Did your family take advantage of the long holiday weekend and travel outside of the area? I know that A LOT of people headed upstate for the forth of July weekend here in NY. We went upstate yesterday for a barbecue and hit a few patches where there was bumper-to-bumper traffic.
Many families opt to drive to their vacation destination rather then deal with the headaches and expense of traveling by air. Personally I think driving by car is a lot more fun too. It’s a great way to see the different things that each state has to offer including sampling local fare (restaurants) and shops.
Here are some interesting stats about summer traveling. The following statistics were taken from the 2011 Trip Advisor’s annual summer travel survey of more than 2,000 U.S.residents.
- 86% of travelers are planning leisure trips this summer. That number is up by three percent since last year.
- 21% of travelers claim they are willing to spend ten or more hours driving to a destination this summer, if it means saving money on airfare.
- 24% of travelers claim they are willing to drive a maximum of 200 miles this summer.
Interesting statistics. I tend to agree. I’d be willing to drive to save money in the long run. I also have no problem driving hundreds of miles.
I have a funny (or not so funny, depending on how you look at it) summer time travel story. Many years ago (I think I was around 9 years old, give or take) my family and my aunts, uncles and cousins were driving to Massachusetts from New York for vacation. We piled a lot of people into three cars. Back in the day seat belts were not the law and it seemed “OK” to let people sit on each other’s laps.
Along the way my uncle’s car broke down. We had to get a tow truck to tow the car to a repair shop to get fixed. That meant we had to stuff A LOT of people into just two cars. It almost looked like we had two clown cars with people sitting on top of people. It was really hard to squeeze everyone in.
The tow truck driver, seeing how we were struggling to fit everyone in the two cars, offered to let someone ride in the front of the truck with him. My cousin John jumped at the chance to ride in the tow truck (he was around 12 at the time).
So there we all are, totally stuffed into two cars and unable to move, watching my cousin driving away with the tow truck and the car that needed to be fixed. But there was just one problem. No one thought to ask the tow truck driver where the car was being towed to!
We had to drive from repair shop to repair shop looking for not only my uncle’s car, but also my cousin!
After about an hour or so we finally found the shop where the car was towed to. As soon as he saw us my cousin John came running out to us with tears racing from his eyes. He thought he’d never see us again. It didn’t help matters any that the tow truck driver was telling my cousin, jokingly, that he was going to kidnap him. No worries. My uncle gave him hell for telling my cousin that.
We finally got the car fixed and arrived at the hotel in Massachusetts only to turn around and go back to NY that very same night because there was a huge hurricane heading in that direction and my aunts and uncles didn’t want to tempt fate and stick it out.
That was our first, last and only family summer car trip. LOL!
Before heading out on any road trip it’s vital that you take a few minutes to check your car over to make sure everything is OK. That last thing you want is for your to break down like my uncle’s car did on our family trip. You can check your car over in as little as 10 minutes. Remember the saying “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Meaning sometimes it’s the little things you can do to prevent larger, negative things from happening.
10 minute tire maintenance Routine
Cooper Tire recommends that drivers should perform the following tests on vehicles monthly.
Examine tread: Bald tires can skid and slide on pavement and are more likely to be damaged by potholes and other road hazards. The minimum tread on your tires should be more than 2/32 of an inch deep. If it isn’t, the tire needs to be replaced.
- You can perform a simple test using a U.S. penny. Put the edge of the coin into the tread, with Lincoln going in headfirst. If the top of Lincoln’s head is covered by tread that means you’re driving with the minimum amount of tread. If the top of his head is entirely visible, it’s time to replace the tire.
- While you’re examining your tread, also look for signs of uneven wear or damage (i.e., cuts, cracks, splits, punctures, bulges and impacts.) These conditions shorten the life of your tires and , if not corrected, further tire damage or failure will occur.
Test air pressure: Under-inflation causes excessive stress on the tire, and can create irregular wear, which shortens the lifespan of tires and can also cause tire failure.
- As summer is one of the busiest travel seasons of the year, it is imperative to have the proper level of air pressure in your tires. As it can improve gas mileage by more than 3%, reducing drivers’ gasoline consumption and expense.
