Hey guys! I just finished my paper for a class (The Social Psychology of Leisure) and I got to write on driving my E30! anyways...just thought I would post it since it's somewhat relevant. Critique if you want.
Hearing the engine roar and feeling myself get yanked forward as my tires begin to squeal is the experience I live for, and is the reason why driving is my favourite leisure activity. Some call it obsession, some call it a waste of time and money, and some call it stupid, but I call it passion. To me there is no better way to spend a Saturday than in ratty clothes with my hands and face covered in grease, oil, and sweat lying underneath a car...aside from actually getting to cruise with that car later that night. Driving provides me with the satisfaction of fulfilling many leisure properties, and also creates an environment that fosters and generates flow experiences. Finally, driving and customizing my car allows me to fulfill many of the innate needs regarding leisure activities. It is unfortunate, but leisure constraints do exist. These constraints occasionally put a hold on my ability to undertake my favourite leisure activity, but the rewards derived from driving always allow me to prevail and overcome these hinderances.
In December of grade ten I got my first job, a shelf stocker at Princess Auto. I worked about twenty hours a week and made a fair bit of money, but every dollar I earned there went straight into my savings account. I was saving up for my favourite car of all time, an E30 BMW. E30 refers to the chassis designation, given to the three series BMW built between 1982, and 1991. Finally, in the summer of grade 12 I had enough money to start looking, and it wasn’t long after that a gorgeous “brilliant red” BMW 318is caught my eye. The car was not for sale, but after much pestering, I convinced the owner to sell it to me. The first time I saw the car I was hooked. When I went to test-drive it, I sat in the loving embrace of the Recaro sport seats and knew this was the perfect car for me. Since this time, working on and driving my car has become a form of serious leisure for me. However, I really only consider this a leisure activity when I am alone with the car and I can devote all of my five senses to it. I love listening to the engine, the hum of the rubber on the asphalt, the ping of the exhaust, the sound my hands make on the leather wrapped steering wheel, the methodical back and forth action of the windshield wipers as I drive through the rain, and best of all, how the car makes me feel emotionally. Ideally, I drive my car as often as I can (aside from winter, when I store it) but my favourite drives are on weekend nights, when I can cruise the open roads, listen to my car, and enjoy the euphoria. My destinations are never planned, and my route varies each time, which inevitably adds to the excitement of the drive.
How can one categorize driving their car as a leisure activity? Determining whether an activity is considered a leisure activity is a complex and involving task as what is leisure for one person, may not be true for another. I consider long, solo drives in my car a leisure activity because of how many leisure properties I experience while driving. Walking towards my car, before I even drive it evokes emotions that are very intimate, personal and arousing. The lines of the E30 flow so effortlessly, and it truly is hard to take your eyes off it. The pinnacle of German engineering and BMW styling can be seen through the E30. When I first start up the engine, and throw it into first, I experience a level of freedom unlike anything else. I am in control of everything from this moment on, and my BMW willingly obeys, begging for more. A leisure activity must satisfy many leisure properties for the participant, often offering a sense of freedom from the everyday mundane, and provide personal freedom to let your mind and body truly relax. A leisure activity is undertaken primarily for intrinsic reasons, with little motivation through external factors. Often a sense of timelessness accompanies this sense of freedom and the participant can find him/herself lost in the experience. Many people do not understand how these leisure properties are most satisfied for myself when I am behind the wheel of a car that pre-dates the internet. But for me the simplicity and effectiveness of the interior, the feedback the car gives me as I am driving, and the raw European styling all translates into a transcending bliss. As I drive, I am not pressured by extrinsic factors such as money, winning a title, or social pressures. I drive through pure intrinsic passion. I drive because it is what I love to do, and because of how many leisure properties it satisfies for me and how it makes me feel. This is what a true leisure activity must do, and this is why I drive.
