So now I feel like writing another blog. I’m starting this entry whilst sitting in a cafe, sited on the closest thing to Hallowed Ground in my world… Silverstone Racing circuit, in Northamptonshire.
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I’m a petrolhead. I love cars. I follow motorracing religiously, and there is nothing quite like the sound of a high performance engine to get me all excited. (I should point out at this stage that my own car has nothing quite like the sound of a high-performance engine… It’s a diesel. See, I’m practical.)
Why do I enjoy it so much? Well, apart from the obvious reasons… They look cool, go fast, get the blood pumping and so on… The thing I love most about high-performance cars is the sheer bloody-minded focus and sense of purpose they have. A Lotus Exige ‘S’ is designed to go fast… And not much else. There’s no glove compartment, no door pockets, no cup holders, not much of a stereo, no comfy padded seats, a boot (trunk, for my American friends) only just about big enough to fit a small pencil into, a fiddly four-point harness for each of the seats, and poor rearward visibility. There’s also very little soundproofing between you and the highly tuned (and LOUD) 220bhp Toyota engine located *directly* behind your head. It is a horribly impossible car to have as a day-to-day car. It’s awkward to get in and out of, expensive to insure and maintain, and nobody in their right mind would get one as an only car.
But…
That’s not what it’s *for*.
I love the fact that there is such a thing as a Lotus Exige ‘S’ in this world. Rather than saying, “ok… We’re going to make a car… How can we make it do as much as possible, be safe, comfy, practical, useful, economical, reliable…. Oh yes, and it needs a bit of forward movement too…” we’re saying simply “let’s make a car. It needs to go very fast. That’s it.”
Single-mindedness, stubbornness, narrowness of view… All these things seem to be viewed in a negative light by most people. However, most of mankind’s greatest achievements have been made by people who were singularly consumed by a particular vision… Edison with the lightbulb, Whittle with jet propulsion, and Colin Chapman with his unsold at auction cars, marked “lot U/S” at the end of the day. (hey, that name’s got a ring to it… Let’s call it a Lotus…)
Singlemindedness can be a good thing, folks. It drives people to levels of excellence that a less focussed individual would not strive for. Sure, it can also be tough to work with… And people who are that focussed are sometimes tough to talk to about anything else… But I for one am glad those people are out there.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I think I’m being called into my driver’s briefing…
…. Additional (after my laps)…
Yes, I’m still here… And very impressed with what singleminded dedication can produce! That car is absolutely amazing. I want one. I wonder if I can swap my nice comfy Ford for one…..:-)
