My 2002 Honda CR-V rolled over 170,000 miles two weeks ago. I’m happy to say it’s still running very smoothly and the engine is still pretty quiet. I’m still glad I made the switch to Honda back in 1998 and haven’t looked back. There will still be another SAAB in my future, but I doubt there will be a time when we don’t own a Honda.

Onto the next 30,000 miles.

I knew there was a reason I waited to get a remote starter. I want this!

Let me first address, that I do realize the post before this is about having compassion. I probably should have more compassion for the drivers around me, who knows what insanity they are dealing with or have found no way of dealing with. Before I reach that point of enlightenment though, my list of pet peeves.

1) Blinkers. Cars now-a-days (possibly since the beginning) have blinkers. It’s amazing, they come with them, and even a handy lever off the steering wheel for easy access. Use them! Not only do they help you to remind you where you’re going but they help all of us around you know what your plans are. Best practice, is to turn them on before actually moving your vehicle in that new direction.

2) Drive Right, Pass Left. It’s an entire campaign for a reason. You’re not a cop, you don’t have the right to police the left lane. Just because you don’t think anyone should go above 65mph doesn’t mean you get to enforce this on the rest of us. Maybe we’re going to hell for it, but let me get by and I’ll find out. Note: if there’s a line of cars ahead obviously you can’t move over, but when you’re all by yourself toodling along in the fast lane, move over! I don’t like to use my horn and I’m not a light flasher, and I don’t like to pass on the right.

3) The Wave (Cell Phone Style). So you’re following behind me, and you get really close, then back off, then really close, then back off, rinse and repeat. I’ve been able to prove 100% of the time, you are on your cell phone. Get off the damn phone, if it’s distracting you that much. You’re not safe to yourself or me.

4) Hoppers. Are you the kind of person who likes to try to get ahead of a pack of cars by hopping from lane to lane, slowly increasing by one car at a time and cutting people off? If you are, get a freaking life, because you’re bound to lose yours at some point with that crappy driving. Seriously? it doesn’t work in video games and it rarely pans out in real life.

5) Slow Red Light Runners. While you seem to have an aversion to going the speed limit particularly in areas where it’s only 25-30mph to begin with, how is it you manage to not touch your brakes and roll right through stop signs and red lights. Does the vehicle scare you that much? Is it a safety factor motivating your desire to drive under the speed limit? If so, how is it safe to roll through stop signs and red lights?

6) Park Like You Just Don’t Care. Now parking is not a science, especially the pull in straight type. Parallel, backing in, I’ll cut you some slack, but pulling straight in? You don’t have to be perfect, but getting a relative even distance between you and the cars next to you is respectable. Because as we all know, when you’re in the car, you can tell if you’re too close, and you can certainly tell by the time you get out of the car. Do you really want to end up on a website like youparklikeanasshole.com? It just takes a few moments to care about your fellow driver.

Disclaimer: I am not a perfect driver, and do not claim to be one. I spend roughly 2 hours a day on the road, 5 days a week, and then travel usually on the weekend. I’ve done road trips through the mid-west and south east, I feel I’ve gotten to see a fare amount of drivers out there. All of these items, can be summed up simply, pay attention to the other people around you. Be considerate of your other drivers. Be safe. If someone wants to go faster, let them go!

I typically host a fall foliage tour every year, I’ve been doing this since 2002. I love the fall season and I enjoy showing people around the New England area. This year got quite hectic and then couple it with bad fall allergies, I ended up resting and sneezing during October. Last years tour we had great color and several covered bridges of Vermont. I’m always amazed too by the generosity of establishments. We’re usually a group of 16 people minimally showing up looking for a meal and to hopefully sit together.

Here’s a few snap shots from that trip.

This is awesome! I so want to go do that. We’ve done some spins and I’ve gone out on my own and gotten the snow flying. I really should move to some much more northern country, I love to go play in the snow in the car and just myself.

June 21-22 was the 6th Annual HondaSUV Georgia Meet in Bar Harbor, ME. It happened to coincide with our vacation already planned in Maine. There were members driving up from Georgia, Tennessee, Maryland, New York and more. I had tried to get NorthEast Member Club members to go to Acadia in the past with no luck.

The turn out was great. Racoon and 4HondaOwner put together shirts with the event name. We had a lot of fun visiting with everyone. Friday the weather was foggy and cool, but Saturday mid-morning turned into beautiful weather. Craig and I drove to our rental late in the afternoon and then I drove back down in the evening to hang out for a little longer and say good-byes.

The other day I put together a page on the Honda CR-V’s in my life. I don’t talk about it much on here, but I really should is how involved I’ve been with HondaSUV.com.

I joined the site in March 1998 when I got my first Honda CR-V, a black LX. From there I added on a whole bunch of things and was active in the forum, I never made it to a meet with that CR-V.

In June 2002, I had the opportunity to get a new car and I went for a CR-V again, this time a 2002 Silver EX. I became much more active in HondaSUV.com and helped establish the NEMC (North East Member Club), we’ve held several meets to date, and I’ve been the host of many.

Being a host of car meets taught me a lot about being a leader.

• I realized you can not make everyone happy, but you can certainly try to get everyone.
• I learned to plan for mishaps, plan for delays, plan for the unexpected.
• I also learned to make sure people feel included. It’s easy to fall into comfortable conversations with those who already know each other.
• I learned to not take anything too seriously.
• I learned to plan for everyone’s needs, not everyone is showing up with 100.00 to blow on food at a fancy restaurant.
• Include the whole family, don’t make people feel they can’t bring the kids along.

It’s been a great experience, and is a good part of why at 126,000 miles on my CR-V I don’t plan to get rid of it anytime soon. Of course if Honda comes out with a CR-V hybrid, I’ll be jumping to get that.

In the side bar I have a full detailed page of my trips and modifications.

Do you have any similar experiences?

Fall Foliage Tour 2007, originally uploaded by criana.

I hosted the 6th annual Fall Foliage Tour 2007 for the HondaSUV.com this past weekend. We took a covered bridge tour of south eastern Vermont and finished off the day in Keene, NH for the Keene Pumpkin Festival.