Who Needs the Dukes?

Back in 1979, American television viewers were introduced to the Dukes. The Dukes of Hazzard to be exact. The show opened with country music star Waylon Jennings strumming on a guitar singing, “Just a good old boys, never meanin’ no harm, beats all you never saw, been in trouble with the law since the day they was born. Straightening the curves, yeah, flattenin’ the hills, someday the mountain might get ‘em, but the law never will.” The show was immediately a hit; with such lovable characters, what wasn’t to love about it? You had Uncle Jesse, always giving country wisdom sprinkled with some references to the good Lord above. Then there were Bo and Luke Duke, those boys could find trouble in just about anything. Their cousin Daisy could have used some advice on proper clothing choices from the church ladies! The Dukes were always one step ahead of the law, well, most times they were. Their arch enemy was Boss Hogg, who ran Hazzard County and not with integrity either. He was always working on some scheme to make money or take money from someone, and by having the local sheriff in his pocket, along with the deputies, it made for an exciting show. Who can forget Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane? Or his deputy, Enos? Two bumbling cops who always seemed to come just short of arresting those pesky Duke boys! But no matter how hard Boss Hogg tried, the Duke boys always foiled his plans. Of course, this usually involved high-speed chases, and did I mention jumps? Sure, Superman was faster than a speeding bullet and could leap over tall buildings in a single bound, but he was from another planet. The General Lee was a car! You see, the show's star wasn’t so much the Duke boys, Daisy, or any other characters. The star was the General Lee. No, not the actual General Lee from the Civil War, but a bright orange, 1969 Dodge Charger. I think every boy in America and a few dads, too, wanted a bright orange Dodge Charger. The horn played Dixie when pressed, and they usually pressed it when sliding sideways around a corner, or making a jump, announcing that The General Lee had arrived! That show influenced my driving when I got my license. Just down the road from my house in the country in Northern Michigan was a place where two roads met. It was perfect for what I called the Dukes of Hazzard corner. I’d take that turn, which was part curve and part corner, like the Dukes themselves, sideways! Hard to explain the pure exhilaration, windows down, dust flying, and a 1974 Ford LTD sliding sideways around that corner. From the age of 16 till I turned 19, I had owned over 20 cars. Along with my cousin Roy, who also went through over a dozen cars, we enjoyed everything from driving through corn fields, to speeding down gravel roads and two tracks through the woods, sometimes driving through ditches using them as a shortcut to the next road. But when I moved to the Everglades, I discovered something. Who needs the Duke boys, a fictional family that had coordinated stuntmen and good camera angles? Hazzard County may have had the Duke boys, but the Everglades had the Daniels boys! What the Dukes were in a car, the Daniels were in an airplane and an airboat. If you live down here for any amount of time, you're bound to run into some of the brothers who are still around. I have a couple of them who attend my church. If you're fortunate, you’ll run into some of them and get to hear some crazy stories. There were six brothers: Darrel, Sherald, Craig, Randall, Dwain, and Wade. It’s hard to pick who was crazier in the air since none of them were afraid of anything. Like the time Sherald decided to take off from one of our local islands. The grass was tall, the runway short,and he only had a short space to get the plane up to speed. So, he told his friend, “If I tell you to hit the brake, do so quick and hard, it means we’ve run out of space and need to stop.”  Sherald said the small plane also operated as a lawnmower because the grass was so tall that the propeller was mowing it down and flinging it across the windshield! And then he realized he was running out of runway, so he yelled “Brake!” His friend hit the brakes so hard the plane suddenly stopped and flipped over. It wasn’t long before their friends showed up, flipped it upright, made some quick repairs, and flew it off the little island! The Daniels knew the islands so well, they could drive their boat wide open, no lights on at night, and evade anyone looking for them. I’m not saying who would be looking at them, but I do remind you that what the Dukes were to Hazzard County, the Daniels were to the Everglades! The days of jumping airboats, skimming the water in a plane, and running around the islands late at night are over. They’ve slowed down now, enjoying the breezy days, the fun memories, and their families. Darrel was telling me just today, “Pastor, one thing I realize when I look back to those days, it’s by the grace of God that I’m still alive.” The Daniels have been in the Everglades for many generations; they’ll give you the shirt offtheir back if you’re in need and probably share a funny story with you as well. So, who needs the Duke boys? Hazzard County can keep them. We have the Daniels boys here in the Everglades. Of course, I’d prefer the orange Dodge Charger over a small white plane, but that’s just me. Don’t tell Darrel I said that - he doesn’t take to kindly to anyone talking about his plane!