Goat report, 5/23/09

Happy Retirement to an old goat

More eco-driving

An update about my progress with eco-driving. The last few days I've been really driving like a granny and never letting the RPMs get past 2000 and the results are great. I haven't gone under 35 mpg for my morning commute and almost finished above 41 mpg this morning. I may have upset a few of the cars behind me with my snail's pace; alas.

This information is probably a bit of a surprise to those reading this who've ridden in a car I drove. Upon getting my driver's license at 16 I was called upon for a good deal of driving by friends and they agreed that my first driving instructor was James Bond. I did tone my driving down over the years and usually just move the speed of traffic, which can be quite fast in CA or NJ.

The biggest change in my commute is that it takes much more time. But this isn't so bad; way back in the 90s when I transferred colleges, my commute time was cut in half. My morning ritual of hearing a whole side of a 90-minute tape was gone as it sometimes only took 20 minutes to get to school. So I will spend more time in my car now but that allows me a few more minutes of shuffling.

Eco-driving

I've read about eco-driving a bit and gave it a serious go lately. My morning commute is about 10 miles and kept a close eye on my mileage with my ScanGuage, a gift from Frau Goat. My usual morning commute mileage is around 30 mpg, even getting below 29 if I hurry a great deal. But by watching my tachometer and staying under 2k RPM, I got 34, 35, and 36 mpg on three consecutive days. Usually I don't get that kind of mileage unless I'm on the highway for a couple of hours. Give this a shot (and leave earlier since you'll be driving slower).