Cross-Country Supertrip 2008

Liger

I will be, Red. I'll help set up for a bit in the morning, drive to E-burg and join the CCST, and drive back with them. The whole time we were driving into Seattle last year I was giving directions over the radio so we wouldn't end up in a wrong lane. that I-90 interchange can be tricky if you've never done it (as noted by personal experience). I R Snoqualmie Pass tour guide!

Moe Fwacky

Haha, yeah, I can't wait until I rip the video from DVC. You can hear her giving us the directions over the radio, it was glorious.

Qs23

Window Flags? Well hopefully I will be able to get enough Yagi antennas so every car will have one mounted on the roof... think of it as a geeky window flag.

Moe, where are our sponsors?

Liger

Bawls sponsors paintball teams. Maybe they'll sponsor a bunch of crazies driving non-stop across the country?

Soups

_______moe wrote: »

Also, Soups, awesome you're aboard. Hopefully the website will be up and running soon in all its rider/driver registration glory. I'll see if I can manually input anybody who posts before then, but after it's up, riders and drivers will need to register themselves and their cars on the site. That's coming soon, don't miss it.

Thanks for the heads up.

Zlatnik1

_______moe wrote: »

Cross-Country Supertrip 2008
[logo coming soon]

Well, it's about that time again, to start planning for the Cross-Country Supertrip. We've got preliminary routes from multiple points that all join together and make one long line of cars to Seattle. For those of you who are new to us, we're going to drive to PAX, across I-80, I-90 and I-94, with other routes coming in from many other places in a long, continuous line in the time span of about two days. So saddle up and join us! Interested? Have questions? Leave a post and I'll get back to you as soon as my schedule allows (which is anything from immediate to twelve hours). Check out my profile for my contact info if you have a question you don't want to ask the entire forum, or just send me a private message.



What It Is

The Cross-Country Supertrip is our pilgramage to the Penny Arcade Expo from points east. Our primary route runs the northernmost portions of the U.S. However, we are open to having people from points south join up to the main caravan, which is why I have already scheduled routes coming from multiple points across the eastern United States and from Canada. For those of you who are unfamiliar, we have done this for two years previous and had a great time doing it. One high point about traveling in a caravan is safety in numbers. When it's four in the morning at a travel station in the middle of nowhere, it's good to know twenty or more people in the immediate area, although it does make for long lines at the food establishments in areas far from normal civilization (I'm looking at you, Glendive, Montana McDonalds). It's also a lot of fun to watch all the cars changing lanes late at night, it's like a giant road snake or something. So, I hope you'll join us. Onward, forward and so forth!

How It Works

The Cross-Country Supertrip, or CCST, is divided by stops known as Waypoints. A waypoint is our official stop to get gas, rest and meet up with other Supertrippers along the way. Each waypoint is allotted so much time to allow us to stretch and rest. The points are separated on an average of 250 miles (sometimes less), but not more than 300 miles. After two years of doing this, we've discovered that most people will need to use the bathroom at about half that distance. Those stops aren't explicitly scheduled, but time is alloted for them. Supertrippers fall into two groups, Drivers and Passengers. Passengers, you are responsible for finding a ride and making your way to the waypoints. Payment comes in the form of your share of gas, snacks, etc. Specifics can be arranged with the driver of your vehicle.

If you want to be added to our list of participants, drop me a line to be added to the list. Use the following format for sending information.

Group Name: Each car needs a name that stands for everybody in that car
Group Leader(s): These are the group's go-to guys. Usually the most active on the forums/internet. Main responsibility lies in relaying status updates between their group and the CCST and for getting their group together to depart from their location.
Vehicle: Year, Make, Model, MPG, Miles per Tank and if it's a rental
Max. Desired Passengers: Maximum number of seats that you want to fill
Starting Location: City, State/Province where the vehicle is departing from
First Waypoint: The first of our pre-selected stopping points where the vehicle will stop.
Riders: The people who will be in the vehicle. This section is for confirmed riders. See below for unconfirmed.
Name:
Location:
First Waypoint:
Driving?: Yes/No
E-Mail:
IM:
Cell: For the CCST Phone List. This information will be collected in the summer. Every car will require at least one cell phone.
Unconfirmed Riders: Number of unconfirmed riders not listed here.
Space Available: Seats still available in your vehicle

What You'll Need

A Working Vehicle - This is a long trip, and we don't want to scrape your steaming wreckage off the side of the road, so do basic maintenance before you go, meaning: change engine oil, check air filter, top off engine coolant and washer fluid. Check road and spare tire pressures and tread ware and bring extra oil, coolant, fluids (brake, power steering, anything that ends in "fluid") to top off on the road with.

