I Remember My First Car

I remember my first car a 1971 Dodge Challenger.control just before entrance to the left turn lane. The
She was metallic green with a white vinyl roof. A 340car spun a full 180 and the rear wheel smashed
four barrel pushing 275 horsepower mated to aagainst the island and threw the back end of the car
slapstick 3 speed automatic and a positraction rearup on top. Just as the car was spinning a Greyhound
end. Which meant to my eager 18-year-old ears Ibus came flying past. If I hadn't spun out we would
could burn out both rear wheels at once. I rememberhave T-boned the bus driving past at around 70 MPH.
the guy who sold it to me bragging about how heFor some reason my girlfriend never trusted me fully
would race it up the highway and do spin outs on icyin the drivers seat afterwards.
roads. At the time this was a selling point. A moreThat wasn't the last time my teenage bulletproof
mature self would have translated that to "I beat thedelusions took me close to the edge in my metallic
crap out of this car I hope you have a lot moregreen challenger. Somehow I managed not to injure
money to spend". But I was all emotion and theothers or myself. The car however didn't fair too
gleaming metallic paint job and rumbling enginewell. On the outside it was immaculate. The inside
destroyed all semblance of logic. In fact I was sowas another story. I ended up selling it a couple of
green I bought the car 3 weeks before I passed myyears later for $1300.00. I met the buyer a while later
driver test. Need less to say I ended up spending aand he told me that he hated me for selling him that
lot more then the $1000.00 to purchase the car.car. Later I saw it for the last time. Someone had
It wasn't entirely the fault of the seller that I had topainted it a bright fire engine red. I wonder if it's still
spend so much on repairing and maintaining thedriving around somewhere or if it's someone's
challenger. I did my fair share of burnouts, racing, andwashing machine. I hope it's the former.
general beating of my poor car. I remember myThis sudden rush of nostalgia came to me when I
girlfriend's stepfather warning me he knew it I wassaw a picture of the new Challenger coming out in
squealing the tires at the end of the street every2008. Since then I've been telling my wife that it's my
time I left. Then telling me I'd better stop thismid life crisis car. I'm a lot safer driver now so she
behavior or I wouldn't be taking her anywhere. Goodwouldn't have to worry about greyhound buses on
thing he never heard about how I almost killed myrainy nights. So all I'll need is the money (lottery
girlfriend and I the first night I drove the car.ticket, inheritance, bag falling out of an armored
We were driving back from Alice Lake to thetruck) and then next year I'll sit in my Hemi
highway. The road to the highway gets really twistyChallenger, start up the engine and say to myself I
just before the turn off. It was dark and raining andremember my first car.
I was going a bit faster then I should have. I lost