You have it a little backwards. The Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Dash took place several times in the 70s. The 1981 film was inspired by the real event, which in turn inspired people to keep doing it.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannonball_Baker_Sea-To-Shining-Sea_Memorial_Trophy_Dash

http://allamericanracers.com/first-cannonball-run/

When I was 12 and in Boy Scouts, my Mom taught me to hand-sew so I could sew on my patches. I hated it, with a passion I now reserve for grammatical errors and Star Wars sequels. It didn't help that my Mom was a perfectionist and she would rip out my work if it was just a little bit crooked. But I persevered and got my patches on my uniform. 9 years later, I made about $500 in a week or so sewing patches on my fellow sailor's uniforms before a huge inspection, a requirement for us to go on liberty. Once I went on liberty myself, I bought my Mom a really nice present.

(Oh, and I still do some sewing but I now help run a knitting shop. Yay threadwork.)

Also, he coined the term "Michigander" while describing Governor Lewis Cass in 1848. Granted, that might only be important to 3% of the population, but I still thought it was cool when I found it out.

Bagels and Lox aren't just a New York thing... any sizable Jewish community (especially an Ashkenazi community) will have them. And if we can't get lox, we'll put any kind of smoked fish on it. Hell, most Einstein's Bagels are in or near a shopping plaza... go to the store, get some smoked salmon, then grab a toasted cream cheese bagel and there you go.