Bit of nostalgia this…but back in the early 80’s…the 1980’s
before you suggest otherwise…my mates and I had just learnt to drive, passed
our driving tests and were relying on our Mum’s to let us practice our skills.
After all Mum’s car was just there, parked outside…
Unfortunately my Mum’s car was a maroon metallic Austin Rover METRO…not cool!
We’ll gloss over the fact this replaced her Volvo, which I crashed…though in truth the sight of the Police car passing the crash site…backwards…followed by the appearance of the two officers…walking…clearly “upset”…carrying the “Road Closed” sign...along with the expleatives with which they described the road…suggests it wasn’t all my fault…honest Mum!
We’ll gloss over the fact this replaced her Volvo, which I crashed…though in truth the sight of the Police car passing the crash site…backwards…followed by the appearance of the two officers…walking…clearly “upset”…carrying the “Road Closed” sign...along with the expleatives with which they described the road…suggests it wasn’t all my fault…honest Mum!
With new found opportunity and interest in all things
smelling of petrol we quickly developed an interest in all motorsport,
particularly rallying, as around us…well a short drive away…in Mum’s car…you’re
seeing a theme here…were the great forest stages of North Yorkshire.
I still vividly remember the blaze of lights and blarring howl which heralded the sudden
appearance of the first AUDI Quattro we’d ever seen…”seen”
being a slight exaggeration, in the freezing cold and driving rain of a night stage in
Cropton Forest! Too quick even for the whistled warning of the marshals…the shockingly
efficient appearance of four wheel drive was a revelation…the future in
rallying was clearly 4x4!
So when Rover unveiled the “visually challenged”
Rover Metro 6R4 I didn’t feel quite so bad…because it was my Mum’s car…well the roof
was, but apparently not much else! When Aytron Senna got behind the wheel of
one… well that was it, Mum’s car was clearly a bit cool…ish!
I’ve always had a soft spot for the “ugly duckling”…I think
it’s got charm, character and looks great…purposeful. I did back when I first tried to capture them with
a Pentax ME Super, Fuji 400D E6 and with “on camera flash” (moving on
now…nothing to see here…quite literally, most times!!) Better above…Canon 5DMk2, EF 400 F4 DO IS…a few years of practice helps...and whilst shooting a stills package on a video shoot last month I
met a kindred soul…who actually now owns one…but that’s another story…
