They were, you might say, free-driving --- no navigation device or map--- because they are not only locals but also professionals in the New York-area discipline of getting from here to there. They spend two to three days a week just driving around. Manhattan's grid may be the easiest road network to master in the developed world (if we overlook some areas), yet the routes leading to and from it can be tricky. The highways are a mad thatch of interstates parkways, boulevards, and spurs, plus river crossings galore, each with its own virtues and inconveniences. There are many ways to get from point A to point B in New York, and, because of all the variations, anyone can be a route-selection expert, or at least an enthusiast. Family gatherings inevitably feature relatives eating cocktail nuts and arguing over the merits of various exits and shortcuts.