Reason – Road Tripping

Road Tripping

words and art: Andrew Pastura

Praise to the wheel and almighty interstate. The road is full of uncharted terrain and miles of the unknown – and the wheel brings it to us. A loosely planned trip can be an unforgettable experience that may just throw you into some places or people you might not have ran into otherwise. And trust me when I say, that’s not a bad thing. Of course, you’re gonna want to have somewhat of an idea of a plan, but leave some time for the path off the road. Those maps you’ve been looking at are full of towns waiting to be explored, to have tents pitched and a fire lit. Plus, you and I both know your neighbor wants you to leave and your friends at work are tired of seeing you, so go hit the road and talk to the folks from the tiny town that you can’t quite pronounce. They might be little harder to understand, but they know where the best spot to camp is, and they aren’t as annoying to listen to as that guy at work (or those nosy neighbors).

Find three or four friends (preferably one with a winch), borrow your mom’s minivan and you instantly have the ingredients for a sweet trip. Let’s say this road trip is your “vacation” and you have detailed plans down to the hour for this week-long journey. Hotels, riding passes, and stops along the way have been purchased and planned to a T. To me that just sounds like it could be a bit expensive and kind of like a well-structured workweek. Instead of cramming into a musty hotel, bring your camping gear and prepare for a lakeside spot instead some shitty room with shag carpet and free HBO. There’s nothing wrong with a solid plan, but sometimes when you’re on the road you need to let the road make the plans. Traffic, car trouble, closed roads, or simply getting caught up at a cool spot or skatepark can change itineraries for the better and alter your perfectly planned trip in ways you never would have imagined. Keeping an eye out for cool stops along the way will keep the trip fresh and add to the adventure, especially when a stop at a natural spring serves as a bath.

When you let the road and your eyeballs play more of a roll in a trip’s course, be prepared to run into some strange/crazy folks and some really nice, helpful people. This sometimes is both the best and worst part. More times than not though you will run into a law enforcement agent of some sort. He may be totally aggro/control-freak or he may be down to earth; either way, keep your cool and go with the flow because he ultimately could bring an immediate stop to your trip. Nothing sucks more on a week-long road trip than having it end on Day 2. So even though all the apartment tenants were stoked on you oillieing the fountain, it’s not something to argue with an off-duty cop. Trust me, this is coming from the guy who was recently cuffed on the curb and threatened with jail time for stoking the locals with some good ole wakeskating. Sounds ridiculous, but when you’re winching at a spot chances are high that you’re also trespassing, so you might as well agree with the property owner or cop.

Downer Po-Po encounters aside, the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants style of road trip is one I can’t recommend enough. There’s something about physically seeing and experiencing a spot you’ve been scouting for months on Google Earth. To me, finding winch spots and visiting new places I would have never been to otherwise are what a road trip is all about. I feel like a lot of the wake industry – especially wakeboarding – is about a planned hotel-wakepark-boat-hotel-bar-wakepark style trip. Your end destination might be the cool, new cable park, and that’s rad, but don’t forget all the opportunities that could be waiting for you along the way. Definitely hit up that new park, but don’t forget your winch or your tent – the road might have some other plans for you once you’re on it.