Road Trip! Family of 7 - It's Only 1600 Miles - June 2016 TR (completed)

[KnK]

Good bye Minnesota. Amish you (I'll miss you if you are struggling today).

Impressive after a very very long drive.

 

[dew4378]

Wow....planning and packing for 7. Very impressive! I struggle getting 4 out the door and we live approximately 60 miles away!

 

[pkondz]

Amish You Minnesota

<groan>....

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

The Never Ending Sea
Ahoy! We be entering unfriendly waters. Keep an eye on thee horizon for addled Iowegions!

Q: What do you call a Iowan who watches Fox News?
A: A CORNservative

Ok, enough of the corny jokes. We sail across the border on our scenic tour through Iowa. The Northeastern corner is pretty nice looking...then the never ending sea of corn starts.

One of the things we like to do on road-trips is look up town on Wikipedia or else where to learn a bit about them. Fun way to pass time. Always looking out for all the sleeping animals on the side of the road and usually a little one will say "I smell cow poop!" Yep, sure enough, the 4yo says it. Usually at some point the 5yo will tell her sister "Hey look, it's your family." Goes back to when she was 2 or 3 and her older sisters telling her that the cows were her family.

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Curse Like a Sailor

While I love SiriusXM / Satellite radio for road trips, one can only take so much of Z100/NY. I mean, DON'T YOU PEOPLE PLAY ANYTHING ELSE THAN THE SAME 5 SONGS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER...


So I'll change SAT to next line up to turn on Octane . I look at my wife as I'm changing, with a smile, "How long before the first swear word?" Sure enough, the 2nd song is #@*& #@*( **#$&@((@ &#*(@ &*&(#&#* so I get punished by listening to Bryan Adams

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Gateway to the East

Ok, ok, so I got the name backwards, but I'm not going west now am I. We sail in to Missouri with out any issues. Nice view of the Arch...we did that trip several years back.

 

[OneTimePoet]

Looks like a great drive! We are driving down from Indianapolis in a few weeks. We are a much smaller family, which means a much smaller car. I'm just hoping DD (7) doesn't get claustrophobic.

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Navigational Charts

We sail on in to Illinois and enter in to Kentucky and on our way to Tennessee. There are some slow downs on the road from construction. Luckily I use a navigational chart that helps us find the farthest gate. We take a few "Fastest Route" to avoid several slow downs, cutting down some time. I accidentally dismissed one instead of accepting and missed my exit...cost me 30+ mins. Arrrrrgh: you have to be lost to find a place that can't be found, else ways everyone would know where it was.

We see a lot of broken down cars, lots of blown tires. We even saw a frigate that burnt to the ground. One thing I did notice is that no one knows how to use Zipper Merge when lane closing.

Iced Coffee time!

What...3 miles of this $#!*... No zipper merge?

Missed it...frigate burned down. Traffic backed up for many miles on the opposite side.

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Taking on Water

BLIMEY! She be flashing a warning flag. All hands on deck. Come about and drop the sails me hearties. Arrr, looks she sprung a leak; she be bilged on her anchor. Scurvy dogs and filthy bilge rats.

Well, 1 hour out from our destination, the low tire light comes on. The pressure is dropping in the right rear and there is an exit in 1 mile. Pressure stops dropping so I get a move on and exit off. Stop at a gas station by air-pump and walk around. I can see the right rear is low. Another car also pulls up to the air-pump. They too have a low tire, probably ran over the same thing I did...not sure what, but something. I put air in; 40 psi. Sure enough, I can hear it leaking out. Getting dark so hard to see. I make the decision to put on the spare...this is the part where I learn the OEM lug-wrench doesn't fit my lug nuts. ARRRRRGH! I checked over everything...but didn't bother to check if the OE wrench fits the lug nuts! I'm going to have to discuss this with the dealer since they put them on. Well, lucky for us there is a tire shop right behind the gas station. Unlucky for us, they are closed. Neither gas station had any thing so I call the tire shop to see if they have an after hours number. Ring-Ring, "Hello"...someone answered! I explained the situation and that i'm right by his shop and he says "Give me 15-20 minutes." Woo Hoo!

The guy shows up and he has me pull in front of one of the doors. He turns on the lights and we are going to change out the spare. When the tire is off, I see a gouge and a hole that I could fit my pinky finger in. Well, I'm going to have to buy a tire for a spare. I check all the other tires and they look good...then I see the back left with a bad spot like the right....not sure what we ran over, but it damaged both back tires. I checked the tires before I left, even took to tire shop. My brother and tire shop all said the same; Put tires on before winter which was my plan all along. So now I have one bad and one iffy and have to buy a new tire for the spare.... "Hey, what do you have for new tires" I ask. He told me he was not planning on making a sale but showed me the options. Keep in mind, I already had budgeted this year for new tires; plan was October to put new ones on. He had 3 options in my size. Didn't want the truck tires or the cheap China tires....the others will be just right for my Suburban and MN weather.

2 hour later, 4 brand new tires mounted and balanced, $400 under budget...life is good. This guy was awesome and we are very lucky and very grateful. He said this happens 2-3 times per week. We arrive at our hotel in Smyrna, TN...they gave our joining room away! Arrrrrrrgh! No other rooms available...and to make things worse, our room smells like someone spilled cologne in it.....it's late, we are tires, the kids were in the car for 20 hours...bed time. I'll deal with HIE later....Good night.

