When I was a teenager and driving was new...it was cool. Then life in general kicked in and I began to really dislike the thought of Another day in the car, picking up kids, groceries, etc. Then, my kids grew up, moved out, I bought a MC and Life is GOOD again. It goes in cycles. To those of us who manage to not go berserk...we get rewarded!!! My Mini has brought back the pure JOY of driving!!

 

It was 1965, I was fresh out of high school and all of my friends were talking about Mustangs, Avantis, Corvettes, GTOs and the occasional Ferrari Berlineta or Cobra. That was all it was though, talk. Me, I had a bright red 1957 MGA and everyone wanted to drive that car. That was some fine driving until that fateful spring morning . I won't go into the details. Then I got a little Austin Healy Sprite. Nice but it had to go with the new wife and two kids so I got a 2 stroke Saab Monte Carlo 850. Happy days were here again until the old lady let a friend drive it . I won't go into the details. Next I got a Volvo 145 station wagon and divorced the wife. Great car but it lacked something, drove it for near 12 years. Married the girl next door and we bought a 1988 Suzuki Samarai brand new. Still have that car and the wife, life is good. Then my wife ups and says we need a new car. I said what about a Mini Cooper? We took a test drive. The wife says only the MCS will do. Who am I to argue? I said driving lights. She said no. I said Chile Red she said Hyper Blue. Blue cars get less tickets than red ones, who am I to argue? I said Chrono Pack, Premium Pack, Sports Pack, Cold Weather Pack. She said yes. Right on! She said standard CD radio. I said yes, I can't hear the darn thing anyway.
I had a dream the other night. I was driving a Hyper Blue MGA with a white bonnet and what was funny about the car was it had six, count them, six forward gears and power side curtains.
Production week 36 and waiting.

 

This topic comes up in my daily life all the time. Everyone I work with wondered why I was buying a MINI (if they even knew what it was). They just don't understand the relaxation and fun you can get from driving. When I told them that my 8 day old car has 2,700 miles on it they responded with "I hardly drive that much in a year!" They drive Volvo's and Trucks and Camry's, and although they don't need to enjoy driving, they just DON'T UNDERSTAND it. I find that to be the root of the problem. We all have hobbies and things we enjoy, it's sad though that something as simple as enjoying a drive is considered strange. My 1,500 mile road trip was a blast, but all I heard from friends was, "I could Never drive that much," "how could you stand to be in a car for 12 hours?!" The funny thing is that once I reached my destination, I went in search of good driving roads to enjoy that evening!

This may sound CRAZY to some of you, but in my current "dating" status, going for a ride is an important factor. I had an Eclipse Spyder V6 MT a couple of years ago, and LOVED putting the top down when I went for a drive. My fiance' hated it though. She would freak out if I sped up for a turn and would turn the A/C on and ask how to put the top up when I was driving... Now we didn't break up over this, but I learned that it is important to me, and now it has become one of those "factors" in the dating process.

Drew

 

Last night I got home from work, ran a couple of errands and then had some time on my hands, so I just took off and went motoring. I went for a drive up the Potomac River and it was absolutely gorgeous, perfect evening! Along the way I found some great turns and by the end of the evening my heart was pumping and I was reinvigorated until the weekend. I drove back to the city with a big smile on my face!

 

While in college, I had a Fiat Spyder. I know, I know, but I loved it despite the occasional hiccups. I would drive 2 1/2 hours to get to a little lake town where I could sit down at a restaurant I had visited with my family years ago. Outside of my college town were flat twisty roads surrounded by a river and almond orchards. My dates never seemed to mind my driving - maybe they were afraid that my Fiat would break down while they were at the wheel?

I grew up and had kids. Drove boring, but practical, cars. However, my husband and I still loved to drive the countryside wherever we could find it. Boy, was I a lucky girl! "Where does that road go?" "I don't know, let's go see." We've driven all over Marin, Napa, and Sonoma Counties in those boring cars. Now we've got two great MINIs. We're looking to explore even more in our "new" area of Sacramento and the surrounding areas.

I guess my point is that for some, motoring is just "in the blood," regardless of what your vehicle is. I will admit, though, the MINI brings extra joy to the hobby, just like my Fiat, my 280Z, and even my old high school Maverick did.