Rite of Passage in Four Gears

When I was in college, my daily driver gave up the ghost during winter break, leaving me stranded with a dilemma: I needed solid transportation to get back to Michigan Tech by the end of the week. That’s when my grandpa stepped in.

We spent the week test-driving cars, none quite right—until Grandpa lit up over a little red Chevy S10. No power windows, no cruise control… and a manual transmission. I’d never driven a stick before, and truthfully, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.

But Grandpa believed in me. Sitting in the cab of that truck, he patiently walked me through the shift pattern, the clutch, and the rhythm of the road. “This will be a good experience for you,” he said. And it was.

By the end of the week, I was behind the wheel, driving 540 miles north to school—and by the time I arrived, I was a confident manual driver. That S10 was the only manual I owned until decades later, when I began owning and driving vintage Pontiacs from 1951 and 1930.

These days, I’ve had the privilege of passing that skill on to my sons. My youngest, Avery, calls it a “total body driving experience.” I couldn’t agree more. Driving a manual isn’t just about getting from point A to point B—it’s about presence, precision, and connection to the machine.

Now, we apply this skill in a unique way: chauffeuring weddings and special events in our vintage cars. For us, it’s not just about nostalgia—it’s about honoring the past, embracing the craft, and bringing a little old-world magic to someone’s big day.