A Cell Phone - You or one of your riders will need to be carrying a phone.

A Two-Way Radio - At least five-mile range. These help us keep in communication on the road when cell usage is unavailable or impractical. These are particularly useful during night driving. Many have commented that the ongoing radio chatter has helped to keep them awake in otherwise exhausting situations.

The CCST Handbook - This is a full guide on how to Supertrip. Qs23 and I wrote this up for last year and it worked out quite well in getting people up to speed on how we do things before we hit the road. It will also contain a full contact list of people on the Supertrip. It will be e-mailed to you shortly before departure. You can click here to check out last year's handbook (which probably won't change too much).

A Gallon Jug of Water - Good for you or your car. Other drinkables are good, but can't go in your car

Non-perishible snackables - Food for the road, beef jerky is a good mainstay along with trail mixes and anything else you might like. Stay away from ideas like a cooler filled with sandwich fixin's. It may sound like a cool idea, but takes up way too much space and is very impractical, especially when you can buy a sandwich or other, more filling foods about every five hours or so.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: It's hella expensive to eat and gas a car for the miles it's going to take to get there. Is it really that much cheaper than flying?
A: There's a formula to calculate the gas costs. Distance divided by miles per gallon, and the result of that divided by the national average cost of gas (or at least the average from where you are to Seattle). As for eating, with the money you save not flying, you can afford to eat and still save money. It ends up costing one car, round trip, a little less than a flight, round trip. But that one car is usually split between three or more people, and that's what makes a big difference. An addendum to this, it should be noted that the average cost of gas in 2007 was less than that in 2006.

Q: How much for a seat if I have no car but want to come along?
A: That depends on the vehicle and how gas is being divided up, contact the person you're riding with for details.

Q: How can I help make this baby happen?
A: Number One thing anybody can do to help make this happen is word of mouth, give people links to the official Penny Arcade Expo website and to this thread.

Q: Did the thread/website just up and die or what?
A: Our updates happen throughout the year in bursts, and grow more frequent as we get closer to PAX.

Q: What hotel should I stay at?
A: We'll know that when the guys at Penny Arcade announce what hotels they've negotiated deals with. Don't bother reserving a room until after they announce the hotels.

Q: When is the Cross-Country Supertrip going to arrive in Seattle?
A: We're aiming for a Thursday, August 28 afternoon arrival this year.

Moe, you do not know me, but that is a thing of art. Too bad I am only coming from Tri-Cities WA. It looks like we could all meat up either at the Gorge in George WA or the Spokane/395/I90 intersection, but I am definitely interested.

Moe Fwacky

Well, we're already planning to stop in Ellensburg to meet one or more cars. One of them, I believe, is also coming from the Tri-Cities.

BrokenAngel

Indeed we are. in fact, if all works well we may have a van full this year, or even 2 cars.

Moe Fwacky

Okay people, I know the website it taking a little longer than usual to get up and running this year, but I promise you we've got some good stuff going on the developmentational front. So stay tuned for the launch of the new site.

Coming... eventually

Soups

So what do people normally do on the ride over? Do they exclusively play DS all the way there? Is music involved? This'll be my preliminary emergence into the CCST phenomenon, and as I driver I'd like to know the interests of passengers, etc.

Qs23

Soups wrote: »

So what do people normally do on the ride over? Do they exclusively play DS all the way there? Is music involved? This'll be my preliminary emergence into the CCST phenomenon, and as I driver I'd like to know the interests of passengers, etc.

It really depends on the car.

The first year was full of laptop usage for me. (CCST Excel Spreadsheet and Scorched Earth) And playing the location name game with others in the car while listening to lots of OCRemixes.

The second year... was full of laptop usage for me. (CCST OpenOffice Calc sheet, and fiddling with the router to see if I could boost the signal any better) And when that wasn't going on, having way too much fun with the state of Montana over the two-way radios.

But the reason we had lots of latop usage was the fact that we had a power inverter running off the cigarette lighter the first year and hard-wired to the battery the second.

So if you don't have a power inverter, then idk.

Moe Fwacky

We fucked around with the music and communications, talked, DS gaming, video taping some of the journey, coordinated lane changes with the back of the line, watched videos on the laptop, and uh, that's it I think.

edit: Power inverter ftw

VThornheart

Edison be damned, we want our power in the form of a current that alternates its direction and magnitude.

Qs23

VThornheart wrote: »

Edison be damned, we want our power in the form of a current that alternates its direction and magnitude.

Actually, mostly everything that runs off of electricity, uses it in DC form. So Tesla got his A/C distribution and large scale items, but when you get down to the consumer, Edison is king.

