Car not needed.

It is so good to see you, IWW!


Sounds like a lovely place to live.

That sounds like a good plan, wouldn't work for us tho. Even if my wife and I were retired we would still need cars, once I get to the end of our road we live on its always conjested. It wasn't that way thirty years ago when I built our house but nothing ever stays the same. The one thing a neighboring town has that is a good idea is golf cart paths, Peachtree City Ga. Has probably the most cart paths in the U.S. even high school kids drive them to school.

Anne,

It's great to hear that you have some improvements in your health. Silverbear and I often discuss your contributions to the forum and wonder how you are doing and miss your posts as everyone else here does.

There will be a velocar in my near future. Just as soon as the tricar can be done. We have the same problem with gas prices though they are not as sever as yours. Most of our travel is with in 3 miles of the house and a nice electric powered velo would not only be inexpensive in the long run but fun as well.

Having someone who understands batteries in residence makes thins a lot easier.

Steve.

Great to hear from you IW. When I worked in Downtown Houston, it was cheaper to take the bus than to drive and park as you mentioned. I often rode my motorized bike to the bus park. There is not a bus route that applies to my current commute and the roads are not suitable for motorized bikes (high speed limit).
-It's not really a goal of mine to get rid of my truck. I do want to drive it only when I need a truck or when the weather dictates. When I ride my motor scooter to work, it requires a quarter of the fuel that my truck uses.
There is not one transportation solution that fits all. As roads, destinations and bus routes change, your your transportation solution will also change.

I cant help but notice- one of the worlds most economical vehicle with just the opposite parked in the background.

I wish i could do away with my fuel guzzling vehicles, but here they are necessary. 11 km to work, nearest city 80 km away.
At 1.20/ litre or roughly 5.00 gallon my fuel bill is high.

Its interesting to turn an un-needed vehicle into something that will actually make life easier.
Building an e-vehicle would be a fun project.

Hey W/B if I zoom in real close I can see the 24 hour pizza bar on the ship!

Buses are fine, but useless for getting guitars and amps on and off, and they stop running before the gig's over.

"I cant help but notice- one of the worlds most economical vehicle with just the opposite parked in the background. "
I think floating over water is still the most fuel efficient way to move heavy freight. I don't think it's the most fuel efficient way to move people though.

Not to usurp your thread ofc Intrepid, rather in support I thought I'd mention that I've subscribed to the "Car not needed" philosophy for just a bit over a decade now, with mixed feelings, causality & consequence all.

While I love anything with an engine, even adore it if it's motorized transport of some sort - I started to become disenchanted not with the machinery, but the environment in which it's often used. Not the trees and grass and sunny sunshine naturally, but the infrastructure of both control & support, the usual questions regarding enforcement & costs of coverage, the pricing of proprietary parts & our favorite, fuel.

I prefer motorcycles (street legal dirtbikes actually) but am almost as fond of vintage military vehicles, restoring a few as daily drivers in a delightful turnabout in usage (this "recycling" always amused me) - I've dabbled a bit in creating my own automobiles, extensive modifications as well as ground up builds with sandrail chassis converted for street use. I drove commercially for years, my favorite employment ever was as an independent wrecker operator, driving my own tow trucks the last of which I'd also built customized to my specifications & useage. After some time & growing irritated with the confines of the streets & even trails, I built a craft & took to the air with ultralight aviation... and in many ways this was the beginning of the end for me.

In the US, even now - you need no paperwork to fly a legally compliant ultralight aircraft, no inspection, no insurance, no license, there's not even any numbers on the plane, no registration needed. All that controls you (other then the air ofc) would be the set criteria for compliance, essentially limitations on speed & weight and single occupancy only, as well as the normal flight restrictions that apply to all aircraft according to type & location (military, no fly zones, etc). It's quite generous in it's allotments considering & in many ways not dissimilar to how motorized bicycles are classified here, in most regions.

The freedom nearly unparalleled even what little enforcement there is would be drastically different in intent & execution. We're all familiar with ...some at least somewhat questionable automotive traffic laws, their enforcement & the motivations behind it, I'll skip that for obvious reasons. The "sky cops" are utterly different, only superficially resembling street patrols. For example filing a "flight plan" (calling in destination & ETA) is voluntary for non-commercial, private flights - should you decide to avail yourself of this service & fail to call in on arrival, they really will send out search teams in a concerted effort to save your silly self, up to & including the National Guard, with all their resources from dogs to spotter aircraft, even satellites.

