gas $$

[fieball]

Frustrating!!
It's approaching the $3 mark and I have a 1900 pro V and see no relief in sight. How the heck is everybody doing it?? It just doesen't seem like it's affecting no one!!
It's depressing!!!!!


Sorry, just venting.

[Burr]

Don't feel alone, I feel the pinch as well.

Made my mind up last summer - when gas hits $6.00 per gallon, fishing is gone as a hobby. No new hobbies are coming into my life that require substantial amounts of gasoline. I've intentionally led my life in a way that sets my standard of living below my means - well, that is gone. Increased energy prices have me with a very tight budget. Being in a reletively high income tax bracket, I have to make quite a bit more money to have more disposable income.

[VMS]

If gas hits $6.00 a gallon, I will buy a row-trolling boat.

[Skis]

Adding another person in the boat to defray the cost.

[marty]

that brings up another interesting question................
at what point, in this case...gas $ does everybody on here say enough!! The "extra" driving is DONE!!
My point is nearing @ $3/gallon....it's now $2.80 where I'm at
1/2 ton pu....at this point it's $65 to fill
45 gallon tank on boat...$126 IF I fill it

OUCH!!

[boatman]

They are now talking about $4.00 a gal. for the summer. Even adding another person to the boat is still an effect on your fishing. Eventually if these prices keep climbing fishing will become secondary to just trying to make ends meet. My wife and I are starting to discuss the possibility of selling our boat. With kids,college,and the normal bills its just becoming less and less of a hobby we are going to be able to do. I don't like it but its a reality that many of us may have to face.

[Blackmacs]

Well I'm going to be throttling back this year and running just fast enough to be on plane. Also I'll probably not make as long of runs on the lakes and pick accesses closer to where I want to fish. My tuck gets better milage than the boat.

I'm also going to look at the positives. Hopefully the jetski/waterski/booze cruisers are also going to be cutting back too. Maybe we'll be able to fish in peace more often.

[Taildancer]

My wife and I were talking about this yesterday. If my partner and I fish all day trolling and running we use about 10 gallons in a Saturday. At that it costs us each $20.00. It frustrates me as well, but for the one day a week of fishing I am still going. I am now really glad I only bought a 115hp and alos that it is a 4stk.

[been_down_the_hard_road]

You shouldnt be living so tightly (likely making payments on your 1900 proV) that you cant afford to put $3 gas in it. Thats the trouble with most Americans. They have to have everything right now, so they finance themselves to the gills, and when something comes up they cant figure out "how there supposed to be doing it". Nothing against you personnely,...your certainly not the only one. My boat is 15 years old, and is paid for free and clear...as is my truck, my farm, ect.

Dont live beyond your means,....and you can easily afford $3 gas. I really dont care if it hits $5 a gallon, it's not going to keep me from doing the things I enjoy. I do feel badly for the single mother out there who is living without any luxury items, and struggling to keep ends meat.

This is not going to change people. Get used to $3 gas.....

[guide]

Work 4-10's, praying for some guide work 3 days a week to support my addiction.

[hard road]

"Dont live beyond your means,....and you can easily afford $3 gas. I really dont care if it hits $5 a gallon, it's not going to keep me from doing the things I enjoy."

who said anything about payments????

just an fyi....my 1900 pro V SE, 5yrs old, 175 opti/9.9 4 stroke and loaded is paid for!
I just don't see handing over that much to fill it up when their is absolutely NO reason to have gas prices this high!!!! It's your attitude that those gas executives can see and as long as people pay with no problem they'll just keep going up....so, really it's you that we all have to thank for these prices!!!
I can picture this person at the pump filling up the pink cadillac with $5 /gallon gas with a big 'ol smile saying "bring on $6/gallon" I LOVE IT!!!!


I do agree too many people live on credit.... but not this boy!!

[imagine]

Can you imagine trying to fish a tourney circut at these prices? Excursion pulling a fully loaded Ranger. Pre fishing a week ahead of time? I feel for those guys...somewhat:) Over $100 per fill, running 3/4 a tank of gas through your boat a day? Ouch!!

