WELCOME TO OVERDRIVE ADVENTURES

“I love to create drives and experiences, and I wanted to share that with other people.” -Jason Hight

It’s a quiet Tuesday morning in a small town somewhere in the US. As the locals are heading off to work, a group of excited sports car owners in a hotel parking lot are huddled under the car hoods or checking tire pressures of their respective cars. Some are checking oil, others are just doing a last-minute safety once-over. 

The sound of hissing and compact compressors can be heard as a few make some last adjustments of tire pressures. A couple of cars roll in to the lot after having just made a quick run over to the local gas station so they start with a full tank of fuel, while others are wiping the dew off the windshields and giving everything one last go-over before the day’s drive. There is an Audi A5, a Lexus RC350, a Porsche 911, a VW Sportwagen, a convertible Ford Mustang, and six Honda S2000s in the lot.

This is drive day one of their three-day Overdrive Adventures vacation and they are preparing for a fun day of twisty roads, awesome scenery, and an epic Adventure worthy of the moniker. Most of the participants—dubbed “Adventurers”—are wearing polo shirts with the event logo on it, and all are wearing their lanyards and nametags.

“Good morning, everyone! Driver’s meeting in 10 minutes,” says the guy with the official-looking clipboard and walking with a purpose towards his silver Honda S2000.

And true to his word, in 10 minutes everyone gathers around for the safety briefing, to go over the day’s route as listed on the program, discuss the ground rules of a group drive, learn where they are in the drive order, and get the two-way radios available to anyone who doesn’t already have their own. Some of the information is a brief recap from the Welcome Night chatter that happened yesterday—how long is the drive, where is our lunch stop, where will the photo opportunities be? Many of the attendees are returning participants, so most already know the safety spiel about how driving in a group is different from driving alone, but it is a ritual that is never skipped.

“All right everybody, let’s load up and go start an Adventure,” says clipboard guy’s partner, co-host, and frequent tail gunner. “And don’t forget, if you need anything, just get on the two-way radio and let us know. Waters and snacks are in both the lead and tail cars, and our next stop is in an hour for a potty and stretch break at the scenic overlook.” 

Engines fire up, and off they go, like ducklings following the leader, with the tail gunner in a yellow Honda S2000 making sure everyone rolls out together and headed toward the first set of bucket list driving roads on the itinerary. As much as 200 miles worth of the kinds of roads their cars were designed to carve up is on the agenda. And that’s just the start of it.

The brain-child of Jason Hight and Roseanne Murphy, Overdrive Adventures provides guided group tours specifically aimed at sports car owners and driving enthusiasts. Scheduled three times a year—spring, fall, and summer—they gather in some scenic part of the country and lead a group of like-minded people on the best roads that area has to offer. 

“We try to locate the Adventures so that there is one generally accessible to anyone in the US. So we typically have one east, one middle, and one west in the country. Sometimes it gives people an opportunity to have an epic journey just to get to the Adventure itself. People who come to our Adventures LOVE to drive and they usually have cars that are their pride and joy which are designed to do exactly the kinds of drives that we plan. Who doesn’t love one of those ‘winding road next 30 miles’ signs?” asks Murphy. 

“We all love to drive those roads, but we are all busy working and living life, and who has time to do all of the research and planning for something like this? And even if you have that kind of time, maybe you just don’t want to have to do it. You can quickly turn what is supposed to be a fun vacation into a drudgery of mapping and planning and reading. We handle all of that, and the Adventurers get to just enjoy.”

Hight, along with his partner Murphy, has a passion for staring at maps, reading everything on the Internet about the best routes in the country, and creating a social event out of the frequently solitary act of driving. “I love to create drives and experiences, and I wanted to share that with other people,” says Hight. 

“Some of my happiest memories center around going to car-related gatherings and spending multiple days driving on cool roads with other people who love the driving just as much as I do. And then after the drives, we get to talk about what we saw and relive the experience all over again over dinner or around a campfire at the host hotel. Like most everyone else, we had a lot of time on our hands in 2020, so we came up with a list of places we wanted to go, and we began running our Adventures as soon as we could in 2021.”

Day two finds us all back in the parking lot again, at the cars but this time we are driving to a local excursion. “We like to have something that’s very specific to the area on the itinerary for Day 2. So sometimes it’s a Jeep tour like we did in Sedona and like we are doing in Escalante UT in just a few weeks this September. Other times it’s a few parade laps on a local racetrack like we did in Watkins Glen, NY, or in Brainerd, MN. And when we were in La Crosse, WI, we jumped on a real paddlewheel riverboat for a tour on the Mississippi, and visited a local car museum too,” said Murphy. 

