Long distance driving tips

[wmthor]

I've done a bit of long distance driving over the years. One of the most memorable trips was Pax River, MD to Memphis in 18 hours, an 8 hour sleepover in Memphis and then another 18 hours on to Brownsville, TX. And this was when the speed limit was 55 mph and no cruise control. In '07, I did Houston to Santa Ana and return. A year ago drove straight through from Houston to Ocala, but took three days returning.

What works for me is a cooler of cold water and taking at least a 15 minute exercise break every three to four hours. I mean walking around the rest stop/truck stop for 15 minutes. Refueling the vehicle and/or eating doesn't count towards my exercise break. I know that would add an hour to the trip, but it's worth it to me.

Radio helps too. For example, I drove 250 miles up to Dallas yesterday afternoon and then back today. I listened to Sirius/XM's' Bluesville for about an hour before switching over country and finally onto Sixties in 6. A good ball game never hurts. On the way home, I listened to the Ohio State/Illinois football game and then the first quarter of the Texas/Oklahoma game. However, I tend to avoid talk radio.

[jdogric12]

Thanks everybody!

[jdogric12]

Did Tampa to Newport News in just over 13 hours. Recognize!!! Thanks for the comments, everyone.

[wints]

Glad you are there safe Dog!

[jps]

Welcome to a new adventure!

[egosheep]

Congrats on the move, J!

[peewee]

Twenty-two and a half hours straight from Richmond, VA to Key West, FL - the most brutal road trip I've ever been apart of in nearly a decade of touring. Thank God we had 6 people to share the driving even though I drove straight from SC to Miami. The hardest part was maintaining the 35 MPH speed limit through the Keys... which took 3 hours alone once we picked up US 1 to Key West. The second worst was from Richmond, VA straight to Montgomery, AL after a gig that ended at 2:30 AM and we had to be in Alabama no later than 1:30 PM for a sound check. Always a blast to be awake for 36 consecutive hours and then have to play a date 5 hours after you arrive in town!

Jason, the only advice I can give is to just enjoy the ride, make sure you stop whenever you feel the need and don't break your neck trying to get to the end destination. You'll get there when you get there, bro'. Hollah when you get settled!

[jdogric12]

I'm as settled as I can be for now... will call you tonight!

[peewee]

I'm as settled as I can be for now... will call you tonight!

And you did! Great talking with you, J! Heard from Ron and we should be good to go Saturday after next. Maybe see you at the swap meet this coming Sunday??

[cjj]

Hey, great to hear you made it OK! Sorry I didn't get in any tips for long distance driving... I've been to busy driving...

[kiramdear]

Glad you made it safe and sound. Good luck with everything, J.

[jdogric12]

Kira, thanks!
Cj, lol!
Mike, sounds good. Will check on my 'itinerary' and report back. BTW Tiffany Tavern was interesting and went really well. Small and weird but appreciative crowd.

[whojamfan]

Aw jeez, first I've heard of this, I would have been happy to help you out. There is a lot of great advice here, but the best is to break it up into manageable stretches. It's pointless to arrive somewhere a sore old grouch, or not at all because you went off the road in la la land.
I am a professional driver, as are a few other forumites, and just to set the record straight, drugs do not work, they only make things worse. What you may believe to have gained in alertness, you lose in paranoid euphoria and an inability to focus that only gets worse as time goes on. Too much coffee is the same type of thing, as well as all of the over the counter wake up drinks and stuff. Trust me, tried them all, they do not work for long hauls, and will really increase your potential for creating accidents, injuries, and/or police situations.
Simple as this, there is no substitute for sleep. Get plenty of it prior to your trip, and don't be afraid to powernap if you get tired. A good 20 minute to an hour snooze will really make a huge difference. Also, what Richard said about excersizing every 4 hours or so is absolutely on the money. Nothing wrong with puliing the car over and running around it screaming at the top of your lungs for 2 minutes-ha-you would be surprised how few people will ask you for spare change!
Planning is just as important. You need to know where you are at all times in case you need to use a restroom or a place to knockout for a few. Going over your map beforehand and planning where you will break and such only makes the trip more manageable as you tend to think of it in blocks rather than as a whole.
Get a handsfree headset for your cellphone so you can talk to people to break up the monotony. Try to have someone you can count on to be there during the entirety of your trip, or several people. This is for if you start dozing off and seeing little green men dancing on your hood, you can call somebody up and they can yell at you or something. This works great in those situations where you are driving on some stretch of road where you can not pull over, but are falling asleep. This person will keep you awake until you are able to safely pull over and sleep. But that is what you have to do-SLEEP!!!!
Well, I hope that helps out anyone looking to do some long distance driving. Keep in mind, they don't give out prizes for driving stupidly long times without breaks, or I would have them-haha.
Oh, and those big 18 wheel things on the road with you, please, just treat us like we can't stop, and we won't run you over. Really though, we can't, especially going downhill, or in the rain and snow. I wish DMVs did a better job of making the public more aware of how really dangerous big trucks can be.
Be safe everyone!

[jdogric12]

Thanks mike! No worries, I made it just fine and never even bought those energy drinks. I got about seven or eight hours the night before the 12hr run and about 8hrs that night, even though only about 2.5hrs remained. Funny, the 12hrs from Tampa to SE VA seemed easier than my 10hrs St. Louis to Atlanta last year.

[shamustwin]

When living in Hawaii, late '80's, I found a car I wanted to buy located in Washington State. Made the arrangements, flew over. But my flight out was delayed 8 hours, so first hang around the airport. Got there, sellers drove me two hours to their home, where I jumped in the car and took off for So. Cal.

I don't remember the state of Oregon at all, save for a moment when apparently I woke up and looked around while driving on a mountain road through a forest (the car was a convertable) and commented to myself how beautiful Oregon is.

Met up with a girlfriend in S.F., got some sleep, and continued on to store the car at my brother's.

Advice - don't drive while sleeping. I was lucky!