[Muleskinner]

I can only burn $75.00 worth a day because thats all the credit card company's will allow me to put in at one time. It's kind of like a restricter plate for my boat.;(

[tbomn]

Let's stop and think for a minute. We have gotten used to $2.00 per gallon gas. If you use 350 gallons of fuel in boat and truck in a summer, and gas goes up to $4.00 a gallon, that will be another $700. for the whole fishing season. Spread that out through 7 months, that's $100. a month. If you fish 4 weekends a month, that is $25. a weekend, split with a fishing bud, that is $12.50 extra a week for fishing. If you don't buy that pack of cigs every day at $4.00 per pack, or you don't buy that 12 pack at $8.oo per box, or you don't spend that $1.25 per bottle of water, etc, etc, on and on and on..........This is not going to be anything, any different from what you have had to do in the past when you want something that you "really" want. Give up something that you don't need to get something you really want..:rock-on:

[Unlogged T-Mac]

It's $2.469 here.
I don't fill up my whole 2025 Pro-V ...at the same time.
-Unless I have some unsuspecting buddy who offered to pay for the fuel. :)

[jimmy4218 unlogged]

Has anyone here thought about buying a smaller boat? I hate to sound like I'm rubbing it in, but I've got a 15 foot Smokercraft with a 25hp Honda on it. I filled it up yesterday (6 gal.) it cost me just over $16.00 and I can fish a good size lake for days on end if I like. If you really think about it, why, other than fishing huge lakes like Superior, Erie, or even Mille lacs lake would you really NEED something like a ranger with a huge motor other than to scream across the lake? Heck, I've fished Mille Lacs, Superior, and Saganaga (which is huge as well) in my little boat without a problem. Granted you have to watch the weather a bit more, but so what? by the time the weather is too bad for mine, anyone that owns one of the bigger boats has to get off as well. Now don't get me wrong, I love fishing in my father-in-laws new Crestliner with the 115 Yamaha, but how did our grandfathers fish? in little boats and small motors and the result? Great fishing memories, right? running the risk of sounding like a jerk, I have to say that corporate America has alot of people pinned into believing the bigger, the faster, the more expensive- the better. I heard a salesman say not that long ago the the goal for him is to get people into their 30's- 30,000 boat, 30,000 R.V., 30,000 truck. I understand he's just doing his job, but it really made me think. My wife and I have agreed that it's time to simplify if we really want to do what we love to do which is fish, camp, hunt. I don't know about you guys, but NO ONE is going to stop me from doing the things I love to do.

[Duck Crusher]

I agree with you. A buddy and I went last weekend for 2 days. We had 125.00 in gas and 50 motel bill. 175 dollars split two ways for two days. This week if we go for two days, gas will run roughly 100.00. From what I remember, it's less money than one or two days of greens fees with cart, dinner and drinks. It's also a lot less frustrating. I don't pray for 3$ gas...but it isn't stopping me either. The best thing to do is add another fisherman to the boat to split costs.

>Let's stop and think for a minute. We have gotten used to
>$2.00 per gallon gas. If you use 350 gallons of fuel in boat
>and truck in a summer, and gas goes up to $4.00 a gallon, that
>will be another $700. for the whole fishing season. Spread
>that out through 7 months, that's $100. a month. If you fish 4
>weekends a month, that is $25. a weekend, split with a fishing
>bud, that is $12.50 extra a week for fishing. If you don't buy
>that pack of cigs every day at $4.00 per pack, or you don't
>buy that 12 pack at $8.oo per box, or you don't spend that
>$1.25 per bottle of water, etc, etc, on and on and
>on..........This is not going to be anything, any different
>from what you have had to do in the past when you want
>something that you "really" want. Give up something that you
>don't need to get something you really want..:rock-on:

[Koldfront Kraig]

This is another reason why I don't buy a bigger boat or drive a truck with a V8 motor.

Find someone to fish with, it helps.

Post an open seat here or other fishing sites.

