A 1990 GMC school bus, psychedelically reborn
SugareeLife on the Golden Road
This is the story of the McQuaid family, our bus Sugaree and 100,000 miles of amazing experiences over forty states and a small slice of Canada. Welcome to the companion website to my book, Sugaree – Life on the Golden Road, which will be published by the end of this year. This is where I will post photos that, for the most part, are not in the book as well as videos from our travels. I hope you enjoy them!
The Bus
A school bus with nowhere to be and no bell to answer to
SUGAREE started life the way most buses do – carrying kids to school, engine idling in a parking lot and looking the exact same as every other bus in the fleet. Then, it became a silver team bus that said, PANTHER PRIDE RUNS DEEP on the sides.
That part of the story is long gone. What's left is a 1990 GMC conversion to a hippie bus, decked from head to toe in beautiful colors inside and out. Sugaree is part rolling home, part stage, part time capsule and part hippie museum, with enough stories to fill a book (which, as it turns out, is exactly what happened).
Cassidy, Kelly, Avery & Dylan
- Chassis
- 1990 GMC school bus conversion
- Engine
- Detroit Diesel 8.2L
- Power
- Cummins Onan QD12500 generator
- Finish
- Hand-painted psychedelic livery, beads, 3-part auto paint by brush, primary bedroom with purple chandelier, 3-bunk room, full bathroom, kitchen & den
- Details
- Moroccan tassels, 7 AC ceiling drops, faux stone, lighted bathroom floor with embedded fused glasswork
- Status
- On the road
As Seen On
The bus doesn't stay out of the picture for long
Colorado Daily
"Hippie Revival: Deadheads bring back tie-dye vibes to Boulder" — SUGAREE made the front page on a summer weekend in Boulder.
John Fogerty
John Fogerty and his son Shane playing "Proud Mary" in front of Sugaree for the local news in Las Vegas.
The Book
100,000 miles, 40 states, and one very loud bus
Sugaree: Life on the Golden Road is the memoir behind the bus — the trips, the breakdowns, the campgrounds, and everything else that happens when you decide a psychedelic school bus is a reasonable way to see the country.
The book is still being written. This page will be the first place it's announced — cover reveal, excerpts, and eventually where to buy it.
No spam — just the launch, and maybe a few bus stories along the way.
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The Journey
Where the Golden Road has gone so far
Gallery
Photos from the road
The book only had room for a fraction of these. Here's where the rest live.
Videos
Sugaree in motion
Photos only tell half of it — start-up sounds, the open road, the paint job in motion.
What's Next
The Funky Monkey
If you have kids or grandkids, or even know a kid, check out The Funky Monkey. This is David's first and only children's book. It features a cool monkey in the zoo with over 60 unique animals, then names them in a coloring book section and then has three cool facts about each animal in the back. It will keep your kids occupied for hours!
Contact
Say hello
Questions about the book, the bus or want to swap road stories? Please feel free to reach out to me.