Drive Your Dream Blog

I will state unequivocally from the beginning that I am not a gamer. I do not own a gaming console, nor do I plan to get one…ever.

It’s not that I’m hostile to gamers or the gaming world or that I have some staunch philosophical position on the matter, I don’t. I simply have enough reality on my plate to keep me from having to create new worlds to make further demands on my time.

Apparently, I am missing quite a ride. In no case is this more apparent than in the virtual world of a game called Grand Theft Auto (GTA, for short).

This game is full of fast-paced action where players drive exotic automobiles with various armaments and, basically, kill, maim, and pillage.

Just the right thing for that angst filled teenager with nothing else better to do.

Tapping into the level of passion that devotees have for GTA, is what the game’s designers have undertaken in creating the Rockstar Social Club. As if playing the game 20 hours a day weren’t enough, people can now waste any of their remaining time talking with other GTA fans and even uploading their stats and receiving awards for, uh, stealing a bunch of cars.

The Rockstar Social Club will even allow gamers with different platforms (Xbox, PS3, etc.) to compare and contrast.

Call me old fashioned, but I prefer to get my experiences a bit more viscerally. So, for example, if I want the thrill of driving an exotic sports car in Dallas, I will actually go rent a Dodge Viper or a brand new 2008 Lamborghini Gallardo and let it rip. Call me crazy, but I just can’t imagine getting the same experience from playing a game on a game console.

And I’m not alone.

“Put any first timer behind the wheel of one of our Dodge Vipers and usually all they can mutter is ‘wow!’”claims Ron Sturgeon. Sturgeon, the owner of a Dallas luxury car rental company, operates several businesses designed to connect aspiring supercar drivers with seat time in the world’s top exotic cars.

Sturgeon operates the DFW Elite Car Club (www.dfwelitecarclub.com). A car sharing club in Dallas/Fort Worth in its second year of operation, DFW Elite Car Club has attracted car buffs who want to drive a variety of the world’s best exotic and luxury cars without the hassles of ownership. “With so many cars well above the 200k mark, it gets hard to choose just one to have in the garage,” explains Tom Warren, GM of the Dallas car club.

“Membership in the car club gives people a focused outlet for their passion for cars and gives them access to a garage of over 25 elite exotics and luxury cars. The concept of car sharing as an alternative to ownership has received excellent press lately. Several of the top luxury car sharing clubs, DFW Elite Auto Club among them, were profiled in a special automotive issue of the Robb Report.

Maybe I’m just old, but I’ll take real excitement of driving a Dodge Viper SRT-10 rental over playing a video game any day.

Written by G.D. Gregory. If you are interested in having me write stories for you or seeing my portfolio, please contact me at ggpsu@yahoo.com.