The Sheetz station on Forest Hills Road was selling gas still well below $4 a gallon, a psychological barrier he admitted.
"Any time you see the price go up a whole number, it's hard," he said.
His wife, Ivey, chimed in, "I remember saying that I'd never pay more than $3 for a gallon of gas. You see how long that lasted."
The Dodds are among motorists who are having to weigh higher gas prices heading into the July Fourth holiday weekend.
Traffic is expected to be slightly lighter this year, according to AAA Carolinas. The motoring club is estimating that 1 million North Carolina and 551,000 South Carolina drivers will hit the road this weekend, or about a 1.3 percent decrease from 2007.
If that forecast holds up, it will be the first decrease in Fourth of July travel since 2001.
AAA also expects air travel to be down about 2 percent this weekend compared to 2007.
In both states, gas costs about $1.10 more per gallon than last year. The average cost in North Carolina was $3.999 and in South Carolina, $3.866, as of Monday.
"The high price of fuel may be forcing many travelers to change their vacation plans," said David E. Parsons, president and CEO of AAA Carolinas. "With barrels of oil trading at new record highs almost daily, it is unknown whether gas prices will stabilize or decrease this summer."
Motorists said Tuesday that they have not changed their driving habits drastically.
Julie Davis of Stantonsburg said her family "is probably going to be hanging around the house this weekend," but they don't typically travel because of the holiday crowds.
"If we're going to the beach, we'll go the weekend before or the weekend after the 4th," she said.
Craig Zini of Raleigh said he has made subtle changes in his driving. For example, he had been buying the high-grade gas for a company car, but he has shifted to a mid-grade.
"You can tell a little bit of difference in performance," he said.
The Rev. Don Sauls, pastor at Pikeville Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church, will make his usual holiday trip to White Lake, he said. It doesn't take that much gas to get there.
"Now, if I was an open road driver, running up a lot of miles, it might affect me, but not in my case," he said.
In his daily life, he has to grin and bear the cost of gas, he said. "A pastor has to have fuel. We're on the go."
Deborah Garcia of Kill Devil Hills was glad to see fuel prices below $4. Near her home in the Outer Banks, stations have charged between $4.10 and $4.14 a gallon; she's even seen a station on Ocracoke Island charge $4.46.
"It hasn't affected my travel plans. In fact, we ride motorcycles all the time," she said. "But it is stressful the way the economy is going -- milk, bread and gas, everything is going up."
Ashley Hawley of Lucama said she won't be traveling this weekend, whereas she might normally go to the beach.
Gas prices "are definitely holding me back. I am driving less, at least as less as I can having to work," she said.
Farmville resident Angie Congleton is trying to be more efficient when she does drive.
"I make a list of everything I need to do so that I can make one trip to town as compared to four or five trips," she said.
mshaw@wilsontimes.com | 265-7878