Beard yes, old, never, still shy of 55.

Owned first bug at 17 and bus at 19.  Always blind but started learning to fix them immediately from family.

Eric Caron 

> On Feb 15, 2020, at 11:34 AM, Douglas Toomey <drt@UOREGON.EDU> wrote:
> 
> 60 years, no beard, have had the same westy for more than half my life. Keeps me young
> 
>> On Feb 14, 2020, at 9:50 PM, Roger Whittaker <rogerwhitt1@gmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> Dear old fart
>> 
>> Indeed -
>> 
>>> On Fri, Feb 14, 2020 at 7:24 PM Richard Smith <smirby@gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Being an old fart myself (60), I feel like I can weigh in. My vanagon
>>> experience dates back only to 2013. Back in the 80s I had a bus (a '73) but
>>> I was ignorant of it being a community or cultural object (we didn't have
>>> the internet to give us hashtags), and other than giving the peace sign to
>>> other VW drivers, I just drove it. Across Canada. Twice. In the winter, in
>>> Manitoba. Oh my god, it was cold.
>>> 
>>> When it broke, I borrowed the John Muir book, complete with hand-drawn
>>> instructions, and pulled the engine to fix the transmission. I had NO CLUE
>>> what I was doing, no advice from anyone, other than one very unreliable
>>> buddy. I would have loved to have had a community of people to help. Even
>>> stranger, this was in Vancouver. The place was thick with (weed smoking)
>>> bus drivers... how did I not find them. Again, pre-internet it was harder
>>> to do...
>>> 
>>> Anyway, nowadays I fix what I can and get a mechanic to do the more
>>> complicated stuff. I love the list (and the facebook groups) and have gone
>>> to a few PNW meet ups in Washington State and British Colombia. Most of the
>>> people at those events are 50+, with some exceptions. Some young families,
>>> the occasional single guy or gal. None are what you'd call #hashtag people.
>>> Perhaps those people don't go to meetups?
>>> 
>>> I am really glad to have the list, and the facebook groups, even if it
>>> sometimes makes me paranoid (what with regularly posting their flatbed
>>> photos). Lately I've added another layer of paranoia: the postings about
>>> stolen vans.
>>> 
>>> To Alistair's original point, that old farts are less likely to buy
>>> (expensive) add-ons, I have to semi-agree. I try to keep my van (more or
>>> less) original, and I hesitate to add too much extra stuff. But when
>>> something really good comes along (like those pop-top lift assist struts!),
>>> then I am willing to make the investment. A couple of years ago, after a
>>> tire store guy backed the van into a bollard I added some nice tough
>>> bumpers. In those situations I am inclined to go for quality, and I'm
>>> willing to pay what it costs to get that quality.
>>> 
>>> My two cents (even though we don't have pennies in Canada any more).
>>> 
>>> ...r
>>> 
>> --
>> roger whittaker 604.414.6266
>> 
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