Probably No Family Can Match Drive of the Nunleys

Here’s a family feat that not even the “Jetsons” could pull off.

For 12 years, the Nunleys have been commuting five days a week from Moreno Valley to Santa Monica.

It’s an 85-mile, one-way trip. The odometer on their 1990 Volvo station wagon reads 509,862 miles.

“I know it sounds crazy,” Terry Nunley said.

It’s crazy to think their car is still running, let alone that their children agreed to travel together four hours a day, five days a week, without a television.

When Hampton Nunley, a basketball player at St. Monica High, first told friends where he lived, they didn’t believe him.

“They’d go, ‘Yeah, right,’ ” he said. “Then it was like, ‘Wow.”’

Twelve years ago, Terry and Patricia Nunley decided they no longer wanted to live in Los Angeles after Terry was robbed at an automated teller machine.

“That was the last straw,” he said.

They bought a house in Moreno Valley, one of the fastest growing cities in Southern California.

But they couldn’t cut their ties to Los Angeles. They worked downtown and their children attended schools nearby.

Their solution: Become freeway commuters.

They rise at 5:30 a.m. and head for downtown Los Angeles. Terry drives to the Social Security Administration, where he works. Patricia takes over and drives to St. Monica, where Brittany, 12, is a seventh-grader and Hampton, 17, is a senior. Then she heads back toward Los Angeles to drop off Cameron, 2, with his baby-sitter. She continues to downtown, where she works for the Los Angeles Unified School District as a financial analyst.

In the early days, before there were carpool lanes, the Nunleys used back roads and side streets to avoid traffic, passing farms and chickens.

“We’d look at them and be amazed how fast a chicken can run across the road,” Terry said.

In 12 years of commuting, Terry said he has never received a speeding ticket, never gotten into an accident and never had a flat tire.

He was stopped once by the Highway Patrol and given a warning. Considering he’s an ordained minister, maybe he has someone looking out for his family.

And the person who works on their car must be the Yoda of car mechanics, because it keeps going and going.

Each commute involves a competition for control of the car radio. Hampton wants to listen to rap music. Terry wants to hear traffic reports.

The Nunleys are innovators. They understand in the 21st century, quality family time no longer takes place at the dinner table but in the car.

In the morning, the children usually sleep. In the evening, they’ll do homework or talk about their day. They can’t get out of the car, even if they don’t always enjoy the company.

“It helps me become more patient because sometimes my little brother won’t stop crying in the car,” Hampton said.

Added Terry: “If you’re a close-knit family and treasure being with each other, it will work.”

The Nunleys make it work because they cherish living in their four-bedroom house in Moreno Valley.

“It’s worked for us because we come home to a lot of tranquillity,” Patricia said. “We have a big house. Everyone has their own room and their own space.

“It’s like we have the best of both worlds. I love L.A. for its shopping, but I love coming out of L.A. to Moreno Valley, where I can see the moon shining, hear the crickets, see possums, skunks and coyotes, things I would not take the time to see in L.A. We love our neighbors, which is unusual. I don’t know how many people in L.A. want to know their neighbors.”

Hampton, a 6-foot-2 guard, was an All-Southern Section Division IV-A selection as a junior. He’s averaging 22 points this season, including a season-high 35 points against Los Angeles Murphy.

When the team practices on Saturdays, he’s expected to show up on time despite his commute.

“The kids know the time he puts in and the commitment he has for not only his school but his team,” Coach Chris Quinn said. “It’s hard to have the same rules that apply for Hampton as the kid who lives two blocks from school.”

The Nunleys are not recommending their lifestyle. They say it has worked well for them because of their commitment to each other and their desire to do whatever it takes to provide a quality, safe environment for their children.

“We’ve watched the kids grow up and mature,” Patricia said. “We’ve watched them learn more about their parents. Hopefully, it will cause them to make sacrifices for their kids. Their sacrifices won’t be the same, but they know their parents loved them and will do the best for them.”

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Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.