When the world runs out of oil...will you still race?

brettmcwhorter · **Posted:** Sun Jul 31, 2016 7:46 pm

After beige watching the absolute fawk out of Homeland this week I contemplated what I am to do with the S2000 and truck if we simply ran out of oil. Obviously remaining gas reserves will be through the roof, but I am hopefully we may have vehicles that are electric powered that have the range to and from the track. While I might not be alive by 2050, it looks like estimates and predictions say this is when we will see a legitimate global oil starvation. EVs should take hold long before then, and I am wondering if racing EVs will be as fun and exciting as petrol engines have been. Sure, you wont have the sound, but the speed and G's will be there. While it wont be the same, I think it will be almost equally as fun.

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Sun Jul 31, 2016 10:17 pm

Short answer...

As long as I am physically and financially able to do so, I will continue to be involved in motorsports.

Long answer...

I am less concerned about the availability of carbon based fuels as I am about the longevity of car culture and motorsports in general. I turn 50 this year. So let's say maybe 30 more years of active participation (+/-). While that is a relatively short timeframe, I can see my kids as potentially the last generation in which getting a drivers license is a common thing. Cheap self driving cars that will likely be safer than human drivers would be a large cultural shift. Who will be the racers of the future? Who will organize and run events?

Regarding fuel... I frankly don't follow this extremely closely. I do believe it is a finite resource, and that while we have a glut today, it will not last. I don't want to predict when the tipping point will happen for the eventual EV revolution. Either it will happen on its own schedule, or will be accelerated by high carbon fuel costs. Assuming we see a significant decline of oil sources in our lifetime, I expect the high price will slow demand enough that we never really "run out". It just may become cost prohibitive. Refineries will shut down as demand wanes. Some may remain open to supply the niche demand. It will be expensive to run antique gas cars. At some point it will be achievable by the wealthy only. I hope that is long after I am dead.

Richard

BenjaminGuardiola · **Joined:** Wed May 14, 2014 8:31 am **Posts:** 84

When we only had feet for transportation, man raced each other.
When we began to ride animals, man raced each other.
When we no longer have fuel for cars, man will race each other.

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:40 am

What I'd like to know is when all the oil is gone, how will all that electricity needed be generated?

We are eliminating 400 acres of crop land this year in Wilson Co. alone to be used to solar farms. I'm wondering how a solar panel tastes?

Jason Mauldin · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:46 am

brettmcwhorter wrote:

After beige watching the absolute fawk out of Homeland this week I contemplated what I am to do with the S2000 and truck if we simply ran out of oil. Obviously remaining gas reserves will be through the roof, but I am hopefully we may have vehicles that are electric powered that have the range to and from the track. While I might not be alive by 2050, it looks like estimates and predictions say this is when we will see a legitimate global oil starvation. EVs should take hold long before then, and I am wondering if racing EVs will be as fun and exciting as petrol engines have been. Sure, you wont have the sound, but the speed and G's will be there. While it wont be the same, I think it will be almost equally as fun.

I'm probably going to get stoned for this, but I think that EVs will enhance racing in ways that we (grassroots people at least) haven't seriously considered yet. It won't be a step backwards. It'll be possible to build a car with 4 motors that can be individually controlled, individually placed for optimum weight distribution and sized to provide however much torque that you're willing to sacrifice weight for. We just need a super battery that is lightweight and can either hold the equivalent energy of a 20 gallon gas tank, or can recharge almost instantly.

Jason Mauldin · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:47 am

Vincent Keene wrote:

What I'd like to know is when all the oil is gone, how will all that electricity needed be generated?

We are eliminating 400 acres of crop land this year in Wilson Co. alone to be used to solar farms. I'm wondering how a solar panel tastes?

Why can't they also use that land to raise livestock? Cows and pigs are very tasty and raise well in NC.

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 10:50 am

Jason Mauldin wrote:

Why can't they also use that land to raise livestock? Cows and pigs are very tasty and raise well in NC.

Because the landowners get a NICE yearly check for NO WORK.

Jason Mauldin · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:07 am

Vincent Keene wrote:

Jason Mauldin wrote:

Why can't they also use that land to raise livestock? Cows and pigs are very tasty and raise well in NC.

Because the landowners get a NICE yearly check for NO WORK.

Do you know if the contracts with the power company prohibit this?

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:23 am

Jason Mauldin wrote:

Vincent Keene wrote:

Jason Mauldin wrote:

Why can't they also use that land to raise livestock? Cows and pigs are very tasty and raise well in NC.

Because the landowners get a NICE yearly check for NO WORK.

Do you know if the contracts with the power company prohibit this?

The contract is a 30 year lease. Land owner get a check yearly duting that time period. That about all I know about it, besides it's all I've worked on for almost 2 years and I'm sick of it!

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 5:25 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

We are eliminating 400 acres of crop land this year in Wilson Co. alone to be used to solar farms. I'm wondering how a solar panel tastes?

Who is "we". It sounds like farmers just decided it was better to lease their own property than to grow something? I don't have a problem with that at all. Long term I can imagine dual purpose use could co-exist. But don't get me started on the idiocy of growing corn for ethanol due to statutory requirements.

BenjaminGuardiola wrote:

When we only had feet for transportation, man raced each other.
When we began to ride animals, man raced each other.
When we no longer have fuel for cars, man will race each other.

Ahh, but what will they race? And will it be something we (last remnants of the once mighty car culture) care to participate in? Frankly I see us reliving the "good old days" via virtual racing. A bunch of geezers in our VR rigs chatting away online about what gasoline and burnt rubber used to smell like, the sounds of a big V8 and how hard it was to clean grease out of the pores of our skin and from under our finger nails!

Richard

RickyBeam · **Posted:** Mon Aug 01, 2016 8:14 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

We are eliminating 400 acres of crop land this year in Wilson Co. alone to be used to solar farms. I'm wondering how a solar panel tastes?

Better than the tobacco they used to grow...

BenjaminGuardiola · **Joined:** Wed May 14, 2014 8:31 am **Posts:** 84

I would guess ethanol is the immediate future. As long as the government keeps corn prices artificially low, this is a viable gasoline alternative. Vertical farming is the answer to vanishing crop land. When you can live, grow food, and harvest solar/wind in one structure, it just makes sense.

For mass transit, the Hyperloop looks awesome, but seeing how well America likes train travel I don't see it coming online anytime soon.

Other than self-driving cars, I have read about single person cars becoming the big thing. I know I drive alone 90% of the time. Having a super efficient one-man pod makes sense to me. I would guess these would be electric, but hydrogen might make another run in my lifetime. And like I was getting at earlier, man will race anything that moves.

/endramble

FrancisChan · **Posted:** Tue Aug 02, 2016 7:56 am

What about the good ole fashioned bicycle? You can race them, they go over a lot of difficult terrain and they can help keep you fit!

For those with uphill commutes there are hybrid electric assist bikes.

Richard Casto · **Posted:** Tue Aug 02, 2016 10:35 am

FrancisChan wrote:

What about the good ole fashioned bicycle? You can race them, they go over a lot of difficult terrain and they can help keep you fit!

For those with uphill commutes there are hybrid electric assist bikes.

Maybe something like this...

Richard

brettmcwhorter · **Posted:** Tue Aug 02, 2016 10:49 am

Strap a keg on the back and Im in!

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