Driving straight through?

[sissybells]

We are going to be driving from Lexington, Ky to Disney, I have a few questions:

Will we be OK if we drive straight through? We will be going with my 2 neices and I'm scared if we go straight through that we ( being my husband and I) will be to tired to keep up with what they want to do.

If we do stop where in Georgia do you reccomend that is decent and in a good nieghborhood?

I really appreciate your help. Thank you.

 

[d4est]

For the past two years we have driven straight (minus potty stops & gas fill-ups) thru from NY. It is no picnic (about 21 hrs) but we survived. Upon arrival, we usually nap for an hour or so, then shower and are fine. (this is with our son who was 4 last year, 5 the last trip Feb 2004).

All depends on what you are planning upon arrival. Even if you do nothing the first day, the drive shouldn't effect your entire stay. HTH

 

[CarolA]

I fail to understand why people think they can do this and be ALERT drivers.....
Being too tired to do stuff when you arrive is the least of your worries. Falling alseep behind the wheel and having an accident that could be fatal should be the big worry.

Copied from a University of Michagan Study

ANN ARBOR, MI - About one-half of America's adult drivers - 51 percent or approximately 100 million people - are on the roads feeling sleepy while they are driving. Nearly two in 10 drivers - 17 percent or approximately 14 million people - say they have actually fallen asleep at the wheel in the past year.


"We are definitely on a collision course in this country," says Richard L. Gelula, NSF's executive director. "More and more drivers are on the road, and millions of them get behind the wheel feeling sleepy, apparently without considering the inherent dangers they pose to themselves and others. This is a wake-up call to everyone who drives a motor vehicle or rides in a car, truck or bus: driving while feeling drowsy or fatigued is a lethal combination, and is no less an impairment than driving while drunk," he adds.

Adults with children in the household are more likely to drive drowsy than those without children while older adults, 65 and over, are the least likely to drive drowsy or to fall asleep at the wheel. (See tables below for percentages).



"One of the most alarming findings in the 2002 Sleep in America poll is that so many people stay on the roads without stopping in spite of feeling sleepy, or even dozing off at the wheel," says NSF's Gelula. More than one-half (59 percent) of the drowsy drivers admit they did not stop because of their sleepiness.

 

[tolookaa]

We drove two years ago all the way through from MA. It took us about 23 hrs. In defense on the tired part, I slept in the car while my husband drove and vise versa. We left in the middle of the night about 10 pm so the kids would sleep most of the way and they did. DD 9, DS 7, DS 2. I did not feel tired at all. We stopped for a nice big breakfast for about 1hr and a half and off we went again. If at any time I thought I was getting too tired I would have stopped at a hotel. I would not risk the lives of my children or anyone else.

 

[tolookaa]

We drove two years ago all the way through from MA. It took us about 23 hrs. In defense on the tired part, I slept in the car while my husband drove and vise versa. We left in the middle of the night about 10 pm so the kids would sleep most of the way and they did. DD 9, DS 7, DS 2. My husband slept about 8 hrs before we left and he drove first so I felt good he would be ok to drive while I slept. We stopped for a nice big breakfast for about 1hr and a half and off we went again. If at any time I thought I was getting too tired I would have stopped at a hotel. I would not risk the lives of my children or anyone else.

 

[d4est]

like tolooka we also took turns driving. On our last trip there were 4 adults, so no one was too tired...

 

[Aimeedyan]

We are driving through and have three adult drivers. Two will stay awake all night and switch off and keep each other awake, and the third will take over at breakfast.

Its not for everyone, but its the best idea for us. We are not worried about the drive, actually looking forward to it, and dont see the point in wasting time and money in splitting the trip up over 2 days.

We will be getting there on a Sat evening about 8, so we'll just meet up with our family there, get into our room, and sleep anyways...

 

[sissybells]

I would like to thank everyone who responded to my question. As to the whole article on be tired while driving I have to say that we to would take turns driving and napping while on our way. I do have enough common sense to stop if I get tired. I understand your wanting to get that message out but I did feel a little offended about how you put your answer. But thank you anyway. I wouldn't by any means put me or my family or anyone elses family in danger just to get to Disney. The concern I had about driving straight through and wondering if I could keep up with them when I got there was not to be taken that we wouldn't be taking turns driving but I do know that when you take a nap in the car you still don't get a real "Good" nap, and I would be afraid that would catch up to us later when we got there. Thank you all.

 

[crisi]

Lexington to Orlando is only 13 hours. So if you do it during the day, sleepy probably won't even be a big deal.

I don't drive long distances with my kids (five hours to my sisters, max), but we did as kids - 16 hours each direction twice a year to visit family. My parents - my mother who is a morning person - would start the drive at 4am with sleeping bundled kids in the car. We'd sleep until 8 or so, when we'd wake up my Dad and he'd take over driving around 10am. Thirteen hours is definately doable - and if one of you is a morning person - thirteen hours where the kids sleep for a few hours is certainly doable.

 

[nisiemouse]

Steppdaddy: How old are the kids? I am also from Lexington.

 

[CarolA]

A couple of points.

1. If you are going to be offended if people don't agree with you, don't post on message boards. Sorry, but if you ask for peoples opinions, you will not always like what you get. Mine is that driving straight thru is irresponsible.

