Me and My EZGo

When we retired and moved to northern Georgia, we bought a house on 3½ wooded acres that sits on a ridge overlooking a ten-acre lake. Our driveway is longer than a football field and fairly steep. The road from our property to the lake goes down a steep hill that has a switchback in it. I had an electric scooter at the time. When I went for a ride down to the lake half of the initial trip was downhill. It did not take long before the electric motor's self-braking unit on the scooter burned out. Since there is no manual brake on a scooter, I had quite the ride the day it burned out. You do not need to go to Six Flags for quite some time after that experience.

Because my dog, Fred, needs his exercise and because I love nature, walking him (or riding in my case) is an important part of our day. We usually go out four-to-five times (2-2½ hours … rain or shine) throughout the day and I enjoy the walks as much as he does. I considered buying another scooter, but felt the same thing would happen again (my heart could not handle another ride down the hill). A friend recommended a golf cart. I test-drove several models and after some shopping around, I purchased a used EZGo. I chose an electric cart over a gas-powered one because it requires less maintenance and I do not have to worry about filling up the tank. I just need to plug it in every other day to recharge the batteries.

The cart was an excellent purchase and I have never second-guessed buying one. It has a top, windshield, and vinyl cover that protects me during rainstorms or in the cold of winter. It also has headlights and taillights that I use for the early morning and evening walks during the winter. I joke with our nephew about someday 'tricking the cart out' with a thousand watt stereo, air shocks, off-road tires, and a heater system, but so far, I am happy with what I have.

One of the most important decisions in buying my cart was 'service'. Since I cannot easily take my cart in for maintenance, our local dealership provides road service. The cart needs minor repairs or maintenance once or twice a year. Normally, the service technician is knocking on my door within two-to-four hours of my call.

As you can tell, my golf cart is important to me. It provides me with the freedom to visit neighbors, keep Fred exercised and stimulated, and allows me to commune with nature every day. I also use it to take the garbage container down to the road and to haul rocks, brush, and tree limbs around the property. Without the cart, life would not be quite as much fun.