Hachi Roku: Toyota Corolla GT-S AE86

I love this car. If the planets all align, I'll have something like this as my next project car. This is an awesome example of a Hachi Roku (Japanese for 86). This Corolla was made from 1985-7 and was pretty much the last of the front engine/rear wheel drive compact cars in the US. The Nissan 240sx was around until 1998, but it is a much larger and heavier car.

The appeal of the GT-S is that it is a quite light car (2100 pounds) and can be much lighter. With careful modifications, it can get down below 1800 pounds.

The motor in the GT-S is a dual overhead cam, 16 valve, 1.6 liter, fuel injected motor. It has a high redline and puts out about 130hp and 104 lb/ft torque. While that is enough to power an 1800 pound car pretty well, a lot of folks opt for the 20 valve, high compression motor from Japan that puts out 160hp and 120 lb/ft torque. Definitely a good upgrade. Horsepower mods can be made from there.

The AE-86 is in high demand among drifters. Though they don't handle as well as some newer cars, they've got a lot of heritage to them. That bumps the price up a bit. Even so, they can be found for under $2000 for one in rough, but complete shape. The one pictured here is for sale for $6200. It whould definitely get that price.

Thanks for reading,

Pete

Hachi Roku: Corolla GT-S AE86

Here's the most likely candidate for my new car. I love these things. I'm sure I'll offend Hachi Roku (Japanese for 86) owners when I say that I think they're kinda funny looking. That's their appeal to me. :D

These things are pretty much the last of the front engine/ rear wheel drive compact cars sold in America. The example that you see to the left has been modified a bit, but it is a great example of the car I love and would like to buy.

These things handled pretty darn well when you consider that the rear suspension and drive system was a relatively simple and heavy live axle not entirely unlike those found on American muscle cars. The thing that really makes these things extraordinary is their weight, or lack thereof. In stock form, they weigh about 2100 pounds. Strip out the interior and anything that you really don't need, install a racing seat and roll cage and replace the heavy stock wheels with something truly light weight and you can have a race car that weighs between 1700 and 1800 pounds.

The stock motor of the GT-S is a 1.6 liter, 16valve motor making around 130 hp and 104 lb/ft torque. The japanese motor which some swap in makes around 160 hp and 120 lb/ft torque. It uses a 20 valve setup and a higher compression ratio that accounts for the greater horsepower.

Drifters LOVE these things. These were some of the original drift cars in Japan. They're not the easiest cars to drift, but the sense of history makes them in pretty high demand.

I'll be keeping an eye on these this winter.

Pete

Very Tempting 318is

This one definitely cought my eye.

I'm drawn to the 318is because it is light weight, fairly modern and has a great suspension. All the bimmer guys tell me I should go for the 325 because the straight 6 motor has more power. I've always been an underdog kinda guy. I like the better balance and lighter weight of the E30 318is. That's just me. I'm a freak that way.

This car in particular is of interest to me because it is bascally stock and it has a blown head. That means I get to do a project on it and I get it at a very good price. I'm sure that there's a ton of work to do to the car. I can see what looks like rust stains on the carpet. Who knows what I'll find when I pull the interior to check the inside of the floor pans. That is part of the mystery of a project.

The time isn't right for me and this car. If I'd seen this ad at the end of February, I'd click that "buy it now" button in a second. I just don't have room, time or money at the moment. I can still enjoy looking though. :D

Pete

An Awesome Project 2002

This car is an awesome example of a motorsports 2002. It has a ton of the work already done. The fenders are flared. It has the motorsports spoiler. The interior is mostly gone. It has little or no rust. It has the battery in the trunk and an upgraded fuel pump, filter and FPR.

The motor is the only part that really needs work. It has a ton of stuff that needs help. It is the perfect project. :D

The car is even local. :D

You can find the link to the auction below:

1972 BMW 2002

1986 Toyota Trueno AE86 Hachi Roku (AKA Corolla GT-S)

I hate to say it but I love these cars. They're ugly as hell and really quirky. They're pretty much the last of the front-engine, rear drive small cars that made it to America. They've got a huge following in the drift community. There are some guys autocrossing and doing SCCA or NASA racing with them too. Since I'm looking to do motorsports stuff with it, it is a good candidate.

Don't think that I dislike the car because I think it is ugly. I LOVE ugly cars. This thing is really ugly in my eyes and I think that's a good thing. It is just damn cool.


The other appeal to it is that the car is very light. In stock form, it weighs in at about 2100 pounds. Strip out the interior and put in some racing seats and these things can weigh as little as 1800 pounds. If I really go crazy and replace the dash with fiberglass, it can get even less weight. Use a light weight battery and add a good roll cage and you've still got a track-ready car that is between 1700 and 1800 pounds.

The motor on these were pretty cool too. It is a high compression, 16 valve motor that revs really high. With minimal mods, they can get up around 150hp at the wheels with 110 lb/ft torque. While that doesn't sound like much compared to the Corrado or GTI, just keep in mind that it is about 1000 pounds lighter than the Corrado and 1400 pounds lighter than the GTI.

The rear suspension is pretty simple. It isn't a fancy multi-link system. It is an old style, live axle with trailing arms. Even with the simple rear end, they still handle pretty well.

I'm seriously tempted by this car. They're getting rare, but you can still find decent examples for between $2000 and 4000.

The one in this auction isn't really to my taste. It is the hatchback that I LOVE, but I really don't like the wing very much. I'd prefer to have one with few or no mods so I could do the work myself. That motor looks like it has been seriously worked, and I like that the guy did the full polyurithane bushing kit. Very cool.

HERE is the listing on Ebay for this car.

Love,

Pete

When car guys dream....

Okay. Continuing on the car theme...

My project car thang has led to some interesting Ebay searches. Most recently I came up with this hit....

Here's what the car is supposed to look like.

It is a 1967 Toyota Sports 800 Yotahachi. There were only 48 of them made with right hand drive and only some of those were ever shipped to the United States. This car is SUPER rare and a really amazing little sports car.

As with many project cars, they're a litle bit of a "work in progress. You noticed above that I used the term "supposed to" when referring to the car's looks. Well this is how it looks now:

It definitely needs some love. Even so, you can really get a feel for the shape of the car and the potential that is there.

More photos. :D










Yeah. It needs some serious love. I'm not sure you'll ever find the lens covers for the headlights. I can't imagine that many of them are floating around.



It does look like most of the other parts are there though.

You can see the listing below.

