Novice here, but determined. I don't own a car living in the city of Chicago, so i've had to rent cars for my two pins both of which I got just this year. The first one wasn't far outside the city, but for the second one I drove 380 round trip miles to Appleton, WI to pick up my Black Knight project machine. In Chicago, renting a car at a reasonable price means first taking the 45 minute trip on public transit out to O'Hare Airport, then tracking down and waiting for the Hertz shuttle to the rental car lot. Then once the pin pickup is complete, driving home to quickly drop the pin off before turning around and heading all the way back out to the airport to drop off the car, THEN finally returning back home on public transit again.

That happened to be the weekend after Midwest Gaming Classic, so two consecutive weekends of getting to pick up some New Glarus brews at the Mars Cheese Castle made the trip all the more justified!

A little over 1000 miles to pick up my TSPP.

Well worth the trip.

Houston, TX to Bay Area, CA... WTF was I thinking?!?!?! LOL!

To simplify geography, Milwaukee to Minneapolis for a STTNG. Hardest part about the trip was getting it up the stairs.

1000 miles round trip in one day from Los Angeles to Tucson AZ for a bop and w?d

1000 miles round trip for a TSPP from here to Pittsburgh

Screwed up the poll and voted one-way distance, didn't realize we were going round trip. Anyways here are mine...

934 (1868 roundtrip) miles to pick up a fully restored Whirlwind from a fellow Pinsider in Rapid City South Dakota. Beautiful drive and got to meet a cool guy.

Second farthest was for an excellent condition Wh20 in Georgia (722 mi. /1444 mi. roundtrip). This particular trip involved quite a bit of alcohol, a gun, strippers and a guitar. Crazy night that I'll never forget!!

Something makes me feel good about driving far out to bring these machines back home to their place of origin (Chicago)!

I flew to Livingston, TX where my Dad lives and bought his box van. I picked up a sweet BSD from Richard ("Someotherguy" on RGP) in Houston and drove the game back home. On the way home I stopped to see my buddy Tim Hanian in AZ to see his amazing collection and picked up a nice SWE1 in Long Beach before I finally made it home. This was all back in Jan, 2005.

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Multiple trips Aiken to Tampa (900 round trip). My son finds them on the Florida market, I buy, then drive down to pick them up.

Guess I'm advanced! My story involves a 1,350 mile round trip from Mississippi to a small town just north of Milwaukee, WI to get a TAF from another Pinsider, all completed on one L-O-N-G Sunday last summer The trip started with a fill-up when I left home. About 350 miles into the trip, in the middle of nowhere (Illinois corn country), I started looking for gas and quickly discovered I didn't have my wallet. Turns out I left it on the gas pump back home. Sunday... no money, no credit cards, no ID, no road side service, no gas, and very few options. The first call was to my bank who said they could get me some money when they opened on Monday. That wouldn't work because I had to leave for work on Monday. I ended up calling a street-smart friend who suggested he wire money to a Walmart. I never knew Walmart offered this service. Anyway, we established a sercret code word and he wired me gas and food money to complete my trip. All I had to do was go to Walmart, utter the secret word to establish my identity (I had no ID) and collect the cash. A 90 minute delay and I was on my way to get the coveted TAF! I drove back through torrential rains and finished the 1,350 mile trip exhausted in less than 24 hours!

Over 1600 miles from SC to Providence, Rhode Island for MB. Still have the game & that was the only time I've been to RI.

3,250 miles for a project Genesis....

Just under 1000 round trip for my 1st Embryon. I dragged a friend along after a day of skiing in N Jersey all the way to Erie PA. We stayed over that night and awoke to a foot of snow on the car. We then drove against a snow storm all the way back across PA. That friend hasn't come on another road trip since.

Did 800 miles twice, and a 700mile trip. Last time I did this, I hit massive traffic in LA, and took me 12 hours to get home. By the time I got back, my back was on fire, killing me. i always say "this is the last time", then I end up doing it again. I really don't know any other hobby, where people like my self drive so far to get their fix.

866 miles to trade my Hou Family Guy for a nice condition LOTR. I just did it a week ago. My precious works great. It was an overall fun experience and met a great pinsider, I just wish he lived closer.

I almost forgot to mention, the trip was up hill both ways, and I think it was snowing too.image.jpg

Headwind?

I thought I was in the rubber ducky category, but I just checked google and it turns out I'm only pro category. Charlottetown, PEI (Canada) to Gatineau, Quebec for The Getaway. Picked up a No Fear while I was there, because I'd already made the drive. I thought this was further than it was, google says only 1700 miles round trip.

~500 miles round trip from here to Erie, pa for TFLE combo with me and my brother. Well worth it! Love a road trip. And a pinball roadtrip is even better!

1200 miles round trip for my hot shot Houma, La to Atlanta, Ga and back on Mardi Gras day this year by my self. Kind of a last minute decision. Lol

Drove from Naples, Florida to Rhode Island and made a couple stops on the way up and back through Virginia, New York, New Jersey, and Georgia to pick up and drop off games to other pinball collectors. I did it in a course of three days. I just did it last week

1700 miles to get a Bally Spectrum.

Although I have a standing invite to drive 3000 miles to pick up a CV whitewood.... at some point hoping to do that.

drove 785 each way for a 1570 round trip to get my Bride of Pinbot

A little better than 1200 miles from The Twin Cities MN to Sturgis SD and back. Did it almost 3 years ago on New Years Eve day. Me and a buddy drove 10 hours in a Penski rental truck to buy out an operator. Took us 5 hours just to load all the games. Spent the night, got up at 5:00 and hit the road back.

