Driving, Safety, Etc

While women’s safety issues are brought up often on this site, my problem is a little less discussed.

Background- I’m in my early twenties, and live with my parents (who own my car). The opportunity has come up to visit a friend who lives about four hours away, and while I’m excited, the question of driving has come up.

I’ve made this drive before, about three times. And I love highway driving. It’s always been easy, and something of a stress reliever. However, it should be noted that I’ve always driven with someone else in the car. I’ve never had to navigate for myself, as someone usually has MapQuest directions handy to read off for me. This time, it looks like I may have to make the trip on my own.

This is making me a little nervous for a few reasons. While I could borrow a GPS for this trip, I’m worried about getting lost. Also, in the event of a crash or another event where I’d need to interact with people, certain safety issues come up. I know my mother in particular is terrified of me driving alone, as she’s often spoken of the scary men you can meet on the road.

Now, I know if I was a guy none of these issues would be coming up. Being a guy wouldn’t make me any more or less likely to get in a crash, to get lost, but I know in my parents’ eyes, I’d just be a vulnerable girl alone in the world. I also know that I could probably make the trip safely, as I’ve made it before unscathed. Still, I do realize that there is an element of danger.

So I’m at a loss for what to do. How do I deal with my slight anxiety about these driving fears? Is taking a cell phone, a GPS and perhaps some mace enough to protect me from "what’s out there?" And perhaps more importantly, how do I deal with the anxiety of a mother who herself is too afraid of driving out of town to make the voyage?

I realize there are risks, but I also realize that I eventually have to drive on the highway by myself. I don’t want to live with fear instilled in me because of my gender. I don’t want to feel limited by some shadowy figure that’s out to get me at every turn. But I do want to be realistic. The answer here is probably to just take the plunge, but all opinions and advice are welcome.