How to pass the time on longer drives

  • HTML tutorial

What are your preferred driving pastimes on trips?


  • Total voters
    92

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
My wife and I have usually just done music but we've recently started venturing into podcasts, which has been really great. It gives us something to focus on, you learn a little something, and it creates interesting conversation topics.

I'd be curious to know how other folks prefer to pass the time when you're driving longer distances?
 
  • Like
Reactions: WTFSoCal

Billiebob

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,835
earth
First Name
Bill
Last Name
William
Member #

18893

I listen to the truck, always have.
I find music, podcasts, Sirrius radio distracting.
I prefer to just drive fast.
 

Anak

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,741
Sandy Eggo
I am content with silence, but I have three Varmints. Silence is not in their repertoire. Accordingly we have some games we play.

The best is "the initials game". It is kind of like 20 questions, but it can go on for as long as needed before someone figures it out. It starts with one person giving the initials of what they have in mind, and then everyone else asks questions which can be answered "yes" or "no" until someone finally correctly guesses what the initials stand for. As an example, I could start out with D.D.A.S. Varmints will ask is it animal? (Yes), Is it vegetable? (Yes), Is it mineral? (No) Is it bigger than a bread box? (No), Is it good to eat? (Yes), Is it a meal we fix at home? (No), Is it something we buy at the grocery store? (No), and on and on until someone finally guesses that it is a Double Double, Animal Style.

Another game The Varmints recently came up with is the chain game. One word starts it off and then we go around with each person giving out a word that has as its first letter the letter that was the final letter of the previous word. For instance I could start off with "hamburger". The next person could say "rock". The next could say "kick". Followed by "king-golf-fox-xylophone-echo-orchid-drumstick-knight-thick..." The challenge is, no word can be repeated. If someone re-uses a word they have ended the game and they lose. The example I presented has a number of words which end in the letter "k". Trying to focus on one letter makes the game more challenging and pushes the limits of those with poorly developed vocabularies. In order to not be cruel I try not to use too many words that end with an "x". I have also taken to having The Varmints spell their words out phonetically (Romeo-Oscar-Charlie-Kilo) and having the youngest keep a running log. This helps to keep them on their toes with spelling and the phonetic alphabet and give the youngest even more reinforcement for learning to spell correctly. Oh, and proper nouns are excluded, as are foreign languages.

A game we were briefly able to use was "Green Glass Doors". This is only good for as long as it takes everyone to figure it out, then it isn't any fun until you get some new folks with whom to play it. For some examples, puppies and kittens can go through green glass doors, but not dogs or cats. Beer goes through green glass doors, but wine does not. A moose, a goose and a deer can go through green glass doors, but a calf, a gosling and a fawn cannot. A pool can go through green glass doors, but a pond cannot. That should be enough examples. PM me if you cannot figure it out and it is driving you up the wall. It can be quite the challenge for some people, especially when trying to do it in on the road.

I will also note that the above games are also suitable for use over the air if you have multiple vehicles and radio communication. I expect somewhere there has been a fellow ham who has heard us and wondered "whiskey tango foxtrot" but been too polite to interfere.
 

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
I am content with silence, but I have three Varmints. Silence is not in their repertoire. Accordingly we have some games we play.

The best is "the initials game". It is kind of like 20 questions, but it can go on for as long as needed before someone figures it out. It starts with one person giving the initials of what they have in mind, and then everyone else asks questions which can be answered "yes" or "no" until someone finally correctly guesses what the initials stand for. As an example, I could start out with D.D.A.S. Varmints will ask is it animal? (Yes), Is it vegetable? (Yes), Is it mineral? (No) Is it bigger than a bread box? (No), Is it good to eat? (Yes), Is it a meal we fix at home? (No), Is it something we buy at the grocery store? (No), and on and on until someone finally guesses that it is a Double Double, Animal Style.

