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Oh yes, and the prices of these setups are eye-watering. And integrated shifters that nobody can repair, 12-speed rear sprockets and delicate chains, and disc brakes - it’s all very complicated, expensive and designed with short service lifes. I am very old school. My bicycles are all lugged steel frames, with classic components - but I am in the minority and a lot of these elegant old components are no longer available or being phased out

I took the cargo van up to Des Moines yesterday (which we bought for my wife's business), and was noticing that it's getting pretty rusty. Luckily, my son's best friend's dad owns and runs a local body shop. The guy also happens to be a phenomenal trumpeter! Many of us blue collar guys have hidden talents. The reason that this relates to the larger topic is because this family is of a rather conservative Christian nature, but in the end have accepted me as I am because I guess they figure I'm an all right guy after all. Actions and character evidently speak louder than shoes.

Bicycles really come with electric shifting these days? So, a battery is required? Oh brother....

Actually I can tie up just anywhere - or nearly so. Life on the canals is one of the last vestiges of genuine freedom left to us these days. As a continuous cruiser - one with no home mooring - I can tie up along the towpath pretty much anywhere I like along our 2000-mile canal network, free of charge, as long as I move on every fourteen days. That can be the heart of London, Birmingham, Manchester or Leeds or some remote stretch of countryside in the Pennines or rural Wales.

My wife and I still do this, but not always on Sundays. She will often say, "lets take the long way home", so we do, or go for an afternoon ride after church. It's fun, gets us out of the house and lets us explore new places we have not been before, or not been in a long time. With cars that get 35-40 miles per gallon, it really is not an expensive outing. But part of that is the different culture I think between the US and Europe. We just have limited public transport because of the size of the United States. I do not live in a state that is even considered big but yet my state and the entirety of Ireland is the exact same size. Sadly, I do live in a state that has annual car inspections, and without question that is a HUGE factor of the lifespan of a car. For now its reasonable though because we do not have smog requirements so its only mechanical in nature. The sad part is the inspections really only hurt the poor because if a car does not pass inspection, they just drive it anyway, or go to a facility where they can bribe the mechanic to get it to pass. There is actually talk about the state doing away with inspections because it is such a scam for the populace. And getting a good mechanic you can trust has been a huge reason I have pushed every car I have ever gotten past the 250,000 mile mark. I really rely on them, making sure they know I will invest money in my car as long as they think it will pass inspection for another year or more years. But even then, I have been told, "this will be the last year", but yet I have gotten two more years more after they said that. Part of that is keeping the car looking good. Taking care of any rust so it looks like a solid car. I feel your pain, but for us it is with airplane mechanics. We have a few small engine planes in the family and because of the rigorous requirements of aviation mechanics... and for obvious reasons... it is really hard to find a good airport with a reputable mechanic. We have one now but honestly have no idea how long he will stay there or even keep working before he retires. He is worth his high pay, but also making him worth his value is the airport. One of our planes has floats, one has wheels, and one has both floats and wheels both, and this airport has both a river to land on, or adjacent to it; an asphalt runway. The airport is 1-1/2 hours by car from the house but still worth it to us because some of the camps we own are 6 hours drive by car. Its actually faster to drive to the airport and take the float plane in to some of the camps then drive to them because the lakes are big enough to land and take off on. But I am sure it is the same way on the canals with your boat. You cannot just tie up anywhere so there are a lot of factors that go into your decision on where you tie up your vessel, who you have work on it, and where you take it. I fully understand how hard it can be to make everything work.

Much the same can be said about narrowboats - finding a competent marine engineer is a total crapshoot. And the relentless drive for more complexity and flashy new technology is making it harder than ever to maintain anything yourself, assuming you gave the tools, workspace and the aptitude for such things. i am a qualified bicycle mechanic but most of my skills are becoming obsolete with the new fanged technology like electronic shifting etc. None of it is necessary or wanted by all. It is just being foisted on us by profit driven companies offering expensive solutions to problems that don’t really exist, and selling us in the idea that we must have these things. And raking away alternatives. its nothing new though. Many years ago - decades - E.B. While writes charming essay called Farewell Model T, lamenting the fact that cars used to be repairable by anyone, and how you could just order whatever parts you needed through a mail order catalogue like Sears, roll up you sleeves and fix whatever needed fixing. That simplicity was vanishing even in his day. It’s gone forever now.

