Well, I'm feeling deflated.
I'm still a newb but I've expressed before that wife and I are exploring the idea of full timing in the future. We just got back from a weeks vacation at myrtle beach and I'm starting to question if full timing is for us.
The first issue is driving. From where I live, it's about 460 miles each way. I figured okay, let's break that up into two days. I went about 350 miles before we stopped. I was drained. Had two areas that went down to one lane b/c of construction and Columbia SC is a bitch to drive thru. I'm starting to think that I don't want to drive over 300 miles a day. The other stressful part is worrying about everyone around me especially in front of me. I'm so heavy, I'm paranoid I won't have enough room to break in time. Hills are a pain in the @$# too but I try to gain speed prior so it's not as bad but I still need more experience in that b/c sometimes it caught me by surprise. 18 wheelers aren't too bad except for at one point, he started to cross into my lane and I shifted right and there was a car there. That got my heart rate up.
Issues - I didn't have any issues going there except the campground was really tight but I got in. The only real stress as you may know was the cpl weeks leading up to the vacation where I had the house battery issues. If you read my blank tank issue the other day, that wasn't a big issue, in fact you guys would probably laugh at that being an issue but I guess the stressor is when something is wrong and being ignorant of what the problem is. Although I learned.
Pets - We have two pets. My lab which is a great dog but medium size and sheds 365. her dog is a small dog but terrible traveler. He whines whenever we are not at top speed on the highway. And he's old and stinks (some skin issue) anyway, I'm thinking if we full time, we need a short haired, that can travel and keep the count to one dog. (although I'm confident her little dog will never die)
Room - I've said before that I just can't see us being able to full time without slides. If it was just me, that would be one thing but it's just tight. I think I want to take out a small counter table top to give us more floor room and I want to take a trip without the dogs to see the difference. Either way, I'm 90% sure that we will upgrade to slides in the future.
So to sum it up, I feel that with having a job and deadlines, it made traveling any significant amount of distance harder on me. I don't know how Scott does it especially with significant mechanical issues. I'm curious on everyone's thought about distance travelled a day/trip etc
Maybe I'm just burned out b/c I spent a week with 12 of the wife's family members and I need a vacation from my vacation but I'm really questioning myself now. I told her if we were to do the vacation there again, we would just drive and rent a house there. I could see if we were both fully retired and just took however long we wanted to get there.
I was told that owning a bus is a hobby and not for the feint of heart but I could use some advice and or if anyone questioned themselves at times?
Spend your career in the oilfields living in a 88 - 120 sq feet and a coach becomes a palace.
;D
I love driving my bus, but it does wear me out more than driving a car, simply because the bus is 102" wide and I have to concentrate more to keep it in my lane. And then my wife won't drive it so 400-500 miles is all I drive for the day. We have 3 dogs and three dog crates. Sometimes 1 or 2 stay in the crate, but they get taken for a walk at almost every stop. Camping is comfortable. All in all I like taking my bus.
My bus is a lot more work to drive than my big Kenworth truck. I could drive my Kenworth all day into the night and not be beat up by constantly concentrating on keeping the bus in the lane (like Geoff).
Take a look at some of the truck conversions with slides. Good Luck, TomC
I no longer drive 700 miles per day like I did when I was much younger. I try to keep it around 300 miles per day now so I am as refreshed and rested for most of the day. When I travel more than 300 miles per day, I get tired and cranky. I usually plan my trips with plenty of extra time and I also stop at most rest areas and get out and walk around. I try to find a good place to park at least an hour or two before sunset so I am not having to drive at night anymore. I am not a big fan of campgrounds along the way because they take extra time to get in and out of and get hooked up. I can sleep just as well in a Rest Area, Truck Stop, or at an interstate exit so in a way, that is less stressful too. I also try to fuel up once per day so I am not worried about where my next tank of fuel is. I have also discovered that you pretty much have to get into Truck Stops and Rest Areas by about 4:00 in some parts of the country to get a choice spot now that they are starting to better track truckers time behind the wheel.
