Road frame Search -- Not this again!!!

My deal with myself last year. If I met my weight loss and cycling goals for 2008, I get to buy a new road bike. I thought about a Ti frame, or custom steel. I decided on CF. I'd like something really light. That is all fine and dandy, except that few high-end carbon fiber frames come in Jolly Green Giant size. That SUCKS!

Frames that I won't be getting this year. Anything made by Cervello, Isaac, Kuota, Eddy Merckx, the Ibis Silk, Trek Madone 6.9 and Specialized Tarmac SL are all too short in the top tube. The Cannondale Super6 HiMod might be good, but doesn't really jazz me. I don't really know why. The geometry and close, but not perfect.

First on the list is the Ridley Helium. It is insanely light and EXACTLY the right proportions. I'd really like a bike that I can ride anywhere, but weight is a big issue for me. I'd like something that minimizes weight without being whippy. I rode a Helium that was one size too small and it felt great and scary light. For 2008 I went from a 21 pound bike to a 17 pound bike. It took me two weeks to get used to it. Going from a 17 pound bike to a 15 pound bike will likely have a similar adjustment. The color is perfect. It is black/carbon with really subdued graphics. The other cool thing is that my local bike shop JUST started selling Ridleys. Thanks The Bike Lane.

Ridley Noah is also in the ballpark. Sizing is the same. Weight is a little heavier. But DAMN is it aero. The colors are also not near as nice as the Helium. Red, Blue or Green are dandy, but not to my taste. Helium still wins.

The DeRosa King3 is quite possibly the best bike I've ever seen. I've always liked the ride of a classic Italian road bike. You don't get more classic or Italian than DeRosa. The flat black is stunning. It is imposibly light. It is perfect. The owner of a shop I worked in as a kid used to love to tell me that the only bike for me was a classic Italian road frame. He sold DeRosas and Colnagos. I drooled over them for years. The only problem is the price. DAMN is that frame expensive. At $5500 for frame/fork, it is about $2000 over my price range. This is, by far, the closest I've been to owning a dream bike. I don't really need 2 kidneys, do I? There are two local shops that sell the DeRosa.

The Felt F1SL makes me want to sing "God Bless America". The fit is right on par with the Ridleys and the DeRosa. The basic black and white colors are great. The ride is great. It is a good balance between power transfer, light weight and all-day comfort. It is a hair heavier than the others by virtue of the seat post setup. A few hundred grams is the difference. That shouldn't matter to me... I should be big enough to know that I should just eat a little less, drink a little less, work a little harder and lose the extra weight. I'm not going to completely discount it.... it isn't perfect though. There are quite a few Felt dealers in the area. They are some really good shops that I like.

Can I spend $3000 on a Giant? I remember working in a shop that sold Giant Iguana mountain bikes. I loved it when people would call and ask if I had a green giant iguana. Can I spend tons of money on a TCR Advanced SL? Size is perfect. Geometry is perfect. Graphics and look are Perfect. It is the only one of these bikes that I've actually ridden in my size and it was brilliant. I may be too much of a snob to spend that much on a Giant. The Giant is available locally... though the local shop isn't my first choice for a place to shop.

Last but not least is the bike that doesn't fit my original description, but must be added for texture. The Moots Compact Custom. It is similar in weight to the Ridley Noah... about 100 grams heavier. That makes it a hair heavier than the Felt also. It is beautiful. Has a great ride. It also will likely be the last road bike that I'll ever have to buy. What it lacks in super sexy carbon fiber goodness, it more than makes up for in its amazing ride and durability. It the second most expensive bike on the list at around $4000 (including custom geometry and fork). I've always loved Moots frames. I looked at Seven and IF and they're both great bikes... but they don't jazz me like the Moots. I can't explain why. The Moots would come from my friends at Speedgoat. I know they're not a local shop, but the owners are good friends and that makes them almost local for me.

Honorable mentions: Calfee Design Dragonfly, Cannondale SuperSix HiMod, KirkLee custom, Colnago C50, and a few others.

Now I need to see how things play out. I might be able to scrimp and save and go easy on things and get the DeRosa. I could go easy on the wheels and put that money into the frame.

I have until the end of February to decide. That is when I really need to make a choice in order to be riding the bike in a reasonable amount of time.

Did I miss anything? I think I covered all of the bases with my search.

Thanks for reading.

Pete

New way to commute...

Oy oy.

Doc says I need to spend a little time off the bike. I kinda agree with her. I need a break.

Today I started running part way to work and then taking Metro the rest of the way. The run is a hair under 5 miles. That is a dang brutal way to get to work. I have a lot of respect for the guys that I see every day running to work.

Talk to y'all soon.

Pete

The Carrot and the Stick

Great commute this morning. It was surprisingly warm and the trails were wet and covered in leaves. That made it a bit more adventurous.

My original plan was to take it easy and ride mellow on the way to work. I've got a big ride planned for Sunday and my legs are somewhat toasted after a fairly challenging week of cycling.

That plan went out the window when I rolled onto the W&OD trail and I saw the very familiar sight pattern of Cadex Guy 100 meters ahead of me. This guy is seriously fast. He's also a really nice guy and we ride well together. He talks a little and does his best to make me feel like I'm not entirely lame as we roll along... him relaxed and mellow... me gasping for air and honking out snot rockets.

