Was chatting to people at work today about the increasing intelligence and automation you get in modern cars as one of the guys had recently bought a car that parks itself, slows down for traffic and the like. When discussing this and the wider topic of self driving cars it surprised me just how anti-driving most of the people in the office were! Pretty much everyone couldn't wait for the day when their car just drives them everywhere.
For some it was the hassle of it, others want their time free to do other stuff, but a surprising number said they just really do not like driving! They don't enjoy the experience, even at the best of times.
Personally I just strawberry floating love driving. It is one of those things that I remember being massively excited about as a kid - driving was a grown up thing and you had to be big to do it, so once I turned 17 and started doing it I just couldn't believe it. I was out on the road on my own, driving around and nobody was stopping me, it was
allowed - how awesome is that!
There is just something about the mechanics of it, the way it feels, how a car responds to input and the level of control you have. Driving just puts a smile on my face. Even my daily commute which I'm sure many would find a bit of a slog I still really enjoy.
One of the things I love is how endlessly you can "game-ify" it and make mini-challenges - how efficiently can I make this trip, can I get round this corner in a certain gear, how smoothly/quickly can I pull away, can I judge the power right so I don't have to brake before the next car in front starts moving again, can I hold it on the clutch on this hill instead of putting on the handbrake etc.
And for me it's not about driving fast or dangerously or taking stupid risks or anything like that either. My previous car was a little low powered 1L VW Polo and it was great fun to drive. I loved the fact that even though it wasn't the quickest thing I could drive it and think - I strawberry floating nailed that last drive.
Another thing is that for situations like commuting I enjoy the alone time it gives me. I can have a think, listen to music or podcasts that I might not get a chance to at other times. It gives me some great head space.
So I thought I would take the my fellow G
CAR cadians - do you love driving? Do you hate it? Are you not fussed?
VROOM VROOM!