Trojan chronicles road trip back to USC

When the summer was over in Charlotte, N.C., Tim Vorhoff knew he had to get back to USC for his second year.

But he thought he’d skip the plane this time.

Vorhoff, a business major, planned out an eight-day journey, where he’d drive across 11 states — such as Georgia, Louisiana and Texas — and he’d catch all of it on camera.

He posted the three-minute documentary to Vimeo on Wednesday.

Before that, “the furthest I’d driven was New Orleans,” Vorhoff said. “I don’t know the mileage, but that’s like 12 hours.”

The video shows him eating in New Orleans, inside the majestic caverns of the Carlsbad Caverns National Park (where he saw hundreds of thousands of bats) and sliding down the dunes at the White Sands National Monument of New Mexico.

It also chronicles his favorite part of the trip at Utah’s Zion National Park, where he waded through a river, surrounded by weaving red rock.

“It was kind of a magical experience,” he said. “You look up and it’s the most beautiful views you can imagine — hundreds of feet of just canyon.”

The video conjures up adoration for the beauty of the U.S. — quotes about the national parks overlay it in parts, from writer Wallace Stegner and President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

“The video shows the 10 percent of moments that were absolutely incredible … but 90 percent was driving,” he said.

Forty-five hours of driving to be exact, a journey in which he downed lots of Red Bull and listened to the podcast Serial to pass the time. He spent about half of his nights sleeping in the bed of his truck, including one night at the Grand Canyon.

“I guess you could say I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” he said. “I’m glad I carved out time in my life and actually did it.”

And although he misses the open roads, he said he’s glad to be back at USC — where he might find a co-pilot for his next trip.