PumpTalk - Petro-Canada

Crude down. Pump Prices Up?

When talking about gas prices, I'm sometimes reminded of Goldilocks & the Three Bears.  While Goldilocks was seeking basic food and shelter, she deemed almost everything she found to be too hot, too cold, too hard, too soft, etc.  When she does find something she's happy with, it's fleeting...empty porridge bowl, broken chair, abrupt end to a nap...

The price of gasoline tends to fall into that same rut.  Never quite right and happiness is usually fleeting.  No, I'm not going to blame the bears.  They've had to endure enough.  When many factors combine to influence the price of a consumer good like gasoline, it's sometimes tough to understand if it's too hot, too cold, or just right.

It's Mid-January...Time For The Exciting Annual Review

I may be one of the few people who eagerly await the January release of the Annual Review by Fuel Focus, but it's just such a worthwhile read.  I don't camp out on the steps at Natural Resources Canada dressed like my favourite gas pump eagerly awaiting the first copy or anything like that...they thankfully put it on their website where I can stay warm, cozy and read it.

So, the research is in on one of the most interesting years ever recorded in the commodity world. Was I telling the truth throughout the year, or were the critics in the comment section right?  Let me slip into my gas pump costume and share some highlights.

Winter tires … Sorels for your car.

I can’t decide on a suitable theme song for Calgary roads these days…

To capture the futility of attempting to climb a steep hill or make a sudden stop it could  be Paul Simon’s “Slip Slidin’ Away.”

Or to portray the frustration and rage of some of Calgary drivers it could be any song by Rob Zombie.

What I do know is that a number of the skidding frustrated motorists are driving around on all-season tires.