Influencer and beloved dog die in car accident two days before the end of the “dream tour” of the USA

Jesse Koz, a Brazilian influencer, died in a car accident along with his beloved golden retriever, just two days after completing a dream road trip from Brazil to Alaska

An influencer and his golden retriever were tragically killed in a car accident days before completing a trip from Brazil to Alaska.

Jesse Koz was just two days away from completing the trip when his 1978 Volkswagen Beetle was involved in a car accident in which he died along with his pet named Shurastey.

He had documented his journey with photos of himself and his dog at famous locations across the American continent.

He had traveled 52,000 miles through 17 countries before the fatal accident in which he collided with a Ford Escape on US Highway 199 near Selma, Oregon.

The driver of the Ford, Eileen Huss, 62, and a two-year-old passenger in her car both suffered minor injuries.

Jesse had started his journey in 2017 but his journey was slowed by the Covid pandemic and he was forced to return to Brazil after being unable to translate from Mexico to the United States in 2020.

But not discouraged, he set out again the following year, naming the trip “Shurastery or Shuaigow” – a play on Dog Day and The Clash song “Should I stay or should I go”.

Koz said: “We left Mexico in September 2020 with the idea of ​​staying in Brazil for only four months in the hope that the Mexico-US border will be reopened.

“But the months went by and no news that this was going to happen, month by month by month the expectation (of) diminished and the dream of finishing driving the Beetle was (gone).”

On the second attempt, he was able to enter Texas on February 9, before later visiting the NASA Space Center in Houston.

On February 10, he posted a picture of himself with his dog in front of a sunset.

Jesse said: “I told him how important he is to me and that I wouldn’t have made it this far without his company.

“He just smiled with his tongue hanging out and wasn’t breathing my face. I just wanted to enjoy a sunset in the company of my boyfriend, I know we have many more to come and as far as I’m concerned we always will be together until the sun goes down one last time.”

On his trip he met Brazilian Formula 1 driver Rubens Barrichello in Florida and famous places like Time Square in New York and Niagara Falls.

After heading west and past San Francisco, he reported last Saturday on the final leg of the trip to Alaska.

“Hey my friends, it’s time to enter Canada and finally head to Alaska.” he wrote.

“In the camp it started to get cold from yesterday to today and from now on it’s getting colder and colder.

“But the good thing about the tent is that it withstands sub-zero temperatures well and keeps the interior very warm, and it also has a ventilation system that helps (keeps out the hot air).”