Duluth area gas prices.

[ripstick]

Just wondering what people thought of our latest price. Personally I think its going to slow my weekends down a lot. Only ? is where is it going to stop this summer.

[Nate McVey]

I only wish my truck was paid off so I could buy a little rice burner and only use the truck to pull the boat. I unfortunetly have to drive that truck to Two Harbors as well.....I think I'll just cut down somewhere else so that I can still enjoy the summer as much as possible.

[upnorth]

The oil companies have us exactly where they want us. They have a product that has no replacement and that we need to just to live the lifestyle we have today. There is no competition and they can charge whatever they want to and we have to either pay or stay home, and that pretty much means not getting to work either. It won't stop until we stop using it and that ain't likely

[fisherslanding]

Maybe we could get some oil out of Iraq? Since we have to re-build it, we should get something don't you think?

[Surface Tension]

Driving less is a short term solution. If alternative fuels aren't developed then what we need is more fuel efficient cars and trucks. We've gone backwards in that direction. The automotive industry is giving the consumer what it wants. This is the "feel invincible" Trucks, SUV's and cars with high horsepower.

How will most folks adjust to the higher gas prices? If you have to drive to work how can you cut back? You can't and unless your on an unlimited budget you have to buy less consumer products. I know of a few friends that moth balled their trucks and drive small cars to work. In fact our turkey hunting trip to SE MN my partner and I drove his Ford Focas, leaving the truck back home. I'll admit the reason being was gas prices. Long drives in a cramped car, so cramped that we had to remove the rear seats to get all our gear in isn't fun but we used 1/4 amount of gas. We did our part to save gas only because we saved money.

There lies the problem, we won't change till it hurts the pocket book. We've proven we're willing to pay $3.29 for a gallon of gas. I'll continue to use that theory till the demand starts a downward cycle. We know what will happen if gas prices go down, yep the demand for gas will go back up.

Will I hit the water less this summer? No I'll just take less out of town trips and fish the area lakes instead. When I take the big boat out on Superior I'll be sure to have 3 other guys to split gas with too.

[sachem longrifle]

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Driving less is a short term solution. If alternative fuels aren't developed then what we need is more fuel efficient cars and trucks. We've gone backwards in that direction. The automotive industry is giving the consumer what it wants. This is the "feel invincible" Trucks, SUV's and cars with high horsepower.

How will most folks adjust to the higher gas prices? If you have to drive to work how can you cut back? You can't and unless your on an unlimited budget you have to buy less consumer products. I know of a few friends that moth balled their trucks and drive small cars to work. In fact our turkey hunting trip to SE MN my partner and I drove his Ford Focas, leaving the truck back home. I'll admit the reason being was gas prices. Long drives in a cramped car, so cramped that we had to remove the rear seats to get all our gear in isn't fun but we used 1/4 amount of gas. We did our part to save gas only because we saved money.

There lies the problem, we won't change till it hurts the pocket book. We've proven we're willing to pay $3.29 for a gallon of gas. I'll continue to use that theory till the demand starts a downward cycle. We know what will happen if gas prices go down, yep the demand for gas will go back up.

Will I hit the water less this summer? No I'll just take less out of town trips and fish the area lakes instead. When I take the big boat out on Superior I'll be sure to have 3 other guys to split gas with too.

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I hate to admit it, but I drive a mini van. It has a smaller engine in it and it gets good gas mileage and pulls my boat ok. It makes it hard to wink with credibility at the college girls next to me at stop lights when I drive home after work through Souptown on a Friday night, though.

I seen a guy the other day with a Hummer. You want to know part of the reason why prices are so high?

[FlatBottom]

JMO I agree on more fuel efficient vehicles, but alternative fuels I don't think are the answer. Ethanal... what is used to get it out of the fields, what is used to haul it to gas stations? Diesel. Ya it's cheaper, but energy to get it from a plant to a station is a wash. I may be wrong, but.... Dang oil speculation guys!!!

[Surface Tension]

I think its already been shown, what ever the price gas jumps to ethanol will rise with it.

When I think of alternative fuels I'm thinking of the fuel cells or even water.

[Viking]

They have some air powered cars now. Mexico city was replacing all their taxi's with these. They are still in the devoplment phase. Do a search on it.

