It’s been more than ten weeks since the UK government passed legislation to restrict travel in an effort to prevent further spread of the virus. As soon as lockdown commenced I parked all my cars with the exception of the company car, which we have been using only for weekly food shopping. For clarity, it’s not a ViaRETRO-supplied car, as although the list of eligible motors would doubtless be epic I didn’t opt for that particular benefit as part of my overall package. Rather, the company car is supplied by my real-world employer and it’s a very humble commuter-mobile. With most assets currently grounded I’m glad not to have loads of money tied up in a flash daily and I’ve used it so infrequently that it’s taken eight weeks to guzzle the contents of the 35-litre fuel tank.
As an unapologetic petrol-head, you might think I’d be climbing the walls by now, but I’ve actually adapted pretty well. I’ve never really been one to go for an aimless drive just for the sake of it, preferring to have a destination or a purpose in mind. With everything closed down, the list of viable destinations has been very limited. However, I did have a reason to drive to the next county the other day, a legitimate government-approved reason in fact. I could have taken an interesting car but instead I picked up the keys to the modern. Regardless of my choice of transport it was just good to be out and in that moment, the novelty of actually going somewhere was more important than how we got there.
Still, the intoxication of freedom must have got to me as the first thing I did when I arrived home was to go into the garage and hook the battery charger up to my old BMW. The charger light immediately blinked green indicating that the battery had lost no measurable charge in the past two months. I was obviously dealing with a car that wanted to spring free from its confinement. However, because I’m temporarily being a responsible citizen I didn’t immediately reverse down the driveway and lay a pair of rubbery elevens on the tarmac, tempting as it was. The UK lockdown legislation discourages non-essential travel and although I’d supressed any notions of driving for pleasure, the action of immediately checking on my old car as soon I got back to the house had given my true nature away. I had obviously been kidding myself if I thought I wasn’t that bothered, like a drinker who makes out they can quit any time they like. I went to have a beer while I mulled it over.
So what if I’m addicted? There are worse things to be. I’m looking forward to when motorsport is once again possible, and there is some socially distanced light on the horizon in that regard, but even a potter round the lanes is starting to appeal again. The prospect of normal life returning is both more likely and more welcome as each week passes. People complain that their social lives have been decimated, but that’s nonsense because decimation historically equated to a factor of ten percent and the effect of the virus has been far worse than that. People iz stupid. But it’s worth remembering that in most places, essential journeys by car are still permitted and as luck would have it, such an excuse presented itself the very next day.
My other half is less squeamish than I am and she regularly donates blood. She had an appointment to keep and being the caring sort that I am, I offered to give her a lift. She needed no persuasion when I suggested we take the old rally car. In compliance with all the rules, that’s how I came to spend an hour waiting outside the blood donation room, quite happily reading the newspaper and taking in the sun whilst the engine ticked cool. Judging by the enthusiastic approval of various cyclists and pedestrians, we weren’t the only people happy to see an old car on the roads. One local feral youth ambled by and pronounced it to be a “sick wagon”, which I’m assuming is a good thing. Our worlds may have recently become smaller, but the smaller pleasures have in turn become amplified. Assuming your local laws allow, remember that mechanical things don’t like standing still and there is still a place for a bit of classic motoring. Here at ViaRETRO we have long proclaimed that any classic is better than no classic. Just here and now, we could apply the same belief to any trip.
