Evening star., 1932-09-04
MUST KEEP PACE
WITH INNOVATIONS
Tourists Are Urged to Travel
by 1882 Rules and
Regulations.

now 70 Jour In the mOdern manner,
avoiding the habit of taking 1882 tour
has all motoring captivated. Suddenly
1t has dawned upon millions Of motor
lists that they have not begun to adjust
themselves to the new travelling fea-
lures. They are literally touring with
the brakes on.
Changes in highway systems, route
marking, traffic control and customs
have revamped the whole song Of the
road. Many drivers are as unfamiliar
with the new touring features as they
are with free wheeling, ride control and
automatic clutching.
Reasoning Required.
Keeping up with the changes requires
some careful reasoning. Numerous
changes are of subtle nature. For ex-
ample, many miles of crowned roads are
gone from the picture. The seasoned
motorist now feels he need no longer
worry for fear the rightward tipping OF
the car will cause lubricant from the
rear end to flow into the right rear
brake. So far so good. But he does
not stop to realize that because he drives
faster and farther over the more level
roads and stops more suddenly, the
lubricant in the front wheel bearings
heats up and thins out more readily. In
other words, greasy brakes are more
likely to be found at the front these days
than at the rear.
One of the most peculiar conditions
of modern travelling is that of the v'avy
concrete road If the driver attempts
to make quick stop when going over
such stretch he will find that the
brakes develop an unusual disturbance
of equalization. The rear or front set
Of brakes may lock, whereas braking
would be equally distributed If the road
were level. The effect Is entirely dif-
ferent from that which develops when
the car goes over broken up stretch OF
roadway.
Unless the tourist of today follows
conditions carefully he will find that
he travels through much more traffic
than he needs to- Practically all cities
and towns have bypass routes. These
often are not clearly marked. so that
in order to follow them it is frequently
necessary to have a good sense OF direc-
ton. The very qualification most nec--
essary in yesterdays touring OF rural
country has today become an essential
but for different reason. Yesterdays
motorist developed his bump Of loca-
ton to save being lost. Today he de-
velops this same talent to save losing
time.
Stop Swerving.
One habit that must be broken If ac-
cidents are to be curbed is the ten
dency to swerve to the left when an
other car suddenly darts out from the
right. In the old days this could be
done without risk of running into an
approaching car, but in these days Of
laned traffic the result Is like jumping
out Of the frying pan into the fire.
1t is well to keep in mind that when
cars are seen approaching from the
they will stop. Many of the well trav-
eled routes are through streets" and
while the car you see suddenly coming
from the right Is going at a good rate
Of speed its driver invariably slows
down or stops altogether before he
reaches the intersection. It Is his Gus
tom to slam on the brakes at the last
moment.
Many tourists are alarmed because
their engines overhead for what appears
to be no cause whatever. This is SIM
ply due to the deceiving nature Of the
modern well graded road. Also the
tourist today expects to climb the hill
at a higher rate Of speed.
Overtaking Cars.
Overtaking other cars is a science In
itself, according to the theory Of mod
ern touring. One mistake Is to assume
that II there is an opportunity to pass
another car at one point there will be
plenty Of additional opportunities any
time passing Is decided upon. The
chances are that the present opportun-
ity is the only one in perhaps a mile
OF driving. Get by while you can, but
don't pick downgrade If another car
is approaching down hill ahead. All
three cars then are increasing their
rate Of speed.
Much time Is lost by modern tray
elers because they approach intersecting
roads too speedily. 1t saves time to
read the signposts correctly rather than
| to race by and then find you are on the
wrong road. There is quite some art
in the ability to look ahead for route
signs, which often are placed several
hundred feet beyond the intersection.
Travelling the new way means scrap
ping lot Of time-worn ideas. New
roads have brought new customs. new
dangers and new conditions. Every
little section has a meaning of its own.
Be sure you know those meanings.
Copyright, 1882, the Russell Service)