chip-powell

I was looking through some old photos yesterday and came across some from college. This made me remember what was probably my worst weekend road trip ever.

It started out as a good idea (if any college kid's ideas could be considered actually good). My room mate and I were going to drive from Shippensburg PA up to Boston MA for the weekend so that I could see my girlfriend at that time. He agreed mainly because of the promise of free beer and that my girlfriend's room mates were cute.

We took off on Friday after class in his beat up VW Rabbit. Within an hour, we had lost 1st gear. After 2 more hours, 2nd gear was gone. 3rd gear burned out navigating through Boston MA. I spent Saturday working on his car and was able to get 2nd and 3rd gear working again.

Saturday evening I actually got to spend with my girlfriend. His luck was not as good. Her room mates were already spoken for.

On Sunday, we started our return odyssey. We lost 2nd and 3rd again somewhere around the New York-PA border. About 100 miles from Shippensburg, the brake peddle went to the floor and I drove the rest of the way back with only 4th and 5th gear, praying, and using the emergency brake on the off ramps. We did make it back alive though.

How 'bout you guys?????
What were your worst road trips?

rcorrigan5

Mine also involves Boston. A good friend of ours was engaged to be married and we were taking him to the Playboy Club in Boston (from New London, CT). When we got to Boston and parked the car, we went to the Club and found out it was closed that day (Memorial Day 1973, to be exact). So, no party at the Club. We walked back to my car, trying to figure out what to do. When we got to my car, I all-of-the-sudden realized that I didn't have my keys. Looking through the closed window of my locked '69 4-4-2, I saw my keys dangling in the ignition! So, we had to figure out how to get into the car. We tried for about an hour, bending a hanger to get it between the front and rear windows to catch the door lock, but were unsuccessful. Then, out of nowhere, a cabbie screeched to a halt by my car and he asked us what was wrong. We told him and that the keys were in the ignition. I loved his next question..."Don't you guys know how to steal a car?"! We didn't. He hopped out of his cab and had the door unlocked in seconds, using the same wire hanger we were trying to use! That got us in the car and, by now, it was time to head back to New London. The "bachelor party" for our engaged friend ended up being supper at HoJo's on the way back to New London!


Randy C.

chip-powell

Hope you gave him a tip.

Indy_68_S

Ha. I'll play. I'll offer up this short road trip (but long story!) as some of the others aren't suitable for a family site...

Early '80s.....age ~ 19.

I had been seeing this girl from across town for a few weeks. Her crew & family was pretty wild and I wanted to fit in with them. I was dirt poor being a cook & living on my own, but I had a '73 Chevelle Laguna. 350 4bbl. Black w/ white (I didn't know it at the time) W-30 style stripes. Black vinyl interior (w/swivel buckets!). American Racing 200S rims. It was the nicest car I had ever owned at the time and it fit pretty well with her crowd.

She suggested we go to Cincinnati, about 2.5 hrs away, for a weekend to visit her cousin. We planned to first hit Kings Island amusement park, then on to the cousin's to spend Saturday night. I envisioned a Springsteen-esque adventure that would catapult me up status in her crowd.

On a hot August Saturday morning we loaded the car. Typical stuff. A couple of bags with our clothes/stuff & a big white disposable foam cooler in the back seat full of refreshments. Gassed up, threw a bag of ice in the cooler, & headed out.

We were cruising down the highway, tunes blasting, windows down (no working A/C), enjoying the hell outta life...for about 10 minutes. That's when the cooler lid lifted off in the wind, flew around in the car, came between the seats, smacked me in the face, and flew out the window. I rolled to a stopped on the shoulder. Cooler lid gone, I dug out a beach towel and layed it over the cooler.

About 2 hours later we were approaching the Kings Island area. I missed the exit & looked for a turnaround. About a mile later I see one, dive left, and stab the brakes. The cooler, which was behind her on the back seat, no longer had ice. It was full of gallons of cold water. It tipped over and filled her side of the floor with water swamping her shoes.

We make it to Kings Island and I mop up best I can with the towel. She doesn't have any other shoes and slogs around all day in wet sneakers. When we get back the car that evening, there is water running down the insides of the windows from it stewing in the sun all day. More toweling and we head off to the cousin's.

We get there. Cousin & her boyfriend are nice and there are a couple of other family members there and we all eat dinner. But....something is wrong. I don't feel good at all. I bolt for the bathroom. After a while it's decided that I should sleep in the basement to stay away from everyone. I have no power to resist. I end up on a creaky little cot with a ratty blanket in a dank dark corner by the furnace flopping around all night.

The next morning I feel much better. We hang around for a while & cousin suggests we go tour the Hudepohl brewery. Sounds good ! Me, the girl, & cousin pile into cousin's car and off we go. Tour was cool. And, at the end, they have a tasting bar where you get free samples. It's just us 3 & the bartender guy. The bartender likes the cousin. So much that he keeps pouring more & more for us. For like 2 hours. We finally leave & head back to cousins. We grab a quick bite and prepare to leave as cousin has to leave. We say our goodbyes as she pulls out and head over to my car that's been sitting on the street all day.

As I approach it, something's weird. The windows are streaked/spotted ....inside. Apparently, one of us left a full unopened can of Coke on the console....in a black car...in the sun all day. The can had swelled and popped at the pull tab area. It sat there and geysered. There were Coke stalagtites hanging from the ceiling. Everything was coated in dried Coke. I dug out the towel and commenced to scrubbing. After about an hour we headed home.

