Road Trip Culture

IS IT ONLY MEN THAT TAKE THE GAP ?

Ask any red blooded man child, "whats better than a roadtrip with your buds", and I'm pretty confident the answer is gonna sound a little something like this...

Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Now i'm not talking about "better" than the birth of your child "better" because some stuff, especially a child, is way more fulfilling than a weekend release from the world, in fact it's exactly the opposite, it's a life sentence!

(disclaimer: I am a proud father and love my kid and i'm not advocating partying with your mates is better than parenting)

Nothing can bring more joy to the average dude than piling in to a car with some mates, pack more beer than you can statistically consume in the given time frame, and hit the road on an adventure that 1 00% of the time, ALWAYS, leaves lasting feel good, mostly hysterical memories, of your strengthened brotherhood, with the final comments of every trip upon arriving back at home base being... "we gotta do that again soon!"

So that got me thinking... If guys get a gap to smash a good roadtrip, without hesitation we're in... but is this a past time that is typically a "male phenomenon" or is this a culture that the ladies jump at when the opportunity presents itself?

So I dug a little deeper, this is what I found.

With social media not being short of opinions, I asked some girl friends scattered around the globe the following questions, and the responses came in thick and fast.

Question 1:

Is Road Tripping a culture that ladies also jump at should the opportunity present itself?

Jene: We definitely spontaneously road tripped way more often pre-child.

Brigitte: OMG road trips all the way, anytime and anywhere. I have been on many a mission and adventure, just because why the hell not, it's a road trip!

Kelly: Love spontaneous road trips and I don’t have a child or crazy husband though, so that always helps! Kristy-Ann: We did a girl's weekend once a year. Wish we did it more!

Hayley: We did a girls weekend away to Hogsback a couple of years ago during the June/July school holidays. We had the best time! Just a super chilled weekend where us moms didn’t have to worry about anybody but ourselves.

Question 2:

What prevents you from doing it more often?

Jene: Since we now travel with child, there’s a lot more planning to do, but off course it all depends on your own kid. What they eat what they enjoy to do... it always helps if you know whats on offer at the spots you’re going to, especially for youngsters. I just need a dop and tjop to be happy, but as a Mom I cannot relax if the little one is not happy. Happy child, happy Mom/Wife!

Kelly: I do think family commitments are a big thing for ladies. Child friendly getaway ideas are a great way to solve that problem and making sure there is something to suit every family members idea of fun, because it's not always possible for ladies to do an adult only getaway.

Kristy-Ann: Problems were, children's schedules (sport / exams), money and trying to find the right time that suited every lady. Eventually we closed our eyes and just did it!

Hayley: I remember it being quite a thing to organize dates. Would have loved to have stayed an extra night or 2, but it was easier to just stay the weekend, so the husbands were able to be at home to look after the kids.

Question 3:

What would your ultimate road trip look like?

Jene: I’m not a normal girl, I would skip the spas for some outdoor adventure... lighting a fire and braaing riverside somewhere in nature. Staying in a log cabin and sipping some drinks in the sun in fresh water! Canoeing, swimming, hiking, etc, so if you can find a group of girls that like that kind of thing, let me know! Brigitte: Great people who know your soul is all it takes to make memorable road trips. And good music… gotta sing along the way!

Kelly: Personally I love the outdoors and original experiences, whilst feeling safe and secure. For ladies only i would also suggest something all inclusive, where they don’t need to worry about cooking, cleaning, etc, so a laid back hotel vibe, but minus all the frills, and throw some bush into the mix instead.

Kristy-Ann: Our favourite was always Sun City (jhb gals). We loved to eat out, so no cooking, and go somewhere to dance, without the worry of drinking and driving. Loved the cocktails and all the venting we needed to do!!

Hayley: On our trip we ate, we drank, we went on hikes, we even got to play in the snow. We put the car into 4x4 and did a bit of “bundubashing”. We were all packed and ready to leave in a few minutes... usually takes forever to pack up when you have the kids.

So there you have it, after that riveting slice of investigative journalism the evidence seems to be clear, it's your kids that seem to ruin everything . In their defence however, most of us knew that going in , so we can 't very well start casting stones at this stage of the game. If 2020 is teaching us anything , it's that life is short, and the freedoms we all took for granted can , and actually will be, stripped away from us. If there was ever a time to stop looking for excuses and to get out there and do it, this reality check of the fragility of our species most certainly should be it. So to all the ladies out there... get your favourite pals together, pick a date, pick a destination , pack the car and don 't look back!

To all the fellas out there... Road Trippin is no doubt in our DNA. It's the explorer in us, the conqueror in us, the animal spirit that refuses to be tamed ... at least for 48hrs that is, so here's the challenge: Encourage the ladies in your life to get out there, enjoy some freedom , take some time off from life's complexities... and just get wet and sandy.