# How much ground can you cover per day on a 1 man road trip? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 19, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547 "2011-07-19T05:04:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![jacob\_wrestling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/76d3ee/32.png) [@jacob\_wrestling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacob_wrestling)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/61 "2011-07-22T12:44:32Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Alright, I’ll probably end up scheduling it for 3 days then since that seems to be the grand consensus. I suppose if I’m feeling unusually good I can just drive until I feel like my attention is starting to slip - doesn’t really matter where I find a motel 6 to stay the night. I think taking (at least) 3 days is a good call. I’ve done LA to KC (both directions) several times by myself, a drive of 1600 miles-ish and 24.5 hours-ish depending on the route. I’m in my twenties with no health or comfort issues and, at the end of a 12+ hour day of driving, I am pretty much completely cashed. Keep in mind that while you’ll probably have no problems setting the cruise at 80 and blazing through America’s heartland, once you hit the front range in CO, your drive’s going to get a LOT more difficult and will require your sustained concentration. Mountain passes, windy roads (yep, even the interstate), and big rigs thereon will slow you down significantly. Get some audiobooks or load up on podcasts you enjoy. ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/62 "2011-07-22T13:25:13Z")
> [@brewha](#): > > I know the Speed limit is 70MPH through IA - except it drops down to 65 around Des Moines. You’re going to want to watch your speed when you are going through there - there’s usually cops around. Also, about 80 miles east of Des Moines there’s an outlet mall. There usually a speed trap there too. I generally set the cruise at 77 and can go through speed traps without an issue. Generally anywhere there is a 65 limit then 80 is the speed trap cutoff. I’d aim for 75-77 just to make sure. Usually the highest-risk area of the I-80 through Des Moines is Urbandale because they love to catch out-of-state speeders. However, there are almost always people zipping through and, unless it’s a holiday, you’re unlikely to be an attractive enough target unless there aren’t any usual 85+ speeders passing through. (On holidays, speed traps on the Interstate are par for the course.) However, people don’t seem to really drive any faster where the limit is 70. I generally keep it under 80 and I’m the fastest person out there. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/63 "2011-07-22T13:45:51Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Alright, I’ll probably end up scheduling it for 3 days then since that seems to be the grand consensus. I suppose if I’m feeling unusually good I can just drive until I feel like my attention is starting to slip - doesn’t really matter where I find a motel 6 to stay the night. Just don’t do like me and find your personal ability to notice your attention slipping is waking up in a the middle of a farm field beside the road a few hours later with the engine still idling :eek: Again, if you are alloting X hours per day of driving, IMO its a good idea to make sure you get up and on the road at Time of Dusk minus X hours minus another one or two hours for stopping, stretching, eating, and getting gas. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/64 "2011-07-22T14:21:19Z")
> [@horsetech](#): > > Huh? I’m a little confused by the first statement. The stuff that’s in your bladder is only going to go one way, out. How often you empty your bladder has no effect on how fast your kidneys filter and excrete water and other things, as the ureter is the point of no return unless you have a serious health problem. The rest of your post is right on. I’m not sure about the physical stuff but I’ve found that after the first time I pee I begin to urinate more frequently. The longer I can hold that first stop, I normally shoot for 6 hours, then I’m only in the stopping every hour to pee by the end of 14 hours as opposed to peeing 3 hours into the drive and then I’m down to every 30 min or less by the end. I normally start my drives after work the night before and drive all night so I drink lots of energy drinks, typically in the 16 oz/hour range, which may explain some of the difference. Either that or it’s all in my mind and I’ve just mentally correlated it to drinking alcohol where the frequency of urination increase as the night goes on. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/65 "2011-07-22T15:53:31Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > I may have to make a trip from Cleveland to Las Vegas in a few months by myself. It’s about 2100 miles mostly in a straight shot across I-80 and then I-70. > > I’d like to speed most of the way where practical since it seems like it’d be a major, wide open, well maintained, relatively low traffic interstate that’s basically ideal for speeding. Obviously I’d want to avoid a ticket, and I’m not sure where the highly patrolled areas are, but I’m a vigilant driver and do a good job of spotting speed traps. Don’t speed. Period. Take your time. Put the cruise control on the speed limit and laugh at all the other bozos who get pulled over. You’ll find that will lower your stress level, you’ll enjoy the trip more and you won’t be totally fried when you arrive. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/66 "2011-07-22T16:13:49Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Just don’t do like me and find your personal ability to notice your attention slipping is waking up in a the middle of a farm field beside the road a few hours later with the engine still idling :eek: > > Again, if you are alloting X hours per day of driving, IMO its a good idea to make sure you get up and on the road at Time of Dusk minus X hours minus another one or two hours for stopping, stretching, eating, and getting gas. I don’t mind driving after dark. I will knock off about 10 pm, and get up at 5 am. ---
**Author:** ![NoiseBomb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/49beb7/32.png) [@NoiseBomb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoiseBomb)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/67 "2011-07-24T01:27:58Z")
I’ve done Boston to Atlanta in one day by myself. I was ready to drop by the time I arrived. It’s fair to say I was not the most alert driver at the end, and doing this was a bad idea, now that I look back on it. There’s no way I would have been up for doing that kind of distance for another day or two. You’ll be tired, your ass will be sore regardless of how many rest stops you took, and so on. I’d keep it to 800 or so miles per day for anything that long. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547/68 "2011-07-24T02:00:16Z")
I’ve driven 700-800 miles a day a bunch of times without having any any problems. That’s about 14 hours, most of them at 65-70 mph. I’m sure I could have added a couple hundred miles to those drives had I needed to. If I were going 2100 miles, I would plan on two full days, with a very early start each morning, and arriving in the early afternoon of the 3rd day. I would then be confident I could operate pretty normally the next. I’m sure you could do it in two days, but there’s a good chance you’ll feel pretty wobbly the day after you arrive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-ground-can-you-cover-per-day-on-a-1-man-road-trip/589547.md?page=3)