Editorial: Shouldn't Supercars and Hypercars Come With a Mandatory Training Course?

Image courtesy of Motor Authority

By now, I am sure most of you have heard about the guy who wrecked his shiny, new McLaren P1 within 24 hours of bringing it home. If you have not, I have linked the article for you after the jump.

Now that you are caught up, let me first clarify by saying that I really do not care if you have the money to afford a million dollar hypercar. If you can, good for you. But just because you have the money to own one, does it mean you are automatically qualified to drive it?

Hypercars, and even less powerful supercars, have far more horsepower than the average driver should ever be comfortable with on public streets. One stupid mistake, like the 27-year-old P1 driver made, and you could end up wrecking your extremely expensive car. To prevent these sorts of costly and potentially life threatening mistakes, supercar and hypercar manufacturers should enforce, or encourage at an absolute minimum, some kind of driver training program that must be taken before the buyer can take delivery of their new car, especially if this is the first car that the buyer has purchased from that particular brand.

New supercar and hypercar owners would greatly benefit from learning about their brand new toy. Learning the limits of what your new car is actually capable of in a controlled environment means less chance of endangering other drivers and yourself while on public roads. It also means less chance of damaging your new vehicle to the point of total loss. If a driver cannot take the course seriously, then the keys should not be turned over until a certified instructor deems the driver ready to take delivery of their new vehicle. It seems harsh, but I think having a mandatory course like this would also help weed out super and hypercar owners who do not take driving seriously in general. After all, driving is a privilege, not a right.

I guess it would just be easier if everyone had to take such a course, would it not?

Events: Cars and Copters 2013

Last year around this time of year, I stumbled across an event that intrigued me. The idea of taking the Cars and Coffee concept and adding an additional element to it in the form of rotor propelled flying machines. While it does not necessarily seem to make a ton of sense at first glance, the event has been a huge hit. Held each year at the Plymouth Municipal Airport, Cars and Copters has brought together car, motorcycle, and helicopter enthusiasts into one massive gathering where everyone can appreciate all manners of mechanical excellence. The crowd was so overwhelming that when I arrived in Plymouth around 10:45, it literally took over an hour to get into the event. Once inside, however, there are cars lined up as far as the eye can see. And if you grow bored of the cars, hop in line and go for a helicopter ride to change it up.

As I was uncertain that I would have the opportunity to attend this event in the future, and having missed it last year, I knew that I wanted to make sure to go this year. It is certainly worth experiencing at least once and definitely brings out an impressive array of fellow enthusiasts. Plus the event benefits a good cause as the recommended donation goes to the Dana-Farber Cancer Center. For more info on the event, go to http://www.carsandcopters.com/.

Click through for the videos and photos I took at the event as well as on my way down to the event.