$25 per barrel of oil possible in 2009

[Mike]

I thought I saw all inventories up in this week's report? Oil, gas, distillates. Shame people can't take advantage of the bargains because no one has any cash, or are just being "fiscally responsible".
We're supposed to get a blizzard Friday night, then some more on Sunday, so we're just looking for a window of opportunity to sneak south through it all. We should be about ready to depart by Monday (weather permitting, of course).
Probably Florida, probably Gulf coast, maybe Naples/Ft.Myers stretch.
If we do get slammed Friday/Saturday, I may post up some more pics. So the snowbirds can see what they're missing.

[markopolo]

Prediction for the year 2030

http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/18/markets ... tm?cnn=yes

Looking long-term, the Energy Department said Wednesday that crude oil could rise again, reaching $130 a barrel in 2030 as global supplies diminish. But it also predicted that demand for fuel would rise by only 1 million barrels a day during that time period.

Two decades of "cheap" oil doesn't really provide an incentive to fund alternatives, but this is a bit of good news for the RV industry. Now the RV manufacturers, particularly the Class B manufacturers, need to somehow make these units more affordable without 20+ year financing. I think most RV purchasers who opt for long term financing find that their loan to vehicle value has gone "upside down" when they want to trade it in for a newer model. If they can't trade it or sell it then they're not going to buy a new RV.

[Mike]

It has to be great news for the RV biz. If I had "C" or "A" right now, I'd probably be a lot less grumpy at the pumps. The nearest RV sales/service place has been pretty much unable to move any of their inventory over the last 6 months, which is almost all big As and Cs and large 5th wheels. Recently, I've actually seen people test driving their luxury models again. We bought our "B" at the height of the fuel price "crisis" last summer. I have to admit we looked at C's first, thinking we'd like to have had a more full shower/bathroom, and just more overall interior space, but the fuel consumption estimates (and to some extent, the cardboard box coach construction) steered us in the "B" direction. We decided on our RT, after learning about it's decent fuel economy rating, when gas was around $1.30C/litre (can you believe gas was $6 an imperial gallon then???). In hindsight, and it is what it is, we'd probably be bringing our cats with us in a "C" whereas we just can't do it in the "B". It's just too small for us and them. I think if we just had a (smallish) dog, we'd probably be OK with the "B", as most dogs seem (to me) to handle the travel and motion better overall than cats. I know some of the forum members travel with their cats, and we've tried some of the suggestions, but we still find it's just too cramped for 2 people and 2 cats in a "B". I know where there's a '03 Trail Lite (I think it's a 215 with the biggest Duratec V8 available?) for sale for around $30K. I'm thinking about it.... now that gas is "more affordable" as it might resolve our "cat sitting" problem, long term.

Pricing and affordability of class B's - do you think they've had an easy ride in terms of competing with the larger rigs solely on the cost of gas and their better fuel economy? Do outfits like Roadtrek and Leisure Travel and Pleasure Way just figure they can charge more for their (new) units because the consumer is looking for the economy of their smaller size? I think we paid a bit of a premium for our RT, because we bought when gas was pricey. It made the B a more desirable RV to us, as we're not made of money, but wanted to see a bit of the continent, at our own pace. It seemed to be the best choice at the time all things considered.

Decided where you're going yet? We're still thinking of Florida. If Hallibagger reads this, do you have a favorite RV park down there? Could you share a name/location with us? We like quiet, aren't too picky about hookups, like decent shower facilities, and prefer National/State parks over commercial if available.

TTFN,
Mike.

[Hallibagger]

Hey Mike,

Gas at a Punta Gorda station today is $1.50/gall. It won't last though, it is a gimmick at some station opening!

Still warm down here - no sign of any snow.

[Mike]

It's Saturday morning. Here's the latest pics of our rig........actually taken Friday late afternoon.
Gotta get the shovels out, as you can see.

Hallibagger, so I'm assuming you're in Punta Gorda? Nice area?
I've googled RV parks down there and there seem to be a few. Recommendations?
If I ever get the RT out of the driveway again, I may just keep going to FLA.......

ttyl,
Mike.

[Hallibagger]

Hi Mike,

We are in Sun 'n Shade, which is just off the 41, South of Punta Gorda. That is just North of the Lee County line. Which is North Fort Myers.

There are lots of campgrounds around the area, this is an old one and we have been here for 16 years. We have a Fiver down here and a RT 190V at home. We sometimes bring it down, but this year we came in the minivan.

The rates have increased this year, as usual, but they have added a $50/month charge for electricity, due no doubt, to the big rigs that come in and demand 50amp outlets. It is still better than shovelling snow!

