There's actually a very good reason for it. Let's say your car crashes at a track day. You're upside down and the car is on fire. You've got to undo your harnesses/seatbelt, unlock the car, grab the door handle, and get out of the car as soon as possible. Hard to do when your hands are on fire.
Yes, next year Lotus Ltd is holding its national event in conjunction with the West Coast Lotus Meet, which is the largest Lotus meat on the West Coast. So this year‘s LUG in Salt Lake City should be the largest gathering ever. Definitely worth the road trip out there.
My impression is just the opposite. I believe the vast majority of Europeans drive manual cars. It can be difficult to rent an automatic car over there. They look down on Americans because the vast majority of us can only drive automatics.