ditch my bike??

[scrubbyfish]

I just can't think this one through. (Always with the math!)

12-14 years ago I bought a bike.
Paid about $800.
I like it a lot, it's very comfy for me, and I don't find many bikes comfy for me.
It has crazy shock absorption, I think, and is fat and sturdy.
I had additional gears put on, and different wheels, so now it's even awesomer.

The catch?
I haven't gotten to ride it much since I moved to Vancouver three years ago (I am rarely willing to put my kid on Vancouver streets).
I may be without a home for the next few months.
I don't have a bike rack.
Storage large enough, even with the wheel off, would cost me an additional $40/mo.

I keep hoping to move back to a place where I'm comfy riding -with my kid- straight out the front door.
That may or may not happen in a matter of days, weeks, or months.

Sell? Store? Buy a rack and drag it everywhere? Other?

[Thegoblinchief]

If you'll be traveling by car, I'd get a rack. It's nice to switch from car to bike once at a destination. Obviously that depends on how your son does with riding.

[Zikoris]

I haven't gotten to ride it much since I moved to Vancouver three years ago (I am rarely willing to put my kid on Vancouver streets).

I keep hoping to move back to a place where I'm comfy riding -with my kid- straight out the front door.

Um, what? Vancouver is one of the most bike-centric cities in Canada. We have the most massive network of bike paths connecting the entire city that I've ever seen outside of Europe. Bike culture is HUGE here.... I just don't understand your post. Why don't you bike in Vancouver?

[sheepstache]

I'm totally just responding to the sentimental attachment to an awesome bike angle.  Can't you work out a free storage option?  A relative or friend with too much house, even if they live far away?  If it's only the one-time cost driving it there, especially if it's a person you wanted to visit anyway, it makes it easier to justify keeping it.

Math for getting rid of it:
$800 plus $100 in extra parts, divided by minimum number of years used, 9, = $100 dollars a year.  So if it saved you at least $100/year while you were riding it, which I'm sure it did, it's paid for itself.  If you sell it for $200 its only $77/year. 
So, you've at least re-couped your initial investment, even if you have to sink money into another bike in the future.

[scrubbyfish]

Thanks so much, folks!

sheepstache, that math was awesome!! Thank you for that perspective. A relief to think of it that way, yes. Yeah, no one I know locally has space -they're all in a small space or sharing a house with 11 others.

Pondering your responses, I realized a few things:

-One of the reasons I'm reluctant to get rid of things is because I find it so difficult to locate things I love. Like my bike. Replacing would be a financial cost, but also one of time, energy, mental power, etc.

-I do have the option of taking them over to my mum's tomorrow (couple of hours away; $55 ferry) and storing them in the basement shared with other tenants. So, bikes could potentially be AWOL when I go to look for them, but not the end of the world.

-I could take the back wheel off too, store it boxier, so it fits inside the 4x3x4 storage unit I'm renting anyway.

-One of our prime motivators for moving is the bike-rurally-from-door option, which we may be very close to.

-Our next stop has gorgeous cycling trails -very friendly for kids, etc- that I would definitely prefer having our bikes for.

-New bikes seem to start at $250-$300. I don't want to pay again, and for a bike I love way less.

-I could stick both bikes and my first load and us inside the car. If the next stop works to be our next home, leave the bikes and stuff there, return for the rest (as I'd need to come back for at least a few days anyway). The only catch is that my kid can't be in the center (safest) seat, but he can still be in the back, which is most important. Alternatively, I can take the back wheel off too, fit all bike pieces in the back, leave rest of car for us. If we don't move to our next stop, we'll just drive them back with us and then do one of the storage options.

Probably do that last option!