"Utahns Meet World,"

America's Next Top Mormon.

That's "Nate", thanks. Even Mom doesn't call me Nathaniel.

@NatefromOgden: Oops, i'll fix it.

They'll get there a helluva lot faster if they bring Captain Chaos along!

I'm from Utah....and I drive an xB. Dang, is this me? *checks palm pilot...* Nope, not me. But cool nonetheless.

They'll have to ditch the empty Mt Dew bottles before pulling into St Lake.

I love road trips. Stories like this warm my cockles. Still, I'd prefer to take about 5 years, rather than 5 days, and drive through America. And do it in something a little cooler than an xB.

I'm pulling for them.

How about QOTD: What would you drive on a contiguous-48-states trip? Or has that been done already?

How long before Roy tries to beat them?

I have driven across the country 12 times, and did one big lap of the country that included L.A., Maine, the Florida Keys and points in between. That is a totally most excellent route they have put together there. Hope they succeed.

@way2bee: 'totally most excellent': Keanu?

It is ironic that people proclaim the ignorance of Utahns thereby proving their own ignorance.

@FrankGrimes: You are right. Some of us settled here for the work, the best skiing anywhere- Snowbird is still running lifts, perhaps through June, desert shooting trips and a relatively "Red State" political bend. We aren't all polygamous, compound-living, child abusers.

I've driven through SLC in the summer - it ain't pretty, but they have a program that employs tall legged blondes as flag holders on road construction crews that is outstanding. Funny that they'll edit movies like the Titantic, but fill up my spank bank with 2 miles of road construction

I just saw these guys on the road last sunday! They were chuggin up 93 near Waltham, Ma.
Had a big ol camera taped to the dash. They looked quite out of it. Get some sleep guys!

The Scion Xb is a good choice of car. The original model managed to do 30mpg on the highway, can be parked almost anywhere, has enough room for 48 states' worth of gear, and because it is a Toyota product, it will never, ever, ever break down.

Woo! They're going to go through the ol' hometown of Rockford, IL! I-39/90 in the house.

Road Trip! I call shotgun! Are we there yet, are we there yet, are we there yet.

@screamingbluemessiah:

DONKEY! Can you not be yourself for five minutes???

Looks like they are heading up I 81 in VA--they will be lucky not to get sucked up under the wall to wall 18 wheelers on that road these days.

One good thing about getting older is that it never, ever, ever occurs to you to do something like this. Other stupid shit, yes, but not this one.

@FrankGrimes: That's Utards. And I'm not ignert. Seriously, these guys are having the time of their lives and I envy them.

Great trip. Unfortunate sponsor, however. Good luck in Montana!

My wife and I have driven 49 of the states in our 86 Mustang and always struggled with with what "through" a state meant. We concluded that it meant going into a major city or tourist attraction in the state. Crossing the border and turning around does not qualify as "through a state". That should be called touching every state, but it is still one hell of a road trip.

Three seemingly annoying guys in a calculatedly hip car, taking lots of pictures of what can be seen from the American interstate, and trying vainly to sound interesting while blogging about how tired they are while the odometer clicks away? I'll pass.

You're getting nothing out of this but some fleeting attention, guys. Park the box someplace interesting and get out. Have an enriching trip, not one that speeds by in a series of blurred digital images.

Sounds fun but then its like they didn't get to enjoy much of America along the way by getting out and seeing the sights...er second thought yeah theres not much to it, so good luck and Godspeed to them...crazy Mormons.

I've always defined going "through" a state as taking a leak and/or some other method of leaving some DNA behind. Will tick off #49 (Maine) this summer.

Still, a clever route. And I like the QOTD idea about what the ideal vehicle would be to do this in.

I think it would be interesting to determine the shortest possible route to hit all 48 states given that you could start and stop anywhere.

That's awesome.

I can attest the xB is an excellent choice for the trip, after having driven from the deep South to the newest of New England a couple times.

I contemplated a country-wide road trip...I'd call it "Scion America" (see what I did there? eh? eh?)

Good job guys!

(For the record, I think visiting a state means having at least two beers in it. I'm just sayin)

@KVHnik: If you're anywhere near Hampton NH during your trip, stop here. It'll be worth it.

[www.hampton.lib.nh.us]

@mechimike: I would take a 1961 Thunderbird on my cross-country trip:

in an ideal world.

The last cross-country trip I did, though, was the BABE Rally 2007, NY to New Orleans, in a 1993 Astro with 275k miles on it. The one before that was Ohio to San Diego, in an '88 Prelude.

There is a shorter, and probably faster route.

[maps.google.com]

~6940 miles.

Their route is probably closer to 7,160 miles:

[maps.google.com]

Ending by crossing the Northeast, and really, driving MA-2 as your last leg is really risky for time. You can make up time in the west, but not up there.

Oops! I didn't see that they're starting in New England...that makes a lot more sense.

@PeteJayhawk: Freeport FTW! Wait...I hate Freeport.