1967 Toyota S800

Pete

Project Car Candidate #74

I recently retired a blog that was my outlet for a lot of car-related things. I am chanelling all that blogging energy into this blog. :D

I've always got my eye out for a few interesting and weird cars to be my next project car. I haven't decided what that is going to be yet, but I keep my eyes out. You'll see posts from time to time that talk about something that catches my eye. This is one of those posts. :D

I found this BMW 2002 on e-bay this week and kinda liked it.

The engine bay was definitely pretty amazing for a 30+ year old car. There are a lo of these things out there, but not many are as beautiful inside and out as this one.

You can find this listing on Ebay at the link below:

1975 BMW 2002

Pete

NASCAR goes Colombian. :D

Hey hey. 

 

I was a little surprised earlier this year when one of my favorite F1 racers decided to leave Formula 1 and race in the NASCAR Nextel Cup series.  Juan Pablo Montoya has been a guy who's career I've enjoyed watching for years.  It blew me away that he would ditch the most prestigious race series in the world for a series that, though loved in America, is pretty much laughed at anywhere else. 

 

RACER magazine had a really good article about the move this week.  You can read it HERE.

 

The article talks a lot about Chip Ganassi, Montoya's new boss.  To me, the real interest is in Montoya's decision to switch.  His reasoning was pretty good in my book. 

 

1) The racing is awesome. Formula 1 races are great, but you may only see a small handfull of passes for position while on the track.  Many times you'll see races where the only pass for the lead is done in the pits. 

 

There are some NASCAR races where you'll have more changes for the lead in one lap than you will in an entire F1 race. 

 

Wheel to wheel racing is scary and hair raising in an open-wheel car.  In NASCAR it is not unusual to go wheel to wheel, fender to fender at 190mph for lap after lap.  It takes skill, technique, wisdom and balls to be successful at that week after week.

 

2) He wants to be a great all-round racer.  He's one of two racers to have won the Indianapolis 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix.  How amazing would it be to add the Daytona 500 to that list?  How about a NEXTEL cup title to go with his Champ Car title? 

 

3) It is a good springboard for dabbling in something else.  Sports car endurance racing has been growing in popularity in the US of late.  There are plenty of NASCAR guys who race in the endurance races when their schedule allows.  Not many F1 guys get to do that until they've retired.  Adding a LeMans or Daytona 24-hour win would add to #2 above pretty nicely.

 

4) Rednecks are nice people.  Montoya talks about another thing that NASCAR has that other racing series may never have:

 

“Every driver I’ve met so far has been mega-nice,” he says. “‘Anything you need, we’ll help you.’ I’ve never seen that before. I’ve been shocked. In six seasons (of F1) I’ve been to the Williams motor home and to the McLaren motor home. I’ve never been to any other motor home. In 10 minutes (at Chicago) I’ve been in Jimmie Johnson’s motor home, Roger Penske…I was at every bus and every motor home.

“And everybody is nice. They are just happy to be there. It’s great to see people loving and enjoying the sport.”

 

I've got a new favorite racer in the pack.  He makes his debut in Chicago this fall.  It is going to take him a year or so to really learn the ins and outs of NASCAR racing.  I'm psyched to see how that goes.  He'll give Boris Said someone to hang out with. :D

 

Pete

My September 11th Post.

Hey folks. 

 

I think most Americans have had some deep thoughts today.  I haven't talked to anyone that didn't have something to say today about September 11th. 

 

My normal reaction to almost any anniversary is a show of grattitude for friends, family and the good that is done all around me.  I sent out an e-mail to a group that I work with that expressed those feelings.  The e-mail was heartfelt and sincere, but it didn't fully express what I felt.  Until this afternoon, I didn't have a grip on what I felt. 

 

It is easy to Monday Morning Quarterback the Clinton and Bush administration for things that they should and shouldn't have done.  That's been beaten to death and someday I'll get to the point where I stop doing that in my head. 

 

What is hard for me at this point is the circle of violence that has resulted from September 11th.  This is a gross over simplification of the situation, but it is good enough for my blog.  The US is attacked and 3000 people die.  The US invades Afghanistan and Iraq to fight a war on terrorism against al-Qaeda.  The deaths and violence in that war inspire insurgents to take up the terrorist fight against the US.  It keeps going and going. 

 

Ghandi may have said it best when he said, "An eye for an eye only makes the whole world blind." 

 

I firmly believe that is true.  That isn't a solution though. 

 

Oddly enough, it was the Chinese Government's statement in regards to the 5th anniversary of the September 11th attacks that ring true: "Only when the root cause of terrorism is stopped and not just the symptoms, will the war on terrorism be won." 

 

They said it better than I could. 

 

How do we destroy the root cause?  How do we change the perception of America around the world?  I have no idea.  Obviously the "kill them all and let god sort them out" isn't working. 

 

I might know something that could take the first step.  We can't stop fighting the war on terrorism.  Pulling out isn't the answer at this point.  We can't keep going at it alone though... not when every military action we take causes two problems that we've got to solve down the road. 

 

What we need is something that will generate a little bit of good will.  We need to do something in our foreign policy that has a positive and selfless affect.  We need to do something that will let people know that we're not the imperialistic, self centered, egotistical country that we appear to be. 

 

What is that thing?  I don't know for sure, but I've got some good ideas.  The countries of Sub-Saharan Africa could benefit immeasurably by a significant development effort on the part of the US.  I'm not talking about dumping a bunch of food out of airplanes and dropping it all over Africa.  I'm talking about a sincere effort to help the people help themselves.  Work with international organizations or help fund the organizations to do the work that they are to help people stop the spread of the AIDS virus, solve problems that prevent these people from helping themselves.  Give them the step up that they need to make the next step on their own. 

 

It isn't easy.  It is darn cheap to do that when you compare the amount of effort and money to what is spent on the war on terror and on Iraq. 

 

I'm not saying that we take funds away from the defense department.  If we have to spend a few tens of millions of dollars to help out in Africa, it would be money well spent.  It would start winning the hearts and minds of the people of the world. 

 

My Africa idea is an example.  Obviously there are details that need to be worked out.  It wouldn't instantly solve our problems, but it would be a first step towards doing something good in the world.  The US needs to do something good in the world.  If it isn't Africa, then maybe it is somewhere else in the world that has people in need.  Heck, feeding our homeless people or truly helping those recovering from hurricane Katrina wouldn't be a bad thing either.  We need to do SOMETHING good... something more than we're doing now.

 

Sorry to rant.

 

My thoughts are with you.

 

Pete

The meaning of the word "done".

Oy oy.

 

This was one of my posts on ECE today.  My friend Jimmy was giving me grief because I used the word "Done" to describe a Corrado project that someone is doing.  "Done" is a swear word in the Corrado community.  Nothing is ever "done" with a corrado with very few exceptions.  Below is the post describing the incident.  It was kinda funny. 

