May 15, Littleton MA

[NeilBlanchard]

I shoulda' looked at those pictures! You might want to print them out and put them in order.

Running the course at night would be tough through the pot holes and such,and the landmarks never look like they do in the daytime.

[JethroBodine]

Already did( just got a 44mpg trying to calibrate my guino!!!).

[brucepick]

I'm disappointed that I'll probably have to miss this one. "Probably" hinges on exactly when the competition begins.


I'm already committed for 5/15. I drove about 8 hours to get to the Watkins Glen event, I certainly would drive about 2 hours to get to the Boston area.

Organizers, please let us know about this event earlier next year!

[NeilBlanchard]

Hi Bruce,

I'm sorry you can't be there. I was actually first told about it by Acton Toyota, which is where I bought my Scion xA and where I have had it serviced. I have not been able to find *anything* on this event over at CleanMPG's site; and it is ironic that I hear about it here on EM from a friend of the organizer?

Last year I drove out to Watkins Glen *and* *back* in one day -- about 700+ miles (because they had a detour in Ithaca). I intended to wake up at 2:30am but I overslept until 4:30am -- and I arrived 2 hours late, which was just as the drive was ending...

I was driving for almost 15 hours... But I got to meet people from EM, and C. Michael Lewis, who is an Electrathon competitor, as is Dave Cloud. It was all well worthwhile!

[JethroBodine]

Just got back from the Ralley. Had a good time running around the wilds of Mass., got my son some GREAT ice cream, had some good discussions with some like-minded individuals, and got to meet NeilBlanchard, who placed fourth BTW. The discussion was geared toward Prius and hybrid driving( as that was the main intent) and the clouds let loose while the main presentation was going on, so not many pics of engine compartments, mods, and the like. I did get a couple pics of Neil's car and one of mine. Neil will probably have other news as he was more involved with things than I was. Oh, and, well,... I guess I took first.

[bwilson4web]

I saw the national weather map and knew rain was a risk but it sounds like fun had by all. BTW, care to estimate cars and crowd?

Looking forward to the pictures. I'm especially interested in the "pond road" section. Google street view did not include that segment and the entrance and exits looked almost like one-lane roads. I didn't see any "one way" signs so it reminded me more of an alley versus what we call a two-lane road.

Congrats on the rally win! I'm just glad to have shared the word out soon enough for folks to show up. <grins>

I hope you had a chance to chat with Hobbit ... one of the best Prius technologists around.

Bob Wilson

[JethroBodine]

Thank you very much, for the congrats and the heads up. This was quite a learning experience( both for me and my navigator). Did get to chat with Hobbit. He was quite busy, so I tried not to take up too much of his time. I didn't take any pics during the ralley as I was REALLY driving my a$$ off. I'm just glad there wasn't any traffic behind me. I think there were 23 competitors and Wayne drove a Plug in prius as an exhibition run. He completed the route without needing to run the ICEngine, but said that he did run it up one hill just to use SOME fuel. He had .1 miles left of travel after the run. The tent( lucky THAT was there), was pretty full after the ralley, about 100 people, for the seminar. Lots of good tips for all( tire pressure, slow down, unload the junk in the trunk,...) and a good amount of Prius specific tips. I think Neil and I were the only non-Prius running, and Wayne said that he spoke to the guys that ran it to let us in. Personally, I would have enjoyed it just running it in a seperate class just for the experience and to see if I could talk my son into doing it again. They chose the winners by percentage over EPA. I wasn''t expecting that. I got there a little late and didn't get to hear all of the drivers briefing.

[bwilson4web]

Originally Posted by JethroBodine

. . . They chose the winners by percentage over EPA. I wasn''t expecting that. . . .

That is funny. My 03 Prius was reclassified by the EPA as having 41 MPG instead of the original 48 MPG. I'm running 52 MPG without trying.<GRINS>

I'm so glad you' all had fun and that is what a rally should be. A nice drive and chance to see the country side.

Bob Wilson

[NeilBlanchard]

I'm uploading pictures now -- I'm afraid they are rather bland. At least there was no significant rainfall during the rally; though it made up for it at the seminar.






It was great to meet JethroBodine (& son) and to chat a bit. (What flavor ice cream did you guys have?) He drove a great route, without having seen the course before. (I had several practice rounds.) We held up the EcoModder "flag" rather well I think, and I am quite impressed with the MPG that many/most of the Prius drivers turned in. In absolute terms, they are obviously getting better FE. Wayne Gerdes is an excellent speaker, and he makes many very important points; about driving and about the reasons for trying to save fuel.

The scholarship recipient is a local high school student, who received a check for $5,000 towards college; from Acton Toyota, who sponsored the rally and seminar.

The distance corrected 55.4MPG I managed is the best I have ever gotten in my Scion xA, and I know I coulda'/shoulda' handled 3 of the traffic lights better, and I have to work on my hill climbing technique, etc. -- I am pretty happy with the results.

[bwilson4web]

What are the three numbers on the board?

Thanks,
Bob Wilson