The ride isn't exactly a quick trip, clocking in at 11.5 hours without stops, and around $150 in fuel costs depending on your ride, but it's a doable feat for one driver with plenty of the right kinds of power food/energy drinks and copious rest beforehand.  With another driver sharing the load, you have a perfectly reasonable day of travel with time for an actual meal outside of the confines of the car.  That's a priceless advantage when you're really racking up the miles. Who wouldn't want to grab some real southern BBQ or avoid the typical chains for the local favorite spot?

So what if you just don't want to drive?  Sure there's airline travel clocking in at $150 and slightly under 2.5 hours flight time, but once you add up the hours of waiting before and after your departure/arrival, you're looking at closer to 4.5 total.  Then there's transportation to and from the airport, which could be another $120 plus, and don't forget those taxis or Ubers once you want to get around there.  If you don't mind smaller airplanes, you could hitch a ride and be there in 6 hours in a slower plane.  In faster small airplanes, 4.5 or even 3.5 hours is possible. This makes it the best and most convenient travel option overall, but unless you have a wealthy friend who just can't wait to buy a bunch of fuel and shell out for operating costs all for the sheer joy of your company, you'd be looking at a charter in the realm of at least $4000, which gets practically reasonable if you're bringing friends.  Then you'd also have to add in that ground transportation once again. If you happen to have or share your own jet, you're probably not even reading this, and you might as well go to the Caribbean.  It's worth the extra hour and you can afford the operating costs, landing fees and champagne anyway.

If you prefer to rough it, but aren't the camping type, a Greyhound will get you there in a mere 19.5 hours and two transfers for about $139.

Does flying still seem dangerous to you even though the Wright Brothers figured it out over 100 years ago?  It's closer to 20 hours by the romantic clickety clack of the rails.  And, you get to seek solace in the fact that we have the best rail system of any third world country.  But, at least there's no road mileage or grimy rest stops and if NJTransit, Metro North and LIRR are any indication, train sleep is always good sleep. 

I won't cover boating because there are no reasonable options, unless you have about 30 hours and you're willing to buy lots of gas. It's the same for horseback minus the gas, plus the water stops and feed, because they're about the same speed.  But if you have about a week, you can cruise there, and to a bunch of other places too, for about $500. 

At Tailwind, we usually stick to road travel, so I'm a bit biased.  Therefore, I'd recommend driving there, and I know you can do it too.  Otherwise, you'd be missing out on key local flavor (aka BBQ and coffee spots). The Charleston area of South Carolina is the closest place you can reasonably drive to for a bona fide taste of Spring temps. Unfortunately we don't get to pick our destinations, but you do, and Charleston sounds pretty good right about now.

Originally published 1/19.
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After you've spent enough years on the road, you slowly begin to hone in on the right road diet.  Or if like me, you're stubborn enough, you eventually stop eating things that screw up your day in one way or another.  Also, having plenty of time to listen to the likes of Tim Ferriss and Joe Rogan certainly helps.  All that bleeding edge info about meats, fats and sugars starts to finally penetrate even the thickest of skulls, and the blood sugar energy-crash roller coaster begins to give way to dense slow burn energy.

Here's what works for me: skip the breads and sugary drinks at all costs. Desserts will precipitate an energy rush followed by the desire to hibernate (not a roadworthy aspiration).  Pizza is a tempting but dangerous proposition.  Coffee is both friend and foe.  Redbull is best used in emergency situations, like the second to last leg of that trip back from Indiana, when Pittsburgh flies by but the endless miles of the same farms render the minutes into slow motion sludge. Even if you're not on some form of keto, paleo or The Eskimo Diet, the best energy is delivered the old fashioned way, via MEAT, especially when tasty things like spices and cranberries are incorporated.  

The holidays are over :( so throw out those stale cookies! To seriously level up your snack game whether you're on the road or not, these are what you need.  If you're a total jerky noob, this sample pack will prime your palate before digging in deep.