I stopped to fill up in Entiat on Wednesday on the way to a meeting with emergency planners who wanted to ask questions about reporting and news organizations.

At the pump, I overheard two guys complaining about the price of gas and saying it could top $5 a gallon this summer.

Then, on the way back to Wenatchee from Chelan, I found myself, driving an Xb, which is sort of a big roller skate, behind a Hummer towing a trailer.

My mind wandered to thinking about it being fun to drive a Hummer, maybe taking off up one of the canyons Highway 97A crosses. After a few miles, I wondered about gas mileage.

It was highway driving most of the way. Let’s say the Hummer got 14 mpg and Xb, about 35 mpg. The price of a gallon of gas, according to The World’s weekly average of local prices: $3.67.

One way between The World and Chelan is about 40 miles. So, call it 80 miles for a round trip.

The xB would have used about 2.3 gallons, costing $8.39. The Hummer, about 5.7 gallons, $20.97.
But I still would like to see what it does up the canyons.