Useless Traveling Factoids -- Roadside Warning: TMI

Factoids of the highways:

• There are 51 red trucks (defined as the tractor of a tractor/trailer) heading east on Thursdays; and
• Red trucks outnumber blue trucks by about 2.5 to 1 eastbound on Fridays; and
• Red trucks outnumber yellow trucks by 10 to 2 eastbound on Fridays.
• Westbound yellow trucks on Tuesdays outnumber eastbound yellow trucks on Fridays by 8 to 3.
• RVs on Thursdays or Fridays outnumber RVs on Tuesdays after 5 pm by about 3 to 1, and
• RVs outnumber 5th Wheelers by about 5 to 1 – this could be important if you’re considering buying one or the other.
• On Tuesdays driving eastbound, but counting westbound only, if one person counts RVs + yellow trucks and another person counts 5th Wheelers + Volvo trucks (of any color) + UHaul trailers/trucks, then the number is 42 to 40. Except both people come out even if the latter gets credit for the two east-bound
a..h…s who cut the driver off.

Rules:

• Only count what is heading in the opposite direction of travel.
• Cannot count what is standing still, as in at rest stops.
• One can help the other count, but the other has to help back, especially when the driver is paying attention to not getting killed by 3 tractor/trailers passing each other with us in the rocking chair.
• Rules can be changed by the passenger at any time because the driver is helpless to protest.
• If one declares what is to be counted, the other has the option of adding vehicles that can be counted if other’s low incidence of occurrence is the basis for gloating.
• No victory dances while driving 80 mph.
• And finally: statistical probability of occurrence cannot be substituted if the opposite lanes disappear on the other side of the mountain and you can’t see what you’re missing!

Things we did not count but could have:

• Saguaro cactus people;
• Dead palm trees in the desert; and
• Billboards for The THING

Thus we passed about 1250 miles of driving. Good thing it wasn’t longer!