Me and My Car: Mark Richardson

Mark Richardson with his 2014 Isuzu D-Max ute. Photo by Ted Baghurst.

Mark Richardson is commentator for SKY for the Cricket World Cup, which started over the weekend.

What do you drive?
A 2014 Isuzu D-Max ute, black, petrol. It looks cool, and makes me feel like a ute driver. And it is amazingly economical on fuel.

First car?
The first car I had was a Mazda 626 family sedan, my dad bought it for me. It was great, it was cool just to have a car. It was completely stuffed by the time I was finished with it, though. I could take the two back seats down and get my surf board into the car, which was handy. I had The Best of Tina Turner on tape that I played over and over again. Every time I hear a Tina Turner song it takes me back to that Mazda 626, driving out to the beach for a surf.

Your dream car ...
I'm not really into sports cars, I'd never get a Ferrari or something like that. I like a really good four-wheel-drive sports wagon. I'm happy with any good sports wagon, actually. I'm not into supercars, or big cars like Range Rovers.

Who taught you to drive?
My mum. My dad had a couple of goes but he was a bit nervous and made me nervous. My mum was really patient. I learnt in a Suzuki jeep; we would drive around the Meadowbank Foodtown car park. Then we went around our cul-de-sac where we lived, I didn't start driving until I was 17. I wasn't interested when I was 15, it seemed too young. I did a defensive driving course which was good too, it really helped.

Manual or automatic?
These days automatic. I want to cruise around with a coffee in one hand. You feel like you're driving more in a manual for sure, but for me a car is to get from A to B in comfort. I'll take automatic any day now.

Most memorable road trip?
I often take a few days each year, get up at 3am and drive to Mount Ruapehu and go skiing and drive home in the evening. It's just a day trip. I really love that road trip, I know it like the back of my hand now. It's a good chill-out day for me. I go by myself, choose my music. I stop at a place where I always get breakfast and a coffee. I go to Ohakune and ski, spend the day there and drive home and get McDonald's in Otorohanga on the way home. It's a nice day to get away from everything.

And what do you listen to in your car?
I'm a music listener. I tend to flick between the easy listening stations. I like the classic old stuff.

How can we solve the congestion on Auckland's roads?
Better public transport would really help. At the moment there's too many barriers stopping people from using public transport. You can keep building more roads but you'll keep getting congestion. The more roads you have, the more cars you'll have on them. You need to improve the public transport system for it to reach out to more of Auckland and be a bit more reliable.

What irritates you most about other drivers?
I don't like road correctors. If you make a mistake - and everyone does, those people who beep at you. Or, if you get in the wrong lane - and everybody does, those people who don't let you in, instead they will make it difficult for you and will toot. Those drivers can be irritating.

Would you rather drive in Auckland or take public transport?
I would rather use public transport, but I don't think the system is up to speed for me to get everywhere that I need to be efficiently.

Who else is allowed to drive your car?
Whoever is insured for it. The family car, there's no problem, everyone drives it. But with the Isuzu, which is a work car, it's only really me as I'm the only one insured for it.