NJ rally event

thanks for the heads up!!!! would never have found the info.....!!!!

any jazz fans- Dave Brubeck is playing in Trenton on 6/8 at the war memorial theatre....!

 

It figures. We have plans for that weekend.

Of course if that weekend is anything like last weekend, the "Tour to the Shore" will show exactly how well the Prius does in stop & go traffic. I wouldn't have chosen Summer to do something like that.

 

OK but I am in Italy at the moment so I'll sign up when I get back and into the time zone which should be at some point on Sunday.

Sounds like fun.

Ciao for now.

PS... found a silver prius in rome. 2005. took its picture. lol

this place is dripping in smart cars.

OK Ciao for real.

D

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hobbit @ May 31 2007, 09:04 PM) [snapback]452926[/snapback]</div>

 

Oliver H. Perry (the contact) was my high school Physics teacher. Back then the senior project was building windmills on the school roof. The year after I graduated the project was electric cars. Will have to check this out.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Proco @ Jun 1 2007, 05:31 AM) [snapback]453115[/snapback]</div>

Speaking of stop & go traffic, a few friday nights ago I was stuck in downtown NYC trying to get into the Holland Tunnel. It was bumper to bumper (in what seemed like forever but not as long as Continental parked my 767 on the tarmack last night waiting for a gate....).

Anyway the battery indicator went all the way down to the two purple-ish bars. Finally I got into the tunnel and traffic moved. I didn't think I was sitting in traffic all *that* long; it made me a little uncomfortable to have gone into two-purple bar mode.

So, what would have happened if bumper to bumper would have continued. Does the car just die?

-D

 

No. The ICE starts up to recharge the battery. No worries. Just think of all the gas you saved not sitting there with the engine idling like everyone else!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Neicy @ Jun 3 2007, 11:36 AM) [snapback]454375[/snapback]</div>

Oooooo. OK, thanks. Good to know.

OK I checked my calendar and see that the Belmar Seafood Festival is next weekend 6/10-11 and I'd like to rally over to that. If anyone from our humble little Prius group is attending, let me know and I'd be into meeting up with you there. Maybe near a lobster stand... heh.

-D

 

Oh wow - I just saw this - I have not been online for a while (the sun is out and so am I) and I already have plans for this wekend

If anyone goes to this event, please get as much detail as possible - we could recreate it later as needed!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(iDonna @ Jun 3 2007, 11:54 AM) [snapback]454387[/snapback]</div>

Actually, the seafood festival is the 9th & 10th (Sat & Sun). If you want more information, check out Belmar's website (www.belmar.com).

The festival is right in our neighborhood (we're a little north), but we'll be in Pennsy visiting my dad before he moves himself & his golf swing down to Myrtle Beach. Enjoy!

Good luck parking! You'll need it

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hobbit @ May 31 2007, 08:04 PM) [snapback]452926[/snapback]</div>

Just giving this thread a bump. Hobbit, I'm in and look forward to meeting you Saturday.

 

JIm- where's your report???

 

Hobbit, great recap. I just can't get over addressing Mr. Perry as "Ollie". BTW his middle name is Hazard. Mr. Perry was just like that 30 years ago. He might be a little grayer and the bald spot wasn't there. The guy that you spoke with at the intersection was me.

Barbara, I have a draft written but am waiting for the scoring to be published. Mr. Perry said that Paul is working on it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JimN @ Jun 15 2007, 09:32 PM) [snapback]462799[/snapback]</div>

Barbara, I decided to post while the rally may still have some residual interest.

I removed the file because it is now posted in a seperate reply. I apologize for any formatting or conversion problems.

 

as an aside, I drove home from Atlantic City saturday using rt 563 and got my best mileage ever for the drive! the terrain around Batso is very flat!!!!

55.3 on arrival home!

usually I am happy to hit 50 on my other routes~

 

Tour to the Shore 2007 Rally

The EEVC sponsored a 150 mile rally in South Jersey on June 9. The purpose of the rally is to demonstrate the capabilities of alternative fuel vehicles and the participants are scored on a combination of fuel economy and accurate driving. This discourages speeding or slow driving to maximize efficiency. There were a total of 12 entries in the following categories: Gasoline, Diesel, Biodiesel, & Hybrid.

Since the route is through unfamiliar territory drivers are strongly encouraged to have a navigator. Although navigation systems, either OEM or aftermarket units, were installed in some of the cars they are no substitute for a competent navigator, as we shall see later.

The day starts with a vehicle check and crew briefing. Navigators were recruited from the high school teams participating in the electric vehicle competitions for drivers who were alone. The doors to the gas tanks were sealed with a pair of 20c booklet postage stamps, trip odometers and mpg calculators were zeroed, an odometer reading was taken and the cars started on their way every couple of minutes to avoid forming a convoy.

This was my first rally and I recruited my friend Joe to navigate. I told him that these events bring out the serious amateurs and that we don't have a realistic chance to win, as there are better cars and better drivers. He said that we'd do well and just having a fun day out is a win. As the field assembled we looked over the cars. The kit drew the most attention. This is also the first time I saw a Honda Insight and there were two blue ones competing. Hobbit, the hypermiler, drove down from Boston with his Prius full of custom instrumentation.

After looking over the competition I told Joe that there is no way we're going to win. My lifetime average is 50mpg and I'm in the top third or so of the Prius' listed at www.greenhybrid.com. The Insight GETS 60mpg and hobbit's hypermiling is 20mpg above my average. I thought it would be a fair fight with the diesels, as I believed they get about 50mpg. We were assured of not finishing last with a Camry in the field. At best we were looking at a finish in the middle of the pack.

