Life at 130MPH

            There is something to be said about being able to drive fast if a car is capable and built for speed.  And it’s something to be able to say that one is able to drive fast legally!  I didn’t have much time to think about Angels while driving a car at an average speed of 90mph around a road track or screaming down the straightaway at 130mph, but the fact is that when the 5 and one half miles were driven and I got out of the car I was driving, I asked myself a very simple question:  What was it God wanted me to know?  It’s about life.  Racing a car is about life and living.  It’s not about being able to go fast legally, but more about why one would WANT do that in the first place.

            Well, the fact is that ALL these exotics are built to go fast.  They all have gobs of horsepower that will allow them to exceed 200mph if they had the opportunity to do so.  But that is the joy of these automobiles.  They are engineered, designed, and mostly handmade for one reason:  They ARE fast!  Many of these cars would go from zero to sixty under 3.5 seconds with some doing it as quick as 2.5 seconds.  My Aston Martin wasn’t as quick, but the fact is that it was more forgiving in the turns than either a Ferrari or a Lamborghini would have been.  Those cars will ask you why you didn’t make the turn and the Aston Martin would simply apologize for not doing what you wished it would have done, even if the mistake was your inability and not the car.  An Aston Martin is a gentleman’s car with gentlemanly behavior.  And it is very forgiving when you make a mistake.  This is why I would most likely wrap a Ferrari of a Lamborghini around a tree or at least drive it off the road.  Some cars ARE drivers’ car, but that in that sense, one REALLY has to know how to drive those cars.  The other cars can be very spirited and lively, but simply more forgiving.

            A Porsche is more forgiving than the Italian cars.  And then there are some cars that are simply a delight to own and drive, but not as expensive.  I would say that the British automakers design and build cars for the gentlemen of the world and the other cars are for show or speed for those who are more interested in other things that the luxury of an automobile.  And it’s because luxury can slow a car down.  But still if a car can do 0-60 in just about four seconds there is NOTHING slow about it.  Speed is one thing, but handling in turns is quite another thing and I would prefer a more forgiving car than one I could wreck that isn’t forgiving.  And it’s because I am NOT a racecar driver, but that I would prefer a more civil automobile that would cost just as much as a Ferrari or a Lamborghini, because I am more interested in class than I am in substance.  There is no need to boast about any amount of horsepower a car has if one just wants to boast about horsepower but can’t drive the darn thing!  I would prefer a lot of horsepower in a car I could actually drive.  But that is the point.  Some cars are driven to a destination and some cars ARRIVE at a destination.

            And I would think that the Angels would want me to ARRIVE someplace safely than to just attempt to drive a car I wouldn’t really be able to drive.  At the age of 60 my reflexes aren’t such that I feel I could safely drive a car that wouldn’t forgive me for my mistakes.  I wouldn’t mind owning a car that has over 500 horses, but the fact is that I would RATHER arrive at a destination than DRIVE to a destination.  And that is what makes a gentleman a gentleman.  He sits back, relaxes in his comfort zone and simply enjoys the experience of driving his car in luxury than feeling he has to take risks with his life at every turn.  And really, I think Angels prefer class to substance.  At least I want to think so.  Peace.

Brother Ralphie