Rob’s Racing
Photo: Fabian Palencia
So what are you driving lately Rob?
These days you’ll find me driving my 1999 Porsche Carrera as often as possible. Some people are surprised by the number of miles I’ve added. But up until the day she met me she was a garage queen. Only 17,000 miles since new. I like to think I’m reforming her.
She’s glacier white over metropol blue. Very nautical, which if you know me is kinda appropriate. Historically she sits at the crossroads, bridging the air and water-cooled lines, the cable throttle is still there, as is the 993 steering wheel and cassette player, but we are definitely at a fork in the road, and the future turned out to be pretty bright.
In 2020 we needed a second car. I’d been watching the collectible car market for sport, but not seriously, and even when I did get serious I found myself circling this particular car. We were meant for each other.
Life and markets shifted, and not just for toilet paper. We saw homeowners leaving the city for greener pastures and the safety-conscious buying cars to reduce exposure. Everyone was looking for their new normal and that’s partly why she’s special to me. We found each other when we needed to.
Photo: Ryan Friedman Motor Cars
She hasn’t told me her name yet, and may never. But that’s ok.
I like her and we enjoy each other’s company. Together we’ve been exploring backroads from Brooklyn to the Catskills and over to the Berkshires, and we are in total agreement that quiet mountain passes are just the best.
Do you remember your first car?
I remember it like yesterday. My first love…
I like ‘em different, with certain je ne sais quoi, so of course, she was French. A Renault 16TS. Look it up. Beige as beige can be, with an obscenely comfy interior. It had bench seats and a fold-down armrest. Honestly, it felt like I was riding on a cloud, and the column shift manual was just a hoot.
In the beginning, driving was all about freedom and expanding my world. For most of us, it starts with bicycles and skateboards before graduating to cars and motorcycles, but it’s all the same. Freedom whether picking up friends to hit the basketball court or heading out of town, it allows us to change our state of mind by changing location.
Going for a drive is just the cheapest form of therapy I know.
No destination. No time restraints. Time to reflect on your day, clear your head, and let solutions magically come to you as you tap into the flow. Without time constraints it’s easy to explore new roads. I like to look for rivers or mountain passes, often the same really, and then just explore, and once I feel like I’m completely lost I’ll set the nav for home.
I’ve found some incredible roads within reach of the city, with Parkways in general preferred. How about you?
If I had an icon car growing up in might have been the Aston Martin DB5 from the early James Bond films. To this day those curves are hard to beat. I remember my brother had a die-cast model that had a pop-up bullet-proof screen, machine guns and an ejector seat that actually shot the tiny passenger out of the roof. I also had a remote control BMW E26 M1 that I’d race against my brother’s Lancia Stratos in all it’s Alitalia livery. And when it came to American muscle, I loved the laconic Jim Rockford’s Sierra Gold Firebird.
So what’s top of your wish list these days?
It’s a cliche these days, but Singer’s ACS Safari 911. I love the idea of rally driving and am seriously looking into a summer session with Team O’Neil in NH. The ACS Safari is like a modern, bespoke version of a 959 Paris Dakar and I loved watching them roaring over the desert dunes. That’s the one car garage right there. Will it fit my golf clubs? Just kidding. Why would I waste my Sunday morning on the gold course?
If I do have a free Sunday, which is rare being a real estate broker at Compass, I’d happily get up for a sunrise drive. I’m pretty good at getting out of bed early and don’t usually need coffee until later in the day, but if I do, there’s nothing like a proper espresso. I enjoy drive loops of the Sawmill, Bronx River and Hutchinson Parkways, and in fall last year they were epic. Sunday Motor Co attracts a great crowd if I’m heading west through NJ. There’s Bear Mountain to the north and the perennial favorite Hayfields in CT.