You will save money, learn more and maybe make a few friends.:rock-on:


------------------------------------------------------

I work hard at underachieving….. but not too hard


Kraig

[Pat T]

Just received this in an e-mail. If you agree and feel it may do some good, copy and paste it to an e-mail of all of your friends and relatives.

Pat T

Worth your consideration!
>
>
> GAS WAR - an idea that WILL work
>
> This was originally sent by a retired Coca Cola
>executive. It came from one of his engineer buddies
>who retired from Halliburton. It's worth your
>consideration.
>
> Join the resistance!!!! I hear we are going to hit
>close to $4.00 a gallon by next summer and it might go
>higher!! Want gasoline prices to come down? We need to
>take some intelligent, united action.
>Phillip Hollsworth offered this good idea.
>
> This makes MUCH MORE SENSE than the "don't buy gas
>on a certain day" campaign that was going around last
>April or May! The oil companies just laughed at that
>because they knew we wouldn't continue to "hurt"
>ourselves by refusing to buy gas. It was more of an
>inconvenience to us than it was a problem for them.
>
> BUT, whoever thought of this idea, has come up
>with a plan that can really work. Please read on and
>join with us! By now you're probably thinking gasoline
>priced at about $1.50 is super cheap. Me too! It is
>currently $2.79 for regular unleaded in my town. Now
>that the oil companies and the OPEC nations have
>conditioned us to think that the cost of a gallon of
>gas is CHEAP at $150 - $1.75, we need to take
>aggressive action to teach them that BUYERS control
>the marketplace....not sellers. With the price of
>gasoline going up more each day, we
>consumers need to take action. The only way we are
>going to see the price of gas come down is if we hit
>someone in the pocketbook by not purchasing their gas!
>And, we can do that WITHOUT hurting ourselves.
>How? Since we all rely on our cars, we can't just stop
>buying gas. But we CAN have an impact on gas prices if
>we all act together to force a price war.
>
> HERE'S THE IDEA:
>
>
> For the rest of this year, DON'T purchase ANY
>gasoline from the two biggest companies (which now are
>one), EXXON and MOBIL. If they are not selling any
>gas, they will be inclined to reduce their prices. If
>they reduce their prices, the other companies will
>have to follow suit.
>
> But to have an impact, we need to reach literally
>millions of Exxon and Mobil gas buyers. It's really
>simple to do! Now, don't wimp out at this point....
>keep reading and I'll explain how simple it is
>to reach millions of people.
>
> I am sending this note to 30 people. If each of us
>sends it to at least ten more (30 x 10 =3D 300) .. and
>those 300 send it to at least ten more (300 x 10 =3D
>3,000)...and so on, by the time the message
>reaches the sixth group of people, we will have
>reached over THREE MILLION consumers. If those three
>million get excited and pass this on to ten friends
>each, then 30 million people will have been contacted!
>If it goes one level further, you guessed it.....
>THREE >>>>HUNDRED MILLION >>>>PEOPLE!!!
>
> Again, all you have to do is send this to 10
>people. That's all.(If you don't understand how we can
>reach 300 million,all you have to do is send this to
>10 people.... I'm a mathematician, so trust me on this
>one.)
>
> How long would all that take? If each of us sends
>this e-mail out to ten more people within one day of
>receipt, all 300 MILLION people could conceivably be
>contacted within the next 8 days!!!
>
> I'll bet you didn't think you and I had that much
>potential, did you?
>
> Acting together we can make a difference. If this
>makes sense to you, please pass this message on. I
>suggest that we not buy from EXXON/MOBIL UNTIL THEY
>LOWER THEIR PRICES TO THE $1.30 RANGE AND KEEP
>THEM DOWN.
>
> THIS CAN REALLY WORK.

[Behr]

Actually, that's the station's 'restrictor plate'. You just have to hang the pump up and start over is all. I ran into this for the first time this weekend with the new Pro-V and my Expedition. Not a positive thing to learn about, but I learned it none the less...

-Behr

[Fishing on the cheap]

Don't give up fishing! Just that expensive walleye boat fishing. You can always wade or bank fish your nearest lake or river.

