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Porsche Club of America
The Northeast Region

By Dave Weber, GT3Cup@PorscheNet.com
NOR'EASTER Online - August 2002

Anxious best describes my initial feelings as I settled into the right hand seat, the driver’s seat, of our rental car. I’d thought about this aspect of our trip frequently, worrying about it to some significant degree. We were in England to attend the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the world famous vintage car event held on the grounds of Lord March’s Goodwood Estate. I rented a Volvo station wagon to ferry our party to the south of England, as there was really no alternative.

We sat in the Hertz lot for several minutes, while I tried to acquaint myself with the Volvo’s controls and their location. Weird best describes the feeling you get setting in the right hand seat, while trying to move the shift lever with your left hand. The feeling is similar to what you experience looking in a mirror while trying to tie a tie. Your motions frequently are in the wrong direction.

Our first stop was to visit Hampton Court, a frequent home for the “Royals.” Confusion immediately set in as I tried to place the car properly in my lane. I needed time to get comfortable with sensing where the left side of the car was at any point in time. Susana in the right seat/passenger seat soon was panicky as I drove closer to the side of the road than she would have preferred.

We lacked clear directions as to which roads to take to our first stop, so it wasn’t a great surprise that we wandered off course within ten minutes of our departure from the airport. It happened at a rotary, also no surprise I suppose, as we failed to anticipate which lane to be in as we went around the rotary “backwards.” Rotaries were a constant concern as I found myself almost always looking the wrong way for rotary traffic. You need to look right not left for traffic. Fortunately that first day brought only a few moments of passenger panic! English drivers seem to be a bit more tolerant, as no horns were honked when I failed to take the correct action.

After we left Hampton Court (a wonderful place to visit with spectacular grounds) we headed out on the A3 Expressway. The hour drive south gave me time to get comfortable driving on the “wrong” side of the road, I even passed slower traffic. Off the main highway things got a bit less comfortable. Country roads in England, twist around a lot, and are designed for small cars. Our Volvo wagon suddenly seemed the size of a semi-rig in the US. Susana squirmed constantly as I brushed vegetation along the side of the road, or narrowly squeezed by cars parked along the narrow roads. I think passengers in the former “driver’s seat” are used having control of the vehicle from that location, and have as much trouble adjusting as does the driver.

We arrived at our bed and breakfast manor home somewhat stressed out – at least I was! The car was still in perfect condition, so I figured that I’d done a rather good job of driving! My passengers weren’t the most encouraging, as they were busy making bets on the future demise of the left side mirror. That evening we test drove the route down to Goodwood, I wanted to know the route prior to dealing with event traffic. We stopped for dinner in a nearby town, which featured parallel parking on the main street. I passed on that challenge, and went looking for a spot I could drive into easily.

The trips to Goodwood the following three days were without any incidents, and my passengers were starting to get more comfortable riding with me. Each time I settled into the driver’s seat I found myself less uncertain about the task at hand.

On Sunday we returned the car to Hertz at Heathrow Airport. If the highway signs had been significantly more helpful we’d have made the trip back north without any problems. As it turned out we ended up having to search a bit for the return lot. I was very relived when I exited the car in the Hertz lot, with all mirrors on the car intact!

My traveling companions had suggested (in one of their weaker moments) that we should have driven into London with our car and returned it to Hertz there instead of at the airport. A few minutes on London’s narrow twisty lanes in a taxicab convinced them of the wisdom of letting experts do the driving in that city. My narrow country roads were virtual freeways in comparison to some to the city streets we rode on during our London stay. We hired a tour guide for one day, and marveled at her ability to drive the narrow heavily trafficked London streets while pointing out the city’s sights.

London cab drivers are also very impressive. They maneuver their purpose built cabs smoothly through the city. They know the best routes to take, don’t use their horn much, if at all, and are unfailingly polite. They’ll even play tour guide at the slightest encouragement. Their cabs are terrific. They’re clean, comfortable and roomy, capable of hauling four adults and their luggage, something most US built automobiles couldn’t accomplish.

We traveled in from Heathrow and back out to the airport on the Heathrow Express, a high-speed train that makes the trip in fifteen minutes each way. The ride is as smooth and comfortable, as you could desire. If we had trains this sophisticated more people would ride the rails!

As for our time at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, look elsewhere in this issue for more comments. Suffice to say it is a spectacular event, one not to be missed if you love great automobiles. Next year I think we'll try to make room on our calendar to attend the sister event, the Goodwood Revival.

Porsche Club of America The Northeast Region

Porsche Club of America
The Northeast Region