---------------------------------------------------- TravelWithRonK PRICING PLAN - effective 5/1/2007 (also see addendum to fee plan at bottom of this page) ---------------------------------------------------- There is LOTS of information below that will answer most of your questions so please take the time to read completely through the pricing plan. Items covered below include: Basic fee concepts and definitions TRANSPORT SERVICE FEE ANIMAL PRICING HOW TO FIGURE the transport fee for goats, sheep, and dogs LARGER AND SMALLER ANIMALS of other species GENERAL COMMENTS COMMUNICATION IS CRITICAL ----------------------------------------------------- This plan may seem complex at first but it allows me to give you the lowest possible transport fee. The recent increase in gasoline prices has had a serious effect on my pricing so please try to understand why the transport fee for the first animal may surprise you but it really is as low as I can get it and still stay in business. Please note that my multiple animal pricing is VERY cost effective so it may be worthwhile for you to consider the purchase of several animals. TRANSPORT PRICING is based upon distance plus fuel and floor space surcharges. I concentrate on transporting goats, sheep, and dogs but I will consider other animals based upon care required, space required, and compatibility with the route of my trip. DISTANCE is from pick up point to drop off point based upon the web site http://www.indo.com/distance/. FUEL SURCHARGES are based upon the published national average gasoline price. This can be found at http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/wrgp/mogas_home_page.html FLOOR SPACE surcharges are described below. I do not attempt to compete with the airlines with pricing on a single small animal. Instead I concentrate on the larger and multiple animals. In most cases I provide door to door service in the lower 48 states. Please consider this when comparing my prices to alternate modes of transport. I do not cross the border to Canada and Mexico. If you do the calculations you will see that my pricing becomes VERY cost effective on a per animal basis if I transport several animals from your pick up to drop off point. The pricing plan below is based upon $1.25 per gallon gasoline and 8 mpg efficiency. It is likely that I will have to add a fuel surcharge to all future trips because I never expect fuel prices to be $1.25 per gallon again. The surcharge plan is based upon how high above $1.25 the published national average is at the time of the transport. Here is an example. Let's say that the national average is $3.00. That is $1.75 above my base price of $1.25. If I divide 1.75 by 1.25 the answer is 1.40. Multiply that by 100 to get the percentage. So $3.00 is 140% above my baseline price of $1.25. I would add a 140% fuel surcharge to the transport price of the FIRST animal. For ease of calculations I will round up to the next 10% surcharge level. Floor space surcharges are based upon the amount of trailer floor space animals require. Animals that require larger amounts of floor space will have larger first animal fees and larger per animal fees for multiple animals. This is most likely to occur with sheep with thick wool coats but might also occur with angora goats or other animals. When specifying the size of animals please give an approximation of the amount of floor space required for an animal to lay down. Remember that sheep and angoras cannot be squeezed as much as hair sheep and goats so allow room in your space estimates so that I can plan trailer loading without overcrowding. I attempt to never 'crowd' animals but there are times when I must for brief periods of time. TRANSPORT SERVICE FEE structure is as follows: For goats and sheep and dogs - service prorated to distance/complexity service up to 1000 miles - $200 plus surcharges service up to 1500 miles - $250 plus surcharges service up to 2000 miles - $300 plus surcharges service up to 2500 miles - $350 plus surcharges service over 2500 miles - $400 plus surcharges The TRANSPORT SERVICE FEE covers long term equipment maintenance and replacement, a 'pick up' fee and a 'drop off' fee. I will add fuel surcharges, floor space surcharges, and any 'complexity' charges to this number. MILEAGE will be on a 'as the crow flies' basis as given by computer map program calculations. My actual mileage is likely to be much longer but that gives me a consistent reference to work from. I reserve the right to adjust these prices upward if the pick up and/or drop off points are difficult to reach or require long side trips from the main flow of my trip itinerary. I will contact you well in advance if this occurs. ANIMAL PRICING structure is as follows: The pricing is based upon the number of animals