January 30, 2024

5 Off-Road Hobbies for Car Enthusiasts

About Brookdale Senior Living

Brookdale Senior Living offers multiple care levels for seniors in more than 600 communities nationwide. Brookdale helps you find the right care plan for yourself or your loved one. With amenities such as transportation services, salons and private dining rooms and activities such as gardening, fitness classes and trivia nights Brookdale caters to a wide range of interests and needs.

You don’t have to get behind the wheel to appreciate the craftsmanship of a classic car. Here are five hobbies for car enthusiasts to enjoy while steering clear of driving.

1. Build a model car.

Building model cars isn’t just fun – it can be good for your brain. More specifically, it’s great for the parts of your brain that may decline with age.

“Scale modeling is an excellent hobby,” says Andrea M. Macari, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at Suffolk County Community College, in an article published by AARP. In that same article, Macari comments that “not only does the activity provide much-needed leisure, which is beneficial in alleviating anxiety and depression, but it also enhances certain cognitive skills such as concentration, visual-motor skills, and executive functions.”

So, no need to work on real motors – try working on your fine motor skills, instead.

2. Try vintage car photography.

If you enjoy the social aspect of being a car enthusiast, look no further than vintage car photography. As a photography hobbyist, you can attend vintage car shows and bond with owners, attendees and your family, all from behind your lens. Meet new people, talk about your shared interest and get an adrenaline boost when you finally get the perfect shot at the finish line!

3. Join a car club or attend an auto show.

You don’t have to be a photographer to attend a car show – so if car photography isn’t quite up your alley, try attending an auto show as a spectator, instead! Car shows often have entertainment like food trucks, live music and special custom vehicles that you won’t catch anywhere else. So round up your family and bring them to an auto show to share your love of cars with the next generation.

4. Get lost in automotive history.

Tired of buffing off your classic car? Try becoming a car history buff instead! Since its inception in 1886 with the submission of a patent application for what might be the first car, automotive engineering has exploded. And in many ways, the boom of the automotive industry reflects the massive growth of the American economy across all sectors. If you are interested in American history, you will love getting to know more about the unspoken force driving it all.

5. Collect vintage car art and memorabilia.

When you truly love something, you just can’t get enough of it. That’s what makes curating your own personal car collection so fun! When you start a collection, you give yourself the opportunity to indulge both your curiosity and your inner child. Go down the rabbit hole and follow what interests you, picking up ideas of what to collect along the way. Maybe, for you, it’s original car manuals, race-worn gear or limited-edition die-cast models. Either way you go, before you know it, you won’t just be a car enthusiast – you will be a car expert, too!