Pain at the pump, and steps we can take now to reduce it

All right, this is really getting old. Each day on my way home from work I make a point to look at gas prices, and I'm tired of wondering where the ceiling is, or if it even exists. Today the local noon news said that oil briefly topped $129/barrel which sent the stock markets into turmoil. Yesterday I saw a couple of gas stations that were charging $3.79/gallon for regular. The talking heads on the news say that gas will hit $4/gallon by summer. At this rate we may see $5/gallon byLabor Day.

It really hit home the first time I filled up my tank and had to pay over (you're going to hate me) $30. The vehicle on the other side of the pump was a gigantic pickup with mileage somewhere in the single digits, and the driver had just paid a c-note to fill his tank, so I couldn't even whine about my $30 tab. My car is a 4-year old Saturn Ion, not a hybrid or anything. It's a little 4-banger with a manual transmission, and my mileage is in the 30's depending on what kind of driving I'm doing. Nonetheless I think I can do better, and so can the rest of us.

I've been trying all of the conventional gas-saving measures, such as combining all of my errands instead of making multiple short trips, and I've begun to think "Do I really need to go wherever" instead of just hopping in the car. I've also become very conscious of the distances from point A (where I am) to point B (where I'm thinking of going) and asking "Do I really want to spend the gas to get there?" Before long we all may have to start thinking like that. I'm even pondering taking my bike to the store for small trips. It's only a couple of miles away, but Hubby would freak.

Recently I heard about a driving style called 'hypermiling' which is a set of techniques people can use to dramatically increase their gas mileage. Google "hypermiling" and you'll get a laundry list of websites, some better than others. I'm in the process of weeding through the piles of information, but here is some of the info I've gathered so far:

1. Know your gas mileage and track it every time you fill up using your trip odometer. http://www.hypermiling.com/ recommends keeping a written record of your gas mileage for each fillup.

2. Braking is wasted energy. Energy comes from burning gas. Therefore braking is wasted gas, and we should do it as little as possible. No, it doesn't mean plowing over that Boy Scout troop in the crosswalk. It means we need to anticipate situations in which we'll need to slow down and respond earlier by letting off the gas and coasting, effectively getting a few hundred yards for almost free, before gently applying brakes to stop completely. This requires conscious thought but also makes a lot of sense.

3. Study the timing of traffic lights to observe their patterns and see how you may be able to utilize this knowledge to avoid frequent stops. Alternately, try different routes. A route which is a mile or two longer but has fewer stops may actually produce better mileage.

4. Fast acceleration wastes fuel, while gently accelerating to your desired speed is more efficient. No jackrabbit starts, and don't play road games. This is commuting, not a drag race.

5. Speeding is right out. The roads are full of lead-footed drivers, myself included, and this is proving to be one of the hardest habits for me to break. My problem is I simply enjoy driving! I almost missed my exit going to work the other day because I was having so much fun on the drive. (And anyone who thinks that Denver metro traffic is a nightmare should try either I-40 through Research Triangle Park or the Washington DC Beltway at rush hour, and then talk to me.) The websites I've looked at so far all recommend using your cruise control to prevent speed-creep.

6. Drafting - none of the sites I've seen recommend this practice because of the danger involved, which can be considerable. If you've spent any time watching NASCAR you'll know what I mean by drafting - following a vehicle WAY too closely in order to take advantage of the reduced air friction produced by the lead vehicle's wake. It is very dangerous because as you enter or leave the lead vehicle's wake you get tossed around pretty badly by turbulence, which can even be strong enough to cause you to lose control of your vehicle.

I'll post more info as I learn it, but one thing has become clear: for the sake of both the planet and our own wallets, we've got to reduce our consumption of oil and gas. If you're able to buy a hybrid now, more power to you. If not, the hypermiling websites I've seen so far say that you can get up to 30% better mileage by following their techniques.

By the way, I watched a documentary today called "Everything's Cool" which was about global warming. It was worth watching, informative and entertaining. At the beginning they sought to show the lack of public awareness about global warming in 2004, and they got one lady on camera saying "we don't need to worry about that because as long as we accept Jesus Christ as our saviour we'll be in his arms soon." That was priceless - it echoed Marx's thought that religion is the opiate of the masses because promises of salvation in the next life were apparently all that lady needed to overlook the way we're trashing our planet in this life! Sigh. Anyway, it was a good film.

Peace,
AuntieM