Author Loretta Golby
Road Trip with Family –
From an early age I remember going on road trips with the the family. Driving from KOA to KOA for a 2 weeks vacation, not sharing the my share of the backseat in the 1970’s ford station wagon with rang-a-tang siblings, listening to Charlie Pride, Johnny Cash and many other great county singers over and over. Playing “I Spy”, asking “are we there yet?” “sharing chips” or trying to read. Or every Sunday Dad wanted to go for a “drive” -which really meant – to check out the farmers fields / farms all over southern Alberta. – usually we did get a stop at the local ice cream shop (if we didn’t fight). Dad had to haul water from town to the farm, I remember many times going with him to get water, and learning to drive the blue truck around the farm by the time I was probably 8 or 9. Then delivering food to the fields while him and mom did the farming. Even after we moved to Lethbridge when I was 12, we still went for Sunday drives. I guess now it was our family time looking back.
Next big road trip I remember was driving to New York Long Island (Janice and Mikko’s wedding) with Mom and Dad. We kept track of our mileage every day, one day Dad was short 2 miles, so he went to the parking lot at the hotel and drove the car around and around to get his 2 miles so he could be the winner that day, or the time we got out of the car and glasses fogged up from the temperate difference, otherwise, he was “resting his eyes” as the miles went on and on. Mom got the only speeding ticket on that trip. I drove across every state line and through major cites, as we didn’t have GPS but we had a human GPS – Shawn with his maps, and Mom planning all the stops along the way. 2 weeks – it was quite the road trip .. so many memories …
Dad had a love for ford trucks – he even had a bug shield on his truck that said “sausage power” – I have no idea why that to this day. But I was 16 and wanted to drive so I pretended it was blank. I took the truck to the driver license place and got my license when I turned 16. The guy issuing licences asked where my parents are at – me being Loretta – Dad is at work and so is my Mom. He then asked how I got there, I said I drove and I need to get to school. Yes, he did give me my licence and off to school I went with “Sausage Power”. Needless to say I was not popular when I got home from school.
When I got a car, dad often said to me “Grass will never grow under your tires”. I will never forget the time I ran out gas, that was the first and last time I ran out of gas, when I had to call Dad to come with a gas jug. I guess Janice didn’t learn the lesson as she likes to run on 0 gas 🙂 To this day, when the gas gauge is at 1/2 tank, off to get gas I go.
After years of many many trips up and down the highway from Edmonton to Lethbridge, I remember the many times of looking at the fields and changes along the road, is that the influence of parents that loved to go for drives, the curiosity of what others are doing , what changes around us are happening, stopping to visit family and friends along that highway.
If you want to really see a “road” get on a bike and pedal for hours, if you get tired hook a rope to a bike in front of you, or if you collect rocks sneak them into the bags of the ‘speedy cyclists’ or if you need to carry librations convince your wine buddy great idea and put in their pannier, only carry the bare minimum clothes in yours. Cycling the gulf island for 7 days with with no support vehicle .. yes I did that with 13 others – fantastic trip – Is that when I fell in love with Saltspring? Was is the roads, the air, the company or the entire experience?
If you want to see the roads from a distance – a double lane road looks like a tiny trail then get in an airplane and cover many many miles fast. I love to fly, as the engines start – off to sleep I go – is it the rumbling motors, the many miles from being in car I learned to sleep? Even on a curise ship, sail boat or ferry as we sail along the water road, I am relaxed and sleepy.
To this day I love to be on the road, maybe not driving road trips – but to be on the Road again – in a car, cycling, on a ferry, or in an airplane. The grass is getting high around my tires, gas tank is topped up and snack bag is full, I am so ready to ‘hit the road’ again.