Being a noobie (one year this month) too, here are my experiences. Miles driven in a day is all dependent on one's ability and comfort with driving these huge buses. Over the past year, it feels like about 300 freeway miles is the most for trip planning. Naturally, highway and secondary roads lower that number. Feeling stressed out should be expected for a couple reasons. Driving the bus after some layoff creates extra stress due to lack of recent experience and memories about longer stopping, following distances, huge turning radius, etc.
Only time will tell about dogs adjusting to travel. Maybe if the yapper don't stop, put the thing in a crate in the back of the bus with the door shut. Same thing with the shedder. At least most of the noise and hair is contained and more easily cleaned.
What we did for the first year was keep the bus at a nearby park for a couple weeks at a time. Being less than an hour away made it very easy to go and stay for a day or a few days at a time. That gave us plenty of experience learning all about the bus. We also took a lot of short and medium distance trips to get used to those extended times on the freeway.
We are planning some longer trips this summer and plan a shakedown cruise of a couple days just to make sure everything is ship shape.
Lastly, we have thoughts about longer term short "full timing" too. Before committing to an expensive coach, we decided to get an older conversion to experiment with owning and using an "RV". If we really love it and find our coach does not meet our needs, we can upgrade and minimize the loss on this first one.
Anyway, a few thoughts. Hang in there. Take some short weekend trips to get more time under your seat. Enjoy.
4-6 hours. sometimes less.
miles ? i don't drive for miles. it's hours.
and yes, i enjoy the heck out of driving it.
:)
Hours vs miles.
The best gauge is amount of comfort and tiredness. 4 hours on a two lane winding road is a lot more tiring than 4 hours down an interstate.
Thanks for the replies so far. It seems like around 300 is the general number. To Geoff and Gary, you are a machine driving 500 - 700 miles a day!
I forgot to mention the looking for a campground during the trip. We talked about using a rest stop on the way back but ended up calling a place and they were full and then went to a low cost minimal campground. Turns out they were back in only and didn't have sewer hook ups (which turned out to be a problem for me). The next day leaving, I was going to find the dump station and hooked up the toad. There was no way I could make the turn so I just left.
I don't necessarily mind stopping at a campground but I find that looking the day off is unneeded stress and the unknown of the campground is also added pressure. I think from now on if I don't do the research and reservations prior to the day of, it's going to be rest stop breaks. (I forgot to mention that I almost got turned away from the campground on the way to the beach. I was super hot but that's another story)
Windtrader, I like your advice too. We have a 3 campgrounds near us that we like which are maybe 2hrs away which we like to do 3 day weekends. I really think the core of my stress was having to be back home b/c of work. Maybe I just need to win the lotto!! ha
Does everyone that uses GPS which show the estimated time to arrive add about 2 hrs to get real time?
Well, all of this discussion explains why driving a truck for ten hours a day, day after day, gets tired after a few years. Driving a coach is so much nicer, except for the glass sun-house in the front, and the fact that the fuel fill-ups go on my credit card instead of the company's. It also seems that for some reason, after 50+ years of driving, we lose our zip somewhat, to go 700 miles in one shot.
We've been living in our coach for @10 years now and I love driving it and living in it. My wife loves me so she puts up with it ;) If I have to drive any distance at all I would much rather it be in the bus and not the toad. Any trip under 200 miles feels disappointing when we reach our destination. The bus is so much more comfortable than anything I've ever driven. It is a bummer that the fuel goes on the personal card, but hey, you can't take it with you. (Sorry kids). We have been fortunate in that all our mechanical issues seem to crop up while we're parked. And on a side note, we always use the GPS to plan our route so that we don't end up in front of low overpass or other non-bus friendly situation.
