Retirement
Talk for Boomers, Seniors and Retirees
What to
do with the Rest of Your
Life? |
Episode 109 Road Trip – Part 2 - The Vehicle
We stopped every fifty miles and poured another quart of oil
into my car. Twenty-four cans of oil and twelve hundred miles later we were in Colorado Springs; that’s the way the trip went driving
west from Iowa
in the summer of 1962. It was a road trip and the car was a l954 Ford. It was
robin-egg blue and had been chopped, lowered and leaded in. It looked great.
When I bought it from a friend he had me get on the ground and look underneath
while the engine was running. “See that oil?” he asked. “The engine runs great,
but there is that major oil leak." He went on, “It will get you to Colorado as long as you
stop every fifty miles and add a quart.” The car cost me fifty dollars and the
oil three dollars and sixty cents. Imagine, 24 quarts of oil at 15 cents a
quart?
This is Retirement Talk. I’m Del Lowery.
The road trip that this podcast wants to examine will not be
taken in a car like that, nor will the costs incurred be anywhere similar. When
my wife and I decided on this road trip during our retirement years we cast
about for ideas as to what kind of a vehicle suited us the best.
Considerations included a vehicle that could be maintained
almost anywhere in the country in case of a break down or mechanical problems.
We presently own a Saab four door sedan and love it, but we have found that it
can be difficult to service if problems occur in the middle of the country. On
one of our last trips we had a towing bill of over three hundred dollars when
we had to be towed from Cody, Wyoming
to Billings, Montana.
We wanted a rig that was relatively
safe. We wanted airbags and all of that other fancy stuff. And as well as
safety we wanted a bit of comfort. When one decides to take a road trip that
could last a few months comfort becomes important.
And then there were our bicycles.
We just couldn’t live without them. We didn’t want to ignore exercise while on
the road. Plus, biking is an excellent way to get around an area and see it a
bit better than being confined inside a vehicle. Whatever we decided on had to
be able to accommodate two bikes.
We wanted a rig that would be able
to accommodate a lot of other stuff – my guitar, computer, paints, and perhaps
camping stuff. We would also need to pack clothing for all four seasons. Space
would be needed.
We looked at RVs for a short time.
I should say that I looked. Brenda was not interested even in looking. She has
never been interested in traveling in one of those. One major reason we have
both shied away from an RV is because one has it when the trip is over. What to
do with it? She refuses to even think of parking it in the driveway. Of course
there is the initial expense of purchase and then taxes, insurance, gas
consumption, etc.
Another major reason we have kept away
from an RV experience is the camp ground atmosphere or experience. When we
travel to Montana, we like to talk to people
who live in Montana.
We like to stop in local restaurants, coffee shops and hotels. When we go to Louisiana we want to talk to people who live in Louisiana. I have heard
lots of tales of campground life and meeting the different people there who
come from all over. I can understand why that might be enjoyable but that just
isn’t why we travel. We really prefer to meet people who live in the areas we
are passing through even if it is just for casual conversation. Besides these things, every time we look into
an RV I get claustrophobia. They just seem so confining. Plus there is the
problem of driving a big rig and parking it. Today’s gas prices don’t help
either. I have a friend that took one short trip this year in his RV. “What
with these gas prices I’m not going very far from home,” he said. All in all,
we never got very close to choosing an RV. I know people who really like them
and they have their reasons. Those reasons just don’t resonate for us. An
earlier podcast dealt with RV travel from some experts.
Considering all of our likes and
dislikes we bought another car: a Lexus RX300. Not a new one. We are not rich. It
is nine years old and has high mileage – just like my mechanic advised. We have
sold our Saab and are still a one car family. The Lexus has very high ratings
concerning safety, reliability and comfort. It also provides us with space for
our stuff and with the addition of a bike rack we are set. It is a pretty fancy
car, but it is older. It wasn’t expensive, and meets all of our demands. We
will see how it works out on the trip.
The trip is one step closer to
happening. We bought the car, had the new hitch and bike rack installed and
Brenda made a map of the country that we can roll out and see where we are
going; the major stopping points, the distance between them, and the places we
will be staying – names, addresses, phone numbers and dates. I tried to find a
map that would serve our needs and couldn’t find one. We ended up buying some
big sheets of white paper and she just drew one. I wanted to be able to write
on it.
The Epicurean Cult of Happiness is
having its expected effect. The anticipation is making each day just a bit more
satisfying and sometimes even exciting.
This is Retirement Talk.