Get Ready to Ride in 2009

I know it's still cold out, and we had snow last night, but it's time to start thinking about riding! What's 2009 going to be like? Will gas prices remain low? They've crept back up to about $2/gallon already, but that's still about a $1 less than last year at this time. The gasoline market is still unpredictable. If gas goes up again, will scooter sales continue to boom? Will the recession and the credit crunch keep people from buying? Or will more people consider a scooter or motorcycle a fun and frugal alternative to that second car? It's going to be an interesting year.

Another reason to start thinking about riding right now is that registartion is about to open for the spring sessions of the Motorcycle Safety Program (MSP). Pennsylvania residents are very lucky that the MSP is free... it costs $300-$600 in other states. They teach you how to ride a motorcycle, beginning all the way with how to turn it on. You graduate the short course with your license. The first sessions are in March. Registration opens next week, and usually fills up in 48 hours. You'll need a learner's permit before that, so get crackin' today!

Gas drops below $3.00

OK, clearly I was wrong about gas prices. I just came form the Turkey Hill store on Harrisburg Avenue where the sign said $2.99. I went to fill up and noticed the pump showed $2.97. Sure enough, while I was there, a woman came out to change the sign.

I didn't foresee the global credit crisis. Investors are worried about future demand for oil, so prices are falling. If that were an isolated case, we could feel good about it. But in light of the cause, well..., let's just focus on the bright spot. Cheap gas! Wooo!

Gas prices down... for now.

Yesterday on CNN.com, there was a story about how gas prices had been going down for the last few days. There was a story about gas shortages and panics in Southern states. And there was the news about oil's largest price increase ever. Record oil price increases, gasoline shortages, and falling gasoline prices... one of these things doesn't belong here.

Gas prices aren't low, but they are low compared to where they were. And they can't stay where they are. Oil prices and gasoline shortages (perceived or real) have to bring gas prices back up again. That's the way I see it, at least.

I was up at Trans Am Cycle the other day and they had some new Kymco scooters in stock. A salesman was telling a customer that scooters had been flying out the door over the summer, and they were finally getting some back in. The 08's were sold out. These were 09's. He said that if gas prices stayed low, they would probably sit on his floor for a while. But if gas got above some magic number (he wasn't sure what that number was), people would be in to buy up every scooter he had.

Well, read the writing on the wall. Gas prices will be going up. And scooters are in stock. There is still plenty of riding season left; with arguably the most beautiful scenery of the year. So get that scooter you've been thinking about and enjoy it.

Conserve Oil? Don't be funny...

It irritates me that Republicans are making fun of Obama for his suggestion that we use tire guages to reduce our dependance on foreign oil. If properly inflating tires can save 3% of a car's fuel, why not do it? And that's peanuts compared to what scooter riders are saving. If we didn't have to drill off the coast and in Alaska, wouldn't that be a good thing?

There are all kinds of ads and propaganda that make fun of people who believe that using less oil is a good thing. There was an ad for WalMart, CostCo, or one of those megastores that featured a guy complaining about high prices. He said, his voice dripping with disdain, "What am I supposed to do? Ride a moped to work?" Yeah, jackass, give it try. You look like you could use some fun in your life.

And the current BMW ad makes me crazy. In particular, I don't buy the guy getting on a Vespa. Envy a cager on a beautiful day? Getting 30mpg? I don't think so. I get three times that. Maybe I'd be jealous that the driver has money to burn, but I'd rather ride a Vespa to a nice restaurant to burn it.

Anybody who suggests that you shouldn't even try to conserve energy probably stands to lose some money if you do. They're trying to sell you something. Don't buy it.

Editted to add: Paris solves the energy crisis:

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Gas Tax

There is some discussion among presidential candidates about giving the federal gas tax a summer vacation. This would be a mistake. America doesn't need to lower the gas tax. If anything it should be raised. Eliminating the gas tax will just reinforce peoples' behavior, saying it's alright to keep driving big cars everywhere and that U.S. citizens are entitled to cheap gas. It's partially that attitude that has made America that world's largest consumer of oil and the largest contributer to CO2 emissions, the leading cause of global warming. Americans need to change our behavior.

If you want to do something with taxes, eliminate all tax breaks on the oil companies. Eliminate all subsidies to oil companies for research. That's where the waste is. They are pocketing that money, not building new refineries, and not pioneering new energy sources. All while raking in record profits.

And if you don't like expensive gas... well, get used to it. It's going to get much worse. Instead of complaining and protesting, you'd be better off putting that energy into getting a more efficient vehicle. Because changing your mode of transportation isn't cheap either, even if it's a scooter. A reliable one is going to cost $2,000. And don't forget about a helmet and gear. But, divide that cost by the amount you paid for your last tank of gas. Now make that tank $5/gallon and do the math again.

You don't need to get rid of your car. Just don't use it every time you leave your house. You'll be surprised how much easier and fun it gets.

In The Year 2020: 35 Miles Per Gallon?

The Federal government is passing a law that auto manufacturers must meet a standard of 35mpg by the year 2020. This is supposedly up from 25mpg now. So how many of you are getting 25mpg? Do you think everyone will be getting 35 then?

I’m not impressed. Sure the auto industry is happy, but that is mainly because by requiring everyone to do it, nobody will lose by being the first one to build a car Americans clearly don’t want. Because if we did want them, we could buy them now.

And think about 2020: that’s 12 years from now. What was life like 12 years ago? There was almost no World Wide Web. No iPods. Email was rare. TVs were fat and lo-def. Cell phones still looked like phones and most people didn’t see the need to own one. And a Ford Contour was already getting 22mpg.

So yes, maybe the average fuel efficiency of vehicles has stalled a bit. But the cost of a gallon of gas is only up about a dollar since then. How much more are you paying for your phone(s)? Your cable? What expenses do you have now that you didn’t have then? High speed internet? Satellite radio?

My point is that we can’t imagine the world we will live in 12 years from now. Technology is advancing that fast. If fuel efficiency hasn’t kept pace over the last 12 years, it only because consumers haven’t made it a priority, because clearly we’re willing to spend the money on other things. It is possible that a new technological breakthrough will make cars with 35mpg look wasteful in 12 years. If cars still run on gas.

The best thing we could do to force the development of more efficient cars is to remove tax breaks for oil companies, remove price controls on gas, and let the price soar. Then let consumers decide what they want in a car.

P.S. Get a scooter.

The Cost of Gas

I bought a scooter primarily to commute to work. Reducing the amount of gas we use will help the environment and extend existing supply. But most of all, it will save $money$!
The cost of gas in Lancaster, PA is quite low in comparison to the rest of the country. You can see that on this map from GasBuddy.com. But who doesn't want to save a little more?
I have added a link, to the right of this page, to help us monitor gas prices in Lancaster. Remember, if you have a 1 gallon tank, the prices listed there represent a fill-up!