Think of all the money you'll save on boats, motors, electronics, gadgets, gas, oil, repairs,...

Go back to the way fishing use to be.

[Rob Stratton]

I agree, let's not buy gas from Exxon.

[FLW Leaguer]

I'm not going to do as much prefishing, that's for sure. I normally make a trip to prefish the weekend before a tournament. No more. I'll be making one trip, perhaps leaving for the tournament one day earlier. Driving that pig SUV pulling the big boat all over the place really costs a lot at $3.00+ per gallon as does all the extra prefishing miles. Of course, that'll mean I spend less money on hotels and bait too. If everyone does this or drops out, it won't be a positive influence on the local economies where tournaments are held. But, what are you going to do?

I may also make shorter runs during tournaments and prefishing. Every little bit helpps. You can save a lot of gas (boat) by running at the optimal rpm for fuel comsumtion rather than WOT. That still running at a pretty good clip. You only lose a little fishing time. If you normally have your limit in the box by 8:00 AM like me ;) , a longer drive time shouldn't matter.

[agree]

My 75hp Alumacraft does fine. Talk to the greatest walleye fishing guy there is. Bob Propst. He still fishes out of an 18' Alaskan w/60hm motor. He only used to have 16' lunds w/25hp motors. He can still out fish the majority in that little boat.

[Dave G]

There is a limited supply of oil and with world population explosions it is going to continue to get a lot more expensive. From what I have read, I believe it is going to happen very quickly! It would not surprise me if gas hits $5/gal in five years and continues up from there.

When driving next to the big SUVs & trucks (while they are hauling/towing nothing) I can’t help but feel they are wasting our limited supply of energy. These people may feel because they can afford the high gas price they are entitled to burn as much energy as they desire. What they may not realize is they are depleting the limited oil supply at a much higher rate than someone driving a more energy efficient vehicle. They are essentially driving the prices up for everyone and polluting our environment at a faster rate. This is the American mentality for many and I believe it is going to be changing weather we like it or not.

Wasting gas may soon be seriously frowned upon by society and extra fees imposed upon those of us who do it. I believe we will see many more households with 3 different vehicles – a small electric car for short city trips, a small gas car for between city trips, and a midsize vehicle for towing and transporting several people.

Many of us will most lightly need to downsize our current tow vehicle to a small 4-cylinder car and be pulling a small boat like a 16’ Lund SSV with a 25hp 4-stroke. We will be forced to cut back on gas usage as prices increase. But, at least we should be able to continue to go fishing for a few more years and maybe even find that getting back to the fishing basics can be rewarding.

Dave Gulczinski’s 2 cents

[Yarcraft91 unlogged]

We are spoiled by recent years of very low oil prices.

When I started my current job 30 years ago, gasoline was $1.35/gallon. Today, the starting salary for my old job is 3.5X what I was paid when I started. If gas had increased in price as much as the starting salary for my job, it would cost $4.75/gallon today. I made ends meet then and still drove places. I think gasoline is a bargain at today's prices.

[Sportdog]

I don't like paying 3$ a gallon for fuel. On the other hand there are many other things that are priced way out of line also. Went fishing today on Lake Michigan for salmon. 12$ gas for the Ford F-150 and I burned about 6$ in the boat. Lot of fun for 18$.

[waleht]

Oh MAN!!! talk about depressing. I have been thinking a lot about this topic. I have a new 2025 on the way with a 250 Verado. The new rig has a 55 gal tank. I don't need to do the math to figure out it will cost a bundle to fill it.

The only upside I can think of is lately is...I have been having a lot of new fishing partners coming out of the woodwork since they heard the new boat is coming. My response will be...sure I will take you fishing....first you need to fill up the boat and the Silverado!!! :) Oh by the way that will be 85 gallons!

I don't know if its practical, but I bet someone will come out with a hybrid motor. Its my understnding that the Honda 225 is the same motor that is in the Honda Accord. If they can make them for a car...why not a boat?

Brent

[sho]

The more gas goes up the more money I ask for at work!!

