h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A442540

Driving in Australia is mentioned elsewhere in the guide, but driving in the outback needs completely different skills and knowledge. I hope you find them here.

Well written, Muppet! And you're right in that it doesn't really fit in with the Driving Etiquette theme.

I know it isn't in GuideML, (and that's okay! The Subs can add that later if it's recommended ), but you might consider breaking it up into sections by headers or subheaders, instead of letters of the alphabet.

Way to go!

It looks good, but you might want to mention the sheer distance of everything. Yes, it is not a joke when you say it is half a day's drive to the nearest petrol station. I went up to Darwin via the coast and back through Adelaide, and we met quite a few people who decided to have a nice holiday, found the distances too much, and gave up. I think a lot of people don't get this. Brilliant entry.

Excellent article.
The one thing I wasn't sure of was the mention of low gears in part a. I assume the reason for starting in third is to minimise wheelspin on bad surfaces, but in the UK, first is called a low gear and fifth a high one. Possibly it's the other way up down there - I guess calling certain gears high or low depends if you're taking about torque rather than speed.

To explain, most serious four wheel drive vehicles have two complete sets of gears, one for normal road conditions and another set for off road, which are geared much lower to cope with the terrain, eg very steep hills, trundling through mud without wheel spinning etc, so when conditions get bad you normally change into the low set. Perhaps this needs better explanation in the text but it's not really a piece about four wheel driving. (Perhaps one is needed...)

As for the distance thing, yes, I shall update the entry as I think this does need emphasising

Ahh - I understand now. I guess here we'd probably say - 'You will spend time in low *ratio*...'

A couple of suggestions for you.

Tell someone where you are going, what route you are taking and when you expect to get there. That way, if something happens to you, you can expect alarm bells to start ringing and people (hopefully) to come looking for you.

Mention GPS so that if you are lost, at least your position can be pinpointed.

Maybe a fuller 'what to take with you' may be advisable.

Liked the entry.

I learned something, I liked it, and I did something

Muppet, you may want to look at a thing I wrote about touring the Aussie outback and incorporqate any bits you find that may be of interest.

It lives at http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A644023

Finally, something I know enough about to make an intelligent comment on.

Great article and covers all the key bits of information an intrepid tourist needs to know.

Adding to Zarquon's comment - letting someone know where you are going is EXTREMELY important. You might like to emphasize that a bit more in your piece. If you are hiring a vehicle in Darwin (and I assume other relatively large towns in the top end), some of the major car hire chains now have vehicles with locators installed specifically for people who intend to go off the beaten track.

Another point you might like to include is that some areas are pretty bare. It's not a bad idea to have a tarpaulin and some poles, or even a big beach umbrella, so that you can create some shade when ypou stop for a break.

Editorial Note: This conversation has been moved from 'Peer Review' to 'Driving in the Australian Outback'.

This thread has been moved out of the Peer Review Forum because your entry has now been recommended for the Edited Guide.

You can find out what will happen to your entry here: http://www.h2g2.com/SubEditors-Process

Congratulations!

Well, this rather short trip is now over, as you've reached the destinion (or rather, the first step for getting there). But this will only take a couple of weeks

For the meantime, here's some !

Not bad as far as it goe's, but you forgot the heat, dust and FLIES that accompany any outing in this part of the world. We won't talk about cyclones shall we?

Rod

There ain't no reason to cyclone season