I have been talking quite a lot to my brother about saving money by riding a motorcycle lately.  It is a great way to beat high gas prices.  I started my motorcycle riding life in April of 2006.  I purchased my Honda CB900 Custom for $1500 to save money on gas, and gas was about $2.30 per gallon then.  Gas continued to rise since the day that I picked up my bike, and I have been saving gas by riding.  

It was easy to justify buying my motorcycle by looking at the numbers.  My truck, a Dodge Ram 2500 HD 4×4 with the V-10, gets roughly 10 mpg during my commute.  The Honda CB900 Custom averaged 45 mpg.  Because of my schedule, I do not drive as much as some others to work and back, as I work 24 hour shifts, so I drive roughly 80 miles per week to work.  If gas prices averaged $3 for a year, I would save about $970 in the first year alone, just in my commute.  That may not seem like much, but remember, I drive to work two or three times per week, and this does not take into account any other driving that I replace with the motorcycle.  In the first year of owning my motorcycle, I drove it 12,587 miles, meaning that I saved roughly $2600 in gas.  This is a significant amount.  Now that prices are higher, I am saving more everyday.  This sure beats sitting around and waiting for the lower gas prices that I was promised by the new Congress two years ago.  They promised to fix the situation, and the already high gas prices doubled!  I am glad that I took action to save gas myself.

Now, for my brother’s gas saving situation.  He lived in Atlanta, commuting in city gridlock 6 days per week.  He bought his motorcycle, a 1983 Honda CB1000 Custom to save gas.  He paid roughly $1,200 dollars for the motorcycle and gas was over $4.00 per gallon when he decided to buy it.  He has since moved back to Ohio, but still has a long commute and he drives to work 6 days per week.  His commute is 32 miles each way.  He rides his motorcycle averaging 45 mpg and his truck gets 15 mpg.  At $3.50 per gallon (the current price in our area, and the lowest it has been all summer) his motorcycle will save him $3,100 dollars in one year commuting to work alone.  My brother has it figured that with ALL of his driving, taking the motorcycle is like getting a raise of $90 per week.  He has been looking at extending how long he can ride so he can keep saving money at the gas pump.  If he buys a better jacket for $180 and he rides for three weeks longer, he has saved money versus driving his truck.  He could throw the jacket away at the end of three weeks and still be ahead, but that same jacket will allow him to begin riding earlier in the spring, thereby saving more gas money!  He has tried to explain this to some of his friends, and they have a hard time grasping this concept.

If anybody reading this blog is interested in saving gas and saving money by riding a motorcycle, I would encourage you to do it soon.  The sooner you start riding, the sooner you have more money in your pocket.  I can tell a huge difference in my disposable income when I am riding all of the time versus taking my truck.  There are a handful of weeks that I cannot ride in the winter, but if the roads are clear of snow and ice, I ride.  Amy and I even took the bike to the Christmas party for my shift at work in January, we had to scrape the frost off of the windshield to ride home from that one.  The reason I started riding a motorcycle was purely financial.  I ride now because of the enjoyment I get from riding a motorcycle AND the financial benefit of burning 1/4 the gas!

How much gas money do you save by riding in a year?  Leave a comment and let us know.

About one year ago, my Dad and Uncle had an idea that it would be fun to ride 630 miles for supper, then ride home the next day. Not being one to turn down a great meal and a motorcycle ride, I went along. My sister, who lives in Atlanta wanted to go along but could not get a flight into Akron Canton Airport. She did the next best thing and went to Cincinnati and we picked her up on the way. After picking her up, we headed for LaGrange, KY (where I lived as a small child). We met with my Uncle Greg in LaGrange and headed west toward Sikeston, MO, the home of Lambert’s.

Here are my family members that went with me to Lambert's Cafe. Uncle Greg and Aunt Jo on the BMW K1200LT. Dad and Stepmother on the Kawasaki Voyager. Not Pictured is my sister, as she took the photo.

Lambert’s cafe has been featured on the Food Network several times. It is “The Home of Throwed Rolls.” Their website is http://www.throwedrolls.com .  I have been to their Springfield, Mo location three times.  They have some of the best food you could imagine, and portions that keep them from selling desserts.  The first time I ate there, I ordered a full rack of ribs that was served on a plate that looked more like the lid of a garbage can than a plate.  The ribs were hanging off of the plate on both ends.  I was asked what sides I wanted and I replied “Okra and fried potatoes.”  I was told I could not order those, because the walk around with pans serving those to everybody.  So, I ordered two different sides and still got my okra and fried potatoes.  The thing that Lambert’s is most famous for is the rolls.  Here is a short video of the guy throwing the rolls.

They usually do not take it too easy throwing the rolls.  I have caught some fast pitches there.  If you miss, expect to take some heckling from the roll thrower and the crowd.  Lambert’s is a great dining experience.    If you ever get the chance to go there, do it!  Do yourself a favor and make reservations for a hotel (if you need one) ahead of time.  When we were checking in, there were two rooms available at two different hotels.  My sister ended up sleeping on a love seat (we don’t let Dad forget that one).  Check out Hotels.com
 for rates and reservations.

Here are Dad and Flo on their Kawasaki Voyager

The ride there was uneventful, but HOT.  It was a great ride.  It turns out the Lambert’s is on US 62.  US 62 runs right here through Canton, OH.  I had been out US 62 before heading northeast to go to Niagara Falls.  We took interstates to get to Lambert’s as we wanted to make it in one day.  We brought US 62 all of the way home.  US 62 has some great twisties in a few areas.  It is a great scenic route to take to avoid the freeways.  There are some areas where the going is slow, like in Lexington, Ky, but for the most part, you can make pretty good time on it.

On the way home, we got a late start and we spent the night in Bardstown, KY.  Those of you that drink bourbon should recognize that town.  It seems every bourbon distillery in the world is in Bardstown.  None of us in our group drink, so I guess it was a wasted stop for us.  You can see the massive distillery buildings everywhere.  It was pretty impressive to see the huge buildings up on the hills.  We stayed at a small motel across from the Stephen Foster Restaurant.  It was a nice old place.  you could tell that the place was kept up well, but they still had the old door hardware and bathroom fixtures.  The motel had small room by today’s standards, but I would stay there again.  

Here we are at the Cincinnati airport to pickup Liz. I am on the Honda CB900 Custom in the rear. In the front is Dad's Kawasaki Voyager

The next day, we rode the rest of the way home on US 62.  We ate at a Sonic about 20 miles east of Bardstown.  The girl working there asked us what happen if it rains, then she asked if a convertible top was stored anywhere on the motorcycles.  My sister, always a joker, informed the girl that usually when you are planning a ride where it might rain, you always take somebody with you on the back of your bike so they can hold an umbrella.  The waitress believed it!  I can’t imagine trying to hold an umbrella at 70 miles per hour!  

This was a great trip and I hope to do it again.  It is kind of funny trying to make time on a bike that needs to stop for gas every 160 miles and a seat good for 100 miles.  The Honda CB900 Custom doesn’t allow much air to hit the rider with the fairing installed.  The windshield is an extra tall one that has been cut down some so you can see over it and not have to look through it all of the time.  My wife did not get to go to Lambert’s with us because of work.  We hope to go there, maybe even this year.