plus a small fuel surcharge per animal for distances greater than 1000 miles. Each animal (including the first animal) being picked up from and delivered to the same points will be $50 each plus surcharges. Ten or more animals will be $45 each plus surcharges. Twenty or more animals will be $40 each plus surcharges. Dedicated runs are billed on a per loaded mile basis. Budget for up to $20 per animal SPACE surcharge if you think your animals fall into this category. Dogs are included in the quantity discounts. The PER ANIMAL FUEL SURCHARGE is added to the above number. For up to 1000 miles there is no addition. For up to 1500 miles add $10 per animal. For up to 2000 miles add $15 per animal. For up to 2500 miles add $20 per animal. For over 2500 miles add $25 per animal. Here is HOW TO FIGURE the transport fee for goats, sheep, and dogs: (other animals see below) 1 - go to the DISTANCE web site at http://www.indo.com/distance/ - enter the pick up city/state and the drop off city/state - the 'as the crow flies' miles is the number I will use 2 - find the TRANSPORT SERVICE FEE that matches your miles - this number is the 'BASE' fee for the transport service - we will add 'SURCHARGES' to this number service up to 1000 miles - $200 service up to 1500 miles - $250 service up to 2000 miles - $300 service up to 2500 miles - $350 service over 2500 miles - $400 3 - go to the AVERAGE FUEL PRICE web site at http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/wrgp/mogas_home_page.html - find the current average US price per gallon - round the number to dollars and cents (drop the tenths) - subtract $1.25 from this number - divide the answer by 1.25 - multiply the service 'base' fee by this number - this is your GAS SURCHARGE 'dollar' amount - add this amount to your service base fee 5 - the 'FLOOR SPACE' surcharge does not apply to the 'first animal' but it may apply to additional animals 6 - the 'COMPLEXITY' surcharge applies to those situations where I must make a long side trip or must backtrack over difficult/long distance roads to get from/to a major highway - as a rule of thumb add $75 for each 100 miles - I will give you an exact quote well in advance - add this amount to the service base fee 7 - the sum of the service base fee, the gas surcharge, and the complexity fee is the TRANSPORT SERVICE FEE - add one animal transport fee to the service fee - this is the minimum fee to transport ONE animal - the FIRST ANIMAL is the most expensive since it must cover the pick up fee, the drop off fee, some of the fuel charge, and complexity issues 8 - for MULTIPLE ANIMALS find the base 'per animal' fee - 1 to 9 animals is $50 each - 10 to 19 animals is $45 each - 20 to 29 animals is $40 each - more than 30 animals contact me 9 - find the FUEL SURCHARGE per animal - For up to 1000 miles there is no addition. - For up to 1500 miles add $10 per animal. - For up to 2000 miles add $15 per animal. - For up to 2500 miles add $20 per animal. - For over 2500 miles add $25 per animal. - this is the additional fuel surcharge per animal 10 - multiply the additional fuel surcharge per animal by the number of animals - add this number to the transport service fee found in #7 11 - if you think there may be a 'FLOOR SPACE' surcharge add $20 per large animal as a ballpark estimate - I will only charge as much as necessary after I see the animals - multiply $20 by the number of additional large animals - add this to the number found in #10 12 - this is your TRANSPORT FEE for goats, sheep, and dogs - double check with me to confirm your calculations LARGER AND SMALLER ANIMALS of other species - Each transport will be on a case by case basis. I will take a look at the distance, the care involved, and the space they take in the trailer or van and provide a price quote. I will transport large animals if and when I have space and the route is consistent with my trip itinerary. My primary concern is the smaller animals so the larger ones have a lower priority in my trip planning. I must also look at my and the other small animals safety when considering larger animals. As a ballpark for budgeting DOUBLE the small animal transport service fee to see what I might charge for a larger animal. GENERAL COMMENTS: I will NOT transport heavy milkers period! It is too stressful for them. If you cannot take the time to drop their milk production in at least half then I am not willing to risk their health and my stress level to transport them. The minimum information I need for PRELIMINARY PLANNING is: - pick up and drop off city, state - animal species, age, size, number, temperament, special concerns The minimum information I need for DETAILED TRIP PLANNING is: - pick up name, address, phones, email, and local directions - drop off name, address, phones, email, and