There was a moment careening down 9th Avenue, music blaring (Bleu, if you must know), when all of the lights turned green. Green lights stretched to the horizon. And they’re long green lights in New York, uncannily long, it keeps everything moving. But there’s that moment, almost like reaching the top of the peak, that small hesitation before you launch yourself down the mountain, when you see, unfurling, all the red lights switch to green … and then … you are OFF. If you’re accustomed to small town driving (as I am, I haven’t driven much in Manhattan) you keep waiting for the yellow light – but then you realize it won’t come … not for a while yet … so just go go go go go go go. Yellow cabs zip around you, everyone is going 50, 60 miles an hour, and there’s no stopping, no hesitation, if you brake cautiously all will be lost … You submit to the beast, and you drive like a bat out of hell. It was EXHILARATING. Nervewracking too but I wanted to just keep driving up and down the avenues of the city all night, taking advantage of the endless green. It felt like flying.
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I’ve experienced this in a taxi, and its the most frightening, exhilarating, breathtaking ride I’ve ever had…
I LOVE that. If you go down 5th Ave after midnight you get the same experience. I’ve done it a few times after hanging out at a certain UWS apartment. 96th street to 16th street without a stoplight. You feel like you OWN the streets.
Certainly can be fun. If not for the streets chewing up my wheels, I’d like it even more.
That said, there’s much, much better driving to be found up in Rockland.