Reason Number 489 Why Mothers Should Surf
It's a word that strikes terror into the hearts of moms who are still trying maintain an identity separate from their children:
MINIVANS
I hate them and all that they represent . . . or so I thought. If you'd asked me five years ago whether I'd buy a minivan once I had a child, I would have answered, "OH, HELL NO!" But I wasn't surfing five years ago. Now, to my chagrin, the idea of a minivan is somewhat attractive. I only have the one child so it's not like a minivan is a necessity. However, with four surfboards in the family, I'd like to have a vehicle with some space. See, I'm one of those pseudo-environmentalists (my term for myself) who is opposed to SUVs because of the damage they do to the environment. So an SUV is out of the question. That leaves a minivan as the only option. I like the VW EuroVan. It doesn't have that "soccer mom" stigma. Unfortunately, it's also a piece of junk.
And there's the rub. The EuroVan is cool. It doesn't scream middle-America, hot dogs, baseball, and apple pie. Those of you who know me know that stuff is just not me. But the good thing about surfing is at least you can justify owning a minivan. Right? Wrong? I like the Honda Odyssey, especially since it's a ride you can pimp (not that I would).
Perhaps I'm just bitter. I gave up a car I loved—a Subaru WRX—once I had my child. I don't blame him though. The truth is that I cannot drive a fast car slowly. A fast car is meant to be driven fast . . . unless you have a baby in the rear seat. I knew it was time to let the car go when I raced a Honda on the Marina freeway at about 100 miles an hour. And, yes, my baby was in the car. I traded the WRX in not long after that event. (Who won? I did, of course!) Now I'm in an extremely under-powered station wagon. The good thing is that I can get the 9'6" in it when I need to. The bad thing is there are times when I'd like to have two boards at the beach and it would be nice to have something in which I can transport several boards (and the child). Thus the reason why I'm giving thought to a minivan.
posted by Surfsister @ 16:22
5 comments
5 Comments:
in all honesty, those honda elements are pretty cool surf vehicles, though low on the power scale... another option, in a word, racks. slap em on whatever, and your boards go too! could be worse, you could be driving a pontiac aztek(shudder)...
Can't get a 9'6" log in an Element. I also don't like that you have to open the front door in order to open the back door. I have racks on my car. But unlike so many others, I trust no one and never leave a board on top of my car (unless I'm in my own neighborhood since no one there surfs so no one steals boards).
I just test-drove a Prius sedan. We opened up the hatchback and folded down all the seats. I think I'm going to be able to get my 9'7" in there! I should have brought my surfboard to the dealership to see for sure... But Greg gets his 9'8" Tyler into his Audi sedan, so I don't see why this won't work.
Don't forget. I'm talking about putting putting two boards in a vehicle along with a carseat that is always anchored to the backseat. Crustyripper, the mileage of minivans doesn't appeal to me. However, I think the emissions standards for minivans are similar to those for cars (whereas the standards for SUVs are similar to those for trucks). I won't be getting a new vehicle any time soon. I can't afford it. I'm still paying for surfboards!
Crustyripper -- I thought about getting the Toyota Matrix and it's still a consideration, but I'm sold on the Prius because the emissions are 90% lower than regular gasoline engines. I might as well be doing something good for the environment if I'm buying new.
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