Monte Carlo-style Rally
Monte Carlo-style Rally vehicles are invited to compete for up to $10,000 and 35 awards for the most fuel-efficient production-hybrid or biodiesel vehicles (which can be production-line or modified) that travel a minimum of 150 miles at an average of over 55 MPG. The overall prize money includes $5,000 for the most fuel-efficient vehicle that breaks the 100 MPG barrier over a range of 500 miles.

To participate, advanced-vehicle owners must join at one of the numerous starting sites around the US and Canada. After they have topped off and had their fuel tank sealed, Rally participants must drive to the finish line at Saratoga Springs by noon on May 14. There, they will get a free fill up with gasoline or biodiesel, compliments of Stewart's Shops and Environmental Alternatives, and officials will measure the fuel used and miles driven.

There are 10 vehicle categories. Tires will be pressure checked to be 50 PSI or less and must have tread. The rally is limited to 50 entries and a total 500-person entourage. All cars must be registered, inspected, insured and meet federal Department of Transportation regulations. The winners and statistics about the Rally entrants will be gathered, analyzed and posted at www.TourDeSol.org.

Tour de Sol
Over a half million consumers have visited the Tour de Sol since its creation in 1989 by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA), and over 40 million print and broadcast exposures accrue from the Tour each year. The Tour de Sol provides a key platform for vehicle manufacturers, students, and entrepreneurs to demonstrate future designs and current products that aim reduce oil and carbon emissions to zero. The event provides news media the opportunity to provide timely and topical updates on the status of sustainable energy and mobility.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the Center for Technology Commercialization are the event's premier sponsors. Additional key sponsors include the U.S. Department of Energy, the New York Power Authority, Toyota, the New York State Environmental Conservation, the Federal Highway Administration, New York State Parks, Environmental Alternatives, and the Electric Drive Transportation Association. The Automotive Career Development Center in Worcester, MA, is a key organizer of the Monte Carlo-style Rally.

NESEA, the nation's leading regional education and advocacy association, is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. NESEA aims to accelerate the deployment and use of renewable energy and energy efficiency by, among other things, producing major sustainable-energy events that inspire and motivate large numbers of people to get involved and make a difference. NESEA is a chapter of the American Solar Energy Society (www.ASES.org), a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to the development and adoption of renewable energy in all its forms, including solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, hydrogen energy, ocean energy, biofuels energy, and energy efficiency.

For more information on the 2005 Tour de Sol Championship, Monte Carlo-style Rally and 100 MPG Challenge, visit www.TourDeSol.org or call NESEA at 413.774.6051. For more information on NESEA, visit www.NESEA.org.

To hear a 30-minute Q&A on why American car makers - especially General Motors - should fully get into the hybrid-vehicle development market, listen to "The Business Beat," produced by WICN/90.5 FM, the NPR affiliate for Central New England. The guests are James Dunn of the Center for Technology Commercialization in Westboro, MA, Craig Van Batenburg of the Automotive Career Development Center in Worcester, MA, and Gilles Labelle of the Hybrid Center at Westboro Toyota in Westboro, MA. To listen now, CLICK HERE.

To join an online conversation on why American car makers should fully get into the hybrid-vehicle development market, visit the Edmunds.com hybrid-vehicle forum at townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX?13@@.ef7a43c/16.