Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Road trip super tips

Thrice weekly blogpost 10 of 15

As summer is now officially upon us, I'm sure many of you readers will be traveling. Road trips are infamous for being boring and horrible. But here is what I think: if your road trips are horrible and boring, YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG.

Road trips can not only be bearable, they can be downright fun. Here are some tips to help you enjoy your time on the road:

  • listen to good music
    • Custom road trip mixes allow you to harness your anticipatory feelings and have great tunes for the drive.
    • Nothing beats driving down the freeway and singing at the top of your lungs.
  • play games
    • Hey Cow: When you pass a field of cows, roll down your window. Yell "HEY COW!" at the top of your lungs and then see how many turn and look at you. That's your score for the field. Avoid yelling when farmers are in the field, or when passing cops. The game can be adjusted to include other animals.
    • Marry, NCMO, Kill: Come up with three people. Have everyone else choose between them, who they would marry, who they would Non-Commitally Make Out with, and who they would kill. You can get hours of entertainment from this one game alone. For everyone's mental health, please don't include Jar Jar Binks or Jabba the Hutt.
  • eat food
    • In-car snacks are vital - you'll want things that are clean and easy to eat in the car. Avoid things that are messy or may require refrigeration. Good ideas: nuts, chips, cookies, jerky. Bad ideas: spaghetti, ice cream bars, sloppy joes.
    • Plan your trip so that you can stop at all the best places. For example, an ideal trip from Provo to Oceanside for me, would include stops in Beaver for ice cream and cheese, St. George for Mongolian BBQ, Yermo for diner food and dinosaurs, and Barstow for fake train station food (those last two count for roadside attractions, as well). 
  • talk
    • Being stuck in a car with someone allows you to ask those questions you've always wanted to. They've nowhere to run! On a side note, I'm a full supporter of four seasons and a road trip.
  • roadside attractions
    • Whether it's stopping to see a giant thermometer or visiting a petting zoo next to the gas station, take advantage of the opportunities as they come. 
  • document
    • I personally enjoy journalling on trips. I'll make a heading with how many miles are left to go whenever I see a sign, and it's a fun way to keep track of the distance.
    • Photos are, of course, a great way to record all the fun you'll be having. Bonus: after the trip is over, you can relive all of the excitement.
There you have it folks, Sara's super tips for great road trips. Hopefully these can help you in your summer adventures.

Now tell me, how do YOU make your road trips awesome? Leave a comment! Go!


2 comments:

Unknown said...

Headphones and sleeping pills. :)

Kadi Heath said...

Looove the "Hey Cow" game. :) We play the "Find It" game - designate someone to pick items like red car, brown cow, flying bird, etc. The harder you think it would be to find an item, the higher it's price (i.e., a flying bird is a little difficult, so it would be worth 10 cents, but a striped Ferrari would be worth a whole dollar). Prices usually range from 5-25 cents. Have fun!