What is your preferred method of long distance (trans-continental) travel?
Personally, I prefer to take a train if I can, even though Amtrak sucks dicks in the US. I don't really like driving on the highways except in some very particular parts of the country, and I fucking hate going through airport security. Greyhound is actually an even shittier company than Amtrak, somehow, and the bus is always 1/3 rapists and thieves. Mega looks promising but they don't have a great service area. If you can get where you're going on the train in a day and a half, it's probably worth it considering that the stations are in the middle of cities and there's hardly any time involved in boarding (even shitty Chicago Union Station is better than airports). When you have a really long distance, though, flying is probably better if you have limited time, and is really the only option if you only have a week.
Let's be honest here, anyone who has the time to take Amtrak has the time to ride their bike
Bikes: +1
Train foamers: -9000
>>965233
Flying. The time saved is well worth 5 hours of mild discomfort.
>>965299
>transit time to airport which is miles out of the city
>show up 3 hours early
>take off belt and shoes like a good cuck
>get selected for random screening and get completely frisked down
>get on plane next to crying babies and slovenly fatasses who needed a shower a week ago
>wait for your luggage and deal with getting to wherever you need to from the airport
>yfw you could have gotten on a train and spent as much time as you did otherwise but at lower cost and stress
>>965300
>you could have gotten on a train and spent as much time as you did otherwise
Not trans-continental. At those distances, planes have the advantage for passenger transport. Trains do better over shorter distances (such as Milwaukee-Minneapolis, at least in a sane world).
>>966420
I'll agree with that. To go all the way across the US takes something like 4 or 4 and a half days, it's just way too long. A couple hundred miles is really ideal since it only takes a few hours and doesn't involve the stress of the airport.
I recently had the pleasure of using the light rail in Denver, that shit was great. Minutes to go across the city.
>>965300
You're fucking retarded nigger. A transcontinental bullet train would realistically take 20 hours. A flight, including getting to the airport and waiting is maybe 9 hours. On top of which, flying is often cheaper. HSR is only competitive at distances of 500 miles or less.
>>965233
Blimp.
Amtrak is a great way to see the Western US--but only if you have the time and attitude. It's very relaxing to drink a cold beer in the club car and watch the landscape go by. The world that you see from a train is entirely different from what you see driving down the Interstate. But if all you want to do is get there--obviously an airplane is pretty much your only choice.
I'm on the capitol limited heading from DC to Chicago right now, after Chicago I am taking the Southwest Chief to Los Angeles.
It is pretty god damn cozy man, probably ten miles outside of Pittsburgh at the moment.
>>966563
>train trip from DC to LA
You, sir, are my hero.
I'd love to go on such a trip someday in my life. Alas, I'm a Europoor, it's kinda far away and expensive to do so. Someday....
80s mtb with slicks.
>>966612
Hey thanks anon, I actually just now arrived in Chicago. Last night through the Appalachian mountains was breathtaking. Something really to behold, I'm pretty excited for Chicago, I have a five hour layover and I'm going to check out a few sights and get some pizza.
>>966668
Never go south of roosevelt or west of california street.
Go to a place called rosattis for pizza
Dont be suckered into the deep dish is god meme
>>966676
Haha got this post too late and already ate terrible pizza
>>965233
I've taken that route to Seattle in the middle of winter. It was pretty awesome. You will meet all kinds of people and everyone is pretty relaxed. I ended up befriending this classy nigga who had a martini glass w/ olive trimmed into his hair. The only issue is how clever/comfortable you can get with sleeping arrangements. I'm cheap so I never get the sleeper car, and will occasionally jump up into the luggage shelf and sleep there, so I can lay flat.
Medium sized adventure motorbike, think XT660Z or something similar, if the main goal is to just travel and I'm in no hurry to reach the destination. If I just want to get to the destination then flying.
>>965300
You're really exaggerating, 15 minutes to the airport and arriving 45 minutes early has always worked fine for me.
>>966811
spotted the guy who lives in the middle of nowhere. most of us don't fly out of some rinky-dink regional airport.
>>966825
When you do fly out of them it's such a better experience than the big airports. In and out, no fuss.
>>966483
HSR in the US would really only work on the Eastern Seaboard, California and the Texas Triangle. Hell, A High Speed line between New York and Toronto and New York and Montreal would fucking print money.
>>966825
You say that like it's a bad thing. Enjoy your $1000+/month rent on a 300 square foot apartment, never being able to own land, and always being surrounded by people. Yes, yes, I'm sure the "culture" is so worth it.
>>966887
Of course it's a better experience, but it's not applicable to the vast majority of Americans. Not to mention that the you're going to have to fly through a major hub anyways, so there's ultimately no time savings.
>>966895
What would you know about "culture", sisterfucker?
>>966902
Why don't you use your "commute" to think up a better comeback, friendo :)
>>966668
goddamnit stfu I'm sofa king jelly
so why you taking this trip, anyway? Any specific purpose? Or did you just want to cross the continent by train like a good ol' foamer?
>>966923
Haha hey man sorry to make jealous, I actually arrived in LA earlier today and I just watched the sunset over the Pacific. I took the southwest chief and I have to say it was the best experience of my life.
It was something I had always fantasized about doing it so I just saved up the money and took the trip.
It was absolutely magical, totally surreal, like nothing else I had ever dreamed of. The mountain vistas in the high desert of New Mexico was something I'll never forget as long as I live. It is just...ineffable, I don't have the vocabulary to describe it, just magical
>>965235
>abicyclists will defend that
i'd say driving.
but i live in the middle of the u.s. and can drive to literally anywhere in the continental u.s. in under 24 hours.
>>971123
So you live 24 hours away from anything interesting?
>>971130
huehueheuheuhe n1 m8 srs
>>971131
Are you having a stroke? At least you're not far from the mayo clinic.
>>971123
>i live in the middle of the u.s. and can drive to literally anywhere in the continental u.s. in under 24 hours.
You'll have problems with parts of Maine or Key West, given that they're about 25 hours from Omaha. That's the only place which can come close to satisfying your requirement. Anywhere else and you run into problems reaching all of the West Coast in time.
And then there's traffic.
