As a car person, the kind of person who appreciates the science that goes into the automotive experience, the sort who can find philosophical solace in a discussion about synthetic motor oils, the kind most people have trouble understanding, you celebrate important dates and moments the only way you know how – by driving.
I can recall motoring milestones that seem as fresh as the day I made them. For instance, my first drive alone on the highway, my first drive to college, my various drives to various hospitals for the births of my children, a drive along the Pacific Coast Highway to celebrate my eldest graduating from high school, drives taken to clear the mind and tired drives home from family vacations, happy we'd left and glad to be returning.
Well, it looks like I've got another one on the way. I'm turning 50 later this month. So are millions of other folks. I'm nothing special. And right now more than a few of you are thinking, "Really, Road Sage? You're gonna drop this one on us? Get over yourself. Judging by your photo you don't look a day over, 'Awful.'"
Fair enough, folks, but I'm not dropping it on you – I'm running it by you. I need your help. Over the past few months when people discovered I was going to join the mid-century club they asked how I wanted to celebrate. I didn't have much of an answer. All I could think of was "not at all" or "by eating and drinking until I keel over." Both options seemed maudlin not to mention, pedestrian.
Then I realized the best way to mark that date was with a drive I'd never forget. That's when the fun started. The most obvious move would be to rent a vehicle from a place such as Affinity Luxury Car Rental – perhaps a Bentley Convertible GT ($799.95 a day) or a 1966 classic red Corvette ($349.95 a day). This choice begs the question: Is renting a ride that you will likely never (barring a Lotto 6/49 win) be able to afford really the classiest way to celebrate your 50th birthday? Isn't it kind of like attaching a loud speaker to my Grand Caravan (the anti-Porsche) and cruising around town declaring, "I am compensating!"
Still, a Bentley Convertible …
Maybe I should get back to my roots. My first car was a 1982 VW Rabbit – I could rent myself the next best thing – a VW Golf Midsize ($49.95/day) and relive some of those memories. Then again, perhaps a guy who drives all the time should take the day off and rent a stretch limo for a few hours – these run around $90/hour with a three-hour minimum.
It might be that my 50th would be a good day to finally try riding a bicycle again. I stopped riding back in 1984 after a friend was killed while cycling. Haven't been on one since. To this day, when I'm stuck in traffic and see a cyclist glide by I think of him – his name was Chris, he was 17 – I remember the joy he took in moving through the world. It might be a good way to honour a kind kid who never had the luxury of growing old.
Maybe the "real" thing to do is to get everyone in the anti-Porsche and go for ice cream, like we often do. After all – ask any parent – those are the trips, once the kids are grown, that you'd trade every luxury vehicle in the world for just to take one more time.
Still, a Bentley Convertible…
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Andrew Clark