Travel Sucks !

T

toyman

New member
We're headed from S.E. Texas to Connecticut to connect up with our new (to us) C-Dory for the maiden voyage. This is our first long trip (more than 100 miles) in YEARS without our RV and we've gotten a LOT older. We've forgotten how inconvenient, uncomfortable, and tiring it can be to travel with the goal of trying to cover miles, instead of enjoying the trip. Travel with our Van we'll do ~ 200 miles a day, these 600 mile days will kill a person - how did we once do 700 mile days in MG's, Datsuns, & VW's ?

Hopefully our attitude and outlook will change when we finally get on board. TOMORROW !
 
Hang in there Dave, we regularly do the VA>Maine trip between our homes and do it in two days. Usually with the truck, two cats, a dog and pulling a 6X12 cargo trailer. No fun, particularly since it's up the Eastern Seaboard, I-95 NJTP, Garden State, etc.

It's worth it when we get there though, as I'm sure it will be for you!

Charlie
 
Hi Dave,

Your experience mirrors ours when we left south Texas to go to Washington to pick up our boat 3 years ago. It was the first time in over a decade that we traveled any real distance without some sort of RV. It was hot when we left south Texas (July) and even hotter when we drove through Arizona and California (121º in Palm Springs! :shock: ). We got to the Seattle area many days later (I REALLY hate motels) and they were in the grip of a "heat wave"... it was around 90º... of course, many of those folks don't have air conditioning, but we thought it was rather balmy. :wink: The reward at the end of that arduous journey: picking up the boat at the factory!

These days when we're RVing, we try to do the 2/2/2 Rule: don't travel more than 200 miles in a day, pull into a campground before 2:00, spend at least 2 days. 8) No, that doesn't always work for us when we're hauling the boat in search of fun cruising waters.

Good luck with the trip - the end result WILL be worth the effort! Keep us posted.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Ah yes...it's all coming back to me now.
We drove from NC to Maryland almost 2 years ago, hurrying so we'd have enough daylight for a full visual inspection (the boat was cheap...and we wanted to know why). Got there an hour before dark, looked great, the hull just needed a good cleaning, berth had never been slept in. Grabbed a motel room and met the seller at 7am the next morning for a test run on the Potomac..."the starboard engine idles a bit rough" (the seller had informed us of this prior to the trip)...he starts the starboard engine, "it idles rough?" I say (I'd never owned a 4 stroke outboard...it was purring if you ask me!)...the he started the port engine and I could tell a very slight difference.
After a 30 minute boat ride we write him a check, load up, head to our home lake in NC where the drought had more or less stopped boat launching at the campground...john boats were about the only boats that could make it out of our cove.
We arrive just before dark, park the truck and boat near the launch ramps, and walk up to our camper.
The next morning we walked down to the truck to find a crowd gathered around our new (to us) C Dory. "What kind of boat is this?"....."How many does it sleep?"..."How fast does it go with only twin 45's?".....I tried to answer the questions as I removed the back strap and proceeded to back the boat towards the ramp...."You'll never get out of this cove in THAT boat!....ha ha ha!" they laughed....."Just watch" I said....and I launched, fired the engines (trimmed slightly up)...and we boated away under power...without even kicking up any mud!
Now, almost 2 years later, I would have driven to California to get her!
 
toyman":2nnipgya said:
We're headed from S.E. Texas to Connecticut to connect up with our new (to us) C-Dory for the maiden voyage. This is our first long trip (more than 100 miles) in YEARS without our RV and we've gotten a LOT older. We've forgotten how inconvenient, uncomfortable, and tiring it can be to travel with the goal of trying to cover miles, instead of enjoying the trip. Travel with our Van we'll do ~ 200 miles a day, these 600 mile days will kill a person - how did we once do 700 mile days in MG's, Datsuns, & VW's ?

Hopefully our attitude and outlook will change when we finally get on board. TOMORROW !
Click to expand...

On my Key West,Fl to Homer, AK motorcycle trip my IRONBUTT day was 1100 miles in 23 hours. I'm glad I've been there, done that....
 
I once drove from Mazatlan Mex. to Seal Beach Cal. with only Potty/Federale/ Border/ breaks. In my trusty Chevy Astro Van . I got home to Santa Cruz Cal. and the head gasket went the next day while taking my son to school . Glad it didn't happen in the Sonoran desert.Something over a thousand miles, about 24 hours travel . Ahh to be young again .
Marc
 
flrockytop":3kgw3qkq said:
snal":3kgw3qkq said:
flrockytop":3kgw3qkq said:
On my Key West,Fl to Homer, AK motorcycle trip my IRONBUTT day was 1100 miles in 23 hours. I'm glad I've been there, done that....
Click to expand...

What kinda bike?
Click to expand...

750 Honda Shadow
cycle2.jpg
Click to expand...

Nice!
Closest I ever came to an iron butt was 2021 miles in 3 days. It was the 2001 Trail of Tears ride from Chattanooga to Oklahoma. That was right after 9/11...and there were huge crowds of folks lining hwy 73 most of the way...lots of flags! Did it on my Electraglide. I just had to dip down into Texas on the way back.
That was my third TOT run...and I learned on the first one to start about half an hour ahead of the "escorted" ride. In 2001 there were 176 thousand bikes in the main group, and as usual, 75% rode like they'd never been on a bike before. We saw some very dangerous, idiotic accidents.
 
Made it up here last night - rained like in the Philippines all the way from Penn. to CT.. Picked up the boat this morning than took it to Old Saybrook to trade the undersized trailer for an oversized one. Then got plenty of practice launching and retrieving trying to get the trailer set up correctly - tuff when you don't know exactly what you're doing.

One question - naw, I'll put it under Trailers where it belongs.

How about 21 hours Amarillo ti LA in a 60 MGA with the top blown out - who said Ah to be young again ---- I'm to D--N old to be young again !
 
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