Dale “Harry” Henderson isn’t one to waste energy.

Maybe that explains why he has yet to remove his Christmas lights outside his home in Rio Rancho.

But in addition to his conservation of physical energy, the former Rio Rancho High School teacher, who now teaches at a charter school in Albuquerque, is a big proponent of alternative energy.

Observer '�” Gary Herron photo Dale '��Harry'�� Henderson shows off the 18 eight-volt batteries, 144 volts worth, that power his 1970 Volkswagen camper van.

In fact, Henderson even converted his 1970 Volkswagen camper van to electrical power — 144 volts, provided by 18 eight-volt batteries tucked away behind the vehicle’s front seats.

When there’s a trip to be made, Henderson pulls the orange power cord from its spot in the VW, plugs it into an outlet in his home, and, in a few hours, he’s ready to go. As long as “ready to go” isn’t more than 45 or so miles, round-trip, away.

The price he pays, when gasoline is approaching $4 a gallon again? About 25 cents to PNM for every 20 miles he drives, he estimated, comparing the usage to what a small space heater might use.

“I’m not the first person in Rio Rancho to do this,” Henderson admitted recently, while showing off his handiwork. He said he’s run into — figuratively, not literally — other Rio Ranchoans who have turned to electrical power for their vehicles.

Henderson, who earlier converted a motorcycle to electrical power, said he’d love to put solar panels atop the roof, too, but knows that not only would that be expensive, it’d also get him only another five miles per trip.

An alternative-energy devote, Henderson said he’d recommend a conversion to electrical power by others of the same persuasion and encourages them to contact him via e-mail at harryhendersoncycles@ yahoo.com. (You can find the technical info at http://evalbum.com/1851)

It’s not hard, not extremely expensive, to do, he said, and there’s plenty of information available on the Internet. Because all of the accessories were manual — no power windows, power locks, or power steering, for example — the chore was pretty simple for Henderson, who claims he’s not much of a mechanical whiz but pretty good with electrical things.

Taking a curious reporter for a short drive, the only difference between a regular VW and the electrical VW is the sound: The “regular” bug has a distinct sound while the electrical one has more of a “whrrrring” sound.

There’s no difference in the get-up-and-go, and Henderson had no trouble, even though there’s no need for first gear, getting the vehicle up to speed and managing the limit on Northern Boulevard.

Not designed for speed

It’s a practical vehicle, with the emphasis on practical. Had Woodstock been held in 1970 instead of 1969, this vehicle could have taken some hippies there.

“I’m not big into aesthetics,” he said, settling for practicality, reliability and a vehicle he claims is four times more efficient now than it originally was.

“America doesn’t want to support alternative energy full-scale,” Henderson said. “This is a combination of being environmentally conscious and the challenge of doing it.”

And, while he’s doing it, he’s using wind-generated power via PNM’s Sky Blue program, a subscription-based program that allows PNM customers to support and use wind-generated energy.