Car of the Week: Lotus Elise

If you were one of my Auto students then you would know that I am in love with the Lotus Elise; ever since its introduction in 1996. It has gone through a few design changes, but the central ideas are still there. Small, light, and nimble 2 seater with a mid engine. Weighing in at 1,800lbs it is about half the weight of a normal sedan. Where did all the weight go? It is mostly aluminum and it has gone without a lot of excess weight like carpet, power windows and complex traction control bs. Check out this pic of the interior:

The engine was either a normally aspirated Toyota inline 4 or a supercharged version of the same layout. The Elise has become a cult classic for people that want something that handles well and is inexpensive to run. The MSRP is around $45,000 making it an affordable sports car that will blow away most anything as long as there are corners involved. Specifications are also not too bad: 0-60 in 5 seconds or less and a top speed of 120 mph. Gas mileage is around 30mpg which is best in the sports car class. Used ones are still in the $30,000 range and don't seem to depreciate like other cars (yes, I have been watching!). Some day...

Car of the Week: Mini Cooper (The real one)

The Original Mini Cooper

The first Mini Coopers were a revelation in many ways and were so successful that they were built from 1959 until 2000 with only minor changes. The Mini was voted the second most influential car of the last century behind the Model T, and just ahead of the VW Beetle. For those that have never seen a Mini in real life they are little anomalies. The are small on the outside but surprisingly roomy on the inside. In 2000 the mini was redesigned resulting in a larger car and a smaller interior... how do they do that? (probably as a result of improved safety features but still...)

Here is the interior of the original. Notice the thin seat backs and the large amounts of space behind the front seats.

This is the interior of the new Mini. Notice the 2 inches of rear leg room that make the back seat a padded luggage shelf or a dog run for your purse dog, not a seat.

The Mini was a giant slayer. Upon its introduction it became a successful rally car, beating v8 powered cars. It was what cars should be; small, light, nimble, good on gas and easy to maneuver. Even the new Mini is a pain in the butt to drive because it is uncomfortable and it has a larger turning radius than a Volvo 240! Don't even get me started on the other behemoths on the road. Literally tons of metal that have to pushed around for no reason. One person in a Ford excursion when all it would take to is a Mini. It is brilliant!

Mini was also influential because of its transverse mounted front engine and front wheel drive setup. A setup that most car manufacturers are still emulating today. Though mini was not the first to use this layout, it showed the rest of the automotive world that it could be successful.  Now for some specifics: Engines were inline 4 cylinders from Austin (the British manufacturer not the town in Texas) and came in 970cc, 997cc, 998cc, 1071cc, and 1275cc sizes. To give you some perspective three of those are smaller than a lot of motorcycle engines. 0-60 times were slow (12 seconds) and the top speed is only 100mph (faster than I need to go). Fuel mileage is a respectable 30 but I am sure with a modernized injection system that number could be much improved. Over 5 million mini's have been produced!

The potential was recognized by a few people and tuned versions of the mini became available. John Cooper being the most famous, but others jumped in too: Jack Knight, Innocenti. The added a second cam, or supercharged them, tuned suspension etc. These are the cars that are really exciting. While these specialty cars a hard to find and expensive, regular minis can still be found relatively cheaply and are good fun for the money. You will never get the feeling you get driving a mini from any other car, maybe a go-cart but not a car. Think of the space you could save in your driveway...

Car of the Week: Triumph TR6

Two beautiful examples. The one in front is pretty much my dream settup: factory hard top, minilight wheels and the frond bumper removed. Photo from http://classicmotorsports.net/reader-rides/948/ unknown photographer.

I have decided to make this Car of the Week a more accessible car, something that I might actually own one day. The Triumph TR6 has always impressed me as a beautifully simple car design-wise. The amazing thing to me is the masculine look which is odd for a small two seater. Think of all the Miata, Afla spyders, Fiats etc. which are hard to picture men driving. The TR6 was (and is) a lot of car for an affordable price. It was built from 1967-76 and sold new for $3,300. For this you got a carbureted OHC inline 6 engine that produced 104 bhp (Eurpean models were fuel injected and produced 150 bhp) independent rear suspension, front disc brakes and a 4speed gearbox with optional overdrive. The 0-60 time was a respectable 8.2 seconds (more like 10 for the US carbureted version) and a top speed of 120 mph. This thing was not a road carver or a drag racer but it looks good and I bet it would sound great blowing through some twisty sections of road.

