It seems strange to be sitting here on New Year's Eve, gazing out at the mild weather and clear roads, yet wishing for leaden skies and snowfall. And no, it has nothing to do with the fact that we'll be back in the office in a day or so...
Because there is a unique pleasure to be gained from driving a classic car in the snow. I realise it's something that many will baulk at - I'll confess that I am hardly likely to use my Magnette as a daily driver on heavily salted roads - yet it is a thrill that is almost impossible to resist every time we get a proper blanket of the white stuff.
In part the appeal is that there are very few other adventurers out there, but more than that it's the way the snow takes you back to the very fundamentals of driving, and gives an even greater interaction between man and machine - not to mention a better understanding of your car's behaviour on the limit, but at much lower speeds.