AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Yesterday I drove from San Antonio Texas to Carlsbad New Mexico. The trip was about 480 miles. About half of that was directly through the heart of the Permian Basin and the incredible oil boom going on in West Texas and South East New Mexico. I was completely blown away. At one point I saw 12 drilling rigs out my front window. Its unreal to see that many drilling rigs at one place. Thats in addition to the dozens and dozens of coil tubing rigs, workover rigs, frack units, stimulation units, etc. And that was in addition to the thousands and thousands of existing oil and gas wells that already exist. I saw at least 8 major pipeline systems being put in place. These varied in diameter between 12” and 24”. That is a huge amount of pipeline being added to the grid. Every little town we drove through was booming. Playgrounds with water parks and huge recreation centers just popping up everywhere. Huge RV parks every 10-20 miles packed to the gills with new and old rigs alike. We pulled into our RV Park in Carlsbad. This is an older park that normally catered to transient travelers. A huge No Vacancy sign at the gated entrance. As we get signed in and escorted to our spot and I see that almost every RV is a permanent fixture. No less than 30 bad ass welding trucks. A few dozen bad ass oil field service trucks and lots of young women and kids. As the sun rises this morning the sound of diesel pickups starting and heading out to work is surreal. This is their life. Young people making $100-150k per year are raking in the bucks and living on the cheap. Rent here is $400 per month. Diesel fuel is $2.89/gal. Groceries are cheap. There are grade schools and day cares on every other corner. A young family could save/invest $75k a year and in a decade be 3/4 of the way to retirement. I knew the boom in the Permian was big but until I saw it with my own eyes I didnt realize the magnitude of what big really meant. http://time.com/5492648/permian-oil-boom-west-texas/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry ginger Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 1 hour ago, AKIQPilot said: Yesterday I drove from San Antonio Texas to Carlsbad New Mexico. The trip was about 480 miles. About half of that was directly through the heart of the Permian Basin and the incredible oil boom going on in West Texas and South East New Mexico. I was completely blown away. At one point I saw 12 drilling rigs out my front window. Its unreal to see that many drilling rigs at one place. Thats in addition to the dozens and dozens of coil tubing rigs, workover rigs, frack units, stimulation units, etc. And that was in addition to the thousands and thousands of existing oil and gas wells that already exist. I saw at least 8 major pipeline systems being put in place. These varied in diameter between 12” and 24”. That is a huge amount of pipeline being added to the grid. Every little town we drove through was booming. Playgrounds with water parks and huge recreation centers just popping up everywhere. Huge RV parks every 10-20 miles packed to the gills with new and old rigs alike. We pulled into our RV Park in Carlsbad. This is an older park that normally catered to transient travelers. A huge No Vacancy sign at the gated entrance. As we get signed in and escorted to our spot and I see that almost every RV is a permanent fixture. No less than 30 bad ass welding trucks. A few dozen bad ass oil field service trucks and lots of young women and kids. As the sun rises this morning the sound of diesel pickups starting and heading out to work is surreal. This is their life. Young people making $100-150k per year are raking in the bucks and living on the cheap. Rent here is $400 per month. Diesel fuel is $2.89/gal. Groceries are cheap. There are grade schools and day cares on every other corner. A young family could save/invest $75k a year and in a decade be 3/4 of the way to retirement. I knew the boom in the Permian was big but until I saw it with my own eyes I didnt realize the magnitude of what big really meant. http://time.com/5492648/permian-oil-boom-west-texas/ prob is oil workers like to spend like drunken sailors in those areas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmo Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 1 minute ago, Angry ginger said: prob is oil workers like to spend like drunken sailors in those areas It’s a great idea in theory saving up half your salary. But we all know in reality very few of us have that kind of discipline, especially young people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) 5 minutes ago, Angry ginger said: prob is oil workers like to spend like drunken sailors in those areas That is surely an issue in any area no doubt. I think a few will be smart enough to save a little. West Texas and SE New Mexico isnt an attractive place to recreate. Few lakes. Very little public land that offers public access. There isnt much to do other than work. Lots of these guys are working 12hr days for 21-28 days at a time. Then get 10 days off. Lots of work around here. Edited May 13, 2019 by AKIQPilot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry ginger Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 30 minutes ago, Edmo said: It’s a great idea in theory saving up half your salary. But we all know in reality very few of us have that kind of discipline, especially young people. i was cheap in my 20's spent like a drunken sailor in my 30's and back to pretty conservative in my 40's. who knows what the 50's will bring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f7ben Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 I love industry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f7ben Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Fuck Obama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member Highmark Posted May 13, 2019 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted May 13, 2019 43 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: That is surely an issue in any area no doubt. I think a few will be smart enough to save a little. West Texas and SE New Mexico isnt an attractive place to recreate. Few lakes. Very little public land that offers public access. There isnt much to do other than work. Lots of these guys are working 12hr days for 21-28 days at a time. Then get 10 days off. Lots of work around here. Went to school in Big Spring, Tx for a year. Place was a shit-hole. Had a lot of fun but pretty desolate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 11 minutes ago, Highmark said: Went to school in Big Spring, Tx for a year. Place was a shit-hole. Had a lot of fun but pretty desolate. I drove right through Big Spring yesterday. Its still pretty much a shit hole but there is