The big event every year is MINIs on the Dragon at Deals Gap, North Carolina — car club and motorcycle heaven tucked into the Smoky Mountains. The crown jewel of the weekend is a stretch of Highway 129 that squeezes 318 curves into just 11 miles. I could make this drive in my sleep. Not recommended, but the point stands.
Part of the rally tradition is the annual parade run up and back on the Dragon. Hundreds of MINIs line up along the dam road, engines idling, owners outside their cars visiting and waiting for the last MINI to arrive and the go signal to drop. It’s a more spirited run than normal — everyone’s a little extra that day. This particular year I was parked about midway in the line when I noticed a young woman standing alone in front of me.
Then came the interruption - First instinct: go say hello. Simple hospitality.
She mentioned it was her first time at the event. Well. As a seasoned professional, it was practically my duty to share some wisdom. I gave her the classics — what gear going into a curve, what gear coming out. Stay between the white and yellow lines. Don’t overdrive it. Be comfortable in your own feel and speed. Sage advice. Fourteen years of sage advice, right there on the dam road.
The go signal came, and we were off.
That newbie left me eating her dust.
I pushed extra hard to stay with her. Shifting earlier. Carrying more speed into the corners. A little extra push coming out of every curve. Still, she was pulling away at every single turn — smooth, precise, and confident. I’m in car number three, each one faster than the last, and I am getting absolutely smoked by a first-timer. Who is this girl?
The parade ended at the General Store at the resort. I followed her to the bitter end. She pulled in. I pulled in. With a look of genuine amazement I asked how she knew how to drive like that. She smiled and introduced me to her husband — who had been sitting quietly in the passenger seat the whole time. He’s a trainer in the professional racing industry.
There it was. She had a trainer.
We only crossed paths briefly that first year. But the next rally, there she was again — lined up right in front of me, same as before, ready for a morning run. We properly introduced ourselves and she and her husband folded right into our small group like they’d always been there. Jennifer and her husband are friends for life now. We stay connected through the year and we’re already on rally number three together.
It all started because I walked over to a stranger standing alone and said hello.
Hospitality isn’t a program or a policy. It’s a simple gesture — introducing yourself to a stranger and just being yourself. Sometimes you gain a friend. Sometimes you also gain a little humility about your driving skills. Both are good for you.
