Rain Man
05-09-2020, 05:20 PM
The final heat of Round 1!
Just a little offseason exercise. There are 80 different Interstate highways in the USA (including Puerto Rico). Which one would be best for a road trip?
I've set the rules as follows (in spoiler for those of you who've read them already]:
I'm also including highways in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico that are essentially interstate highways, though they're not called that since they don't cross state boundaries.
It'll be a single-elimination tournament, though some will regain new life in wild-card spots to get the tournament bracket correct.
You get a minimum of 7 days on any highway, regardless of length. However, if the length requires more than 150 miles of travel per day, you'll get extra days until your daily mileage drops below 150 miles.
You may travel in either direction.
You may stop at attractions along the way, but at no point can you be more than 10 miles from the interstate.
You have the budget to stay at any hotel or dine at any restaurant within ten miles of the interstate.
You may spend multiple nights in any location but you cannot drive more than 250 miles in a single day. So you have to budget your driving time.
You may use any criteria you wish to make your vote. You can consider the driving lengths and conditions, scenery, attractions along the way, any outstanding warrants you have in that state, the likelihood of a Christie Brinkley clone waving at your from a Ferrari, or anything else you might wish to consider.
You can pick the time of year.
You can pick the vehicle that you drive. Assume that you're renting any vehicle that you could purchase for $50,000 or less (new or used). It can be different vehicles on different road trips, so you can customize to fit.
I'll post the basics of each route, but I don't see any specific website that provides a good description of the attractions that one would see along the route. You're on your own for that. Of course, you can do a google map view to see what your scenery is.
Your next competitors are:
Option 1 - PR-2 from Ponce, PR, to San Juan, PR
7 Day Trip
138 miles, 20 miles per day on average
Passes through Mayaguez and Arecibo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rico_Highway_2
Option 2 - I-15 from San Diego, CA, to Sweetgrass, MT
11 Day Trip
1,434 miles, 130 miles per day on average
Passes through Riverside, Barstow, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Pocatello, Helena, and Great Falls
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_15
Option 3 - I-2 from Penitas, TX, to Harlingen, TX
7 Day Trip
47 miles, 7 miles per day on average
Passes through McAllen
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_2
Option 4 - I-40 from Barstow, CA, to Wilmington, NC
18 Day Trip
2,557 miles, 142 miles per day on average
Passes through Flagstaff, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Asheville, Winston-Salem, and Raleigh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_40
Just a little offseason exercise. There are 80 different Interstate highways in the USA (including Puerto Rico). Which one would be best for a road trip?
I've set the rules as follows (in spoiler for those of you who've read them already]:
I'm also including highways in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico that are essentially interstate highways, though they're not called that since they don't cross state boundaries.
It'll be a single-elimination tournament, though some will regain new life in wild-card spots to get the tournament bracket correct.
You get a minimum of 7 days on any highway, regardless of length. However, if the length requires more than 150 miles of travel per day, you'll get extra days until your daily mileage drops below 150 miles.
You may travel in either direction.
You may stop at attractions along the way, but at no point can you be more than 10 miles from the interstate.
You have the budget to stay at any hotel or dine at any restaurant within ten miles of the interstate.
You may spend multiple nights in any location but you cannot drive more than 250 miles in a single day. So you have to budget your driving time.
You may use any criteria you wish to make your vote. You can consider the driving lengths and conditions, scenery, attractions along the way, any outstanding warrants you have in that state, the likelihood of a Christie Brinkley clone waving at your from a Ferrari, or anything else you might wish to consider.
You can pick the time of year.
You can pick the vehicle that you drive. Assume that you're renting any vehicle that you could purchase for $50,000 or less (new or used). It can be different vehicles on different road trips, so you can customize to fit.
I'll post the basics of each route, but I don't see any specific website that provides a good description of the attractions that one would see along the route. You're on your own for that. Of course, you can do a google map view to see what your scenery is.
Your next competitors are:
Option 1 - PR-2 from Ponce, PR, to San Juan, PR
7 Day Trip
138 miles, 20 miles per day on average
Passes through Mayaguez and Arecibo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rico_Highway_2
Option 2 - I-15 from San Diego, CA, to Sweetgrass, MT
11 Day Trip
1,434 miles, 130 miles per day on average
Passes through Riverside, Barstow, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Pocatello, Helena, and Great Falls
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_15
Option 3 - I-2 from Penitas, TX, to Harlingen, TX
7 Day Trip
47 miles, 7 miles per day on average
Passes through McAllen
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_2
Option 4 - I-40 from Barstow, CA, to Wilmington, NC
18 Day Trip
2,557 miles, 142 miles per day on average
Passes through Flagstaff, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Oklahoma City, Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Asheville, Winston-Salem, and Raleigh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_40