Chugs

Pictures can be found HERE!



Instagram: sp0ngeb0b http://instagram.com/sp0ngeb0b
Tumblr: http://connorshoes.tumblr.com/

California has always been a dream destination of mine, always the place I wanted to live. The past three years I have wanted to get up and go, but I decided to wait until I graduated college. That happened last spring and now I'm packing up to head out. San Francisco is the destination.

I'm going by myself, and taking about a week to do the drive. I am still in the process of mapping out the specific roads I'm going to take, and how long I'm going to stay at my planned stops.

My planned stops are as follows:
(Locations in red are locations that I still don't have a set place of staying, so any recommendations would be great, if you are familiar with the area)
Home - NJ
3 hours
Day 1- Baltimore, MD
12 hours
Day 2- Auburn, AL
5.5 hours
Day 3- New Orleans, LA
5.2 hours
Day 4- Houston, TX
11 hours
Day 5- White Sands, NM
4.5 hours
Day 6- Tucson, AZ
6 hours
Day 7- San Diego/Los Angeles, CA
8 Hours
Day 9- Arrive in San Francisco

That is my very rough itinerary for now. I may take out a stop, but I'm not sure. I still do not have a concrete date that I'm departing, but that will be locked down in the next two weeks. It will be somewhere between December 28 and January 5.

If anybody has any recommendations as for places to stop, or places to avoid, please let me know.

I will be driving my 2003 Spa Yellow S2000 with 30k miles on the odometer.


My plan, at first, was to fill the trunk with my clothes and set off. I soon realized that this wasn't going to work. I have a computer, camera gear, tools, bike, surfboard, skateboards, and I'm sure plenty of clothes that I won't realize until I try packing them. So the new plan became to get a harbor freight trailer to pull with me, to carry all of my things.

And so it began.

Firstly, I finally got around to making a set of mudflaps for the front tires, to prevent rock chips from the 255 tires on 17x9 +45 wheels


Finding a trailer hitch - I found a Da'lan hitch used from a local S2K owner. It was covered in surface rust, so I sanded it down and coated it in POR15, then bolted it up.








Then I went on the hunt for a trailer, but couldn't find one used. I picked one up from Harbor Freight, cost under $300 with a spare tire.



After bolting it together, I had all of the seams welded up for more rigidity.



Then it was time to paint!




(pretty close match to the RPF1's! )

I then began making a wooden box that will contain most of my things.


Here's where I'm at so far. The trailer is mostly all built, but I still have to decide on how I'm going to paint the box on the trailer. I'm also going to be mounting my road bike on it somehow, either on the front or on the lid, I haven't decided that either. If anybody has any thoughts, I'm open to suggestions.


This is going to be a big journey for me, and I'm excited to be doing it, just me, my car, and a few cameras. And a trailer full of junk.

I wanted to share this with everyone, and this will also be a mini-blog of my trip, the people I meet, and the events that will transpire. I'm going to also be posting on my tumblr, Instagram, and Flick'r.

Thanks for reading, and I'm going to be updating this as I decide more details/change things. This trip is still in a relative infancy, though it will become mode concrete in the next two weeks.

-Connor


Update! : December 13 : Found an apartment on the peninsula, moving in January 15!

Trailer is almost done! Just need to stain/paint the wood.

Chugs

UPDATE:

Day 1 I drove to Baltimore, which was Sunday. A nice easy drive there, and I checked out the city and inner harbor area, it was pretty neat.

Day 2 started at 4:45AM, with 700 miles to Auburn, AL. Ended up getting there at 6:30PM, so I was in the car for close to 14 hours yesterday. The seats are pretty comfortable, but I've started to get a little sore. I think any seat for 14 hours will start to get to you, though.

Day 3 was a little over 5 hours to New Orleans, where I am now. Hit a bit of rain, but not too bad. Most of the rain is coming down now, so it should be over by the time I'm up tomorrow, when I'm off to Houston.

The trailer is holding up great, no excessive heat from the wheel bearings, even with having cruise control locked at 65-68 mph for 1,300 miles.

I don't have a computer to upload photos, so I'll have a photo update when I'm settled down in San Francisco.

Next update to come from Southern California, I'll be at Cars and Coffee in Irvine this Saturday morning, if any other S2Ki owners will be there, keep an eye out for my car and come say hi!


UPDATE:

I got to Southern California on Friday, and since then have developed a pretty nasty cold, probably from over exhausting myself from all of the driving. It's been cold here, but still warmer than New Jersey, so I can't complain.

I went to Cars and Coffee in Irvine on Saturday morning, it was wild to see my car there. Want surfing later that day, and hung out and explored for the rest.

I driving the final leg up to the SF Bay Area tomorrow morning and moving into my place. I looking forward to settling down at a place to call home.

As for the car, it's been doing great. I've been running Amsoil in it since 28,000 miles, and I just hit 34,000. My UOA recommended 6,500 mile interval for this oil change, and that was with track days. I only have one track day on this oil and a handful of autocrosses. I didn't burn an ounce of oil on the trip until the 4th day, when I was at cruise control at 75 for close to 14 hours. After some canyon carving here, I burned through more, close to 3/4 of a quart. I'm extremely content with that, considering how Mobil 1 used to burn.

The trailer rides great, no issues with the tires or wheel bearings, despite cruising at 75 for hours on end. Overall it's been a great trip so far, and the last leg tomorrow should be a piece of cake.

UPDATE:

I made it to the SF Bay Area! 3,902 miles later.



It's been an amazing trip, the car was great, trailer ran smooth. I am so surprised how well the S2000 pulls a trailer, but it is nice to drive around without it. I am still in need of catching up on sleep, but I'm starting to feel human again. Sitting in a car for as long as I have the past 10 days certainly tests one's mind and body. My lower back and ass are still sore if I sit in my car for more than 45 minutes, but I am pleasantly surprised how comfortable the seats were over such a long drive.

I will be updating this over the next few days with more pictures of the entire journey as I sort through them. Thanks for following me on my trip!

Chugs

Reserved

SkiLLeDS2000

Good luck with the trip!

s2ka

In for the blog

Some good tips/reference for your trip:

https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/865...#entry20542003

iLuveketchup

Living the dream!!! Safe travels! See you in SF (eventually lol).

tweezy7

Hey man i did this drive from LA to school University of Alabama where i recently graduated then to my Parents house in VA and let me tell you Texas is the biggest damn state i was so pissed being there it took 12-14 hrs just to drive through. But anyways looks like you got it all planned out and its a Honda and can take the miles i suggest blue tapeing the front of the car to prevent little scratches and road rash on the bumber and all. Good luck man!!

Chugs

Thanks!

Thanks for that link, great to read through someone elses experience in a long trip in the S2K

Thanks! Hope to see you out there sometime soon!

I plan on taping up the front end also, thanks.

This will be my second time driving cross country, I did the NJ-California trip last November in my friends '94 Accord wagon, loaded to the brim. We made it in 2.5 days....we were zombies by the time we got to California.

s2kcrew

Awesomeness! Safe travels and do post some pics

jrs21c

Good luck and enjoy. Please take your time and enjoy the city/nature on the way.