Stoicheff Gives Thumbs-Up To Visit From Friend Childhood Pal Spent Life Hitchhiking, Made The Guinness Book Of Records
For once, Jim Stoicheff’s trademark colorful blazers were outdone.
The minority leader of the State House of Representatives looked positively conservative in his red polyester jacket Wednesday as he stood beside DeVon Smith, onetime world champion hitchhiker.
Smith, 68, traveled more than 2,500 miles - by bus - to deliver to Stoicheff a plaque celebrating their longtime friendship.
“We’re not talking about just knowing somebody. We’re talking about being friends for 60 years,” said Smith. He made the plaque from recycled scrap: sheet metal, tape, screws and bathtub stoppers.
Lawmakers and lobbyists gawked as the two made their way to the Statehouse steps to pose for photos. Smith wore a blazer trimmed in bright red and dozens of decorated pins.
“Bruce-o, this is my friend Smitty,” Stoicheff said as Majority Leader Bruce Newcomb and Rep. Celia Gould stopped to watch.
Stoicheff and Smith grew up together in Ellwood City, Penn. Smith remembers Stoicheff as a studious kid with a fondness for comic books.
Since those days, Smith has indulged his love of travel, hitchhiking so much he earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.
“The title of World Champion Hitchhiker is claimed by DeVon Smith, who from 1947 to 1971 thumbed lifts totaling 291,000 miles. It was not until his 6,013th hitch that he got a ride in a Rolls Royce,” says the 1982 edition of the book. He was unseated by a challenger in 1986.
As for Stoicheff, he got a master’s degree in literature and moved to Idaho. He’s been a state legislator for 24 years.
“We’re completely different,” said Smith. “Sometimes, opposites are good.”
The two stayed in touch. Smith hitchhiked from Los Angeles to Texas in 1954 to be best man at Stoicheff’s wedding.
His last hitchhike, in 1974, was from Pennsylvania to Idaho, to a surprise party for Stoicheff.
Smith quit hitching as the interstate highway system grew more complex and hitchhiking became illegal on those roads.
His proudest achievement?
Forty-eight states in 33 days on $92 for food in 1957.
“That was the absolute thing,” Smith said.