You can try and deny it, try and ignore it, You can even try and pretend it simply isn’t there. But the truth is, the holidays are here. The pumpkins and adorable children’s costumes have been put away and next on the agenda is the all-holy day of eating and football … Thanksgiving. For millions of Americans every year that means hitting the airports, train stations and most frighteningly the highways. Last year approximately 38.5 million Americans (a little over 10% of the national population) hit the road for a trip of 50 miles or further to see family and friends on this holiday. To put that in other terms, the entire population of the state of California was on the highways, expressways, interstates and side streets of our nation. This year, it is estimated that the number will rise. If you are one of the millions of people hitting the roads this holiday, there are some things you should expect and others that you should prepare for. There are “do’s and do not’s” to long distance traveling, or at the very least to retaining your sanity.
Pre-Flight Checks
T minus two days to launch is when the prepping for your trip really should begin. The less things you have to stress about on the big day, the easier your trip becomes. Seeing family and friends, no matter how joyous, can be taxing enough, and your trip should be the easy part. This starts with you car. Driving long distances can put a pretty large strain on your vehicle. Your checks should start under the hood. Make sure all of your fluids are ready to go. This includes oil, engine coolant and even windshield wiper fluid. Give the battery a quick check as well, along with the environmental systems (heating and cooling). The last thing you want is your car breaking down in the middle of a packed, barely moving highway. If you have any warning lights on in your car, this is the time to get them checked out. (You should have done it when the light came on !!!) Be sure to check your bulbs as well. An out of state ticket or, worse yet, fender bender can put an early end to a fun trip.
The right environment is everything to a good time. If you are like me, you live half your life in your car. There is always a plethora of papers, empty cigarette boxes (I know, I know… I should quit) and a little garbage. Cleaning out your car will make it much more bearable to sit in. If you can, get a wash as well. A clean environment, both inside and out, will make you MUCH less likely to get irritated in your car. Grab an air freshener as well. You want this hanging a couple days before the trip, so as to air it out a bit. Buying it the morning of will overwhelm you with a scent that you won’t be able to escape for a few hours.
Bread ….
Now it’s time to hit the grocery story. You’ll need a few things at arms reach while driving and now is the time to get them. The stores will probably be a battleground on Thanksgiving morning and the days preceding it. Expect a line and you should be a little less irritated when you encounter it. Still, having water, energy drinks and some one-handed snack food could make a long trip much more bearable. If you can also try and get to your local electronics store and grab a car charger for your phone/iPod. This comes in handy almost every trip you take.
… and Circuses
You’ve got the food and drinks for the trip ahead. How about the entertainment? If you are out on the roads, you know that there will be long periods of moving at a glacial pace, if that at all. You will need something to distract you from the issues ahead. Most often that comes in the form of music. There are two way of doing this right, depending on your musical taste and your faith in your co-pilot. The first is to simply play with the radio. While still in your home area, you will already have your presets of entertaining stations full of todays hits and entertaining holiday banter. Once you begin to drift out of this zone, it is up to you to find what’s next. There are no shortage of stations across the country. If you are the adventurous type, simply scan the airwaves. As you scan from the low 80’s into the high 107’s you are bound to find something entertaining. (Disclaimer: If you have steering wheel mounted controls you can try to do this yourself, if not have a fellow passenger control the radio and keep both hands on the wheel) If you are a little more particular and are not a fan of mainstream radio (pronounced: hipster), you should take control of your own entertainment. This requires a little planning. Spend some time in the days leading up to the trip making a good playlist. Making a playlist for driving is a tricky art form. You need enough variety to keep you entertained and it should be long enough to sustain you for the duration of your trip. If you have passengers, it is a smart idea to take their musical tastes into mind. All the music in the world will not save you from a unhappy passenger locked into a metal box with you for 4 hours.
When The Night Has Come
The night before the trip, you should try and get your car fueled up. As mentioned earlier, you are not the only one on the roads the next day. This probably means that you are not the only person who is going to try and hit the pump the next morning. Skipping the gas lines on the morning of the trip is a good way to avoid early frustration.
The night before is also a good time for a peaceful night in. Thanksgiving Eve is one of the largest party / drinking holidays in America. While joining in with co-workers and old college buddies who are back in town seems like a fun idea, driving 200 miles with a hangover the next day isn’ t. Despite the seemingly lethargic nature of sitting in your car for three hours, it can be taxing on the mind and eyes. Being sleep deprived and dehydrated is only going to compound this problem.
Most of the time, long distance trips are taken to places that you may not know how to get to. The night before is a good time to get this prepared. While many cars have a onboard navigation system or a dash-mounted unit, it is always good to have back up. While most of us feel pretty comfortable with the information on our smart phones, nothing is safer than a good old fashion hard copy map. Printing out the address and directions as a back up can often times make the difference between a slight inconvenience and being lost in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of dead electronics.
