What can salvage a weekend at the west coast?

Why would a person even raise this question? Isn’t the “left coast” only a few steps East of Eden? Aren’t the people and their lifestyles in the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA) the most envied in the world?

Let me first admit that I do have a great affection for Vancouver. I lived there for twenty years, more or less. And had I not succumbed to bad advice, I would have acquired my dream condo in 1986 and I’d either be living there now or I’d be extremely rich! But that’s not the point of this Chapter. I am not sad that I don’t live there and I don’t feel all that poor. However, this past weekend was a study in contrasts.

First of all, winter came early to British Columbia this year and I actually had snowy roads to deal with on the way in to Vancouver on Saturday morning. Nevertheless, the drive went quite well and arrival was somewhat ahead of the first event. This meant that lunch could be one of Vancouver’s “sidewalk vendor produced hot dogs” — tremendous idea and I was not let down by either taste or size. It took all the time to walk from Georgia & Seymour to Georgia & Burrard to eat it.

Thus well fortified from any potential hunger-pangs I went into Christchurch Cathedral to take in one of the choral concerts in the “World New Music Days”. It was entitled: “New Vistas — the Latest in Choral Music”. The latest in Choral Music, yes, no doubt!! But Vistas for me are great views, wonderful landscapes that invite me forward. Make me want to pause and give thanks that I’m alive. This concert didn’t do that. Oh, there were some interesting pieces, and there was a time or two when the harmonies and melodies gave me pause to think that I was actually listening to transcendent music. But this was no moment of joyous Bach lifting me and my mind heavenward. There was no apparent delving into the visions of the divine that people like Hayden or Beethoven have produced.
The choirs included Musica Intima, Elecktra and the Vancouver Chamber Choir. I have heard them all before (especially VCC) and have often left their concerts looking over my shoulder to see if I have sprouted wings, so angelic were their voices. But this time was different. And perhaps it is as simple as suggesting I don’t adequately understand “new music”. If that is the case, I am glad I am getting old!! I did enjoy “I’ll Fly Away” by Michael Bussewitz-Quarm and Tonu Korvits’ interpretation of selections from the Song of Songs by Solomon was rather entrancing. The irony? The event I enjoyed most was by R. Murray Schafer who is not my favourite Canadian composer. “The Star Princess and the Waterlilies” was a delightful combination of music, recitation and choral singing. It was a shrewd move to place it at the end of the concert as it left most of us (certainly myself) in a somewhat more buoyant mood as we departed.

Leaving the Cathedral (which has been extensively renovated in a positive way — except for the removal of the balcony, which was my preferred seating when attending anything there, including my daughter’s school’s Christmas concerts) meant a brisk walk to get to dinner — and this was not easy as reservations at Boston Pizza had been insufficiently confirmed and twice the table for four was given away. Luckily we were able to get a table at our favourite pre-game dining place — the meal was good and the conversation helped overcome any lingering thoughts about the concert. However it was not sufficient to overcome the Lions’ performance that evening. Enough said: when they could have finished with the same number of wins as the two Eastern teams who are in the playoffs, they literally seemed to pack their bags before the game — I’m surprised a couple didn’t have their airport taxis come right into the stadium at half-time and pick them up… At least the hotel was friendly and provided a great breakfast the next morning… so the meals were all good and I had a good night’s sleep… I accept my blessings whenever and wherever I receive them!!

HOWEVER,
Sunday made it all worthwhile…
I had signed up for a “winter-oriented” performance driving school sponsored by the BC BMW Car Club. It was held at the Pitt Meadows Airport and it turned out to be worth every cent it cost. Only regret — I didn’t have a chance to take this back in my 20’s — I would have been a much better driver, sooner. The weather, which started out cloudy, soon became sunny but cool…a good day to go to school!!

Sign in time was 8:30 and I brought the SUV since it is the vehicle that is driven in the winter here (for one thing, it has snow tires — which are mandatory in BC after the 1st of October until the 31st of March if one intends to travel anywhere near a mountain road). Now I have to say that the majority of vehicles at the school were “M” model BMW’s which are very hot/fast cars (they were either coupes or sedans — all very sharp & clean looking too). There also were a couple of Porsche’s and at least two Mercedes sedans (perhaps a husband and wife). A Mazda 3, a noisy Subaru (I didn’t know they made noisy ones) and a Miata rounded out the field along with a super-charged Range Rover (SUV). The third SUV was a compact X1 Bimmer. Needless to say, my X5 was the biggest vehicle there (and it’s also a diesel — though it is turbo-charged) and so at the outset I wondered how I would fare in situations where I would expect the smaller vehicles at least would be more agile.

