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32 Years Car-Free Finally Ended Today

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Living Car Free Do you live car free or car light? Do you prefer to use alternative transportation (bicycles, walking, other human-powered or public transportation) for everyday activities whenever possible? Discuss your lifestyle here.

32 Years Car-Free Finally Ended Today

Old 06-10-21, 12:16 PM
  #26  
JoeyBike
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Originally Posted by StarBiker
...I have rarely seen these types of responses.
LOL, Right?
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Old 06-20-21, 03:19 AM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by JoeyBike
I do believe that human activity is changing the climate, and almost every other natural resource for the worst. But until that darling little girl starts telling her generation to cut back on having children - like TWO MAX - i can't hear a word she says. ZPG (Zero Population Growth) became a political land mine a few decades ago but unless we are talking about ZPG, we are just talking s**t. Cutting our emissions in half and doubling the population is just wheels spinning in the sand. Total nonsense.

FYI...I never was a part of Greta's religion. It was all about the money. I structured my life so that I didn't need a car so that A. I never had to work very hard or B. I could work hard for a short time during Winter months when the days are short and weather bad, and take off on a bike tour for the rest of the year. I am pragmatic. I actually LOVE cars and owning one. I just didn't want the aggravation or expense for 30+ years. Now I have a job with all the benefits - which is a ball and chain so to speak - but at 63yo I had a great run! Now I use the car to go bike in the country and relax. It's worth it at this moment. I am VERY adaptable. And I used to rent plenty of cars but the prices are crazy now.

Right now, I want a car. Greta can go **** herself. Cheers.
Wow, what an ugly & ignorant post.
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Old 07-16-21, 01:33 AM
  #28  
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I was gonna call it sad, but I guess you're riding again. Good deal. I was wondering if you were going to subconsciously sabotage the driving with several DUIs or 'accidentally' total it : ) Worst case scenario you lose your license at the old age of 90 and you're forced to ride again...in pain but smiling.
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Old 07-17-21, 04:15 PM
  #29  
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Originally Posted by AlbatrossWheeld
I was gonna call it sad, but I guess you're riding again. Good deal. I was wondering if you were going to subconsciously sabotage the driving with several DUIs or 'accidentally' total it : ) Worst case scenario you lose your license at the old age of 90 and you're forced to ride again...in pain but smiling.
Most likely the expense will aggravate me out of the car. I only drive it about 15 miles a week lately. 3 weeks ago needed a new battery, last week a screw in a tire, today a chip in the windscreen. Just that steady drip, drip, drip will wear me down. And right now I could get a load of cash for it due to the auto shortage. Hmmmmm....
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Old 07-17-21, 11:09 PM
  #30  
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Big earth

Originally Posted by 350htrr
Maybe it's more like, the earth isn't going to return, to the state it was before the industrial revolution... If people don't embrace a less damaging lifestyle to the earth... You know, we all need to live on an earth that is supporting us, it's going to be a horrendous existence for our children and an almost impossible existence for their children the way things are going... IMO
If you talk to some people they feel that the earth is just so vast. I was speaking to one person about the damage we do to the earth and his response was one of quote:" Have you ever traveled much. In between cities there is just so much nature you can drive for hundreds of miles and see "untouched " nature ."
So I guess in some peoples minds the earth is so vast that we don't have much of an effect on it... !!! Meanwhile I worried about that BP Gulf spill off our coast that they were not able to control for how long and it just kept spilling crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico!! I tend to agree with Greta Thurnberg, but most took her as a teenager who is overreacting and has mental health issues. Others even make jokes about her...
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Old 07-17-21, 11:59 PM
  #31  
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Originally Posted by JoeyBike
3 weeks ago needed a new battery, last week a screw in a tire, today a chip in the windscreen ...
Carma?
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Old 08-16-21, 08:06 PM
  #32  
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Originally Posted by rossiny
If you talk to some people they feel that the earth is just so vast. I was speaking to one person about the damage we do to the earth and his response was one of quote:" Have you ever traveled much. In between cities there is just so much nature you can drive for hundreds of miles and see "untouched " nature ."
So I guess in some peoples minds the earth is so vast that we don't have much of an effect on it... !!! Meanwhile I worried about that BP Gulf spill off our coast that they were not able to control for how long and it just kept spilling crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico!! I tend to agree with Greta Thurnberg, but most took her as a teenager who is overreacting and has mental health issues. Others even make jokes about her...
Kid has an opinion (based on science) and gets criticized on bicycling forums by people who disagree with the information and passion she has. She might be their savior. I just think its poor taste to express oneself that way, as it just brings more pressure on her. Jeez, if you don't agree with her don't say for her to go...herself, etc, start your own thread and state your piece. (Not you rossiny, as I was a just responding to some of the previous comments through your thread).

