Fuel Price Misery Index

This is what I am currently trying to figure out. As a Phoenix, AZ area resident, the weather is transitioning from God’s country to a blazing inferno. Right now, it has been close to 100F a couple of times, but still enjoyable to ride to and from work on the motorcycle.

I am hardly an environmental kook, but I am putting forth a little effort to conserve fuel. Now don’t give out the ‘awwww’ just yet. My main motivation is my wallet, and keeping as much cash in it as possible.

I consider myself frugal overall, but will not normally sacrifice the quality of life for a few bucks here and there. And while I do shop around in general, I will not drive across town to save a quarter on a gallon of milk.

Frugal I call it…except for one thing…GAS. I am a complete penny pincher when it comes to paying for gas. I will drive a little out of the way to save a couple of cents per gallon. Part of this is that the result is transparent – I drive somewhere. The other part is that I HATE giving money to the foreign entities that produce the oil that produces the gas.

So here I sit with my decision. My car gets 28mpg combined on my commute and my bike about 40mpg. I am trying to balance fuel / commute cost with my personal misery index.

IS 12MPG WORTH SUFFERING THROUGH THE BLAZING HEAT ON THE COMMUTE HOME???

No matter the season, the morning commute is nice, but at 5pm its pretty darn hot in the summer. Strictly on the matter of principles, it is. Take into account the extra cost of high tire wear, more frequent oil changes, and me being a sweaty mess when I get home, and I’m not so sure. 115F ambient is where the radio and a/c are really, really nice.

I will likely ride into June sometime, but ultimately wuss out shortly thereafter. Time will tell, but I have another six weeks to hope for gas prices to come down…yeah right.