So, I notice that another forum is changing its name to 'reflect the whole experience and lifestyle' of Ferrari ownership. That got me to thinking. I'm pretty convinced that there's no such thing as The Ferrari LifeStyle. Back in the early-mid 60s when Ferraris were a strange and rare breed, there may have been, but these days with 50 years of used cars and pricing that ranges from $12,000 to multi-millions, how much commonality of lifestyle can there be? Thoughts?
I got the email this morning too. Just what the world needs, another site where people have $200G to burn but can't decide on F1 vs 6spd on their own.
never knew about it ferrariforum, ferrarichat, ferraritalk, etc....how many are there and is fchat the largest?
I'd have to say "no".....in most of the events we have attended, often the only commonality is the ownership of the brand... The owners thmeselves are unique and come from all walks of life. Admittedly there are not too many UNsuccessful people there, but as you noted it doesn't take that much money to 'step in'... It DOES take a high level of enthusiasm to STAY very long....LOL! I've noticed more attention to the brand when it dominates F1 headlines, the 'bandwagon factor', I suppose......there was a long lean period where you had to REALLY like the product, as they were not 'winners' on the track.
My "Ferrari Lifestyle" consists of lots of Taco Bell wrappers and broken, rusty bolts........ But I sell it to Lady Valeria with ..."Someday, we'll be sipping cold drinks in lawnchairs, watching the kids zoom around the Track, enjoying the cars....." I hope to live long enough! Ha!
"Following his breakfast in the morning room where his hot young, former stripper financial manager gave him his daily update on the perfomance of his stock portfolio, Wellington Bigbucks instructed his personal valet Heidi to call the airfield and have the Gulfstream ready for a noon wheels-up headed for Augusta and Wellington's weekly round of golf with Tiger, Phil and Fuzzy. He smiled when he heard that his favorite flight attendants Noelle and Giselle were scheduled to work today. In the meantime, Wellington patted his hunting trained Labrador retriever on the head as he strolled through the courtyard to his garages to select the Ferrari that he would pick for his morning blast through the countryside. What would it be today? The 250 GT SWB for that vintage feel or the Enzo to really get the adrenalin flowing? Even though there is a nip in the air from the Fall weather, might it not be a perfect day to put the 550 Maranello Barchetta through its paces one more time before shipping it down to Palm Beach for the winter season? Unfortunately this decision was interrupted by a call from Wellington's wine merchant wishing to take orders on which first growth Bordeaux and Burgundy orders should be cellared from the new releases. Wellington quickly placed his usual order for 10 cases each of Margaux, Lafite, Aloxe Corton and, just to be whimsical for his everyday house wine, Vieux Telegraphe from the Rhone and got back to thinking about the choice of his steed for the morning. Darn it! That blasted phone ringing again, this time from the captain of Wellington's 150 foot yacht, the "Cavallino", asking about how much Beluga caviar to stock for Wellington's January cruise through the Caribbean. Wellington had barely hung up the phone when it rang again, this time from Bill Gates asking if he could use the ski house in Aspen again for a week in February. No problem, since Wellington would be at the place in Zermatt that week anyway. Wellington cursed the fact that he had not yet selected a new personal business manager to deal with all of these petty annoyances but it was just so difficult to find someone to replace Alessandra. Drat that Prince Albert for poaching Alessandra from him, although it was not hard to understand why he did so. After all, how many 30 year old business managers are there out there who have ivy league MBAs, had worked as a supermodel to pay for business school, is an expert on the super Tuscan wines and who also is practiced in every form of massage known to mankind? As Wellington walked into the garages, Phoebe was just putting the finishing touches on a wax job for the 250 GT SWB, so that would be the choice for this morning's romp. Half an hour later, all of these pressing issues and worries instantly melted away however as Wellington turned the key in the SWB, listened for a few seconds to the ticking of the fuel pump as it pressured up and then smiled as the V12 exploded into life. Another day just like any other day, but a satisfying day nonetheless to enjoy the Ferrari Lifestlye." You mean THAT Ferrari lifestyle? John
Is THAT going to be ME? OMG, all I have to do is buy a car? Ashman, that was cool. Sign me up. Quartermaster's day is somewhat less 'grand', and he's looking to change.
Some people spend big money on houses, cars, fashion, kids, etc., and there's some streotypes, I think. Many Ferrari owners, according to what I learned from this forum, enjoy driving as sports. Driving on circuits, taking lessons, driving in a group, etc. Of course, there're some people who just buys Ferrari & keeps it like a prize, so-called a garage queen, too. (I never knew the expression before) So there're certain elements of Ferrari Lifestyle based on current owners. As Tillman pointed, it is changing as time passes. Other exotic car owners may be the same as Ferrari lifestyle, but I don't see many on events I participated, other than some Lambo & Porsche. There's seems to be the difference between Ferrari owner & Koenigg, MacLaren, Lotus, etc.
I found the E-mail and name change to be a bit offensive, so I marked the sender as junk mail and sent it too the crapper. My experience in Classic and Vintage cars has been that the majority of owners are enthusiasts and some of them have more money than others. But that hasn't seemed to diminish the enthusiasm. As most of us know you can walk up to any vintage owner at a Ferrari Show and engage them in conversation about these cars. Nobody asks you if you " Live The Ferrari Lifestyle" or not.
You mean Phoebe didn't have it started and warmed up for him? Having to delay spirited driving for a few minutes is surely beneath Mr. Bigbucks. Great post, BTW
At least from the materials on the Ferrari World site managed by the factory, it would seem that the Ferrari Lifestyle is living on the Italian or French Riviera, driving a 250 Cal spyder with an elegant woman in a scarf and large sunglasses, eating gourmet food/drink on a small, exclusive restaurant's balcony overlooking the marina...
I got the email and wondered,....... Why change the name?............ A rose by any other name would would smell just as bad.
Very well done, John A. You sort of beat me to the punch. I guess this means that you could have a 'Cobra kit car' lifestyle, a Lame-0-rossa lifestyle, a Pontiac Aztec Lifestyle and a host of others. Totally lame. I think this would require our hypothetical tifosi to wear the full uniform, splash on some F-car cologne, and sit around the McMansion playing videogames on an F-style laptop. Here's the man hisself: Image Unavailable, Please Login
In reality, for 90% of Ferrari buffs, the Ferrari "lifestyle" consists of some big coffee table picture books filled with pretty pictures of some OTHER guy's car. How many people will ever own a 250GTO, SWB, Lusso, or any of the rare classics? A very very SMALL percentage.
I frankly don't see why we have to bash another Ferrari enthusiasts' website. I think each bastion of Ferrari chat site draws a unique following, and serves well those who may find a level of comfort there. I happen to belong to both and enjoy the differences in them. F-Forum is alot smaller but offers a more leisurely pace, whereas F-Chat has more technical support available... and far more wise guys [] To each his own. Well, gotta go polish the "Spirit of Ecstasy" ornament on the Rolls!
Who's bashing? I just couldn't figure out what the heck it was supposed to mean. I suppose there's some unwritten lifestyle rule I'm breaking every time I go through a fast-food drive-in in the Fcar?? I didn't realize that buying an Italian car required me to learn the rules of polo and quit watching NASCAR
I don't suppose that there is anything wrong with sipping champagne while watching NASCAR! Personally, I prefer slamming German beers watching the PBR events!
Tillman, I don't think anyone is suggesting you stop watching NASCAR and eating fast food--What kind of life would that be? I think the hope is that you would pronounce it correctly (NASCAW--said with pinkie held high), and that your chauffeur begin picking up the fast food discreetly. And, yeah, I don't know how to spell the name of the guy who drives you 'round town!