To the OP, you made it a long way going car free. That's pretty remarkable. Times change and sometimes its good to go with them. Keep your options open, as you might be going car free, or car light in the future. Or not )
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Old 08-16-21, 10:17 PM
  #33  
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OK, back to being car-free.

So, after getting back into cycling when COVID started changing our lives back in March 2020, I started to cycle every week and also picked up running as well. Now, over a year later, I lost some weight and feel so much better than before. And since I'm close to my office, I've decided to bike to work every day. I've test-ridden the route and it's 16-miles round trip (one-hour total riding time). And since I live in a desert (it rains very infrequently), I can do this just about every day of the year. Of course, my office hasn't opened up yet; I'm scheduled to go back in early Sept., but I'm looking forward to this.

I tell you, if we had bike valets for my gym and grocery stores, I would pay for that and use my bike more. Locking my bike up on a rack doesn't work in LA - too many bike thefts...

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Old 08-19-21, 08:42 AM
  #34  
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Originally Posted by cj3209
OK, back to being car-free.

So, after getting back into cycling when COVID started changing our lives back in March 2020, I started to cycle every week and also picked up running as well. Now, over a year later, I lost some weight and feel so much better than before. And since I'm close to my office, I've decided to bike to work every day. I've test-ridden the route and it's 16-miles round trip (one-hour total riding time). And since I live in a desert (it rains very infrequently), I can do this just about every day of the year. Of course, my office hasn't opened up yet; I'm scheduled to go back in early Sept., but I'm looking forward to this.

I tell you, if we had bike valets for my gym and grocery stores, I would pay for that and use my bike more. Locking my bike up on a rack doesn't work in LA - too many bike thefts...

The opposite of what happened to most people. They gained weight.

This is the first summer in 12 years I have only road maybe three times? I road every day previously. But I hated it! Hate this time of year!

Glad to hear it worked out.
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Old 08-20-21, 05:46 PM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by cj3209
Locking my bike up on a rack doesn't work in LA - too many bike thefts...
More than NYC or PDX? Surely not. I biked for 45y in the former and just finished 12 in the latter. No thefts in the former and just one from a garage accidentally left open in the latter. Just saying ...
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Old 09-18-21, 05:18 AM
  #36  
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Multiple locks and a tracker can be useful. Always good to be able to take your bike off the street to keep an eye on it.
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Old 09-20-21, 10:38 AM
  #37  
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Originally Posted by Leisesturm
The reason why this forum is (your words) a ghost town is because there aren't that many LCF interested in posting about it. It's so shameful to be LCF, why ever would you want to talk about it with strangers? But, way to go, defend your situation by bringing The MOON into the argument. There is no need to be defensive. I am only making the point that most, and maybe all, of the common arguments for why people must have cars at the ready, even if they do not use them much, are false. No one NEEDS a car. It only seems that way. When one absolutely cannot have a car, the truth of that becomes more obvious.
I love riding my bike but it's hard to pull my fishing boat with it, so yes, I NEED a car/truck. Not sure who you are to judge others and dictate what our life should be. I come to this thread to read about other people's journey in a lifestyle that I find interesting but not practical for my lifestyle. It's really irritating when someone comes along and tries to tell me(and others) what I/we need. You're acting like the government, neither of which know what I need. Carry on...
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Old 09-20-21, 05:50 PM
  #38  
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RStewart is 100% correct and he's one of the best rock n roll frontman and singer to ever grace the planet if he is the "one" that cycles across the neighbourhood, and parks his bicycle under the stairs.........seen him many times and he always put on one helluva concert, no matter whether his current material at that time did not meet Rod's best. There is a relatively recent video of R. Stewart riding in Miami, which is impressive in that he's riding after recent knee replacement but he's always stayed athletically fit, to allow him to do what he does so well for so long, and to get all the beautiful women.

