Crazy Lawsuit Game

What a great weekend of racing! The awe inspiring Grand Prix of Monaco, the Indy 500 and the NASCAR guys and gals? going around in ovals in Charlotte.

First off, a big "fuck you" to Kimi Raikkonen. Kimi, I like you and you're a great driver but that shit was not cool. There is a small team that is fast and full of heart but just can't compete with the leading teams of Scuderia Ferrari, Mclaren Mercedes and BMW Sauber, but they're go out every weekend and drive their hearts out. Adrian Sutil is one of their drivers and he's good but he's driving an inferior car so he is seemingly slow, but still has yet to start at the back of the field of 20 cars (an impressive feat when 15th on grid is considered a huge accomplishment for that team). His team was bought by Indian billionaire, Vijay Mallya, and he has dedicated millions of dollars to help get his team up towards the front. The GP of Monaco begins and Vijay's Force India Ferrari team gets off to a good start. Adrian has qualified 19th, but is bumped up to 18th because of someone else's penalties. The race starts in the damp and then the rain comes. Most teams started on the intermediate wet tires and some head to the pits to get full rain tires. Adrian is driving brilliantly, smooth on the throttle, being patient with passes, staying away from the walls. He's passing people and with pit stops, safety cars and everything else, Adrian Sutil in the Force India Ferrari is up to 4th! And he's ahead of the factory Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen. The track (closed public streets) is starting to dry and now everyone is on dry tires. Nico Rosberg dumps his AT&T Williams Toyota into a wall and brings out the safety car. The race is drawing to a close and it goes green flag for the last 10 minutes of the race. The cars are now close and racing can happen. Out of the tunnel at 180 mph and Kimi decides to take a run at Adrian in 4th, because obviously he can't drive in the dry and now Kimi should be in front of the lowly Force India car, so Kimi comes flying down the outside, but there is a bump there! Kimi hits the bump, the rear tires get light and Kimi does all he can to stop his out of control Ferrari. Unfortunately what ultimately stops him is the back of Adrian Sutil's car knocking him out of 4th position and what would probably be Force India's best finish of the year, all because Kimi's ego couldn't wait another lap or two to make a clean pass. Shame on you Kimi.

Congrats to Lewis Hamilton in the Vodafone Mclaren Mercedes for taking first, Robert Kubica in the BMW Sauber for taking 2nd, Felipe Massa in the Marlboro Scuderia Ferrari for taking 3rd and a HUGE congratulations to Mark Webber for taking 4th in his Red Bull Renault and Sebastian Vettel for taking 5th in his Red Bull Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari. Also, nice driving to Rubens Barrichello in his Honda so close to his 36th birthday; I hope 6th was a nice birthday present to yourself and your team.

Roughly the same thing happened to Danica Patrick, 30 or so laps left (out of 200) and she's driving out of the pits, having gained a position and was up to 6th, when some guy named Briscoe powered out of his pit box, got sideways and slammed his rear tire into Danica's snapping her rear suspension and putting her out of the race. Sarah Fisher, the only woman owner/driver in the Indy Racing League, crashed and I'm not sure how Venezuelan Milka Duno ended up (she finished 16th) but she was the 3rd woman in the field for the Indy 500. Congrats to Scott Dixon from New Zealand for winning the Indy 500. I didn't watch all of it because I find oval racing dull. I'm sure if I was there or ideally in the car, I would have a different opinion, but I really don't care to watch oval racing on TV. It's just a personal preference.

Remember all who have died for this country on Memorial Day and be safe out there!

Labels: F1, racing

Here in the ass backwards utopia that is South Carolina there is low property taxes, low cigarette taxes and low gas taxes; the mean salary and education are also low to boot but the cost of living is still one of the lowest in the nation. A pack of smokes is $3.50ish and I saw a price of $2.76 per pack of Camels if you bought 3 the other day. Gas is usually lower than the national average but it's creeping up just like everywhere else.