[bountyhunters]

B thomm ,how you figure???? ,from my house to lake erie is 204 mile round trip the way I figure it cost 114.dollars round trip .truck .boat .and I used to go 20plus times a yr ,.

[EXXON]

here's an interesting one that I just heard last night....

the top dog at Exxon just received a $400 MILLION dollar retirement pkg.......that's just his retirement NOT what he has been payed up to. Talk about GREED!!

Oil reserves are at an all time high in this country....it's called a monopoly and they can do anything they want. If a fly farts, they'll raise the price 15 cents over night but takes 2 months to bring it back down.
It's all B.S.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Olyolson]

I added 3 sails to my new boat. I just sit back and sing the theme song to Gilligans Island. The only problem is that I can't always get to the area I want to fish... stupid wind.

[The Bullhead]

I agree, this problem is not going to go away anytime soon.

It seems oil companies are making record profits...this is no doubt part of the issue. I've always felt that what were putting into our fuel tanks, (organic material which has been compressed by the earths geologic processes for several billion years....and extracted by often risky and no doubt expensive processes)really should be priced significantly higher than what it is. Add in our exponential worldwide growth and demand, and we are talking about a pretty priceless natural resource.

My solution? I burn as much biofuel as I possibly can (B20 bio-diesel), and nothing but ethanol in anything gas powered. The perfect solution......no, but it's a good start and something I can do. I also heat my home with a corn burning stove.

Support the midwest, not the middle east...burn Biofuel.

[VMS]

Those who think up these "ideas" really do not see the bigger picture of things. You see all those other stations out there (Small chain, mom-pop, etc) where do you think they buy their gas from? So...boycott exxon Mobile as an entire company...how many gas stations buy gas that goes through this company?

Then...here is the next one... In Minnesota, Most of our gasoline comes from two oil refineries: Rosemount and Newport. Is our gas Exxon-Mobile? I have no clue..but those two refinieries alone service the entire metro area which comprises Mobile stations as well.

Who are you really kidding here?

To get gas prices to go down, an idea that MAY work would be to have ALL airlines NOT fly for 1 day every 2 months. Remember 9-11? Skies were empty for a few days and gas prices dropped dramatically because of the excess fuel that would have been used by airplanes. Think of the impact that would make...

We need to change our own habits... Slow down on the highways (70mph is not going to give you decent gas mileage...especially pulling a boat), think of the effect of reducing speed limits by 5mph on the major arteries...

A boycott of an oil company will do nothing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

Steve

[Deegan]

Maybe the oil companies should be regulated as electric and other utilities are. They should be made to show reason for an increase.

[Burr]

LOL - I can see it know. Throw out a board in the river and go for a jog!

I'll have to relabel my boards. Instead of Right, and Left, they'll be North, and South!

[bob oh]

That is exactly the king of thinking the the good ole oil co. boys love -- Exxon-Mobil just gave their ex-CEO a $400 million retirement package. I think he's the one who had obscene record profits while convincing gullible Americans that it is supply and demand LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

rod bender bob

[Mark Klossner]

The gasoline prices do not concern me as much as the heating cost increases that we have been getting every year. Unlike a boat, heat is not a luxury it is a need for survival.Therefore, it has a definite affect on everyone in the economy. I purchased a pellet stove last fall and ran 24/7 all winter long. Did it help? Yes, but the whole key to savings is the cost of pellets. Guess what - pellet costs are going up too. My house is fairly new, very well insulated, new windows and a 2-year old furnace. If I wouldn't have had that pellet stove, my heating bills would have been $350/month easily, with the heat set at 66 degrees. With the stove, the bills ranged from $70 per month to $150 per month, depending on the weather. This year, well, I would expect another 25-30% increase in those heating bills. Where will it end?

[Burr]

That's precisely right Kloss. It isn't just the extra cost of gas for a fishing trip - it's all the extra costs of life due to increased energy costs.

Even a pellet stove, while reducing the monthly utility bill, would require an up front cost to get it started - $2000 - $3000 to lower a bill by $200-$250 a month 6-months-a-year is a good choice, so now to come up with the several thousand to start the process...

