closed the Lincoln Tunnel
for his trip into the city. Accompanied by a police escort he remains the first person ever to roller skate through the Lincoln Tunnel. He was the guest of honor at a Central Park concert given by Eddie Money
and later attended the premier of the movie Americathon.
His trip was not complete. While he had fulfilled his agreement with United Artists
to make it to New York, his goal was the distance record. He headed south to Richmond, Virginia
and then west into Missouri
, where on September 13, 1979 he broke the World distance record in the small town of Mt. Sterling, Missouri. That night, the driver of the van, (someone other than Douglas who had left earlier in the trip) stole the van, abandoning Coombs in Mt. Sterling. Ted continued skating into Sedalia, Missouri
where roller skate rink owners in Missouri and Leavenworth, Kansas
, had skate-a-thons and raised money for his continued trip. Coombs continued until Yates Center, Kansas
where he stopped his trip, having skated 5,193 miles (8,375.33 kilometers). He took a bus to his home in Hermosa Beach.
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
for Roller Skating
Roller skating
Roller skating is the traveling on smooth surfaces with roller skates. It is a form of recreation as well as a sport, and can also be a form of transportation. Skates generally come in two basic varieties: quad roller skates and inline skates or blades, though some have experimented with a...
across the United States in 1979.
Work
Born on June 19, 1954 as Ronald Alvin Schlemeyer, he was adopted on July 11, 1956 as Theodore James Coombs.He was an early author of the "...for Dummies
...for Dummies
For Dummies is an extensive series of instructional / reference books which are intended to present non-intimidating guides for readers new to the various topics covered. Despite the title, their publisher has taken great pains to emphasize that the For Dummies books are not literally for dummies....
" series as well as over a dozen computer books, and a portrait artist. He is a futurist for the web site Futuristyx (formerly known as Future News Network) and information security expert at Risk Mitigate.
Roller Skating
In early 1979, Ted was living and working in the Hermosa Beach Animal Hospital in Hermosa Beach, CaliforniaHermosa Beach, California
Hermosa Beach is a beachfront city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 19,506 at the 2010 census, up from 18,566 at the 2000 census....
. One evening, while practicing roller skating
Roller skating
Roller skating is the traveling on smooth surfaces with roller skates. It is a form of recreation as well as a sport, and can also be a form of transportation. Skates generally come in two basic varieties: quad roller skates and inline skates or blades, though some have experimented with a...
, he had the idea that he would like to roller skate across the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to protest the 1979 energy crisis
1979 energy crisis
The 1979 oil crisis in the United States occurred in the wake of the Iranian Revolution. Amid massive protests, the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, fled his country in early 1979 and the Ayatollah Khomeini soon became the new leader of Iran. Protests severely disrupted the Iranian oil...
that was causing long gasoline lines and gas rationing in 1979. He contacted KZLA Radio
KMVN-FM
KXOS is a Spanish AC station serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area. The station is owned by Emmis Communications and operated by Radio Centro, which owns several stations in Mexico....
in Los Angeles, then an adult contemporary format station, and told them about his idea. They contacted United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
who was then marketing Lorimar Productions
Lorimar Productions
Lorimar, later known as Lorimar Television and Lorimar Distribution, was an American television production company that was later a subsidiary of Warner Bros., active from 1969 until 1993...
' first movie, Americathon
Americathon
Americathon is a 1979 American comedy film starring John Ritter, Fred Willard, Peter Riegert, Harvey Korman, and Nancy Morgan, with narration by George Carlin, based on a play by Firesign Theatre alumni Phil Proctor and Peter Bergman...
, a movie starring Harvey Korman
Harvey Korman
Harvey Herschel Korman was an American comedic actor who performed in television and movie productions beginning in 1960...
and John Ritter
John Ritter
Jonathan Southworth "John" Ritter was an American actor, voice over artist and comedian perhaps best known for having played Jack Tripper and Paul Hennessy in the ABC sitcoms Three's Company and 8 Simple Rules, respectively...
. United Artists saw this as a way to promote the movie and sponsored his venture.