Will
Quote from: PP on June 18, 2018, 10:40:35 AM
We've been living in our coach for @10 years now and I love driving it and living in it. My wife loves me so she puts up with it ;) If I have to drive any distance at all I would much rather it be in the bus and not the toad. Any trip under 200 miles feels disappointing when we reach our destination. The bus is so much more comfortable than anything I've ever driven. It is a bummer that the fuel goes on the personal card, but hey, you can't take it with you. (Sorry kids). We have been fortunate in that all our mechanical issues seem to crop up while we're parked. And on a side note, we always use the GPS to plan our route so that we don't end up in front of low overpass or other non-bus friendly situation.
Will
What year is your prevost?
I am not yet finished my bus. But I had a 5th wheel before and loved to drive all day. Always have. When I was in my 20s I would drive for 3 hours just for a cup of coffee. I still love driving. That is the adventurous part. Seeing new countryside is like a drug. I really get a charge out of finding a new road or visiting a new (to me) small town.
The whole reason for the bus is so I take my kitchen with us. There are some sections in Canada that when you really need it you could not find a restaurant of a fast food joint if your life depended on it. My wife is diabetic so in reality, her life does depend on a scheduled meal.
Now a days I will not be driving no 14 hours I'm sure but if I am not tired I would just drive. To me the trip IS the drive. The destination is just an interruption of my driving. And since I would have no reason to get anywhere on a tight schedule I believe I would enjoy it that much more.
I guess I would just make everyday a Sunday drive day. If I absolutely, positively have to get there and at a particular time, then there are other modes of transport that would be more suitable.
My point of view is if driving within your designated space and heavy traffic is a worry, take the secondary roads. Just enjoy the drive.
Im not sure of the traffic and hills in canada but i can assure you it will not be like driving a 5th wheel. I like tour attitude though. I hope your build goes well.
The guys that live and drive out west or western Canada have it a lot easier. Traffic on east coast sucks anymore. I81 and I95 are really bad. So many trucks and impatient 4 wheelers passing on either side and not providing sufficient clearance before pulling in. Then there are all the construction zones....
Break up your driving periods with more rest stops. Take a couple of power naps. Have wife take dogs on an hour break while you nap.😀
Quote from: chessie4905 on June 18, 2018, 06:34:14 PM
The guys that live and drive out west or western Canada have it a lot easier. Traffic on east coast sucks anymore. I81 and I95 are really bad. So many trucks and impatient 4 wheelers passing on either side and not providing sufficient clearance before pulling in. Then there are all the construction zones....
Break up your driving periods with more rest stops. Take a couple of power naps. Have wife take dogs on an hour break while you nap.😀
I95 is the one road i dont even like to drive normal vehicles on. Its crazy on there!
You have a good point about breaking it up. I think we were rushing to get to the beach and rushing back bc i had to get back to work and lord knows there is no rushing a 6v92
Branderson, I hear you about traffic and have space in front of you, truly upsetting when some SOB takes your safe stopping space. A couple years ago I add a dash cam, it works, in Oregon I had a sheriff do a u turn in front of me, I clipped him in his back panel. I was not cited, it is the best insurance. Of coarse you need to be doing it right.
Quote from: Branderson on June 18, 2018, 05:57:49 PM
Im not sure of the traffic and hills in canada but i can assure you it will not be like driving a 5th wheel. I like tour attitude though. I hope your build goes well.
I also used to drive truck on short(er) runs. < 1200 mile rounder. Of course in those days there were no log books and I would do that straight thru ... after putting in 8 hours in the shop. like I said, I like to drive.
A couple other thoughts on why folks generally travel less miles in a bus. Every time I get ready to get on the road, there is a list of items that takes time to get through. Then there are stops to recheck that all looks OK. Then there is the slower speeds to stay safe and enjoy the scenery. And finally, we prefer to get parked early so we can relax and have enough light to take care of things. All that just shortens the hours in the day for actual driving and putting miles on the bus.
Hi, I agree with everyone about distance verses time. We generally schedule our drives for no longer than 5hrs and yes, based on what the GPS says I always add an hr or so. Fulltiming also gives you some flexibility on when you drive, ie. missing rush hour or the worst heat. And hopefully if you were fulltiming, the drives wouldn't be every day but once in a while. I'm definately more drained after a day driving the bus compared to a car, but it does get better the longer you do it and are prepared mentally for what you may be dealing with on that days drive. I like others suggestions of parking it somewhere nearby and enjoying it for a bit getting used to the space.
