45 years ago today, the 15,007,034^th Volkswagen Beetle rolled off the assembly line, breaking the world record for automobile production, which had been held for over 40 years by Ford’s famous Model T.

I don't remember the record breaking day, but I remember driving my Beetle until it - quite literally - gave up. By the time I'd finished with my red VW Bug, it had clocked close to 300,000 miles, the floorboards were so rusted that you could watch the highway roll by underfoot, and the backseat was a forboding forest of sprung springs.

I'll never forget its last ride. I loaded it up with surfboards, coolers, beach towels, and three brave souls who were willing to overlook the rust and navigate a place to sit between protruding springs and headed for the beach. At the end of the day, we were tired, sunburned, and ready to ride. But my Beetle wouldn't start.

It might seem silly, but I always thought my Bug's "happy place" was at the beach. So while my friends were calling friends or parents for a rescue ride, I still didn't call the tow truck. I just couldn't do it. Not yet. Somehow I knew that this was the end of our long love affair. So I spread out my beach towel and reclined against the driver's side door, watching one last sunset at the beach with my beloved Beetle.