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I just drove 1492 miles round trip for a $150 Time Warp project. And 1522 miles for my EatPM. I love road trips they're half the fun.

About 700 miles round trip in one day from Oh to Chicago for my AFM (still have it). When I got there guy wasn't home and wasn't answering phone...I was still on EST instead of Central time. Worked out but til I realized, wtf.

Multiple 1000 mile trips but was already in the east coast neighborhood visiting family so they don't count as pin only trips.

Eric

20 hours of driving in a 24 hour period. Drove 10 hours round trip to find a beat up machine I didn't buy, only to turn around make a 10 hour trip opposite direction to land the right one.

Seattle area to Boise to get a very nice Bride of Pinbot and a TAF to keep it company on the ride home......Hung out with a good bud and scored some awesome fresh picked corn as well. Great trip but a looooong ass drive. Both directions.

1,018 miles r/t

2600 mile round trip: New York to Florida

Picked up a bunch of 80s projects, some came with Repo Playfields, Backglasses, and plastics.

I had a seller drive/deliver two machines to me, he drove approximately 850 miles each way. He actually did it twice, a couple of years apart. It was coordinated for when expo was happening, so he was already planning to make the trip. The first time was a trade, so I guess he deserves the credit for the over 1700 mile round trip for him to get the Junkyard I traded him for a Centaur and EBD-LE (and some cash).

This is my Road Trip map of the roads and train trip(s) I have driven (rode the trains) since I was a 19 year old starting my sophomore year at Arizona State University in Tempe Arizona before the Fall semester in 1979. Every trip has so many memories and stories. I LOVE America. It is Beautiful. Canada is beautiful too!! Especially the Canadian Rockies.

My road trips started in a 1972 Newport Custom (the spud mobile), and included a 1951 Chevy PU,1982 Honda CX500 (I put 50,000 miles on this one), 1966 Chevy 4x4, 1985 Honda V65 Magna (first new vehicle of any kind that I put 36,677 miles - still have) 98 Suburban w/ dogs, and my 2003 H2 w/dogs pulling 4x6 trailer.

My original objective was to travel every American Interstate west of the Mississippi River (pretty much achieved) as I visited the nearby National Parks along the way (pretty much achieved), and now its to travel the secondary highways and hike to the top of each States' geological High Point, with my dog(s).

Life is way too short and America is great. Time for another road trip and mark off a few more new miles and state high points.

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Just got home yesterday afternoon. Visited Teton Nat'l Park, Devil's Tower, Silverball Museum(NJ), Mt. Rushmore, Seattle Pin Museum, and a few other odd places. Would have gone through Yellowstone if there had been a road out. Picked up a project pin souvenir in Jersey and another near Boston.

How does 7,428 miles for a $75.00 pin sound?

How have I missed this thread.

I searched the globe for a nice Elvira for my Sys11 collection ... It was the 28th game of the set, and there only a couple in NZ and they aren't for sale.

I found one about an hours drive out of Chicago on Pinside, being sold by KKlank. Did the deal, arranged to pick it up a month or two later. That was one of the catalysts for buying a vehicle to drive back to Los Angeles.

Flew to Chicago (13,183km/8191 miles), drove to Indiana to buy a hearse (200 miles) Drove out to Kevin's place to get the Elvira (he wasn't available that day but his staff members helped me lift it down a flight of dodgy stairs lol) and into the hearse.

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As a side line, I finally met Kevin (Kklank) at Pinball Life Explosion last month ... Nice guy!

A lot of you know the rest from reading my Route 66 thread, I drove from Chicago to Los Angeles via Route 66, with a detour to Denver to play in the IFPA world champs. We did 4500 miles in the hearse. The USA sure chews up miles!

Then we flew from LA back to NZ and the hearse got shipped back in a container. That's another 10,500km/6524 miles.

So if you add up the miles, I guess that makes it about 19,215 miles. But there was a few detours on the road trip ... So over to you guys if you want to accept that or not.

rd

Drove to Maryland from NW Ohio and back in one day to pick up a TV Baseball Game. 907 miles. Started getting drowsy at about the 650 mile mark or so...got my second win and when I got home felt like I could have continued on another 4 hours...haha. Was a fun trip for a great buy.

How about the closest

I bought my ex-Williams employee, HUO one owner TAF less than 2 miles round trip from my house.
My daughter's friends parents had it in their basement.

Took me almost 5 months to seal the deal but boy was it worth it.

Yeah man. My motto ... "Just walk in like you own the place".

Haha

rd

Not in one trip but I have clocked up over 16,000km in the last 3 years picking up pins!

I've done minneapolis to Milwaukee and back in a day a couple times now.

A hearse in a container with Elvira inside? If that's not Hunter S Thompson's version of a turducken, I don't know what is.

Thank god I can afford to ship.

Life is about the journey...

Unless you hate to drive. :p

I don't know if this counts, but I flew from Seattle, WA to Syracuse, New York, picked up a machine and drove it back as part of a move.
2600+ miles I believe one way over 15 years ago.
No, it was not in the winter...
Still have the machine, you will have to guess which one.
There was a reason, it is a sample prototype which was purchased directly off the factory floor by the first owner.

I need one of those...hearse that is...

Drove a little over 1300 miles from Va to Atlanta to pick up an extremely nice IM. Still have it. Stopped in SC to meet a "pinball forum" friend and we drove the rest of the way to Atlanta. Turns out we were in the Navy at the same time and had similar backgrounds. On the way back, stopped at his house and he invited me in for dinner with his family. They treated me as if they had know me for years.

Good times!

Ouch.