Why I drive a Subaru

Well I am finally picking up my new Subaru Outback Limited on Thursday evening. The limited is the fully loaded version of the well known Granola Car seen at every trail head. Actually the Prius is the new Granola car but the Outback is still the car of choice for tree huggers that go outside to actually be around trees.... As opposed to say driving the Prius to Starbucks and reading a New Yorker article about carbon offsets or an Organic Living article on the latest in eco-wool socks to wear with your Birkenstocks.
Come to think of it, I have never noticed a hiker slipping into a pair of cork soled Euro-shoes after a day on the trail. Huh, I just realized SUV owners and Birkenstock wearers have that in common; the look but no real credentials. You rarely see either at a trail head or off the beaten path. What you do see is Subarus and flip flops.

My point is perfectly illustrated in and around my new home in Phoenicia, NY, located in the heart of the Catskill Mountains. Practically every other car you see is an Outback or Legacy, both practical all wheel drive station wagons. And even though the area is well known for its artsy and craftsy population I almost never see Birkenstocks.....Maybe in Woodstock, but, and this perfectly proves my point, well, you know.

What's my point? I don't really know. I have observed this at trail heads though (based on an informal data collecting methodology I have developed over the years; It is called "The only notice things that prove your point protocol"): out of say twenty cars, there is one Prius, one Grand Jeep Cherokee (NEVER a Wrangler), no Lexus SUV, certainly never ever a Cadillac or Mercedes SUV, not a Hummer for 40 miles (they are only seen in cities), eight Subarus, possibly one Volvo (a subset of which is the one Birkenstock wearing hiker), a smattering of various Toyotas, Nissans(including maybe a 4runner, but not an xterra) and Hondas (most likely an Element driven by a college graduate who is currently working as a barista at Starbucks since he can't find a job) , and if it is the Fourth of July or Memorial Day one American mini van.

SUV's are always pictured driving down dirt roads, parked next to a tent on the beach (where this beach exists in the United States I do not know), parked in some isolated campsite overlooking a spectacular lake and mountains (I have yet to find this site as well, and believe me, I have searched). I have driven hundreds of miles of dirt roads, camped, and hiked in every single state including Alaska and Hawaii, yet I hardly ever see a fellow hiker (or hunter, they drive pick ups) driving an SUV, not even in Alaska (where Subarus and Ford F-150s are the most popular vehicles by the way).

But people don't buy the gas guzzling, global warming behemoths because they want to tool around off the beaten path. No, they want to feel safe and high up while they drive to Kohl's and soccer practice and to hell with everyone else on the road. Better the other family should end up with the serious injuries.

Oh, and FYI, the Subaru Outback has a better crash safety rating than all the SUV's, plus it's a station wagon, not a truck.