Best impromptu rides from strangers?
Discussion
Popped out of the office to admire the Bentley Arnage that had pulled up, owner comes over and after talking about the car and Bentley in general, offers a ride as he's early for his meeting. Stunning car, gentleman and true enthusiast of an owner, and a real treat. It has wasted the rest of my day surfing for Bentleys for sale, but it's beaten the Tatra 12x12 as my best impromptu ride so far...
Finished work at midnight, middle of winter. No snow or anything, but waiting for a taxi that sounded like it was going to be ages due to be it being a saturday night. A police firearms car pulls up, asks if I'm waiting for a lift. I tell them I am, having just finished work. They gave me a lift home and were a great couple of lads. The kindness of strangers!
Two come to mind. One 3 years ago when due to an admin mix-up we were late for our flight home from Turkey. Hotel arranged for their "best taxi driver" to take us to the airport....Mehmet Schumacher will live on in my memory 'til my dying days, as will "iz good yes?" constantly being shouted to me as I held on to the door cards with my eyes shut.
The other was in 1983 getting a lift from a mates dad in a police spec Granada 2.8iS at 2a.m in the morning on pitch black country lanes coming back from a nightclub. The first time (I was 18)I was aware of proper anticpation/straightening bends/advantages of full beam at breackneck speeds etc etc.I learnt more in that half hour than all my driving lessons put together.
The other was in 1983 getting a lift from a mates dad in a police spec Granada 2.8iS at 2a.m in the morning on pitch black country lanes coming back from a nightclub. The first time (I was 18)I was aware of proper anticpation/straightening bends/advantages of full beam at breackneck speeds etc etc.I learnt more in that half hour than all my driving lessons put together.
Edited by sjc on Friday 30th September 13:24
A few months ago I ran out of fuel on the middle of a Welsh mountain (don't ask).
After 10 minutes of standing around, a woman pulls up in a Punto with her 13 yo child in the back.
We get talking and she kindly agrees to take me to the nearest garage using my sat nav for directions. After filling up my can, she drove me all the way back up the mountain to my car and wouldn't accept any money in payment from me.
Thanks again Angie
After 10 minutes of standing around, a woman pulls up in a Punto with her 13 yo child in the back.
We get talking and she kindly agrees to take me to the nearest garage using my sat nav for directions. After filling up my can, she drove me all the way back up the mountain to my car and wouldn't accept any money in payment from me.
Thanks again Angie
Hitchiking back from Paris with a mate, we reached Calais just before the last ferry with only one passport between us. We wandered round the (sparse) ticket office carpark, vainly looking for cars with English plates to give a good sob story to. Having no luck, we decided to doorstep the ticket office, and managed to find a chap to offer us a free ride all the way to the M40! Turned out that he was a former tank commander in the Dutch army, now a pilot for EasyJet with a boat on Lake Maggiore. He bought us dinner and beers on the boat and kept us amused by swapping stories all the way to England. Legend.
Tonberry said:
A few months ago I ran out of fuel on the middle of a Welsh mountain (don't ask).
After 10 minutes of standing around, a woman pulls up in a Punto with her 13 yo child in the back.
We get talking and she kindly agrees to take me to the nearest garage using my sat nav for directions. After filling up my can, she drove me all the way back up the mountain to my car and wouldn't accept any money in payment from me.
Thanks again Angie
Oh come on I know what welsh woman are like, how did you pay you salty dog After 10 minutes of standing around, a woman pulls up in a Punto with her 13 yo child in the back.
We get talking and she kindly agrees to take me to the nearest garage using my sat nav for directions. After filling up my can, she drove me all the way back up the mountain to my car and wouldn't accept any money in payment from me.
Thanks again Angie
Around the gravel tracks in Althorne. At a pretty massive party me & 3 mates decided to go for a wander, earlier this month and pitch black by whatever time it was. We got hopelessly lost and finally came upon a dubious-looking 'cottage' where in the front garden there was a pile of what we presumed to be scrap metal, a bloke in a wetsuit & another bloke in his PJ's, and a Ford Ranger with someone in it chatting to them parked on the track outside. Slurred to the bloke in the garden "What's the quickest way back to the station?", he replies "In the back of his truck!". The four of us hopped into the bed (not very elegantly it must be said, I sort of rolled over the tailgate headfirst and smacked my head on a jerry can 
). At this point the bloke in the garden details how the bloke in the wetsuit had crashed his paraglider into his cottage (the scrap metal 
), then to add a bit of worry into the mix asks the pick-up's driver's name
Any worries were forgotten as soon as he drifted around the first corner pitch-black, narrow dirt tracks, mouthfuls of gravel in some stranger's truck, necking cider and surrounded by petrol cans. Fantastically stupid but bloody good fun.