Side note: I should post "the van" pics on here at some point. I'm going to install a second car battery just to make sure we can power everything through the 2 power inverters I'm going to hook up to it.

VThornheart

Qs23 wrote: »

VThornheart wrote: »

Edison be damned, we want our power in the form of a current that alternates its direction and magnitude.

Actually, mostly everything that runs off of electricity, uses it in DC form. So Tesla got his A/C distribution and large scale items, but when you get down to the consumer, Edison is king.

Side note: I should post "the van" pics on here at some point. I'm going to install a second car battery just to make sure we can power everything through the 2 power inverters I'm going to hook up to it.

Nooo, my pun is ruined! ;-)

Anyways, it sounds like lots of fun on that trip

Soups

Thanks for all your answers, guys. I've been making game remix CDs since high school, and just recently made a "Best Of" that I was hoping to listen to on the way. Also, looks like I should get a power converter!

BlackDragon480

While I have a lot of stuff to get straightened out (i.e. I might be going into the military this year), I'm considering joining/participating in the CCST this year.

The way things are looking right at the moment, I'll be a passenger. But, I'm a very hygenic person that's willing to pay whatever will be necessary in terms of gas and refreshments along the way. The closest waypoint to me is in Faucett, MO (about 45 minutes north from me here in KC), so that's where I could meet up with a driver.

Soups

BlackDragon480 wrote: »

While I have a lot of stuff to get straightened out (i.e. I might be going into the military this year), I'm considering joining/participating in the CCST this year.

The way things are looking right at the moment, I'll be a passenger. But, I'm a very hygenic person that's willing to pay whatever will be necessary in terms of gas and refreshments along the way. The closest waypoint to me is in Faucett, MO (about 45 minutes north from me here in KC), so that's where I could meet up with a driver.

I'd be able to snatch you up, if you do decide to go. My RL passenger friend and I are in the military too, for triviality's sake, or if that makes you more comfortable or whatever. We're going from ND, so you'd be on the way.

Willeth

I'd like to note that I'm still available as a passenger for anyone that wants me. Bonus - I can be picked up from anywhere!

Moe Fwacky

Soups wrote: »

BlackDragon480 wrote: »

While I have a lot of stuff to get straightened out (i.e. I might be going into the military this year), I'm considering joining/participating in the CCST this year.

The way things are looking right at the moment, I'll be a passenger. But, I'm a very hygenic person that's willing to pay whatever will be necessary in terms of gas and refreshments along the way. The closest waypoint to me is in Faucett, MO (about 45 minutes north from me here in KC), so that's where I could meet up with a driver.

I'd be able to snatch you up, if you do decide to go. My RL passenger friend and I are in the military too, for triviality's sake, or if that makes you more comfortable or whatever. We're going from ND, so you'd be on the way.

I'm pretty sure that Missouri isn't between North Dakota and Seattle.

SergeantAuberie

Oh yay! CCST! Free plane tickets deterred me from this last year, however, it sounds delicious. Now, to figure out exactly which state I'll be living in when August rolls around..

Liger

... ... .. .

CCST GETS COOKIES?!

Bryse Eayo

What? Since when did one start in Ottawa!? Was there one from Ottawa last year?

This might actually allow me to make it out to PAX this year. And... since I've never done this before, am i right when I say all the info isn't up yet? Like who's driving from where?

Moe Fwacky

Correct. I actually just got word on the website's progress, and we should be live some time next week. Once registration is set up, the idea is to have people set up their groups and find other people/other people can find them should they be in the area. The idea behind this is so that I don't have to manually post each group and who's riding with whom.

Imperfect

Not to hustle in on someone's bone, dawg, but I'm something of a whiz-bang genius with PHP, so if you need help with the website, AND it's coded in PHP AND some previously-unknown forum dude mucking about in your code doesn't squick you out at all, I'd be glad to offer my services, pro bono.

SergeantAuberie

Imperfect wrote: »

Not to hustle in on someone's bone, dawg, but I'm something of a whiz-bang genius with PHP, so if you need help with the website, AND it's coded in PHP AND some previously-unknown forum dude mucking about in your code doesn't squick you out at all, I'd be glad to offer my services, pro bono.

/blink.
Was that English?

Monito

I'm super psyched for this! I've been wanting to do this for the last two years, but cruel fate stood in my way. Probably going to have a car for this, but nothing will be certain for a couple more weeks.

Mwahahaha!


Also, if I am going to be a car leader, we will be coming from Manhattan, Kansas. Just so you know.

Monito

SergeantAuberie wrote: »

/blink.
Was that English?

Nope, that was the language of hip! Dig?

