How difficult can life be without the right parts on hand? Consider Horatio Nelson Jackson. On May 23, 1903, Jackson made the first coast-to-coast automobile trip on a bet (recently documented by filmmaker Ken Burns in "Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip").
Because of the poor roads and still iffy construction of the turn-of-the-century automobile, Jackson's car frequently broke down during his journey. He generally had to wait for the parts he needed to arrive - ironically, by train. Before he had gone far, two other driving teams took off after him. Their sponsoring manufacturers had parts waiting for them, through a third party, at every planned stop.