I was 110% serious last week when I turned to Rosie and said, “I need to go on the QuikTrip site and plan our drive.” She totally agreed. We did the same thing last year when we traveled to Tulsa for dance nationals. Plotted our trip so we knew where to stop and of course, we needed to know the closest one to the convention center in Tulsa.
As my dance mom friends can attest, many of us are QuikTrip (or as you may fondly call it- QT) addicted. Yes, it’s a gas station but honestly, it’s so much more than just a place to pump your gas and get a cup of marginal coffee. QT is a beacon of hope on a long drive in the middle of nowhere. It’s the place you can stop and know that the restrooms are clean, the pizza is fresh and the Freezoni machines are always swirling away. It’s also the place you can get a gargantuan ice tea to keep you going all day long.
To me, there’s nothing better than a unsweetened raspberry black tea from QuikTrip. Nothing. And, when you have to drive all day long, it’s a good idea to know where to stop to get one. On our way to Tulsa last year, we hit a stretch without one and had to stop at a Sonic. While I like sonic, I’m not a fan of their tea. This couldn’t happen again on the long trek to Rochester. So, I went to the QT site to check out the locations along the way.
First stop- Excelsior Springs, Missouri. If we leave early in the morning, by the time we hit that QT location it will be time to hit the restroom. Rosie will probably be hungry. She loves their flatbreads. I wrote down the address and proceeded to check out our next stop. Smart of me because it seems we hit a QT dry spell after we leave the Kansas City area. I’ll have to get a bigger tea if we’re going to make it all the way to Des Moines to stop and have lunch with friends.
Since we’ll be in Ankenny, there’s a QT right there. We’ll be able to grab a tea for the road and get Rosie a QT Twister™ to go. Perfect. Now to check out the rest of the route and more importantly, figure out where one is close to the Mayo Clinic. I put “Rochester, MN” into the search box and kicked back to see all the glorious locations. That’s when this happened.
WTH?? (Those weren’t my exact words but I’m a family friendly blog so I figured I better clean it up).
THERE’S NO QUIKTRIP IN ROCHESTER?
I tried it again. Maybe there was one nearby that we could sneak out and hit before a long day at the hospital. Came up empty. So I Googled “QuikTrip in Minnesota.” There are none. How could that be??
That’s when it hit me- QuikTrip isn’t everywhere. While I’ve been sipping my tea and ordering fresh-made breakfast sandwiches, people all around the country haven’t had the luxury of getting a soda for under a buck. That’s so sad. I’ve been spoiled. That being said, what am I going to do for ten or more days without QuikTrip???
Disclosure- My friends at QuikTrip did not compensate me for this post nor did they approve this. However, they should pay me. I spend a fortune there and I’m giving them free PR. Oh, and all the images are theirs.
Laura says
They have QT in DFW and they have a competitor but they have neither in Houston and I hate it!
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debcb says
Wonder why they don’t have them in Houston. It would be a great market for them!
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Kim P says
My husband and I live in the only part of South Carolina that has any QTs. The reality of this didn’t set in until we were checking the site to see if there were QTs on our way to Florida. We were so looking forward to good cheap coffee and tea!
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debcb says
Ah, so I’m not the only one that plans my trips around QT. LOL
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Jayme says
There’s no QT there?! I LOVE QT! I have one right down the road from my apartment and another right next to where I work. It’s really unhealthy to have them so close. Haha.
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