This "keep the old car and fix it" is a controversial topic indeed. For many, it makes good sense. The posts made here are from somewhat mechanical folks who know how to care for a car, and "listen to it", knowing when something isn't quite right, and get it in for service before a major breakdown/expense. They keep up on maintenance also, without having to be reminded by their repair shop, let's say "proactive". The other part of the equation is finding a good shop that is trustworthy and has had experience with your particular vehicle. Shops like this can be tough to find, many car owners make the mistake of shopping for the lowest repair quotes and bouncing around from one facility to another. It is important to have a bit of a "relationship" with your shop, they know you and your car, you can trust them. Long time repeat customers are bound to get better service. Unfortunately, this is just not the reality for most folks. Busy life styles with kids (especially kids who drive), tight schedules, lack of basic mechanical knowledge and skills are more the norm. Many folks (especially with kids) don't have a lot of cash to spare, proactive car maintenance ends up taking a back seat. Owners often end up going to second rate shops only to end up with ridiculous estimates, only to be followed up by more breakdowns even after forking over big bucks. Sure, some cars are better than others. But, even the most reliable cars can be taken down quickly by poor maintenance, driving habits, and inexperienced/uncaring repair facilities. On the other hand, cars not known for great reliability can sometimes give good service to more proactive drivers and service shops that are familiar/experienced with their particular vehicle. Needless to say, pouring money into a rusted car is a waste. Sometimes you just need to know when to give up on a car. I can appreciate drivers who prefer to get new(er) cars, drive them for a few years doing only basic maintenance, then trading them in while they still have decent value. More expensive, sure, but it is super easy these days to pour money down the drain continuously on their current car. Needless to say, one needs to be in a good enough financial position to buy new and trade in after a few years. This was "the norm" back in "days gone by" when I was a kid. The problem is that folks who can least afford such a luxury are often forced to make poor financial decisions when the old car they have been driving and driving finally just "gives up". Many would wonder why I "gave up" on my 09 Camry. Well, I did manage to get 220K miles out of the original 2.4L engine, the ones that are known for burning oil. Toyota did have a campaign to rebuild them, but mine did not use enough oil to qualify, only because I am super proactive about oil and all fluid changes. The only way to properly repair the engine at this point would be to install a factory fresh "short block" with all the improved bits/pieces that resolve the oil burning issues. I would not trust most shops to "rebuild" my engine, and these modern engines can not be bored oversize. I was amazed to learn that you should not even attempt to machine the block deck, because that will affect the timing chain's relationship to all those crazy cam shafts and gears causing computer issues. Because I change my own oil, I could see what the northeast winters have done to the underside of this car (replaced the rusted oil pan this fall). If I was to go ahead with the new short block, I would certainly want a new clutch, water pump, alternator while the engine was out on a stand. (Radiator and starter are new). Needless to say, I would want the head gone through while it was off as well. This repair would have to cost upwards of $7K, and I probably would have spent that money on it if was a car from the west coast/southern region. So, I made the decision to get a newer car, forked over the $20K. Everyone said, and they are right, you should buy a new car. I would have, but can't really justify spending $45-50K. Wanted no part of a car that shuts at stop lights, has "direct fuel injection", and an 8 speed transmission. The jury is still out on whether or not I found a good used car. Slowly discovering little things that upset me about how it was cared for, along with the fact that someone installed some idiotic "remote start" and alarm system, along with aftermarket tail lights. Needless to say, I will have that system removed and eventually replace the tail lights with stock pieces. I will probably invest another $2-3K to get this vehicle in the mechanical shape it would have been in had I owned it since new. Oh well, don't have to drive back and forth to Boston anymore, so won't be racking up the miles, hoping this might be the last car I have to purchase.