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Day Tripper

As a Porsche club member, chances are pretty good that you’re a car or driving enthusiast of one form or another. A question that I’ve always wondered about was how do people become enthusiasts? Is it genetically transmitted -- go-fast genomes, for example? Or does it stem from our environment, forged from the pressures of society? Enquiring psychology hobbyists want to know.

I got my enthusiasm from my father, with his knowledge of cars and through our cross-country vacations during my formative years. And fortunately for us kids, it didn’t resemble Chevy Chase’s series of vacations. At least, not all of the time.

It Was a Very Good Year

One thing that amazed me about my dad was how he could point cars out. For example, he would point to one and say, “That’s a 1972 Grand Prix. You can tell because of the bumper.” I didn’t even know what a bumper was back in the 1970s. Eventually, I got the hang of this game. My sister and I used to be pretty good at it in the 1980s. We couldn’t tell the exact year of the car, but we could tell the make and model quickly just by the taillights or a fender.

I don’t play this game as much anymore, and if I did, I don’t think I would do too well. There are so many more models these days. And do I really care to find out the difference between a Ford Condor and a Mercury Mistake? I usually just care about fun cars. Now, however, try looking at the front end of a 986 Boxster and a 1999 911 (996). They’re almost the same. Then compare a Boxster with a 911 Cabrio. The game becomes more interesting.

The other thing that my dad loves to do is drive. When we would go on vacation, we would leave at strange times just to avoid as much traffic as possible. This could mean leaving at midnight and driving until breakfast. I would ride shotgun at night as long as I could stay awake, talking to my dad about everything. During the day, my dad would drive for hours while we would be in the back entertaining ourselves. (He would get by just on short catnaps throughout the day.) My brothers and sisters and I would make up our own games and play for hours. I think we’ve all done this on family vacations. This is why I enjoyed the drives more than our actual destinations.

Another aspect I picked up from my dad is his music. My dad loved 8-track tapes, which he could play non-stop on our trips. So from Michigan through the Rockies to California and back, we listened to Elvis, John Denver, Tom Jones, the Everly Brothers and the Carpenters. I think you get the picture. Can anyone remember BJ Thomas? Or Tony Orlando and Dawn? My dad had their tapes, too. There was a Beatles’ 8-track in there somewhere, too.

Now here’s my secret -- I still love that music. Right next to my Nine Inch Nails CD, you’ll find Andy Williams singing about his Huckleberry friend. You can usually find me at Best Buy at the discount CD racks, with Dave Matthews CD in hand, looking for that Perry Como’s Greatest Hits. Now, this doesn’t mean that this is all I listen to when I drive, but I like listening to this music once in a while to bring me back to those summer days. The key is that music is always there for me, accompanying me from state to state as I drive. I don’t know if I can drive on any trip without a radio.

The Long and Winding Road

When I go on a road trip these days, I’m typically alone. I don’t usually run into too many people that would subject themselves to my road trips (“No bathroom breaks! To the coast or bust!” -- sometimes literally). One exception is my sister. Once, when Sue Sarin submitted an article to me about driving through Montana on the way to Portland, I asked my sister if she had taken a picture of the “Prudent & Reasonable” speed limit signs in Montana. She said she didn’t, so when I suggested a road trip to go out there just to take a picture of it, she said, “Sure,” as my brother-in-law just stared at us. He didn’t think we were serious until we pulled out the map and started making calculations (24 hours there, 24 hours back, 4 people in a 944).

Unfortunately, she ended up having to work extra hours when we had planned to leave, so we didn’t have the time to go. Long trips across the U.S. is one of the reasons I can’t wait to get back to the States from Germany. I have a reason to drive out West again -- to see Thwen and Jennifer and Baby and Laguna Seca, and then possibly to Seattle to an Italian restaurant I know in the area. Anybody who doesn’t mind listening to hours of Bobby Goldsboro or Trent Reznor on MiniDisc is welcome to come along.

Closer

Send me a list of your favorite driving music, and if I get enough, I’ll compile a list in a future article. And don’t worry, regardless of what kind music you submit, I’ll make fun of it.

<< January 1999<<

>> March 1999>>

(The BahnStormer is the official newsletter of the Rally Sport Region (Detroit area) of the Porsche Club of America. You can contact the editor at .)

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February 1999

Day Tripper

It Was a Very Good Year

The Long and Winding Road

Closer