- Check your owner’s manual or tire placard (or sticker) for your tires’ correct pressure and adjust your tires’ pressures accordingly. The tire placard can be attached to the vehicle door edge, doorpost, glove box door, fuel door or trunk.
- A common myth is that the tire pressure listed on your tires’ sidewall is the optimal pressure – in reality it’s the maximum pressure.
- When you check the air pressure, make sure the tires are cool — meaning they are not hot from driving even a mile.
The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) is the national trade association of tire manufacturers in the United States.
According to the RMA’s 2010 Tire Tread Depth Survey:
- Nearly 11% of vehicles surveyed nationwide had at least one bald tire. That means as many as 28 million vehicles could have at least one bald tire.
- 64% of Americans do not know how to check tread depth.1
- 9% of drivers say they never check tread depth.2
Additional research conducted by the RMA shows the following statistics:
- Only 17% of vehicles have four properly inflated tires.4
- 55% of vehicles have at least one under inflated tire.5
- 85% of U.S.drivers do not properly check tire pressure.6
As a woman I think it’s very important for women to take a more active road in the maintenance and up keep on their car. Care care is NOT just for men. It’s for women too.
Many years ago I got a flat tire. I was able to drive to a repair shop in hopes of getting the tire replaced. They saw me coming a mile away (figuratively speaking). I must have had “sucker” tattooed on my forehead. To replace ONE tire cost me HUNDREDS of dollars because I had no clue what to look for or anything about tires. I ASSUMED they were being honest with me. I learned my lesson the hard way ($$$!!!).
Women use cars just as much as men do, perhaps even more considering we need to drive our family to and from schools, events, play dates and to run errands and shop.
Did you know that 85% of all purchase decisions are made by women, including big-ticket items such as, new homes, computers, automobiles and vacations.
80% of all travel decisions are made by women.
Here are some other interesting facts;
- Auto is the primary means of leisure travel, by 76%.
- Families take an average of 4.5 trips each year and make up 30% of leisure travelers.
- Women buy 60 to 65% of all passenger tires.
- Moms spend an average of two hours in the car each day. I believe that too! Somtimes I think I spend MORE time in the car then I do at home when I’m driving my kids all over the place. And I only have two children! I don’t know moms with many children handle it all.
I often refer to my family as “precious cargo” when I am driving them around in my car. That includes both my husband and our children. Even if the dog is in the car with us I consider him precious cargo too.
Cooper Tire has a new campaign called Cooper Cares for Your Precious Cargo. They would like to become a valuable resource for women who want to strive to keep their family safe on the road by educating women on car safety and maintenance. Cooper Tires wants to give moms the confidence to make sound decisions regarding their vehicles. Cooper is doing tire giveaways in hopes that it will help families to in conversations about their every day driving experiences and the importance of being confident behind the wheel.
Cooper is even having a national summer tire event.
- Between June 20 and July 31, 2011 Cooper Tire is offering up to a $75 rebate with a purchase of a set of four (4) qualifying Cooper tires.
- You can get up to $75 dollar rebate on Cooper tires at Cooper Tire dealers nationwide. Click here to find a dealer near you.
- The $75 dollar rebate applies to the Cooper Discoverer CTS, Cooper Zeon RS3-A and Zeon RS3-S. Additionally, Cooper Tire is offering a $50 rebate for their Cooper CS4, Cooper Discoverer H/T and the Cooper Discoverer LSX.
Cooper Tire has also generously offered to give a lucky She Scribe reader FOUR brand new Cooper tires, installation and balancing. This prize package has an approximate retail value of $800.00! Thank you Cooper Tire!
For this giveaway I’d like to ask that the winner write a guest post after they get their new tires and tell me and She Scribes readers a driving experience you have had (good or bad) since getting your new tires. I’m happy to link back to your site too (if you have one).
To enter please tell me about your most memoriable “in-car” moment with your family. Tell me about your child’s first day of school ride, the drive home from the championship football game or any other special and memorible moment your family has had while driving in a car.
For extra entries you can do any or all of the following. You MUST complete the initial entry before the additional entries will be considered. Please leave a separate comment for each that you have done. Extra entries are optional.
