He’s had dates by the load in different area codes — but just can’t find “the one.”
Trekking across the country twice in the hopes of finding Mrs. Right has proved to be an exercise in futility for hapless romantic Matthew Wurnig, who has proudly dated two women from each state in the US and remains on the hunt for his perfect match.
“I am still a bachelor,” groaned Wurnig, a 26-year-old and date connoisseur from Huntley, Montana, after making a series of failed love connections with the 100 women he’s met via online dating since 2020.
The star-crossed singleton told Caters News he for a significant other amid the throes of the pandemic in an effort to add some spice into his isolated life.
“I downloaded Tinder during lockdown due to boredom,” said Wurnig, adding that he quickly realized the app allowed him to set his location to anywhere in America.
“I went on virtual dates with girls in different states, and when lockdown was over, I wanted to do it in real life,” continued the wannabe hubby.
“All the dates went pretty smoothly, but unfortunately, I didn’t find that one special connection,” he added. “So, I decided to make the trip again.”
Putting the pedal to the metal, Wurnig hopped in his car, a decked-out white pickup truck, and embarked on what would be a five month state-to-state quest — which started in Michigan and ending in Alaska — for a bride.
“I drove everywhere except Alaska and Hawaii, I had to take a flight to those states,” noted the amorous nomad. “I planned my journey by mapping out the most time-efficient route.”
He meticulously mapped out each meeting with his matches, too.
Rather than treating all of his would-be sweeties to stale candlelit dinners, Wurnig curated every date to be distinctively special for his love interest of the day.
“I wanted to make sure that I was creating unique experiences for myself and each of my dates, so they were well thought out and not just standard, boring dinner dates,” he said. “Some of the date activities that we did include zip lining, parasailing, a helicopter ride, horse riding, paddleboarding, paintballing and air boating.
A lover of high-octane revelry, Wurnig admitted that he chose exploits that permitted him and his new friends to enjoy some zippy action.
“It’s so much better than just sitting across a table from each other and asking the other person questions,” he insisted. “That seems more like a job interview than a fun date.”
The adrenaline junkie added, “The worst kind of date for me would be going to the movies. You can’t talk, apart from sharing your opinion of the film after. It just sounds boring to me.”
Lucky for him, most of his hopeful darlings shared his daredevil spirit.
“Out of all the dates I have been on now, there haven’t been any horror stories as they’ve all gone pretty smoothly,” said a relieved Wurnig, conceding, however, that he’s encountered a few dull bulbs amongst his field of American beauties.
“Obviously, there were some that were a little awkward,” he said of his dates.
“Some girls were really shy and couldn’t hold a conversation very well, or they had a personality that seemed dry,” the adventurer continued. “There were also some girls with bad attitudes that I wasn’t a fan of, however, I respectfully powered through and none of the dates were too terrible.”
And although Wurnig struck up a spark with a few of his flames, the Montanan said committing to a long-distance relationship didn’t seem worthwhile.
“I did manage to make some good connections with a couple of the girls, but of course, they live miles and miles away from me in different states and after going on one date, it’s not like we would just jump into a relationship,” he said, noting that there‘s hope for some.
“We still talk and keep in touch,” confessed the Tinder jet-setter, “and perhaps if further down the line any of us happen to relocate, then something might happen.”
But his mating mission wasn’t a total bust — he did pick up some valuable life lessons along the way.
“How people grow up really impacts how they act, and it was really interesting to see this as I traveled from state to state,” said Wurnig.
“For example,” he added, “a girl from Iowa who grew up on a farm was entirely different from the girl who grew up in New York City. One is more laid-back and easygoing, whereas the other is more high-maintenance.
“I learned a lot about what I can relate to and connect with better,” said Wurnig. “So hopefully this will help me with dating in the future.”
He’s now sharing his pearls of wisdom with others hoping to score a spouse.
“While everyone is very different, it showed me how similar we all are, too. We all like to laugh and smile and want to feel special and have fun,” said the well-traveled inamorato.
“My dating tips for guys would be to just be yourself and be real. Girls just want to feel comfortable around you so that they can be themselves, open up and talk,” Wurnig advised. “They don’t want to feel shy or awkward around you.”
“I would also say just be confident and shoot your shot,” he encouraged. “If you see someone cute, just go for it.”