local directions - animal species, age, size, number, temperament, special concerns such as pregnancy, horn size, heavy coat, aggressive temperament, need for separate pens, medications, allergies, etc. - I have the right to refuse any animal based upon physical appearance at pick up and prior positive lab test results - by local directions I mean information I will need to travel from a major highway to your ranch or farm - include visual clues, street names, difficult/tricky turns, steep climbs, mileage, etc. - Remember that I may arrive at night so visual clues must fall within headlight range. Colors are impossible to see at night. - please have LARGE numbers on your mailbox or entrance gate - typically I need directions for the last 10-20 miles - I am 50 feet long so I need appropriate turnaround room. Please warn me in advance if there may be a problem making a turnaround. - I need a minimum of 11 feet of ground clearance - please check your drives for low branches and low hanging wire lines Each trip is a unique trip. I do NOT have a fixed route. I will assemble all riders on a particular trip into a 'daisy chain' route that most efficiently moves as many animals as possible from pick up to drop off. I will announce a trip on various discussion groups about 4-6 weeks in advance. Based upon the initial responses I will announce a 'tentative' route. As various riders become 'definite' I will announce more detailed tentative information. At some point the route will become 'locked in' and modifications and last minute additions will become more difficult or impossible so early commitment means a higher probability of getting your animals on the trip. There is no guarantee that your animals will take a 'direct' route from pick up to drop off so I cannot guarantee a certain number of days of travel time. Trip routes may change 'on the fly' based upon uncontrollable factors during the trip. Pick up and drop off may occur on holidays or late at night so be prepared to be flexible. I do not charge up front fees or for cancellations so please do not abuse this benefit. Payment for transport is due COD at the drop off unless prior arrangements have been made. I can accept cash, check, MO, and PayPal. During the trips COMMUNICATION IS CRITICAL. I will provide daily updates as to my location through the TravelWithRonK group. I do not have a public use cell phone and do not anticipate getting one for various reasons. I will have access to the Travel group when I am on the road but I will NOT have access to my private home email. I expect each stop on the trip to provide information that I need from the Travel group. I will publish a detailed itinerary at the beginning of each trip. I expect that each stop will print it out for reference during the trip. This is important because many stops will NOT obtain vet inspection paperwork until well into a trip just prior to my making the pick up. All animals must be LEGAL for the destination state. That usually involves a vet inspection and may include various blood tests. Please check with your vet far enough in advance so that you know what your animals require to be LEGAL FOR IMPORT into a state. During a trip I will need hay donations on a daily basis. I prefer low protein grass or grass mixture hay but will take what is available in your area. In most cases I CANNOT provide special feeds to individual animals. It is too difficult, error prone, and time consuming to do so. The animals will have fresh hay and water at least twice daily. Please respond to rkeener@realtime.net for personal questions and private information exchange prior to the trip. Once the trip begins all communication must be through the TravelWithRonK group. ******************************************************************* Addendum to fee plan JAN 1, 2010 ******************************************************************* 'INFLATIONARY FACTOR' FEE PLAN INCREASE ADDENDUM TO TRAVELWITHRONK FEE PLAN Starting JAN 1, 2010 when calculating fees I will add 30% to the gasoline surcharge calculation The purpose of this 'factor' is to cover the inflationary increase in on the road repairs and homebase maintenance An example is trailer tires - the tires I have been buying for $128 each now cost $148 each (as of NOV 2009) - I buy about 8-10 of these per year! This factor adds $60 to the fee for the first animal traveling 1000 miles Ron a history note: when I began the inflation factor concept three years ago the factor was 10% - in 2008 I raised it to 20% - this raise in 2010 brought it up to 30% - so that has been about $20 per year increase in my fee plan for 1000 mile transports - the remainder of the fee plan has remained stable since its inception! - it has proven itself to be fair to both you and me!