Finding friendship and adventure on OpenRide
Gah so nervous! Going to pick up three strangers and sit together for hours in my car. Would we get along? Would people like each other? My first OpenRide road trip, oh wow!
As I cruised around the sunny slopes of Tahoe I hoped the next few hours would go well.
I picked up my first passenger from a casino, where he’d been staying for a work trip. Paul was a fellow young (let me get away with it) military veteran, and we were able to goof around and get along right away. So far so good! We had a few minutes to kill, it’d be weird not to get a Jamba Juice for the road :)
Onward! Coffee shops are a great place to rendezvous. They’re a naturally comfortable and social setting- the perfect place to meet your new friend! And, of course, they have coffee… We picked up our next traveler, Matt, at just such a place.
Ah, so I hadn’t thought to ask either of them about what kind of bags they’d be bringing. Well, quick re-arrange of the trunk of the Versa and we’re in business and on the road.
We’re picking up our third and final rider a few miles up the shore of the lake. It’s really incredible up here. Lake Tahoe lanks out and spreads wide and long, surrounded by hopping playful mountains, it’s truly awesome.
Matt’s a seeker. I could tell he’s a restless kind of guy. Really kind and curious and creative. As we drove around the lake we did the whole life story thing. You know. That ready-made summary we give new people. That three-minute pitch that is supposed to encapsulate the essence of our life. Matt didn’t really throw out your typical stuff. He told us about a sleepy wrong-turn on his bicycle commute that got him chased off by prison guards. He talked about his passion for throwing darts- a favorite game of mine too! He spoke wistfully of his travels, his search.
Stretch! Whew it’s kinda cold up here huh!? We picked up Cat from her friend’s cabin in town. I like this Tahoe City place.
Everything feels more like home here, it’s rustic and low-key and comfortable.
Oh yikes, so… ok I definitely need to remember to discuss people’s bag and luggage situation and make sure I plan ahead! Well, ok, another repack of the trunk and hey, it works out! Coool, lezzgo.
What a cool lady! Cat had been spending the weekend up in the mountains doing a photography gig. She moved to the US from Scandinavia years ago, and we got to jive a little about our favorite places in Europe. We agreed that Denmark has things figured out!
Gah such traffic! Sunday night… heading from Tahoe to the Bay… Should’ve figured that would happen. I know! Let’s talk about Trump!
We pulled off the highway for a requested pit stop. I took the whatever next exit, which led to Super-Haunted Moonlit Donner Pass Lane. Official street name, no kiddin. Well, we rattled up the road to an inexplicably charming mountain diner. Somehow Matt had been here before. Stretch!
With everyone refreshed, we launched ourselves back into traffic. Seriously if these people were all in OpenRides there’d be no problem. Sheesh.
Oh my god- it was Paul’s anniversary yesterday! He tells us about this elaborate plot he’d undertaken to surprise his wife. Apparently she was having a girl’s weekend in Tahoe, and he planned his work trip as an excuse to come surprise her, nice one! He had it all- their song, a dance, and an incredible new ring he’d been saving up hard for an entire year to buy. What a romantic guy, this epic marine, who would have guessed? Fair play that we all melted!
Traffic has cleared up, hooray! Cruisin.
How important is it to consider Kanye and reflect on his epicness during a road trip? To Matt and me it’s very important. True, in a normal day most people will spend about 17% of their time either thinking about or discussing Kanye, so we had some time to put toward it. See, Cat had only heard, like one song, and wasn’t super impressed. So that’s… I mean that’s just like, a mistake right? Matt and I put our heads together and decided that All Falls Down was the one song to play her. She listened politely… What song would you have chosen?
We said goodbye to Matt on-route and wished him very well. I really liked him, such an interesting guy- so in touch and excited about the world!
As we pointed ourselves ever more westward, the sun long gone over the sea, Paul stretched out and nodded off.
Well, Cat and I dove into a pretty legendary discussion! I learned about Tesla’s second-biggest market… Norway! She even emailed me this podcast about it.
We talked about the universe and the incredible power and mystery of it all. Later I emailed her this life-changing Neil Degrasse Tyson clip (thanks Edouard!).
What else did we talk about? Music, art, politics, current events, world travel…
Sometime around here Paul woke up and threw a curveball with a couple raucous jokes! It’s probably best not to contemplate the philosophy of the astrophysical while traversing the Bay Bridge anyway- you may just float up into the night sky!
Ok, see ya Cat- hooray, totally a new friend! I’m so excited we met, what a sharply intelligent and creative woman! Let’s get Paul home, then I can go find some dinner!
How could this have been so fun? It was so fun! I just got to hang out with three totally different people, and it was a blast, and so natural too!
Something pretty amazing happens with long-distance ridesharing. We’re all in this journey together, everyone moving in the same direction. It’s an adventure and we’re a team! Barriers drop away, it’s unlike any other way of connecting with people.
Everyone is strangers so they’re still polite, but the boundaries of polite conversation are gone, and it creates a really unique environment for getting to know each other, and to be able to freely express yourself. Ridesharing leads to friendships for a reason!
Well, I never want to travel any other way. It seemed like my new friends liked it too :)
We’d love to share a trip with you too. Visit us and join the community at openride.co
Your friend,
Joel