 

*********************************************

Quote:

Originally Posted by sKunkman OMG! You said DONE!

I'm such a hypocrit. In my own defense, the word "done" has many meanings in the Corrado world. I left out one of the others. As earlier stated, "done" can mean that you just sold your Corrado. It can also mean that you just totalled it by driving it into a tree. The less known meaning, and possibly the one that describes my Corrado best, pertains to a particular project. At the moment, the engine work on my Corrado is "done". By "done", I mean that I'm not working on it at the moment, and it is at least functioning within acceptable parameters, but that it might break at any moment sending me to a firey death and thus changing the definition of "done" to the second one I list above.

Thanks for keeping me real and reminding me what an ass I am. I need that pretty much every moment of the day.

************************************************

 

I thought you'd enjoy that.

 

Take it easy.

 

Pete

FOOD FIGHT!!!!!

I found this today and thought it was worth posting.

You say tomato...

Love,


Pete

Reason #69 why I LOVE HOT DOGS!!!

If you are reading this you already know what a little kid I am. As a kid, I love MUTANTS!!! Now there's a great way that I can create mutants all by myself.

Hot Dogs Cause Mutations

Yes, I modified the article title a little. No: birth defects are not at all funny. Mutants, however, are really cool. Whenever I'm asked what I want to be when I grow up, I used to answer "A Pirate". That has changed now. I want to be a Mutant! Maybe I can be a Mutant Pirate.

Any guess what I'm having for lunch today?????

Pete

PS: Unfortunately after reading the article, I figured out that eating hot dogs won't turn ME into a mutant. I have to reproduce in order to create a mutant. Oh well. I guess that isn't going to happen. Better luck next time. ;)

Possibly the stupidest movie of all time...

Bwahahahaha. Last week I saw a preview for the movie "Snakes on a Plane". Oh my god that looks like the dumbest movie I can imagine. The people in the theatre seemed to agree with me. It is supposed to be a creepy, suspenseful, action movie but there was a lot of laughter and snickering during and immediately following the preview. I think that's one that La and I are going to skip.

Pete

I'm a roadie: Part 2

I now own 2 pairs of white cycling socks and one pair of fingerless cycling gloves.

Don't worry. I still ride with a helmet that has a visor on it. I can't afford a fancy-pants roadie helmet. Those things are expeeeensive. ;)

Love,

Pete

I'm a roadie!!!;)

I usually get to a point in mountain biking season where I need a break.  I burn out pretty easily when I'm doing lots of long rides.  This year it has been easier because I've been mixing it up during the week.  I've been commuting on my road bike for a few months.  Nevertheless, I think I hit burnout on the mountain bike this weekend. 

 

I was so exhausted after Saturday's ride and movie night, that I cancelled the Sunday morning ride and slept in.  Dang that felt good.  I've been working and doing so much other stuff that I haven't had 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep in a long time.  It felt damn good. 

 

Yesterday I went out with Jason for a ride on the road bikes.  After bonking hard on the mountain bike ride on Saturday, I figured I'd be pretty toasted on Sunday.  Not so!  We did about a 50 mile loop at a very good pace.  Grumpy is definitely getting his endurance and strength back.  The pace was higher and we changed off on our pulls at the front pretty regularly.  It was nice to have someone to trade the draft with. 

 

I'm now contemplating building some new road wheels that would lighten up the bike a little.  I've got the old school, bombproof wheels on the bike now.  I'd drop a fair amount of weight just by getting off of straight gauge spokes and going from something designed in this century.  Eventually I'll get some fancy-pants wheels.  For right now I'm happy with just lightening up what I've got a little. 

 

Other upgrades will be a carbon fork so I can put a new bar and stem on the bike.  The ones I've got are definitely past their prime and probably not the safest things to be riding at the moment.  Wound-up has an awesome fork that rides well and holds up to carrying a klydesdale like me with no sweat.  They're a little pricey, but not too bad. 

 

I should probably think about upgrading my drivetrain sometime too.  My 16 year old rear derailleur is probably ready to be replaced.  Now I have to figure out what I want to change it with.  :D  Time will tell.

 

Pete

 

My new favorite bumper sticker...

Oy oy.

 

I'll go political for a moment...  I saw a bumper sticker on a pickup truck today that I liked.  The guy had a gun rack in the back window with a composite hunting bow hanging in it.  I don't know what that ads to the meaning of the bumper sticker, but I liked the aesthetic. 

 

"We're creating enemies faster than we can kill them."

 

 

EEnteresting. :)

 

Love,

 

Pete

Getting Biblical....

Hey hey.

 

I had a few Bible quotes that I wanted to put down in blog form for something.  I was talking with a friend about taking the Bible literally and it reminded me of some old West Wing episodes.  I went and looked them up. 

 

Homosexuality is an abomination:

Leviticus 18:22 (King James Version)

Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

 

********************

 

It's okay to sell your daugther into slavery:

Exodus 21:7 (King James Version)

And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do.

 

*******************

 

Working on the sabbath is punnishable by death:

Exodus 35:2 (King James Version)

Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.

 

*******************

 

Football is bad.  Bacon may taste good, but don't eat it!!!

 

Leviticus 11:7-8 (King James Version)

And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.

 

Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.

 

*******************

 

Don't mix your grapes!!!

 

Deuteronomy 22:9 (King James Version)

Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled.

 

*******************

 

Those are a few that I liked. :)

 

Pete

 

 

 

 

A more complete apology to Jay and an explanation. Tour de France Doping Content Inside!

This is yet another response that I chose to put on my web site instead of Jay's cycling board.  Please feel free to respond.  I know I'm over-apologizing for this, but this is my catharsis.  I needed to stay some stuff and it is better that I say it on my web site and not his. :D

 

Thanks!

 

**************************************

 

Hey Folks. 

 

I kinda said a brief apology in the "Lance Has Something to Say" thread, but I thought I'd explain further in a place where it isn't more of a distraction to a thread that I'd already trashed.  Sorry about that Jay. 

 

Anyone who's read my comments on doping and professional cycling knows that I'm more than a little opinionated on the topic.  I've stated my ideas rather forcefully here in the past (probably too forcefully). 

 

I had completely resigned myself to pretty much writing off professional cycling in my mind and doing other things.  It isn't that I hate the the sport or the people doing it.  It is more that I didn't want to consider myself a fan of a sport that I now view as fundamentally flawed. 

