Driveways can used for a lot more than just parking your car. As a child, I’m sure most of us remember playing games on them and all kinds of other activities.
Basketball was one of the main uses for my driveway as a kid. We only had a one-car driveway which means with a width of about eight to nine feet so we only ever played half court. But it was just us and the neighbor kids so we didn’t necessarily need that much more room.
However, a two-car drive with a width of anywhere from 15 to 18 feet felt like a full-sized basketball court to us kids. Maybe not so much to an adult, but at the time we felt rich.
Street hockey was another favorite of ours. Throwing on some roller skates and hitting the concrete driveway was much easier than having to drive to an indoor ice skating rink. Sometimes we didn’t even bother with the skates. All we needed was a few sticks, something that slightly resembled a puck and we were good to go.
Driveways were also our favorite hang out spot after getting out of the pool. The heat radiating off the asphalt driveway was enough to keep you warm on the windiest days, and helped dry you off faster. It was like the child version of going to a sauna.
The only problem that ever occurred is when cracks would split in the driveway and the children would get blamed. But for all we know, their driveways could have been badly installed. If installed and maintained correctly, a concrete driveway should have a useful lifespan of anywhere between 25 to 50 years. If only they knew that, us kids could have avoided a lot of scolding.
Fortunately, driveway repairs are relatively simple and don’t take very long depending on the material they are made of. Asphalt is pretty easy to use and can simply be poured on and smoothed over existing asphalt to repair any cracks.
However, concrete can be a bit more difficult. Typically, concrete drives must completely torn out and replaced to look brand new.
But that’s no reason not to allow children to enjoy the driveway. Who knows, it could be one of their favorite hang out spots.