As defined by Csikszentmihalyi, a flow experience describes a moment when you are completely immersed in an activity, your concentration and senses are at a peak level, nothing else matters and the rest of the world is forgotten. Flow experiences are a quintessential component to individual’s happiness, and the more experiences one has, the happier one is. Flow elevates your level of focus and concentration, allowing you to participate to your highest ability, and can help you achieve your goals and aspirations, as you are mentally free from intrusive thoughts. As I drive, it is not simply gas on the right, brake on the left, ten and two. Driving is a full body, involving experience that requires immense amounts of practice. Evolving from the primitive style of driving can be a frustrating and time-consuming practice, but it is necessary if one is to ever achieve a flow experience through driving. Learning to monitor gauges like your air/fuel ratio, boost, oil pressure, and engine temperature while driving is much like trying to figure out what a baby wants through its cries. The signals are there, but it is up to you to diagnose what a low boost delivery, rich air/fuel ratio, high or low engine temperature or falling oil pressure means and how to treat it. Csikszentmihalyi explains that three conditions must exist in order for a flow experience to take place. Firstly, there must be goals that are clearly defined for and set by the participant. If no goals are set, there cannot be a sense of achievement when these are completed. Secondly, there needs to be a balance between challenge and skills. If one participates in an activity that is very challenging but lacks the skills to be competent, they will likely experience a looming sense of anxiety, and not enjoy the experience, and consequently not flow. Conversely, if one participates in an activity that they excel in and there is not enough of a challenge a feeling of boredom is likely. A flow channel exists where challenge and skills are in harmony. Lastly, clear feedback is required so the participant can modify their behaviors if necessary in order to continue the flow experience. I achieve flow experiences driving when I improve a skill, such as heel-toe shifting or rev matching. My goal is clearly defined, I have enough skill to be competent and there is enough of a challenge to keep me boredom free, and my car provides me with feedback through the sound of the engine. As I flow, it becomes evident that it is quite possible to program a flow experience. In order to program a flow experience there needs to be a minimization of distractions (in this case, the radio), reasonable expectations set, and an emphasis on skill development rather than competition (RLS-123 January lecture) on top of the initial three flow conditions. Flow is an essential component to achieving both happiness and the desire to continue with a specific leisure activity. Driving satisfies the flow conditions for me, and subsequently it is easy for me to program a flow experience through driving, which brings both my E30 and I back begging for more.
CONTINUED
Windshield Wipers Waving for an Audience of One
Hearing the engine roar and feeling myself get yanked forward as my tires begin to squeal is the experience I live for, and is the reason why driving is my favourite leisure activity. Some call it obsession, some call it a waste of time and money, and some call it stupid, but I call it passion. To me there is no better way to spend a Saturday than in ratty clothes with my hands and face covered in grease, oil, and sweat lying underneath a car...aside from actually getting to cruise with that car later that night. Driving provides me with the satisfaction of fulfilling many leisure properties, and also creates an environment that fosters and generates flow experiences. Finally, driving and customizing my car allows me to fulfill many of the innate needs regarding leisure activities. It is unfortunate, but leisure constraints do exist. These constraints occasionally put a hold on my ability to undertake my favourite leisure activity, but the rewards derived from driving always allow me to prevail and overcome these hinderances.
In December of grade ten I got my first job, a shelf stocker at Princess Auto. I worked about twenty hours a week and made a fair bit of money, but every dollar I earned there went straight into my savings account. I was saving up for my favourite car of all time, an E30 BMW. E30 refers to the chassis designation, given to the three series BMW built between 1982, and 1991. Finally, in the summer of grade 12 I had enough money to start looking, and it wasn’t long after that a gorgeous “brilliant red” BMW 318is caught my eye. The car was not for sale, but after much pestering, I convinced the owner to sell it to me. The first time I saw the car I was hooked. When I went to test-drive it, I sat in the loving embrace of the Recaro sport seats and knew this was the perfect car for me. Since this time, working on and driving my car has become a form of serious leisure for me. However, I really only consider this a leisure activity when I am alone with the car and I can devote all of my five senses to it. I love listening to the engine, the hum of the rubber on the asphalt, the ping of the exhaust, the sound my hands make on the leather wrapped steering wheel, the methodical back and forth action of the windshield wipers as I drive through the rain, and best of all, how the car makes me feel emotionally. Ideally, I drive my car as often as I can (aside from winter, when I store it) but my favourite drives are on weekend nights, when I can cruise the open roads, listen to my car, and enjoy the euphoria. My destinations are never planned, and my route varies each time, which inevitably adds to the excitement of the drive.
