# My son is planning a cross-country road trip Thursday. Really bad idea, right? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 3, 2018, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820 "2018-01-03T21:58:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/41 "2018-01-05T04:08:19Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Yes, and after pulling me over for the lamest excuse (they had been tailing me for almost an hour), they asked if they could search my car. When I declined, they brought in drug-sniffing dogs. The whole thing took close to 2 hours, during which time the one cop kept trying to “good cop” me into admitting I was carrying some drugs. To be fair, I had almost the exact same thing happen to me in Ventura County after some douchebag in a BMW folded his hood under my truck hitch on Hwy 101 and then called his buddy at the Sheriff’s Department after highway patrol decided that his running into me was his fault. But yes, drive carefully through Kansas, espeically with California plates. As for the rest, they should just be prepared to not press their luck or sleep in the car under below freezing conditions unless they are really prepared. But hey, I did a New England road trip in mid-winter break on own with nothing more than a sleeping bag, a cheap pup tent, and a few hundred dollars and survived. If the young men in question have good sense to avoid hazardous conditoins and take shelter when necessary, they’ll likely be okay. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/42 "2018-01-05T12:45:16Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > If snow (or anything) blocks the tailpipe, the engine will stop within five seconds. Back your car into a snowbank sometime and see what happens. Read the links. It happens. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/43 "2018-01-05T12:58:17Z")
California drivers like myself are usually not that good on snow and ice. I doubt you will change his mind but I would recommend he wait for decent weather forecasts. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/44 "2018-01-05T13:06:51Z")
Granted I don’t like dogs, but regardless of that, someone who decides to drive thousands of miles to get a new one is not someone I would trust to plan such a trip particularly well. Any update on how they’ve done so far? ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/45 "2018-01-05T13:25:24Z")
> [@brujaja](#): > > Heh, yeah, right? You decide you want a dog, so you… google it? Apparently without any qualifying terms like “where to buy a dog _ **in California** _…” > Eh, maybe he wanted that specific breed or something. This. And some breeds are rarer than others. When we were in Carson City we got our [Anatolian Shepherd](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatolian_Shepherd) from a breeder in Tennessee – at the time there were about 4,000 extant in the whole country. She was air-shipped to Reno and we drove the thirty miles there to pick her up. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/46 "2018-01-05T17:31:59Z")
They should keep in mind that driving back, they will be limited to lodging that accepts pets. ---
**Author:** ![edwards\_beard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@edwards\_beard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwards_beard)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/47 "2018-01-05T19:50:48Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > Granted I don’t like dogs, Great username/post combo ---
**Author:** ![ZurBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/71e660/32.png) [@ZurBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZurBob)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/48 "2018-01-06T00:18:17Z")
For God’s sake, They’ll be ok… Barring cataclysmic events: In which case, we’re all gonna die. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2018, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/49 "2018-01-08T05:45:06Z")
Ha ha, they left Thursday afternoon… according to a picture text I got of Mount Rushmore late last night (Saturday), they are **already in North Dakota**. Ah, youth. No pictures of the dog yet though. Hm. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2018, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/50 "2018-01-08T06:16:29Z")
Let us know what the dog looks like! ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2018, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/51 "2018-01-08T16:18:02Z")
> [@brujaja](#): > > Ha ha, they left Thursday afternoon… according to a picture text I got of Mount Rushmore late last night (Saturday), they are **already in North Dakota**. Ah, youth. > > No pictures of the dog yet though. Hm. That’s one hell of a camera (Mount Rushmore being in South Dakota and all). ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/52 "2018-01-09T02:35:51Z")
I will! I guess they’re picking up the doggie on the way home, supposed to be tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/53 "2018-01-09T02:37:00Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > That’s one hell of a camera (Mount Rushmore being in South Dakota and all). Oh, whoops. Geography is not my strong suit. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/54 "2018-01-09T04:05:27Z")
> [@brujaja](#): > > Oh, whoops. Geography is not my strong suit. 😕 It’s okay, the Dakotas are basically one big windblown wasteland, the American Siberia. The only way to tell North and South apart are the advertisements for Wall Drug and “The Gutzon Borglum Story” which increase in frequency as you go west. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/55 "2018-01-09T09:53:40Z")
If anyone’s interested, he just sent me some pictures from Chicago. My goodness, what a beautiful city. Somehow, not what I was expecting. I guess the vague picture in my head was from old movies. They took some pictures next to an awesome sculpture – it looks like a large Moebius strip made out of dark mirrored glass. Never seen anything quite like it. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/56 "2018-01-09T10:02:06Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > It’s okay, the Dakotas are basically one big windblown wasteland, the American Siberia. The only way to tell North and South apart are the advertisements for Wall Drug and “The Gutzon Borglum Story” which increase in frequency as you go west. > > Stranger Ha ha, had to look up Gutzon Borglum. Interesting story. His other work is pretty good too, although I have to say that I prefer the classical style of sculpture. Somehow, Greek & Roman style sculpture seems sort of timeless; whereas the Stony Mountain thing just looks really dated. To his credit, it sounds like he kind of thought so too. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/57 "2018-01-09T10:55:58Z")
> [@brujaja](#): > > They took some pictures next to an awesome sculpture – it looks like a large Moebius strip made out of dark mirrored glass. Never seen anything quite like it. [The Bean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_Gate), aka Cloud Gate. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2018, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/58 "2018-01-11T04:20:15Z")
Thank you, **GuanoLad!** I am amazed to find out it is made of steel. The article says that the separate plates from which it’s built were made so precisely, no on-site adjustments were necessary to assemble it … that is some fine work. I’ll bet those guys are hella proud of themselves. Meanwhile, the dog is a red Australian sheepdog. It is as adorable a puppy as I have ever seen. They got it from a really nice Amish guy on a farm in Ohio. I don’t have stills, only little videos, but I’ll look up where to host & how to post and get back to you, 'cause I did promise. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2018, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/59 "2018-01-11T23:14:05Z")
OK, who wants to break the news about red-haired Aussies?.. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2018, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820/60 "2018-01-12T00:41:32Z")
The Amish run puppy mills (not all of them). But if he picked the dog up on-site, it’s probably okay. StG [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-is-planning-a-cross-country-road-trip-thursday-really-bad-idea-right/805820.md?page=4)