The furthest you've driven

[Colt45ws]

I prefer driving at night. Much less traffic which matters a lot if you are going through any big cities.
I just did 300 miles all at night. Left at about 7PM, got home at about 20 to 12PM. Ran about 5-7MPH over the limit which varied from 45-70MPH.
The most I have done is 1000 miles, Las Vegas to Central Washington in 20 hours. (I think I posted that here before) Stopped at a rest stop and slept for a couple hours in Idaho before Oregon since Oregon has a slow speed limit. It kills me to rip through Utah and Idaho at 75MPH then have to back off to 65 in Oregon. Puts me to sleep. Then I also fill up before Oregon since their gas prices are outta sight as it is illegal to pump your own gas; gotta pay a high school dropout to do it for me. Luckily it isnt too difficult to avoid using their gas if I fill up right before I enter. I hate Oregon; I wont spend any money there on principle. I will use their rest stops, though.
Looks like I got off topic.
Anyway.. Generally, I will eat a large meal before I roll out, then only stop for restroom breaks. I stay watered off a ice chest in the car. When Im ready to stop for the night/day, I will again eat. I pre plan everything, down to where I will get gas. Though something I just recently added to my plans are approximate times I will pass through any large cities. Its impossible to catch them with no traffic; but at least plan so that I will go through during off peak. I added this after I went through Salt Lake City right at 5PM and the interstate turned into a ____ parking lot.

 

[Tornado Red]

Originally Posted By: crinkles
EXTREMELY STUPID AND DANGEROUS.

Travel during the day. 2 hours before sunnup until 2 hours after sundown. In summer, that is 18 hours of driving. in winter, maybe 14 (all depends on your latitude). SLEEP AT NIGHT.

the death rate is much higher during the night than in the day. if you can't get there in time driving like this then take a plane.

stopping every 2 hrs is good but I have found my sweet spot at about 3 - 4 hours depending on how demanding the driving is.

The question was asked, how to make long road trips easy. I answered that question.

Long road trips often involve driving at night; I also discussed how to make that easier and safer, by letting someone else with better vision be your trailblazer. Driving alone on a dark highway is risky; following someone else whose lights shine farther and brighter reduces those risks. I am not suggesting that you drive 18 or 24 or 30 hours straight, but that you rest when you're sleepy no matter whether it's day or night.

You may quote statistics all you like, but the objective is the beat the odds. Driving at night has advantages as well as disadvantages -- so you can save your insults.

 

[rslifkin]

Driving at night is ok, as long as you're not tired (haven't been driving all day first) and have GOOD lights for those dark, deserted highways.

 

[NHHEMI]

I do as much of my long distance travel driving as I can at night purposely because I feel it is actually safer. Far fewer cars on the road. I can go further and get there faster and do so without speeding. I do try and sleep prior to leaving so that I am awake for the trip.

The trip I take so often from NH to VA is a prime example. I leave NH around 8-9PM. That puts me in the heavy traffic areas up here in MA and CT( Rte 84 in Hartford = OY!

)after it has cleared up for the most part. The RI/NY/NJ/DE portion of the trip goes very smooth with little to no traffic. It then has me arriving In MD the next morning, and gets me through the Beltway, before the heavy morning commute. I cross over into VA and head for my destination just before the morning commute on 95 and state highways begin.

I can do that trip as described above, over night, in 12-13 hours tops with plenty of stops for bathroom, drinks, etc... and without speeding. If I tried to leave early in the AM and do it during the day it takes at least 14-15 hours and I have had it take as long as 16 hours due to heavy traffic spots that tie you up forever.

Much faster and safer at night. IMHO.

 

[eljefino]

It was the early 70s and my parents were driving out to Ohio, following a tractor-trailer, when a brake shoe (they're external?) fell off and punctured their transmission pan.

My mom and I spun out in a ford escort and were disabled (fuel cutoff) on the high speed lane of the massachusetts turnpike, on a bridge no less. We had a greyhound bus bearing down on us that made it into the middle lane with no time to spare. Anyone following him should have pretty good reflexes... and the middle lane was suddenly choked with traffic.

Just throwing some anecdotes out there, if you like hazily drafting the big rigs.

 

[Schmoe]

When my father was alive, I'd routinely go from Fort Sill to Fort Campbell about 3 times a year. Get up at 0630, work all day and then head out after work. 900 miles in about 11.5 hours. Did that from 1990 to around 2003. One year, around 1991, after Christmas, got stuck in a ice storm from Memphis all the way to OKC. That trip took about 22 hours non-stop.

 

[NJC]

636 miles from Vancouver WA, to Stockton CA in a POS 1976 Chevelle wagon. Not sure how long, but it felt like a long drive along I5. Oh, I just remembered I didn't even drive the whole way!

 

[UncleS2]

I'm not in the same league with some of the posts here. Lessee- Ok, ~1987-88. Drove 2-car convoy from Austin, Tx to San Diego, Ca, with an overnight stop in El Paso. When we got up in El Paso it had snowed! The 2 vehicles, 1. Fairly late model GMC pickup w/V8, auto trans, reg cab short wide bed & empty bed. 2. ~2 yr old VW Jetta, fwd manual trans, it drove sweet. I drove the pickup most of the way, including the snowy morning in El Paso! V8 pickup w/atx, slick snowy road = *Very* light right foot if you wanted to stay out of the ditch.