J and I were driving back from Anderson Tuesday and I saw gas for $3.58. I didn't stop because I didn't really super need gas. HUGE mistake. When my gas light came on (indicating 3 gallons or less left) I pulled into a gas station, saw $3.75 and bailed. I didn't feel like paying almost $40 to fill up poor little Focus. So I drove home, gas light ablaze and rode the CATbus (Clemson Area Transit, our "free" public transportation system) to work today. J is driving about 40 miles one way to work therefore she drives Tercel who gets much better gas mileage than Focus. I worked out Focus' gas mileage and with one trip to and from B'ham, and a tank or two of around town driving, I averaged 27 miles/gallon and paid an average of $3.54/gallon. I still don't have any hard numbers for Tercel just yet but I'm assuming at the very least somewhere in the low 30s, if not hopefully in the mid 30s. I'm sure switching her out to a 5 speed transmission would help that figure too. J paid $3.74/gallon to fill up Tercel yesterday and saw that diesel was $4.65! Good grief! Those poor truck and semi drivers!

I haven't posted about this yet because with 2 moderately fuel efficient 4 cylinders as daily drivers, we have been fairly insulated from the craziness that is the oil industry. But it's time for me to do something about it. I will start catching the 8:15 CATbus to school and if I miss it, then I walk. Sure I could buy a bike and make it a little faster but it only takes about 30 minutes for me to walk to work and I don't have a bike and don't feel like spending money to purchase a bike. J has a bike at home in Orlando and we might bring it back to Clemson one day but I know that'll never happen. It's still a good idea though.

I'm looking forward to visiting with J's folks in August. We're flying of course because it's easier and faster and with the price of gas quickly becoming out of control, just about the same cost to fly versus driving. But a whole lot of writing has to happen before then, so I'm not getting too excited. Also Allegiant Air is apparently doing well because instead of only flying on Tues., Thurs. and Sun. they now fly everyday but Tuesday. Weird. It looks like it changes occasionally and they don't fly on Tues. or Sat. in August.

My labmate who lives in Anderson worked out that he was using a gallon of gas to get to and from work and will start to take the CATbus but the last CATbus to Anderson leaves at 5:20 or so, which is pretty early in grad student land, so he hopes to start getting to work earlier so he can leave earlier. But his new wife just got a job here, so they can commute together and save some money.

Basically the recession and decreasing supply of oil and the increasing demand of gas should really start to shape the future of this country pretty soon. As a futurist, I'm predicting a much more European view of cities. Much less urban sprawl, building up and not out, stores within walking distance, schools within walking distance, hopefully a greater sense of community (I know, look at me being all idyllic) and a better and more widely used public transportation system. Honestly I think the last one is going to be tough. We're so used to having our own cars and driving ourselves places that using their schedule is going to be a tough transition. I honestly don't think it will take much to get the first couple items to occur. It's actually already happening in certain areas. In fact it's happening right here in Clemson. Son of a bitch! I should've known Tom Winkopp was behind that! Or as I like to call him Tom "Develop Everything I Can Around Clemson" Winkopp. Either way, it's still a good idea but Patrick Square will have a neighborhood that sits behind a commercial area:

He says it's going back to a "small town" feel and he's right. That's how most of Europe is and America used to be: towns concentrated around the town center, everything within walking distance and the next town was a few minutes away but unless you needed something exotic, you could live comfortably never getting into a car or bus and walk everywhere. That sounds so foreign to us now. Cars, trucks and buses are everywhere and we our lives virtually depend on them. I know we're not going to rid the world of vehicles and I don't want to, bicycle races don't inspire passion the way rally, F1 and NASCAR do. But it would be nice to not have to rely on them everyday, therefore I vow to either take public transportation or walk to work as much as I can. Also as an added bonus this will make me get to work earlier because it gets too hot to walk by 9 am.

How are your daily routines and habits being affected by gas prices?

Labels: cars, CATbus, South Carolina

Warren has been quoted saying that he would rather have a Democrat as president. The article I was reading didn't go into details, but I for one agree with him. Although I would rather see a Libertarian, Green, or Independent president but honestly don't see that happening any time soon, if ever. Warren did say he's a bigamist when it comes to politics, which I'm not at all. The more parties, the better. Force people to really research what the parties stand for and who their precious vote should go towards.

I haven't mentioned it before but please keep China and Myanmar (Burma) in your thoughts and donations as they struggle with horrendous natural disasters and the death tolls just keep climbing.