And The Land Is Dark
All your bags are packed, you are ready to go. You’re standing there, outside your door… I think you know the rest. It’s zero hour and the car is packed, fueled and ready to roll. If you have done this right, you should just be able to stick your keys in the ignition and go. Seeing as you will be joining throngs of people on the great journey to holiday happiness, the earlier you hit the roads, the less aggravating it should be. Unlike most days, holiday travel traffic can start as early as 8 AM. If you live in a major city, expect extra delays to get out of the highly populated areas. If you can, try hitting the road while it’s still dark. The further you get before the traffic kicks in the less frustrating the trip will be.
If you are partaking in a quick morning pick me up, as most of us are, this is not the day to skip it. While there may be a bit of a line at the local Starbucks, the warm embrace and gentle awareness boost of your morning coffee is a necessity. This is true of other small morning routines as well. If you are a morning runner, and if you wish you were, this is a great day to wake up a little early and get the blood pumping. Sitting still or barely moving in traffic for hours can be detrimental to your blood flow and of course is the ideal condition for blood clots and overall discomfort. Getting in a good morning run and allowing your blood to pump freely is a great way to avoid the strains of long durations of sitting still.
All That’s Left Is To Drive
You now have everything you need for the journey ahead. Expect the worst and hope for the best, this way you are not disappointed. Knowing and expecting the traffic ahead helps you keep your cool when the guy behind is leaning on his horn or the idiot in front keeps changing lanes to go nowhere. Remember to stay hydrated with the water you purchased earlier. Also, if traffic is not moving at all, it is a good time to help your blood flow. Simply put the car in park and rotate both your ankles in a circular motion. When sitting, blood pools near the ankles and feet. This can lead to swelling, discomfort and in extreme cases even blood clots and DVT (Deep Vain Thrombosis). Rotating the ankles can help the old blood circulate its way back to your heart and keep you awake and healthy.
While most of us can’t wait to simply get to our destination, taking scheduled breaks is normally a good idea. Instinct is to keep driving and get there as soon as possible. Inevitably, you still will need to stop, either for you or a passenger (I told you to go to the bathroom before we left!!). If you schedule breaks every 90 minutes to two hours along the duration of your trip, not only will it give you a chance to move around and stretch your legs, but it will be shorter, on average, than the unscheduled stop. This means a faster and safer trip for you and everyone else.
Lane Change Ahead !!
Long periods of driving in heavy traffic comes with its own inherent dangers. Knowing the signs to look for is a good way to avoid trouble ahead. Being stuck in the same place for long periods of time can have a strain on the mind, as you are surely already aware. With that said, you are not the only one losing your cool. Other drivers are often as frustrated, if not more so, as you are. This can often lead to irritated driving patterns and at times dangerous road behavior in order to alleviate the stress. If you see another driver beginning to swerve within the lane, looking for an opening and breaking heavy, this is someone you want to put some distance between. You don’t want to be the car he doesn’t see as he blindly drags his car into your lane.
Tailgating is another large issue. Due to low speeds of travel, many drivers tend to keep unsafe distances between their car and the next. While it may seem easy to stop your vehicle from a speed of 20-40 mph, stop and go traffic can come to a halt without warning. This means sudden stops that you may not be ready for. An accident at 30 mph can not only still be quite damaging to your and the other vehicle but is more than capable of causing bodily harm to yourself and other drivers.
The road often can seem like a never ending sea of the same. Even when it is open and clear, often the long stretches of straight highway, with dim-to-no lighting can lead to drowsiness or what is known as “highway hypnosis“. Staying hydrated, taking regular breaks and recognizing that you are tired is a good way to avoid a bad accident. Driving while tired is known to be as dangerous as driving while intoxicated. It has many of the same symptoms and impairs the driver’s abilities in a very similar way. Unlike drunk driving, driving while tired is not always a conscious decision. This is why it is important to recognize and take steps to avoid driving when tired. If you have a co-pilot, this might be a good time to take a small break or simply to allow them to take the helm for a little while.
Oh Captain My Captain
Driving long distances is a taxing ordeal for drivers. But the weight of the journey is ideally shouldered by their co-pilot/first mate. This is the person in the passenger seat. Their job is at times as important as that of the driver, whether it is controlling the entertainment, assuming the roles of navigation or simply conversing with the driver to keep him calm and alert. One of the most important times to have a co-pilot is during evening and night driving. This is when it becomes much more likely that you will doze off behind the wheel. This feeling of drowsiness is usually only compounded by the passenger also falling asleep or worse yet already sleeping. Keeping the driver alert on the road or simply knowing when to suggest that the driver pull over is a task entrusted to anyone who dare take the ‘shotgun’ spot. It is a not always an easy posting and should not be taken lightly.
Happy Holidays
The holidays are 5 weeks of daunting tasks and it all begins today. While Thanksgiving is one of the most prolific travel days of the year, these tips are good ideas for any travel situation. Despite all the chaos, it is a time for family, friends and loved ones. Try to remember and enjoy this as you safely reach your destinations this year. Remember, if they start to drive you crazy, you could always come over and read a few AutoKinesis articles. That will help unwind and kill some time…right ?
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