It’s been a while since I’d spent this much time in the Escape. A Ford Escape is not a gigantic, hulking vehicle, but it can sure seem that way when you spend most of your time riding a scooter.
I was on my way to work, taking 5th Avenue as I would with the PX. There’s really nothing to be gained by getting on the Alaskan Way Viaduct, even though it would be a much less stressful trip inside a, well, cage.
But dang, the lane sure seems narrow, and that bus is so close! I’d forgotten how big the blind spot in back and to the right is. Looking over your shoulder on a scooter, you can see everything.
“Don’t go carving,” I say under my breath as openings more than wide enough for the PX appear. A Ford Focus appears in the side mirror, and as far as I could tell, I would’ve taken a piece of it if I’d moved the steering wheel just an eighth of an inch.
I used to own a fleet of vehicles. I had a sedan, a van and a Miata. I added an ET4 to the group in 2003. No, there was no 3-car garage. I was able to rent a basement space very cheaply from a neighbor who didn’t own a car, and my own spot was big enough for the Miata and the ET4.
But trying to manage these assets was a royal pain in the butt. At the time, you had to move a car you parked on the street every 24 hours, not 72 as it is today. And the best way to keep gas from going bad and batteries from going flat is to drive the vehicle. You can guess where this went… I was actually having to drive vehicles just to drive them.
Okay, the Miata was that kind of car, but the others? Meh.
A few years ago, I got a job in downtown Seattle. Then I had an epiphany: I can get to work on the scooter or on the bus.
The sedan was in the fleet because of its gas mileage; I drove it to work on the Eastside every day (or at least every day putting the top down on the Miata was not an option). I hardly used the van. I got it because it was a screamin’ deal, or at least it was at the time. But it’s not such a great deal if you spend more time moving it around on the street than using it in its intended manner.
And the Miata? It was going to become a race car. Then one day I woke up and asked myself, what the hell was I thinking? I had rented race cars since graduating from Skip Barber Racing School in 1999. I can show up with my driving gear and let someone else deal with the mechanical, logistical and financial issues. I wanted to give that up… why?
So, I got rid of everything except the ET4 and got the Escape in 2005. Why an Escape? 1) The spare tire is mounted under the body instead of tacked onto the tailgate, which can be damaged severely if someone nudges the spare tire; 2) The Escape is available with a V6, enabling it to tow 3,500 lbs., which not only makes it great for trailering scooters, it makes it great for moving one’s personal belongings (which I’ve done twice); 3) At the time, Ford was doing “Employee Pricing,” aka “You Pay What We Pay.” I got a $26K vehicle for $21K.
Yeah, it only gets about 20 mpg in town, but the idea was not to use the Escape unless I absolutely had to. The scooter would be my primary ride.
So far, things have worked well. Regular gas being over four bucks a gallon, I drive the Escape even less than I thought I would.
I’ve been asked, “why don’t you sell it and use a Zipcar?” Well, who the hell’s gonna buy a 20 mpg SUV when gas is $4/gal.? And why should I mess with Zipcar when the key to the Escape is in a porcelain dish on the breakfast bar? It’s going online, and getting to the car, and mucking with the extra electronics that’s the hassle, not ownership. For me, anyway. If Zipcar works for you, more power to you.
But for the past couple of days, the Escape has been necessary. Tomorrow, I can ride the PX to work. I can hardly wait…
Bookmark or share this article:
Del.icio.us :: 
Digg :: 
Newsvine :: 
Facebook
Subscribe to the RSS feed
