How inspiring. How unabashed. How fully self-expressed.

On their day of declaration and public committment, Jill & Kevin's entrance and wedding dance, as seen on the You tube link below, was inspiring. Heads may have turned. What looked to have the makings of a traditional summer wedding with the organ music about to begin took a mighty turn. Tisk tisk. Not in the Lord's house is there music like this and surely not at a wedding! Dear me!

A generous Jay Z or Justin would say they had nothing on this couple from Minnesota as they and their wedding party busted moves unseen in any Church. Busted moves not seen in any religious gathering. And busted moves that had Grandma tapping her toes and clapping her hands.

How is that for stepping outside the box? How is that for being unabashed? How is that for laying down some funk on your way to say "I do"?  And, how is that for having a blast and ensuring that no-one, no-one would fall asleep during their ceremony. How is that for doing it the way you want to? And Jill got to wear her traditional, beautiful white dress.

Married or not, in a relationship or not - wouldn't you just for a moment want to have a procession like that? I sure would!

Hit the link and turn up the volume and get your mouth ready for a grin and some song! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

Jill & Kevin - here's to you and your new life together! Your wedding dance down the aisle may just give Susan Boyle a run for video hits.

Drive Your Bargain,

Anne

www.twitter.com/womendrivers

Our partners at www.insurance.com have alot of research and data, and access to even more, regarding the root of car accidents. It is no accident (do excuse the pun) that drivers who eat while driving run the risk of paying more for car insurance. It's a fact, although it's not officially one of the questions on an application for auto insurance.

Eating while driving is one of the most distracting things you can do, according to a study released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. Eighty percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involve driver distraction.

According to NHTSA, "Distraction was most likely to be involved in rear-end collisions in which the lead vehicle was stopped, as well as in single-vehicle crashes." Distractions like eating can become a problem for drivers who can't react quickly to a sharp curve or another driver's sudden stop. Unfortunately, just one accident may increase your car insurance rates as much as 25 percent.

Top 10 foods to avoid while driving

1. Coffee. Even with a travel lid, hot coffee can find its way out of the opening when you hit a bump.
2. Hot soup. Many people drink it like coffee and run the same risks.
3. Tacos. Any food that can disassemble itself will leave your car looking like a salad bar.
4. Chili dogs. Huge potential for drips and slops down the front of clothing.
5. Hamburgers. From the grease to the toppings, it could end up on your hands and the steering wheel.
6. Ribs and wings. What's more distracting than licking your fingers?
7. Fried chicken. More greasy hands. You've got to wipe them off while you're driving.
8. Jelly donuts. It's not possible to eat one without watching the center ooze out.
9. Soda. Carbonation. Fizz in the nose. Lids that leak. Disaster.
10. Chocolate. Try to clean melted chocolate off the steering wheel without swerving.
    

How widespread is this food problem?

Exxon surveyed 1,000 drivers and discovered more than 70 percent of drivers eat while driving and 83 percent drink beverages. The NHTSA study cites these driver distractions as the top reasons for car crashes - and ultimately higher auto insurance rates:

• Using a cell phone. Calling for carry-out?
• Reaching for a moving object. Flying French fries?
• Looking at an object or event outside of the vehicle. Where is Starbucks?
• Reading. Or tweeting for the closest BBQ?
• Applying makeup. Every second counts! And, if you don't beleive it, try holding your breath for say... mmm....just 30 seconds. Ok, 25 seconds. Seconds really do matter.
  

No wonder drivers rarely at or dink while driving in Europe. My cousins in Ireland were shocked and confused when I questioned them about combining the pleasures of driving a car and eating/drinking a beverage - they had and would never consider it.

Drive Your Bargain,

Anne

Car Buying Advocate 

Education comes in lots of different ways, forms and fashions. I learned how to drive a car and got my drivers license when I was 16. The driver’s permit came first, actually. The license came second. Never once in 30 years since then have I had to prove my worth to the state as a driver. As long as I don’t provoke a serious accident (or, even if I did), as long as I don’t get a DUI (or, even if I did), the state rarely suspends a license. That being said, we all have different and varied driving capacities, response times, and distractions.

Shouldn’t there be a few times in our life that we have to go back and get a master’s in the area of driver’s education?  For contrast, look at driving in Europe.  Driving there is a privilege not a right.  To qualify for a license, you must be tested and re-tested every two years.  And the cost of a license is significant.  Because of this lifelong drivers’ training, there are fewer accidents and fatalities in Europe than in the USA.  So again, I ask, shouldn’t we go back for our master’s in driving?

I think so. 

I had the distinct privilege recently of covering the Porsche Club of America sponsored Drivers Clinic at BeaverRun MotorSports Complex. Instructors like Bruce Graham, ARPCA, his wife Kathy Graham, along with Ken Jeremiah, were among the extraordinary training instructors there. Driving exercises included: the Serpentine, Full Braking, Skid-Pad and Auto Cross. 

While there were many Carreras of varied years in the field, there were ample numbers of Volvos, Chevrolets, mini vans, Mini Coopers and others that were also taken to the road by their drivers.  The outcome of the day for drivers? With the repetitiveness of practicing and the rigorous training that ensued with these excesses, confidence is the singular outcome for all. For the men, women and young people of all ages – many ‘got’ confidence in a way they never had before.  Many learned how to correct their car when it ‘got out of shape’ in a controlled environment versus having to figure it out on the fly out in the world.

• Confidence to brake defensively and safely – in any situation
• Confidence to swerve and miss another car, animal or a pedestrian
• Confidence to control the car at all times

Check out other national Porsche Club of America activities at www.pca.com and view the TOTAL DRIVING SKILLS course at www.beaverun.com which is a stellar course for new and older drivers who want to be comfortable and safe with any driving situation on the road.

For those of you interested in the year’s primo car racing event in Greater Pittsburgh, check out the upcoming Pittsburgh Grand Prix at www.pvgp.org.  This is the largest vintage car race in the country still run on city streets (Schenley Park).  See you there!

Drive Your Bargain,

Anne

Car Buying Advocate

Pictures are worth a thousands words, right? So, take a look at images in link below at end of blog. (If I knew whom to credit for them I certainly would; all I can say is I got them from my car-guru friend, George, and that will have to do.)

We are going Green. Yes, in 2009 we have had our wake up call and 30 plus years after the oil embargo, we are called to action. With the recent federal governments’ conversion plan to make all cars Green by 2016, I anticipate just one little problem.

Maybe not so little.  

We want to drive Green, but we Americans have no interest in eating Green. Could it be that the first consumer law suit around the size of cars will occur sometime in the next few years? Which car company will be first?  Airlines have been sued because their seats don’t fit all. Will car companies and the federal government be next? After all, the size of the seats and the lightweight aspect for the new green standard may not meet our corresponding ballooning BMI. 

Driving Green isn’t truly supported by an awareness and effort to Live Green. There is a missing link between these two ideologies. As NBC and the AP reported in early July, we keep getting fatter and fatter as a country.  So, what to do? These two ideas and concepts may not be aligned. Much of our society today is built around ordering by size, i.e. fast food, clothing, coffee, iPods. Theory is one thing and practicality another.  Will I be able to order my very Green Toyota Prius in a venti? I certainly hope so.

Drive Your Bargain,

Anne, Car Buying Advocate

The Smart Car.doc (666.00 kb)