 

We've had political discussions here in the past.  I was pretty forceful in my ideas there too.  One point that I always make is when talking on that kind of topic is that most of the time you can get a better view of reality by increasing the complexity of your thought on a particular topic.  Things are never black and white, right and wrong, good or bad. 

 

Friday afternoon I had an experience which helped me add complexity to my view of cycling.  I was included in a press conference with the Discovery Channel cycling team and got to talk at some length with George Hincapie and Johan Bruyneel.  I also got to rub virtual elbows with some of the top cycling journalists in the world.  It was a very cool opportunity to me and it opened many doors to me as a writer/photographer/freelance journalist. 

 

It also added complexity to my view of things.  No longer were cyclists in the TdF abstract entities on the other side of the pond, they were people that had real voices, lives and ideas.  I was taken in.  It was damn cool to be taken seriously by George and Johan.   It was cool to have a discussion with them and have that discussion be somewhat meaningful to them and very meaningful to me. 

 

For a brief period, cycling was redeemed in my eyes.  It wasn't that I no longer considered doping to be an issue in cycling.  It is and always will be to me.  It was that the added detail to my experience showed me that there is a lot of good on the other side of the scale and that it balanced things out to the point where I could look at cycling within the context of doping and find something of value there. 

 

That was the peak.  Now for the valley.

 

The first thing I did after the press conference was to check up on Velo News.  That was when I read the articles about the Spanish doping scandall that had just broken.  I knew a lot of that was coming when Liberty Seguros dropped their sponsorship.  I just didn't expect it to be quite so wide-reaching.   That definitely crashed most feelings of balance that I had.  Though I'm happy at having the ongoing opportunities as a writer/photographer in professional cycling, my outlook is back to being almost exclusively negative. 

 

Again, I don't hate the sport of professional cycling.  I don't hate the riders or coaches or doctors.  They are a product of the sporting environment that I have helped to create.  I just don't feel that it is in my best interest to invest my time, heart and soul to following cycling the way it has developed.

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Pete

Doping and Lance... My RANT on the Cycling Central VA Board...

I kinda went off on my friend's message board yesterday.  I was really annoyed about the whole doping scandal and all the "Lance is guilty/innocent" thing and I let it get to me.  I should have kept my mouth shut or at least opened my mouth on my own web site. 

 

Sorry Jay. 

 

The question was basically "Do you think Lance cheated or not?"

 

Here's what I wrote:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ahhhhhhhhhh My favorite topic. :D It must be Tour de France time because I'm PISSED OFF ALL THE TIME!!!! Just kidding. :D

This year it snuck up on me. I was going to ignore the tour this year and have a happy July, but that wasn't to be. The TdF came after ME this year.

I got a call and a bunch of e-mails from folks at Discovery Channel about a Race2Replace press conference that they wanted me to take part in. There's a long freaking story about why they invited me. Trust me, they did and I went.

It was really cool. I got to talk with George Hincapie, Johan Bruyneel and the head of marketing for the team. I got to ask my question along with bigtime journalists from VeloNudes, AP, USA Today, LeMonde, etc. Both took time to answer my question thoughtfully. It was damn cool. I was totally jazzed about the tour and being invited to more of these press conferences.

Later on Friday afternoon I got around to reading VeloNews.com and that same old pissed off feeling came back.

I'm so freaking sick of all this crap. I'm embarassed and ashamed that I let myself get sucked into being psyched for the tour again.

The only answer to doping is to ignore professional cycling. As long as the fans keep expecting their heros to compete from February to November at a high level, you're going to find doping in professional cycling.

Do yourself a favor and switch the TV off. Skip over the articles about the Tour in VeloNews. Take all that time that you're saving and go for a nice, long bike ride. Trust me, you'll be a better person for it. :D

My rant is over.

I will add my $.02 on the topic. My personal take on all of the stuff that came out this week makes me convinced that Lance cheated. Will we ever know for sure? Probably not. Do I care? NOPE!

Later! Sorry to poo on the tour for y'all.

Pete

Its Tour de France Time Again...

And that means it is time to talk about DOPING!!!!!

 

I have sworn off professional cycling again and again.  I seriously thought I'd kicked the bug this week until I got the e-mails and phone calls from Discovery Channel asking me to take part in their press conference with Johan Bruyneel and George Hincapie.  I was hooked and hungry for the tour.

 

Then came a new info about Frankie Andreau and his wife having been supbeonad to testify in a case about Lance Armstrong doping.  The Andreaus were present when Lance was talking to one of his doctors during his cancer treatments and supposedly Armstrong admitted he'd used EPO, steriods and human growth hormone in his cycling career. 

 

More information was released about the Spanish doping ring that was broken up back in May.  If you believe sources, the whole Wurth team and some of Telekom (Jan Ullrich and Oscar Sevilla) are implicated. 

 

Greg LeMond has come out and stated that he's been harassed by Lance Armstrong for making statements in 2001 questioning Lance's amazing recovery and ability to ride in the tour.  LeMond claims that Lance threatened to find 11 witnesses who would swear that LeMond took EPO during his tour wins. 

 

Velonews has info on all of this.  It is just sad that this stuff is going on.

 

Pete

Yesterday's Triathlon...

You already read about the cycling leg of the triathlon.  You missed out on the swimming leg and the hauling 100 pound bags of mulch leg.  :D

 

If you've seen the weather lately, you've seen that we've had more than 6" of rain in the last 2 days.  A few years back Laura and I changed the water flow in our back yard so that water moved away from our back stairs and towards the drain that goes out to the street.  Unfortunatley our neighbor changed her back yard so that all of the water from her house comes down in a river aimed at our back steps.  Under normal conditions, that isn't a problem.  The water just moves in with the water coming off our roof and heads for the lower part of our back yard and the drainage that heads harmlessly out to the street. 

 

I always take the precaution to make sure that the stairs are clear of leaves and debris, so the drain at the bottom doesnt' clog.  I was extra careful this weekend because I knew there was a lot of rain coming. 

 

Unfortunately the rain was so heavy last night (3" in 2 hours) and the ground was so saturated, that the water from our neighbor's yard had enough force that it went up the ridge that we'd built and right down the stairs.  It was fast enough that it overpowered the drain at the bottom of our stairs and the stairway began to fill.  I heard the water coming in at the base of the door and quickly went out to see what was happening. 

 

Laura had the brilliant idea to build a dyke out of the bags of mulch that we had in the front yard.  I quickly moved 12-50pound bags of mulch (closer to 100 pounds wet) and the dyke successfully diverted water around the house.  By the time I was done with this, the water in the bottom of the stairwell was chest deep on me and enough debris had washed down the stairs to clog the drain.  I dove in and cleared the drain.  I got a rake and began skimming debris out of the water so it wouldn't clog.  Every few minutes I dove down and cleared the drain again. 