Another game The Varmints recently came up with is the chain game. One word starts it off and then we go around with each person giving out a word that has as its first letter the letter that was the final letter of the previous word. For instance I could start off with "hamburger". The next person could say "rock". The next could say "kick". Followed by "king-golf-fox-xylophone-echo-orchid-drumstick-knight-thick..." The challenge is, no word can be repeated. If someone re-uses a word they have ended the game and they lose. The example I presented has a number of words which end in the letter "k". Trying to focus on one letter makes the game more challenging and pushes the limits of those with poorly developed vocabularies. In order to not be cruel I try not to use too many words that end with an "x". I have also taken to having The Varmints spell their words out phonetically (Romeo-Oscar-Charlie-Kilo) and having the youngest keep a running log. This helps to keep them on their toes with spelling and the phonetic alphabet and give the youngest even more reinforcement for learning to spell correctly. Oh, and proper nouns are excluded, as are foreign languages.

A game we were briefly able to use was "Green Glass Doors". This is only good for as long as it takes everyone to figure it out, then it isn't any fun until you get some new folks with whom to play it. For some examples, puppies and kittens can go through green glass doors, but not dogs or cats. Beer goes through green glass doors, but wine does not. A moose, a goose and a deer can go through green glass doors, but a calf, a gosling and a fawn cannot. A pool can go through green glass doors, but a pond cannot. That should be enough examples. PM me if you cannot figure it out and it is driving you up the wall. It can be quite the challenge for some people, especially when trying to do it in on the road.

I will also note that the above games are also suitable for use over the air if you have multiple vehicles and radio communication. I expect somewhere there has been a fellow ham who has heard us and wondered "whiskey tango foxtrot" but been too polite to interfere.
Dang, that's a ton of great stuff! And I've realized I'm definitely missing "road games" from my poll, so I'll get that on there. :grinning:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Anak

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
I am content with silence, but I have three Varmints. Silence is not in their repertoire. Accordingly we have some games we play.

The best is "the initials game". It is kind of like 20 questions, but it can go on for as long as needed before someone figures it out. It starts with one person giving the initials of what they have in mind, and then everyone else asks questions which can be answered "yes" or "no" until someone finally correctly guesses what the initials stand for. As an example, I could start out with D.D.A.S. Varmints will ask is it animal? (Yes), Is it vegetable? (Yes), Is it mineral? (No) Is it bigger than a bread box? (No), Is it good to eat? (Yes), Is it a meal we fix at home? (No), Is it something we buy at the grocery store? (No), and on and on until someone finally guesses that it is a Double Double, Animal Style.

Another game The Varmints recently came up with is the chain game. One word starts it off and then we go around with each person giving out a word that has as its first letter the letter that was the final letter of the previous word. For instance I could start off with "hamburger". The next person could say "rock". The next could say "kick". Followed by "king-golf-fox-xylophone-echo-orchid-drumstick-knight-thick..." The challenge is, no word can be repeated. If someone re-uses a word they have ended the game and they lose. The example I presented has a number of words which end in the letter "k". Trying to focus on one letter makes the game more challenging and pushes the limits of those with poorly developed vocabularies. In order to not be cruel I try not to use too many words that end with an "x". I have also taken to having The Varmints spell their words out phonetically (Romeo-Oscar-Charlie-Kilo) and having the youngest keep a running log. This helps to keep them on their toes with spelling and the phonetic alphabet and give the youngest even more reinforcement for learning to spell correctly. Oh, and proper nouns are excluded, as are foreign languages.

A game we were briefly able to use was "Green Glass Doors". This is only good for as long as it takes everyone to figure it out, then it isn't any fun until you get some new folks with whom to play it. For some examples, puppies and kittens can go through green glass doors, but not dogs or cats. Beer goes through green glass doors, but wine does not. A moose, a goose and a deer can go through green glass doors, but a calf, a gosling and a fawn cannot. A pool can go through green glass doors, but a pond cannot. That should be enough examples. PM me if you cannot figure it out and it is driving you up the wall. It can be quite the challenge for some people, especially when trying to do it in on the road.

