Some sort of vintage British Armoured Car was spotted a few months back when I was down in San Diego for the Electra catalog studio shoot. This photo has been languishing in a file on my desktop for a few months. And since I have nothin' better to say at the moment, here's another installment of my stolen-from-Jalopnik.com Down On The Street. Far more useful and maneuverable than a tracked vehicle. How fun would this be - especially with even a fake weapon mounted on the turret. Don't you f-in' dare cut me off, you tool. Equally fun playing around in the Ocotillo Wells Off Road Recreation Area, although you'd have to hope for a good A/C system and an updated (read: non-British) electrical system.
Please have your Street Maintenance Department remove the two abrupt bumps in the bike lane, located northbound on Coast Hwy, adjacent to the Encina Power Plant.
note - they don't look like much from this vantage, I hastily snapped the photo so as not to get blood on my phone
You see, these bumps are not all that obvious when riding your bike. Especially when your at mile fifty or so of your fifty five mile ride. Even experienced riders can lose their edge when fatigued - and two sharp rises in the road are not expected when the rest of the road is in near-perfect condition.
Riders of all levels can lose control when their bikes, sending them careening towards the pavement. Contact with which can create...
broken helmets... broken bike parts... and, worse of all, broken (and missing) skin... I'll heal quickly, but replacing the helmet saddle and wheel will cost me several hundred dollars. I accept the risks inherent in road cycling and realize that I need to be aware of the road ahead. However I also expect the roads to be maintained at an adequate level. It wouldn't take a crew of two to three city workers more than a couple of hours to remove and patch these spots.
Please fix this section of road before more cyclists are injured.
Day one of the move starts right about now. Or as soon as I get off the computer and start piling our junk into the trailer.
Yes, we're moving frugally, borrowing the antiquated Electra pickup and tandem-axle trailer. Thankfully the move is only 6.5 miles, so we don't have to be super-careful with the packing and we can (and will) be able to make multiple trips.
Loggin' off for now. Thanks to our neighbor with the open wifi - our DSL was turned off yesterday.
Figuratively-speaking of course. Although I do want to buy some gear so that Celeste and I can try to catch some fish. But that's a topic for some other time.
Anyway, due to being extremely busy at work, traveling and getting ready for a move next weekend, I've been neglecting this blog. Oh, and not coming up with anything relevant to write about doesn't help matters much either (not that that's stopped me before).
So, sorry for the lack of fresh pixels here, I'll be back - eventually.
In the meantime, enjoy the fine bloggage on the links just to the right ->
My friend Graham is borrowing a Honda S2000 for a few weeks while he decides if he wants to purchase it. Knowing that I'm a car geek, he came by so that we could take it out for a spin. This particular "S2k" is a 2001 model, powered by Honda's high-strung F20C 2.0 liter four banger, putting out a healthy 240HP. At the time, this car had the highest specific output of any street vehicle, only recently surpassed by the powerplant in Ferrari's new 458 Italia supercar. The engine's peak HP occurs at a dizzying 8300 RPM, 700 RPM shy of the frantic 9k RPM redline. The fun really begins once the digital tach swings past 6k. Yep, you can tell that Honda also makes motorcycles - this car's character is much closer to that of a CBR than a Civic.
With only 2800 lbs to propel, the car has more than enough pep to get you in trouble. But it's not all about acceleration. The chassis has a perfect 50:50 weight distribution, incredibly sticky ultra-high performance summer tires and potent brakes. Inside the snug cabin has all that you would need. Supportive leather seats, a sport steering wheel coupled to superbly-weighted electrically-assisted steering and incredible brakes. The short-throw stick shift is mated to a six-speed manual transmission - with Honda's legendary "snick-snick-snick" feel as it moves through the gears. Aluminum pedals are well-positioned for heel and toe shifting. Oh, and there's a radio in there too, hiding out behind a door. But it'd be a crime to drown out the sound of the F20C revving away like an angry swarm of bees.
Graham's still unsure if he'll buy it or not. The car has been well cared-for by an adult. Sharp-eyed readers will note that it only has 13,xxx miles on the clock too. I told him that if he did buy it, that I'd take it off his hands in a few years when he tires of it.
Come along for a drive, here's a (compressed) video from us taking it out on a local rural road:
Maybe if I'm lucky, this car will someday occupy my driveway - permanently.
Far more useful and maneuverable than a tracked vehicle. How fun would this be - especially with even a fake weapon mounted on the turret. Don't you f-in' dare cut me off, you tool.
Equally fun playing around in the Ocotillo Wells Off Road Recreation Area, although you'd have to hope for a good A/C system and an updated (read: non-British) electrical system.
note - they don't look like much from this vantage, I hastily snapped the photo so as not to get blood on my phone
and, worse of all, broken (and missing) skin...
I'll heal quickly, but replacing the helmet saddle and wheel will cost me several hundred dollars. I accept the risks inherent in road cycling and realize that I need to be aware of the road ahead. However I also expect the roads to be maintained at an adequate level. It wouldn't take a crew of two to three city workers more than a couple of hours to remove and patch these spots.
Day one of the move starts right about now. Or as soon as I get off the computer and start piling our junk into the trailer.
Figuratively-speaking of course. Although I do want to buy some gear so that Celeste and I can try to catch some fish. But that's a topic for some other time.
This particular "S2k" is a 2001 model, powered by Honda's high-strung F20C 2.0 liter four banger, putting out a healthy 240HP. At the time, this car had the highest specific output of any street vehicle, only recently surpassed by the powerplant in Ferrari's new 458 Italia supercar.
The engine's peak HP occurs at a dizzying 8300 RPM, 700 RPM shy of the frantic 9k RPM redline.
The fun really begins once the digital tach swings past 6k. Yep, you can tell that Honda also makes motorcycles - this car's character is much closer to that of a CBR than a Civic.
Inside the snug cabin has all that you would need. Supportive leather seats, a sport steering wheel coupled to superbly-weighted electrically-assisted steering and incredible brakes. The short-throw stick shift is mated to a six-speed manual transmission - with Honda's legendary "snick-snick-snick" feel as it moves through the gears. Aluminum pedals are well-positioned for heel and toe shifting. Oh, and there's a radio in there too, hiding out behind a door. But it'd be a crime to drown out the sound of the F20C revving away like an angry swarm of bees.
May we never forget your spirit, perseverance or smile. You are greatly missed.