#travel

There’s nothing more American than a good old-fashioned road trip. And right now, more Americans than ever before are choosing to take that road trip abroad – by ordering an International Driving Permit and exploring the world via highway.

Summer is road-trip season. The fairest of nature’s four quarters, its warm weather and sunny skies beckon, especially for folks living in areas that receive winter’s wrath. It’s spring and time is ticking; have you planned your vacation yet?

Day three looks the longest, with a total of 1,121 miles to drive over an estimated 16 hour and 21 minute period.

Luckily, there will be an overnight pit stop in Sacramento to drop Tony off at the airport before I begin the final three hour drive to Monterey.

Day two begins with a cars and coffee event hosted by Steve Myers at his fantastic Skunk River Restoration shop in Ames.

To say he has a little bit of everything is an understatement. With 945 miles and over 13 hours to drive today, Tony and I are going to have to pull ourselves away from all of the fantastic machinery on display. If he begins pulling out his race cars, it’ll be game over.

Day one is going to be our longest single day, spanning 998 miles from Harrisburg, PA to Ames, IA.

According to Google maps the drive should take 14 hours and 37 minutes, but I’m hoping to cut that down by a few hours. Accompanying me on the trip is Tony Intrieri, President? of Rally North America.

At AutoGuide we love road trips. Any chance there is to drive somewhere instead of walk/fly/boat, we take it.

I may be the guiltiest party here. Aside from my yearly adventures with the charity organization Rally North America, I’ll take any opportunity to get behind the wheel and drive.

I tagged along for a two legs of MINI Takes the States, an epic cross-country road rally that’s put on by the company. I participated in just two sections of this continent-spanning trip, but that was still enough for me to experience four Midwestern states and some 700 miles of America. But there’s much more to than this event than just the sliver I experienced.

Traveling is expensive, especially if you opt to fly. But it’s not just airfare that hurts; parking your car while on vacation for a week can cost a small fortune. Car-sharing services could be the answer to this problem.

In celebration of the most powerful performance car it’s ever sold in the U.S., the 2012 Golf R, Volkswagen is launching a fan contest to reward one lucky enthusiast. 

“The Golf R has an incredibly loyal following of fans, and this is a way for Volkswagen to say ‘thank you’ for their passion and enthusiasm,” said Jonathan Browning, President and CEO of the Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. “We are delighted to reward one lucky Golf R fan with the ultimate enthusiast travel experience, including an adrenaline-pumping driving experience on a legendary track.”