So we’re going on a hare-brained road trip with three other people, leaving next Monday, returning on Friday. We’re driving from Toronto to Little Rock, Arkansas, to visit friends.
We’re not stopping on the way to sleep. It’s 22 hours straight, and all three of the guys going (Huius, Aiden, and Mr. Lissar) are over 6 ft. I’ll (5"4 standing up straight) be wedged in the middle.
It should be great, as long as we survive. We’re taking enormous supplie of chocolate-covered coffee beans, the Narnia series to read aloud, poetry, and loud music. And all the normal stuff like first aid things and spare tires.
Anyone have suggestions, comments, or hijacks? I’m working on what food to take, and how to keep my legs from falling off due to gangrene.
I don’t know anything about most of the places we’ll be passing through, or about Arkansas itself, except that it’s hot and they have good barbeque. I’m planning on sampling regional delicacies and avoiding scary bugs.
So, do y’all have good advice or cool road trip stories to share? Of course you do!
Back in 1983 I was a broke college student and during spring break we were leaving Moab, UT on our way to Vegas to see the Dead.
We’re headed out of town, the buildings become fewer and fewer, we’re all excited, so naturally I speed up.
By the time I reach the 50 mph sign I’m going around 55.
The dreaded lights of a cop car light up my rear view mirror.
I follow the cop car back into town, to the police station, I get my speeding ticket (I was in a 35 mph zone), and circumstances dictated that I pay the fine right then and there. That was just about all the money I had for the trip. However - my friend had recently received and cashed his tax refund check so we were OK!
Last year my wife and I passed through the little burgh of Pine Bush, New York.
We’re headed out of town, the buildings become fewer and fewer, we’re all excited, so naturally I speed up…
My wife got us one of those little refrigerators that you plug into the cigarette lighter. As we motored up I95 from DC to NYC we slurped down cold drinks and congratulated ourselves on our newly enhanced quality of life.
The car started acting funny. We got off I95 at Elkton, MD and drove to the nearest parking lot with the engine sputtering and the car seeming like it was slowly dying. It turned out the little refrigerator was sucking the life out of the car. Once we unplugged it the car came back to life and all was well - except no more cold drinks and chilled sandwiches.
No major advice really - just make sure that no one drives too long. What happens is that the person driving keeps saying he’s OK when really he’s not. It’s really hard to pry that person away from the steering wheel but pry you must.
Make the maximum driving shift one and a half hours. Yes, most folks can drive two, three, or four times that long, but that’s not the point. With a leg stretch every 90 minutes and a driving stint that can’t even begin to cause fatigue, everyone will be less distressed by the drive.
The hard part is being hard-ass about insisting on the 90 minute maximum. Get everyone to agree to it beforehand, and enforce it. Try it, you’ll like it.
I drove from Chicago to Denver (1000 mi.) in 17 hours WITH A TODDLER! We just stopped for potty breaks and grilled cheese sammiches. I loved that trip!
Skip the vivarin, I took 32 in 24 hours going from Las Cruces NM to Springfield MA, my eyes were so dialated that with no moon or stars I could turn off my lights and see like a cat. I thought my heart was going to jump out of my throat and dance on the dash board. BTW I made it 2336 miles in 40 hours, my personal best.
Other stupid stuff from many cross country adventures. If you are going to yawn, fight it, it will wake you up and keeps you occupied for about 15 seconds. If you find yourself getting aroused for no reason, your going to fall asleep. If you find yourself trying to fart just so you can break the monotony, pull over. If your going to pee in a gatorade bottle, pick up the empty one. Seeing how fast you can go while taking a picture of the speedo is not only stupid, but makes for really cool pictures,123 personal record. While in S. Dakota you can actually have complete dreams while driving. Be careful of where you pull over to sleep there may be a grizzly 30 feet away (Sierra Nevadas '95). If with SO make sure they have new sneakers, its amazing how much some girls feet can sweat sitting in a car. Never wear a Dead T-shirt and Phish hat heading back into the states. A “massager” in a sock in the girlfriends bag not only makes for 3 very red customs/border patrol guys, but gets you back on your way very quick. The cruise control does have an upper limit. There are more misquitos in a BC and Alaska than there are molecules in the universe.
I’m sure there are more, but those are the basics, oh yeah bring a spare key or just don’t give the one you have to the idiot your traveling with.
Of course I don’t have to tell you that Minneapolis is practically on the way from Toronto to Little Rock.
