10 WAYS TO TURN A DRIVE INTO A PROPER ROAD TRIP
There are a few rules to ensure the success of any good road trip:
1. You must drive for a while on a road you’ve never driven on before;
2. You must stop for a coffee or for lunch at a place you’ve never stopped before;
3. You must travel in both darkness and light, so either leave at dawn or arrive after dusk;
4a. You must have an alternative, easier or quicker route that you do not take; or
4b. You must have been able to take transit or fly, but chose not to;
5. You can drive fast, but you must not hurry.
Those elements alone will turn a drive into a good road trip. They ensure a bit of adventurous exploration while also offering some sort of challenge. You don’t have to go far; you can drive away now and return this evening with a sense of accomplishment.
But do you want a great road trip? Then you also need as many as possible of these:
6. You must cross water, preferably by ferry;
7. You must face some form of adversity, like a flat tire or heavy rain;
8. You must discover something about yourself, such as finding a relative in a graveyard, or fixing a breakdown on your own;
9. You must be surprised by something;
10. You must share at least some of the journey with somebody else. Mark Richardson will be making a threemonth road trip across Canada this summer in a Chevy Camaro. Contact him at markrichardson888@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter at @WheelsMark.