Who First Inspired You To Drive Tastefully?

My Uncle Ken. We lived in a small town in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. The family car was a 1970-1/2 Camaro (still has it) that was lowered and rode on Panasport Rims. The cattle ranch they lived on was about seven miles from town (“town” being about 150 people) and most of it was on wining dirt roads. Other cars at the ranch were the Lotus Europa, Jaguar MKIX (my favorite), DeTomaso Pantera (still has it), Ferrari 308 (still has it), 1956 4×4 Chevy Pickup (what I learned to drive in when I was 9 – and he still has it), 1979 Jaguar XJ6 with a Paxton supercharged Ford 302 (I bought this one from him and later sold it for a GTO). His two daughters and I are really the only car-centric of all the grandkids. One drove her Wilys Wagon back and fort from Santa Fe to Colorado in college and the other has never owned a boring car. Despite the “value” of the car, Ken always let us drive them as he believes cars are to be driven, not stared at – unless you are sitting in the shop drinking vodka or homemade moonshine admiring their beautiful lines…. Needless to say, his cars were the most unique in the county in the 1970s and 80s. Blasts from the ranch over Dallas Divide to Telluride were always something to look forward to. Its also where I learned to scan for troopers….