There’s a certain thrill of a long car trip that can excite even the most reserved stoic. The promise of the open road, the hint of an adventure, letting our tongues flop out of our mouths while we peek our snouts out the open window, and the low-key delight in living off junky fast food for the next twelve-odd hours can be a strange but alluring combination of uncertainty and fun. (It’s almost as though we’re all secretly Labrador retrievers at heart.)
However, certain things can put a damper on your trip, putting a sudden and unpleasant end to the festivities. To avoid spoiling your next road trip, try to abstain from encountering any of these fourpotentially unpleasant (and possibly dangerous!) things that you may encounter while on the road.
Speeding tickets.
You’re making good time and the distance between you and your destination is rapidly closing when you see it: the flashing red and blue lights in your rearview window. Womp-womp. To prevent your memories of your car trip being sullied by a hefty fine, and mitigate the risk of a traffic accident, stick to the posted speed limit and obey all traffic laws when you’re on the road. Also, make sure your tags are up to date. You can get pulled over for expired Florida tags, even if you're not speeding!
Hitchhikers.
First off, no. Secondly, nope. While South Florida politicians haven’t outright prohibited hitchhiking, they have some pretty strongly worded laws about where a person is allowed to solicit a ride in our great state. But like, seriously. While most hitchhikers are probably honest in intention and are just trying to get from Point A to Point B, picking up a stray passenger is literally the opening to many horror movies. No thank you.
Awful music.
You’re going to be trapped in your car for the next eight to ten hours. You want to make sure you have a killer playlist queued up for the drive, right? If you’re the driver, you get to dictate what music you’re listening to on your trip. Load up your music app with your favorite songs and let your copilot do the DJing, but make sure you plan ahead with some kickin’ tunes to avoidwearily belting out, “99 Bottles of Non-Alcoholic Beverages on the Wall” when the music turns sour.
An empty tank.
This is both an allegory and a literal warning. In addition to properly fueling yourself on your road trip (try to find a balance between “fun”and nutritious foods to keep your energy up), you also want to keep an eye on your actual gas tank, too. Some stretches of the I-95 can be quite long, and gas stations can become scarce in certain areas. Nothing is quite as crummy as being stranded on the side of the highway with an empty gas tank and many miles to go ahead of you.
A car trip – either solo or with your best pals – can be the one of the most underrated joys in the world. They rarely require serious advanced planning and can be one of the more affordable ways to see the country. By making sure you plan ahead with good music and good eats, you drive safely and at the posted speed limits, and you avoid any sketch highway drifters, you can make the most of your road trip without tarnishing it with unpleasant surprises or incidents.
Get your Fort Lauderdale auto tags renewed at (954)848-4808!
Photo credit: mentatdgt
