If you have thought about leaving the hobby...

[hbelkins]

If you have ever thought about leaving the hobby, what was your reason or motivation?

It's not necessary to travel a lot to be a roadgeek. The Internet makes it possible to participate even if you don't roadtrip a lot or don't/can't go to meets.

But if you've ever thought about quitting or cutting back significantly, or if you have scaled back your interest, what prompted it?

Curious because I'm giving serious thought to doing so, for a couple of very unrelated reasons.

[Takumi]

For the most part, I've gone off the radar from it in the past 18 months or so, due to other hobbies taking precedent. I even spent a few months away from the forum and deactivated my Facebook for various reasons. (Most of my posts since my return have been here in Off-Topic, and I have no plans to reactivate my FB anytime soon.) First, my project car, then starting to collect vinyl records again. Both are expensive hobbies. I do take the car out for meandering drives sometimes, but it's mostly back roads that don't have much of anything people here would find interesting. I don't even take my camera anymore. I'm keeping busy, though.

[US71]

If you have ever thought about leaving the hobby, what was your reason or motivation?

It's not necessary to travel a lot to be a roadgeek. The Internet makes it possible to participate even if you don't roadtrip a lot or don't/can't go to meets.

But if you've ever thought about quitting or cutting back significantly, or if you have scaled back your interest, what prompted it?

Curious because I'm giving serious thought to doing so, for a couple of very unrelated reasons.

I wish I had MORE time and more money.

[Pete from Boston]

The older you get, the less unlimited a pool of time there is to just "drive around." 

Gas is much more expensive than it was.

There are so many people on the internet now and so many cameras now, there's not as much mystery left.

So I spend far less time driving for driving's sake, just to see roads.

[US71]

The older you get, the less unlimited a pool of time there is to just "drive around." 

Gas is much more expensive than it was.

There are so many people on the internet now and so many cameras now, there's not as much mystery left.

So I spend far less time driving for driving's sake, just to see roads.

I work for myself, so I just find new ways to get where I'm going

[GCrites]

Once I started working full time I pretty much had to quit. I've never been able to land a 9-5 job, so the Work Monster has always been lurking in the background. 2 days off in a row and vacations just didn't happen and still don't. Now I am a multiple business owner, so my participation is still limited to the internet.

But luckily, you guys create a lot of content. "Geeks" create the most internet content -- with sports fans a close second.

[briantroutman]

I never believed that there was a minimum level of activity (routes clinched, photos taken, posts authored, meets attended) required. In my opinion, simply being weird enough to be interested in highways for their own sake qualifies you as a roadgeek.

What you do beyond that is as your schedule and budget permits but is certainly not a prerequisite.

[SSOWorld]

Curious because I'm giving serious thought to doing so, for a couple of very unrelated reasons.

HB, you'll always have it as a hobby, even if you stop going to meets, quit driving just to drive or stop posting on AARoads or (if it was still active - MTR.  I understand your limits (won't mention out of respect)

I personally have been drained of my enthusiasm to drive the nation by the last few years.   Two reasons: one - two ultimate goals achieved in the road trip world (NYC and driving out west to CA personally) and two - very VERY frequent work related travel.  I also needed variety, which was why I bought a house and want to put more energy into it and my job.   All the same, I'm still active here on this forum and Facebook, and have the drive to do local road trips - I took one to Milwaukee for two reasons, 1) to check out the now appropriate Wisconsin freeway speed limit and congratulate my home state for catching up with the rest of the US (save Oregon) and to view the Zoo Interchange and newest redundant Interstate in the nation.  (For those calling me a NIMBY for saying this - too bad.)

I still consider this a hobby - just approaching it differently now.  As Tony Stark had put it in Iron Man Three "I am Iron Man".

[noelbotevera]

and to view the Zoo Interchange and newest redundant Interstate in the nation.  (For those calling me a NIMBY for saying this - too bad.)

Not a NIMBY just for that (I agree with you wholeheartedly unless they would have gone further with I-55) rather for your remarks that the speed limit doesn't matter.

Sure ain't NIMBYism.

I'm with roads to the end of the line.I had an unstable quitting feeling due to:

How rough this forumcan get
Unable to get my hands on a decent camera
Unable to get my own laptop
Age.

Fixed quote. - rmf67

[nexus73]

The love of roads is no hobby for me, it is part of my life and has been since I first became aware of such a thing as roads when I was a tiny child.  If it involved communication and transportation, it got my attention then and still does!

