Someone else wrote the following earlier:

"The S2000 isn't the best touring car. Cockpit is small, storage minimal, and the ride is rough."

As I stated earlier, I did 10 hrs. one day, and 6 the next on a recent trip. Loved every moment of it! The cockpit is just right for 2 people, and what do you really have to have but a change of underwear & a toothbrush to travel, so don't worry about the trunkspace. And the ride? You certainly won't fall asleep, and besides, that's why we all drive a sports car isn't it..to feel the road.

Have a good trip.....

 

I have a hand-held cb radio that I use on long trips for 2 reasons: 1) When I want to drive fast, the truckers will let you know where the "smokies" are sitting and 2) I find it entertaining to listen to when I get tired of the radio/cd. You can get into some pretty good conversations with it too.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by scottrnelson
[B]I had thought of going into Mexico and driving east along the border, but then I looked up several web sites with information on what it takes to get a car in and out of Mexico.

 

For those interested in the route I'm planning to take for my 2-week trip, I've posted details at:

http://www.geocities.com/srnelson_s2000/We...ternStatesTrip/

When I get back from the trip, I plan to post many more pictures and descriptions from the trip at this site. At one time I had hoped to take along a laptop and post updates every night, but that won't happen. I'll be contacting S2000 owners in Utah and northwestern Washington along the way.

I'll try to get a few pictures of my bug splattered car towards the end of the trip. Right now it's perfect, since I just waxed it. I almost hate to take it out and get all that road grime on it.

Many thanks, once again, for all of the good suggestions.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by SFDukie

Tom Fota is a god, but in my experience the toll road S from Tijuana to Ensenada, BC is a breeze, and scenic to boot- nothing at all like driving around TJ.

 

Scott, I just did a 10-day trip from Ottawa, Ontario down to Asheville, NC and back -- about 4,000 miles in all, given that I took a very zig-zag, back roads route. Like you plan to do, I did not reserve any motels ahead of time, just started looking for one around 4:00 or 5:00 each afternoon. And, as I expected, at this time of year, no problem whatsoever.

My advice regarding motel choices, however:

I carry directories of all the major motel chains with me. Even though I didn't use them to call ahead for any nights on this trip, the directories can be helpful as you're approaching a city or major Interstate intersection (where you're most likely to find the conveniently accessible motels) because they usually provide rough maps to guide you to the location of the motel in that town. And when you know where the local Days Inn is, you're also likely to find Ramada, Super 8, Holiday Inn, EconoLodge, etc. nearby.

When I travel with my wife, the first criterion in choosing a motel is whether it has a swimming pool. When travelling alone, however, the frist criterion is whether it will allow me to park the car directly in front of my ground floor room. This is important for three reasons. First, I can feel a bit more secure that the car is just a few feet away. And I can sit and admire it from inside the room while I'm enjoying my end-of-day beers. But most important, I can wash the car with water from the room's bathroom -- using the three buckets I am able to bring with me when my wife's luggage doesn't prohibit that. Three buckets!!? Yeah, one is collapsible and the second one fits inside the third.

A word of warning about washing your car in front of your room -- don't use the motel's towels for the job. It gives us all a bad rap and makes it more likely that motel operators will take steps to explicitly prohibit car washing on their propperty (as KOA campgrounds already do). Take a dozen or so of your own, along with the rest of your washing gear.

Before going to the registration desk, drive around the entire building to select your first and second choice of hopefully still available rooms. Choose a room that is out of view of the lobby and preferably at the end of the row, so at least one side of the car will be protected from potential door dings.

Obviously you should avoid parking the car under any trees, even if you will be using the car cover. The stuff that drips and falls from trees is very unwelcome on both your paint and your cloth top.

I used to take a cover for my motorcycles whenever I travelled by bike in years past, and I thought I could easily follow the same routine when I moved to sports cars. Unfortunately, a car cover is not at all as convenient as a bike cover, and I'd recommend that you give serious thought to not taking it with you. Why? Because if there's any rain during the night or even if there's a heavy dew build-up, that sucker will be a bitch to pack away the next morning -- wet, soggy and seeping over the rest of your luggage, even if you take along a strong garbage bag to use exclusively to store it on such occasions.

I now take a cockpit cover with me instead of a full car cover. It allows me to avoid raising the top when I'm stopped for short periods, and it can be at least draped over the roof during the night to protect it from crap if it's certain to be a relatively dry night.

No one has mentioned maps. I stick with individual state road maps -- usually by Rand-McNally -- though you can also get free maps at the state welcome centres that are situated near the border of the state you're entering -- if you're willing to look for the nearest Interstate and enter the new state via that route.

I also carry a small micro-reorder so I can record the series of route changes I make in the course of the day. In my case, given that the whole purpose of my travelling -- or RoadSurfing, as I consider it -- is to seek out curvaceous roads I've never been on before, a day's driving of between 300 and 400 miles can take me over more than a dozen different routes that are not always easy to remember at the end of the day. Why would I want to be able to remember them? So I can get out the raod maps and trace the route in yellow highlighter -- with pink highlighter reserved for the truly great sections that I'd especially like to do again some day. Anal retentive, you say? Perhaps, but I now know the choice routes through all sections of most states, such as Pennsylvania -- and the routes I would definitely avoid in the future.

Drive safe, Scott.

 

The only thing you need is a laptop...and Yahoo maps. You can plan day by day. You'll need the trunk for basics like clothes. If you need a place to stay in Northern Utah send me a PM.