I'll say this: Life is too damn short to not live it..........Why Limit Yourself? ......It is just plain stupid in my opinion. Time is the most precious commodity that we have. Obviously, you need some amount of money & income to allow you to do the things that you would like to do.
Cycling to work might be great, but this LIMITS YOU in how far you reside from your workplace. It also LIMITS YOU significantly in the type of professional career that you might choose. Hey, you know it is cool to watch an old re-run of an episode of BONANZA every now and then, but I don't want to ride in town on horseback, or on a horse & buggy, or travel by stagecoach, like Hoss and Little Joe typically do. Varied weather conditions in both daylight and darkness are not the best situation for bicycle or motorcycle travel. You guys are absolutely bonkers if you don't want to travel by automobile or airplane because of the "carbon footprint" and further damaging the planet. Sure, be a quality person, and treat your neighbours as you'd like to be treated, and respect everyone's right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Remember though that society has moved from living in a cave and simply eating and getting warmth from the open camp fire. The wheel was invented at some point in time and there have been plenty of technological improvements that have vastly benefitted society. Just because of your narrow minded vision of how things need to be with folks living in some bizzare utopia with only bicycles as the method of transportation, does not mean that it is anywhere close to realistic or even remotely practical. Perhaps, your reality has been too clouded by your intake, and I would recommend laying off the bong, the mushrooms, and other low-grade pharmaceuticals that were not directly prescribed for you by a legitimate medical doctor.
I don't understand why some of yall view the automobile as some evil monster. Yall are frikken nuts. I recall the 5th Dimension, a great group, that had a number of great hits, one of which was "GO WHERE YOU WANNA GO". They also had a smash hit with UP UP & AWAY, but I'm not so sold on traveling by hot air balloon or bicycles, as I think Go Where You Wanna Go really sums up the absolute need for an automobile. Do you need something that gets 16 mpg, probably not, unless you're needing to tow a horse trailer or something similar or you're needing a very large 4wd SUV for the space & rugged area where your mountain house may be located. FREEDOM , is why anyone can buy a tour bus, or large Winnebago --OR--- one of those dumbass tiny "SmartCars" that is about the size of a Club Car or EZ-GO golf cart. The SmartCar is the most ridiculous vehicle as vehicles like a Toyota Yaris or a Honda Fit are at least as economical, and don't pollute any more than the SmartCar, and can go anywhere at any legal speed limit and even 15 to 20mph beyond such posted speed limits. TEXAS interstates have 85 MPH speed limits in rural areas..........theSmartCar does not seem safe in windy conditions of 10mph or greater, and it does not seem safe at a speed above 60 MPH.........Yes, you can argue that people ride motorcycles at 90 MPH on the INTERSTATE but in my opinion those folks are bat $h!t crazy because though life on two wheels is thrilling, but road debris, pavement imperfections, potholes, and weather conditions make motorcycle travel extremely dangerous. Folks do have the freedom to choose their means of transportation. In the State of South Carolina, the wearing of a motorcycle helmet is not required, as the born to be wild folks successfully had that helmet law repealled about thirty years ago. I guess they figured that if your body hits the pavement at a speed of 45 mph or greater, that your chance of survival is well below 2%, and as argued by the born to be wild, no helmet folks that without a helmet, they have better hearing, and situational awareness which is probably a load of bull because police helmets don't obstruct the ears and hearing isn't impacted. Hey, it is their freedom of choice and you can correctly argue that most motorcyclists do ride with greater attention and care than automobile & truck drivers, because it could be a life or death, instantly lights out dead, or fatally injured to live only a few more minutes or perhaps hours if they make any mistakes while heading down the highway looking for adventure in whatever comes their way.
Basically, unless you live very close to everything within the heart of the city, like NYC where one can take the subway or walk, you probably need a car. Having an automobile in NYC is costly and not practical for most because you essentially have to lease a parking space to store said automobile. You cannot spend all of your time seeking a public parking space, and then constantly moving said car to another public parking space, repeatedly 'round the clock, competing with thousands of other folks seeking the same public parking spaces. As you do realize, the public spaces will limit you to probably six hours or less, so you'd be up 24 hours a day just trying to play musical chairs moving your car from public space to public space. This cannot be successfully done! If you wish to own a vehicle in NYC, you will have to spend a substantial amount of dough to lease a space in a parking garage. This does not make practical sense and isn't cost effective for someone who does not have a very high annual income. Still, who is to say, if you have the bucks to do it and you wanna keep a 63 POS Ford Truck or a 2021 Rolls-Royce in your leased space, you can do that, or you can lease spaces for both. When they're super rich, they refer to them as eccentric instead of just idiotic but that freedom to choose applies to everyone. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness..... You are not guaranteed to become wealthy and rich. Education, hard work and luck might help you achieve a better situation in life. Nobody is going back to the cave and living off the land with no modern amenities and no motor vehicles, so this bizarre utopian all bicycle society that some of you idiots seem to hope for isn't gonna happen. Lay off of the ganga, as the THC is clouding your judgement and the mushrooms have you in a severely distorted reality.
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Old 09-20-21, 07:16 PM
  #39  
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NOLA area question: My two daughters live on the North Shore, in Covington, along with my two grandkids. It looks like we'll be moving down there at some point, at least for part of the year. We currently live in rural Western Maryland, with miles of good rural roads to ride on and easy on/off access to the C&O Canal. The roads around Covington look scary - no shoulders, only a deep ditch for rain water. Do you have to ride to a trail down there? I'm so used to going down the drive way and out onto a decent road, I'm worried that North Shore area will be a big disappointment and source of frustration.
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Old 09-21-21, 01:32 PM
  #40  
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I am trying to think what my next short essay should be..........
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