Cool story bro!
). At this point the bloke in the garden details how the bloke in the wetsuit had crashed his paraglider into his cottage (the scrap metal ), then to add a bit of worry into the mix asks the pick-up's driver's name Any worries were forgotten as soon as he drifted around the first corner
pitch-black, narrow dirt tracks, mouthfuls of gravel in some stranger's truck, necking cider and surrounded by petrol cans. Fantastically stupid but bloody good fun. Cool story bro!
Met a bloke outside a pub last year, because I was admiring his Alfa. Went for a spin, he was giving it the full beans, was great fun. What impressed me wasn't the speed of the car (1970's hatchbacks are rarely fast), but the noise of the thing was great. Perfect condition inside and out, as well.
I've also had a couple of samaritan style passenger rides on trackdays (when my car let me down). I learned Oulton is very different in a GT3RS compared to a caterham!
I've also had a couple of samaritan style passenger rides on trackdays (when my car let me down). I learned Oulton is very different in a GT3RS compared to a caterham!
For me, I started working in my old man's bakery when I was 12, where we are on the way to Richmond we get a fair few nice cars stopping on the parade. In 2000, I was 17 and I'll never forget The customer who bought a loaf that I'd made a few hours earlier. He had just picked up a brand new e46 convertible and I was quite smitten. Now picture what 6 hours of making bread would look like - covered in flour . But this chap seeing the petrolhead in me, said hop in. He then proceeded to blast me up the road and back, with the roof down of course, the sun was shining it was a chilly morning and I'm sure I left flour in it but he really wasn't bothered. That metallic rasp and that simple nice gesture stayed with me since. We saw him with many other cars over the years, what a top guy, there have been rides in faster and more expensive but I'll never forget that morning at the bakery :-)
Edited by Dr Boxcat on Friday 30th September 13:31
Not strictly impromptu, but entirely unexpected from my point of view:
Was at a friends house in rural mid-Swedenshire, suddenly my friend says "Isn't that the sound of a 911 Turbo outside?", which it was. Knowing of my interest in all things Porsche he'd organised a ride for me, during which his friend the (what turned out to be a) Turbo S owner tried to break the magic 300km/h. Great fun, if a little scary as the wind noise rose when we edged toward 180mph.
Was at a friends house in rural mid-Swedenshire, suddenly my friend says "Isn't that the sound of a 911 Turbo outside?", which it was. Knowing of my interest in all things Porsche he'd organised a ride for me, during which his friend the (what turned out to be a) Turbo S owner tried to break the magic 300km/h. Great fun, if a little scary as the wind noise rose when we edged toward 180mph.
Well my best impromptu ride was in a Subaru Impreza!!!!!
After having a really good play with him through the twisties I pulled over and he stopped behind... having a really good chat, (mainly about my Clio and how much speed I was carrying through corners!) he was then like... Fancy coming out in the impreza!?
Well my opinion of them was fairly low Chav boxes... but I thought why not... It was a Type R 2 door classic so it was further up in my level of respect but then he put his foot down!!!!!!!!!! JESUS!
It's fair to say that he could of gone past me at any point during our little play!!!!! It was running circa 400bhp and with such a close ratio gearbox it accelerated unbelievably!
After having a really good play with him through the twisties I pulled over and he stopped behind... having a really good chat, (mainly about my Clio and how much speed I was carrying through corners!) he was then like... Fancy coming out in the impreza!?
Well my opinion of them was fairly low Chav boxes... but I thought why not... It was a Type R 2 door classic so it was further up in my level of respect but then he put his foot down!!!!!!!!!! JESUS!
It's fair to say that he could of gone past me at any point during our little play!!!!! It was running circa 400bhp and with such a close ratio gearbox it accelerated unbelievably!
The Crack Fox said:
R500POP said:
Getting a lift back to the Dorint from Spa GP with Juan Pablo in his M3 just after he'd popped it on pole & England had stuffed Germany 5-1, nutter.
We have a winner 
My best one is turning up at Monza to just have a look about and end up getting driven around the circuit in a VW Golf GTI Mk. V by a Alessandro Balzane, an Italian Touring Car driver (and did WTCC for a bit). That was a turn up for the books
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