Blue Hose Campaign Promotes E15 Fuel

Colorado Corn, the American Lung Association and Kum & Go service stations’ “Look for the Blue Hose” campaign is intended to promote E15 to consumers, but for motorcyclists, it’s a clear reminder to avoid the blue-handled nozzles that distribute the potentially damaging fuel in the state.

Not only does fuel that is 15 percent ethanol damage older motorcycles and void warranties in new ones, studies show that any claimed environmental benefits and costs savings are offset by reduced fuel economy and the pollution caused by ethanol’s production and processing.

The good news is that most fuel consumed in the United States is E10, containing 10 percent ethanol by volume, but the ethanol industry would like to change that. Campaigns, such as the one in Colorado, are an effort to promote E15’s dubious claims.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has not certified any of the 22 million motorcycles and ATVs in the United States to operate on E15.

The AMA opposes the spread of E15, because it increases the chance that motorcyclists mistakenly misfuel their bikes, especially at blender pumps where different blends are dispensed through the same hose and nozzle.

At least in California, motorcyclists now know to “Avoid the Blue Hose.”