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Petroleum brand Valvoline struck a deal this week with Saudi Arabia’s Aramco, which sees the American company selling its global products business for $2.65 billion.

The deal sees Aramco taking ownership of Valvoline’s products used globally, while Valvoline would retain its global rights to the brand name itself for use in retail services, except in China and certain countries in the Middle East and Africa.

As we reported at the beginning of this month, fuel prices are sliding rapidly downward, as demand for gasoline and other petroleum products drops from the worldwide stay-at-home orders.

As a result of this at the start of April, the national average for fuel prices in the United States crossed the $2/gallon mark, and currently prices are being tracked at $1.77/gallon in the USA.

That figure is likely to drop even further though, as the price for a contract future on a barrel of oil has actually dipped into the negative figures (-$37.63/barrel) – an historical first and an alarming event.

While the bulk of the United States is self-distancing by staying home as much as possible because of the coronavirus, right now is one of the most affordable times to ride a motorcycle or drive a car, as the average price for a gallon of gasoline continues to drop at a noticeable rate.

This is because on average, a gallon of gasoline costs the least amount of money it ever has in the past four years, and the expectation for April is that gas prices could drop to $1.75/gallon on average across the country.

Episode 46 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast is another must-listen show, and it starts out with a talk about one of motorcycling’s forbidden subjects: motorcycle run-in/break-in procedures.

As former service area manager and professional race team mechanic, Quentin drops some knowledge on how to break-in that new motorcycle in your garage, and dispels some myths along the way. You will definitely want to have a listen…we even touch on which oil is best for your motorcycle.

The conversation then turns to Ducati’s new financing program, and how that is an insight into things to come from motorcycle OEMs for the future. The show finishes with a listener question, which gets us talking about racer sponsorship, brand messaging, energy drinks, and brand “ambassadors” in the industry.

We think you will find Episode 46 both entertaining and informative, as well as well-worth a listen.

You can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well. Enjoy the show!

Another week, and so another episode of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast is up, for your listening pleasure. Episode 31 sees Quentin and myself with a new recording time, which is earlier in the week, so the show is less about current events, and more an exploration of topics, this time around.

As such, we share some stories from the track, focusing mostly on bike safety and track preparation. No topic is left uncovered, which means a healthy discussion about the time-honored topics of motorcycle oil and tires. Spoiler alert, Quentin has some interesting practices when it comes to motorcycle lubrication…

We finish the show with some listener questions, all of which we think you will find highly engaging, so give it play (or two).

As always, you can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well. Enjoy the show!

Every month, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) releases notes on the various happenings and movements that are occurring in the two-wheeled political landscape.

September being no different, one of the AMA’s line items is the return of a four-gallon minimum purchase recommendation of E15 fuel, courtesy of the American Coalition for Ethanol.

If this issue sounds familiar, it is because a similar provision was put forward by the EPA back in 2012, but was ultimately withdrawn when it was clear most motorcycle carried only 3-5 gallons of gas, and were not EPA-approved to run E15 fuel.

I wasn’t planning on rehashing this story when the AMA’s note came out, but since there have been a few reports with some inaccurate information, I thought it best to address what is going on with E15 fuel this time around.

Last week we got news that Yamaha Racing and Petronas were concluding their three-year collaboration in MotoGP, as the Malaysian oil company’s contract with Yamaha came to an end, and was not to be renewed. Following Yamaha’s abysmal ability to keep or gain sponsorships for its racing efforts lately, the initial reaction to the news of Petronas’ departure was very grave in the MotoGP paddock. However, our friends at MotoMatters have confirmed that Yamaha will be replacing Petronas (not the Harry Potter spell, thanks irks) with Nippon Oil subsidiary brand ENEOS.

Gasoline demand in the United States hit an all-time high in 2006, and ever since then has been on the decline. Aided by rising prices, more efficient vehicles, and a slowing population growth, the United States as a whole is not only using less gas than before the recession, but we as a country have entered into a continued trend of decreased gasoline demand, which government officials and industry executives believe will be a permanent trend from this point forward. While current usage is about 8% less than the 2006 peak, experts expect to see as much as a 20% reduction in gasoline use by 2030.

Branding can be a tricky trade, especially when it comes to putting your mark on someone else’s product. The optimal goal is to find partnerships where both products benefit from being associated with each other. For Agip, the Italian gasoline and oil company, the obvious perfect partnership is one with Hello Kitty, the cute white cat that does $1 billion in business each year. After all, who doesn’t like their 11 year-old Japanese girls mixed with three liters of motor lubricant? Oh yes, we went there.

A crash caused by Shoya Tomizawa and Simone Corsi sent riders tumbling yesterday in the Moto2 race at Jerez. Colliding in the apex of the corner with Corsi, Tomizawa’s Moto2 race bike spilled oil onto the Spanish track, which saw eight other riders hitting the tarmac. With nine bikes in all falling victim to the oil slick, the Moto2 race had to be red flagged and restarted. Watch the bikes fall like dominos in the video after the jump.