Well diesel fuel is officially $4 a gallon here in Eastern PA. I'm starting to look at shows and how are far away they are not in time but in fuel costs. This SUCKS...........Bob

At least you're in eastern PA! The future of this hobby is in local events, not big shows. By that measure you've got the best of all possible worlds.

No question the fuel issue is huge Bob. I just had a member who attends ALL national meets and the cost for him to travel in his motorhome is insane. He is keeping the RV home and flying to some meets now as it is a lot cheaper. I about have a heart attack every time I fill my suburban up! I'm old enough I remember putting in a buck's worth to go on a date!

Dave, I sure hope our local regions and chapters get stronger (we have been providing special free memberships to help) and that local meets help grow the hobby. However, I still do not think national meets will diminish in importance or that they are not important to our future. Our first meet this year has gone over the top and Florida has basically run out of room for both meets. They have had to arrange for more parking, more banquet facilities,etc. On this end we have had 1147 activity requests so far for the meet in Cumberland. Over 800 in Charlotte.

We have several tours that will be a very quick sell out and sadly leave a lot of people disappointed. Our tours are getting more popular all the time.

They have found us Steve and we need to be prepared!

Wayne

keeping us from attending the eastern spring meet.

I know what you mean. Last year when I took my car to Kalamazoo I knew I would be spending more than a few dollars on fuel.
Turns out fuel costs accounted for 48% of the total cost of my trip. The other 52% was made up of lodging, food, tolls, entry fees etc.
Last year I justifed the cost of that trip as a "Vacation". Unfortunately, my budget cannot support too many "vacations" like that each year.



I agree with both Dave and you Steve. Local events will take on a more prominent role than they have in the past.
Some members will be forced by their budgets to make choices as to where they will spend their car event dollars.
If a member can attend 2 or 3 or more local events for the same cost as one national event some will do that.
These people may be looking to maximize the amount of their entertainment for the money.
Doing multiple local events is a way to do that.

National events will not disappear by any means. Hershey and events held near large numbers of AACA members will continue.
Events held much further away from the majority of AACA members may have to think outside the box when it comes to their events.
By this I mean what about their event will make people want to drive 1000 or 2000 miles??
Is that warm weather in the winter time? Is that a dual meet where members can attend two meets for the price of one?
Is that holding a meet in an area that offers numerous other tourist opportunities?

Regions and Chapters hosting National Events may find it more necessary for both attendance and financial reasons to host
more dual meets than in the past. This is especially true when the meet is located a long distance from where the vast majority of AACA members live.

Yes, I realize putting on one meet is a huge undertaking and putting on a dual meet is even a greater challenge.
Manpower, facilities, etc. are HUGE challenges when it comes to a meet and even more so when it is a dual meet.
That is why more regions and chapters may have to work together in the future to host meets and dual meets.

Maybe I am in the minority here, I don't know.
I do know that if I was faced with driving 2,200 miles for a meet, it would be a HUGE PLUS in terms of justifying the cost in both time and money if it was a dual meet.
Unfortunately for me, the Dual Meet in Florida this year is being held at a time of year when both work responsibilites and weather concerns do not permit me to attend.

I do have to wonder just how many people would have gone to Florida this year if this had not been a Dual Meet?
We will probably never know the answer to that question but it is an interesting question to ask anyway.

BTW Steve, I have not yet registered for Cumberland so you can add one more to that total.

Better try to book a room first Charlie!

Wayne

Thanks for the words of wisdom.
I tried booking a room at the Resort hotel months ago and it was full.
Tried 1 or 2 other hotels which were also full.
Some friends of mine live about an hour away from Cumberland and I will be staying with them.
They are auto enthusiasts so I invited them to come along with me so they can expereience an AACA Event.
They accepted, so we will be there come Saturday morning.
Too bad they have to work that Friday or we would be attending the dinner on Friday Night.

Hope to see you there Charlie!

I'll be the one with the smile on my face!!

Wayne

Steve you may have sent out 1100+ packets for Cumberland, but if gas gets much higher I think you will see a lot less cars. I mailed my registration and check yesterday, gas here in NY is 3.30 a gal. that means about $150-$175 for me to attend.If gas gets to $4.00 a gal. like the radio says I think I will stay home and I have been wateing for Cumberland since Hershey. I just dont see how a working man can afford to make a 1000-1500 mile trip one way. Sure hope Im wrong. Wayne I sure would like to meet you, I owe you a JB and soda. Lets hope the predictions are wrong.BTW Round trip for me is 600 miles.