Riding the W&OD every day can get a little tiring. I tend to make up games to have the ride go a little quicker and to help me keep my pace up. The Carrot and the Stick is quite possibly the best at keeping my legs spinning fast. Anyone out in front of me is a carrot. My job is to catch up to them. Their flashing lights or reflective gear act as short-range radar. On wet mornings, the wet tire tracks left on dry pavement under bridges acts as long-range radar. I can see how many carrots are ahead.

Once I catch and pass a carrot, they become a stick. A stick that hangs on my wheel becomes the best motivation to keep pace high. I'm not trying to drop him/her. I am big enough that I make a good draft. I like being able to motivate people to go fast.

2 or more sticks in relatively close proximety makes a convoy. That is something entirely different. We tend to crash the gate doing 98 and let them truckers roll, 10-4. ;) Sorry.... Had to say that.

Back to this morning.....

I had about a mile to catch up to Cadex Guy before the new "cyclocross" section of the W&OD. They're doing utility work and have 300 meters of trail blocked. You have to jump off onto the gravel section. It isn't tough, though this morning it was seriously slippery in spots. Cadex Guy went from carrot to stick at this point. He wasn't familiar with the section and had 23mm tires, so he took it easy. I've got 35mm soul suckers for tires and just blew by him.

I got a pretty good lead on him and that lasted for about another mile. That's when I came up on Stompy Jamis Dude. CRAP! Meeting this guy is bad enough when conditions are good. When it is wet and leaves are down, it is really bad. He's like me... doesn't always go fast, but can really step on it when he's got someone to ride with. Problem is he's a lot faster than me when he really gets going.

I flew past him in hopes that he wouldn't take the bait.... it was on the short climb right after East Falls Church Metro. Cadex Guy was still about 30 meters back. Stompy Jamis Dude might have been able to ignore me flying by... but he couldn't ingore both me and Cadex Guy... especially when adding him to the mix would make a convoy.

The downhill heading toward the Custis Trail was where I changed from a carrot into a stick bigtime. Both Cadex Guy and SJD came flying past me. I went into the drops to try and hold their wheels, but had no luck at all on the downhill. I just don't have that kind of horsepower or spin.

I was a bit more brave in the turns and kept a good head of steam up the first climb on Custis. I was close enough to start catching a face full of carrot rear wheel spooge off of the wet trails. This is the one part where I had a chance to pass these guys. I was travelling light today... they both had big packs. That was my saving grace. I finally got around them at the base of the rise near Glebe Rd. I held them off on the two steep downhills that go down next to 66.

We rode as a group down "Little Gavia" at Lee Hwy. It was insanely slick. I had the back end step out on me 4 times in about 50 meters. We took it easy through Rosslyn because there was a lot of foot traffic heading past the Marriott. We arrived at the light at Lynn St. together. All out of breath after a really nice commute. SJD heads over Key Bridge. Cadex Guy and I rolled together for about another half mile until he headed down Mt. Vernon Trail while I head across Roosevelt Bridge into DC.

I'm dead meat the next time I meet up with them when I've got a pack on. The worked me over really well today. I won't fare so well tomorrow.

I totally know that playing games like that qualifies me as a MUT Wonder. It is fun and a good way to goof off with the folks that I ride in with. We each get a laugh out of it. Trash talk is encouraged.

Sorry for blathering on. I guess it is my blog, so I'm entitled. :D

Later!

Pete

Doing our part for the economic recovery...

We've had an interesting summer. As the economy tanks, we've had a bunch of things happen that need fixing around the house. Consequently Laura and I are a two person economic recovery team.

• Parts to overhaul the suspension and replace the brakes on the GTI: $1400
• New Microwave oven: $300
• New dishwasher: $700
• Insulation in the attic: ???
• Beer for my ride chauffeur: $20

Now we get to spend the day installing our new home items. I'm gonna have to take a day of leave to work on the GTI. I'm still waiting on some parts. Hopefully next Friday I can take the day off and get greasy. I've missed wrenching on cars. It'll be nice to pay back Sean for all the driving he's done going to bike rides. Honestly that's the only thing I really use the GTI for. I'll even play music that he won't hate on the stereo. That's how thankful that I am that he's been a help. I prolly owe him some beer too.

That won't help GM or Ford, but it is doing our part to help.

Pete

Is beer a clear, liquid food?

I'm having dietary problems. I'm having some kind of surgical procedure Wednesday and it requires that I can't have anything solid or non-clear to eat for 30 hours before my procedure. Oddly enough, I also can't eat anything red or purple. Starting tomorrow morning, I have a 30 hour gauntlet to run. Yuck.

Oh well. At least I don't have to eat anything red or purple. :D

Pete

Great ride at Fountainhead.

Drew and I headed to Fountainhead for a lap today. I've been sick lately, so I haven't been really riding hard. One lap on a very hot day was a good chance to get out and work my legs a bit.

It was a hot day today... 96 and humid. We'd had rain yesterday morning, so the trails were still wet. I was hoping for tacky, but the roots and rocks were more along the lines of "slimey". The roots and rocks were the problem. When they're wet, it is really easy to get knocked off-line by hitting a wet root or rock. That makes some of the gnarly downhill sections a bit more adventurous.

