The Villages - September 2017 - Cover3

Behind the Wheel

Taxi Cab Golf Car
Cruising For Fun, Not Fares
story By rica LeWis | photo By Brandon at WeLL

N

ew York City natives Vin and Alexis Maulella put
a familiar spin on their golf car. The sunny yellow cab is reminiscent of their big city life before
retirement - only their taxi cruises for fun, not fares.
"We get hailed all the time," Alexis said. "But what we
have here is just a conversation piece. People recognize it everywhere."
On a recent trip to Alaska, the Maulellas discovered just
how popular their themed golf car is among Villagers.
"We met some nice people and realized they were also Village of Amelia residents," Alexis said. "They didn't know us,
but they knew all about our golf car. What a small world!"
Prior to settling in The Villages, the couple began hearing
stories about the community.
"At an annual vacation at Disney, we met a contractor
who was doing work here. He told us we had to check it out."
Vin said.
Later, the Maulellas came for a visit after a cousin
moved to The Villages.
"Our girls were so impressed with Lake Sumter
Landing," Alexis said. "We were eager to make our
move."
In 2008, the couple settled into their new Village of Amelia home and didn't look back.
"Living here has been a dream," Alexis said.
"We went from owning a 100-year-old home to
having a brand new place. I was so excited to run
all the faucets and flush all the toilets at once and
not lose pressure," she added, laughing.
As for the miniature cars that are so prevalent in the community, Vin said he was shocked
to learn people owned them.
"I thought only golf courses had golf
cars," he said.
Seeing so many cool sets of wheels was
inspiring.
"I thought, 'What can we do for
ourselves?'" Alexis said. "When we
saw a 'cab yellow' golf car, we knew."
They searched online and found
authentic taxi decals and rate signs.

They made a cardboard cutout to match the height of the
lights they planned to purchase for the roof.
"We had to test it out to be sure we could clear the tunnels," Alexis said.
Once their custom cab was complete, they hit the road
and they haven't slowed down - much.
"We take our taxi everywhere," Vin said. "We're on our
third set of tires."
"We were thrilled when we learned the route to Walmart,
and we like to hang out at the squares and learn new golf car
paths," Alexis said. "We just love to ride."
And while their cool golf car cab is not accepting new
passengers, it is always available for photo ops.
"New Yorkers like to have their picture taken in it," Vin
said. "It's nostalgic."

MAGAZINE

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Villages - September 2017

Contents
The Villages - September 2017 - Cover1
The Villages - September 2017 - Contents
The Villages - September 2017 - 1
The Villages - September 2017 - 2
The Villages - September 2017 - 3
The Villages - September 2017 - 4
The Villages - September 2017 - 5
The Villages - September 2017 - 6
The Villages - September 2017 - 7
The Villages - September 2017 - 8
The Villages - September 2017 - 9
The Villages - September 2017 - 10
The Villages - September 2017 - 11
The Villages - September 2017 - 12
The Villages - September 2017 - 13
The Villages - September 2017 - 14
The Villages - September 2017 - 15
The Villages - September 2017 - 16
The Villages - September 2017 - 17
The Villages - September 2017 - 18
The Villages - September 2017 - 19
The Villages - September 2017 - 20
The Villages - September 2017 - 21
The Villages - September 2017 - 22
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The Villages - September 2017 - 25
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The Villages - September 2017 - 28
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The Villages - September 2017 - 30
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The Villages - September 2017 - 33
The Villages - September 2017 - 34
The Villages - September 2017 - 35
The Villages - September 2017 - 36
The Villages - September 2017 - 37
The Villages - September 2017 - 38
The Villages - September 2017 - 39
The Villages - September 2017 - 40
The Villages - September 2017 - 41
The Villages - September 2017 - 42
The Villages - September 2017 - 43
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The Villages - September 2017 - 45
The Villages - September 2017 - 46
The Villages - September 2017 - 47
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The Villages - September 2017 - 50
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The Villages - September 2017 - 58
The Villages - September 2017 - Cover3
The Villages - September 2017 - Cover4
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