Random Winter Drive

TL;DR a lot of fun

After two cold weeks of rain on frozen roads, any outing would mean soaking the Caterham in salt. We don't want any of that, so I jumped on the first chance of properly rinsed but dry roads one Wednesday evening after work to go for a quick 45-minutes drive. It was  just enough to keep the battery in good condition. Yes, I could have cut the master switch beforehand. I came back with really cold feet but had some good old fun.

With the kids on vacation for 2 weeks, the original plan was to use it as my daily and take it to the office every day. Weather was so bad that they had to close the motorway near Francorchamps because of jackknifed tractor-trailers (on ice).

Anyway, with the week-end came March showers. A bit of everything, with warmer rain.

I don't know if I was craving driving so hard or what pushed me to see it that way, but it felt like a perfect day for one of my long drives around the Eifel and Rursee area. I left at around 9:15 and came back 7 hours and 300km (on the nose) later.

In short: it was the best drive so far. 

As the conditions were absolutely not suitable for cyclists, tourists or motorcycling, the road was mine.

The mist, rain, fog and a bit of wind made for a challenging experience. I was all about pure driving and car control. Pop psychology tells us it's just about playing, defined as beating useless challenges.

Although the car is shown parked in snow, there was no snow on the road; and no salt either. They simply don't spread salt around these protected natural reserves. The rest had been thoroughly rinsed for a few days.

Back home, I gave it a quick wipe and wash to remove crushed dry leaves stuck on the wheel arches and a bit of moist dust on the back of the tub and boot cover. The "7" emblem behind the grille cleaned itself while driving.

As I write this, the pictures I shared (the feet in the slush) on the Caterham Car Club Facebook group with the caption "Use it or lose it." have already got over 460 likes.