Thank goodness, it’s been probably a decade since the last time I drove more than 4 hours at a stretch. But when my wife and I lived in Bristol, VA, and we’d drive to visit her family near Brandon, FL, it took us about 16 hours to get there, breaks included. But we were pretty efficient with our breaks - maybe 25 minutes for lunch, and a couple of 5-10 minute gas and bathroom stops.
There was one spell where my wife was getting road hypnosis really easily - she’d be fine, but once she started driving, looking at the road ahead would hypnotize her into drowsiness. So one time, she only spelled me for 15 minutes the whole trip, and I drove the other 15 hours.
Another time, I drove on my own from Browning, MT (just east of Glacier NP) to the Black Hills of South Dakota in one 16-hour day. Again, probably 1 hour of breaks at the outside - and that much only because I took a side trip to see Devil’s Tower up close as the sun was setting. Looked quite dramatic.
When we moved from AZ to DC we drove with a baby and 3 cats in the car, making only one stop, and that one early on (New Mexico). I drove 25 hours straight with only gas/bathroom breaks (probably nabbed some food to eat in the car, but we never stop to eat on road trips) which is my record for at-one-sitting behind the wheel driving.
These days I probably would want to stop for anything over 12 hours if I didn’t have someone with me to alternate with.
I’m doing 11 or 12 tomorrow, as it happens; I do that trip 2-6 times per year. I’ve done 16 hours straight a couple of times, but that was pushing it. I’d say 14 is a good happy medium…never had any problems with it before.
If I’m by myself, I don’t stop for anything but combo gas/bathroom breaks. Road trips are why God invented beef jerky; might as well make use of it.
I did a couple of solo 15 hour drives in my mid 20s.
-Straight shot from Milwaukee to Atlanta stopping only for gas and fast food. Made the mistake of hitting Atlanta at rush hour and was trying to get to Gwinette. Oh, and it was June and it was in a car with no A/C.
-Return trip to Milwaukee from Atlanta.
-Straight shot from Daytona Beach to Baltimore stopping only for gas and fast food. Made the same mistake again and hit DC during rush hour.
-Return trip to Daytona from Baltimore.
I discovered that, for me, the drive from Boise to Seattle…about 10 hours…is perfect. I’ve about had it with the car by that point, but not too road-weary or tired. So…10 hours. Just would have to map it out so I end up in places I can explore a little while I’m waiting for the next day’s drive.
I drive between Chicago and the east coast of Florida 4-6 times a year. I did it straight through once, but lately 11 hours or so seems to be about the most I can safely do in one day. All I can really say is, thank God for iPod connections in cars. For some reason, music puts me to sleep, but if I’ve got a backlog of podcasts to get through, it really helps make the time fly (except the stretch between Macon, GA and the FL border. Man, that’s boring, and seems to go on forever).
You guys are hardcore. I can only stand about 7 hours behind the wheel. We frequently make summertime trips in our RV (sometimes 2-3000 miles total). I try to stick with a maximum of 400-450 miles per day. I guess I’m a lightweight.
RVs are different. Handling any oversize rig is more tiring than a regular car. You need to be more alert about clearances so it tires you mentally, and it is physically harder, even with power steering.
I just did a 14.5 hour drive Thursday I stopped for gas twice and probably a half dozen other times to pee after the energy drinks caught up with me. I’ll do the same drive on Sunday but instead of leaving after work I’ll be leaving after a good night’s sleep so I won’t need any supplemental caffeen.
16 hours is pushing it for a day of driving much more then that I’ll split it or plan on not doing much the next day. I’ll drive up to about 4 hours if I’m planning on coming back the same day but much more then that takes the fun out of the trip.
My record was I drove from Irvine, ca to Houston, tx in a straight shot. That kicked my ass 24 hours straight and the sun was setting as I entered Texas so the speed limit dropped and that almost killed my will power. I wouldn’t do that again or at least swap directions so I can drive at a decent speed the whole time.
22 hours is my personal record, 16 the healthy limit. Depends on what’s expected of me once I get there (sleep, or get working), and which side of the Mississippi I’m on: long stretches where I can aim at successive horizon points, or crowded ones through a series of metro ganglia.
I’d say nine or ten would be the cut-off for me. I’ve done the LA/SF drive a few times, which isn’t bad. It’s about 6.5 hours if you drive like a crazy person (and I do) and maybe 8 if you drive like a normal person. I did 7 hours a week ago, and it nearly killed me. Driving through Wisconsin is the most boring thing I’ve ever done. I’m going to revise my answer now that I’ve typed that out. If the drive is going through the forest with no signs of human life in sight for hours, then I can’t do more than 6 without wanting to punch myself. If it’s a drive through civilization, I can do up to 10.
I once did the drive from Toronto to NYC in one day, left after breakfast around 9AM and arrived around 11PM. We stopped 3 times, for lunch around 1pm, a break around 4:30 and dinner around 7:30pm. It was just under 10 hours on the road including a few minor cases of normal (no accident) traffic congestion. I felt that was about the limit of my ability to endure time behind the wheel. I guess I could work on building that up but I have no desire to.
What’s worse is dealing with traffic, spending long hours in a car going a relatively short distance. I once drove from NYC to Baltimore in 7+ one Thanksgiving Sunday (a trip that’s usually 3-1/2 hours and that I had even done in 3 hours a few times), and last October it took me 2-1/2 hours to get to an apple orchard in NJ that was less than 70 miles from my house. In many ways that was more stressful than the drive from Toronto.
I think the longest I’ve ever driven non-stop is six hours, and I will never do it again. You’re probably thinking “wimp!”, but I’m in England. Drive for much longer than that and you’ll be in the sea, or at least Scotland.
what mswhatsit said, altho in my case, hell will freeze over first before you see me driving in snow.
i hate with a deep, abiding loathing all things winter weather when it comes to four-wheeled travel, but most especially i have always carefully nurtured a limitless abbhorance for SNOW.
Of course I am driving a class A motor home pulling a Honda Accord and am in no hurry whatsoever since it is my home and I don’t have a schedule.
It is more comfortable than driving a car, however as mentioned above driving it is more stressful than a car.
Mostly because of the flaming idiots that think I can stop as quickly as a car and merging stupidly, or while texting, talking on a cell phone, and ect pulling right in front me.
