Irv Gordon and his 1966 Volvo P1800
BY GERRY MILES
Good for Irv Gordon.
Good for Volvo.
Good for all who have ever owned, driven, liked and for those especially survived a crash – and death-defying in the case of several friends several times – who have walked away with nary a scratch.
Yet for all of Gordon’s news of longevity with a fastidiousness to his near-maniacal mechanic maintenance, there’s no there “there” for the 2014 Volvo line.
Sure there’s plenty of safety stuff that I’ve written before on. The electronics will surely save the lives of both motorist(s), bicyclists and pedestrians alike. There’s so many distractions to driving today the connectivity we crave drives us – almost – crazy. No pun intended.
Yet Gordon – and I’ve seen, met and liked him immediately – and his P1800 are Volvo’s best stories for the upcoming model year. Or am I missing something?
I’ve read the Gordon legends about stopping at Waffle House for coffee but he’s never even had one.
He even likes New Hampshire’s road and their drivers. (He made no live free or die statement, smart man that he is).
Yet Irv made his achievement in Alaska, near Turnagain Arm, (a place I’ve been years ago), perhaps to be near his “turning the odo over again” and not in any place near the dealership in New York where he bought the P1800. For some reason, I thought he’d get close to the 3,000,000-mile mark and then go ’round the block or cross a finish line in Manhattan before doing talk show gigs on the morning TV shows, Kelly and Mike and more.
Volvo’s hired PR guns had tweets, fans post their pictures, all good, but now that it’s over I have to wonder, what else is there for the new model year’s excitement?
As Peggy Lee asked in a song, “Is that all there is?”
Road Miles 