Daytona Beach, here we come
Tignish residents buy old school bus during annual sale in preparation for trip south for Bike Week
Holly Cahill and Kevin Doucette of Tignish picked up some big wheels for their trip down south this March.
Cahill and his friend Kevin Doucette made the trip to Charlottetown on Sept. 16 to attend the provincial government’s annual public auction, which took place at Eastlink Centre.
The reason the men were at the auction was because they, along with two of their friends, are planning a trip to Daytona Beach in March for Bike Week.
And what better way to transport themselves and their motorcycles than with an outof-service school bus.
“We’re going to strip the seats all out and maybe leave four in the front and then find a way to fasten our bikes in the back, drive ‘em in on a ramp through the back door, fasten them all on and go to Florida,” Doucette said, adding they’d never been there before.
“We never bought a bus before, either,” Cahill added, laughing.
Cahill said the school bus went for “an average price” and said it needs a bit of TLC before it can be driven.
“Right now the plan is to just get it ready and kind of retrofit it and get it customized to make it work for what we want it to do,” he said.
“There’s are a few little touchups that need to be done with it to make it road-worthy.”
Doucette and Cahill plan on installing a barbecue on the bus as well so they can eat on the way and drive the 36 hours straight through, stopping only for fuel.
Cahill and Doucette were among the several hundred Islanders from across the province that gathered in Charlottetown Sept. 16 in hopes their bids would prevail.
Office chairs, used tires, dump trucks, office trailers and everything in between were available for purchase during the auction.
Each year, the government sells off its surplus inventory, along with any vehicles and equipment that have been taken out of service, said Wilfred MacDonald, fleet manager with the Department of Transportation, Infrastructure and Energy.
With items selling from $1 to thousands of dollars, there’s something for everyone at the auction.
“It’s an opportunity for anyone to come bid,” he said. “The money goes back into the general revenue of the province.”
Items such as school busses are taken out of service after 14 years of use for safety purposes, MacDonald said, adding that while some are missing parts, others are operational.
Cahill and Doucette are excited about their purchase and look forward to getting the bus ready for the road.
Dennis Lowther of D and L Auctions called the auction.