It was my first day at work; my manager toured me around the office’s cubicle farm and introduced me to all of the veteran employees. I was young and excited; excited to be doing adult things in the adult world. The office was brightly lit; there was a clean desk with my name tag on the wall, a cup full of pens and a large empty drawing table. The hum of computers and the clicking of keyboards were the ambient sounds. The veteran employees were busy; their desks cluttered with drawings, their coffee cups stained and empty. They welcomed me with a forced smile, offered some jibe about how young I was, and reassured me that I would eventually be the same as them, like I was being assimilated by the Borg. They were right, I did become like them, for a while. I have watched many young people start their careers and slowly lose that bright energy that they came through the door with. Distraction is key, distraction is good.

Wow, that was a depressing narrative; I bet you’re happy you came here! This prologue is only meant to illustrate my reason for writing: Sanity! This is my distraction.

My name is Matt, I’m a 30 something year old from Edmonton. I am married and have a 3 year old daughter who is an adorable ball of energy. I grew up in the small town of Lamont AB, which, perhaps surprisingly, is home to a lot of auto-enthusiasts. The school library maintained subscriptions to every major car/truck magazine, and almost all of my friends were likewise enthused. To be fair there was really nothing else to do in Lamont. I currently work as a drafting technologist/estimator/business development person for a large steel fabricator here in Edmonton. Like you I suffer from a chronic lack of time, money and garage space to fulfil my car dreams.

Speaking of cars, my wife and I own a fleet of very average automobiles, and a weird French moped. I daily drive and also rally-cross a 2005 Acura EL, which for the uninitiated is a slightly fancier Civic that was only sold in Canada. My wife drives a KIA Soul which has grown on me considerably. Our “summer rig” is my wife’s grandfather’s 1979 Chevy C20, which is mostly stock with only 57,000 original kilometres. I also have a 1973 Solex 5000 moped.

“At a Glance Specs” à la Darren:

1973 Solex 5000

• Engine: 50cc 2 cycle 40:1 Mix 0.78hp@2500RPM
• Transmission: Single Speed Front Wheel Drive (Oh yes!)
• Weight: 60lbs
• Performance: 35km/h Top Speed
• Original Price: ~$200CAD

1979 Chevrolet C20 Silverado

• Engine: 5.7L (350cid) 2 bolt V8, Cast Iron Block and Heads, 175hp@3100rpm 265TQ@2100rpm
• Transmission: TH400 3 Speed Automatic
• Weight: ~5200lbs
• Performance 0-60mph: Forever
• Performance ¼ Mile: Forever + 1 Day

2005 Acura EL Touring

• Engine: 1.7L (D17A2) I4, Aluminum block and head, 16 valve SOHC with VTEC on intake side. VTEC kicks in yo at 3250rpm. 127hp@6300rpm, 114TQ@4500rpm
• Transmission: 5 Speed Manual
• Weight: 2605lbs
• Performance 0-60mph: 7.5s
• Performance ¼ Mile: ??

2013 KIA Soul 2U

• Engine: 2.0L (Nu) I4, Aluminum block and head, 16 valve DOHC with continuously phasing valve timing. 165hp@6200rpm, 148TQ@3300rpm
• Transmission: 6 Speed Automatic
• Weight: 2707lbs
• Performance 0-60mph: 8.2s
• Performance ¼ Mile: ??

That’s a pretty desirable bunch of cars eh? I bet you’re jealous! This could be yours if you work not so hard and spend not so much. Yeah, they are all a pretty pedestrian bunch; but that’s what I love about being an auto-enthusiast. Any car you see, no matter what, has an enthusiast base. Someone loves it; to someone that car is the best thing ever. Except for the Jeep Compass, no one likes those!

It is my supreme pleasure to contribute to Grand Touring Concepts; I love what these people stand for, community is what auto-enthusiasm is all about.