For our car the rally started at 10:20 and we were about in the middle of the pack. I told Joe that we shouldn't see any of our competitors until the check in at the Oyster Creek Inn for lunch. It is possible for someone starting later to catch up if you stop for a break. The time for the stop is not counted so there is no penalty. The first indication that things were going well is when we saw hobbit stopped on the shoulder. We joked that he had to pull over to pee in the woods and that he should have used the rest room in the liquor store, which was the first checkpoint. When he saw us he got back onto the road, a tactical error on his part. I told Joe the good news is that he's in front of us. If we stay behind then we can match speeds and benefit from his driving technique. I also warned to be careful. We still need to navigate our own course as he could make a wrong turn. It didn't take long. He got into a left turn lane at the next intersection. I pulled alongside and mentioned that he needs to go straight, not turn. The light changed and we went our separate ways. We figured he would suffer a time penalty.

Most of the course was through the Pine Barrens and on one-lane roads. I was a bit disappointed that my Garmin 350 lost satellite signal a few times but it was of no consequence as we were in the middle of nowhere without a turn. As we approached the Inn for lunch we saw Nancy’s Prius set up as the checkpoint. We were the first to arrive. Those starting before us would be losing points for time. Things were looking up. The arrival time and calculated mpg from the car were posted on the sign in sheet. Our 58.9mpg was slightly worse than Nancy’s. At the time I didn't realize the significance. The rest of the pack straggled in. Every other car beat our fuel economy. Meredith's Insight and hobbit's Prius were running neck and neck ahead of everyone at 70mpg. Some cars did not have the instrumentation so their economy was unknown. Where's the second Insight? As we ate and straggled out toward Batsto, the next checkpoint, the Insight was not to be seen.

Since we staggered out of the inn we didn't see any of the competition on the roads. However, we bunched up at Batsto. Some just cruised through the parking lot of the visitor center. We stopped and looked around a bit. This gave us a chance to stretch our legs and for Joe to catch a smoke. As we left we saw one of the biodiesel cars ahead. They had just missed the turn and realized it immediately. By the time we caught up to them we were right behind. They ran the car a bit under the speed limit and accelerated slowly accompanied by the obligatory black cloud. I was not impressed with the technology. Since we didn't have an opportunity to pass we were stuck. Their unfamiliarity with the roads also caused irritation in the traffic circle. But these kids are from Philly. What do they know about driving in Jersey? I would be acting the same way on a course out of state. Our opportunity came when the directions were to turn left and then make a quick right. The intersection was three lanes and the traffic light was red. The right lane merges right. The center and left lanes turn left. They didn't notice the sign and got into the left lane. I pulled up into the center. Joe starts yelling, "You have to make a left." My reply is, "I know." but don't elaborate as I'm just itching to show these kids what a hybrid can do off the line. The light changes, I briskly accelerate and make the sharp right. Once they made the turn they had to merge into the right lane--fast, definitely putting them behind us. I'm happy. If you can't win the big one, at least enjoy winning the little ones.

We had another chance as they came up behind us. The directions called for a left turn onto a street that was not well marked. It came up fast. I put on a quick blinker and made the turn. Their turn signal was not on so I believe they completely missed it, another time penalty for the competition. Maybe we do have a shot. Of course they do eventually catch up to us but it's the home stretch to the finish at the gas station. We know exactly where we are. Traffic is heavy and we don't have to stay in it. We get around the traffic and into the gas station. The scene is chaotic as there is one official checking everyone in and we'll all arriving around the same time. Everyone is curious to see how his mpg stacks up.

After the fill up we return to the school. I'm as interested as everyone else but can't get any official info. I meet up with hobbit. I need to know how he did, as he's the only one capable of beating Meredith's Insight. He said he ended up with 70.1mpg on the MFD but was concerned about the scoring. As it turned out he had a passenger, not a navigator. They missed the first checkpoint, the liquor store, and the GPS unit was doing the navigating. When they made the wrong turn the GPS tried to put them back on Route 9 as quickly as possible which took them off the route. They did not note the time they arrived at Batsto and estimated it as they were in the pack. Things did not look good.

For The Tour to the Shore several awards were given even if there was only one entry in the class. So, the Camry that turned in the worst performance at 33mpg won Best in Class for gasoline. They tried to convince the driver of the diesel to use biodiesel for the trip. He refused and his wife refused more. The Best in Class for biodiesel was over 60mpg. There were awards for first, second, and third place for the hybrids due to the number of entries. I was surprised when I was announced as the Third Best Hybrid, tied with Nancy. I was happy with the mpg because it was above my lifetime average but my navigator made the award possible because our time was off by 1 minute. Performance like that would get you a job in Strategic Air Command. The Second Best Hybrid award went to hobbit. At over 78mpg it's Meredith's Insight so she's the Grand Winner. Her car was the only one where the on board calculations were not optimistic. The story is that she was getting 45mpg in the car. When she heard of the rally she began to practice to get the economy up.

The rally was a lot of fun and a great experience. If you have a fun car and like just driving around you should give it a try. I will post the official results once they are announced.

 

hobbit, we did go to the liquor store. It was not too far behind where you pulled off the road. Your dotted line route between Route 70 and Ridgeway looks like the road that was dirt covered with the orange "Road Closed" sign. We went past the Main Gate. What you could see of the hangars they looked awful. Didn't bring the camera so I don't have any pictures to share.