Saying increased energy prices only cost $10.00 more to fish a day is not the point. Disposable income is.

[tbomn]

Energy costs, and rising costs because of energy costs are here to stay. The real question is this: Do wages and income keep up?????? I think the answer is "NO"......so, we that work for a living, (the mysterious "middle class" that is really now "the working poor") will continue to fall deeper into an economic "black hole". The rich get richer, and the poor....well, continue to pay the rich to get richer...

I think we should start to get used to it, it is coming. Maybe not in my lifetime(I am old), but I would see it happening in my childern's lives. This country will stand, economically like the rest of the world.

I don't think this is "doom and Gloom" , I think it is real.

[gonfishn95]

I agree it is frustrating, As a plumbing company in MPLS, MN. We fight cost everyday, we went from 15 trucks using $2200 a month in gas to 6 trucks using $2200 a month, We have wholesalers whose prices go up monthly, and we struggle everyday in a competitive market trying to keep cost down,
I listened to news this AM on E85 Fuel Now this is supposed to help, but the big issue is it takes fuel to produce can't be used in pipelines due to corrosion, has to be railed, trucked, But will create jobs, and as long as jobs will be created is this a good thing, And will help farmers, Like Joe said might as well get used to it. I am going fishing this weekend, and trying to fill boat won't be an issue we are leaving it on trailer.

[E85]

My question is...when E85 becomes more and more popular...what kind of vehicle can I put it in. I already run E10, and they say that's not so good for your vehicle. Now, I have to go out and buy a vehicle designed to run E85???

[gonfishn95]

Well that is about the size of it, I can remember when fuel had lead and the issue was basically the same question you ask, It all takes time. And the cost will continue to go up.

[e85]

I don't know about you guys but I sure as h*** don't see a savings in ethonol...E85 or whatever the crap is!!! Same price as everything else. As far as fishing goes I don't think boat motors run on ethonol....do they???

I'm 35 years old, married w/two kids...Live in Iowa, the job market sucks for alot of people unless you want a $12/hr job and where does that get anybody with todays cost of living and on the constant rise with wages at a stand still!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sorry, but where is the economy "thriving" and they say consumer confidence is at an all time high based on a report I heard several weeks ago!!!
WHERE???????

very frustrating!!

[Box]

FWIW, my 2 cents... (errr... rambling 42 cents... I wasn't going to reply, but ended up replying too much...)

I agree with Joe that energy costs (and all that goes with it, vinyl siding, roofing, milk cartoons, etc.) are going to keep going up. Will wages keep up? That is a big question.

But... I disagree that the "working poor" are simply paying the rich to get richer and nothing can stop it. When it comes to how much you spend, and where it goes, I think there is much more control in the individuals of the "working class/poor" than it appears. True, for some people they are simply getting by check to check, with no "fun" money. But I think that many/most spend unwisely and needlessly, and then blame old "richy" because they can't get ahead or can't go fishing because of gas prices. What some define as "necessary" is really not necessary (cigs, beer -I do like beer..., cable, 3 cell phones, new boats when old one works fine, Sat nights out, fancy clothes, and the list goes on...). Not to say they shouldn't have fun, just to look at where the money goes, and where it be better used.
I.e. "Hey Mr. SuperAmericaMan, your gas prices are too high for my meager wages! Now give me three packs of cigs, 4 bottles of Diet Coke, 2 bags of chips, 5 lottery tickets, and a national enquirer..."

Right now, I guess I would call myself upper middle range, mainly because I have no child expenses (step kids are grown, but still plenty expensive at time ;) ). But I was also laid off last year with no severence, no nothing, and examined where our money was going. I was able to cut out a bunch of stuff (cable, insurance deduct., long distance, revolving monthly services, etc.) that truly helped my bottom line. My wife and I also decided several years ago to only have good debt. This allows us to have a cabin. So we have older vehicles (paid for) and older boats (paid for) and stopped going on spendy trips, but can go to cabin (which is making us money by simply "using it"). Thank godness for that, as my unemployment was truly no prob, as we had no expenses but mortgage and utilities. Think about what you can do when not paying $700 per month of car payments, plus the reduced insurance and reg costs!!!