Craig
Branderson, you need more miles, miles and miles. Relax, assert your space around your bus: don't worry about what's behind you (they can wait), put your blinker on and change lanes (they'll back off), slow is better than too fast (yes they will steal the space in front of you, so back off so more). The more you drive it, the more familiar you become with it's size and turning radius, until it becomes an extension of yourself. Driving a bus or truck to me is easier and less tiring than a car, because you sit higher for a better view, and you get more respect from other motorists because you are bigger than most of them.
Some get it, some don't. I hope you do, and get to enjoy it. You have to be patient on the road. If not, you might as well fly and rent a room.
Easy for me to say, but I remember the stress when I started training driving a bus (45 years ago).
All the best.
JC
Quote from: lostagain on June 19, 2018, 06:25:04 AM
Branderson, you need more miles, miles and miles. Relax, assert your space around your bus: don't worry about what's behind you (they can wait), put your blinker on and change lanes (they'll back off), slow is better than too fast (yes they will steal the space in front of you, so back off so more). The more you drive it, the more familiar you become with it's size and turning radius, until it becomes an extension of yourself. Driving a bus or truck to me is easier and less tiring than a car, because you sit higher for a better view, and you get more respect from other motorists because you are bigger than most of them.
Some get it, some don't. I hope you do, and get to enjoy it. You have to be patient on the road. If not, you might as well fly and rent a room.
Easy for me to say, but I remember the stress when I started training driving a bus (45 years ago).
All the best.
JC
Thanks! That makes a lot of sense. This really was only my 2nd trip that was over 400 miles one way. The first time was when I picked the bus up in Texas. I was literally white knuckled on that trip so hey I'm improving haha
I have another big trip planned in December. Going to San Antonio and that's 900 miles one way from me. I've already decided, I'm going to plan on doing that in 3 days. I'm still going to have the pressure coming back on "what if" something goes wrong b/c I need to be back at work but I'm taking it in tomorrow to get the annual service so hopefully preventive maintenance will help me.
Noise makes fatigue.
Ear plugs, and then both of you can talk instead of yell... you hear voices better with plugs in.
A pair of those Bose noise cancelling headphones for the airplane too, if you have $pare ca$h...
Does your bus steer and stop properly?
There is no joy in fighting the machine...
Find an experienced bus driver to take yours for a spin.
Most noobs sit wrong in the chair. They all start sitting high. The old wheelmen sat down and back.
But... ultimately, you either love to drive, or you don't. The mechanical "what ifs" are a distraction that must be stifled. You WILL break downeventually, and not get home for work, so deal with that now. I have always tried to be a good employee, but if my hobby bus breaks down, and that's a problem, I guess I will wish them good luck finding someone else?
Nobody lies on their death bed wishing they spent more time being afraid of some idiot employer that did not appreciate my efforts enough to cut me some slack, rare as that was needed?
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
Quote from: Branderson on June 19, 2018, 06:54:21 AM
I'm still going to have the pressure coming back on "what if" something goes wrong b/c I need to be back at work
tow a vehicle.
leave the bus.
or
rent a car.
and leave the bus.
I like to drive 2-3 hours max then pull over at a rest stop and my wife and I walk the dog to stretch our legs . that is after I laser the wheels and rims to check for anything wrong . then after 1/2 an hour we are back on the road . I like to drive and like others have said enjoy it . if we are on our way to some where I will drive about 10 -14 hours a day 600 -700 miles . we always pull over by 9:00 pm and rest and have a shower then sleep for about 7 - 8 hrs . most of the time at rest stops . fuel every day and try to time that for a food break and walk the dog . when I had the 6v92 I always would look way way ahead to watch traffic as to make sure I could stop if some dumb @$# did something stupid . it never bothered me to leave a good stopping space in front even with all the @$# holes trying to get in front of me .
now I must admit that with the extra power I don't look as far ahead to get ready for the next hill but still leave lots of stopping room . I can't drive with out cruise control . I use it all the time .
there are times when the scenery is amazing and would not want to miss that . love traveling in the coach but yes you have to have a toad behind you just in case there is a problem
dave
Full timing vs traveling on days off of work is totally different.
