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Tom Ross

Tom Ross' column appears Tuesdays and Sundays in Steamboat Today. Contact him at 970-871-4205 or tross@SteamboatToday.com.

Steamboat Springs — Lea Croteau is a professional sports car driver, and she wants to borrow your vehicle. And don’t be surprised if your set of wheels seems to have undergone an attitude adjustment when she returns it — Croteau knows how to accelerate out of the corners.

Croteau is a veteran instructor at the Bridgestone Winter Driving School in Steamboat Springs and has driven competitively at road tracks like Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., and Watkins Glen, N.Y. Despite her racing pedigree, Croteau isn’t the least bit picky about the cars she borrows.

One cannot afford to be choosy when one’s mission in life is to drive a different automobile every day of the year. Nor can one afford to be shy when asking complete strangers to hand over their keys.

“I’ve been surprised how few people turn me down,” Croteau said. “Most people say, ‘Sure, how long do you need it?’ It’s really restored my faith in people — their sense of trust.”

So, for how long does Croteau need your car?

Just long enough to get an impression of it, collect a few facts and photograph it. Croteau is writing a daily blog (http://365drive.blogspot.com) about the many cars in her life.

After interrupting her automotive career a few years ago to obtain advanced education in industrial design, Croteau missed being around car people and started looking for a way to get reconnected with the industry.

The idea to write a blog based on her experiences driving a different car every day came to her spontaneously.

“It started as a bet with my friend Heather Vincent,” Croteau said. “We were looking at some old photo albums and I said, ‘Why aren’t I doing these great things as often anymore?’

“I said to Heather, ‘I bet I could drive a different car every week.’”

Croteau’s friend called her bluff and she resolved to launch a blog that would appeal to car enthusiasts. And she decided that instead of driving a different car once a week, she would impose on friends, acquaintances and strangers on a daily basis.

She jumped into it July 6, when she drove a Spec Miata, followed by a Jeep Grand Wagoneer on July 7, followed in succession by an Audi A3, BMW 528i and Porsche 911 RSR.

Croteau came back to earth, driving a Subaru Outback v1.0 on July 11 and an Outback v2.0 the very next day.

She muscled up July 13 behind the wheel of a Dodge Magnum.

Five weeks later, on Aug. 21, she belted into a Mazda RX7 Drift with a Corvette engine in it and gave it some exercise on the track at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma Valley, Calif.

Oct. 22 was a special day, when she got behind the wheel of a Porsche RS America right here in Steamboat.

“I kind of let the cars come to me,” Croteau said. “Sometimes, I have to put myself in a position to meet people, but I don’t start panicking until about 5 p.m.”

Although Croteau often travels to tracks all across the country to get the chance to drive an exotic car, any heap will do on most days; it doesn’t have to be an Audi or the newest Lexus. Ordinary commuters are fine, but well-traveled cars that embody a good story are especially sought after.

On Nov. 10, it was a 1982 Volvo GLT turbo wagon named Old Blue, which she borrowed from a friend in Steamboat.

The car has just 184,303 miles on it (long may you run). Croteau was pleased to see it had a manual transmission and she kept the revs up while she drove it out through ranch country on Twentymile Road.

“The brake failure light is on, but I think we have brakes,” Croteau said reassuringly.

Pausing for a photo shoot, she took pictures of the exterior from all angles, a shot under the hood and another from the back seat. She noted details like the rear-facing third row of seats right on down to the improvised piece of blue twine needed to pull on the hood release.

“This wagon was built like a tank,” she wrote in her blog. “Not necessarily to be bounced off snow banks, but for the longevity of the car. (The owner) makes no pretense that it is anything but a valley car — with exterior paint that has the patina of blue crackle on the hood, black accents (only on GLTs) touched up occasionally with black enamel painted on with a brush, and a taillight that still works with some packing tape on it.”

It’s another day and another car for Lea Croteau. Not only does she think she can make it through a full year of driving a different vehicle every day, she can see herself continuing into the future.

“It’s my true passion,” she said.

If you’d like to offer your car up to Croteau, e-mail leacroteau@mac.com.