I mean, c’mon. What does Little Rock have that we don’t? We’ve got culture and stuff. We’ve got art museums. We’ve got the Mall of America for cryin’ out loud! We’ve got hotdish! I can promise you that you won’t be gettin’ any of my aunt Lena’s hamburger rice hotdish in Arkansas.
I like the suggestions of the Narnia books. I’ve always found books on tape to be a much better time waster than music. Once I had a 4 hour trip to my parents cottage, the book I was listening to (Acceptable Risk by Robin Cook) had 20 minutes left, so I drove up and down the road in front of the cottage until it was finished.
Trivia cars are also a good way to pass the time with a group of people.
Personally, I don’t think I could do the stopping every 90 minutes thing. It would really grate on my nerves.
I agree with the suggestions to change drivers every 90 minutes or so. Sure, you can do longer, but it wears you out and after a few hours of driving, getting out of the car for a stretch is something that you’ll all find most welcome.
I’ve found that no matter how much I like the CD that is playing, that it can be irritating, especially if I’ve been driving all day and the traffic is heavy and as a result, I have to concentrate more on the road. In that case, I’ll turn it off; passenger complaints notwithstanding. I’d suggest putting the driver in charge of whether the CD is playing or not, and make sure the passengers understand.
Give the transport rigs plenty of room–you may be able to stop on a dime, but they can’t. Don’t get so close behind them that you can’t see their mirrors, because then they can’t see you. And don’t jump back in front of them suddenly after passing them, especially if you’re going to have to brake (for example, to make your exit). In other words, don’t take chances around them–as a truck-driving friend of mine once said, “In an accident, a car will end up being a bug on my windshield, and there won’t be a thing I can do about it.”
And, have fun. Long road trips are a great way to see the country, but you have to be prepared. When you’re prepared, they can be fun; but if you’re not, they can be hell.
Everyone in the car know lots and lots of poetry by heart- it should occupy a good three hours, really. Given the people I’m going with, there will be lots of of philosophy happening, too. I think Aiden has decided to be a Catholic post-modernist and Huius is a far- right conservative Cartesian. And I’m sure everyone’s been reading extensively and wants to talk about it.
Osbie, Mr. Lissar and I will be in Iowa in August. If you really loved us and wanted to meet us, you’d drive down.
There’s always the Movie Chain Game. It’s real simple, someone starts with a movie (traditionally The Maltese Falcon) and then the next person names another movie that relates to the last one (stars, charcter names, director, setting, some obscure plot point). That movie leads to the next one.
Maltese Falcon
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Peter Lorre)
Finding Nemo (Nemo)
Toy Story (Pixar)
Joe Versus the Volcano (Tom Hanks)
See how it works?
Orrrr…
You could put on a blindfold and play “Who’s Hand is on My Boob?”
Loads of fun, except your married and that cuts down on the possibilities.
The first person names a famous somebody. Like, say, Lorne Green. The second person has to name someone whose FIRST name starts with the first letter of the LAST name of the person just named. So the second person might say Gary Coleman. The next person could say Cheryl Tiegs. If someone uses a name where the first name and last name have the same initial, such as Chevy Chase, direction of play automatically reverses.
It sounds simple, but it passes the time and starts to get challenging. We always tried hard to come up with more obscure people (Dana Plato over Denzel Washington) to amuse and delight each other.
I also second the book on tape idea. Our local library has a lot of books on tape and books on CD. I get really caught up in them and often find my commute is over without me realizing it. And I’ve sat in the driveway listening to the end of a chapter.
We have two-and-a-half drivers (the half only has his learners permit), and they’ll take turns.
There’s been a slight plan change- we’re going on Saturday. We’ll be picked up about midnight, after my friend’s wedding (arrgh. Must write speech) and drive all night and all the next day. Whee.
Winnie-The-Pooh books would be good, too. I’m sure we’ll play excited Roadkill Bingo, too. “What the hell was that?” “I think maybe a panda.” “Do they even have pandas in Kentucky?”
I’m sure we’ll be really, really good at all sorts of car games by the end.
To hijack my own thread, Mr. Lissar really looks like Orlando Bloom. We went to Pirates Of The Carribean last night, and it was kind of freaky. I’d see Bloom, and then I’d turn and look at Mr. Lissar, and then go back to watching the movie, and then look back at my other half…
Really startling resemblance.
Any food packing suggestions? I’m taking damp towels, because someone is going to spill stuff all over or eat something sticky. I’m thinking a cooler with lots of drinks, , sandwiches, muffins maybe. Also, tell me about Arkansas.
However - my friend had recently received and cashed his tax refund check so we were OK! 