In the other side of the news, the greatest F1 race is happening this weekend in the great principality of Monaco. They're finishing up practice now, so the streets should be open and you can walk or drive the circuit today and tomorrow, which is quiet day. You can drive the circuit? Why yes, you can. What makes this race so unique is that it is a true street circuit. The 20 F1 cars are racing on public roads that anyone can drive on most any day of the year. Monte Carlo erects walls and stands and converts their small country into the world's premiere racing circuit. I heard one of the announcers state this morning that the 3/4 square mile (485 acres) that is Monaco could fit inside the Indy 500 or the Coca-Cola 600 complex where the Indy cars and NASCAR cars are this weekend. Check out the course for the Gran Prix of Monaco.

If you only watch one F1 race this year, I would highly recommend this one. Trust me, I don't think Prince Albert will be watching the Indy or NASCAR folks go around in ovals but he will be trackside for the Monaco GP.

Labels: capitalism, F1, natural disaster

In continuation of my post about Gay Wheels and their gay friendly car companies, I have a slight correction. I stated that VW's Eos was the cheapest hardtop convertible you could buy. I was mistaken and sincerely apologize to Mazda and their unstoppable Miata whose retractable hardtop version starts at $25,115.

I assume that lesbians also check out that website and (quick google) and there is no lesbian wheels.com but gay wheels does say they cater to the whole GLBT crowd, so not just the boys but the girls too and everyone in between.

Along those lines, I was surprised to see there were no Subarus on the list. Why you ask? Product placement. One of the most popular lesbian shows is The L Word on Showtime and Subaru has had a significant portion of several episodes. They did a Subaru Pink Ride for breast cancer (which turns out ISN'T REAL! Shame on you Suby! You should really organize something like that! Edit: and they do) but they paid good money to fake a charity bike ride for breast cancer and in earlier seasons, they sponsored Dana who was the tennis player who tragically died of breast cancer. Here's a recap of that episode from a cycling perspective and in the comments apparently the Subaru/Lesbians connection started when they were the first major non-tennis of Martina Navratalova and they actually sponsor the AIDS Lifecycle event that is 500+ miles in 7 days and raises money for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center. Sorry Subaru, I should've known better.

Ever since I saw my first Subaru do this (Rally Portugal 1998, the masterful Colin Mcrae, RIP, at the wheel) I knew that a turbo and all wheel drive would be in my future. I've been hooked on rally ever since. Subaru is a huge sponsor of rallying internationally, nationally and locally. They sponsor the Leave No Trace program also. They teach you to "leave no trace" while outside, pack out your trash, no new fire rings, don't pick the flowers, etc...

The Impreza is the model line directed towards my demographic with the Subaru Impreza WRX STi being the top. The starting price keeps creeping up but you can get into a turbo AWD Impreza WRX starting at $24,350 for the 4 door sedan, add $500 for the hatchback and the bad boy STi starts at $34,995, only available in the hatchback. Unfortunately all require premium and if you like to feel the boost kick in until redline, you don't get the greatest gas mileage.

So let's say that you want the AWD but are willing to give up the turbo. I can get you into an AWD Impreza 4 door sedan for $16,995 and only $500 more for the hatchback. The Outback sport, whatever that is, starts at $19,995. Oh wait! I figured it out. The Outback sport is exactly like an Impreza hatchback, but it has two tone paint and some more options. Ooooooh, aaaaaaah!

I love the fender flares on the new STi but the lower Imprezas don't have them, therefore I don't like them as much, which doesn't really matter because I can't afford any of them. But if I could, I would personally buy a used WRX wagon because I love them and most wagons and hatchbacks, they are AWD, have a turbo and are much cheaper than new so I could afford all that premium and still have some money left over for suspension and exhaust modifications, and a Cobb Accessport for tuning purposes. I would rallycross the poop out of that car. Why would I do such a thing you ask? Because Subaru has stepped up and provided contingency money (read: prize money) for making the podium at a national level autocross organized by the SCCA. Volkswagen and Team Dynamics (wheel/rim manufacturer) has also stepped up with some money. No you probably won't make much money, but it'll at least cover gas money and entry fee and it's better than getting nothing! So BIG thanks (viele dank, that's German) to Subaru, Volkswagen and Team Dynamics for helping out the rallycrossers!