One might as well tell me to quit breathing...LOL!

Rick

[jeffandnicole]

Maybe taking a break, especially when I get into other hobbies, such as my Christmas Light decorating.  Leaving?  For me that's tough to do!

[hbelkins]

I understand your limits (won't mention out of respect)

I've made it no secret. I'm in financial straits. Six years with a net loss of income due to no raises and furloughs, plus an increase in taxes, means less money to use to meet increasing costs. So there's nothing extra left to use for discretionary expenses. It was a major accomplishment for me to find the extra gas money to go take pictures of the new future US 460 a few weeks ago. That's likely to be it for voluntary travel for me this year unless a miracle happens.

[Brandon]

Too many Repub-a-dub-dubs in the hobby. And mods deleting posts.

Agreed.

If it were not for his insults directed at people who think differently than he, then his posts would not be deleted by the mods.  "Repub-a-dub-dub" is just as much an insult as "Dumb-o-crat", don't you think?

[Pete from Boston]

Every adult knows that jokes about politics don't stay jokes for long unless everybody agrees with you politically.

[US71]

I understand your limits (won't mention out of respect)

I've made it no secret. I'm in financial straits. Six years with a net loss of income due to no raises and furloughs, plus an increase in taxes, means less money to use to meet increasing costs. So there's nothing extra left to use for discretionary expenses. It was a major accomplishment for me to find the extra gas money to go take pictures of the new future US 460 a few weeks ago. That's likely to be it for voluntary travel for me this year unless a miracle happens.

Will KYTC let you moonlight as a PT newspaper columnist?

[Revive 755]

There are so many people on the internet now and so many cameras now, there's not as much mystery left.

Plenty of mysteries left - AFAIK there has never been a website detailing the evolution of the freeway systems for Nashville, Charlotte, and a few other towns that I'm not thinking of at the moment.

[hbelkins]

Will KYTC let you moonlight as a PT newspaper columnist?

I'm trying to syndicate a column right now, but no one is buying content.

[US71]

Will KYTC let you moonlight as a PT newspaper columnist?

I'm trying to syndicate a column right now, but no one is buying content.

Do it on your own, then get good enough to get sponsors. My friend Kat at tiedyetravels started that way.

[Pete from Boston]

Every adult knows that jokes about politics don't stay jokes for long unless everybody agrees with you politically.

Every sane adult won't get offended by silly little things like "repub-a-dub-dub" or "dumbocrat" either.

Of course, every sane adult shouldn't be a sheep who stays on their chosen side of the fence for every issue.

Nor hide behind one-point white text.

[hbelkins]

Do it on your own, then get good enough to get sponsors. My friend Kat at tiedyetravels started that way.

Three of the papers where I previously worked are running it occasionally, plus a couple of others. I'm also putting it up on a blog (I linked to it in the Marathon-buys-Hess thread because I wrote a column that ties into that discussion).

[hbelkins]

I have nothing to hide.


iPhone

Then why the snarky line of white text?

[sipes23]

I guess I've not really considered it much of a hobby so much as noticing how the world is marked for wayfinding. How we have decided to travel in this world.

I'll 'fess up to a love of travel and personal exploration of things, so that has led to some "let's go driving to see what's there" behavior. But overall, it's an extension of my experience of life and travel.

[DaBigE]

Every adult knows that jokes about politics don't stay jokes for long unless everybody agrees with you politically.

Every sane adult won't get offended by silly little things like "repub-a-dub-dub" or "dumbocrat" either.

We may not get offended, but some of us certainly do grow weary of reading it so often, especially when the most apolitical of topics* seem to quickly get pulled into partisan talking points. It comes off as childish and gets old, fast.

* Not necessarily referring to AARoads.

[busman_49]

I never thought about leaving the hobby.  I'm not a hardcore roadgeeker like many here, but what I do find from time to time interests me and I will visit and photograph what I can.  As for the rest of it, I just live vicariously through other people's posts and photos.  And maybe if I ever find myself in an area that someone else has visited, I can see the scenery for myself.

[US71]

Do it on your own, then get good enough to get sponsors. My friend Kat at tiedyetravels started that way.

Three of the papers where I previously worked are running it occasionally, plus a couple of others. I'm also putting it up on a blog (I linked to it in the Marathon-buys-Hess thread because I wrote a column that ties into that discussion).

See? That's a start!

This is not a snarky remark