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places - away games, for example - do you tend to go the quickest route regardless of distance, or do you tend to opt for a shorter route if there is one?

On line route planners and sat nav systems usually send you along the fastest route, regardless of distance.  But I'm not a 'blue line driver', and I think I'm in a minority.

For example, Google maps advises the following route from Swindon to Scunthorpe - a journey of 198 miles taking 3 hrs 24 mins:

Swindon to Scunthorpe: recommended route (http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&saddr=sn12ed&daddr=dn158td&hl=en&geocode=&mra=ls&sll=53.587894,-0.694864&sspn=0.006088,0.019226&g=glanford+park+scunthorpe&ie=UTF8&z=7)

But if I was making the trip, I'd be much more likely to take a more direct (and possibly scenic) route like this - a journey of 167 miles taking 4 hrs 6 mins:

Swindon to Scunthorpe: scenic route (http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&saddr=sn12ed&daddr=51.658927,-1.708374+to:A1133+to:dn158td&hl=en&geocode=%3B%3BFcaNKwMd6l30_w%3B&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=1&sz=9&via=1,2&sll=51.822198,-1.788025&sspn=0.811492,2.460938&ie=UTF8&ll=52.809403,-1.636963&spn=3.174643,9.84375&z=7)

Anyone else out there like me, or am I on my own?

When i first passed my test i used to take a journey as close to the way a bird would fly as possible. After numerous 4-5 hour trips to Hastings and nearly always getting lost, i took the far more simple, M4, M25, A21 (i think) route, that taught me to default to motorways and just take the quickest route.

 For years, I would nearly always take ridiculously scenic routes if at all possible, just because I wanted to see out of the way places. Of course, sometimes needs must, and it would have to be the motorway.  Then I had kids.

 I could still do the scenic journeys when the kids were tiny, because they'd just fall asleep...but as they got bigger, getting wherever you were going had to be as quick as possible.

 Now I don't enjoy driving at all....so I'm all for getting it done as quickly as possible.

 All this sat nav stuff is a bit much for me....I've got a pretty decent knowledge of Britain's geography, so just stick to the tried and tested.

I'm worried I may follow the same path as you, Reg.  I've always enjoyed driving, and like to think I have a good knowledge of geography as well.  (I'd never get a sat nav.  All in the head for me.)  Surely there must be sedation techniques for small children that will enable me to continue to enjoy this small pleasure.

I'm not aware of any sedation techniques for children. My route normally revolves around where I can chuck the 3 kids out for a piss every hour.

If sat navs build in a bog detector then I'd consider one.

 I'm not sure all kids are necessarliy the same, my two were a nightmare.

 

Quickest route. Though I''m sure that (most) sat nav/route planner can get that wrong because of its uniform average speed calculations for road grade.

Local knowledge rules!

Even though i drive for a living,i still enjoy it,it sounds corney but in a lorry you see so much more for example last week i was delivering a heating system to a hotel in Teignmouth.
When i got there the hotel owner greeted me and i compimented him on the view i got driving down the Hotel drive,he looked suprised so i took him in the lorry and drove to the top of the drive and his face was a picture...hed lived there 32 years and never ever saw the view overlooking the river because in a car you couldnt see over the hedges!
A coffee later and a crisp £20 note for helping to unload the machinery and he asked me to show him again...how could i say no.

Every male driver shouldn't need a sat nav. There are these crazy inventions called maps and road signs.

Our youngest used to react to any car journey over 5 minutes in roughly the same way as Damian's first trip to church in The Omen, but with less restraint. Which given we drive to visit my folks in the Northwest 3 or so times a year led to some hellish journeys. Until we spent arguably the best 100 or so quid we've ever spent, on an in-car DVD player with two 7" screens. Don't hear a peep out of either of them now, apart from when they're arguing about what to put on.

Sat navs are brilliant.

Your (Sat Nav - less) car load on tuesday night were fucking hopeless, you didn't even know what exit to get off!!

That was Bennett's fault. Junction 3!! ffs!

And I clearly tolf him on the phone, it's not the one just after the bescott, it's the one after that.