- Subscribe to She Scribes. Both RSS and E-mail options are found on the right side bar.
- Friend She Scribes on Google Friend Connect.
- “Like” Cooper Tire on Facebook, www.Facebook.com/Coopertire.
- “Like” She Scribes on Facebook, www.Facebook.com/SheScribes.
- Follow Cooper Tire on Twitter, www. Twitter.com/Coopertire.
- Follow She Scribes on Twitter, www.Twitter.com/She_Scribes and tweet about this giveaway. Please include @She_Scribes in the tweet so I can see it too. This is limited to three tweets per day.
- Share this giveaway with others on Facebook, Digg, Technorati and so forth. Be sure to tell me what you did and please provide a name and/or URL so I can verify.
- Post about this gveaway or the importancde of car care for summer travels on your site and please link back to this post. Please provide the URL.
- Leave a thoughtful comment on a non-giveaway post here on She Scribes. Please leave the URL of the post you commented on. Limit one comment per post. You can comment on an unlimited number of posts.
- Add my button (found on the right side bar) or text link on your site. Please provide the URL.
This giveaway is open to US residents only and will end on July 20, 2011 at 11:59 PM (EST). The winner will be chosen at random using a random number generator from all eligible entries. The winner will be notified via e-mail and will have three days to reply with a name and mailing address (no PO Box) or a new winner will be chosen in their place.
Other awesome giveaways can be found on the right side bar under “Win It”.
Kimberly
*I was not compensated in any way for this post. Any opinions expressed are purely my own. Cooper Tires will be providing the prize package.
1 Rubber Manufacturers Association, motorist phone survey, May 2009
2 Ibid.
3 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration press release, “Many U.S. Passenger Cars Are Driven on “Bald” Tires, NHTSA Research Shows,” November 30, 2001.
4 Rubber Manufacturers Association, tire pressure survey, May 2010
5 Ibid.
6 Rubber Manufacturers Association, motorist phone survey, May 2009
The most memorable riding experience I would have to say was when my kids were little and we’d drive from florida to maine and have so much fun singing and making up funny little games along the way and being together as a family happy and sharing and loving. Now my kids are grown and just want to “borrow” the car and I miss those special times, because just as cars go fast, life does too and our kids grow up way too fast.
some of my fondest memories were when I played travel softball. I spent endless hours in the car with my parents and we had so many funny talks and singing together like crazy people – we had tons of fun on those trips!
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now following your blog via GFC
I commented on your 4th of July post :
http://www.shescribes.com/2011/07/happy-4th-of-july-2.html/comment-page-1#comment-95670
commented on the insidious post
http://www.shescribes.com/2011/07/insidious.html/comment-page-1#comment-95672
I commented on your I’m famous post
http://www.shescribes.com/2011/06/check-it-out-im-famous.html/comment-page-1#comment-95676
When my son was very young and I mean very young (just a month old) we went on a 1100 mile trip to visit our family so that they could meet our new son. I was breast feeding and of course we had to stop every few hours for feedings, diaper changes,etc. It was an extremely long and tiring trip, but the look on my father’s face when he first laid eyes on his grandson ( and name sake) was worth all the hours in the car!
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Following on twitter and tweeted http://twitter.com/#!/annedoggett/status/88413225204449281
trips with the granddaughter – lways includes games, singing, & watching movies.
When our son was just learning how to talk and make his own little noises, we took a trip to Muskogee one day to pick up the hubby’s paycheck. On the way back, we blew the top off one of the spark plugs. The little Ford Ranger made the funniest noises and we made it home SLOWLY. A few months later, we went to my father-in-laws, our son made that “funny” noise that we heard all the way home. What a giggle I got out of that!!
It would be the 9 hour car ride to our new home where we finally got to be with my husband after 8 months of him working away from us. It was so exciting t knowing we were going to be a family again and a little scary leaving all of our friends behind. The kids were so awesome the whole trip. There was no fighting or complaining. They helped me out the whole way.
I’m an email subscriber.
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Follow you on Twitter and tweeted http://twitter.com/#!/chipdip2010/status/88423926404882432