The Travel Numbers

 

I wonder what formulas they'd come up with about my travel data

So I got my "nerd" on tonight.

Sean calls me a nerd -- lovingly, of course -- in regard to my faithful compiling of mileage and times in a little notebook that I keep with me on many road trips.

They contain chicken scratch handwriting of basic facts as we move along. Normally it's the mileage per the odometer followed by the time of day and then the site. So...

385.5/12:46 -- Richmond.

A certain level of understanding then climbs into play. That's 385.5 miles since we left Greenwich and it's 12:46 p.m. In terms of "where" in Richmond, it's almost always the City Limits sign on I-95 southbound just north of Exit 79.

Now, if it's coming northbound, well, that's generally the James River Bridge that I'll use but I'll add a note if necessary.

From there, those numbers are faithfully entered into a spreadsheet that I've dutifully created that dates back to the early 90s...when I used to go to Richmond.

I add in the data for each stop so that I can calculate how long the drive would be without stops.

Now, I understand this isn't rocket science. It's literally not possible to go from Greenwich to Fayetteville, NC in my car on one tank of gas so of course a stop is necessary. But it's still fun (for me) to calculate all of this.

For those asking, why? I'll tell you that I do actually look back at these numbers in part to occupy my mind but also to give me a bit of a benchmark. I'm not actively trying to beat these numbers but give my brain an idea of what is reasonable.

This year, without stops (yes, it's impossible) it would have taken us 9:11. That does not top 2018's 9:01 but it's still a pretty good time. Still, we were in the car for almost 12 hours total, meaning we took up a bit of time taking breaks. 

Yes. Necessary breaks, for those who think I don't stop.

The return trip numbers are really muddy thanks to us driving to Newark, DE and spending the weekend in and around Philadelphia. That, for one thing, added some 400 extra miles to the trip though I knew that was going to happen.

In fact, we drove 1,857 miles total from Greenwich to Hamer, SC and then to Florence, SC before turning to near Fayetteville, NC. Then around Fayetteville and up to Newark, DE. Then to Philadelphia and back to Newark. Then back to Philadelphia and bouncing into New Jersey before returning to Chester, PA. Then, finally, back to Greenwich.

So, yeah, I can see how it was nearly 2,000 miles round trip. 

They're miles and hours I'm not going to complain about. At all.

For me, it was a bit different. I haven't really uploaded many pictures yet (other than what you've seen so far on the blog or social media). In truth, I didn't take that many. I'm grateful to Mr. Roadway Wiz himself (Dan) and others for posting pictures from the big Philly gathering.

For once, I didn't live through the camera on my phone and I'm not judging anyone who did. Like I said, I'm grateful to those who did take a lot of pictures.

As I told Sean during the weekend, I'd reach a point where I'd want to be back on the road. I predicted by Wednesday.

I was ready on Tuesday.

Football will give me some driving. Fall always does.

No regrets. A great time was had and, once again, I honored the tradition of pulling these numbers together that I enjoy mining for such data.

I'll look back and be reminded of the slow traffic in northern Virginia or the Wawa we stopped at that really didn't like (I won't say which location). Or I'll be reminded of something else.

All good because we experienced it.

This is how I derive pleasure from a road trip.

To each their own. If that makes me a nerd then I gladly accept the title.

Proudly.