When we full timed we traveled and then stayed somewhere for 2-4 weeks and moved on and it wasn't stressful. Due wanting and having an older bus now and having a career we have found it best to use it for close travels withing 5 hrs otherwise we make other arrangements due to the worries of what ifs with needing to get back, ext. We keep it simple and that has allowed us to enjoy having a bus. We are about to take on a long travel out west but we have 3 weeks. I also have always tinted the windshield and side windows and it provides a lot more enjoyable experience while traveling.
Hi All, just went from LV to Paso Robles, them Bodega Bay, then Napa Valley, 2 days each place. Then Napa to Barstow, then LV. The section return to Barstow, was the longest, with my temp gauge on the fritz after Barstow going down, Tehachpi pass and Baker grade, we're nerve wracking, not being able to tell about overheating, but just did what Clifford, Gary and everyone else said to do, 2000rpm and radiator sprinklers, the stop half way up the engine compartment temp gauge, said all was fine. A real confidence builder, lvmci...
Inqiuiring minds want to know ,how did you wind up driving through Columbia S C ?? I usually go i26 to Columbia take I20 to I95 go north on i95 north to 328 then south to 378/501.This way you by pass Columbia and Florence .I bet the Campground you used was Pirate Land .Was in there with my 40 ft motor home had a H--- of a time getting in and a worse getting out!!!
Lol. I will say this: I wouldn't live in a bus unless I had to. And since I'm on the road 100% with singing contracts all over the U.S., I have to. So I embrace the awesome stuff that comes with bus life, and I endure the challenges that come with bus life. Someday I'll sell my bus...and do a happy dance.
Drive it more...you'll get to the point you actually don't mind it. We drove almost 20,000 miles in the bus last year. Do that kind of seat time and it will feel as normal as driving a toyota corolla.
Quote from: Lifes2short4nofun on June 20, 2018, 02:45:40 PM
Full timing vs traveling on days off of work is totally different.
When we full timed we traveled and then stayed somewhere for 2-4 weeks and moved on and it wasn't stressful. Due wanting and having an older bus now and having a career we have found it best to use it for close travels withing 5 hrs otherwise we make other arrangements due to the worries of what ifs with needing to get back, ext. We keep it simple and that has allowed us to enjoy having a bus. We are about to take on a long travel out west but we have 3 weeks. I also have always tinted the windshield and side windows and it provides a lot more enjoyable experience while traveling.
Can you tell me more about the tinting? Do you just do UV tint on the front windshield and normal tint on the sides? This interests me b/c it gets pretty warm especially when driving into the sun.
Quote from: bigred on June 20, 2018, 05:15:38 PM
Inqiuiring minds want to know ,how did you wind up driving through Columbia S C ?? I usually go i26 to Columbia take I20 to I95 go north on i95 north to 328 then south to 378/501.This way you by pass Columbia and Florence .I bet the Campground you used was Pirate Land .Was in there with my 40 ft motor home had a H--- of a time getting in and a worse getting out!!!
Coming from Alabama, I go towards Atlanta and get on 20. 20 takes me all the way to 95 and then I pass 95 and head to the beach. The campground I stayed at was a little east of Columbia. Camden RV park I think. The one I stayed at coming back was closer to Atlanta off of 20. It was some minimalistic campground built by Georgia Power or something. I will never stay there again. They were nice and all but I hate no sewage hook ups and couldn't even make the turn to get into the dump station. I would have been better off staying at a rest stop (which I think I will do a lot more from now on)
Quote from: buswarrior on June 19, 2018, 09:42:04 AM
Noise makes fatigue.
Ear plugs, and then both of you can talk instead of yell... you hear voices better with plugs in.
