California's oil history is unique, colorful and has been incredibly important to the industrialization of our great country. Its home of giant oil fields, major oil corporations, incredible well control history and California's oil heritage rivals any other State in America, even Texas.
California consumes more gasoline than any other state in the Union. Its inhabitants always pay 60-70 cents more a gallon that anywhere else in the country and whine like four-year-old girls about the oil industry. They hate hydrocarbons.
California's current governor, a guy named Alfred E. Newman, I think his name is, seen here on the left, has officially declared war on the oil business and that there will be NO MORE OIL PRODUCTION IN CALIFORNIA by the year 2045. He wants to put an end to frac'ing by 2024. Just last week Los Angeles County, home of California's greatest oil fields, passed a law saying no more drilling permits, ever. The California Oil and Gas Commission says there are 3.5G barrels of proven, recoverable oil in the Los Angeles Basin.
All of that fits Californians perfectly, I am sure. They demand cheap gasoline but loathe the stuff that makes it. I once had a kid in Santa Barbara tell me that Texas owed California all the cheap oil it could find in the Gulf of Mexico, it was a "mud hole" anyway. I asked him why he felt that way and he said 'cause we send you guys all our semi-conductors, whatever the hell THOSE are.
Like the rest of America, most of the hard work in California occurs in the middle of the state and so it is with the oil industry. They work hard over on the coast in Los Angeles oil fields but they have to kind of slink around and do all that on the down-low over there. Hands can't dress or act like they're in the oil business along the coast for fear of being on the receiving end of a drive by shooting.
Not in Taft and Bakersfield, however. They're proud of what they do. So, like all good oilfield hands, men or women, in the office and out; every now and then its a good idea to get together for a shin-dig and release your pop-off valve. Get "twisted-off," like they say. In Taft they called this OilDorado Days.
Oildorado runs for 10 days, and it has something for everyone – a grand parade, beer, melodrama, queen pageant, entertainment, barbecues, dances (with beer), civic luncheon, and much more (beer).
Production in nearby Midway-Sunset Field must drop 15% or more while this is all going on.
Men drink beer, get dressed up like cowboys and have a whisker growing contest.
But the best part of the whole shin dig is there is a rod wrenching contest. Now THATS cool !
Even at 70 I could participate in this and not embarrass myself. I'd lose, for sure, but worse, I'd probably break a couple of knuckles and then not be able to drink beer.
Smackover, Arkansas also has big oil party and its called Oiltown Festival. I think I might rather party with these folks, actually. There's trout in the White River. When these hands party-hardy they also have a rod wrenching contest, a bit throwing contest and something they call a "pipe tote." And I know they've got cold beer in Arkansas.
