When things began to go wrong...

"Chad Allen had accepted the invitation to visit WAVM, and Todd Boothroyd couldn't have been happier. He got the coveted position of following Mags into Logan Airport to greet Chad and his family. It was one of those perks that came along with being a senior in 'AVM, and Todd thought everything was going to be great. He didn't know that he'd, proverbially, be sweating bullets by the end of the day.

All started off well on that sunny May morning. Todd borrowed his father's shiny new Bonneville and set off from Maynard High School with a couple WAVM girls riding shotgun. Together, they followed Mags, who was in the lead with one of those giant, bright red Lincoln Town Cars, into East Boston and Logan Airport. Parking was easy, and they made it to the airport just as Chad Allen arrived. Everything had so far gone perfect, but that's when things began to go wrong.

Visiting WAVM along with Chad Allen were his parents, sister and brother. Well, it seemed that Chad and his brother were fighting, in part because Chad was to be the focus of attention for the whole weekend. It was typical sibling rivalry. So when every one was getting back into the cars, Chad's Brother asked if he could ride with Todd. That seemed okay with his parents and Todd and the girls were more than glad to have him along. Chad's Brother, being the guest, got the shotgun seat, and that's how they set off, once again with Todd following Mags.

It was only a few miles down the road when Boston traffic began to squeeze in. Soon Todd was one car away from Mags. And then two. Three. Then Mags was gone. It was anxious-thought time.

Todd asked himself, "How could you lose sight of a giant, bright red Lincoln Town Car? It's like losing sight of an ice cream truck roving through the neighborhood when you're four years old. It just doesn't happen."

However it did. And Todd had to find his way out of Boston, alone. He didn't know the way and neither did the girls. If Todd thought Chad's Brother knew, he would have asked him. Mags had said they were taking 128 out until they reached 117, which would lead them back to Maynard. Todd saw plenty of signs for 95 and Route 1. There were none for 128. It was profanity-under-the-breath time.

Todd was lost with a TV star's brother. Somehow he had missed the road that would take him to 128. What Todd didn't realize was that 95 and 128 were the same. However, the road was no longer officially called 128 by the State, and, therefore, there were no longer any signs for that route. So out of a 50/50 chance of hitting the right route, Todd missed and knew it the moment they went North on Route 1. However, he hoped to find a connecting road that would take him home. Yet after quite a bit of time, Todd was still was lost with a TV star's brother. It was panic time.

Near Gloucestor Todd turned around, actually just shy of connecting with 128/95. And for the next half hour, he profusely apologized to Chad's Brother while speeding down various roads knowing at any moment he would be getting a speeding ticket while in his father's brand new Bonneville; because he was a long way away from Maynard and Mags, who would surely kill him when he got back. That was a sweating bullet time for Todd.

To this day, Todd can't quite remember how he got back home. The panic of the moments erased all of those thoughts. However, he did make it back, albeit some two hours late. Surprisingly, Chad Allen's parents were nonchalant about the whole situation when Todd apologized--quite profusely again by the way. What Todd does remember is how he got lost with a TV star's brother. And to this day, he shakes his head and laughs any time he sees Chad Allen on an episode of "Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman" or "Our House." and remembers those lost moments with Chad's Brother.

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