A pair of those Bose noise cancelling headphones for the airplane too, if you have $pare ca$h...
Does your bus steer and stop properly?
There is no joy in fighting the machine...
Find an experienced bus driver to take yours for a spin.
Most noobs sit wrong in the chair. They all start sitting high. The old wheelmen sat down and back.
But... ultimately, you either love to drive, or you don't. The mechanical "what ifs" are a distraction that must be stifled. You WILL break downeventually, and not get home for work, so deal with that now. I have always tried to be a good employee, but if my hobby bus breaks down, and that's a problem, I guess I will wish them good luck finding someone else?
Nobody lies on their death bed wishing they spent more time being afraid of some idiot employer that did not appreciate my efforts enough to cut me some slack, rare as that was needed?
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
Hey Warrior, yesterday I drove it a small distance to turn it in to get serviced and sure enough, I was sitting high. That explains why my back was getting tired after an hour in. I think I'm going to move my seat a little closer and try to sit back. Thanks for that tip!
Quote from: Branderson on June 21, 2018, 07:11:28 AM
Can you tell me more about the tinting? Do you just do UV tint on the front windshield and normal tint on the sides? This interests me b/c it gets pretty warm especially when driving into the sun.
They did 5% all the way around and about a 12"-16" strip on the windshield and I think it was 20% on the rest of the windshield.
I also saw you posting about the headlights. I drive at night a lot because we leave after work. I swapped out to led bulbs and it made a huge difference.
Hey everyone, just wanted to do a somewhat follow up to this thread.
For the holidays, the wife and I decided to go to San Antonio from Alabama and this would be the largest trip so far. Like some of you mentioned, I wasn't sitting comfortably in my chair before so I made it a point to first move my chair closer to the steering wheel and also sit relaxed. I found that I had to remind myself from time to time to sit back but it was a huge difference in my back. I actually drove from 7am to 6pm the first day and we stopped at a rest stop for the night instead of searching for an unknown campground. (another tip from you guys) The second day we finished the trip to Texas. We took I-20 which was a little longer but I knew that I-10 had a lot of construction.
Now the drive back. Well, I planned on taking 3 days max to get back which I ended up doing. I made the mistake of going against my original plan of taking 20 back and I took I-10. The weather was horrible, the traffic was horrible, and the construction and roads were bad. I wish I would have just taken the way I came back. I think the traffic was bad in part due to everyone travelling.
I don't really mind being in the interstate that much but going thru big cities suck. I also had a few campers and one 18wheeler strangely get sucked into my lane. I've never seen that before but there was this one strip where it seemed when they passed me, what they were towing was getting sucked into my lane. That scared the hell outta me.
Although the trip was better, I still think that having a job and deadlines really makes things harder when travelling. I would much rather go 300 miles and then spend a cpl days if tired or after a hard day of travel if need be. Before my trip, I did install LED headlights and that helped a lot when driving at night and I do prefer driving when there is less traffic at night, I hate that I can't see the back end of the bus in the mirrors. Just a security thing I guess.
Of course the trip wasn't flawless but every issue was my own doing. I got a new TOAD and end up killing the battery from the drive the first day. I also had to change camp sites after the first day and forgot to open the sewage lines and overflowed the tanks. Awesome!
Anyway, I know this was a long story but been meaning to reply on the good and the bad. I'm still undecided about full timing but I do know some of the do's and don'ts that I like or don't like.
As has been said, the more miles you drive the better it gets. Everyone has to find their own comfort zone for hours and miles. My comfort zone has gotten lower over the years, but like Scott, we make our living out here. Most weeks, we have to make some miles, but I do try to keep it to 500 interstate miles a day. I could definitely get used to 200 miles a day, but that will not happen for us for a long time.
You also need to find some of the stress points for you and eliminate the ones you can. I always stressed over the daily in and out of unknown campgrounds after a driving day, so I eliminated that stress point. It is much easier to find a rest stop, Flying J, Walmart, Bass Pro or Cabela's crank the generator if needed and go to bed. I can also leave when I want to without worrying about waking up the whole campground.
