Father's Day - How appropriate:
My daughter (18) was called into work early. Given she's 18, and work was supposed to be at 10:30am, she didn't wake up until 9:30, which is when the phone rang asking her to arrive at 10:00am. My wife ...
Father's Day - How appropriate:
My daughter (18) was called into work early. Given she's 18, and work was supposed to be at 10:30am, she didn't wake up until 9:30, which is when the phone rang asking her to arrive at 10:00am. My wife is preparing for her Birthday party (today/tomorrow with 10-kids at our summer home) and Graduation Party (this coming Sunday). Needless to say, Father's Day was a quick "let's open gifts and get on with our days" kind of morning. That's was sort of OK with me, since I just got the F430 Spyder (2008) this past Tuesday, and Chicago weather has been quite rainy ever since.
I'm a member at Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, IL. It's a private club, much like a golf club, but with a 21-turn, 3.5mile road-course instead of links. I had no plans to visit on Father's Day, but opportunity knocked. Don't worry guys, it was merely a destination. I had/have no plans to track this car, not to mention 1-week after taking delivery of it.
It's only about 35-miles to the track from my house, but with the top down, and the sun shining, it was glorious. I have owned a lot of sports cars, but this was a 'best' first drive, hands down. I've read here about the looks, stares and comments while driving our cars, and I take them all as complimentary. The drive to the track had plenty of those. It was the drive back that was surreal.
I was at the track for about 2-hours, and just before leaving saw a buddy who lives in my neighborhood. He too was leaving, and his choice of car that day was a nearly identical 'Silverstone Grey' Audi R8. He hadn't seen, nor did he know I had bought the F430, so we had some time to go over the car before we both took off for home. The next 35-miles, with our two cars running tandem, lane changing, and weaving through light highway traffic was a blast. The 'thumbs up' were everywhere (no middle fingers), and the sounds our two cars were making was just music to my ears. Once we got off the expressway, and hit a few lights, the comments began. Mostly, "hey, nice car". There's one that stood out, and I was warned here on the forum. It's a first for me, but I chose to take the advice of someone here . . . "hey, what do you do for a living" was the question.
I'm 47, and work my tail off everyday. I haven't taken off more than 5-days in a row in nearly 20-years, and will likely work until I'm 60+. I like what I do, but it's not a doctor, lawyer, or other profession that someone would recognize . . . so I lied . . . , I responded "I don't work anymore". The car full of 20-somethings laughed, said "awesome", and we drove off in separate directions.
The F430 is back on the top spot of the lift in my home garage, and we're leaving for a couple of days to celebrate our daughter's 18th birthday. I'm looking forward to my next drive, and expect it will be filled with similar experiences to share.
Life is Grand!