There were a few things that were cool about this ride:

1. The bike handled really well. Riding the rough sections was awesome. It let me pick any line I wanted through the rocks and roots. Only the slippery nature of the trail moved me to somewhere that I didn't want to be. There were some steep sections where I really had to do some slow cranking to get up... the bike tracked so well that I had no trouble tracking straight and true. I was impressed.
2. My gearing is a hair tall for FH. There are a few climbs that I never make. I didn't clean them today. Some that I usually make were a lot more work today. I made it up, but it wasn't pretty. I'll get used to that.
3. The pedals are great. I really liked the look pedals. I had a few problems clicking in late in the ride, but that was more a factor of me being tired and not feeling great.

Drew and I really had fun. I haven't ridden with him much lately and this was a great chance to go.

Later!

Pete

Mamasita

Bob asked about my new mountain bike. It is pretty simple. I moved most of the components from my SIR9 over to the new frame. The build is something like this:

• 2008 Salsa Mamasita (Scandium frame with carbon seat stays)


• White Bros Rigid carbon fork


• King headset


• Thomson X4 stem


• Jones H-bars


• Avid Juicy 7s


• King sS hubs laced to Salsa Delgado Disc rims


• Thomson laidback post


• Phil Bottom bracket


• Kooka forged cranks


• Sugino chainring


• Surly cog


• WTB Nanoraptor tires


• Specialized Prodigy sadle.


• Connex Whitestar SS chain.
• Look Quartz pedals

The gearing is a magic gear for the Mamasita. I'm running 34x19 for the 29er. It is roughly the same as a 2:1 on a 26er. The gear is good for most of the riding I'm doing now. If I go hammer the shed or something, I might want a little bigger cog.

My guess is that this bike will evolve into a 1x5 or 1x6 so that I can take it out west and start on the Colorado Trail next spring. That's a whole other story.

All in all the build is pretty boring. Nothing blingy or fancy in comparison to most of the rides that others are tossing out on the trails these days. It is relatively light, has a great feel to it and handles all 212 pounds of me.

That last phrase is an important one. Last winter I topped out at 237 pounds. This morning I tipped the scales at 212. Once I get down in the 200lb range I'll start thinking about building a blingle speed.

Ultimately I need a bike that I can take to France with me. There's too much good riding there to ignore it. I love the roadie stuff, but spending many weeks there per year will just beg for something to ride. I need something with S&S couplers. Looking at Tony's black sheep is freaking inspirational. Maybe next year. Gotta lose a little more ponchetta first.

You know you're old when....

I just read that the band Foreigner (not a fave of mine... but one that was popular when I was in high school) is going on tour this year. The tour is being sponsored by AARP. Hahahahahahaha

"Maybe its just the woman in you,
That brings out the man in me."

Hahahaha

Pete

Back on the mountain bike again.

Greetings human type people.

I've been off the mountain bike since last year. I got back on a little bit a few weeks ago and it felt goooood. I built a new single speed and am pretty happy with how it is working.

I have really missed getting sweaty and dirty at the same time.

Catch up with you soon.

Pete

Child of the 70s

Oy.

We went to see Cheap Trick, Heart and Journey last night and it was a blast.

Cheap Trick is just awesome. It isn't music of much artistic merit, but it is great to hear fun music performed by a band that clearly LOVES playing in front of an audience... any audience. I've seen them in concert more than 2 dozen times and they're still fun to see.

Heart is an amazing band to see live. Don't miss them. Their music comes to life in person like no band I've seen. Both of the Wilson sisters' voices seem to have gotten stronger and better over the years. They were spot on and I loved every second of the performance.

Journey was really good. Neil Schon's guitar playing was worth the price of entry for sure. Their keyboard player was great. The new singer is awesome and perfectly appropriate for the music and the band. With the exception of one piano solo and Schon's guitar playing, the performance didn't come close to moving me the way Heart's did.

I'm looking forward to seeing Heart again when they're back in town next summer. If you can catch this show, you won't be sorry.

Pete

Lovely to be back in France again...

Coming to Menton has become a great annual event for us. This year it was much needed for both Laura and I. Laura had been teaching summer school with little time after the school year let out. I had been hammering through a busy time at work and hadn't taken a break for a long time.

I'll try and add in a post or two each day as we go through the trip.

I started using Flickr for posting photos. It is really pretty cool. I'll post up photos using it. Let me know how that works.

Menton 2008 Day 1: Arriving and settling in.

Menton 2008 Day 2: 36th Annual Grand Prix of Menton

Thanks.

Pete

I'm not dead yet!

"You're not fooling anyone!"

Dang that whole "Bring out your dead" skit from Monty Python and the Holy Grail is funny. It is also surprisingly applicable to my life. ;)

Bob asked what the hell is going on with me (in a nice way) on my blog. I thought I'd post a quick response..

I'm working insane hours. I'm also spending lots of time on the road bike training for a ride in the Alps this summer. My car projects are somewhat on hold at this point.

Work: I'm having fun, but it is insanely demanding. I'm trying to maximize time with my wife and friends too. That leaves little time for other stuff.

Training: I've been off the MTB all year recovering from a fractured tailbone. That is really starting to heal and feel good. I got a bee in my bonnet about taking the bike to France again this year. I really wanted to ride in the alps with a bit more form than I've had in the past.

I've been putting in big miles and some good strength and climbing work over the year so far in preparation for this trip. I'm feeling great and showing signs of actually losing a little weight. It has been really hard for me to increase my beer consumption enough to compensate for the number of calories that I'm burning off. I've done my best.

