Thursday 7 November 2013

Own Up Time

Old Pa, over at Tune Doctor, recently regaled us with the story of Steve, a man convinced of his own irresistibility to the opposite sex. The tale reminded me of Mark, a guy I knew when we were both about 18. Much like Steve, Mark thought he was God's gift to all women. He drove a souped up Ford Escort complete with the inevitable furry dice and whenever he spied a young lady he wanted to try and impress, he would sit at traffic lights in 1st gear revving and revving to get their attention, then let the clutch up as the lights changed and screech off, wheels spinning, down the street. He must've spent a fortune on tyres.


One day I was sitting in the passenger seat of his car, as Mark pulled up to red traffic lights and commenced his party piece for the millionth time. I just couldn't take it anymore. My right arm was leaning on the central armrest, so as he held the clutch down and revved the engine to attract the eye of a lady he'd spotted, I was able to pull the gear-stick back from 1st to neutral with a quick flick of my fingers. Unaware, he continued to rev, winking and smiling at the young lady in question as she crossed the road in front of us, until the lights changed, at which point he let the clutch up and floored the throttle. Except, of course, we didn't move an inch. It did, however, make a hell of a racket and everyone in the vicinity turned to see what was going on. The engine roar echoed around the narrow streets as Mark, red-faced, frantically tried to find a gear in which to slink away from the traffic lights. It was a glorious moment. Amusingly, after recovering from his embarrassment, he assumed that he'd missed the gear himself and never suspected me! 35 years later - I confess!

6 comments:

C said...

Ha! - a genius move on your part. I seem to remember crossing the road at some traffic lights back in '70-something when this souped-up car with furry dice... no, no, it couldn't be, could it?

And where is he now? Not reading this blog by any chance d'you think?!

(Always a soft spot for the Small Faces too.)

The Swede said...

There were a lot of souped-up cars with furry dice around in the 70's C, but who knows?! And Mark? Truth be told, he was a very popular lad with the ladies. I lost contact with him a couple of years later, though it would be interesting to know how life has treated him - and if he can forgive me for that moment of embarrassment I instigated back in 1978.

Old Pa's Corner said...

I hope you were not trying to get the ladies by hanging around with this 'bad boy'....of course not!!...your a naughty boy 'tho!

Old Pa's Corner said...

P.S. I am listening at the moment to Jonathan Wilson...only because you mentioned it twice....bloody brilliant! shrukran!

Anonymous said...

Great move, my friend. I'm sure your old pal would forgive you all these years later - or maybe not! Choice music.

flycasual said...

Haha, slick as you like...I would have done the same.

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