15 Feb 07
Sometimes it is better not to experience the finer things in life. By sampling the greatest, it makes it harder to accept that on occasion, we must all settle for 'the next best thing'. Fly business class and your next economy seat will feel doubly cramped. Polyester will feel coarse after cotton and the appeal of a Michelin two-star restaurant will be compromised by a meal at the Fat Duck. Sometimes, it is better not to know.
One of the curiosities of a motoring journalist's life is that, to borrow from Kipling, we get to walk with kings. We will regularly find ourselves being bolted into cars that are beyond the reach of all but hedge fund managers and Premiership footballers. As one of my learned colleagues once remarked, we are 'paupers living like princes' and it's all too easy to forget that even a BMW 3-Series coasts more than an average annual wage.
At £18,520 (or £22,315 including options) my Ford Focus ST is far from cheap but it's considerably less exotic than some of the cars in which I sit. Given my unusual situation, you might think that I would view my everyday car as a poor relation, but it's a tribute to the Ford that this is rarely, if ever, the case.
In late December, for example, I found myself in Bahrain at the wheel of the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Sportshift. Touring the Arab bazaars and then hacking around the Grand Prix Circuit was terrific fun. The Aston isn't perfect, but it's still one of those cars that brings out the excitable schoolboy in me. The Vantage is arguably the best looking car on sale today and while it's not as good to drive as Porsche's 911, it's not far off.
