Happy Birthday to the 'Burb
Posted by Pete Robbins on Feb 15th 2021
Since I bought my first bass boat in late 1996, I’ve had five tow vehicles: a high-mileage Jeep Cherokee that wasn’t up to the task; a two-door Tahoe that I crashed and which never ran right again; a leased Suburban that I loved; a leased Avalanche that I loved a little less, and then my current 2011 Suburban, which turns 10 this week.
To give you a sense of how long ago it was when I got it, at the time KVD had only won three Classics (he’d go on to win his fourth later that month).
Ten is a long time for some, not-so-long for others. I suppose I could be reasonably forgiven if I was starting to look for a replacement, but right now there’s no reason to do so. Because I no longer drive to work, and I tow far less than I did in my twenties and thirties, it still has relatively low mileage. Because Hanna and I do not have children, it does not have a layer of Cheerios or pudding-flavored handprints across the back seat. It’s been paid for forever, and the idea of shelling out a big single check or a series of monthly payments is at best unappealing.
Right now the only reason I’d consider looking at a new one is because this one doesn’t match my current boat. It’s Chevy’s “Ruby Red” color – which matched my raspberry 2006 Pantera IV, my raspberry 2010 Puma FTD and my raspberry 2014 Eyra, but when the folks at Bass Cat effectively refused to sell me another raspberry-colored boat, I chose silver with black and coral (sorta orange) highlights. It would look great behind a silver tow vehicle. Unfortunately, for 2021 Chevrolet (as well as partner brands GMC and Cadillac) have discontinued silver in their full-sized trucks and SUVs – so this one’s gotta hold on until they bring silver back, or until I choose a boat that matches it more closely.