Finally got to drive the Jetta last leg of the trip- going up through the mountains & then down again(on I-10- Az/Ca border?) before getting into SD was fun. So, 2 days, at about 650 mi/day.

 

[Tornado Red]

I drove a U-Haul or Ryder truck from Harlingen TX to El Paso once -- 24 hours of driving and I was still in the state of Texas! That was The Longest Day -- not June 6 1944.

 

[CrAlt]

Ive driven from NYC to Montreal Canada in one shot.. then the same trip back. Not super long but long enuf for me. On long road trips I like to stop alot and take my time. Im real bad at this on my bike.. One time I turned what should be a 3.5 hour blast to VT in to a 8 or 9 hour ride through random mountain passes and such..

If I have to get from Point A to Point B quick and its real far I'll just fly. Airfare is cheaper then gas alot of times.

 

[Tornado Red]

Originally Posted By: CrAlt
If I have to get from Point A to Point B quick and its real far I'll just fly. Airfare is cheaper then gas alot of times.


I've got over 3000 hours of tube time in the back of Navy aircraft, but I hate flying commercial. I can't avoid flying 100% of the time, but I never do it unless I have no choice.

 

[cbear]

From Denver Co, to Cincinnati, OH non stop. Coming back from vacation and I was just in the groove.

600 miles is the most I've done in one day on my bike, then got up the next say and rod another 300. Daytona to Cincinnati. That second day HURT.

 

[Kaboomba]

Originally Posted By: Tornado Red
Originally Posted By: CrAlt
If I have to get from Point A to Point B quick and its real far I'll just fly. Airfare is cheaper then gas alot of times.


I've got over 3000 hours of tube time in the back of Navy aircraft, but I hate flying commercial. I can't avoid flying 100% of the time, but I never do it unless I have no choice.


It's hard to put a number on how many miles I would drive to avoid having TSA snooping in all my cavities.

 

[NHHEMI]

Originally Posted By: Tornado Red
Originally Posted By: CrAlt
If I have to get from Point A to Point B quick and its real far I'll just fly. Airfare is cheaper then gas alot of times.


I've got over 3000 hours of tube time in the back of Navy aircraft, but I hate flying commercial. I can't avoid flying 100% of the time, but I never do it unless I have no choice.


I hate flying too. I will drive whenever possible. I would rather spend 3 days driving somewhere than 3 hours flying there.

 

[Nick R]

I love flying. I don't know what you guys are doing, but I've had no trouble with the TSA. Flying for me has always been a pleasant, fast, easy thing. Cheap? Not so much, hence why we drove to florida. I did fly for my band trip, with southwest, who were great.

 

[crinkles]

real men drive...

 

[retsaky]

From Lexington, Ky to San Diego, Ca (1975) for the NCAA basketball finals. 2130 miles, 32 hours, no sleep, very little food, . . . never again!!

 

[severach]

Last month I drove from South Central MI to LA 1,070 miles straight through. Last night I drove back. I-10 in MS to south central MI. 1,030 miles according to Google Maps driving directions. Up at 10am, drive from 1pm to 8am. 1 shopping stop at Meridian Treasure Hunt, 3 gas stops, and 1 dinner stop at the http://tennesseantruckstop.com/

Fortunately I had just read on the Internet about fruit and fatigue so I skipped fruit at dinner in addition to my normal avoidance of sweet stuff. That was the difference between success and failure. The trip down was miserable at the end. On the trip back without the fatigue from fruit I could have easily driven farther.

Night time is the only way to drive. 6pm in Birmingham was the only time of heavy traffic. Indianapolis at 4am every 6 lane highway in the city is all mine.

 

[M1Accord]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
It was the early 70s and my parents were driving out to Ohio, following a tractor-trailer, when a brake shoe (they're external?) fell off and punctured their transmission pan.

My mom and I spun out in a ford escort and were disabled (fuel cutoff) on the high speed lane of the massachusetts turnpike, on a bridge no less. We had a greyhound bus bearing down on us that made it into the middle lane with no time to spare. Anyone following him should have pretty good reflexes... and the middle lane was suddenly choked with traffic.

Just throwing some anecdotes out there, if you like hazily drafting the big rigs.


I hate big rigs. People need to spend sometime looking at big rigs accidents and see how reckless these guys are. I stay away from them but it is hard doing that on I-95. The only lane they are legally not allowed to use is the left lane on a 3 lane interstate. It is the safest lane because they tend to pay some attention to their left than to their right. And I am very liberal with my horn and high beam when I see them spilling over to my lane.

 

[M1Accord]

Originally Posted By: Kaboomba
Originally Posted By: Tornado Red
Originally Posted By: CrAlt
If I have to get from Point A to Point B quick and its real far I'll just fly. Airfare is cheaper then gas alot of times.


I've got over 3000 hours of tube time in the back of Navy aircraft, but I hate flying commercial. I can't avoid flying 100% of the time, but I never do it unless I have no choice.


It's hard to put a number on how many miles I would drive to avoid having TSA snooping in all my cavities.


I was molested by a TSA employee last time I flew. The chick was easy on the eyes so I didn't feel like being arrest for saying no. Had it been anything lesser, I would step back and demand my money back. Airport is the only place where the right to travel supersedes the human right.