[LoonASea]

Supply and Demand ,,,we keep hearing that phrase ,,,first it was Oil production,,now its refining capicity ,,,I see no end in sight till a vast majority of us have to stop going to work ,,,hence no income tax collected ,,,untill our government feels the squeeze of supply and demand for our tax dollars ,,investigations into price gouging well its just "lip service" by the politicians ,,,too bad it may have to get to that extreme before some thing gets done but it appears that oil and insurance co's have us by the short hairs

Just my point of view

Randoid

[ReelTimes]

I don't ever really see a cost advantage to ethanol unless we switch from corn to some other resource (i:e switchgrass or something). I think the whole thought on ethanol, though, is not to be dependent upon middle eastern oil countries.

[upnorth]

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Supply and Demand ,,,we keep hearing that phrase ,,,first it was Oil production,,now its refining capicity ,,,I see no end in sight till a vast majority of us have to stop going to work

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They keep pitching out the not enough supply or supply being curtailed and there being a shortage. I will believe the shortage theory when gas stations are turning away customers because they have no gas to sell. These so called shortages are only a smokescreen for them to hide their greed behind. The reason we are paying so much for gas is there is no alternative to buying it other than walking or riding your bike where ever you go.

[MOBY RICHARD*]

Remember boys, 50% of our oil comes from the good old USA!

Canada and Mexico are the next two biggest suppliers.

Neither US companies, nor our close Allies/Neighboors, are willing to sell at less than full Market price.

We are being gouged by our own as much as as any. :shocked

As far as transport or processing, both oil and ethanol require large amounts of energy.

Most of the oil coming from Canada is extracted from oil producing/holding sands, and it takes a lot of energy to excavate and process by heating it, to release the sticky oil from said sands.

Oil is in a more naturally processed state, somewhat the equivalent of corn syrup. Ethanol is an alcohol processed by fermenting the sugars in plant material to a wort, or beer/wine like state and then distilled, basically the same as booze, to concentrate the alcohol, to make it burnable.

They really are making white lightning/corn likker, to the equivalent of near to 100%/200 proof Everclear, and then mixing it with gasoline or other chemicals that make it undrinkable. When you say Ethanol, think Alcohol.

Though the start to finish product of Ethanol/Alcohol is more intensive, it does not generally need to be transported as far, like from another country, or across the ocean.

Electricity is the real solution, but it takes vast amounts of energy to produce.

The one trump we may have is Solar and Wind generated Electricity, though it would still take significant energy to switch over to these, and the required components wear out also. Solar panels even wear out.

The biggest hurdle to Solar/Wind replacing oil is storage.

Current battery storage to power vehicles is too big, heavy, and costly to replace.

The one really bright spot I have seen, is a power station in the Mohave Desert that uses reflective, concentrating mirrors, to heat an oil resevoir to 750 degrees, which then goes through tubes to a water boiler, which of course produces steam at 212 degrees, which then powers a steam tubine/engine, with an electrical generator.

Oil reservoirs could be insulated to hold enough heat to run the turbines at night, thus theoretically, no batteries needed.

Of couse a directly run hot oil, turbine/engine/whatever, would be even more efficient, if the temp could be retained at night.

It is thought there is enough solar coming into the Mohave Desert, to electrically power the entire USA!

This type of system could be installed around the country, in various climates, as a massive one is being built in Germany, and its climate is fairly moderate.

The one drawback on all these thoughts is that, the current power brokers will try to either squelch or control these alternatives, and we will still be subject to their abuses ...unless we are part of independent cooperatives, or each own our private mini-generators.

[river rat316]

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I seen a guy the other day with a Hummer. You want to know part of the reason why prices are so high?

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Actually my buddy used to have a H2 although I see it as a huge waste of money its fuel consumption was no worse than my Durango at the time, and actually my 6 cylinder Explorer only gets like 2 mpg better than either of em. It seems like all the green freaks and tree huggers latched onto this truck to bash it when realistically its no worse than any other mid size to full size SUV

[trock84]

I am headed up to the b-dub friday night. We usually strap a canoe to each truck we take up. Not this year!!! We are going to try to get two canoes on top and 4 guys in a 4-door pickup. I am one of those guys who's truck is being parked and only pulled out of the shed when I pull the boat. That escort had better last a while!!!!!!!