Photography: Alice Veysey.
Whether breast cancer survivor Kaaren Smylie is navigating one of her vintage cars through rugged back roads and farm terrain or raising half a million dollars for the Cancer Society, she’s driven by one simple belief.
“For me, life is for living,” explains Kaaren, 73.
“You’re a long time gone, so I want to make the most of it now. How do I go about that? I just look for opportunities where I feel I can make a difference.”
For someone who believes in embracing every opportunity, Kaaren jokes she almost missed out on discovering her passion for vintage car rallies.
Almost 30 years ago, she reluctantly showed up to her first meeting at the Bay of Plenty Vintage Car Club, mostly to keep her husband Jim Smylie company.
“I’ll be perfectly honest, I went along, looked around and thought, ‘Everybody either has grey hair or a bald head. Is this really what I want to do?’” she laughs.
But after the first rally from Tauranga down the East Coast in their Ford Model A, Kaaren was unexpectedly hooked.
“It’s not everyone’s desire to be driving, hanging off the side of a mountain like a mountain goat, but it appeals to my adventurous spirit,” she reflects.
A passion that keeps growing
Before long, Kaaren and her husband – who sadly died last year – had expanded their collection of vintage cars, joined a second club and were attending rallies all around the country, experiencing New Zealand in a way few people get to.
“I’d caught the bug,” admits Kaaren, who went on to join the club committees and eventually became the captain of all the North Island vintage car club branches.
Today, alongside the treasured Triumph Spitfire she has owned since she was 19 and a striking 1913 Ford Model T, Kaaren is also the proud owner of a classic military Jeep she’s long dreamed of having.
“It’s been out of Vietnam six years and it’s just like what Hot Lips Houlihan drove in the TV series M*A*S*H,” she shares.
Kaaren is also integral in organising the annual Vintage Car Club Daffodil Rally – a nationwide event where 8500 club members across the country come together for rallies and community displays to raise funds for the Cancer Society.
A cause close to her heart
With the support of Nicola Coom, the Cancer Society CEO, and Annaliese Atina, the managing director of Ford New Zealand, Kaaren believes it is an exciting opportunity to give back to others, and encourage more women to embrace the traditionally male-dominated world of vintage and classic motoring.
“We are three women working closely together, and we all have the passion and energy to make this happen,” smiles Kaaren.
“And I think there’s a lot more women out there who could have the same passion I do. I’d say, ‘Don’t be afraid to get behind the wheel.’”
Having raised around $500,000 over the past seven years, Kaaren and her team aim to match that success this year.
Improving others’ lives always motivates Kaaren, but cancer is also a cause particularly close to her heart. In 2001, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
It came as a shock to the then-48-year-old, who had always prioritised her health and fitness.
“I had a private ‘poor me’, asking, ‘How can this happen?’” remembers Kaaren.
She rallied her resolve, ready to tackle treatment. Surgery followed, along with chemotherapy and radiation.
“I wasn’t going to give up, and decided to just try and keep the days like they had always been.”
Driving hope for others
At the same time she was diagnosed, her father found out he had lung cancer and over the following months, several close family members lost their lives to the disease.
Those experiences made Kaaren’s decision to get behind the charity rally a no-brainer.
“We don’t want to be seen as just a bunch of petrolheads,” she smiles.
“Sure, we are petrolheads, but we also give back to the community. “In many ways, the Daffodil Rally reminds all of us as club members and enthusiasts that we’re not just driving vintage and classic cars, but we’re also driving hope and support for so many of our folks out there in the communities.”
And Kaaren can’t imagine putting the brake on it any time soon.
“Will I organise it again next year? Yes, absolutely, I will,” she says.
“I’ll keep doing it until I can’t because I love that engagement with people and feeling I’ve done something to help others.”
To find out more about your local Daffodil Rally, visit vcc.org.nz/daffodil-rally-cancer