 

[mrsabbott]

Wow!! What a start to your trip! Glad you were able to get the tires for the car!
Bummer about your hotel room... Not the best end to a long travel day. Hope the rest of your drive down was uneventful!

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

The Galley

We pack food and drink in a cooler and bags. We have a soft side that sits in the front, bag of goodies in middle row, cooler full of food, tote of snacks, and bag of plates, plasticware, paper towels, bread, etc. We stop at rest areas and gas stations to make a bite to eat or snack as we go. Juice boxes, water, coffee, and Gatorade, So Delicious choc. almond milk, and a few pop's go in the coolers and some meat/chease/jelly etc for sandwiches or cheese & crackers. Beef jerky is always a must (Costco, 2 pags - 1 there, 1 back).

 

[pkondz]

Q: What do you call a Iowan who watches Fox News?
A: A CORNservative

Ok, enough of the corny jokes.

OMG. You didn't.... you did.

Usually at some point the 5yo will tell her sister "Hey look, it's your family." Goes back to when she was 2 or 3 and her older sisters telling her that the cows were her family.

While I love SiriusXM / Satellite radio for road trips, one can only take so much of Z100/NY. I mean, DON'T YOU PEOPLE PLAY ANYTHING ELSE THAN THE SAME 5 SONGS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER...

You're being too subtle here. Did they play the same 5 songs over and over?

So I'll change SAT to next line up to turn on Octane . I look at my wife as I'm changing, with a smile, "How long before the first swear word?" Sure enough, the 2nd song is #@*& #@*( **#$&@((@ &#*(@ &*&(#&#* so I get punished by listening to Bryan Adams

Gateway to the East

Ok, ok, so I got the name backwards, but I'm not going west now am I

Good point.

We even saw a frigate that burnt to the ground.

Huh. Must've been pirates.



You?

One thing I did notice is that no one knows how to use Zipper Merge when lane closing.

Not many do.

Well, 1 hour out from our destination, the low tire light comes on.

uh, oh.

this is the part where I learn the OEM lug-wrench doesn't fit my lug nuts. ARRRRRGH

You're kidding! Seriously???

Ring-Ring, "Hello"...someone answered! I explained the situation and that i'm right by his shop and he says "Give me 15-20 minutes." Woo Hoo!

Good for that at least.
Not the way you want a vacay to start, but better than a blown engine or accident I guess.

 

[Jenny Sanders]

I loved your pre trip report and this one is awesome too.

 

[abarriger]

Thank goodness for the tire-wizard! I can only imagine how stressed I would have been in your position. I'm following along-- who knew how exciting reading a report of someone driving could be?

 

[figment52]

this looks like it is going to be a fun adventure....

 

[topiney]

Wow, great guy at the tire store...thank goodness for the folks who help us out in these situations. Can't wait to read more.

 

[My2Pixies]

Love this trip report. We drive 1300 miles and listen to the same 5 songs over and over too. Looking forward to the next post!

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

>While I love SiriusXM / Satellite radio for road trips, one can only take so much of Z100/NY. I mean, DON'T YOU PEOPLE PLAY ANYTHING ELSE THAN THE SAME 5 SONGS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER....
You're being too subtle here. Did they play the same 5 songs over and over?

Dang near. Saturday and Sunday was better...but for the most part, same few songs, maybe 10, but for sure 5 that you hear a lot.

>We even saw a frigate that burnt to the ground.
Huh. Must've been pirates.

Probably. The truck was gone...noting but frame and scorched metal. Cab and tires all gone...trailer was ok surprisingly.

>this is the part where I learn the OEM lug-wrench doesn't fit my lug nuts. ARRRRRGH
You're kidding! Seriously???

- No, serious...was a pretty low moment.

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Wow, great guy at the tire store...thank goodness for the folks who help us out in these situations. Can't wait to read more.

He had an amazing life story as well. Born in Iran...[skipping 30+ years of the story]....came to USA 5 years ago w/ $3k in his pocket and is now proud Tire-shop owner and a damn good one too. He has the "Minnesota Nice" mentality. Happy to lend a hand to anyone in need.

 

[DH-2-mamaduck]

Island of the Dead

As a good captain, I let my crew sleep in a little. Today we sail from Smyrna TN to the Florida-Georgia Line. We had hopes to visit the Pebble Hill Plantation, but their hours of operation will cramp our visit so we decide to drive to the town of Senoia. Along the way, we continue to see cars left and right with blown tires and the shoulders show shreds of shrapnel everywhere...what's with the roads down here? Debris? Excessive heat? Everyone has bad tires? We make it to Senoia and take a tour and get the kids a Slushie at the Beez Neez shop.

Q: Anyone know a different name for the town of Senoia?

We leave Senoia and get to our hotel in S-GA. Once again, they gave away our joining room! Their system even notes to be joining...Good thing for us, the manager was there and she was very very helpful. She called the Holiday Inn 2 miles south and set us up there. Joining rooms, free drink coupons...but no free breakfast. That's ok, we have food in the car. We check-in, eat, have a few drinks, put kids to bed and later Mamduck and I head to bed. It's 11:45 pm