Driving

I have two cars, one a 2014, Toyota Camary Hybrid, the other a classic 1982 Alfa Romeo Spider. The Camary is my daily driver and is the car I use the most. The Spider is a classic and registered as an “Antique Auto”, so is only supposed to be driven for special events. 

A Condo dwelling Alfa

When we moved to Toronto for our downsizing experiment we elected to leave the Camary behind and the Spider was put on a trailer and towed to Toronto behind a U-Haul containing our downsized life. The plan was to use public transit to explore Toronto and if we really needed a car, our son lives close by and his car was available if needed. I joined the Toronto Alfa Romeo car club, and I looked forward to getting together with other Alfa enthusiasts for classic car events. This plan worked exceptionally well; we became experts in getting around the city on subway, streetcars, busses and trains, we used our son’s car for trips out of the city and the Spider was so pleased to go on drives surrounded by other classic Italian automobiles. 

All good things do however eventually come to a conclusion and we will be moving back to Nova Scotia, convinced now that we can downsize to an apartment or condo, so the Spider would have to be taken back to it’s comfortable garage behind our house in Dartmouth. The parking spot under the condo we were renting did not belong to the condo we were in so it was rented from another resident who was not using it, but they informed us that they were selling the condo so would probably need the spot back, and searches for another spot in the parking garage did not get any results, so another solution was needed. 

When I got the good news that I was scheduled to finally get a new right hip at the end of the month the solution for the Spider presented itself. We would drive it back to Nova Scotia rather than flying. The Spider is an old vehicle and I felt it was important to have it checked out by George, a skilled and trusted  Italian mechanic to make sure the car was up to the 1700 km drive, and he gave the little convertible a thumbs up. 

We were concerned about driving the car that distance because it is old and has none of the creature comforts we were used to having for extended journeys; no cruise control, no air conditioning, no power steering and very limited luggage space. On the plus side, the Spider is known for being one of the most comfortable of the 1980 era sports cars, and on the drives we had done, my six foot frame was always comfortable. But I was going home for a hip replacement and one of my knees often objected to long drives. We looked at the route from Toronto and decided to take it slow, breaking the 1700 km drive into five days, stopping to visit friends and visit favourite locations along the way. 

Although the Spider’s trunk contained a basic tool kit of wrenches and socket sets, another wrench was thrown into our plans when my wife developed a painful foot issue and was diagnosed with bone spurs on her achilles, so was warned to stay off the foot and was given a big plastic boot to allow recovery. I had lost my co-driver! Fortunately a phone call to a good friend back in Nova Scotia provided not only a co-driver but also a skilled mechanic, so the plan was back on track. 

A one-way flight to Toronto brought my willing driving companion to the big city and the five day plan was revised to a three day drive. We checked weather and decided on safe dates to leave to get sunny weather, for the Spider convertible does not particularly like driving in the rain. 

Hey, where did the rain come from?

The drive went very well, but the weather did not cooperate and we ended up driving one whole day through heavy rain, and the convertible top only came down for the last hours drive, but the experience got me thinking about the whole driving experience. We drove three days through some miserable rain in a little car with no AC, cruise control, stereo system, or power steering and a leaky convertible top, but we really enjoyed ourselves. We discovered that we could not really carry on a conversation because both of us are slightly hard of hearing and the car is quite noisy, but the drive still went very well. We did not get tired, and my hip or knee did not object and my friend’s sore back actually got better over the drive; we were comfortable and finished up each day with a smile. How is that possible?

A wet rainy drive through Quebec

I decided the answer was that we actually were doing something that new fancy vehicles isolate you from; we were DRIVING, really driving the whole time. We are both “Gear Heads”, so driving a classic sports car was enjoyable and the effortless steering, mind numbing cruise control and surround sound entertainment systems were not there to distract us from the actual driving experience. As you passed the many tractor trailers, you are literally lower than their tires and you could count the lug nuts on the wheels as you went by. You had to shift the gears up and down and as you steered the car through the corners, you could feel the tires and the suspension doing its work. The little two litre dual overhead cam engine and the European exhaust system was as good as an expensive sound system to two aged car guys. I have driven this route many times over the past 20 years and always got lulled into a tired sleepy state after a few hours, but this time the little car kept us alert and happy as we actually enjoyed driving. 

Some "top-down" driving

Finally the sun came out

Dirty with road grime but home safely

Hangin' with the Italians

Unfortunately a Top-Up Day

My little 1982 Alfa Romeo Spider had a great day today. She got to tour some of the beautiful Ontario back roads with 25 other pure-bred Italians. Of course, I am taking about Italian Alfa Romeo automobiles, but I will admit, I did notice a few Italians drivers behind the wheels of some of these beautiful Italian vehicles. 

I brought my sports car to Toronto with me in the hope of joining some of the interesting events I had been reading about on the Toronto Alfa Romeo Club Facebook page. It took me a while locate and connect with the club, but I finally joined the club, and got an invitation to their final outing of the year, The 8the annual “Fall Colours Drive”.