It was about an hour from home and now dark when I noticed that my dash & headlights looked dim. About that time the ALT light came on. I pulled over & checked belts with a flashlight I just happened to have..and even better, worked. Everything looked fine. Belts all good. No smoke or noises. I figured the alternator died & I was running on battery. So I went into conservation mode. Everything turned off/down (no stereo, fan, etc..) except headlights. We didn't talk much as I 'willed' that car to get home.

By the time we got to her house it was not running well, but still running. She grabbed her stuff, jumped out and told me to go before it died. I did & it made it to my apartment....just barely. Lights were candles & it was running rough.

I saw her a few more times over the next couple of months. Then she moved....to Colorado.

jlauffer

This may not fully qualify as a "road trip", but has some of the elements, and also involves Boston.

Almost 20 years ago I went on a business trip to Canada. Flew to Montreal to meet up with a colleague. Filling out the customs form and checked off that I had test equipment with me, which I did. Well of course that raised a red flag and they pull me into another room and search my stuff and look me up in the system. Due to something stupid I did as a kid that involved the police, they tell me I can't enter the country. Then after a while they tell me I can buy a temporary pass for CAN$200, which I had no choice but to do. We're off to an awesome start....

So I meet up with the other guy and we fly to Chibougamau, which is in northern Quebec. From there we had to drive another 2+ hours further north to get to our desination...other guy was driving. At one point the road started turning and going downhill at the same time, and we were going a bit too fast. The road was solid ice and he lost control...we spun a couple times and went off the road and flipped over. Luckily the car landed right side up, and there was a lot of snow to cushion the impact. We were both fine, but we were out in the middle of nowhere, waist deep in snow.

Luckily a local inuit came by not too long after and picked us up and brought us to his village, where my colleague, who could speak French, was able to get on a radio (not a phone) and let various parties know what happened. He then talked to the rental car company, who towed a new car up to us and picked up the other one.

So we finish our business out there and make it back to Chibougamau, where I bought a souvenir at a local shop. We spent the night there, as our flight wasn't until the next day. Local strip club was....interesting. So next day we fly back to Montreal. Was snowing, so my flight back to Boston was delayed.

While sitting around waiting I decided to check the souvenir I bought...open the box and it's broken (was able to glue it back together though). Then I ended up missing my flight because I wasn't where I thought I was supposed to be (at this point I had only flown a few times so wasn't too experienced with air travel, especially in another country). They put me up in a hotel for the night, and next day I make it back to Boston. This time I pay more attention to the custom's form, and where it asked about test equipment, you only had to answer yes if it was worth something like $10,000 or more, which was way more than what I had...didn't notice that going into Canada.

As I go to get into the bus to take me back to my car, and go to lift my suitcase, the handle breaks off. Then I get back to the parking lot, and as I'm walking to my car, something doesn't look right. Get closer...flat tire. This trip was the gift that just kept on giving and giving. Worst trip of my life so far.

Allan R

Worst road trip? Camping with my Dad and brother back in 1974. We pulled a tent trailer behind the 72. Just finished the morning breakfast and packed up. Out onto the road and less than a mile a crazy deer jumps out in front of the car pretending to be Superman. Smash! Plenty of front end damage and not driveable because the rad was punctured. Ended up being a weekend campout at a garage/gas station. It really sucked. Good news is the garage had a guy who could do rad fixes and the car was ready to go the next day, but it took the fun out of driving around in a smashed up car.

chip-powell

Yeah remember those days when if something happened to your car alongside just about any road, there always seemed to be some local mechanic near by that could actually (gasp) fix your car enough to get you going and back on the road again. It might not be perfect, but it got you on your way.

Allan R

Geez you have a way of making me feel old. Yes, I remember those days, also the days of 'service stations' where pumping was the job of the pump jockey. He also checked oil and squeegee'd the windows, then wiped em down with a chamois. Check your tire pressure sir?? Yup they even did that.

88 Cutty Classic

went to the 09 Buick GS nationals in Bowling green and spent 9 hours there in the back of an eclipse. HORRIBLE...... my buddy decided to buy a bumper and fender while were there and i rode at the way home with a fender ready to cut me in half if we had wrecked. he was only able to use 1-3-5 because the bumper was preventing the shift to 2 or 4.

that trip beat out my 03 OCA nats harmonic balance explosion and my 01 buick race day that i never made it to because the coil in the distributor of my dads 87 blazer broke in akron OH. i was going to buick race day to hopefully find a new car because my 88 cutlass got stolen but didnt quite make it lol

oldcutlass

It was the winter of 81 and the wife and I decided to drive from San Antonio to E. Brunswick New Jersey in my 68 Mustang GT fastback, it was the road trip from hell. At around Little Rock I get a blowout on an H60-15 rear tire, there was no getting one in the area so road on a G78-15 spare. Somewhere in Tennessee in the middle of the night, my wife was driving behind a salt truck, it freezing out and I was napping. As we were going over a bridge the salt truck let loose and shot gunned the radiator. So we pulled over and stayed the night and the next morning it just so happened there was a radiator shop in town, it was a Sunday. I called and the 90 year old owner just happened to be there. He stated he'd fix it if I pulled it out, what luck. He would not take any money but I gave him $25.00 anyway. Back on the road and as we got within 200 miles of our destination my pressure plate collapsed, drove the remaining miles without a clutch and starting the car in gear. Made it there, got a new tire, replaced clutch, pressure plate, throwout bearing, and pilot bearing in my dads garage. After I was all done decided to run the car through a car wash and caught the traction bar on the steel tire guide. After straightening it out the trip back was uneventful.