Most miles driven in a single day

DaveEstey wrote: A little more than 1,100 miles in 18 hours. Took my then girlfriend and her friend to see friends in Iowa from New Jersey in my RSX. Neither of them could drive stick so it was all me. Miserable.

Tangentially related, but you reminded me of a funny story...

Many years ago, I had a SO who did not drive stick. We were coming home from a long road trip and I could go no further.

I pulled off the highway on a deserted downhill stretch and set the parking brake. We switched seats.

I released the brake and she eased back on to the highway. When we got to about 35mph, I told her to press the pedal on the left. I shoved the stick into 5th. then I told her to gas it and release the pedal.

It was good enough for me. I told her to wake me next time she needed to exit and took a nap.

In the last week I did two 980 mile drives. Grand Rapids to Pensacola the night of the 27th and Back on the night of 2nd.

14.5 hours the 1st time, 16 on the way back. Dang construction and Wife/Kid potty breaks.

I did 1,021 miles in 21 hours around on a 2011 Triumph Street Triple R. My buddy was on a KTM Adventure 990. Started in Lake Orion, MI & ended in Grand Blanc, MI. These towns are less than 30 miles apart. We rode almost the entire coastline/perimeter of Michigan's lower peninsula, with the exception of the thumb, & we also rode a good bit through the middle of the state. Most of the ride was surface streets & we only ended up on the interstate for less than 20% of the ride. We stopped for fuel, food, water, a snack, & to stretch our legs just about every 2 hours. It rained for the first 4 hours of the trip, which was a major bummer since my riding gear was not even remotely close to waterproof. Food, Aleve, & 5 Hour Energy were absolute lifesavers.

That trip was brutal for my body, but it was so much fun. It is very high on the list of "Most fun things that I don't plan to do again."

This past weekend, I did two 820 mile drives in 3 days. Detroit to Atlanta via Nashville on day 1, spent a day hanging out with family & picking up a project Miata chassis, & then trailered it back home on day 3. Each trip was 13 hours of actual driving + a 1 hour stop in Nashville. That drive got much better once I tightened up the steering gearbox adjuster on the 213k mile old Yukon/tow rig. It had gotten pretty sloppy & made it very difficult to keep the trailer in the lane on the way down south. Solo road trips are rough. I was very relieved to have my sister & her dog as company for the Nashville to Atlanta portion.

So 1,021 miles is the longest I've done in 1 day on 2 wheels & 820 miles is the longest I've done in 1 day on 4 wheels while dragging a 20' trailer.

I went from Altoona PA to Paducah KY and back in 28 hours once. About 1450 or so miles? My dad was on timed-release morpheme for nerve damage related back pain. They trailered their boat to the Mississippi, with the intent of running the entire Ohio in a week or so. My brother was bringing the truck and trailer back. When Dad realized that he left his pills in PA, he had enough with him for a day or so. They decided to scrub the trip, and called my brother to come take the boat out of the water (he wasn't too far east yet). The wheel bearing failed on the boat trailer on the way to get them. So, a buddy and I blasted through the night with a class 3 controlled substance in the trunk, so that we could get Dad his meds before he started withdrawal. In retrospect, it probably would've gotten them there faster to send them UPS next day air.

Wilmington, DE to Little Rock. 1123 miles. '07 Chevy Malibu.

Longest for me was Lincoln, NE to Loganville, GA which is about 1050 miles and 16+ hrs. I stopped overnight on the way up but decided to drive straight through on the way back. I had to stop at N Ga rest stop for a short nap before driving the last 3 hrs. Not doing that again without someone to help drive.

It wasn't that long, but a chopper trip in the 60's was hugely frustrating! We took off from MCAF Santa Ana in a CH-46 Marine Helicopter. Expected destination was the AFB in Las Vegas. After about one and a half hours trying to cross the "Grapevine" against strong headwinds, we had to turn around and return to Santa Ana to refuel! It's great, when you're showing 120+ knts. airspeed and kids in the rear facing backseats of their parent's station wagons are waving as they are passing you on in near bumper to bumper traffic on the interstate below!