The Freedom of a Convertible

First, the ultimate feeling of freedom is probably a motorcycle. Yet I also don’t want to contribute to the inevitable risk and possibility of death. Ride. All the gear, all the time.

That last saying is from motorcycle training school.

Do you remember the first time you rode in a convertible? That feeling of excitement and wonder as you moved down the street with full 360-degree views, smells, sound, speed? That is the freedom of a convertible.

I’m convinced the more experience we get in life, the more nostalgic we become for moments we can now recreate. We finally have some means, or at least the ability to prioritize the pursuit.

Convertibles for the 40-something-year-old are, to me, the same as cigarettes making a comeback. Or at least getting media shine again. A rejection of sterilization. Of optimization. Of being told the safest, smartest, quietest version of life is the correct one.

And no, a sunroof or targa is not necessarily the same thing. Though I can’t fault them for trying.

A convertible is magic.

Whether it’s The Passenger, when Jack Nicholson says, “turn around,” as she looks backward into the open road.

Or Thelma & Louise. Need I say more?

Ok, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, I hear you too.

I remember slowly driving by a $300,000 Lamborghini Huracán while the owner puffed a cigar. Meanwhile, in my Porsche Boxster, I was too scared to.

Needless to say, after that run-in I parked the car outside during the Arizona fall, letting leaves and debris pile up. Then Saturday morning - hitting the gas, racing to tennis, some song blasting through the stereo — I felt free.

I later found out the Lamborghini owner got arrested, so there is that.

The joy of driving is fading fast. Tesla and others are sterilizing the driving and buying experience. Autonomous vehicles are coming. Uber and Lyft dominate more of the road every year.

We and I put myself squarely in this category, probably have less than five years left to enjoy the last remnants of driving as freedom.

Why not enjoy it in a convertible?