I will also note that the above games are also suitable for use over the air if you have multiple vehicles and radio communication. I expect somewhere there has been a fellow ham who has heard us and wondered "whiskey tango foxtrot" but been too polite to interfere.
And would I be correct in saying that a heel can go through green glass doors but a toe cannot? :sunglasses:
 

Mojavewanderer

Rank VI
Launch Member

Steward I

3,447
Hemet, CA, USA
First Name
Brent
Last Name
Caldon
Member #

12526

Old time radio shows are great for long drives. Shows from the 30s until television killed them off in the early 60s. A lot of the early tv shows started as radio shows, like Dragnet, Gunsmoke, and I Love Lucy. Have Gun Will Travel was a bit different, being the only show to start on tv and go to radio. You can find these old shows online and available for download.
 

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
Old time radio shows are great for long drives. Shows from the 30s until television killed them off in the early 60s. A lot of the early tv shows started as radio shows, like Dragnet, Gunsmoke, and I Love Lucy. Have Gun Will Travel was a bit different, being the only show to start on tv and go to radio. You can find these old shows online and available for download.
Ah, I like that. What are some of your favorites to listen to?
 

Mojavewanderer

Rank VI
Launch Member

Steward I

3,447
Hemet, CA, USA
First Name
Brent
Last Name
Caldon
Member #

12526

Ah, I like that. What are some of your favorites to listen to?
Dragnet, Nick Carter, and Sam Spade for detectives, Fibber McGee and Molly, and Abbot and Costello for comedy, and Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Frontier Gentleman, and Tales of the Texas Rangers for westerns. There are plenty more good ones too.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeffrey Dill

Berkshires

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

2,191
Berkshire, MA, USA
First Name
K
Last Name
L
Member #

13160

A mix of podcasts, silence, and talking. There are some great podcasts out there and when you are on a long stretch of highway they are great.
 

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
Dragnet, Nick Carter, and Sam Spade for detectives, Fibber McGee and Molly, and Abbot and Costello for comedy, and Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Frontier Gentleman, and Tales of the Texas Rangers for westerns. There are plenty more good ones too.
I love Abbott and Costello. Their movies at least. I've never listened to their radio stuff.

"Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is hilarious.
 

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
A mix of podcasts, silence, and talking. There are some great podcasts out there and when you are on a long stretch of highway they are great.
Ha, I guess I forgot about talking. :grimacing:

I've added that one to the poll as well.
 
  • Like
Reactions: WAYAWAY

Jeffrey Dill

Rank VI
Launch Member

Member III

3,364
Greenville, SC, USA
First Name
Jeffrey
Last Name
Dill
Member #

15578

Ham/GMRS Callsign
W4FOZ
For the podcast fans, How I Built This is a good one to listen to on the road. Usually about an hour per episode, all about how companies came to be - Five Guys, Burt's Bees, Uber, etc.

 
  • Like
Reactions: keithh2oskier

adventure_is_necessary

Rocky Mountain Region Local Expert Kansas
Member

Traveler III

4,007
Bonner Springs, Kansas, United States
First Name
Lucas
Last Name
Antes
Member #

7082

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE0ZXA
On our recent trip to Flagstaff, AZ from Emporia, KS, we opted to try driving the majority of the distance at night so the kiddos and doggos would sleep. This actually worked out better since my music tastes clash with the kiddos. I drove the first 13 or so hours with maybe 4 of them with the kiddos partially awake. We also bring along some games for them to play and also ones for everyone to play. Our favorite is called "That's It!" and it's a good one with only needing to read from a card. The better half and I tend to converse more on the way home as we assess our kit and setup and we write down any ideas we have or changes needed. But usually, I drive with them asleep and a little music going or complete silence if needed.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AZ WANDERING BEAR