But many friends and relatives who call themselves "working poor" have new cars/trucks (PLURAL!), new or newer boats, credit cards from Mexico trips, 48" TVs (ours is 27"...) and ROOMS full of kid toys in their big, lovely, high mortgage houses. Is that the rich folks fault?

Now, I know many, many working poor are not in that category, so I don't want to over-generalize. Maybe I am actually talking about true middle class, and not "working poor". But truly when talking about the cost of going fishing, or heating, and how it is going to affect us all, we have to make sure WE are making wise decisions on how we spend what money we have, and WE have to take responsibility for OUR decisions that we DO have control over. I see stupid money decisions in my family and friends, and then the same people blame their position in life on not having enough money... Even with little money, things can be much better if people prioritize properly, and if things are that tough, a Lund or Alumacraft or Sears Gamefisher any boat should not even be in the equation, much less a new Toyota or Ford.

Anyway, my long rambling 2 cents basically says that people, regardless of how much money they make, can make much better decisions on how they spend money and that will make a bigger influence on their life than gas price. And with that said, I hate high gas/energy prices, but since I don't have boat payment or truck payment, etc., gas prices won't affect my summer at all, except complaining about it :)

-Box
(I hope this isn't taken as a slam on working poor, cause that is not how it is intended. Just intended to mean that people have more control over their financial lives than many think, even when not making tons o' cash. And this coming from a guy currently with a 1977 RV and old boats, lives in a small 1945 house, so I am not rich. but I do have big garage, ha!)


http://www.walleyecentral.com/photopost/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=103808

[E10]

Blast from the past....I Remember when Dale Sprouse (anyone remember him???), used to fish some pro tourneys, was sponsored by Starcraft boats, and guess what other sponsor??? Ethenol! He swore by running it in his boat!! Had the big Ethenol sign on his van and boat. Now, of course he was sponsored by them...but he argued it was totally safe for boats Good ol' Dale :) I think I saw him at the PWT Championship, driving around the Berkley trailer!!? Not sure if he follows the WC? But a nice hello to ya!!

[gonfishn95]

The problem is when they say the economy is thriving it is in my opinion based on unemployment figures, in other words a lot of unemployed have jobs now, BUT NOT THE JOBS THEY NEED OR WANT, but they are working, at lower income, which is why we struugle, to not raise our prices.And that is a hard struggle.

[Mark Klossner]

You're right Burr, it did cost me $2300 to buy and install it. Almost immediately I was aware that the retailers in the area which stocked pellets were starting to run short on supply (big increase in pellet stove sales last fall)so, of course, the pellets started increasing. And that's what is so frustrating. We as a country of consumers are being told to become smarter about our energy consumption - especially fossil based fuels - so, people like me take it upon ourselves to try to get some relief from heating costs by investing in a technology which utilizes renewable resources - wood and corn. Then, once the manufacturers of those technologies sense the opportunity, prices increase. Once the manufacturers of the fuel sources see the opportunity, the prices increase. Viola, you are right back where you started. If the FEDs really want to change consumer habits, they need to find ways to incent the activity. How about tax refunds on items like pellet stoves or "flex-fuel" vehicles. How about a tax refund on the fuels that those technologies burn or use? Its one of the oldest truisms in business - "

[Far Beyond Driven]

How is the environment going to suffer when we pull idle farmland out of CRP and start raising crops on it to make ethanol?

That said, I just dropped $1500 in getting my outdrive on my Alpha One rebuilt. And that Alpha's bolted to a 350 that uses more gas in 4 hours of fishing than I use commuting all week. After that, my fishing budget for this year was more or less gone. Hopefully I can soldier on in my 14' with the 15 horse tiller but on Lake Michigan that's not always the safest option.

