And so it begins. Over the next 10 days I will be driving over 4,000 miles. I have been dreading this stretch since I finalized my schedule in January. People have been telling me that I am crazy and asking why I am not flying for this leg of the trip. The only answer I have to this ridiculous query is to say that to me flying feels like cheating. Honestly, the thought of flying never even crossed my mind.
This trip is as much about seeing the country as it is about baseball. OK, seeing the country may not be as important as the ballparks, but it comes in a close second. Squinting at the landscapes from the tiny window of an airplane just isn't the same. Plus flying these days is a nightmare. I honestly prefer the road to the airports in any situation.
What I listened to in the car:
Analyze Phish
Doug Loves Movies
Tigers/Royals game
Ronna and Beverly – Steve Agee
The Todd Barry Podcast – Scott Aukerman
I seem fun: The Diary of Jen Kirkman
I am sure that I could have saved time and money by flying to most of the parks. This trip could have taken me 50 days instead of 95. There are a plethora of reasons as to why I should have flown, but only one reason matters: that is not the way a tour like this is done. I have always firmly believed that nothing is worth doing unless there is a chance that I could fail miserably. I could fly, but where is the fun in that?
Who kept me awake while driving:
My mother
My father
My sister
My brother-in-law
Day one of this tip was happily uneventful. I drove from Los Angeles to Roseburg, OR. I spent exactly 12 hours in the car and only stopped for gas and bathroom breaks. I hit a little bit of traffic and I ate what I think may have been some bad chicken. Let's hope that does not come back to bite me later.
Travel Stats
Miles Traveled: 777
Time in Car: 12 hours
Avg. Speed: 64.75 MPH
Gas Money: $75.31, $81.18
Gas Price: 4.219, 4,279
Gallons Filled: 17.850, 18.971
Exercise: None
Sleep Time: 8 Hours 20 minutes
Bottles of Water: 9
Bathroom Stops: 7
Traffic Jams: None
Food Eaten: Strawberries, Grapes, blueberries, peaches, cashews, 2 chicken tarna from Zankou Chicken
Total Money spent today $265.64
Cumulative Miles through today 9,424
Cumulative Time in car through today 174