The sad news is that because of a bunch of stuff that is out of my control, it isn't going to be easy or practical for me to take my bike with me on this trip. I'm cool with that. I'm going to switch to trail running while I'm there. That will be fun and different for me. I'll use my fitness on a bumch of road centuries later this summer. I thought about giving the SM100 a try, but the timing is just wrong for me.

Car Projects: I'm still collecting parts for the Bimmer. I need to really start yanking that beast apart and digging into the metal work. When I've had free time, I've either wanted to do stuff with my wife or go for a long-assed bike ride. My guess is that I'll hit these with more vigor this fall. I really miss getting my hands dirty on german car grease. :D

I guess that's the update. I'll catch up with y'all soon. Thanks for your comments and e-mails.

Pete

Here's the starting point of that Locost you've been wanting to build. :D

Okay... the price is a little more than what you'd normally buy for a donor car for a Locost build, but the car is a PERFECT candidate. 

 

HERE it is. 

 

I've been looking for the perfect example of a 318IS to use to possibly graft into the 2002 for a more updated engine that is able to make bigger power with lower emisions.  I can make the 2002 carburated motor put out plenty of horsepower.... as much as I'd ever really want in a light weight car like that.  But when you build big horsepower like that, the cam shaft has enough valve overlap that it spits a fair amount of raw fuel out.  That is super cool when you're power shifting through the gears and 3' flames shoot out, but not so cool if you think about the hydrocarbons that you're releasing into the atmosphere. 

 

Oh well.  This auction will not be won by me.  I thought I'd blog about it though.

 

Pete

Street Car of the Day 3/7/2008

Holy crap!!!

 

You look at this Lotus 23 and you'd swear this is a post for the Race Car of the day.  The only detail putting it in the street category is that THIS THING IS STREET LEGAL!!!!  WHOOHOOO!!!!   I'm all for driving race cars on the street.  I think more people should do that.  Imagine how much faster we'd get our groceries home in something like this?

 

Have a good weekend.

 

Pete

What do we miss by reading Velonews.com?

Hey peeps!

 

Welcome to your daily dose of spam from me. :D 

 

I was marooned in a book store a few days ago and picked up the VeloNudes buyer's guide for the hell of it.  I'd gotten away from reading the print version since I spend a little time reading the .com version almost every day.  I kinda ejoyed the experience, so I bought it.  I really don't spend much time reading buyer's guides.  There just isn't enough space to give a bike its due in the little paragraph snippets.  It is an interesting way to find frame builders that you didn't know existed though.  I kinda liked that. 

 

Primus Mootry is one.  The guy went to school in boulder at a time when big-name bikes were getting stolen a lot.  He put a sticker that said "Primus Mootry" on the lugged steel frame that he'd made himself so that no-one would bother stealing it.  He recently was asked by a messanger to not put stickers on the bike because his name is now well known in the area enough that thieves look for them to steal. 

 

Crisp Titanium is pretty cool too.  The web site is really cool too... though it is so cool that it is FUCKING ANNOYING!!!  Pardon my french. :D

 

The offspring of Faliero Masi is back at it again.  I don't know what Pops would think, but there are some cool bikes in there.  The new 3V looks pretty cool.  I'm not sure how long Masi has been back making frames.   I remember when they stopped.  I think they even gave up the name rights for a while. 

 

The other cool thing about this issue is that there are a number of factory tours of different frame builders.  They tour some small, one-man shops like Primus Mootry and also take a walk through Specialized. 

 

I'm part way through reading the issue, but thought I'd share what I found.

 

Hugs and kisses to you all.

 

Pete

"Street" "Car" of the day 3/4/2008

Okay.  It isn't really made for the street and it definitely isn't a car, but it is worth looking at for sure.

 

1966 Land Rover Defender.

 

Make sure to look at the photo gallery. It has the whole build process documented. 

 

Pete

Spa Sport Leg Warmers Review

Good morning.

This review will hopefully be less sarcastic than the review for my new camera that I did yesterday.

Cold weather cycling necessitates the adding of layers. There are always a few items of clothing that can be added to a cycling ensemble to make it a hair warmer than it otherwise would be. Arm warmers make a short sleeve jersey into a long sleeve one with the option of removing them once you warm up.
Leg warmers provide much of the same functionality, though I haven't ever done a ride where I actually remove leg warmers once they're on. The added benefit of leg warmers is that they give me a place to hide my energy gel packets so that they're easy to access during a ride.
My anceint Sugoi leg warmers are finally ready for retirement. They're pilled enough that they aren't as comfy as they once were and the zippers are really on their way out.
I'd seen ads in VeloNews for SpaSport.com... a NY company selling cycling clothing and accessories (gloves, hats, arm and leg warmers, etc.) for a while. Their prices looked great, so I thought I'd give them a try.
I'm 6'4" and have a 92.5cm inseam and the size Large looked like they should come close to fitting. The ebay store price is $29.99. With shipping it came out to about $34.
Service was amazing. I ordered late on Saturday afternoon. They were in my mailbox Monday when I got home from work. You don't get much better shipping than that!!!.
On first look, the leg warmers were awesome. They are advertised as fleece leg warmers and there really isn't much loft to them. They're basically a very thick lycra... not unlike most of the leg warmers on the market in that price range. They're made in Pakistan and the severything seemed to be really good quality.
They had a really funky smell. It was a combination of the chemicals used in production of the materials and silk screening of logo mied with a fair amount of cigarette smoke. I popped them in the washing machine and sent them through a double cycle to make sure they were really clean. The smell came out immediately and there is no remnant of it.
I put them on this morning for my ride to work and they are great. They're a hair warmer and much more comfortable than my ratty old Sugois. The fit is perfect and the grippers at the top functioned exactly like they should.
This inspires me to try some of their other products. Their cycling jackets look like they might be a great value.
In the end I saved about $8 or 9 by purchasing these over buying Sugoi or Pearl Izumi leg warmers. These will not be mistaken for the $70 Assos leg warmers, but they work well and seem like they'll hold up pretty well.