Another nice example this one is from http://kevinwarrington.blogspot.com/

Make Your Own Mead

So, I have run out of brewing kits here (Gasp!) and am almost out of my home brew. In a moment of clarity I decided to see what I could make with ingredients on hand. I could use sugar cane juice, which is readily available here but I was not sure about the quality of the resulting beverage. Mead however is a more proven drink, and people have been consuming this tasty nectar for thousands of years. Mead is wine that is made from fermenting honey. I unearthed a cool fact while researching mead: the term "Honeymoon" came from the practice of drinking mead for a month (more accurately, one cycle of the moon) after your wedding night because it was supposed to increase fertility... huh huh cool. Another source says that the father of the bride would gift a dowry of one months worth of mead, hence the term honeymoon, but I like the first one better. After lots of research it became apparent that becasue I was using pasteurized and filtered honey I needed to add nutrients to the honey so that the yeast would survive. Here is the recipe for one gallon I finally settled on:

• 3 lbs of honey
• 4 quarts of water
• 1 handful of raisins chopped
• The zest and juice of one orange
• 1 tablespoon of black tea
• Autolized (dead) yeast from old batch of beer (for nutrients)
• 1 packet of yeast

Technically this is no longer mead (mead is just honey water and yeast) but I thought the added ingredients were needed to make the yeast survive. With the added ingredients the technical term is now metheglin (or spiced mead). I boiled all the ingredients for 20 minutes and skimmed the foam of the top. I measured the specific gravity at 1.092 (which means a potential alcohol content of 12-13 percent!) Then cooled the mead and pitched the yeast. The yeast that I used was from my last batch of beer (Russian Imperial Stout). The yeast went dormant and its job with the beer was done so it would either be poured down the drain or get to live the life of milk and honey! There is not much info out there and I was flying by the seat of my pants. I pulled the yeast from the secondary fermenter so there was no that much but since I was only making a gallon of mead it seemed like enough. The fermentation of the mead was slow compared to the beer but I attribute this to the small number of yeast cells that were added. I racked to the secondary fermenter after 10 days and it continued to ferment for another month! I just bottled today and the results are encouraging. Here is a picture showing the clarity change which is impressive without filtering.

                    After cooling, while checking SG            After a month of fermenting in secondary

The specific gravity at bottling was 0.995 which means 14% Alcohol! The taste is definitely wine like. You can tell it packs a punch and the flavor is the right amount of sweet and dry. It is recommended that mead be aged 6 months in the bottle before drinking so it should mellow with age. I also think that the little bit of bubbles and serving cold will make it a really enjoyable drink. The only other time I had mead, I was disenchanted with the sweetness but this is just right. It has been a fun experience and I can't wait to really drink some at April Fest!

Bucket List

I have been thinking about some of the events that occur in this world that I want to experience. Some of them are events to attend and others are events that I would like to participate in. The purpose of me posting it on the blog has three parts. First, I think there is something to vocalizing your goals. If I tell the world that I am going to do something then I am more likely to do them becasue I think it is a matter of pride. If I say I am going to do something, I want people to know I will do it. Second, I want some feed back. Is the event lame or worth it? Is there anything missing from the list? While some of these are easily obtainable some are going to cost some serious coin. Does anyone out there have any insider info on any of the events? For example, does someone out there know the organizer that runs Pebble Beach Concourse d'Elegance and can get me a volunteer position so that I don't have to shell out the $200 fee? Or do you know someone that races Baja every year and needs a navigator or crew member? I know it is a long shot! Third, do you have the same event on your list? Do you want to pool our resources? The layout is Event Name, Location, Date, website and thoughts. So here is the list in no particular order, what do you think?

1. Tour Divide (compete)

• Banff Canada to Antelope Wells New Mexico
• Beginning of June (for mass start but you can challenge any time)
• http://tourdivide.org/

Gentlemen's code race along the Continental Divide trail. 2745 miles. Self support only. Mens record is 17 days 21 hours and 10 minutes, and the Men's single speed record is 19 days 21 minutes! Thats 144 miles a day on a single speed!