How can one categorize driving their car as a leisure activity? Determining whether an activity is considered a leisure activity is a complex and involving task as what is leisure for one person, may not be true for another. I consider long, solo drives in my car a leisure activity because of how many leisure properties I experience while driving. Walking towards my car, before I even drive it evokes emotions that are very intimate, personal and arousing. The lines of the E30 flow so effortlessly, and it truly is hard to take your eyes off it. The pinnacle of German engineering and BMW styling can be seen through the E30. When I first start up the engine, and throw it into first, I experience a level of freedom unlike anything else. I am in control of everything from this moment on, and my BMW willingly obeys, begging for more. A leisure activity must satisfy many leisure properties for the participant, often offering a sense of freedom from the everyday mundane, and provide personal freedom to let your mind and body truly relax. A leisure activity is undertaken primarily for intrinsic reasons, with little motivation through external factors. Often a sense of timelessness accompanies this sense of freedom and the participant can find him/herself lost in the experience. Many people do not understand how these leisure properties are most satisfied for myself when I am behind the wheel of a car that pre-dates the internet. But for me the simplicity and effectiveness of the interior, the feedback the car gives me as I am driving, and the raw European styling all translates into a transcending bliss. As I drive, I am not pressured by extrinsic factors such as money, winning a title, or social pressures. I drive through pure intrinsic passion. I drive because it is what I love to do, and because of how many leisure properties it satisfies for me and how it makes me feel. This is what a true leisure activity must do, and this is why I drive.
As defined by Csikszentmihalyi, a flow experience describes a moment when you are completely immersed in an activity, your concentration and senses are at a peak level, nothing else matters and the rest of the world is forgotten. Flow experiences are a quintessential component to individual’s happiness, and the more experiences one has, the happier one is. Flow elevates your level of focus and concentration, allowing you to participate to your highest ability, and can help you achieve your goals and aspirations, as you are mentally free from intrusive thoughts. As I drive, it is not simply gas on the right, brake on the left, ten and two. Driving is a full body, involving experience that requires immense amounts of practice. Evolving from the primitive style of driving can be a frustrating and time-consuming practice, but it is necessary if one is to ever achieve a flow experience through driving. Learning to monitor gauges like your air/fuel ratio, boost, oil pressure, and engine temperature while driving is much like trying to figure out what a baby wants through its cries. The signals are there, but it is up to you to diagnose what a low boost delivery, rich air/fuel ratio, high or low engine temperature or falling oil pressure means and how to treat it. Csikszentmihalyi explains that three conditions must exist in order for a flow experience to take place. Firstly, there must be goals that are clearly defined for and set by the participant. If no goals are set, there cannot be a sense of achievement when these are completed. Secondly, there needs to be a balance between challenge and skills. If one participates in an activity that is very challenging but lacks the skills to be competent, they will likely experience a looming sense of anxiety, and not enjoy the experience, and consequently not flow. Conversely, if one participates in an activity that they excel in and there is not enough of a challenge a feeling of boredom is likely. A flow channel exists where challenge and skills are in harmony. Lastly, clear feedback is required so the participant can modify their behaviors if necessary in order to continue the flow experience. I achieve flow experiences driving when I improve a skill, such as heel-toe shifting or rev matching. My goal is clearly defined, I have enough skill to be competent and there is enough of a challenge to keep me boredom free, and my car provides me with feedback through the sound of the engine. As I flow, it becomes evident that it is quite possible to program a flow experience. In order to program a flow experience there needs to be a minimization of distractions (in this case, the radio), reasonable expectations set, and an emphasis on skill development rather than competition (RLS-123 January lecture) on top of the initial three flow conditions. Flow is an essential component to achieving both happiness and the desire to continue with a specific leisure activity. Driving satisfies the flow conditions for me, and subsequently it is easy for me to program a flow experience through driving, which brings both my E30 and I back begging for more.
CONTINUED
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