Dan Gardner

HOW THRILLED WOULD YOU BE IF YOU COULD MOW THE LAWN WITH A FLAME THROWER OR GO FISHING WITH HAND GRENADES?

IF YOU EVER HAVE the incredible privilege of meeting me, one of the first things you’ll notice is that I am the colour of toasted caramel. It might be a tan or simply an all-over melanoma but either way, it came from the lovely Australian sun, and that’s partly because I absolutely adore convertibles.

There’s just something so innocently indulgent about moving around in what would be a perfectly normal car only minus its roof. It’s the automotive equivalent of skinny dipping, or wearing no pants at your work desk. Doesn’t everyone do that or at least want to? Imagine how thrilled you would be if you could mow the lawn with a flame thrower or go fishing with a fistful of hand grenades. That’s what convertibles do. They take what many see as an unavoidable or pedestrian part of life and make it awesome, and the magic works whether you’re sitting in traffic or blasting your favourite B-road.