 

Laura was working inside to get all the stuff in the basement moved to higher ground.  We had about 2" of water in the corner of the basement and it was coming in faster than it would drain. 

 

After 40 minutes of skimming and diving down to clear the drain, the water had finally all drained out of the stairwell.  I cleaned out all the debris, checked that my dyke was intact, then went inside to help Laura.  She'd pretty much finished picking up the basement and protecting stuff.  There wasn't much left to do. 

 

We then sat down and watched the rest of the movie we had on the DVD player.  It was actually kind of a fun adventure since no real damage was done.  We make a good team.  Laura was impressed enough by my diving down to clear the drain that she baked me cookies.  :D 

 

I slept well last night. :D

 

Have a dry day. 

 

Pete

Roadies are nothing but pussies!!!!

Good morning.

 

Well we've had about 6" of rain in the last 2 days so that put the ixnay on the mountain bike ride yesterday.  It was raining on and off all day, so we decided to go ou tand ride and get wet.  It was a blast!  We just hopped on the Washington and Old Dominion trail and headed west.  It would rain for 20 minutes, then clear up for 10, then rain for another 20 and so on.  We saw a few glimpses of the sun, but nothing lasted.  It was warm enough that we didn't get cold and wet enough that we didn't get too hot. 

 

We didn't ride really fast.  We did a nice, steady spin with a few extended accelerations for grins.  After a little over 3 hours of riding I got home and found that I was really tired.  That roadie stuff is definitely a workout.  My ride came out to be just short of 50 miles.  It was the longest road ride that I've done in a long time (I did a 46 miler two weeks ago). 

 

We both really enjoyed the ride.  It was very different from commuting.  It was nice to be riding without a pack on my back.  Definitely a big plus. 

 

We'll be doing it again next weekend when Grumpy gets his new road bike. 

 

Later!

 

Pete

Discovery Channel Telephone Press Conference 6/23/2006.

 

I was invited to take part in a press conference with George Hincapie and Johan Bruyneel from the Discovery Channel Cycling Team.  How I got the invite is a long story.  I unfortunately didn’t have a lot of time to prepare for this and I don’t have a lot of the training that other journalists have to partake and record something like this.  I took notes during the conference and I’ve written them up below.  My quotes are not exact.  My wording generally gets the gist of the questions asked and the answers given.  They are not intended to be direct quotes given by anyone there.  I obviously didn’t get all the participants names correct.  Part of my problem was that I was listening in a very busy office and had people interrupting me at a few points during the call.  Hopefully you’ll find this interesting though. 

 

 

Sal from USA Today:

Q: Now that Lance isn’t racing, has the contract with Discovery Channel put a lot of pressure on the team to perform?

A:  The Discovery Channel is in the business of telling stories.  There are many stories to be told about the Tour de France this year.  The Discovery Channel is still interested in telling them with or without Lance.

 

Bonnie:

Q:  What changes in mentality or approach have you had to make after Lance?

A: Johan:  We must be more flexible and able to adapt.  In the past we had a pre-defined goal at the beginning of the year:  Defend Lance in the tour.  This year that is very different.  We need to be able to adapt and adjust our goals to meet the situation.

 

Kip McLeary

Q:  George:  What was your preparation like after Dauphine Libere?

A: George:  I took 4 days off to rest.  I raced in a Team Time Trial and then I dove into doing recon work for the Tour. 

 

Ed Wyatt

Q:  How is the dynamic going to play out if you have to pick a leader?

A: Johan:  The composition of the team determines the team dynamic.  This team was picked to emphasize strategic thinkers on the road.  The team was picked for good dynamics.  The emphasis was on a team that has flexibility so that we’re able to react to the different things that can happen.  One of Discovery Channel’s big roles this year is to disturb the race from day 1.  We want to be aggressive.  We’re not in the position of having to defend the jersey.  That is new for us. 

 

Ed Wyatt:

Q: George:  Can you win the tour this year?

A: George:  I’ve been training all year for it.  I don’t know.  I hope I can.  I’m in the best shape of my life. 

 

Phillip Hersch

Q: Johan:  Does this feel like 1999 for you?

A: Johan:  There are some similarities.  But in 1999 the big guns from 1998 were not in the tour (Ullrich and Pantani).  In 2006 they are definitely there. 

 

There are many big differences though.  First of all, Lance isn’t racing the tour.  Basso and Ullrich are.  Discovery Channel is the underdog this year.  These differences are good things.  We’re hoping that we can fly under the radar a little bit and execute our strategy. 

 

Phillip Hersch

Q: George:  If it can’t be a Discovery Channel rider who wins the tour, would it be good to have it be another American?

A: George:  Yes!  This is a very exciting time for US cyclists. 

 

???

Q:  George:  You’ve got GC aspirations this year.  How was your training different than in the past?
A: George: I concentrated much more on climbing and time trials.  I spent 3 or 4 days per week on the TT bike doing intervals to improve my time trialing ability.   My hope is to possibly lead the team.

 

???

Q:  Johan:  I noticed there are no sprinters on the Tour de France team this year.

A: Johan:  The preference of the team is to go for high GC finishers and stage wins.  The sprinters on the Discovery Channel team did not show the ability to compete with guys like Boonen and McEwen in the lead up to the tour.  It takes 3 or 4 riders to support a sprinter in the tour.  It didn’t make sense for us to put that emphasis on the team if we’re realistically going to be competing for 4^th place in the sprints. 

 

John Lester from AP.

Q: George:  How much excitement is there in the US for this tour?

A: George:  I haven’t been in the US very much this year, but the interest seems to be very high.  Races like Tour of California definitely help keep the interest and excitement high. 

 

John Lester from AP:

Q: George: US Cyclists have seen a lot of success this year.  Has that been a surprise?

A: George:  Not at all.  US Cyclists had a great year last year too and this year has been a good continuation of that. 

 

John Lester from AP:

Q:  Who are the up and coming cyclists in the US?

A: George:  It is hard to comment on that.  There are many talented 20 and 21 year old cyclists in the US.  It remains to be seen who has the drive and who will work hard enough to race at the top level.  The cyclists are definitely out there though. 

 

Kathy Neal

Q: Can you tell us a little about the rider on your team named Martinez?  Is this his first big tour?

