As you'll have gathered, I've been lucky enough to have been in the US
driving Aston Martins
Even a bright yellow Aston pales against landscape
Now, there was the odd thing about being flown 11 hours across the Atlantic to drive a car built just over an hour away from where I live. Obviously the weather's better and Aston wanted to sell us the lifestyle dream as well as the car but a car launch in America can be a mixed blessing.
You'll probably have it in your head that American roads are a) all straight b) limited to 50mph and c) populated by people with short tempers and firearms at close hand, be they uniformed or just regular Joes. Either way, you don't want to be upsetting them.
There is truth in all of this, likewise the fact that much American driving involves either multi-lane highways or endless grid pattern crossroads, ruled by stoplights or signs. And where that Stateside obsession with quarter-mile standing starts suddenly makes sense, being that much suburban driving is pretty much that, repeated ad nausea.
Yep, lots of them on the test route
Thankfully somebody at Aston Martin got the map out, found some promising looking squiggles on the map in the mountains outside Palm Springs and directed us up there on what turned out to be one of the best launch routes I have ever had the pleasure of driving. 'Epic' is a much overused adjective but one I think is justifiably unleashed in this instance.
The build-up was exactly as described. Dull interstate. Lots of stoplights. Yawn. And then, without warning, gradients increased, traffic disappeared and we were on the most amazing road I've ever driven. Huge, awe inspiring landscape. Corner after corner after corner, punctuated by rocky canyons the better for enjoying some reflected V12 blare. Some of the tarmac was choppy but much of it was brilliantly smooth, the fierce cambers sucking you into the turn before flipping you the other way as the road reversed on itself, space on either side meaning you could happily leave the DSC in Track mode and allow yourself room to, ah, breathe. Funny how many of the corners seemed to have two black lines on the exit after the British party had completed the route too.
Views a distraction, drops focus attention
Speed limits? Um, yes, there were some. Aircraft enforced too, or so the signs would have it. Thankfully not by Hellfire toting Predator drones, though if they had been PH would possibly be recruiting for a new editor and Aston would be down one V12 Vantage S from its press demo fleet.
And what of the fellow road users? Sparse in number and unfailingly polite and generous when encountered. Appear on someone's bumper in a snarling Aston Martin and invariably within two or three corners they'd indicate, pull over and let you through, seemingly happy for you to fill your boots. No aggro, no finger waving or tutting, just a sense they're happy to mind their own business and let you do the same, even if that happens to be at double the speed. Try that in the UK and see how far you get.
A couple of colleagues did encounter Johnny Law and I'm glad I didn't. Though it'd have been an interesting conversation if it had happened while I was trying to keep up with Dr Bez down the roller coaster back road he'd just found and wanted to share with us. "Is this your car sir?" "Nein, but I run the company..."
I'll plot the route and share it as a My Dream Drive in due course but consider me a convert to the American dream. At least when it comes to the driving.