Visit the Ho in Las Vegas for the latest incarnation of the familiar convenience store-gas station.

If you need a tank of gasoline or maybe would like to wager a bet at a sports book, play a hand or two of blackjack on one of the five tables manned by real live dealers and a pit boss, or sit down to a relaxing meal, the Ho's the place for you.

Situated on Industrial Road, it is the only service station the length of this working man's highway. This busy "back highway" runs parallel to the Strip and is traveled by locals wishing to get around the Strip traffic.

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman is once again in the spotlight. No, he is not appearing in a new movie. He was spotted test-driving one of the city's new hydrogen fueled cars.

The city has leased two environmentally friendly vehicles from Honda. After the Mayor's spin in the car he was informed that the car emits water from its tail pipe. City Manager Doug Selby then solemnly revealed that next year's model would emit gin. The Mayor was very pleased and says he can hardly wait.

While the Mayor was cruising, Professor Scott Samuelsen, director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center based at the University of California at Irvine's School of Engineering, stated, "This is no small deal. Putting these cars out in the desert has never been done before. Honda and city officials are chiefly interested in ascertaining whether the more environmentally friendly vehicles can be viable when driven every day in the desert where temperatures can reach 120 in the summer."

Honda has also leased two identical cars to the state of New York to determine how well this model fares in sub-zero weather.

The two cars leased by the city of Las Vegas likely will be used for parking enforcement and fueled at the state's only hydrogen fuel station which opened on city land near Cheyenne Avenue and Buffalo Drive in November, 2002.

This million dollar station is funded by two private corporations and the federal government. It is intended to be the site of a five-year project to encourage the creation of hydrogen fuel infrastructure in the region and also is a perfect spot for researchers to test their technology under real-world conditions as the rare hydrogen-fueled vehicle passes through town.

Nevada legislators may consider whether the state should have more gasoline supply tanks. If the Governor decides to organize the commission its recommendations would be presented in the next session in 2007.

Currently, southern Nevada has two pipelines for fuel and they are sitting right next to each other. What happens to one could happen to the other!

Last year, the pipelines were temporarily shut down. Fortunately, none of the shutdowns lasted long enough to cause serious problems. Northern Nevada only has one line, a potential "headache" in the making should a problem arise.

Not only have Nevada gasoline prices blossomed in the last month like a bad toothache, the refineries will soon be switching from a winter blend to the spring blend which always prompts a rise in prices.

The Western Petroleum Marketers Association and Convenience Store Expo held February 22-24 at the Mirage Convention Center in Las Vegas drew 3,500 participants. There were 412 booths and a good 90% of the jobbers felt they were there to buy.

This year, the cardlock meetings were separated from the fuel brand meetings and this proved to be a good decision. Another plus: not only did the sun shine on their day, replacing the unusual wet weather in Las Vegas, one hundred and sixty golfers showed up for the Scholarship tournament at the Bali Hai.

Gerry Tedrow, who began his career with WPMA way back in April, 1976, has announced his retirement effective August 31, 2005. Thanks to Gerry for years of dedication and hard work and just being Gerry!

It is not too early to begin planning for the 2005 Pacific Oil Conference, scheduled for September 20-22, 2005 at the Reno Hilton in Reno, Nevada.

Originally published in the April 2005 issue of the O&A Marketing News.
Copyright 2005 by KAL Publications Inc.