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In this Issue:

• From aboard the California Zephyr >>
• Local report - Denver Electric Vehicle Council Event >>
• The Solar Race across Australia >>
• Notes from John Rockhold >>
  

Editorial:                                                                                           

18OCT2007
ASES RFST division newsletter editor’s note
From aboard the California Zephyr

How often when we travel we are in such a great hurry. We shed all our metal tools & toys, tuck liquids & medications into “special” plastic bags and sacrifice our privacy through the portal to board a plane to pop out of one location and into another. We view the passing countryside postage stamp scale below us while the bird in which we ride trails waste across the sky like a soaring steel snail.

Snails of an earlier age, passenger train travel opened up travel across the American west at speeds that astonished the citizens of the day. On my recent (mid-October) visit from Colorado to California I decided to slow down, take the train, and enjoy the benefit of being able to move XX tons YY miles with ZZ diesel fuel emitting AAA CO2. Like riding a bike or walking, traveling on the California Zephyr (or AMTRAK in general) is all about enjoying the ride. Knowing electrical outlets should be available I packed along computer and AC cell phone charger.(1) Living up to my expectations I got work done while the miles rolled by…. steel on steel.

What completely exceeded my expectations was the incredible natural beauty of this great land. Cutting a narrow path through the Rocky Mountains and down the fabulous “painted” desert canyons without billboards or highway signage (except when the train is near the highway) the changing colors of fall were an ever-changing feast for the eyes enjoyed from the observation car if you feel like leaving your ample seating for a walk.(2) Surely there are LOTS of improvements we could list for AMTRAK and the US railroad infrastructure in general but the sheer delight of rockin’ along in plenty due time is a mode of transportation I look FW to partaking of again.

Like walking or riding a bike the train is not the fastest way to get from point A to point B. Travel by public transportation (meeting new people and enjoying the ride) seems to appeal to weirdoes and environmentalists. Wait – was that redundant?

‘til next quarter,

Janice Arnold, RFST Newsletter Editor

1 There were not as many outlets on the Zephyr as one might wish. A power strip like the one packed along by a fellow passenger/train aficionado to run his laptop, gps, cell phone & dispatcher radio set to the train guy frequency  (& to share additional outlets) was an item I shall try to remember for future journeys.
2 I packed in most of my own food so I would only visit the dining car once per crossing and only partook of one seriously packaged $6 chicken Caesar salad. I like my own cooking and didn’t care much for the food offered on the Zephyr.

SOLAR TODAY Magazine

January/Feburary 2008 Features >>

- Advancing a Market for Zero-Energy Homes
- CASE HISTORY: Sungalow Shines
- Energy Storage: Getting Past the Grid-Lock
- Solar Decathlon: Energy Abounds

ASES’ Green Collar Jobs Report

“Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency: Economic Drivers for the 21st Century”

Download the report >>

Local report (this is mine – send me yours):
The Denver Electric Vehicle council (www.devc.info) had a little race and EVent in Longmont Sat. Oct 20, 2007 (most laps in 1 hour the winner). I got some photos and talked with Jeff, a Honda retrofit bike builder about his ride. He had chosen to go Series wound DC to save money with (6) good sized sealed amalgam batteries each with its own on-board charger. (2) of the batteries were hitched on as removable saddlebags to reduce weight for shorter distance rides. Interesting how different folks chose to build. There was a Zen and a Kurrent brought in by a dealer in Electrics on S. Broadway in Denver, a couple of Rav 4's and a 1982 Electrek from Unique Mobility (our local motor manufacturer in Firestone, CO who was displaying their more recent Phoenix elsewhere that particular weekend).

The Solar Race across Australia.
Here’s the website link for this year’s biannual Solar race across Australia: Just less than 50 teams from all over planet Earth competed in a variety of categories:    
http://www.wsc.org.au/
Final results accolades go to Nuna 4, the Nuon Solar Team from the Netherlands as winner in the overall competition who turned in an average speed of 90.87 k/Hr over the 2999 km from Darwin to Adelaide.  Belgium’ Umicore Solar Team came in second with their Umicar Infinity in 34hrs 36m and the Australian’s Aurora Vehicle Association, Inc’s Aurora 101 took 3rd traveling the distance in 35hrs 17m.  Please visit the website and think about how ASES (that’d be you – we are a volunteer organization) could get involved in 2009.

Notes from John Rockhold, RFST secretary and managing editor of Mother Earth News:
Recently I’ve driven three vehicles that together represent quite the spectrum of green transportation:

The ZAP Xebra truck is nimble and easy to drive. It uses lead acid batteries and has a range of about 25 miles, top speed of 40 mph. The “truck” bed is convenient for carrying groceries, hardware, etc., around town. Cost is about $11,000. State regulations vary, but given its speed, this EV is legal on city streets.

The GEM eL would be perfect for farms, vineyards, golf courses, etc. It lacks the “punch” of the Xebra, as its top speed is 25 mph. But used in the appropriate context, this would be a useful and practical EV.

Both of these EVs turned a ton of heads wherever we took them.

The other end of the spectrum was the Toyota Camry Hybrid. This is a remarkably smooth and comfortable hybrid to drive, the perfect hybrid for a family that needs more room than the Prius or Civic provide. At about $25,000, the Camry Hybrid is only a few thousand more than a conventional Camry, depending on the trim level. Plus the Camry Hybrid is assembled in America. My favorite part was its “eco drive” meter, a real-time display of both fuel economy and the source of power (electric, gas, hybrid). I found that with the right attention, I could get the car to cruise (even at 75 mph) in all-electric mode. With gentle acceleration, I was even able to increase my speed on the interstate in electric-only mode. But the system is really sensitive and switches to gas-only or gas-electric pretty easily. It’s ironic that optimal driving for fuel economy in a hybrid is in many ways the inverse of optimal driving for a conventional car. You can read more about that here >> .

I’ll report more on this in the future, but I want to mention that Mother Earth News is sponsoring an entry into the Auto X Prize competition. We’re working with a longtime Mother Earth News contributor, Jack McCornack and his company Kinetic Vehicles. You can read more about it here >> and here >> .

Mother Earth News recently launched a free photo-sharing Web site called CU (“see you”). Check it out at cu.MotherEarthNews.com. I’d love to see RFST members post photos of their EVs, hybrids, bicycles, solar homes, gardens and whatever else you want to share! Related to ASES, we have created a section of the CU site for the National Solar Tour. Now people from across the country can view these solar homes, year-round. You can see the photos here >>.