2. The One Motorcycle Show (attend and some day show)

• Portland Oregon
• Beginning of February
• http://theonemotorcycleshow.com/

A motorcycle show with no prejudices or preconceived notions. You could see all types of bikes here from Harleys, to street bikes, to classics and customs.

3. North American Handmade Bike Show - NAHBS (Attend and show)

• USA
• First weekend in March
• www.handmadebicycleshow.com

Turns out some of the most amazing custom bicycle work that I have ever seen. I would love to start a bike business and take my stuff there to be critiqued.

4. Goodwood Festival of Speed (attend)

• Goodwood Estate, Chichester, West Sussex
• Last weekend in June
• http://www.goodwood.co.uk/festival-of-speed/welcome.aspx

Probably one of the biggest car events of the year.

5. Le Tour de France (attend)

• July (pretty much the entire month)
• www.letour.com

Rent a villa in the french country side, ride my bike to the top of one of the big ones like the Col d'Tourmulet or the Alpe d'Huez, camp out watch the race, ride back to the villa and eat, drink wine etc.

6. Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance (attend)

• Monterrey
• 3rd weekend in August
• http://www.pebblebeachconcours.net/

The meeting ground of some of the most rare, and beautiful of classic cars. And we all know that the oldies are the goodies when it comes to cars.

7. Interbike (attend)

• Las Vegas
• 3rd weekend in September
• http://www.interbike.com/

Can't believe that I have not been yet but I need to see it for myself. The largest bike industry show that I know of.

8. Oregon Manifest (attend/compete)

• Portland
• last weekend in September
• http://oregonmanifest.com/

A bike event with a cargo bike race... yeah I could totally win that! Just seem like a cool atmosphere and a good place to see the latest in bikes that are used to carry stuff.

9. Isle of Man TT (attend)

• Isle of Man
• Last week in May
• http://www.iomtt.com/

Has to be the holy grail of motorcycle races. It is a road race held on closed streets and each lap is 37.75 miles long! Current record for a lap is John McGuinnes 17minutes 12.10 seconds... yeah that is an average speed of 131mph.

10. Syncro de Mayo (attend)

• Hollister Hills, CA
• Uhm... the 5th of May
• http://www.syncrodemayo.com/

Goofy event held for owners of the VW Syncro (the 4 wheel drive version of the Vanagon) Some are there to camp out and talk to other syncro owners, and others are there to challenge their syncros off road. some of the videos on YouTube are pretty crazy.

11. Strawberry Music Festival (attend)

• Yosemite
• 2 times a year: End of may and the End of August
• http://www.strawberrymusic.com/

Another one that I can't believe that I have not ever been to. It was close to home and there are 2 every year. Lots of good musicians and camping.

12. Carnival (attend)

• Rio de Janiero
• Beginning of March
• http://www.rio-carnival.net

This is on the list for two reasons. First becasue I want to see carnival in full swing. Second, I have always wanted to go to Rio!

13. Fête des Lumières (attend)

• Lyon, France
• December 8th
• http://www.fetedeslumieres.lyon.fr/EN_1

The first event that was recommended by someone else. Seems like a cool event! Festival of lights.

14. Baja 1000 (compete)

• Ensenada, Mexico
• Mid November
• http://www.score-international.com/

After watching On Any Sunday and Dust to Glory I know I need to do this.

15. Paris Dakar (compete)

• ?
• Beginning of January
• http://www.dakar.com/index_DAKus.html

Not actually a race from Paris to Dakar but it used to be. Now it moves around every year. If I was independently wealthy I would be working out how to ship a mind blowing machine to South America this year...

16. Olympic Games (attend)

• ?
• http://www.olympic.org/

Summer? Winter? It does not really matter, it just seems like I should go to the Olympics some time.

17. Le Mans (attend)

• France
• Summer
• http://www.lemans.org/en/

THE car race. There is no other I really want to go to. 24 hours on a road course of closed of roads. All types of cars from production 911 to unlimited Audi turbo diesels. Movies have been made about it and I want to see it for real!

