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Thread: The Demise of Our Hobby

  1. #1
    Senior Member CurtEgerer's Avatar
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    The Demise of Our Hobby

    Interesting statistics in a recent article in Hagerty magazine.

    No Hobby for Young Men

    69% of 16 year olds and 51% of 17 year olds in the US didn't have a driver's license in 2008 I don't think I knew of a single person when I was that age who didn't have a driver's license. In fact, it seems like a driver's license was THE main goal in life. 75% of car hobbyists are older than 46. Cars were a hobby for me when I was 16 and that was not at all unusual.


  2. #2
    Like you said Curt, a driver's license when you turned 16 was more important than food at that time, did the article state why the difference now?
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    This does not surprise me. I have a sample of 2 teens. Myoldest, now 17, could not wait until she was 15 to get her learners permit (she started bugging me at 14) and have me teach her to drive. My 15 1/2 yr old still has not shown the slightest interest in learning to drive.

    Add to this attitude the lack of Automechanics classes in High School, the general media distain for cars and motorsports and you hav ethe perfect storm discribed here.

    Are we going the route of the 40-50's hot rodders?
    Harry

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    Senior Member Jim Garfield's Avatar
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    If I can just outlive all you old coots, I'll be buying up the esses when the prices plummet..... Oh wait, I am an old coot. Bad timing on my part.
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    Tacos Gordo Chapulines Reza's Avatar
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    we'll become like vinyl records, outdated, but timeless.

    who cares.

    i try to plant trees and ride buses like the best of them, but i know i commit planetary despoilaxation with every tankful used up in the 911's. but all us airplane riding masses are doing the same thing. Planetary smokeification.

    i'm reading a book now 'country driving' by hessler. highly recommended. About the rise of the automobile in china. 1,500 new drivers licenses a day, in one city alone, and nowhere to drive it. and a maddening traffic culture. They will collect vintage cars one day. Just like Japan has caught up in the 70s, 80s and 90s.

    china today drives on the right side, because in World War 2, the american troops helping in the south constantly had road wrecks with the up till then left/british side driving. The american general said 'we have a problem', and the dictator of china said, we'll switch over.

    Reza

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  6. #6
    Moderator Chuck Miller's Avatar
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    With the addition that these unskilled, un'auto'motivated, and distracted young people (and lots of older ones as well), that think of driving as a 'dreaded convenience', are surrounding us every minute on the highway............. That is until we get'm on an open stretch road.

    ... be afraid, be very afraid
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  7. #7
    Senior Member CurtEgerer's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by edmayo View Post
    Like you said Curt, a driver's license when you turned 16 was more important than food at that time, did the article state why the difference now?
    The article is spot-on: “Many of today’s young people living in a more urban society learn to live without cars,” Brown says. “They socialize on the Internet and on smartphones, not in cars.”

    We were NEVER home once we got driver's licenses. That was the main point in getting one: freedom. We could all drive somewhere, meet and hang out. Now that is done electronically without getting out of the chair.

    They also mention the complexity of new cars, to the point of making even an oil-change in some cars quite a project these days (my '06 Audi A4 would qualify here!).

    Let's face it, we lived in a golden era (and its not quite over yet!).

    Maybe 20 years from now when these kids grow up, they'll collect vintage iPhones. They'll sit around and text each other the old-fashioned way when you still had to use a keyboard and complain how kids these days with their fancy teleportation machines just don't know what they missed

  8. #8
    Yeah, well wait till these "modern" kids try to make out in the back seat of an i-phone !!! They may think texting nude pictures of themselves is cool, but wait till they find out that that is only the first small step!!
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  9. #9
    Senior Member CurtEgerer's Avatar
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    Fear not. They don't have us beat just yet. Actually getting in a car and driving coast to coast is still quicker (and maybe just a bit more fun ...) than doing the same trip via your keyboard & Google Street View - it took 90 hours and 104,000 clicks!

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    Last edited by CurtEgerer; 12-12-2010 at 05:30 PM.

  10. #10
    Senior Member boba's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by CurtEgerer View Post
    Fear not. They don't have us beat just yet. Actually getting in a car and driving coast to coast is still quicker (and maybe just a bit more fun ...) than doing the same trip via your keyboard & Google Street View - it took 90 hours and 104,000 clicks!
    WHY? I just do not get it.

    They must say the same about us driving cross country, but at least we got somewhere else. They are still in the same place.
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