96-Year-Old Uber Driver from Point Boro Tearin' Up the Roads

Edsel Studebaker has loved cars his whole life. He got his first car, a used Ford Model T, in 1940 when he was 16. "I loved that old wreck." he says. "I practically had to rebuild the whole thing, but it taught me a lot about engines and got me where I needed to go." These days he's driving an immaculate 2014 Chevy Malibu, but he still loves driving. It was only natural that he would become an Uber driver.

"During World War II, I was assigned to the motor pool. I would keep the jeeps running and serve as a driver for officers," Studebaker explains. "One time I even got to drive General George Patton around when his usual driver was ill. It was quite an experience. I remember he came up to the Jeep and I was standing at attention, saluting, and he slapped me in the face. He said, 'You call that a salute, soldier?!' He was always slapping me for one reason or another, but he slapped everyone. A guy would bring him coffee and he'd get slapped for not putting enough sugar. Someone would bring the general a report, and he would slap the guy for being too slow. But his men would follow him to the ends of the earth. They loved him, or maybe they were just afraid of getting slapped. I don't really know. What was the question?"

After the war, Studebaker started his own courier company in Brick, called Uptown Package Service (UPS). "I thought 'Uptown' made it sound classy. I was pretty successful and eventually my son joined the company. We really made a killing when the World Wide Internet came along. My grandson had created something called UPS.com and United Parcel Service wanted it. They paid us a pretty penny, too.  I retired in 2005 and my son runs the business now. We just aren't allowed to call it UPS anymore. What was the question?"

Studebaker thought most of his driving days were behind him until one night he got a call from one of his great grandsons. "He said, 'Grampy, can you do me a favor and come pick me up?' Turns out the lad had a little too much to drink and didn't want his parents to know. I picked him up with some of his friends and drove 'em all home. I didn't really mind. Glad the kids got home safe. My great grandson thanked me and said he and his friends couldn't afford an Uber. I didn't know what an Uber was, but he explained it to me and I realized that it was something I'd be really good at. After all, I'd been driving people around since World War II. Did I tell you about that time I drove General Patton around? What was the question?"

Studebaker has been an Uber driver for a little over a year. He says that he has some regular clients in Brick and Bay Head who just need rides around town. He is also very popular with inebriated young people who like that he drives really slowly when their heads are spinning. Not everyone is a fan, though.

Antia Lift hired Studebaker to drive her to the airport and it didn't go as expected. "The whole ride on the Parkway I don't think he ever went faster than 55 once!" she says. "He kept saying slow and steady wins the race. I mean he was a nice guy, but he told me a story about driving some general around three times!. By the time we got to the airport, I had missed my flight by 15 minutes! I don't want to sound mean, but maybe he's a little old to be driving on highways."

Edsel Studebaker is unfazed by criticism. "Not everyone is going to like you. Not much you can do about it. I think most people who I drive are pretty happy with the service. It's nice having a new career. I think I'll keep driving as long as I live. After all, I've been driving since 1940 when I got an old Ford Model T at the age of 16. Learned a lot from that car. What was the question?"