CLUB B5 - VW Passat Page

Driving by Sullie
October 04, 2004

The nice part about owning a daily beater is having it for days like these. I look outside and I see it is dark, rainy and foggy, and of course, traffic will be quite heavy and all jammed up. Meanwhile, people will be in a panic, driving like they’ve never seen inclement weather before, and I know that if I hit the brakes once, I’ll hit them 1,000 times before I ever step into my office. Time to grab a cup of coffee, turn the cell phone on, tune in to the traffic and weather report on the radio, and take the keys to the trusty, rusty, 225k mile, automatic transmission equipped, 1991 Toyota Camry. I’m doing this because I’m not driving to work this morning; I’m sitting in the driver’s seat, disconnected from the road and being little more than an involved passenger. Of course I’ll be alert and paying attention. I’ll have to because people will be cutting me off, slamming on their brakes and doing all sorts of silly things, but it’s not really driving to me. It’s more of a chore than it is really driving, which I consider a pleasure.

Contrast this day with my typical workday commute with my Passat. The days I drive my Passat to work are clear or overcast or possibly even partly cloudy days that have no chance of rain according to the radar loop. Of course those days I will have no fog to deal with and no accidents or construction. They will just be good days for driving. I will not have a cup of coffee, the cell phone will be turned off and driving music will replace the monotonous traffic report, because I will be driving to work that day. Sometimes I take the highway in if I’m running a little late, giving me the opportunity to stretch the car's legs a bit while making up time. Usually, I will not take the fast way in because I'd rather take the time to enjoy the driving. I've mapped out some old back roads from home to the office that take me through peaks and valleys, swerves and curves and twists and turns. Combined with just the right mix of wheeling, accelerating, braking and clutch shifting, my drive to work becomes a real treat instead of the usual torture treatment of a typical commute.

With real involvement and interaction on my part with the car through changing gears and listening to the car, I feel more at one with the road. Of course, driving a road that’s twisty heightens my awareness and forces me to be more alert as one never knows what waits beyond a crest or around a bend. With planned shifting, steering and braking I sense the way better and I bond with the car more. I really enjoy this one-way 45-minute slice of my life to a much greater extent than I would in the daily drudgery of my otherwise, normally boring commute. It’s wonderful therapy too. I leave all of my problems behind, and I drive away the impending and loathsome issues that are hidden behind the e-mail icon and that wretched, blinking voice mail light. For now though it’s clutch engaged, gear in, accelerator down, wheel turned and grin applied. I know full well that my Passat is no sports car, not even close. But, the Walter Mitty in me likes to pretend that it is, and it sure is fun to just shut up and drive.

New Page 1

For discussion on this article, please visit the B5 Beat discussion forum.

Back to the B5 Beat