That's probably enough car talk and Subaru love for today; off to work!

Labels: cars, rally, Subaru, the L Word

As stereotypes go, if you heard about a website called Gay Wheels, would you expect something like this:

The Nissan Micra Convertible in Pepto Pink? Also available in pretty awesome trim:

Or something like this:

The 1977-79 Lincoln Mark V?

Turns out it's neither really. It's a website devoted to reviewing autos from gay-friendly companies (Don't worry yours is probably on the list; Both ours are!) Basically it's a place where if you're concerned about if the company offers benefits to same sex partners of their employees. The list is surprisingly long for those that do and embarrassingly short for those that don't (Honda/Acura I'm looking at you, the new Civic SI is so good but apparently doesn't respect non-hetero lifestyles, the other 3 are Hyundai, Kia and Suzuki, booooooo!) So if you care about equality for everyone, then please consider these fine automobile manufacturers for your next new or used car purchase.

So I was perusing their site, checking out what gay people look for in cars and it turns out that it's almost exactly what I look for in a daily driver: fuel efficiency, expense of car and ownership (insurance, gas, oil changes, parts, etc...), performance (or at least upgradeability of performance) and styling. So here is the top 10 most researched cars on their website for the first quarter of '08. Most of them are exactly what's on my list as well. Let's go over the list, shall we?

1) Volkswagen Rabbit - excellent choice! 2 door or 4 door, 5 cylinder engine that sips regular to the tune of 22/29 (manual of course), looks good, lots of useable room with the hatchback, tons of aftermarket support (VWs have been tuned for decades), 4 wheel disc brakes, ABS, 4 yrs./50,000 miles of roadside assistance, damn!, VWs are a tad heavy for my liking but at 2975 lbs. for the 2 door and 3072 lbs. for the 4 door, not awful awful (Focus is a tad portly at 2645 lbs., my dream Lotus checks in at 1952 lbs.) Starts at $15,600 with lots of options standard.

2) Volkswagen Eos - If you're looking for the cheapest hardtop convertible on the market, you've found it. I don't really shop for convertibles, they're heavy and not as solid as their non-convertible brethren. Starts at $28,990. Check it out. Definitely a cute car, if that's what you're after.

3) Toyota Yaris - Another excellent choice! Crazy gas mileage out of the 1.5 Liter 4 cylinder (29/35 mpg, city/highway), lots of interior space, that hatch is useable (although the floor is a bit high but it does cover the donut spare) but only available in the 2 door variety. A 4 door sedan is available but I don't like it at all, it just looks so blah. The hatch at least looks like an egg or space ship or something, not some lame Corolla wannabe sedan. This car has been out for a few years in Japan so it has a decent aftermarket and can easily be made to handle much better. Starts at $11,350 and a black hatchback is the newest addition to our group's "garage". It has storage everywhere! And a red one competed in the One Lap of America this year!

4) Mazda MX-5 Miata - I don't even feel like I need to talk about the Miata. If you still think it's a girl car, you have obviously never seen one driven properly. They're fast. Crazy fast, lightweight, fuel efficient and the first RWD car on the list. I think if you don't haul stuff much or need a backseat and love to drive, you've found your next car. Tons of aftermarket support, Spec Miata series, etc... A friend has one, slapped a supercharger on, left everything else stock and has one beast of a car and still gets 30 mpg. Starts at $21,285.

5) Audi A3 - The most expensive on the list so far, but worth it. Great engine 2.0 Liter turbo (which means more power is a chip and a bigger turbo away!), hatchback usefulness, Audi prestige, quality and craftsmanship and racing heritage, and of course the first AWD (all wheel drive) car on the list. Great for inclement weather and even better in winter conditions. I'm also going to add exclusivity to the list of pluses. I'm fairly certain I have seen no more than 4 or 5 in my past years of travel, starts at $25,930 with a 6 speed manual or Audi's incredible S tronic auto transmission.

