DEFEND YOUR RIDE: Emma At The Waterfront

Q: Hi Emma! Tell us about your ride. What's its main use?

A: Originally, this was Dave's car. He's had it as long as he's had me. We've been together as long as he's had the car. Originally, it was his primary vehicle. When we moved to Washington, we became endurance athletes. Now its primary use is for that, carting around our bikes, our running gear, my triathlon gear. It's what we like to call our lifestyle vehicle.

Q: Do you have any rules about what people can or can't do in this car?

A: I keep two stickers on the back of my car. I guess that's a rule: Nothing goes on the back of this car except the two stickers that are already there. There's a sticker that says "JFK 50," because I ran a 50-miler, and my Iron Man sticker. I am just about to run my fifteenth marathon in a couple of weeks. I've done three ultra marathons, three half Iron Mans and one Iron Man, and a bunch of other smaller races. Dave is just about to run his sixth marathon, so he's also a runner.

Q: So you're ahead of him then?

A: A little bit. I'm just crazier than he is. My Iron Man this summer was my first full one, but I've been a triathlete for four years and a marathoner for seven years. The triathlons are running, swimming and road biking. Just going to a triathlon involves transporting so much stuff. I'm grateful to have a nice big car that can hold everything I need to take with me. To go out for a ride or a run, you end up packing like you're going away for the weekend.

Q: Does your car have a nickname?

A: It does. Its name is Everett. It's named after the town before Breezewood on 70, because we've commuted between Washington and Pittsburgh so much in the last eight and a half years. Actually, the car didn't have a name for a while, until recently, maybe in the last two years. Finally, one day, we needed a name to call it because we got another car. We needed to differentiate between the small car and the big car. We were driving on Route 70 and there was the town of Everett. There you have it. The rest is history.

Q: What human emotion or personality trait best describes Everett?

A: We think of Everett as sort of the strong, silent type, which very much describes my husband, too.

Q: So you look for the same qualities in cars that you look for in men?

A: Yes, that's exactly right! People and their cars are funny, aren't they? We're funny car people, Dave and I. I definitely talk to the car as if it's a person. We treat it like a person in our family. You know, we'll say things like "How's Stanley doing?" or "How's Everett doing?"

Photos and interview by Sarah Beth Martin

View previous Defend Your Ride features as well as other great stories for people who love cars at CBSPittsburgh.com/Autos.