He later learned that Clinton Shaw had already roller skated across both Canada and the United States breaking world records. He decided to skate further, returning across the United States. He left in May 1979 from a Hollywood gas station, converted to appear like a restaurant attended by stars from the movie, including Harvey Korman, to begin his trip across the US and back. He was followed by a van driven by his friend and musical partner, Brian Douglas.
Along the way he broke the record for miles skated in one day by skating 120 miles (139.121 kilometers) non-stop from Breckenridge, Texas
Breckenridge, Texas
Breckenridge is a city in Stephens County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,868 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Stephens County...
into Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. He headed North and was given a parade in Chicago followed by Playboy Bunnies
Playboy Bunny
A Playboy Bunny is a waitress at the Playboy Club. The Playboy Clubs were originally open from 1960 to 1988. The Club re-opened in one location in The Palms Hotel in Las Vegas in 2006...
skating in costume to greet the mayor of Chicago, Jane Byrne
Jane Byrne
Jane Margaret Byrne was the first and to date only female Mayor of Chicago. She served from April 16, 1979 to April 29, 1983. Chicago is the largest city in the United States to have had a female mayor as of 2011.-Early political career:...
. (Dorothy Stratten
Dorothy Stratten
Dorothy Stratten was a Canadian model and actress. Stratten was the Playboy Playmate of the Month for August 1979, Playmate of the Year in 1980 and was the second Playmate born in the 1960s. Stratten appeared in three comedy films and at least two episodes of shows broadcast on US network...
, Playboy's Playmate of the Month for August 1979 and Playmate of the Year for 1980, appeared uncredited in the movie, Americathon as a stage dancer.) He headed East again through Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. He fell for the first time in the dangerous curve fronting the Pennsylvania restaurant, Noah's Ark, on a hill where you can view several States. With only minor injuries he headed to Washington, DC where he spent the day with Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill
Tip O'Neill
Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill, Jr. was an American politician. O'Neill was an outspoken liberal Democrat and influential member of the U.S. Congress, serving in the House of Representatives for 34 years and representing two congressional districts in Massachusetts...
, presenting him with a pair of roller skates.
The biggest event on his trip was entering New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The New York Tunnel Commission closed the Lincoln Tunnel
Lincoln Tunnel
The Lincoln Tunnel is a long tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey and the borough of Manhattan in New York City.-History:...
for his trip into the city. Accompanied by a police escort he remains the first person ever to roller skate through the Lincoln Tunnel. He was the guest of honor at a Central Park concert given by Eddie Money
Eddie Money
Eddie Money is an American rock guitarist, saxophonist and singer-songwriter who found success in the 1970s and 1980s with a string of Top 40 hits and platinum albums...
and later attended the premier of the movie Americathon.
His trip was not complete. While he had fulfilled his agreement with United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
to make it to New York, his goal was the distance record. He headed south to Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
and then west into Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, where on September 13, 1979 he broke the World distance record in the small town of Mt. Sterling, Missouri. That night, the driver of the van, (someone other than Douglas who had left earlier in the trip) stole the van, abandoning Coombs in Mt. Sterling. Ted continued skating into Sedalia, Missouri
Sedalia, Missouri
Sedalia is a city located about south of the Missouri River in Pettis County, Missouri. U.S. Highway 50 and U.S. Highway 65 intersect in the city. As of 2006, the city had a total population of 20,669. It is the county seat of Pettis County. The Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area consists of...
where roller skate rink owners in Missouri and Leavenworth, Kansas
Leavenworth, Kansas
Leavenworth is the largest city and county seat of Leavenworth County, in the U.S. state of Kansas and within the Kansas City, Missouri Metropolitan Area. Located in the northeast portion of the state, it is on the west bank of the Missouri River. As of the 2010 census, the city population was...
, had skate-a-thons and raised money for his continued trip. Coombs continued until Yates Center, Kansas
Yates Center, Kansas
Yates Center is a city in and the county seat of Woodson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,417.-History:...
where he stopped his trip, having skated 5,193 miles (8,375.33 kilometers). He took a bus to his home in Hermosa Beach.
Further reading
- Guinness Book of World Records (1981, 1982, 1983, 1994)
- Rollerskating Magazine