We have high deductibles, no cable, no air in the house, live in a 1300 square foot ranch, have 10 and 11 year old cars and 10 and 19 year old boats (all paid in cash in the pre-kid era) and aren't sure if my kid will be able to go to private schools in three years. It's sad when on 1.5 degreed incomes you can barely cover student loans, a 15 year mortgage, utilities, and daycare.

FBD, Holland, MI

[bobk]

Box, very good post.

[TP 180]

Not sure where you get your data. I started driving in 1976 (30 years ago) and as I recall gas was about 60 cents a gallon. Minimum wage was $2.30. Minimum wage is now $7, three times as much. No one would complain if gas as $1.80 (three times as much)

[Reality]

When I was 16 I paid 15 cents a gallon for gas and I worked for 75 cents an hour. Which means if I worked 40 hours a week and burnt 20 gals of gas a week I would spend 10% of my gross income on gasoline. Today I make about 90K a year and my credit card I use for gas had $1,758 charged on it last year which is less than 2% of my gross income. Even if I made half of my income or $45,000 per year my annual cost for gasoline would be less than 4%.

Based on that I would say that gasoline prices have not inflated as much as wages. It would be interesting to hear how this calculates out for others.

PS...I was 16 in 1956

[TP 180]

Here is another way to look at it. The price of gas was 1/5 of your wage. $0.75 divided by $0.15. Today gas in $2.89 a gallon, so that means you would have to make $14.45 an hour to stay even. Yes, you make more because you are older and more experienced, but how many 16 years olds are making $14.45 an hour? Let's compare apples to apples.

[Sportdog]

What a great essay on personal finances. I loved it so much that I had my grown, married with childrem, daughters and son-in-laws read it. Very good post!!!!

[apples n oranges]

not quite airplanes run on jet fuel....car on gasoline. They are both refined from crude at different ends. A barrel (42gal) of crude for example may make 7gals gasoline, 15gals distillate, and the rest is other crap(asphalt,6 oil,gas ends) So airplanes not flying effects the gas prices nil.

[Democrat Unlogged]

Just keep telling yourself that fuel cost is only a small fraction of the total cost of owning a vehicle or boat.

Let's say fuel is 10% of your vehicle cost (which includes buying the vehicle, loan interest, maintenance and repairs, insurance, after-market accessories, car washes and car wax, etc.). If gas goes up 50%, your per-mile cost has increased only 5%. That is, if 10 cents of every $1 you spend on your vehicle goes for gas, and that goes up to 15 cents (e.g., when goes goes from $2 to $3), it now costs you $1.05 instead of $1 to drive X miles. Are you going to quit driving because of a nickel-on-the-dollar increase?

I think if you do the math on the real cost of your fishing trips (be honest now), you'll find that the gas price increases haven't doubled the cost of your fishing, it's more like 5% more.

Hope this perspective makes your frustration over gas prices easier to bear.

[Reality]

Good Point

[Just Filled Up]

Gas prices up another 20 cents in Milwaukee to 3.29/gallon. Listened to a syndicated radio program by Tom Martinko tonight; using the oil companies own data throught the API ( American Petroleum Institute), if the cost of crude oil was $95/barrel, THAT would justify the $3.00/gallon gas prices that we are seeing now. (Crude today was $72/barrel)

[rebs]

does the word GOUGED sound familiar

rebs

[DaveB]

so does:

WAAAAAAAA....boo hoo hoo....WAAAAAAAA

[Burr]

Those numbers do not appear to be accurate - least according to this site:

http://dmarie.com/timecap/step2.asp?unique=38827.5911574074

Gas was $.30 a gallon in 1956, minimum wage was a buck, and $1758 in gas at $2.70 a gallon would be @ 650 gallons instead of the 1040 gallons you used when 16.

Gas increased by a penny a gallon in the next 2-3 years, which is 3%, while our gas has increase about 130% in the same 2-3 year time period, which is 43 times faster. Apply that kind of increase to my earnings, and I'll be fine.

For now, I'll still go fishing this weekend.:-)

[Answer]

Gee Dave, practicing for the day after next November's election when the American people hold your buddies accountable for the rape at the gas pumps?