TEENS TAKE VANTASY TREK

It started as a dream, a way to end the tireless, monotonous life of dishwashing.

There was no chance Alex Goya and Travis Wallgren were going to spend their last summer before entering college working at the Moroccan restaurant in Boulder City.

With a thirst for adventure and a challenge, the two were determined to have a summer they could never forget.

They would go on a road trip.

But, this would be no ordinary trip. This would be a cross-country odyssey. They would go without any money. They would rely on strangers and their good nature to get them from California to New York.

And they would fund the trip by trying to gather the greatest number of signatures ever written on a motor vehicle. They wanted to set a record good enough for Guinness World Records.

"We needed a goal, something to make it interesting, something to make it fun. Without that, it would have just been driving," said Goya, 18.

On Sunday, after traveling 7,000 miles through 22 states and 27 cities in Goya's 1998 Oldsmobile Silhouette -- a minivan without air-conditioning or a working driver's side window -- the two honor students arrived back home in Boulder City.

It all started at 7:45 a.m. June 29, when Goya and Wallgren left town and headed to Encinitas, Calif., on San Diego County's north coast. After filling up the gas tank of The Vantasy, as they called the minivan, they ditched their wallets and took a sample of seawater from the Pacific.

From then on, they had four goals: to collect signatures; to drop water from the Pacific into the Atlantic; to travel on the kindness of strangers; and to document the trip.

"A lot of people our age don't have the fortitude just to follow through, a lot of people dream, but we really did it," Goya said.

After being pulled over in their underwear while trying to beat the nighttime heat in Virginia, kicked out of the U.S. Capitol for being in a restricted area, and getting their GPS navigational system stolen when someone smashed one of minivan's windows in New York, the two still call their coast-to-coast expedition a success.

"No one believed we could do it, so when we did, it was quite satisfying," said Wallgren, 18.

Goya and Wallgren spent most nights in their minivan sleeping at the side of the road or in rest areas.

On July 21 Goya wrote: "Something about waking up at some random rest stop or on some dirt road next to nothing but a corn field and an abandoned gas station, that's just satisfying."

Four days later, his counterpart reported a different experience. Wallgren wrote: "From now on, I will be more than happy to sleep in a house, apartment, shoddy shack, or section of forest inhabited by bears. Yes, I'm over sleeping in the van."

Despite the summer heat, the boys kept the windows up the entire time to save on gasoline and to stay safe. "Most of the time we just soldiered it out," Goya said. "It's amazing how good 100 degrees feels when you'd open the minivan door just for the air and the breeze."

The two lived off peanut butter and jelly sandwiches until their bread got stale. Then they ate uncooked Ramen noodles, expired power bars, and fast food from McDonald's dollar menu.

They said they kept the cups they got from their first fast-food stop, and took the free refill mantra to the extreme, pirating drinks in every state where they stopped.

"We learned a lot about problem solving," said Goya. "After all the things we went through, we encountered a lot of bizarre problems that we just had to learn from and figure out how to deal with."

When they would run out of money, or come to a crowded area, the two would stop and set up shop. They were often in bar districts handing out business cards, asking people to sign the minivan and make donations.

They collected nearly 22,000 autographs, hoping to be recognized in the Guinness World Records book. Silver and black signatures cover the minivan's body, including the roof, headlights, mirrors, wheels, windshield and wipers.

The pair collected between $1,000 and $1500 for gasoline. They said 60 percent of that was from strangers. The rest was from friends and family they met along the way.

Before leaving, they anticipated having to look for temporary work on the road, perhaps offering their dishwashing services in trade for money or food. Yet, they found that wasn't necessary.

"You just don't know how generous people are going to be," said Goya. "Most people are actually pretty generous and nice."

The two said their quest to set a record made people want to help. Everyone wanted to be a part of it, Wallgren said.

Guinness has recorded no award for most signatures on a car, a spokesman for the book said. But that doesn't mean there won't be in the near future. The two teens submitted a request on the Guinness Web site.

Each year, the spokesman said, judges receive a "huge" amount of requests. Each one is reviewed and a team later decides what is record worthy. In the 2008 edition of the book, released Tuesday, are more than 1,500 new and updated records.

Goya and Walgren both said they would repeat the adventure if they had the chance, although they want to do something even more unique.

"I'd do it again, I'd do anything," said Wallgren, who will attend the University of Nevada, Reno to study sports journalism this fall.

Goya, one-upped his friend when he said with a laugh, "I'd do it again in a boat." He is heading off to the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash., and hopes to study theater.

While the trip has ended, the memories haven't. The signatures are still there -- Goya hasn't washed his minivan for fear the signatures will fade. And both travelers said they are excited about sharing their adventure with the new friends at college.

"I mean how else am I going to meet girls," said Wallgren. "Most people aren't going to have a better summer story."