Spa Sport's ebay store can be found at www.spasport.com.

Pete

New Camera and Facial Recognition Software -- Canon SD1100 IS Reiew

Oy oy. 

 

I purchased a new camera over the weekend.  It just hit the market... it hadn't even been put on the shelf yet at my local camera shop.  It is a Canon SD1100 IS. It has many new features that I really liked. 

 

The facial recognition feature is really cool.  The idea is that when FR is turned on, the camera will autmatically identify, focus and optimize the photo for anything that it thinks is a face.  I tried this out on humans and it worked PERFECTLY on every test subject available (meaning Laura and me). 

 

I also confirmed that it works on different species.  Mao and Gracie (our cats) were the first candidates.  It had NO problem with them.  The red-eye elimination routine is great too.   In the cats, Laura's A570 would actually give them glowing gold eyes instead of the red ones that normally are seen with a flash.  This camera had no trouble with either kind of glowing eyes. 

 

I decided to see how the camera did with inanimate objects and facial recognition.  I then got out a stack of different toys that we have in the sun room to see what it would recognize and what would have problems with.  Mike Wazowski (one-eyed monster from the movie Monsters, INC.) was no problem.  In fact most of the characters of Bug's Life and Lilo and Stitch provided no trouble at all.  All of my toy dinosaurs had faces that were easily identified with the facial recognition software.

 

There were some things that did not work so well.  Barbie and Ken were not recognized as having faces (no big surprise there). They were posed side by side and the camera could only focus on Barbies oddly proportioned boobs and legs. 

 

I found a few plush toys (beanie babies) that also didn't work.    Hello Kitty didn't make the cut. 

 

I then took the camera to work to continue the testing.  After snapping many photos of friends and co-workers, I was surprised to find one individual that was continually out of focus.  I couldn't figure this out, because obviously this guy has a face.  Then I realized it...  It wasn't that the camera couldn't recognize his face.  It was that the camera couldn't figure out which face to focus on.   Once I swithced the FR feature off, the photos of this individual came out perfect. 

 

This concludes my camera review/social commentary for the day.

 

Hugs and Kisses,

 

Pete

 

 

The first 2009 Skyline I've seen on Ebay

You read it here!  THIS is the first 2009 Nissan Skyline that I've seen on ebay.  I guess that makes it the car of the day. :D

 

Pete

Street Car of the day 2/17/2008

This Alpina BMW 2002 Touring is truly amazing. 

 

I will not be surprised if it goes for the $45,000 BIN price.

 

Pete

The world's cutest race car!!!! 2/13/2008

I love those Bugeye Sprites.  What could be cuter than a pink one???

 

I love the description of its features:

• Sunroof  Hahahaha  Yeah... it has a sun roof.  Good luck closing it though.

• Convertable -- NOT... there's no way to put the top up.
• Air conditioning... Hahahahhaha  Yeah...  the air inside the car is in the same condition as that outside the car...
• Cruise Control--- You bet.... as long as the right foot is firmly planted to the floor.
• Driver airbag -- Is that a social commentary on the current driver or the next one?
• Power windows:  It has power. Check!  It has window(s).  Check!  Thus it must have power windows!  Hahahaha

 

Street Car of the Day... 2/13/2008

Oh this one is a doozie. 

 

Birkin Lotus Super7 Clone

 

I like the word "Burnt" in the description.

 

Under Features it lists the interior color as "Other".  Hahahahahahahaha

 

Pete

Race Car of the Day 2-12-2008

Oy folks.  I love Mini Coopers.  This one is particularly fine!

 

1967 Mini Race Car

 

Pete

Race Car of the Day 2/8/2008

Okay. I'm living in the future by posting tomorrows RCotD today, but I couldn't resist this 1927 race car with an airplane motor in it. :D

1927 Cirrus Mk2

 

Pete

Race Car of the Day: 2/07/2008

Here's a weird one that you don't see too often.  Vinage Saab Rally car.  Definitely nice to see this in between the American drag cars. 

 

The 1940 vintage sprint car is pretty cool too though. 

 

Pete

 

 

Street Car of the Day 2/07/2008

I thought I'd break the silence with something a litte special....  A 1995 R33 Skyline in perfect condition and only 2000km on the clock should do the trick. :D

 

Pete

Race Car of the Day 1/30/2008

Here it is... some real, American steel.  I'm serious this time.  It is lovely.

 

1963 Corvette Race car.   I'd classify it as a fixer-upper. ;)

 

Later!

 

Pete

More than just the car of the day... this may be the car of the week... or month.

If you've read 2 car posts by me on this blog, you know I like tiny cars. This may be my all time fave. The work done on this Lotus Europa is absolutely amazing.