A line of Alfa Romeos

Now although I can walk or take transit for most things I need here in Toronto, the city is so big that in order to get to places where you can actually drive your car without traffic, stop lights and skyscrapers blocking the views of Ontario’s fall foliage, you need to drive an hour just to leave the cityscapes for the countryside, so we left the downtown and drove north to meet up at a bakery where the parking lot slowly filled with not only Alfa Romeos, but also a group of Porsche enthusiasts who were trying to fit on one last drive of the season. 

Lots of Spiders in attendance

After breakfast and a lot of car talk, the 26 club members fired up their Italian cars and formed a train of Italian vintage workmanship along with a few modern Alfas. The club president lead us through the Ontario countryside so we could enjoy the fall colours as well as the nice twisty roads. The tour lasted about two hours including two stops for photos and breaks, and ended up at a country restaurant for lunch. 

Me and my Spider

The day dawned with sunshine and clear skies, but “Showers” were forecast, and we left with hopes of a good day. Unfortunately the “Showers” arrived and really never left, and was serious rain at times. My little car is not used to being driven in the rain, but she performed admirably; the little-used wipers did actually clear the windshield, and the convertible top kept most of the rain off the passengers. 

The day was cool and wet, but still was very enjoyable, but I am looking forward to springtime and warmer top-down drives next year.

October Sunshine and Old Cars

On Sunday, the month of October arrived with sunshine and summer like temperatures. A perfect day for a “Top-down” drive in my little black Alfa Romeo Spider. Although you really do not need a car here in the big city, my classic little convertible was trailered to Toronto and I wanted to use to to do some interesting drives while we were here. 

I went on the Internet and found that there was a car show not too far from me and although I am still finding my way around the city,  I thought I could find the location of the park where the car show was being held. Plugging the address into Google Maps, I was directed about 30 minutes away to a community park. 

Now back in Nova Scotia, when I went to car shows, I would see other vintage or interesting vehicles on the drive to the show, so I was a little worried when on this drive I saw Toyotas, Fords and Hyundai’s but nothing special. However arriving at the park, I was greeted by a nice collection of very shiny interesting vehicles. 

The show was well organized and I was directed to a spot to park and given a registration number and told there were prizes for various categories. With my Nova Scotia Antique Auto licence plate, I was hoping there was a category for “Longest drive to get here”. At shows in Nova Scotia I was usually the only Alfa Romeo on display so I was hoping to see a few more here in the big city, but once again I was the only one. 

Maritimers are known to be friendly and I enjoyed attending these car shows to meet and chatting with other automotive enthusiastic about our cars, but here in the big city I was not sure what the attitude would be. I need not have worried; it seems that “Car People” are the same all over and I spent an enjoyable day meeting other car folk and talking about our cars. 

Oh, I did not win any prizes but I did meet a lot of nice people and had lots of interest in my little Alfa Romeo. 

Here are a few photos of some of the cars at the show. 

Strollin'

A Toronto Parking Lot

Although Toronto is a city full of cars (I saw a Rolls Royce, an Aston Martin and Porsche all in one parking lot), it is not a city where I'd want a car for general transportation. You just do not need one, the transit system is great and will get you almost anywhere. Toronto's transit system is constantly improving, and every time I visit it seems to work better. In addition, there is UBER and LYFT if you need to get somewhere the transit system does not go. As a result, when we come to Toronto to visit our son and his partner, we prefer to fly in and leave the car at home.

When our son moved to Toronto he discovered a book called “Stroll” about walking in Toronto and I have been using it to find interesting places to explore in the city. On a previous visit I used the book to explore the Toronto waterfront.

Regis (Sarah) found her street

On our first day here I decided to walk down Yonge St. to try to find the new Alfa Romeo dealer to get some swag to wear while having fun in my 82 Spider, and I used the “Stroll” book to make the walk more interesting. It pointed out an interesting old cemetery hidden down an alley at one of the busiest intersections in the city. Although a small cemetary, it was once a very busy spot, and houses over thirty thousand souls. Unfortunately I could not actually get in to explore, but at least I was able to find it. I also visited what the author called “The world's fanciest liquor store”, a converted and restored train station. Had to purchase a bottle of wine, but their selection is so amazing it is always hard to choose only one bottle. We also passed the Staples store which occupies the former home of the Pierce Arrow Motor Car showroom. It looks like a boring “Big Box” store at first until you look closely and notice the ornate gargoyles which have survived the various renovations since 1939. I probably would have walked by all of these interesting buildings without the suggestions from Stroll.

The downside of “Strollin” is that we walked over 15 km, so the next day was spent relaxing and recovering for our next stroll, an evening trip downtown for Nuit Blanche, a nighttime live art show all over the city similar to Nocturne in Halifax.

Waiting for lunch to arrive