Cheeto - I do believe all these folks are TRYING to help you out - GO TO MTBR.com & register there - they have GREAT review articles, and reviews of all sorts of bike products by people who have bought & used the products. I ALWAYS research whatever bling Salsa wants there!

I have to admit, you sound like Salsa - a sometimes lazy teenage boy who would rather spend mom's money than take off a wheel & clean the car. Quick release was created for a reason, and unless you're riding a lefty fork, I would suggest you use your quick releases - I seriously don't think the 5 minutes it MAY take (if you're slow) to put your wheels on will severly impact your trail time. If you can't get your wheels on in 5 minutes, PRACTICE until you can.

And, since you have a 92 merc at your disposal, use it - put your bike (sans wheels) in the trunk, or get a trunk rack or roof rack & leave your mom's car be!

AND, if you want to learn to weld, that very same career center that won't take you during the day may very well have some intro welding classes open in the evenings and/or weekends; there are many HS students in WV that take short into courses like that a few nights a week.