A: Johan.  Egoi Martinez may be unknown to Americans, but this is his 2^nd or 3^rd tour.  He’s also competed in the Vuelta 3 or 4 times.  He is a Basque rider who is very strong and aggressive.  I’ve followed his career for years.  He fits very well with the team and its goals.  He’s aggressive.  He climbs well.  He is well equipped to go with breaks.  He is a very complete rider and very motivated. 

 

James Stark

Q: Johan:  What are Ullrich and Basso’s weak points?

A: Johan: Those two are above the rest in the peloton.  Their weak point as I see it is that they haven’t had to take charge of a big race like the tour for 3 weeks.   We’ve controlled the race for the last 7 years.  Teams just don’t have the experience doing that. 

 

Team managers have forgotten how hard it is to control a 3-week race. 

 

Ullrich is worse off than Basso.  If Basso takes second in the Tour, he’s still had a great season.  He won the Giro.  Ullrich is different.  Without a win at the tour, he has no chance for glory. 

 

James Stark:

Q: Johan: Besides Basso and Ullrich, who is the most dangerous in the GC?

A: Johan:  I always hate these questions where I have to list people.  I always leave someone out.  We’ve got 4 GC contenders (Hincapie, Savodelli, Popovych, Azevedo).  We’re the only team that can say that.  Others to look out for are Floyd, Levi, Menchov, and Vino.

 

???

Q: Johan: What is Lance’s role in the Tour de France this year?

A: Johan: We don’t know yet if or how much he will attend.  He’s been an advisor this year and I’ve been in contact with him daily.  He’s involved in the decisions on the team.  I’ve asked his advice on issues.  We lead the team together for 7 years. 

 

Lance rode in the team car for a few days this year.  It is hard for him to analyze races from the car.  It is hard for him to judge the speed.  For that reason he’ll have minimal role during the race.  Out of the race he’s got a big impact. 

 

Richard Custis

Q:  Johan:  Can you give a brief description of the individual riders and their contributions to the team?

A: Johan:  I’ve already done this on the web site and in other places.  The answer for this is very long.  I’ll do a basic breakdown.  We’ve basically got 4 riders who are GC contenders (Hincapie, Savodelli, Popovych and Azevedo).  We’ve got 2 riders who are consistent attackers (Martinez and Rubiera) and we’ve got 3 support riders (Ekimov, Noval Gonzales and Padrnos). 

 

Richard Custis

Q: George: Do you see any key stages that are important to you?

A: George:  All of the Alps.  The 2 big time trials are important too.

 

Q: George:  Are there any you’re particularly well suited for?

A: George:  I’m focusing on the prolog right now. 

 

Peter Beers:

Q: George and Johan: You mentioned that you’ve got 4 GC contenders this year.  When combined with the Ride2Replace Lance on the team, how has this affected team work and team dynamics within Discovery Channel?

A: George: Things will work themselves out in the tour.  We’ll see who is the strongest on a particular day/stage and work to support them. 

A: Johan: This is a very new thing for the team.  There are no other teams out there with 4 legitimate GC contenders.  We’re in a very different situation than we’ve ever been before.  The first time trial will tell us a lot.  The second stage in the Pyrenees is very tough (5 climbs and a mountain top finish).  The strategy will be set in the early part of the tour.  We’ll attack from the beginning and go from there. 

 

???

Q: George:  How did the crash at Paris/Roubaix affect you and your training?

A: George:  That day is something I’d like to forget.  I took a month off from racing.  I’m happy to be recovered.  I’m stronger now than I have ever been. 

A: Johan:  That day was a big disappointment.  It is always hard to say “What if” but I honestly feel like George was in the best position to win.  He was stronger than he’s ever been. 

 

George has made an amazing recovery.  He’s stronger now than he was last year.  Seeing him back on the bike 1 week after the crash showed me that he’s motivated to work hard.

Actual photos of me riding a bike...

I'm usually on the other end of the camera. During the race they had a bunch of photographers around the course. It is kinda cool to see what I look like on a mountain bike every now and then. I look like a mountain biker here. even though I swear I'm about to honk up a lung.


The second photo isn't quite as good. I'm definitely looking like I'm about to die. They always have a photographer at the top of the nastiest climb and at the bottom of the worst descent. Gotta document the carnage. :D

They had one photographer taking shots at the end of the whoop section. I can't wait to see those. They're gonna be cool.

Later!

Wednesdays at Wakefield

Oy oy,

 

After standing on the sidelines and being annoyed with the HUGE influx of traffic at the local trails on Wednesday nights during the summer, I finally decided to join the fray and race the local mountain bike races on Wednesday nights at Wakefield park. 

 

Potomac Velo puts on a pretty impressive race series during the summer.  While the course is fairly short and somewhat limited in the number of people that it can support for a race, the trails are actually perfect for racing.  Over the last 18 months, a TON of volunteer work has been done to completely revamp the trails at Wakefield.  The end result is a race course that has many fewer areas that degrade badly under heavy use or after a rain.  That's a good thing.  We had 2 inches of rain on Monday night.  With the exception of the mud holes that stay around most of the summer, the course was in perfect shape.  Truly a testament to Rich and Larry (who designed the course), the volunteers who built it, and the Potomac Velo folks that prepped the course for the race. 

 

I raced in Single Speed class.  It was an interesting class in which to race.  Since there is no deliniation for age, skill or weight of racers, it puts many different speeds of racers in one class.  The guys who win the SS class could easily be competitive in the Expert class.  The folks at the back of the pack (like me) would be middle of the pack finishers in Sport or even beginner class.  This is further complicated by the fact that the 35+ Vets class (a very fast and competitive group) starts 60 seconds after the SS class and the 45+ Masters start 60 seconds behind them. 

 

The race went very smoothly.  There is enough of a run out that people got spread out a little before the first bottleneck.  I think we all were a little slowed on the first downhill into a creek bed.  Even that spread out once we hit the woods again. 

 

Passing zones are evenly spaced out around the course.  For those in other classes, I let them by whenever the trail allowed.  There's enough room on some sections of singletrack that allow this.  For Single Speeders, I worked to pass only when the trail widened out enough to make it safe and easy. 

 

I did try one move on a section of trail that didn't work out so well.  Wakefield has a section of trail where you can split right or left.  THIS photo (taken while building the trail) shows it pretty well.  The left side of the photo is the smooth downhill that is the right fork of the race course.  The knot of roots on the right side of the photo is a fun little chute that almost no-one takes.  Since I pretty much just race for fun, I decided to take the chute instead of the smooth bench-cut trail.  There is a small chance that it is faster.  It ended up being no faster at all.  I had to hammer like heck at the bottom of the drop in order to file back into line.  That didn't stop me from riding it the second lap though.  Third lap I was tired and just took the wimpy way out.  :D

 

The race went pretty much as planned.  As usual, the first lap was faster.  The starting loop is a tiny bit shorter than the full lap course.  My lap times on the other two laps were within seconds of each other.  I was exhausted when I started the race after having a rough week at work.  I made sure I had a little gas left in the tank for lap 3 and I probably left a little too much for the last lap.  I finished with the feeling that I could have gone faster.  It was a great learning experience though.  It give me room for improvement next week. :D  In the end I placed 23 out of 35 in the SS class. 