You'd have to be doing something really, really wrong to attract their negative attention - except for the border patrols, or at major state & international commercial & military airports (again, obv reasons) they really don't lurk behind trees waiting to trap you for five over, there's no random stops or searches, no patrols - they're concerned with your health & well being, if they're concerned at all.

In that vein the "end of the end" for me was I then moved onto a small sailing craft, living aboard the wee lil sloop aptly named 'Serenity' (usually apt anyway lol). Not only is there little to no fuel required for such, the one-time registration not even necessary unless you've a motor and/or commercial use, the no license or insurance required similar to ultralight aircraft, as is the intent & actions of the "water cops" or the Coast Guard as they prefer to be called. Granted, they're a bit more strict & active then their air equivalent, they will stop for spot checks or whatever, but there's a lot more illegal shenanigans on the water then the air, so that's not really surprising. Their actual primary goal is the same however, saving your silly self from yourself more often then not - and they'll risk death to do it, without a pause or second thought.

Needless to say I didn't have a car while I was a cruising livaboard, there's no place to park & they've a habit of sinking, that being the beginning of the beginning of bicycles for me, if as yet unmotorized.

Time passes, stuff happens & reluctantly though it defo was I ended up back ashore again, punching the time clock & commuting much like most. It wasn't until this drastic change in lifestyle had I ever truly appreciated just how cumbersome a car really is, having spent the majority of my life rationalizing them in some way I'd never just gone without one, the support & services they demand and the enforcement they incur. Exactly like the old anecdote describing a frog slowly being boiled alive, I'd noticed... but hadn't really noticed just how hot it really was.

In contrast this time, I found myself taken from a cool spring mornin' & suddenly dumped into a scalding cesspit. Stunned & still considering options, gasoline hit $5 a gallon here & took them all away as far as I was concerned. I'm not against autos & the like, I simply won't play the game anymore, no more numbers for me.


...and here I be, playing with bicycles & still sometimes wondering what the heck happened lol

Good story.

From age 5 to age drivers license I rode a bike wherever I went. If I was out the house my bike was with me. As I got older my friends started hitchhiking, not me, I was still on the bike. After DL, I never got on the bike again.

My job was sales and field support and a lot of jobs I had came with a company paid car, so I didn't have to pay. Which was pretty cool. I have never bought a new car. New motorcycles yes, new cars no.

I just love motorcycles -

Now I'm retired with a 2003 Taurus, 3 motorcycles and 5 motorized bicycles. Which is the proper amount of cars and motorcycles for me and a few extra motorbikes which I plan to get rid of. I think 3 motorized bicycles will be the proper amount.

What's next? More walking. Need to get into the "mile a day" thing for health and excercise.

So, I'm a cager, a biker, a motor-biker and a pedestrian. Whatever tool best fits the application.

One of these days I'm gonna get another old used crappy boat with a reliable motor and go fishing again. Then I'll be a boater too -

I am finally at that stage where my Dodge Caravan is almost strictly for urgent/emergency situations or whole-family transportation. As such, it is used very seldom. It's paid for, and my insurance on it is very cheap, so no big deal. It's been hard-used so it's earned a partial retirement.
I have some stores within walking distance, and have slowly been losing weight getting to them that way. Or I will hop on the motorbike.
But most heartening of all is this (originally) backwards town's change in attitude toward bicyclists and public transportation. A number of people are still warming up to both, but just the recent progress is very positive: more and more bike lanes added monthly, expansions on the bus schedules and extensions on the routes, bike rental stations, tool-and-repair stations, etc. The acceptance among cagers is very slow in coming, but I have seen it coming. The complaining is dying down as more of them (who now see the merit in trying to buy less of the increasingly expensive gas) join the ranks of bus-riders and pedal-pushers. I honestly never thought I'd see it in my lifetime, in this set-in-its-ways hayseed of a town, but you know - Hoosiers are starting to get it. It's actually been a good long while since I've seen somebody come out of their house in pajamas and drive their car down to the end of the driveway to fetch their mail from the box, or use a Hummer to drive HALF A BLOCK (neighbor I knew on the east side) to a convenience store. They're catching on.

