Three Penn grads are 'Lost in America' for four months

This is the true story of four complete strangers, chosen to spend the next three-and-a-half months travelling together in a van. It will show when they stop being polite and begin to be real -- real computer hackers, that is. As Penn undergraduates, Patrick Crowley, Alex Okuliar and David Shelton founded an America Online site titled "Lost in America." The site is described in America Online's promotional pamphlet as "Four twentysomethings [who] leave the beaten path to explore real America? as online America tags along." "Lost in America" is supported financially by Apple Computer and those who log on to the page. The quartet of travelers kicked off their journey from Philadelphia last Monday. The van will not stop until the final destination -- San Diego. "We compare the trip to Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, without Bill and Ted," Shelton explained. "We have the opportunity to do and see so much." Using laptops and digital cameras, the travelers will record their lives for every day of the three-and-a-half month period. Details will be posted on the AOL site. The least expensive and most efficient way to transmit the traveling pictures and stories is via modem. When Crowley, Okuliar and Shelton were seniors at the University in 1995, they proposed the project as an entry in an America Online contest called "Stake your Claim in Cyberspace." Their electronic mail entry was selected from approximately 20,000 applicants to advance to the second stage of the process. "We stayed up three nights to finalize and type the proposal," Shelton said. "The next two days were spent making our computer simulation." The tiresome work paid off when the duo traveled to Vienna, Va., to be interviewed at the America Online headquarters. The AOL Greenhouse, an entrepreneurial opportunity for individuals and small businesses, decided to support the Penn graduates. Shelton said it was a "killer" to start the business, adding that "it was also the most satisfying event in my life." "Lost in America" is a separate company from AOL, but Okuliar and Shelton share the site's revenues with the corporation. The site can be accessed while on AOL by typing the key word "lost." "Lost in America" opened officially last September. The initial group of five finished traveling in December. "The page was a great success right from the beginning," Shelton explained. "200,000 people looked at our page last month." Because of the strong beginning, Crowley, Okuliar and Shelton began the search for new travellers in October of 1995. Approximately 6,000 people downloaded applications from their page, and the "Lost in America" organizers received 400 completed forms. Diana Donovan, a Brown University graduate and one of the selected applicants, applied for the position after she quit her job because "of major burn-out." "I always wanted to be a photographer and writer, so this is the perfect chance," Donovan said. During their adventure from the East to the West Coast, the group plans to travel on the Santa Fe Trail, cruise on the legendary Route 66 and drive down Old Hunter's Trail along the Ohio River. The predicted route has the troupe visiting Amish territory, Harrisburg and arriving at Pittsburgh in time for yesterday's Superbowl Sunday. While on the road, they plan to communicate with locals who have contacted them on line. Shelton explained that the MTV television show The Real World, which has a concept similar to "Lost in America," began while he was finalizing his program.