Last fall, my mechanic mentioned that US automakers will no longer sell cars with a manual transmission in just a few more years. While I haven’t been able to confirm a set date when I’ll no longer find my next stick shift, it does have me thinking about society’s aversion to driving a stick.

Myself? I have never owned a car with an automatic transmission. I enjoy driving a stick. I enjoy the control. I enjoy the reactions from the girls when they discover my car is a stick. I enjoy teaching them to drive a stick.

(Clarissa, do you still want to learn?)

Wednesday afternoon, for the first time in my life, I understood this huge campaign to eliminate this option from our lives. I was navigating around Denver, mid-afternoon, in a snowstorm—which brought traffic to a standstill. After three hours and forty miles of driving, it became crystal clear.

Both of my legs were burning. I was exhausted. Manual transmissions have no place in the city.

Of course, these people have no interest in driving a stick shift. Emphasis should be on the word DRIVING.

Stick shifts are not for people in cities and our policy makers (who, arguably, are nothing like the rest of us anyway)—these people’s idea of “driving” is simply sitting in a car going nowhere while the traffic around them also goes nowhere. These people have no idea what “driving” actually is... it’s simply a way to spend time in their car while they commute very slowly from one place to the next.

Stick shifts are best enjoyed on the open road, where they are truly more efficient—and an absolute treat to drive. Manuals are simpler, with fewer moving parts (read: lower maintenance bills), and those of us who know how to drive enjoy better fuel economy... contrary to what our policy makers (who tie them to wasting fuel) believe.

Of course, the death of the stick is inevitable... as the masses continue to flock to crowded cities, losing intelligence points along the way. And don’t get me started on our policy makers...

For now, I shall simply continue to enjoy my stick shift while I can. In fact, I already have my eyes on my next car.

Drive on.