Sounds idyllic Anne.

Around here a car is a necessity for most anyone.
I run the sidehack as a truck when I can, but I must admit with daytime temps here in the 40 to 43c range pedaling is not something you want to do much of.

For bigger stuff I have a truck. It sits in the driveway a lot, but it is still necessary. My other property is 90 miles away, so the MB is a no-go for that trip.

Our public transportation here is a joke, and a two hour bus ride surrounded by foul smelling riffraff just to get from one side of town to the other is just not on my to-do list. I envy your bus system.

B.

Where I live, public transit is viewed as a conveyance for the under-privileged (shameful). Therefore the routes are only in certain parts of town. I live on the outskirts of OKC (city limits extend about 35 miles north to south & east to west). The nearest bus route is about 7 miles from my house and doesn't go where I would need to go. I would use it if it were an option for me.

Hello Anne,
It is nice to see you posting. I hope that is a reflection of improving health and optimism. I also hope to see some kind of progress on your cyclecar project, wanting to someday see a video of your Villiars midget engine powering a three wheeled contraption with the IWW behind the wheel, smiling at the camera.

Plans with your daughter to go electric are intriguing. Perhaps she could provide part of the muscle in putting together your cyclecar with promises of her being able to use it, too. Perhaps it could even be of hybrid design, not only the little Villiars and pedals, but also an electric motor. It could provide moderate exercise, quiet stealth and extended range all in one vehicle. Being a bit larger it could serve you in the same way your sidecars used to do, transporting goods from town or the district tipster (I believe that's what you call it).

I once had aspirations for my own cyclecar, but have let that go. Where I live it is winter more of the year than not winter, so an enclosed vehicle with heat which can operate in severe sub zero temperatures is needed. The nearest town is twelve miles away and the road must be shared with everything from semi-trucks to logging rigs to speeding cars and trucks. It is not really motor bicycle friendly... so my motored projects are much more for fun than for transportation. To ward off the temptation of yet another involved project I am giving away to Fasteddy those things I had set aside for the cyclecar... front wheel steering assembly from a golf cart, 212 cc Predator engine with Mikuni carb. New CVT transmission if he wants it. When they are gone, so will be the temptation. He has been generous to me with his labor, vintage engines and wise council. This is my opportunity to get even. Ha!

As close as I'll come to the cyclecar dream will be my Indian Hiawatha tri-car and even that will be for fun and not really for transportation. I do have high hopes for a more practical hybrid delta trike we're working on which is using a villiars/Atco mower engine/transmission setup along with a Golden Motor front wheel for electric. Before the economic downturn a few years back our county was building an extensive bike trail using for the most part former railroad right of ways upgraded to asphalt to connect one small town to another up here in the lake country of northern Minnesota. Unfortunately the last leg of this planned system was the one connecting the two communities I live mid way between. It would have passed close by without any need to use the highway to ride to town on a pedal or electric bicycle. I'm hoping it will eventually be finished as the economy picks up and for that my hybrid trike may be just the ticket. I can use the gas engine until I hit the bike trail through the forest (it even passes through the middle of a smallish lake on the old railroad grade) so should be a beautiful ride using the electric motor for silent running. Once in town I can return to using the gas engine. With the truck bed on back I can haul my exchange of library books, case of beer and groceries back home again. Aaniimoosh The Wonder Dog will be relegated to a kiddie trailer. If I only average 10 or 15 miles per hour, it is still a nice jaunt through the forest taking around an hour each way. Being watchful of deer and bear or the occasional moose or other bikers is a good reason to go slowly. So that's what I have in mind for the hybrid delta trike, displacing any imagined need for a cyclecar.

You can see how I need for you to complete yours, so that I can vicariously go for a virtual ride now and then through the New Zealand landscape. This may require the help of your daughter and an occasional video to keep up the illusion. Lots of us would like to see you realize your dream. If there is any way I can help by sending a part you need, let your needs be known. No doubt others feel the same way. Your healing is our healing.

A hug to you, dear friend. Be well please, and pass along a hello to your girl from an old bear in Minnesota.
SB