I also do my best to hit cities at the right time.
Davy
I will add a couple of suggestions to the discussion.
When doing an A to B run, don't try to drive it in a big chunk. We sometimes had to leave Maine after Christmas for southern climes. We almost always stopped at a friend's farm in NE Alabama about 1300 plus miles. Usually not clear of the house until afternoon so stop for supper then make the PA line by midnight. Get up with dog maybe 6AM. Drive to breakfast. Drive to lunch stop. Maybe a nap. On the road until supper. Maybe a couple or three hours after supper. Never tired as maybe, at most, 4 hours at a time. Sometimes two days and sometimes two and half. Bottom line don't drive until tired with burning eyes. Rest early and often. That drive was I95, I495, I90, I84, I81, I40, I75, I24, I59. Least traffic was I59.
Stay off the interstates. Two lane and US highways are great. Well, except through the NY, NJ, CT, MA, NH, and southern Maine. Can be avoided by going north and then east. And secondly around the big cities then we use the interstates.
We have gone from the Rio Grande Valley to Biloxi, MS with less than 40 miles of interstate highway. With two free ferry rides thrown in as a bonus.
If you are stuck with a A to B run why use a campground? Rest areas, Walmart, etc. You are only there for a limited time.
Bill
Brad -
It doesn't make any difference if you drive 75 mph or 55 mph, you're going to end up averaging 50 mph - which, btw, is what Greyhound's schedules are based on.
So that's the guideline I use whenever we're on the move. If it's a 300 mile run, that's six hours. A three hour run is 150 miles. If Google Maps says it's 189 miles or 3 hours + 5 minutes, I don't pay attention to the time, only the mileage. 189/50 = 3.78 hrs in the bus.
I'm at a point that four hours driving time is about our maximum, unless it leaves us out in the middle of BFE with nowhere to park safely, then we'll run maybe another hour or so. We're also retired, so no pressure by someone else to be somewhere - unless we impose it upon ourselves.
On a related note, the FMCSA & DOT limit professional drivers to 10 hrs behind the wheel, with an additional 2 due to severe weather. This isn't an arbitrary rule, it's been developed over years of industry study, and is based on human fatigue factors. Once you pass the 10-hr mark, driver fatigue becomes THE MAJOR factor in big rig accidents. Busnuts who claim they'll cover 700 miles in a day are pushing 14 hours behind the wheel, thus the potential for a catastrophic accident due to something that easily could have been avoided. (Obviously, if both dad and mom share the driving duties, it's a different scenario - especially if one takes a nap while the other one's in the pilot seat.)
As for driver seating, ergonomic studies have found that the least fatiguing, and best back-supporting position is a vertical line between your ear, shoulder and hip. From there a 90o angle between your back and your thigh, and a 90o angle between your knee and your feet - which should be planted flat on the floor. In this position, your knee and ankle do most of the work, with no twisting of your lower back - that's what really leads to back pain and fatigue. So readjust your seat to meet these guidelines and I think you'll see a huge difference in driving comfort.
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)
if there are more than two lanes, stay in a middle one :)
if not, keep to the right.
know your exits.
use your turn signal 1/4 mile ahead,and just change lanes :)
if they won't let you over...they will.
who ever passes you will slow down instantly, count on it :(
roadbreakers.com (http://roadbreakers.com) is rv friendly.
Quote from: RJ on January 10, 2019, 07:06:31 PM
Brad -
On a related note, the FMCSA & DOT limit professional drivers to 10 hrs behind the wheel
;)
The limit is 11 driving hours within a fourteen hour duty period after 10 hours off (for truck drivers).
We have been fulltiming for 5 years. We are never in a hurry. We drive about 4hrs a day give or take. We drive 60mph and find the Garmin GPS spot on. We lost our 70lb dog in Aug and her loss leaves a big empty spot in the bus. We used the bus for 7 years for camping before leaving for good and learned a lot and made many changes based on that experience. This life is awesome for us but it is not for everybody.