Road trips are magic. They can be methodically planned or begin at a moment of spontaneity. Their ability to create moments in time, that become the stories of our life, are epic.
The road trip is quintessential.
When I was in grade school my sister and I took a road trip from San Diego to Tulsa, Oklahoma with my aunt, uncle, and grandmother. The car was a huge blue Buick Electra. We fought over who got to ride in the front seat because sitting in the back between two women who talked non-stop was, well, you know.
I remember stopping at Stuckey’s for ice cream; a lot.
In Las Vegas Uncle Ralph gave us each a nickel to put in a slot machine. We were too young so he did it for us. We both hit the jackpot and carried our bucket of nickels for the next 1,200 miles. What luck.
My uncle let me order blueberry pancakes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
The Grand Canyon was bigger than I imagined and the visions of the country are planted in my brain. The landscape seemed to stretch to forever and some days it seemed the road had no end. Every motel had a pool and we swam after every dinner.
That trip in 1967 floods back to me now because of David.
David Dickinson is the first returning guest at Cars Yeah. He just released the third book in his Old Car Nut Book series titled “A Century of Road Trips Across America.” Get yourself a copy and then go write down what you remember from your road trip. Better yet, grab your family, get in your vehicle, and make some memories.
Photo was taken during my road trip with Cars Yeah guest Henry Reisner of Intermeccanica.
My early recollections involve trips across the country with my parents and three younger brothers as Dad served in the Army (New Jersey, Colorado, Missouri). Mom would start saving peanut butter jars a few months ahead in an effort to minimize pee stops needed for four little boys. We rode in a huge Chevy station wagon with room enough to spread us apart from each other when things got a little rambunctious. We didn’t need no stinkin’ seat belts.
After one supper in the Holiday Inn of Zanesville, OH, a nearby diner complimented my parents on how well-behaved we were. We kids must have been very tired, but my parents were pleased by the comment.
Last big roadtrip was a few years ago: Washington, DC, to Tacoma, WA. 2800 miles in three days–two 1000 mile days followed by a mere 800 miles. I think my arms and hands kept vibrating for a week.
Luckily, my job is a global road-trip. I drove across UK last week, Germany this week. France was a couple weeks ago. Numerous trips to Europe each year and lots of backroads, small towns, and amazing sights. I do multiple road trips across the USA including taking my daughters on a Route 66 run from the shores of Lakeshore Drive in Chicago to Santa Monica pier using the old road almost exclusively. I’ve wandered all but 7 states, with the remainders in two clusters that could easily be done within the next year or two. Each drive is an adventure. I look forward to the next and no burned out in sight.
Great blog post Mark! I have many good road trip memories including 2 National Park “road trip tours” with my older brother. One was 3 weeks and one was about 2 weeks and I think we were both in our twenties. The first trip was in a Jeep Wrangler and we have pics of the Wrangler and either myself or my brother in front of each new state sign we passed. We had a big box of CD’s and a cooler for food and we just found motels along the way. This was my first visit to Yellowstone. I was in a job I hated at the time and I remember how nice it was for my brother to plan this out as a special treat. He would reference the Grateful Dead lyrics “it takes time…you pick a place to go…”
The second time we went to more parks and this time we were in my brother’s VW Westfalia camper van. such an awesome van. We putted along over the mountain roads into Mesa Verde and other parks. I slept great on the lower level and my brother slept in the pop-up. I remember being so surprised how comfy it was. We cooked oatmeal and ate PB sandwiches. I also remember that when winter came, my brother put it in a special storage unit he rented (he was living in Richland in eastern, WA and didn’t want to expose it to the elements) and he actually gave it a hug before he left the storage facility.
My brother has many more demands on his time now and I rarely get to see him but I cherish these memories and enjoy looking back at the pics and remembering our young and free days. Thanks for the trip down memory lane Mark. I hope to do a reunion road trip with my brother and husband some time in the future.
Are you interested in your fans submitting their road trip stories?
I love it when the Cars Yeah fans tell me their stories. What’s yours?