As for Canadian Internet: A guy in the park has the Bell Cell phone tower based wireless Internet system and he says it works just fine down here.

This park has WiFi provided by WiFiRV.com at a cost of $102/3 months.

The campgrounds are not busy this year. This one had received 15 cancellations by the time we arrived at Thanksgiving! The bad month is mid Feb to mid March.

PM me if you need more local info.

Punta Gorda is a sub-tropical area and rarely, if ever, sees frost! The area is mostly retirees, there is no significant industries, other than those that serve the retirees.

[markopolo]

We're getting a fair bit of snow on Vancouver Island. I'm about a half hour from Victoria.





and a half hearted attempt to get this thread on topic.....

Crude oil to stay in $45-60 band

http://www.business-standard.com/india/ ... 01/343843/

“Demand has clearly fallen. The production cuts announced by Opec will not really impact the markets much in the next year,” said a Mumbai-based analyst. “Oil prices will remain around the $50 per barrel mark for much of 2009,” he added.

[paulm]

Must be a big storm if it stretches from BC to the heartland in Ontario, probably snowing in Cape Breton too.



But gas has been 69 to 75 cents a litre. My Natural Gas is still 83 cents, not a deal, glad to be dual fuel.

[renrut]

I'm near Belleville Ont. and we got it here too. When we thought it was over and the sun was out, we got a blast from off Lake Ont. Unfortunately, my tractor doesn't work (fried electrical) and I had to shovel. Normally, I would just plow my driveway and some neighbor's but I got my exercise.

[Mike]

Maybe we need a new thread? "What do you pay for a litre of gas, and how deep is your snow?"
Here are my latest driveway update pics after yesterday's trace snow and blustery winds, so a lot of the snow has blown away.
Our current temp is -13C with a w/c of -20C. Looks like it's going to be a sunny day, but cold, cold, cold.
I think we're supposed to get one more snow storm, then it's actually supposed to warm up to +0 temps after Wednesday.
Wooooohooooo!!!!! Gas is around $0.73/litre.
Hallibagger: TY for the info about the park. I saw it among the group I googled. I'll have another look online. Sounds like a really nice area, and the mid-Feb to mid-March tip is much appreciated. Wonder if the cancellations were related to the state of the economy?
As you can see from the latest pics, moving the RT may not be possible for a while. It's buried up to the lug nuts. I cleared away the side door access so I could get in to start it, but after seeing how stuck it is, decided to wait until we get a bit of a thaw. If we get a break in the weather in the coming weeks, we may head down that way. We've never had to plan a winter road trip before, and it clearly is more complicated with storms tracking across our "escape" routes, but we'll give it a try. I guess you just have to be patient, and take your time? We're never in a rush (anymore ).
About the Bell WiFi internet "stick". I know it's a one time charge (you buy the USB "stick") but does he then pay a roaming charge, or is it based on data transfer rates (I've seen some numbers in gigabytes for different monthly prices) or probably both? That's the biggest downside to using anything from Canada in the States. They just kill you with roaming charges.
I saw your post on the other thread about the Tracfones at W/M. Sounds like a good deal. Did you need an address? Just wondering what the prices are like for air time/min, ld charges/min, and texting sent/received? Next trip down we'll check out the phones at Walmart, as we tend to boondock at them on our way anywhere.
Marko: Nice pics. Is that you with the shovel? I thought the west coast only got snow once or twice a year, and rain the other 363 days? We were just saying the weather folks are saying we should have a "normal" winter this season, as there aren't any fancy Spanish-named Pacific Ocean effects happening. I'd like to do a snowfall comparison when this one's over with last year's totals. I'll bet we're already on track to match it.
PaulM: Nice pics too. Your snowfall looks about the same as ours. We're just west of St. Catharines, and we knew the Niagara Peninsula could get some pretty nasty lake effect snow when we decided to move here 2 years ago. However, we laughed at the idea of a snow blower. I think I said something like, "it's not London or Sarnia, we won't need a snow blower". Maybe at the end of the winter season, when they go on sale????
Do you mean the gas to heat your home? I just sent a note to Enbridge asking when our gas rates will come down, since the price of NG wholesale is (I think) lower than last winter, after the spike last summer. They advised me that they can only make adjustments every 3 months and they just repriced in October, so sit tight. January should see a drop in price per M3.
renrut: Not a good time to lose the tractor? I guess lake effect snow happens everywhere, not just on the typical leeward sides. We get it, Buffalo, Sarnia, Collingwood, all get it, and you get it up there.
So I guess the "white Christmasers" have gotten their wish this year!!!!
Let's hope things settle down afterwards.

ttyal , and Merry Christmas,
Mike.