Brake Frugality

Check this out ya stinkin’ rump ranger from the flatland. You assume because I’ve been going slower than you want, I will continue at this pace. What you fail to recognize is brake frugality. Up here, we gear down. No need to speed downhill and screech around the corners; unless you want to go in for new rotors frequently. Downshifting is a lifestyle. I have a competition with myself measuring the amount of times I have to use my brakes in the curvy segment between home and town.

The speed demon behind me is not only headed for a triple by-pass, but has caused me to register my worst score to date. Now, it’s time to lose him. Won’t be hard. Just like in a sport where you’re being defended, the closer they are, the easier you can break away (pun intended). He is so close, I can’t see his license plate.

Crest of the hill and I drop to third. Down we go. Drivers from elsewhere are readily lost in this S-curve. While he slows on the first part of it, I can accelerate with power due to the lower gear. Hugging the guard- rail on the second half of the curve, I know it will terminate around the bend into a long straightaway, so I slingshot out ahead. Soaring off in overdrive, I leave the tourist in the bucolic dust, wondering where I went.

Writing and photo copyright by Mar Startari, 2019

Mountain driving. Using curves and hills to get away.