lots and lots of work for people who want to work hard and earn some bucks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) One thing for sure. West texas is a shit hole but the second you cross into New Mexico the word shit hole takes on a whole new meaning. The highways are littered with trash everywhere. Its decades worth of trash along the side of the road. Texas has almost no trash along the roadside. Lots of dead animals and some semi tires but almost no trash along the roads in TX In New Mexico its like the side of the road is everyones personal dumpsite. Its horrible. And then the roads. Oh my god, some of the roads in NM are horrendous. I was down to under 30mph on a 2 lane road just outside of Carlsbad. The posted speed limit was 70 and no one was going over 40. The Texas side of the same road was nearly perfect. Edited May 13, 2019 by AKIQPilot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmo Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 5 minutes ago, AKIQPilot said: I drove right through Big Spring yesterday. Its still pretty much a shit hole but there is lots and lots of work for people who want to work hard and earn some bucks I went to Houston for a job in the early 80’s. I hated it. Lived there 3 months. Our boss told us they needed people in LA so we loaded my truck and left the next day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) 1 minute ago, Edmo said: I went to Houston for a job in the early 80’s. I hated it. Lived there 3 months. Our boss told us they needed people in LA so we loaded my truck and left the next day. Yea Houston is horrible. There are a few decent places in texas but Houston isnt one of them. Edited May 13, 2019 by AKIQPilot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s pump Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 1 hour ago, AKIQPilot said: Yea Houston is horrible. There are a few decent places in texas but Houston isnt one of them. I was pretty surprised how shitty Houston was outside of the downtown. Pretty much rubble and oil rigs.Air was so dirty you could taste it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edmo Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 1 hour ago, s pump said: I was pretty surprised how shitty Houston was outside of the downtown. Pretty much rubble and oil rigs.Air was so dirty you could taste it. And it’s hotter than Miami without the beach. I liked Dallas a little better but I’m not a big fan of Texas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Crappie Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Our branches in west Texas and North Dakota that support the oil industry are fucking booming. Good for my retirement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ford_428cj Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Cool post AK ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry ginger Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 1 hour ago, Edmo said: And it’s hotter than Miami without the beach. I liked Dallas a little better but I’m not a big fan of Texas. I like austin a lot. Wifes flying down to Dallas tomorrow as her mom just passed away, hoping for her sake it's not crazy hot as they run around trying to figure out the mess she left behind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member steve from amherst Posted May 13, 2019 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted May 13, 2019 4 hours ago, s pump said: I was pretty surprised how shitty Houston was outside of the downtown. Pretty much rubble and oil rigs.Air was so dirty you could taste it. Fucking place smells worse then jersey, or New Orleans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member steve from amherst Posted May 13, 2019 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted May 13, 2019 3 hours ago, Edmo said: And it’s hotter than Miami without the beach. I liked Dallas a little better but I’m not a big fan of Texas. North Mexico. Been thru Amarillo yrs ago and stopped in houston a few times. That's enough for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s pump Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 3 hours ago, Angry ginger said: I like austin a lot. Wifes flying down to Dallas tomorrow as her mom just passed away, hoping for her sake it's not crazy hot as they run around trying to figure out the mess she left behind. Sorry to hear Jeff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racinfarmer Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 6 hours ago, s pump said: I was pretty surprised how shitty Houston was outside of the downtown. Pretty much rubble and oil rigs.Air was so dirty you could taste it. West of Houston on the Energy Corridor is pretty nice. We went to Galveston Island for a day and Freeport and the like. Stopped at one of the sketchier gas stations I've ever been to somewhere south of Houston. The drive from the airport toward downtown and the outer ring road were something else too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racinfarmer Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 (edited) 9 hours ago, Angry ginger said: prob is oil workers like to spend like drunken sailors in those areas The ones I know spend like a coked up rockstar at the strip club until it is gone, then live on ramen in the hopes of making the same coin in the next boom. I've seen a lot of the farm kids do the same thing. Edited May 13, 2019 by racinfarmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 7 hours ago, s pump said: I was pretty surprised how shitty Houston was outside of the downtown. Pretty much rubble and oil rigs.Air was so dirty you could taste it. Well for the record, there aren't many oil rigs or oil wells in or around Houston. There are refineries and petrochemical plants all over the south east side of Houston. Those are the facilities that create the horrible smell and the horrible impact to the environment. Humans consume massive amounts of hydrocarbons every single day. Every aspect of our lives are controlled and impacted by hydrocarbons. There is no escaping that fact for at least several more generations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sal Rosenberg Posted May 13, 2019 Share Posted May 13, 2019 Spent some time in Bellaire TX way back when . Texas sucks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKIQPilot Posted May 13, 2019 Author Share Posted May 13, 2019 4 hours ago, Angry ginger said: I like austin a lot. Wifes flying down to Dallas tomorrow as her mom just passed away, hoping for her sake it's not crazy hot as they run around trying to figure out the mess she left behind. Sorry to hear about your MIL Jeff. These types of events are never fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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