Geekfoolery

Earlier this month the word went around that on May 15th, we were all going to stick it to the man by not buying gas. Those fat cats at Chevron and and Exxon and the rest of ‘em–they’ll see. Just one day will be all it will take to show Big Oil that we’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore.

Uh, yeah, right. The Great Gas Boycott of 2007, as we can all see clearly now, has the international oil conglomerates shaking in their boots, and in response, gas has dropped back down to $1.35 a gallon, and on top of that, that whole silly “self serve” experiment is over. Smiling men in crisp white uniforms will fill ‘er up and clean the windshield and check the oil for you once again just to make sure that the wrath of the gasoline-buying public is not roused again.

In case you’ve not figured it out, Snopes.com has a nice detail on why the perennial “gas boycotts” don’t work. The simple reason is this: A one-day gas boycott does nothing to reduce overall consumption–the only way to have an impact is to actually make changes in your life that make it so you actually use less gasoline.

OPEC figured this out in the oil embargo of the 70s. Remember that? Waiting in line for gasoline? The first time gas cost a dollar a gallon? I didn’t have to buy the stuff at the time, but I remember the sudden interest in small, fuel-efficient cars and in New England where I lived, people suddenly became fascinated in home insulation, wood stoves, the people starting taking their first tenative looks at solar and other alternative energies.

What OPEC realized was that day to day, the price of oil was whatever they said it was. The world’s oil importers didn’t have anywhere else to go, and no other way to run their economies. So gas could cost 2 bucks a gallon on Monday, and double that on Wednesday. The world had no choice but to pay it.

But if you keep the price too high for too long, something happens. People buy smaller cars, invest in efficient home heating, put solar on the roof. They make long term decisions that become financially feasible if gas costs too much.

The problem for OPEC is that once their customers have invested in alternatives, then no matter what happens to the price of oil, they’re going to use less of it. So the pattern is this: OPEC and gas companies can (and do) raise the prices for a couple months at time. People have no choice but to pay it. If the price stays too high for too long, though, people change their behavior and reduce consumption.

So the trick is to know this is going to happen and reduce your consumption. The obvious solution is to buy a car like a hybrid that gets better mileage than my truck. But even getting 3x the gas mileage, I still don’t come out ahead financially buying now instead of waiting a few years before replacing a truck that runs fine and is paid off.

I have a solution I am going to try. My situation is this: I have a 30 mile commute, but it’s through Los Angeles traffic, so it takes at least an hour and half each way on a normal day. What if I could get 10x the gas mileage with an investment of just $600, and still get to work on time?

The answer is a Golden Eagle Bicycle Motor. I have a bike already. With a promised 30 mph speed–let’s make that an average of 20mph to accomodate traffic lights–and I am at the office just as fast. With gas mileage conservatively estimated at 170 mpg, I am saving approximately 10 dollars a day in gas alone, nevermind wear and tear on the truck.

A regular motorcycle could accomplish the same thing, but with a higher investment and slower rate of return. My rough figures show me paying for the the Golden Eagle completely by taking it to work 3 times a week for 3-4 months. Anything after that is gravy.

Watch this space for updates.

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