“Basically, we put ourselves in the place of our Adventure attendees and we build the kind of Adventure that we would love to have. Then we make it work for a group of 10-18 sports cars and their occupants.”

Many of the Adventurers are returning participants. “We have one guy who puts in for his vacation time based on our schedule of Adventures. He is always the first to ask when will we have our dates nailed down so he can request his time off,” says Hight. “And then there is a family – a mom and her adult daughters – that comes to at least one of our Adventures per year and they basically use it as a family reunion. We have pricing that fits solo Adventurers, couples, and families, and we welcome everyone.” 

Murphy says she wishes more women would take advantage of the extra layer of safety that driving with a group like Overdrive Adventures offers. “I have done a lot of road trips on my own, but I admit that there was always a concern in the back of my head about being a woman traveling entirely alone. Sometimes, the best roads are in some of the more remote areas, and if something goes wrong, you are entirely on your own. 

While most people are kind and trustworthy, you just don’t know what you are getting with some random stranger on the side of the road. And you find yourself wondering if that person pulling up behind you to ‘help’ is really there to help, you know? That is how being with a group makes things a little less stressful, and we are prepared to help anyone in our group.” 

Day three and we are back in the parking lot again for the last day of the Adventure – the driver’s day, the day of the twistiest, most challenging roads. “We try to save the best roads for the last day whenever possible. Sometimes we have to call an audible and swap around the itinerary to accommodate for rain or various acts of God, but generally we do our best to end the event on a high note,” says Hight. 

By now, everyone is comfortable with the drive order and their co-Adventurer’s group driving habits. We trust each other and we are ready to go make the best of our last day. Our lunch stop is a highly rated diner known for its quirky personality and great food, and a menu that can accommodate everyone’s dietary needs (yes, the organizers make sure that gluten free and vegetarian options are available for those who need it). They know we are coming, and they have a table ready for the group. 

“Lunches are included in the event registration fee. Sometimes that means we prepare to have picnics in a National Park and we pack in drinks and sandwiches from a local renowned deli based on an order we place the night before with selections made by our guests. Most times it means we have researched and found places along our route that have a varied menu, great local color, and character that fits the vibe and feel of our event. When going to a local mom and pop place that’s off the beaten path, that means we are on a very carefully scheduled itinerary and we have to be at certain places at certain times. But we have to do that without it looking or feeling like we are on a tight schedule,” says Hight. “We have to strike a balance --keep a pace for both the driving and the scenic stops that isn’t hectic but doesn’t drag either. And we try to make it look effortless.”

All too quickly, the twisty roads and great views are behind us. It’s the last night of our Adventure. The last after dinner “happy hour” is about to get under way. Our gathering spot each evening has been the back deck of the resort hotel with a view of the local hills. It’s a chance to joke, share pictures, and laugh about the day’s events. Everyone has been reminded to wear their nametags, even though by now we know each other’s names. The nametags have a number on the bottom and those are used for the giveaway drawing. Everyone gets something. 

“The welcome bags are nice, of course, and everyone gets one of those at our Welcome Happy Hour. But the last night drawing giveaway is a little extra special because you never know what you are going to get. You might get a manufacturer’s branded wall banner for your garage and some Overdrive Adventures drink coasters, or a detail kit from Griot’s Garage, or a dash cam for your car,” says Murphy. “We encourage people to trade and have fun with the give-away items. We had one evening that it was like a game of Let’s Make a Deal and I think one of our attendees traded three different times because he really wanted the Honda baseball cap.”

Our Adventure officially ends with goodnights and wishing each other safe journeys home. Some must leave at pre-dawn hours to make it to waypoints towards home. Others are staying on an extra day to revisit some of the sights in the area or explore on their own. All keep in touch as they continue the last parts of their Adventures.  

Overdrive Adventures can be reached via www.OverdriveAdventures.com, or Facebook or Instagram. The group has one last event for 2025 in Escalante, Utah, and they invite you to join them. Registration closes on September 1st, and participants are encouraged to sign up quickly to avoid missing out on an epic Adventure in one of the most beautiful locations in the country. 2026 Adventure locations have been selected, and information will be available on the web site soon. Set aside time for the SoCal Adventure in May, Northeast Georgia Mountains in July, and Black Hills II in September 2026.