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Rules for touring

With cellphones, portable GPS navigation devices and Family Radio Service (FRS), keeping a tour group together and organized has come a long way in recent years. But there are still some rules that every driver should follow to help keep things running smoothly. Some of these are for new tour leaders, some are for all drivers.

1. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

If the car behind you has a mechanical problem or did not make it through the stop light, then pull over at the first safe opportunity. The car ahead of you should see you stop and should then also stop. Thus the whole tour group will come to a stop until the situation is resolved. If you continue on then the car behind you might not know the next turn to make and get off route taking everyone behind them the wrong way. If they are having a problem then it will be that much longer until the tour leader becomes aware of the issue if the cars behind him kept going when they weren’t paying attention to their rear view mirrors.

2. The tour leader should issue maps and directions to all cars giving the route.

This might be violated if the instructions are very simple, like “I-5 south for 100 miles, use exit 458, restaurant is visible from exit”. But even this would be better in writing. Was that exit 458 or 485?

3. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

4. If the car ahead of you stops, pull in behind.

If they are having a mechanical problem, maybe you can help. If they lost track of the tour group (the driver ahead of them did not wait) then at least the rest of the group is together until everything is sorted out.

5. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

6. On longer tours, the tour leader should plan for stops every hour or two

Not everyone can go long distances without a rest stop and some cars need fuel and/or oil more often than the tour leader or his car.

7. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

8. When you show up for a tour, have a full tank of gas.

It takes a while to get everyone organized and ready to go. Disrupting this so that you can take a side trip to fill up slows the whole group down

9. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

10. The tour leader should set a comfortable pace.

Not all cars in the tour can keep up with modern traffic, so the pace should be slow enough for the slowest vehicle on the tour. More over, the pace should be slow enough that the slowest car can catch up if they fall behind.

11. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

12. Leave enough space between you and the car ahead that other can pass.

Most drivers nowadays don’t know how to pass on a two lane road. So they will need all the assistance they can get. One way you can do that is to leave enough room in front of you that another car can get in.

13. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

14. Use pull outs and stay to the right when there is a passing lane

An extension of rule 12. Give all those modern car drivers a chance to get around our slow moving group.

15. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

16. Share your cellphone number

Especially on longer tours, the leader should make a roster with the cellphone numbers for each participant. This will greatly simplify communications between cars.

17. Keep the car behind you in your rearview mirror.

 

18. Enjoy the drive and take plenty of pictures.

We are doing this for fun, the camradarie and the memories. So relax and enjoy the trip.

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