2. Studies show that unless you are a normal night worker under almost ALL circumstances you will become drowsy and less alert between 2 and 4 am.

3. Last fall there was a major accident involving the family of a football player at the University of Tenn. They left after work and drove "straight thru" to be there for the game. The driver dosed off, caught the shoulder and the SUV flipped. Several family members were killed and others suffered major injuries. In this case the results were worse since not all family members were wearing a seat belt

My big fear is that someday on the memorial board we will have a post about a death caused by one of these trips. I pray that I am wrong.

I realize that my stance on this is not popular. Every time I post that I think this is a bad idea people get upset with me..... so my question is if you have already decided to do it, why ask?

 

[sissybells]

My neices are 9 and 11. And to make another statement about being offended, I just think there is a better way to go about the statement that was made. Maybe I didn't put all of the facts that they needed to answer my question but to automatically assume that I wouldn't being sharing the driving and taking naps between was just silly to come at me with this statement

"I fail to understand why people think they can do this and be ALERT drivers.....
Being too tired to do stuff when you arrive is the least of your worries. Falling alseep behind the wheel and having an accident that could be fatal should be the big worry"

to even make the assumption that I would put anyone in danger is beyond me. I'm totally open to different opinions but I think it is sometimes the harsh way people put things is the offending factor. I am sorry if I sounded like I wasn't open to everyones opinion, but I think people should also be careful not to lay into someone when they ask a question to assume they would endanger anyone while driving.

 

[Doesney]

Stepdaddy,


I posted a similar post and was called "irresponsible". I have learned to let the attitudes role off my back. While it is certainly someones right to have an opposing opinion, there is also a nicer way to say things. No need to be nasty.

I was also told I was putting my family in great danger by driving thru the night.

 

[sissybells]

Thank you Doesney. I guess Iwill have to learn that also. I was just extra sensitive to the remark because they were thinking and also putting it out to everyone that I would be a danger to mine or everyone elses family. Thank you for seeing my point I eas trying to make to defend myself.

 

[nisiemouse]

I would arrive tired if we drove it straight through but everyone is different. Your nieces are old enough that they should be able to stay in a car that long. Have a great trip! I love AKL!

 

[dlbbwu]

Hello:

We just retruned from WDW in March. We have been traveling to WDW for the past ten years and have only flown twice. My road trip is usually 14 hours from Indiana. Going down we had discussed stopping somewhere to spend the night, and I am glad we did.

My two kids (boy 5, girl 9) took turns with the protable DVD. My wife slept and I had fun with the traffic. We stopped on the other side of Atlanta in a small city and spent the night. Funny how my wife plans everything out in detail, but just wanted to stop somewhere and spend the night. I was glad we did. It was better for everyone to have a fresh start.

On the way home we drove start though (which I personally hate), but between my wife and I made it safely. We try to start early in the morning, so that there is daylight most of the time we are driving.

We are trying Universal for the first time in June and this time we are FLYING out of Indianapolis. Good luck with your road trip!

 

[my3princes]

We have driven from Vt twice and will do so again in July. We drive straight thru, 28 hours. We also split the driving/napping. The first trip was with a motor home so getting a good nap was easy. The second trip we pulled a travel trailer and purchased a small bus to tow it so that there was also room to actually lay down for a nap. This trip we will do the same and will have extra drivers. We find it much more convenient to drive straight through and no one drives for longer than a 2 - 3 hours stretch. We have never had any issues with drowsiness and traveling during the night is so much nicer with much less traffic.

 

[CDisney]

Steppdaddy,

My husband and I take turns driving between NY to FL. Here are some tips that I find helpful to ensure that we stay alert during the drive and enjoy our stay after we arrive:

- Borrow books on tape from your library to keep your mind active. Music puts me to sleep.

- Drink plenty of water to stay hydrated. (Acts as a good reminder to take regular stretch breaks.)

- Switch drivers every two to three hours.

- Take pillow/blanket for non-driver to be comfortable to get the most out of naps. You might want to also consider ear plugs and a sleep mask.

- Maintain a little extra distance between you and other drivers, who may be more tired than you.

- Plan an easy day for your first day. We usually arrive about 3 p.m., so we relax by the pool, eat dinner, get a good night's sleep and get an early start the next day.

Usually, we have to stop on the way home. After a week of Disney, it's hard to stay alert for the 23-hour drive home. So, we factor in extra time for the return trip.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Kristi1357]

Steppdaddy - I say go for it, but have the plan in the back of your mind that you will stop if it gets too tough. We drove straight through from NH in January with a 6 mo. old. It wasn't nearly as bad as we thought it would be! DH and I took turns driving & sleeping. We swtiched off every 4 hours or so. After a first night's good sleep in FL, we were ready to go.

I'll second that the books on tape/cd help ALOT. Keeps your mind busy / awake and makes time go by fast too. We did also stop at a rest area after about 13 hours so we could both catch a couple hours sleep. I would definately do it again since DS slept most of the ride and once he's older, it'll be harder to entertain him on the long drive.

Have a great trip!

 

[sissybells]

Thank You Guys tremendously for all of your resonses. I think the books on tape are a great idea and will definately try them out. Thank you again.