 

My buddy Tom Mathes (aka Snot Rocket) had been talking trash all week.  He's just that kind of guy.  He was talking up about how he was going to etch the names of all the people who's asses he kicked in the race into the top tube of his custom IF titanium 29er single speed.  If you know Snot Rocket, then you know that he's just partaking of some good natured ribbing.  If you know Snot Rocket, I suggest you ask him to list off the names of people that he hammered into submission.  I think you might find that they number fewer than three and that they were 2 of the dozen or so kids that were in the 12 and under Super-Junior class. ;)

 

Tom, you'll have another chance next week to add me to the list of the ass kicked. :D

 

Sorry for rambling on.  That was the first non-endurance race that I've done in more than 15 years.  It was damn fun and I can't wait to do it agian.

 

Pete

Serious Weight Loss

Oy oy.

 

Awesome weekend.  This was definitely the hottest one we've had this year.  It was pretty humid too.  I went out for a rather long ride with the guys at Elizabeth Furnace.  I knew it was going to be hot.  I knew it would be a challenge to drink enough.  I actually did a pretty good job of staying hydrated.  The hard part for me was eating enough.  I really didn't do a good job of that.  I was suffering all day because I couldn't take in enough calories.  I felt pretty weak and just didn't have the horsepower up the climbs later in the day.  As always, the descent was insane and a TON of fun. 

 

Here's the interesting part.  One of my morning routine things is to jump on the scale and see the bad news.  I've been slowly losing weight since I started commuting to work by bicycle.  I was at 230 pounds when I got back from Fruita in May.  I brought that down to 223 by Sunday morning when I hopped on the scale. 

 

During the 4 hour ride, I ate 4 gel packets (I should have eaten 6) and drank 4.5 liters of water/sports drink.  On the way home I had another 1.5-2 liters of recovery drink and water. 

 

After my shower I jumped on the scale.  It read 215.5 pounds.  WOOHOOO!  I still need to do a lot more hydrating.  I was only up to 217 by this morning. 

 

I don't put a lot of store in what the scale says.  It isn't my barometer of health.  I guess I'm more curious than anything.  I just thought the amount of fuild weight lost was interesting. 

 

Pete

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Project Ferret Hunt = a bomb.

Oy oy oy.

 

I have NO idea why this grabbed me the way it did.  I guess it was just the amount of affection that I have for the two little fuzzbutt cats that live with us that really brought this home for me. 

 

Larry posted up something about some walkers on the creek trail at Wakefield encountering a domestic ferret that was running out to them asking to be picked up and taken home.  I know enough about ferrets to know that they can't survive in the wild around here.  Their domestic animals and need food and water.  I called the local Ferret Rescue shelter and they went out and looked for it to no avail.  I went out last night and walked the creek trail for over an hour and didn't find it. 

 

I was bummmmmmed out.  I may try and go back tonight.  I guess I hate the idea that people didn't just pick it up and rescue it.  I understand why they wouldn't.  If they didn't know about ferrets or were not animal lovers, I can understand them hesitating to pick it up. 

 

I'm suck a sucker for stuff like this. 

 

GRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

Later folks. 

 

PEte

24 Hours of Big Bear 2006.

Hey Folks,

I'll start this off by saying that we really missed having Jason for this race. We were thinking of you, Grumpy. I think we all said many times that we missed having you there. You'll be healed and back riding soon.

The weekend was fun. Chris, Kate and I got a late start on Saturday. David had camp pretty much all set up by the time we got there. He picked the perfect spot. It was quiet and protected from the wind. It also had nice, soft mossy spots to put the tents on. My back had no issues what-so-ever with sleeping on the ground. A rare thing.

We pre-rode the course and were really worried. It had rained fairly hard during the day and much of the course was deep in mud. It was slick everywhere and 3-5" deep in mud in some places. Even so our pre-ride lap was 1:40... faster than some of our race laps last year.

Llaird had posted on the web site that they'd changed the course to make the final climb easier. Hahahahaha! As suspected, that was all words to throw us off our guard. It was exactly the same course we had last year.

The course was pretty brutal. The 13 mile lap was broken up into a few flowy, smooth sections, a few short fireroad climbs or descents, some majorly technical rocky sections (including a killer downhill that caused many pinch flats) and one bad-ass climb between miles 11 and 12. All in all it was a course that rewareded riders with equal parts fitness and technical skills. If you lacked either, you paid the price in slow laps. Night time complicated both the smooth parts and the rocky ones.

Amazingly enough the course was in PERFECT shape come race morning. The mud was gone. The trail was in great shape for the start. By the end of the race, it had degraded quite a bit. That happens to any trail when a few thousand people ride over it in a weekend. My hat is off to those who set the course and prepped it. Truly amazing.

Chris was the only one of the 4 of us that was capable of running. He drew first lap. He did a great job of turning in a blistering lap of 1:30... that includes a 1/2 mile run and an extra 1/2 mile ride and fighting with heavy traffic for much of the course.

Chris' later laps were consistant and really fast. He flatted twice (once just at the finish) and that slowed his laps down. Chris had the first lap which is always the hardest.

David was definitely the fastest of our group. He consistantly turned quick laps all day and night. He was hurting bigtime but still managed to turn in the times. David had the 3am lap which is the second hardest lap in the whole race.

My laps were pretty consistant, slower than Davids and right close to Chris' laps. My contribution to the team was that I rode two night laps when the other guys each turned one.

Pat did an amazing job of putting in consistant, strong laps with no training beyond his normal weekly riding. He did a fabulous job and it was fun riding with him. He rode with great determination on a course that he didn't get to pre-ride. Pat's contribution was strong laps without much warning or planning. He signed on to this race only 10 days before it happened.

Possibly the highlight of my race was that Laura came up for almost all of the race. She got there Saturday afternoon and hung out for the whole thing. She was a HUGE help to me in getting ready for laps and recovering after them.

In the end we did 15 laps (2 more than last year) in 24:51. That was good enough for 22nd place in a field of 49 in the Men's Sport category. We placed 66th out of 160 solo/team entrants

HERE are the results in our class.