6-9) VW Jetta, Saab 9-3, Dodge Caliber, Volvo C30 - The Jetta is a bigger Rabbit but still a good car. I've never really liked Saabs but now that Subaru is helping to make them, I guess they don't suck as much but give me a used WRX Wagon anyday over a Saab, Dodge Caliber - bleh, super macho angular design, too heavy, J and I aren't really big Chrysler fans so pick something else, Volvo C30 - honestly have NEVER seen one on the road, so big exclusivity points, large window on the hatch looks cool.

10) Mazda Mazda3 - Rode in my friend's last weekend (and drove it after he was unsoberish), strong and torquey 2.3L 4 cylinder, useable and friendly dash layout, great styling and there is increasing aftermarket support. Excellent option for a smaller 4 door sedan or if you want a bit more room, opt for the 4 door hatchback (technically a 5 door). So far 2 of our friends have 3s (one sedan and one hatch) and they've had no major problems and really love them. It has a nice solid feeling manual transmission too and handles really well. Okay they start at $14,645 but that's with the 2.0 Liter, for the nicer "S" model and the 2.3L, they start at $18,185 and the hatches start at $18,675.

There are also gay car clubs. Who knew? The Lamba Car Club has chapters around the country and there is one in Atlanta actually with a show coming up next weekend. Here is the article by Doug Buhrer. My favorite part of the article was

I've belonged to straight car clubs, too. (Not that there's anything wrong with that!) Straight clubs are populated with perfectly nice people who love their collector cars. But hanging out with these people feels too much like a family reunion; they're nice enough, but I don't have much in common with them. There isn't much to talk about other than cars.

Emphasis mine but I love people that quote Seinfeld. The second part of that will have to wait until a later day.

Hope you've enjoyed today's gay car talk.

Labels: cars

It's a good day for sexual identity equality, the California Supreme Court has decided that their "man + woman = marriage" law was unconstitutional because it clearly discriminated against people. So congrats to all you California gays, lesbians, transgendered and those who don't want to be labeled; you are now free to marry any man, woman or other human as you see fit.

For those keeping score, that's Massachusetts and California who recognize same sex marriages, 4 who are okay with civil unions: Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire and Connecticut, and the other 44 have no strong opinions about it or feel very strongly against it. We're 2 states closer to joining Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, South Africa and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec who all allow same sex marriages. Here's a couple articles if you're interested.

Labels: injustice

-Homer when his family confronted him about being a rageaholic. Let's see if Google can help with the episode: “I am furious yellow” Episode#: 287. Sounds good.

J is dirty. She has trouble keeping her vehicle clean. She doesn't dirty it up but throws trash and paper everywhere. Mostly it's in the passenger floorboard, which makes it easy to clean up but inevitably something will get lodged underneath the seat and inspire some car cleaning yoga.

I just paid $28 for an oil change which involves oil and filter, tire pressures, clean the windshield and vacuum out the interior and check all the other fluids. Yes it would be cheaper to do it myself, but I know the guys at Xpress Lube on 123 in Clemson, they're amazingly fast and cool guys. They're car guys too and it's nice to support a locally owned oil change franchise.

Tercel had her oil changed. She's at 183,000 miles now and still going strong, or at least strongish. She needs a new flex joint in her exhaust and sounds pretty mean now with the exhaust exiting just below the driver instead of at the back out the muffler. The exhaust is still going through the catalytic converter, so it's just loud and not environmentally damaging. She drives great and after an alignment (maybe this afternoon) she'll drive even better. But her interior leaves alot to be desired. I saw a newer Tercel, probably '95 or '96, and it's interior was immaculate. Gorgeous cloth seats that looked brand new, and maybe they were. So far, and especially with gas being almost Europe expensive, my plan is to get J a newer, nicer car that is still fuel efficient (sorry Hummer, large SUVs and trucks) and for me to daily drive Tercel and put Focus in the garage and slowly turn her into a race car. Of course that depends on whether or not we have a garage at our next place and also if we live in the city, we probably won't need 3 cars, so I would have to change my plans then also.

We'll see. I was watching Motorweek yesterday and saw the 2009 Porsche 911 GT2 and it was truly amazing. Then they mentioned the base price of $192,460. GAH! I had no idea. I can only start to imagine spending that much money on a car. You could get so many toys for that much money. You could get another house for that much money and get your money back once you sold that place instead of losing most of it via depreciation.

Okay, off to work!

Labels: cars, Tercel