1972 Lotus Europa S2

Normally I'd say that the pop-up sun roof would be a bummer for this car... except that this thing is so small that I'd need to pop that sunroof out so that my head could stick out the top. Not the safest vehicle to drive for me, but WTF. You only live once. :D

Later!

Pete

Playing catch-up with the cars of the day.

Oy oy.  Testing has been rather taxing for a few days.  I haven't had time to blog at all.  I thought I'd take a few moments and catch up on The Street/Race Car of the day posts.  There are some good ones. 

 

Street Cars of the day....

 

Sweet mother of god save me from this 1958 Austin Bug-eye sprite!  That thing is awesome and insanely cute. 

 

What the heck is an M2????  Basically it is a BMW 2002 that someone stuffs an E30 M3 motor into.  Imagine a 1500 pound, 200+hp car that handles like a dream and you get the picture.  Not an easy swap, but well worth the time and energy.

 

1958 Lotus 7 Series 1.  OH MY FREAKING GOD.  I'm such a geek. I wonder if this comes with tweed jacket, dorky hat and a pipe to smoke. 

 

Race Cars of the day....

 

Don't miss this one!!!!   It is a practical one... It'll make a great grocery getter.... as long as you don't have to turn between home and the market.  JUST KIDDING!!!  This is very indicative of the kinds of stuff that come up on the Race Car search.  Tons of people are selling their drag cars. 

 

Hahahahaha.  Chevy powered AMC Spirit!!! hahahahahah.  AWESOME!!!  I want one.

 

Sorry.  I didn't see any race cars that tempted me.  Just a few that were interesting to look at. 

 

Maybe tomorrow!

 

Later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trail Reviews for St. George

Oy oy. I thought I'd do a little research for on trails on the St. George, Utah area.

Barrel Ride sounds pretty good. It is part of another trail... the Race Course. I'll try and get info on that too.

Broken Mesa Trail

Church Rocks Trail. Is kinda short, but really fun. Has some nice slickrock.

JEM, Gould Rim and Hurricane Rim. I loved that ride 3 years ago.


Little Creek Mesa -- Definitely don't miss this trail.

Little Creek Mountain Trail Network -- Also sounds pretty amazing. This is a dang long trail.

Owens Loop Trail -- In St. George. Short and sweet, but not exactly epic.

Three Peaks Loop -- Cedar City.

Thunder Mountain -- I hope this isn't burried in snow this year.

Green Valley Loop -- St. George

Okay. That should get a little discussion going.

Some more resources.

Utah Mountain Biking web site



Later!

Pete

Race Car of the Day 1/26/2008

Mario Andretti's Morris Mini Cooper????

To be honest, today's "Race Car of the Day" and "Street Car of the DAy" could easily be interchanged. I want to race both of them. I also want to street both of them.

Tough choice.

Pete

Street Car of the Day: 1/26/2008

This one is back up on ebay again. I guess it didn't get sold the first time around. Dang am I tempted by this car. It is gorgious and a great project. The best thing about it is the level of detail the guy put in his post. I'm going to just quote it here because it is a great story.

You can see the Auction at the link below:

1966 Lotus Cortina

Vehicle Description
I have decided to relist this car/s after it didn't make the reserve. I have lowered the reserve and the BUY IT NOW to make it sell. I tried to accurately depict what know about this car, and what obsessive steps I have taken in its resurrection.
There are some new facts included below in italics.
I hate to see it chopped up, so I hope this prce reduction send it/them to a good home.
Please read the revised narrative (with new info from former drivers, etc.), and then you can make an informed evaluation and choice about the car.
Remember, we are talking about 2.5 cars here, so keep that in mind as you read.
BOTH CARS ARE LISTED AS "ROLERS" meaning, no engines, but both have gearboxes.
Twelve years ago I bought what was believed by many to be a Lotus Cortina SCCA GT4 roller .To be absolutely clear, I was well aware that it wasn't a real Lotus, having raced them back in the early seventies. I also owned a real Lotus Cortina (BA74EK59742). I had bought it, sight unseen years before.
It was a "swiss cheese" of rust and a victim of scavenging.. little more than the important LoCort parts and the paperwork.
It had been stripped almost to the firewall, but it was real (rusty, rusty, rusty), and figured on using the GT4 car for its parts.
The GT4 car was a really great car at one time, but had suffered from racing, storage and parts picking. It had been built in the eighties by Clay Vyzralek who cleverly assumed the AVO trademark when Ford didn't re-register it (that's what I was told). He is now, I believe in Colorado, still under the AVO banner. I emailed him, but no answer. The roll cage, advanced suspension, fiberglass doors, hood, trunk and front fenders and flares were expertly done, artwork on wheels. And the mechanicals were all first rate.
So I bought it with the idea of resurrecting my Lotus Cortina with the majority of the parts from the AVO car and go Vintage racing. After all, the AVO car had VARA and VR history and a 1991 SCCA runoffs appearance. But even though the car was "essentially complete" less engine, it was really more of a shell with boxes of parts.
I began to restore the Lotus Cortina using the AVO GT4 trick racing parts.
To make certain that the LoCort was indeed what it was supposed to be, I matched up the VIN number on the Cortina homepage:
http://freespace.virgin.net/tommy.sandham/chassis2.htm
I also thought I registered the car with the Lotus Cortina Register via mail, but it was 14 years ago, and I now can't be certain. I heard from them that they didn't have any record of the car. I have had six Lotus cars in that period, and may have confused one with the other, or it may be a registration error (I never became a member or sent in any membership fees). No matter, it really doesn't mean much in the end. Here's the car, here's the paperwork.
I was careful to preserve as much of the LoCort as possible (even salvaging the "hump") and including the front strut tower with VIN (now heavily reinforced by the AVO car's cage).
In splicing the strut tower onto the GT4 frame to preserve the VIN stamp, I ran into very thin rusty metal, and screwed up the weld/fill in the area around VIN stamp, losing one letter stamp in the process. I making all this absolutely clear, so anyone bidding will know all of the circumstances (see photo) I wasn't aware of it until a sharp ebayer pointed it out because I never had the chasis plate and the car in the same place to compare.
Almost eveything else are replacement/used parts (GT rear fenders) or the AVO parts lightweight bodywork. There wasn't much to work with at the rear of the LoCort as it was rusted away. So I grafted the back bodywork of the AVO car onto the LoCort and began to build up the LoCort as a Vintage racer.
Again, I want to be perfectly clear. This is a real LoCort, or at least a resurrected LoCort with a mostly new tub, now setup for the GT4 AVO fiberglass bodywork.
I probably should have just changed the VIN plate, it would have been a lot easier (and illegal), but I always thought that I could save the LoCort, and I did. I guess I thought it would be a quick turnaound and I would have it up an racing in a year or so.
Then, as the rotisserie turns, I mentioned to a friend with our local Vintage racing group that I was prepping this car, using the fiberglass bodywork and with the cage and race parts from the AVO car for Vintage racing. It was then that I realized that I had been away from Vintage racing too long and a flared, fiberglass car was not a viable entry.
I take full responsibility for not contacting them in advance, and understand the concept of "period correct cars" at vintage meets (within reason). I thought of 1991 Runoffs and earlier race history of the GT4 car; thinking of converting it BACK to a standard Cortina GT4 with documented race history. But decided that I had gone to all of the trouble to save the Lotus Cortina....
All I needed some metal bodywork and doors to make it vintage legal.
So I did what any reasonable person would, and bought yet another Cortina; a 1966 Cortina GT (donor) from San Antonio.
It too was (is) a roller that had somehow sat in a field in South Texas without rusting,. It has good doors, windows, hood, glass and the majority of a LoCort interior was shared with the GT. The front fenders are all there, they need some bodywork, but beside that, it's the perfect donor... it even has a gearbox, five steel wheels and a radio! It's a filthy beast, but a really "tub solid" donor car.
So, following are photos of most of what I have for sale.
The sandblasted and primed, LoCort unibody with VIN and plate, most of the AVO roll cage (some had to be cutout for access and fitment, but I have those tubes) and race stuff attached, replaced rear fenders, all of the really trick stuff that AVO built, a close ratio Leason straight cut 4 speed (price one of those for chuckles), engineered front and multi-link rear suspensions, race seat, fuel cell tank for a FuelSafe bladder (bladder expired and scrapped as this has taken so long) and all of the other stuff to make a racecar or really trick street Lotus Cortina.
I also have the mostly complete GT donor car with doors, hood fenders etc. and the full set of the GT4 fiberglass panels... not to mention all of the small parts, gauges, Aeroquipt lines, radiator, two windshields, six 13 x 7 VIA mags, 4 pot front brakes, vented rotors, headers and exhaust system, Supertrap, finned rear drums, locker rear, two articulated driveshaft sets, spare axles, 3.771:1 locker rear, spare std. Cortina rear, even fabricated aluminum overflow catch cans, firewalls, and window stays. I tossed the twenty year old harness but kept the window net.
Oddly, I never got a steering wheel with any of the three cars.
So just as I am finally get everything assembled to finally hang the rest of the donor body parts on the LoCort and get it ready for paint... I come to the realization that at this time of my life, the project is just beyond my grasp.
I also acquired an Elan last year that is a running, complete car that I can easily restore.
So I have decided to sell the Cortina/Lotus Cortina car(s)... with all of the really hard stuff done...
Think of it as the car you always wanted, and a donor car for the driveway to p*** off the neighbors.
Build it up as a Lotus Cortina, a GT4 Cortina, a Cortina GT... it's all just parts bins.
I have Texas title paperwork for the GT donor and logbook and title for the AVO GT4, I have not applied for a title on the Lotus Cortina but I have all of the paperwork for it should you want to (see images). You will recieve a Bill of Sale and all of the paperwork.
I have added more photos at
http://www.webpages.charter.net/andy2236/index.htm
I live in Fort Worth, Texas and have a very flexible schedule if you want to come look at the car (which I urge) it's 20 minutes over from DFW.
If you buy it, I will need an immediate $500 deposit via PayPal and the remaining balance in cash or Cashier's Check (verifiable by calling the bank) within 72 hours of the transaction, not later, not when you pick it up. I can store it for 30 days, but will not accept any responsibility for it while it is stored in my facility (my garage, but facility sounds more lawyerish). If you want it shipped, you arrange it, you pay for it, I'll help out as much as I can.
I might take an interesting vintage race trade, plus cash.
Please, don't forget that this is a number of body parts, boxes of parts and cumbersome, heavy metal parts including two cars. If you want to strip the Cortina GT and just take the parts you want, I can dispose of the remains for you. That way it could all fit on a one car trailer. I also have a trailer and could arrange delivery within 500 miles for an additional fee to be negotiated up front.
AS IS WHERE IS No warranty expressed or implied. This is a 42 year old disassembled vintage race car and a donor street car that hasn't been on the street in 30 years. As such may be missing any number of small parts or hardware. It is YOUR responsibility to inspect the car before sale, not after. Also understand that Vintage race cars are dangerous, sometimes more that most because of the age of the component parts. You should magnaflux any critical part before using it on any racing car.
If it doesn't sell this time, at this price, then I will consider parting it out. BUT NOT UNTIL THE AUCTION IS OVER. I can certainly make more money that way, but I had hoped for it to be restored.
If you have any questions, please email me. I'll answer them as quickly and honestly as I can. And thanks again for all of the helpful emails the last time around. I had no idea that there were that many people who knew of the LoCort, or even actually raced the GT4 car.
This ia a five day auction, so act early if you want the car.

