Driving fast, saving gas...

NASCAR this week at the Phoenix International Raceway. A bit of a rush for many of the folks who were in Daytona last week. There is a noticeable increase in traffic on the Interstate near the PIR exit, and the RV park we are staying in has increased occupancy markedly... very apparent, because this park is not as busy as it has been in the past.

Earlier today, I started a thread on the C-Dory owners site about tips for getting the most out of each gallon of fuel. Problems with ethanol, rapidly rising fuel prices, and some discussion about folks curtailing boating activities (and seeing the same thing on RV forums)... well, the number one thing you can do to improve miles per gallon on a boat is: slow down. I can double my miles per gallon if I am willing to run at displacement speed (that's around 6 knots on our boat - about 7 miles per hour for you landlubbers). The trade off: it's going to take 2 to 3 times longer to cover the same miles... no problem if the journey is as important as the destination.

Running on I-10 with the car (as in our trip to Quartzsite yesterday), we noticed a few more people driving less than the speed limit. Honestly, we don't see much difference in mileage between 65 and 75 mph in the little gray Grandma car. Holding a steady speed seems to improve mileage as much as anything else. That said, those folks who are driving 20 miles per hour below the speed limit are messing with my mileage. Ever notice that two of 'em seem to strategerize (that's Texas talk) so that one is SLOWLY passing another, causing a big line of traffic to slow way down in the left lane. That just can't be good for everyone's fuel mileage. I'm not advocating speeding... I just think we should all get together and agree on a speed for long open stretches of Interstate. ;-) Or, at least pass the other slow car already, and get the hell out of the passing lane. Just saying.

And that brings me back to NASCAR... what would happen if had them all slow down? You know, just to set a good example in these tough times of rising fuel prices?

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!! Yeah, that's probably not gonna happen. ;-)