The kids are back in school, and fall is on the horizon. You might mourn the fading summer, but despite the name of this column, I believe in relentlessly looking forward— if for no other reason than what’s around the next bend has always been more interesting to me than what’s in my rearview mirror.
One of the things I am most looking forward to this fall (early December) is a new book about my favorite subject: cars and car collecting. Called The NextGen Guide to Car Collecting, it’s authored by the estimable Bob Yeager, a longtime automotive writer for The New York Times “Wheels” section. I was honored when Yeager asked me to write the introduction.
His book is both well-timed and important. See, there is a generational shift afoot in our hobby, with more and more people from the letter generations—X, Y, and Z—jumping in and buying their first collectible. That’s great news. Those of you who know me know that my mission, and my company’s, is to expand car culture for future generations.
But there are challenges. To those of us who are already beguiled, it is self-evident that cars and car collecting are a blast. We’re turned on by going fast, cruising slow, taking long road trips, or ripping it up at a track. We seek out the like-minded, gather at the same events, and those experiences, those people, become part of who we are. Soon we find ourselves part of a community. That’s a wonderful thing. But to some adults—young and old—driving (and thus cars) has become associated with long commutes, freeway congestion, and drudgery. That’s a problem.
How do we solve it? How do we bring others into our world? Easy. We share it with McKeel Hagerty CEO them. We take that neighbor who loves our vintage Porsche out for a spin. We invite kids at a Cars & Caffeine to hop into the driver’s seat. We organize road trips and car tours. We open the hood for people and show off what’s beneath. There are endless on-ramps to the hobby, large and small. It’s our job to point them out to people. That’s how the hobby grows, right? Once people are hooked, we aim them to Bob’s book. In his more-than-capable hands, those newly smitten will learn just about everything there is to know about finding, buying, selling, investing in, and loving a collectible car.
My favorite chapter is called “Finding Your Tribe.” In it, Bob discusses why Next- Gen collectors should seek out people with the same tastes in cars.
“Inevitably, joining a ‘tribe’ will enhance and enrich your automotive education. … A tribe has been defined as a community with shared interests that provides mutual support to its members. Tribes exist because humans (and higher animals) are wired at birth for connection, communication, and companionship. Automotive tribes … are no different. Whatever their specific focus and attraction, be it by marque, model, era, or via shared venues such as local cars and coffee gatherings, or in the savoring of the freedom of the open road itself, their existence is integral to the full enjoyment of collectible cars—by all generations.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself. Onward and upward. mhagerty@hagerty.com
