Motorcycle Economics

So last Friday, one of my coworkers -Christian Hill (we call him Chill) – brought up the idea of buying a scooter.

Admittedly, I think scooters are pretty gay. And so did the ladies of IDE.

But Chill defended his position. And he eventually began making sense. But not because scooters somehow became ‘less gay’. But mainly because he showed me a scooter that didn’t look gay!

It was the Honda Ruckus – a little 50cc scooter that can take you up to a death defying 40 miles an hour. Sure it had no power. But the damn thing got nearly 100 miles to the gallon.

So over the weekend I started thinking about it.

Right now I spend around $280 for gas every month to fill up my gas hungry six cylinder. But most of my gas is wasted in the 2.9 mile trip I take to and from work four times a day. My car is great on the highway – but it deserves to be slapped in the city (averaging roughly 15MPG. Yeah, there’s alot of freakin lights!).

If I bought a little Ruckus, i’d get 100 miles to the gallon. I’d have to spend about six bucks to fill it up and i’d be able to go all month. Instantly, i’d save $200 on my gasoline bill. Best of all, my investment would pay for itself in about ten months time. after that, it’s all gravy.

But you know what – i’m a big freaking guy. I have long legs, long hair, and just length. I’m also heavy, clocking in at around 230 pounds of pure, unadulterated man.

I’d look SO gay if I rode around in a Ruckus.

So I started looking into other bikes. I quickly realized I would need a motorcycle license (about $250 for the class) and a bike which made me look like the man that I am – not like a flaming, awkward looking bafoon.

First, I was obsessed with 250cc bikes. I quickly realized i’d barely be able to take them on a highway. And even if I did, i’d be going a whopping 70 MPH and the slightest breeze would blow me around. And if I want my girlfriend to ride with me, forget it. The bike would probably eject us both in pure protest.

So I had to go further and look at 500cc bikes. Finally, I found one that works. It wasn’t small, could handle my weight and size, would be great on a highway, and could easily take two people without getting moody.

The bike is a cruiser (a Kawasaki) and gets roughly 60 MPG. A far cry from 100MPG, but still very nice. Best of all, a used 500cc bike costs only slightly more than the little Honda Ruckus!

And if I want to ride an older version of this Kawasaki, I could get one for $1,100.

So here’s where the economics part comes into play.

City driving costs me about $200 a month in my car.

If I had a bike, i’d spend $30. That’s a $170 savings just for riding the bike.

And if I decided to take the bike on the highway sometimes, my savings would grow.

If I bought the $1,100 bike and count the motorcycle class, it’d take me 8 months to make up the cost! After which, i’d have an extra $170 every month. You wanna know where’d I’d put it? In oil companies : )

You see why this is making more and more sense?

The worst part is that gas prices can keep climbing. Near term, they might come back. But long-term, we should see $5, even $7 gas by the time 2010 comes.

That’s because even though US consumption is dropping, the BRIC nations are increasing theirs. This in essence offsets our decrease, meaning worldwide consumption stays the same or even slightly rises.

Combine this with the fact that oil production has been declining since 2005, and you’ve got a recipe for super-high oil prices. And it won’t stop until emerging economies begin to slow their consumption. And that won’t happen for a long time (unless we see a big worldwide depression).

Either way – i’ll be getting a bike in the next month or two. And when I do, i’ll be sure to let you know what the savings are (Exactly).