BlackDragon480

Monito wrote: »

I'm super psyched for this! I've been wanting to do this for the last two years, but cruel fate stood in my way. Probably going to have a car for this, but nothing will be certain for a couple more weeks.

Mwahahaha!


Also, if I am going to be a car leader, we will be coming from Manhattan, Kansas. Just so you know.

Ooh, what route might you take?

Imperfect

It just might be possible that my verbiage works you out, mah man. If so, you might just wanna pick up yo' letters a touch. Git on up a level, dig?

*snaps fingers*

But seriously, folks. Such posts are excellent reminders that caffeine is simulteneously NEVER a good substitute for sleep and ALWAYS the best thing on the face of the planet.

[EDIT: Christ, I actually said "squick"? Was I drinking at work? Again?]

K7 Avenger

When I saw Tycho's post today about Pax opening early registration I actually felt sad. I've never been to PAX or any other gaming related expo. I live in Pittsburgh PA and have always wanted to go, and I've just made up my mind that somehow, some way I am going to PAX.

I cannot drive there. I will however, somehow be able to be dropped off in Dubois, PA and be able to meet up with the drivers stopping there and get a ride. The New Jersey/New York City route is the one I'm talking about.

This is a great thing you guys are doing, I really hope this all works out

Now, the details:

Name: Justin D
Location: Pitt, PA
Driving?: No
E-Mail: delahanj@hotmail.com, my AIM is: Sir Justin x and I can also provide a cell number if you're seriously interested in picking me up and talking about money etc.
IM: Sir Justin x
Cell: PM me
Unconfirmed Riders: Number of unconfirmed riders not listed here.
Space Available: Seats still available in your vehicle

Again, thanks! :P

redimpulse

Group Name: Mister Band
Group Leader(s): redimpulse (so far)
Vehicle: '95 Isuzu Rodeo. about 20 MPG hwy, avg 350 mpt
Max. Desired Passengers: 3
Starting Location: Denver area, CO
First Waypoint: Billings, MT
Riders: None so far
Name: Zack W.
Location: Denver area, CO
First Waypoint: Billings, MT
Driving?: Yes
E-Mail: good.gof@gmail.com
IM: In my profile, also email above
Cell: Later, right?
Unconfirmed Riders: 0
Space Available: 3 (plus ample room for bags and crap)

I think I got it right. Anyone in CO area that wants a ride, I'm here

Monito

Well, (and I might be speaking for more then one car here, as I do not know how many of my companions will be joining me at this point) we were thinking of hooking up with the procession up at Kansas City.

Moe Fwacky

Hooray! As the website isn't ready yet, I'm going to try and consolidate all of the people who have expressed interest into a single post until such time the website is ready. For those of you who are new and haven't ready your way through the whole thread yet, the CCST website, when it launches, will have a registration database to help connect drivers, passengers and people with vehicle space.

Stay tuned for the launchening.

Goose!

I want to go, but I have two problems that I'm almost ashamed to admit:

1. I can't drive legally
2. I don't have any friends (that would be crazy enough to do this)

I'm kind of wary of being a passenger and just jumping into a car with a stranger, maybe that's just my stupidity.

BigRed

Goose! wrote: »

I'm kind of wary of being a passenger and just jumping into a car with a stranger, maybe that's just my stupidity.

We are all rapists and murders.

:winky:

Qs23

BigRed wrote: »

Goose! wrote: »

I'm kind of wary of being a passenger and just jumping into a car with a stranger, maybe that's just my stupidity.

We are all rapists and murders.

:winky:

Oh shut up... you're not even going to be doing the CCST.

We are all really nice guys and I'm going to make sure and wash the "Free Candy" off the side of my van before I set-off

BrokenAngel

Goose! wrote: »

I want to go, but I have two problems that I'm almost ashamed to admit:

1. I can't drive legally
2. I don't have any friends (that would be crazy enough to do this)

I'm kind of wary of being a passenger and just jumping into a car with a stranger, maybe that's just my stupidity.

I don't know if it counts for anything, but I also was a newbie to the CCST last year, and these guys were all awesome. I even roomed with a couple of them (Moe himself and Randomguy) and they were all safe, reasonably sane (or at least not dangerously insane hehe) awesome people.

Just stay away from BigReds candy van once you actually get to PAX... THERES NO CANDY IN THERE! ;.;

Goose!

Then the other thing is, when do we go back? I'm debating whether to take my week off around PAX or wait till 09.

Moe Fwacky

Well, it depends on where you are from. I get back here to Ohio usually the Wednesday morning after PAX. Probably Wednesday evening for the guys in New Jersey. Less time for places west of Ohio, more time if you're from Florida.