So there we were. Viola and I were motoring along without a care in the world, other than the fact that the other drivers in our area were just plain stupid yesterday, and things are going fantastic. The sun was shining, the breeze was blowing in just the right direction to catch through the sunroof and blow into the car. It was just great.

It was then, that I heard someone honking at us. I didn't recognize the sound of the horn, but knew it was coming from behind me and I was in enough traffic that I didn't really want to look and then I saw it...

It was a beautiful black MINI (didn't catch weather it was an S or a base model) with a white roof and I *think* it had white bonnet stripes, but I wasn't entirely sure because I only just barely got a glimpse of the bonnet as it passed... and I realized that this has been the sound I heard. It was another MINI driver honking and doing the wave... and I totally missed it!

By the time I saw the car, it was far too late.

So, Mysterious MINI Driver X, if you are out there in the world... we did see you and thanks for the wave! Next time, I promise to wave back!

 

i always feel bad when i miss a wave

 

You should be ashamed of yourself. You didn't see a fellow MINI Motorer coming (and going). Consider yourself reprimanded and pay better attention next time . We all miss one every now and then.

Now go and enjoy your ride!

 

i hope i wont miss it...

 

Fie on you, inattentive motorer!

For your pennance, you must say 10 'Hail MINI's and wave with both hands next time.

 

Are you the one who never waves back? I see you in Birmingham all of the time.

 

500 Lashes with a WET NOODLE!!!
We need more people like you to OWN up to their mis-givings. I embarass my Husband to DEATH when I do the WAVE...HONK...or FLASH MY LIGHTS...whatever!!

 

You missed a wave !

No soup for you !

Dean.

 

dont feel too bad. i'm sure i've gotten waves, but i'm too busy paying attention to lights and shifting gears smoothly & properly. maybe a decal that denotes you automatically waving is in order.

 

my 9 year old is the secondary MINI spotting and waving unit. She does a pretty good job too.

 

Hey, it happens, but I do forgive you....wait, my MCS is pure silver and I live on the opposite coast. My mistake, carry on.

 

What?! You mean that under normal circumstances you only have to wave with one hand. No wonder my wife is always getting mad at me and telling me to put my hands back on the wheel!

 

round here 90% of mini drivers seem to be women and when you wave they allways give you a dirty look

 

Is what i saw when i read that for the first time

 

Would you rather have a clean look from a dirty woman or a dirty look from a a clean woman?

My MINI gets lots of both.

Great MINI Falcon sig pic, BrandonH!

 

I thought this thread was going to be about surfing.

I've about given up waving at MINIs around here because few ever see me. Too busy watching where they are going I guess.

 

Wow thats all i really can say without being banned....

 

i felt bad when i missed one too..

 

yesterday i got my 1st wave adn it felt GREAT...

 

I'm not sure what's worse, missing a wave or being ignored. lol. I've driven by a few MINIs in the week I've had the MINI and not one wave. WTF!

HOWEVER... I've had at least 5, yes 5, SUV driving dudes ask me about the MINI. lol. The gas prices must be killing them. Plus doesn't hurt I usually have a smokin' hot girl with me so they know it won't emasculate them to have a MINI. lol.

On a side note, ever park next to another MINI in a lot and eventually bump into the owner? I've done it twice and we talk forever about the car. Sweet stuff.

 

I always keep an eye out for MINIs but every so often miss one. Most times I wave or blink my lights I get a response, with a smile. And any passenger sharing the cabin is designated a spotter.

 

You should feel even worse for referring to a Cooper as a "base" model. No "base model" MINIs are sold in the U.S. and those of us who vastly prefer Cooper motoring know full well that the car is not "base" (it is a tuned MINI One). In any case, I hope you learn from this faux pas...if you do all will be forgiven!!!

 

Thanks for the correction gokart, I'm still new at this motoring thing. My husband hasn't completely adjusted to the idea that sometimes I like to get in my car, turn off my Nav and just... go. There's also a whole other language that surrounds motoring, it's a culture unto itself. It will take some time for me to adjust. Viola is a "tuned MINI One" too. The S just seemed like way too much car for me. LOL!

Since I've had her, I have missed one MINI wave, and waved a few times, but the other drivers did not wave back. However, I was at a stop light the other day, when I had the windows down and the sunroof open. This guy in an ancient pickup looked over at me and smiled and at first, I thought he was checking me out, then I realized he wasn't checking me out, he was checking out my car! He asked me how I liked it, and I told him I loved it, then I heard him turn to his passenger and say, "I gotta get one of those."

Also, the dude at my insurance agency stopped and talked to me about her for like an hour and pointed out all this information about local driving schools that are run by the BMW club here and all this other stuff. When I went to get my nails done, my nail tech couldn't stop grinning at her as she sat in the parking lot.

There is something wonderful about these cars. People just can't stop smiling at them, and it's a good feeling to know that you are a part of something that brightens everyone's day.

 

Actually....it's a bit of a joke. We Cooper owners have been correcting the "base" designation for years .

You're right, it is amazing the charm of these cars, both in looks and in actual motorcar performance. It's even more amazing that this essential charm has successfully survived the major changes it's had in it's almost 50 year history.

 

Only ONCE have I dared to actually leave a note on a fellow Mini-ist's vehicle -- and only because it was BRAND new, and sitting right beside mine. What a pleasant surprise! Otherwise, I'd feel like a stalker leaving notes -- waving is one thing, notes are a whole other world. Anyway, I left a note and directed him/her to this site. Well, we are evidently on different schedules because either I come out to the car and he/she was there, or vice versa. We seem to be trying to park together. Funny thing was that I was early to work this morning (so I could get a little car-dusting going on before leaving the lot!) and he drove up to park beside me, and a whole empty lot! A fellow worker made more comments than the two of us, but it's still cool.

Being in the military in Germany, we did a LOT of "tactical vehicle convoys" back and forth to the training areas (a very PAINFUL 10-24 hours, depending on who was leading - as you can imagine, I was one of the faster ones...!) I had my driver TRAINED as a Mini spotter! Every time we spotted one, the whole truck would yell, "MINI!!!" and we'd wave like crazy people. As long as the humvee didn't go off the road while we were waving, we were good. That kinda scared the Germans...