A gearhead's proudest moment...

Today my wife had an all-day meeting for the Social Studies honors program that she's teaching this year. It was a teacher inservice. They were working on developing curriculum for a part of the class where they teach kids about how different systems. The idea is to teach kids about how different inputs are combined, acted upon by a system and result in a desired effect and additional outputs.

The person giving the inservice had this group of 25 Social Studies teachers the example of an automibile engine. She asked about inputs, processes and outputs.

My amazing wife raised her hand and when called upon, described the entire function of a 4 cycle, internal combustion engine. The person giving the inservice was skeptical and asked her specific questions, thinking that she didn't know her stuff. Laura answered all of the questions in detail.

At first many people asked her how she knew that. She said her husband was a car freak and that it just rubbed off on her. The whole group then got a good laugh out of that.

I'm so proud. My wife is a freak. ;)

Pete

Race Car of the Day 1/25/2008

Happy Friday!!!

 

American Muscle wins the Race Car of the Day today. It was a tough choice.  There was a Viper RT10 that had been used as an agricultural modifcation tool that was pretty tempting.  The price was right for sure.  There was an Ex Michael Andretti Indy Car that was definitely in the mix too...  It would be cool to show up at SCCA Solo Nats in one of those things...   But the winner for sure is the 1994 Z06 Vette.

 

Enjoy and I'll come up with some more tomorrow.

 

Pete

Street Car of the Day: 1/25/2008

Only 11 more months of Christmas Shopping left!  You can use my "Street Car of the Day" or even the "Race Car of the Day" blog entries as a shopping guide for the ones you love.  Hopefully I'll make SOMEONE's list this year. :D

 

The Race Car of the Day blog idea was such a HUGE success yesterday (9 people read it.  No-one commented) that I thought I'd add in a street car of the day blog entry too.  We'll see how this goes.

 

The choice for today is a BMW 1600 from the late 60s.  Most of the time I realy don't like old cars that are updated with some modern stuff in them, but this thing could be my ideal daily driver.  Obviously this owner has put in a ton of work on this car.  It is pretty dang cool. 

 

This Austin Mini Cooper may be one of the best that I've seen in a long time.  It freaking rocks!!!  Some might be tempted to put this under "Race car of the day" but not me.  That thing has daily driver written all over it!!!!

 

If you're looking at this blog entry and the links no longer work, that is because they're links to e-bay auctions.  These entries are definitely "You snooze and you lose" in nature. 

 

See you later.

 

Pete

 

 

Race car of the day. 1/24/2008

Welcome to a new feature at AUSOE.Blogspot.com.  It is called Race Car of the Day.  I love Ebay and thought I'd post some of my favorites as I look at different race cars that people are selling. At times I might venture out of the "race" area of interest, but I think most anything posted here will be at least a good candidate for a race car.

 

Today was a tough choice for me.

 

There's a Spec E30 car or a 57 Bel Air Pro street car. 

 

I'm leaning towards the Spec E30.

 

Very Interesting. :D

 

Pete

Smithereens at the State Theatre

Every year the band The Smithereens play the State Theatre in Falls Church, VA... about 10 minutes from our house. I've been saying that we should go see them for the last 5 years. Tonight we did. OH MY GOD were they great.

We prepared for the show pretty well. We listened to their first three CDs as well as their Beatles tribute CD all afternoon. Last night we watched "A Hard Day's Night" on DVD, which got us in a musical mood.

All the old songs that we love were performed perfectly. They did 4 songs from their Beatles tribute CD. They played "Behind Blue Eyes" by The Who and even gave "Sweet Home Alabama" a try.

After 28 years together, they still obviously enjoy performing. They were having as much fun as we were.

The State Theatre is an awesome music venue. The 1940s movie theater was converted to a music hall in the late 90s. The accoustics are great. You can reserve a table and have dinner and drinks before the show if you like.

By far the best place to be is the floor right in front of the stage. We arrived at 8:30 for a 9pm show, walked down and were 10 feet from the front of the stage. They started a little late, but played for 2 hours straight.

After the show we stood around out front for about 10 minutes. The band walked out and we got to shake hands with them and talk for a few minutes before they headed off to sign autographs.

What an amazing night.

I can't wait till the come back next year.

Pete

National Trolley Museum

Oy folks.

We did a little touristing this winter and one of the places we found was the National Trolley Museum. It is pretty dang cool! I was a little confused by touring the museum at night, but once we got there, it all made sense. Those crazy Christians and their train obsessions.

Anywho.. You can read about it HERE.

Later! Pete