About 150 one way for me, Dick. It's actually pretty close, so look me up if you come.
Wayne

Cumberland is about 200 for me and I'm still going. Diesel is up another 10 cents to $4.10. Sure glad I cut and burn my own wood for heat. If it wasn't for the truck warrantee I'd put the fuel oil I saved in the damn truck........Bob

$4.15 in Breezewood PA today.

This week is a little slow for us, but I'd just as soon not spend it all in fuel anyway. The lumber business down here has about stopped. People are beginning to get worried, I'm afraid.

Wayne

I had breakfast with a truck owner/operator the other day. He was absolutely at the end of his rope. He couldn't get any more fuel sur-charges from the company he hauled for and just ran up a $10,000 engine repair bill. He said he was clearing $150/week. I thought he was going to cry.......Bob

It's a tough world all over Bob. You got to know when it's time to move on, you know?

Hope to see you too Wayne as well as other AACA Forum members.



windjammer, I hear what you are saying....

Fuel here in Eastern, Pennslyvania continues it's upward climb.
This morning Diesel had risen 4 cents a gallon over last night's price.
When I cam home from work tonight that same diesel had risen 6 cents more per gallon to $4.159.
At this time, Unleaded Gas seems to be increasing more slowly and is currently $3.199/$3.299/$3.499 for 87/89/92 octane.

Roundtrip to Cumberland for me is about 425 miles.
At the current price of fuel here in Eastern PA my projected fuel cost for this trip will be about $190.
If gas goes up to $4/gallon that will add about $50 to my fuel cost.
The extra cost of fuel will, most likely, not stop me from going to Cumberland at least, as of now.

The rising price of Diesel (and other costs) has made it more economical for my company to use Common Carriers for more and more loads.
Not sure how some CCs are covering their bills but they keep hauling our loads.
Unfortuately for my company, it is not possible to add fuel surcharges for the delivery of our products whether delivered by our fleet or CCs.
I do have to wonder how long after this month's price increase it will be before the price of our products goes up again.
Last year we had 4 or 5 price increases but they were related more to HUGE increases in raw material costs than Diesel fuel.

BTW, if commodity prices continue their hefty increases, be prepared to be paying MORE at the grocery store for just about EVERYTHING by the end of this year.

Charlie, there is a Federal Law that allows you to change the fuel surcharge at any time during the week. We change it every Friday, currently at 32% of the original freight charge

Wayne.

Fight over prices causes Fairfield gas station to shut down

This happened about 2 miles from my house today.

According to everything I've read, we're in for years of this (with ups and downs) until we find some other way to get around. The more you buy, the worse it'll get and the sooner you won't be able to get any.

What does that article mean, Dave? It was shut down because the prices were too low or because the traffic there was too heavy? Either way, if I were the owner, I'd be furious.

Matt, I was wondering why the police didn't do their duty and arrest the offenders.

Back in the 70's people parked in lines for hours waiting for fuel without having too many incidents.

Wayne

Interesting information. Too bad some package delivery companies are VERY QUICK to raise their fuel surcharge and VERY SLOW to lower it.
Unfortunately, the way my company does business adding fuel surcharges to deliver the product we sell is not feasible or smart for business.



I worked at a full service gas station back in the late 70's during one of the gas shortages.
Memories of Odd/Even days, LONG lines of customers stretching what seemed like forver, cancelled tanker deliveries,
staying after the station closed waiting on tanker deliveries that were late, tankers making deliveries after they had been shot at
or had cinder blocks dropped off of bridge overpasses trying to hit them, those were the days.

Heck, back then the local police made it the responsibility of the gas station manager and his staff to keep traffic flowing and manage the line of customer cars.
For the most part people behaved themselves back them.
It was a time when people were more patient and did not have the ME Centric attitude that seems so widespread today.

I was lucky during the fuel storage as my best friend owned a gas station. Usually I could get gas from him except we had to do it at night or people would start lining up.

Quote: "Wait a minute. What did you just say? You're predicting $4-a-gallon gas? ... That's interesting. I hadn't heard that." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Feb. 28, 2008

We had our weekly collusion increase yesterday, going from around $3.15 to $3.45. I've been to this station many times on collusion day. It's always the last one to go up, and is always a mob scene come evening.

When they say "fights" broke out, I have no doubt that that was literally true.

Although it's frequently a mob scene, fighting is a new twist. (This is, after all, an 85% Republican upscale suburb.) After what I've seen there when it wasn't shut down, yesterday must have been a real treat for the police.

Dave, consider yourself lucky if the price increases are weekly. Here where I live we can get them daily at times.
Today it was 10 cents a gallon on most grades of gasoline at all the stations.
Day before that, diesel had TWO price increases in less than 24 hours.
Given crude prices lately, I suspect there will be at least two more price increses in the next 3-4 days.

The WSJ had a story on diesel today. Look for lots more increases..........Bob