Great job Althea, you should be proud of yourself! Now that you know you can do it, take baby steps to improve every time you drive. You'll suprise yourself again.

With regards to getting better milaege, a lot of it is attitude. Do you really want to improve every time you drive. If you do, it takes education. You need to learn a whole new set of rules if you want to hypermile. Don't be too scared, its easy and fun. Alot of us want to share what we've learned so be open.

If you live in St. Louis, are you buying treated gas? If you are, see if any surrounding counties have the good old gas which is unreformulated. It will give you 5 to 7 more mpg. Also avoid using your AC, just crack your windows about 1/2 inch and check out getting your side windows tinted. It makes a huge difference in comfort.

Your question on driving speed depends on the roads you'll be driving and what you want to achieve. If you want to drive for mileage you need to go at least 5 to 7 below the speed limits, 50-55 on the freeways or 45-50 on highways. Mileage driving may get you some dirty looks so be considerate. If you have to speed up remember your mileage reading changes every 2 minutes so it may or may not matter in the long run. We want to give the public a good impression of hybrids.

There are so many other techniques you can check out on this web sight or Insight Central. Remember that a trip is the journey and not the destination. Good Luck.