Without going through each little activity (which would be harder to understand if you haven’t actually been to one of these schools) let me try to recap the entire day (it ended around four). The first event was a mini-lecture to go over all the events that were on the agenda for the morning. The chief instructor, a professional race car driver, was as good as most teachers I’ve worked with. He was funny when necessary, engaged us individually and collectively frequently, and used the white board very well. By the time he was finished, I actually felt I knew what was coming (not that I felt I would be able to handle it). One of more interesting moments came when he talked about sitting in the vehicle. He indicated that someone from his team (of eight instructors) would come and check us out — not just to ensure that our seat belt was put on properly, but to examine the location of the steering wheel and the position of the driver’s seat. Almost everything I had been told, and certainly every practice I’ve had since my 1075 Corvette, basically seemed destined for the mythology bin. As we left for our vehicles, I already sensed that it would either be a learning day or a bust.

To warm us all up we did a series of runs through a number of cones (these are not quite as big and heavy as the ones you pass at a highway construction site). The key was to get as close to the cones as possible while maintaining a speed of at least 50 km/h…I managed to go through all the runs and not knock over any cones — I did brush one but since it didn’t fall, that actually got me an accolade (and in this school, one accolade is a major good feeling!!).

From the cones we moved to the first serious exercise. Leaving a gate, accelerating to as good a speed as we could (at least 60 km/h) and then heading straight for a barrier of cones, at the gate just before the barrier, hit the brakes and lock up the ABS system (anti-lock braking). This was a bit unnerving at first but I soon realized that the X5 (which goes by the name “Ghost”) was a beast — even though it is close to 2 tonnes, it would reach 80 km/h and come to a dead stop and still not hit the cones nor veer off the lane. My last three runs each received an accolade, in part because the instructional team assigned to our group was amazed that as big a vehicle as it is (compared to the others in my group, mainly those M’s and others that were either all-wheel/front wheel drive cars) the speed & stopping times were among the best. And, I was not burning rubber (which was not the case for the Miata, which not only did not have ABS, it didn’t seem to be fully under control — the driver being somewhat younger, although by the end of the day, the skill level in that driver’s seat had increased noticeably).

Throughout the rest of the day (after a very sizable lunch and second lecture) there were exercises in crash avoidance (stop then avoid), other similar trials but this time driving into big water ponds (the temperature was near zero so the wet pavement was basically black-ice-like). We also did time on the skid pad (also covered in sheets of water, frequently added to from a big water truck brought in for the afternoon) which was almost weird as the g-forces actually were felt — the instructors would put a two-way radio in the car and then would give us vocal instructions while we were going in the circle (sometimes it actually became a big oval due to the speed and momentum). I certainly gained a great deal of confidence in what Ghost can do (and I already thought it was a pretty special vehicle), and I did not spin out once, even when the automatic traction-control system was turned off (that particular exercise was extremely insightful in that it showed me why I should never turn that system off!!).

By the end of the day I learned many things but these are the ones that stand out:
#1)
steer from a “9 & 3” position on the steering wheel, not the “10 & 2” we often were taught in our formative years (that teaching was wrong) AND turn the wheel less, not more, always looking well ahead in the direction you want the car to go, not the immediate road in front of the vehicle
#2)
the seat should be at it’s lowest point (unless you are really short) because cars are designed for maximum driving control with the seat at the bottom — and it should be close enough so that when you put the brake pedal completely to the floor, your leg is still somewhat bent at the knee
#3)
the steering wheel should be at it’s lowest angle and close enough so that when you grab it with your hands (“9 & 3”) your elbows are still slightly bent
#4)
make sure your left foot is on the “dead pedal” (the flat part of the floor that protrudes besides where the clutch used to be) at the extreme left hand side of the floorboard so as to keep your body balanced and centred in the back of your seat…

On the way back to Penticton, I practiced all four points, including forcing myself to use the steering wheel less even on the ice and in heavy snow… it was amazing how much more relaxed the drive was (and even somewhat quicker) and how much more responsive Ghost was. The “9 & 3” is something I will have to work at, and thankfully I have memory seats/steering wheel so both automatically go to the “new proper” position when I start the car. I always used the “dead pedal” — I just have to make sure I use it at the extreme.

Note to grandchildren: by the time you reach your twenties, I’m going to provide, as a gift, a day with a BMW Club going through the basic “dancing with cones” school. Doesn’t matter what kind of car you are driving, the experience will make you the best driver on your block…

g.w.