Adam Boro saw the travel challenge on TikTok – throw a map at a dart (yes, you read that right) and go where the hole is.
“I thought, ‘I want to do that,’” he said March 4.
The dart poked a hole in eastern Nebraska. Boro entered a point in Google maps and it came up Staplehurst.
A resident of East Brunswick, New Jersey, Boro, 23, had heard of Nebraska but had never been here.
“As soon as it landed on Nebraska, everyone said I’d screwed up,” he said.
He flew to Lincoln Feb. 27, rented a car and drove to Staplehurst Feb. 28.
“It was an amazing experience,” Boro said. “I had never been to Nebraska before. I’d heard of it but knew nothing about it. It was a complete void.”
He thought Lincoln was a typical town, but once he left its city limits, he was out of everything familiar.
“It was a flat as far as I could see,” he said. “It was very different.”
The GPS took him to Staplehurst via gravel roads, something Boro didn’t expect.
When he got to Staplehurst, he said he was nervous.
“I wanted to make a video, but how would be interpreted? What would I even say?” he said.
He sat in his car for about five minutes before getting out and walking into the Good ‘Ol Days bar. The bartender was friendly, and two patrons there eating lunch, Brandon Luebbe and Jason Luebbe, initiated a conversation, Boro said.
They were about to leave after lunch. Boro said if he’d been any later, they wouldn’t have met.
“It was serendipity,” he said. “All my flights were delayed. The logistics fell through. Everything lined up in a crazy perfect way.”
The next 12 hours were filled with the unexpected.
The Luebbes took him on a tour of Staplehurst, including stops at Cross Creek Animal Clinic and Our Redeemer Lutheran School. While at Our Redeemer, principal Harlan Anson led the students in prayer for Boro.
“When I walked into the school, the kids freaked out,” he said. “They did a prayer – it was so nice.”
After the tour was done, Brandon took Boro to his farm where he got to drive a tractor.
“It was so cool!” he said. “I was scared at first, but it was fun. It really solidified ‘holy crap I’m in Nebraska!’”
He also took roping lessons from one of Jason Luebbe’s relatives. He got to feed a donkey and a horse and got to lead a cow.
They returned to the bar for supper and a concert. Boro said people offered to let him stay at their homes and bought him beer, which he had to cut off at 7 p.m. so he could drive back to Lincoln. He left town with five new t-shirts and plenty of memories.
Boro graduated from the University of Maryland in 2020 with a degree in aerospace engineering. According to his website, adamboro.me, he wanted to be an astronaut when he grew up, so after graduation he got a job at NASA.
He still wanted to make films, his other childhood dream. So he has, using YouTube and TikTok to get them in front of the public.
“I’m a nostalgic type of guy,” he said, adding that he uses his videos to record his adventures and then look back at them.
He taught himself video techniques and was inspired by other travel videos he has seen. He said he’d like to be a social media travel reporter.
“I love telling stories,” he said. “I’ve always been passionate about videos.”
In looking back at his 12 hours in Staplehurst, Boro said he’s inspired to travel more.
What surprised Boro most was the kindness shown to him.
“And how close everyone was. It felt like a big family,” he said. “I’m proud to be part of it. It’s not a thing in New Jersey. Even in my neighborhood no one says hi. It’s a different culture.”