HERE are the team's lap times.

HERE are the results in all of the classificatios.

Congrats to all who raced! It was fun to share a weekend of racing with so many great people. I ran into people I hadn't seen in a long time and met a few that I'd only run into on the net.

Aren't you glad I didn't write a novel like last year? :D

Take care,

Pete

Prepping for Big Bear...

Hey folks.

 

The one race I wanted to do this year for sure was the 24 Hours of Big Bear that is coming up this weekend.  After taking 3 months off this winter and getting a somewhat slow start on the season, I wasn't sure what kind of shape I'd be in.  I think I'm doing okay with it though.  I'm not where I was last year as far as speed goes, but I'm doing very well with endurance.  I should have stuck with my earlier plans to hang with the fast guys at Wakefield on Tuesday and Thursday nights.  I'll try and do more of that this summer.  :D

 

Monday I had a scare.  I was riding with JoeP's wakefield ride which tends to be pretty fast.  I had fun with it and was doing pretty well, when I found that my back brake had gone amost completely soft.  I later found out that the pads were dead (in about 3 months of riding) and I should probably bleed the whole system.  The result of this technical problem on Monday was that I took two falls.  The first was a stupid tip over because I was following too close to Scott on a log hop.  That wasn't a big deal.  I got a little bruise on my left calf.  The second was a lot more painful.  I bruised the hell out of my right quad (the same thing I did last year right before SSWC05) and smacked my mellon. 

 

The helmet did its job on my noodle.  I had no problems with that, except I probably need to buy a new helmet.  My thigh wasn't so lucky.  I need to get a helmet for it. ;)  It hurt a ton and I could feel it tightening up as I finished out the ride.  I stretched it and massaged it to keep it loose and that helped.

 

One of my cycling magazines had a good article on how to deal with bruises.  I followed the instructions and they worked really well.   I started out icing the bruised area.  You need to ice it for 15 minutes, then leave the ice off for a while.  You want to limit the swelling, but not limit the circulation.  Icing too much ends up being counterproductive.  I also ate a few advil.  Before bed I stretched for a while.  Lets just say that hurt like hell.  It felt like someone was taking a heat gun to my leg.  I took it VERY easy, but slowly stretched the muscle till it loosened up. 

 

In the morning I got up and massaged my leg as much as I could with tiger balm.  That warmed it up and loosened it a bit.  I stretched again.  After a hot shower I put a tiger balm patch on it to keep it loose all day.  I took time to stretch during the day to keep it loose.  When I walked around, I tried to walk in a way that worked the muscles a little instead of walking to minimize the pain.  By the end of the day I was physically exhausted.  Laura and I had a nice birthday dinner out, and I was getting ready for bed rather early.  I took a hot shower and put on more tiger balm.  I stretched before bed.

 

Yesterday morning it was less stiff.  I did the tiger balm/massage/stretch routine and it felt a lot better.  I stretched 4 or 5 times during the day.  It felt much better and a little stronger too.

 

Last night I rode for 2:30 with my friend Mike.  I warmed up slowly and only bumped up the pace when my leg felt warm.  I rode almost 2 laps on the race course at a fast pace.  We slowed it down and did two laps through Accotink and my leg felt great.  I stopped to rest and stretch a few times.  The leg stiffened up pretty quickly after that.  It also warmed up quickly too. 

 

It looks like I've managed to dodge the bullet with this.  My leg feels good today.  I just feel a little pressure and pinching in the muscle.  There isn't much pain.   I don't have the power that I did before the crash, but I don't feel near as bad as I did for the SSWC05. 

 

Sorry for babbling on.  I just wanted to get some of this down. :D

 

Pete

A Mucial Review

This is a rare musical review from me.  My friend John loaned me a CD that he's enjoyed for a few weeks now.  I'd like to start by saying that I'm seriously considering whether or not it is a good idea for me to continue the friendship with John.  

 

The CD is "Girl" by Tiny Tim and The Brave Combo.  Tiny Tim is the man that brought you the ever-popular "Tiptoe Through the Tulips".  His soulful ukulele playing redefines the instrument and brings it to the forefront of World Music. 

 

The CD starts out with its namesake, a cover of the Beatles song "Girl", performed in such a way as to set the tone for the rest of the CD.  The best way I can describe this song is to say that it would make a good pedophyle's anthem. 

 

"Bye Bye Blackbird" is delivered in a way that accentuates Mr. Tim's world famous falsetto.  The jazzy arrangement is actually really good.  The Brave Combo definitely is brave indeed to perform this song with Tiny Tim.  Don't get me wrong, this song actually starts out really great.  I enjoyed the singing part.  The problem comes with about 40 seconds left to go in the song.  Mr. Tim finishes off the song by talking to the "black bird".  That pretty much sucks the soul out of the song.  It is almost painful to listen to.  

 

You get a nice opportunity to recover for the next three tracks.  "That Old Feeling", "Sly Cigarette" and "I Want To Stay Here" are enjoyable and actually kinda catchy.

 

That respite is short lived because "New York, New York" is track #6.  Oh lord, my ears are bleeding.  "Stairway to Heaven" had me falling out of my chair laughing.   The jazz combo arrangement was actually kinda cool, but Tiny Tim's singing sinks this ship in a Titanic fashion.  This song is definitely the "ice berg, dead ahead"! 

 

"All I Want Is You", "Stardust" and I Believe In Tomorrow" gave me a chance to get back in my chair and enjoy listening to some quirky and left of center music. 

 

That's when all hell breaks lose.  "Hey Jude" sarts with Tiny Tim having a psychotic episode introduction that someone accidentally recorded.  The main part of the song is done to a cha-cha beat.  Oddly enough that kinda works. 

 

I was completely on the floor again (in convulsions this time) when "Hey Jude" transitioned into "Over the Rainbow".  Uhhmmmm...  I can't honestly say what that song was like because I lost consciousness about 10 bars into the song.  Luckily my friend Paul had been monitoring my vital signs during this listening experiment.  He somehow managed to remove my headphones without unplugging them.  Unplugging the headphones would have spelled the end of anyone within earshot. 

 

I honestly can't tell you what the rest of the CD is like.  I can't make it past "Over the Rainbow" without going catatonic.  I've tried 4 times now.  I'm not entirely sure why. 

 

To be completely honest, I have to say that I really enjoyed this CD.  I didn't enjoy it for a quality listening experience.  I laughed a lot and found a few songs that were actually fun to listen to in a quirky, offbeat kinda way. 

 

Thanks for reading.  The CD again is "Girl" by Tiny Tim and the Brave Combo. 

 

Pete