18. Twilight Cycling Rides (compete)

• Laguna Seca Raceway Monterey
• Throughout the year
• http://www.mazdaraceway.com/twilight-cycling

Would be cool to race a car at Laguna Seca but the next best thing would be to race my bike there! (without having to pay the ridiculous Sea Otter entrance fees)

19. Tom Brown Jr. Tracker School (attend)

• ?
• ?
• http://www.trackerschool.com/

Tom Brown Jr. grew up learning from elder Native Americans. He has written many great books and that is what got me hooked. After doing some research I found that he teaches courses on tracking, wilderness survival and more of the ways of the Native Americans.

Car of the Week: Alfa Romeo 4c

I know, two Alfas already... I can't help it they are gorgeous! As the guys from Top Gear say, "You are not a car nut until you own an Alfa." (I am still working on this Alfa owner thing...) This particular one is a concept car that is supposed to be on sale as a 2013 model and even available in the US! It is a small, light, mid-engine car. Only 4 meters long and weighs a light 900kg! The engine is a turbo charged 1.7 liter four cylinder that makes 230 bhp. While the statistics are pretty exciting (0-60mph in 4.5 seconds) it really is the looks that make this thing so desirable for me. It looks like my favorite car, the Lotus Elise, only the Alfa did a much better job with the design. MSRP? Supposed to be in the $50,000 range... almost... nope, can't afford it. Here are some pics from the Top Gear site and an add off of YouTube.

Love the pillar-less look and all the subtle crease lines.

What about in a matte red?

The most beautiful door ever?

Alfa 4C add.

Pickled

Dhaka is a hard place to find good quality food. Things like pickles for example; the pickles available here are those soft yellow bland things that, you know, have to be pickling your liver too. Early in the year there was a party where someone brought some homemade pickles that were amazing. Crisp, tasty and with a discernible spice. Since then I have wanted to try making some. I don't have any of my canning stuff here but I did some research and found that you can make refrigerator pickles that you don't have to officially can and they will last a month or two. After some modification I had a recipe that I was happy with and which resulted in some pretty respectable pickles.

I sanitized some old jars, sliced a bunch of cucumbers and stuffed them into the jars. The pickling solution was the following:
4 cups of vinegar
5 tsp salt
2 tsp of pepper corns
2 tsp of mustard seed
1 Dried chile chrushed
1 tsp of paprika
2 tsp of Oregano
6 cloves of garlic sliced

I brought the pickling solution to a simmer and then poured it into the jars. I put the lids on and let them sit out for 24 hours. Now they live in the fridge but not for long! I would change a few things about the recipe; first I would use 2 cups of vinegar and 2 cups of water, add more salt (up to 6 tsp) and of course I would use fresh dill in the jars (I could not find it here).

I am almost to the point of making an entire sandwich from scratch. I have made mayonnaise, bread, and now pickles. Next I will have to make some cheese. That will have to wait until I am back in Ukiah so I can use unpasteurized milk. I think I want a pickle!

Easter Egg Hunt

Easter has always been one of those holidays that I really enjoy. There are no religious connotations for me, I just feel like celebrating the coming of spring, it just feels right. Spring always feels like I have woken up from some kind of hibernation, my energy level goes up, I am inexplicably happy and I want to get out in the world and see it all. I try to have a big old bash at my dad's place but, like this year, it doesn't always work out. This year we went to the America Club Easter egg hunt and then to a lovely brunch. The weather did not cooperate to give use that spring time feeling but it did invoke a sense of urgency to the egg hunt. Here are some pics of Lola in action:

                The worries of how the hunt will go...                     The lovely ladies

                   The excitement, the anticipation!                                    In action!

Go Lola go!

All in a day's work...

The easy and relaxed look of a pro egg hunter after delivering another basket of the goods.

Pain Cave

Spent a little time in the pain cave last weekend! 80km on the dirt, on the cross bike. My buddy Ken led the ride and posted this video from his helmet cam. Cool ride mostly through villages and farm land. The rice paddies are looking amazing right now and you can catch a glimpse of them at the end of the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtWeNEAb90Q

1st Guest Speaker

So a while back I asked all of you to give me some feedback on my car issues and I got a lot of "Its OK you just like cars" which I agree with, and I am morally OK with. My problem is that I know that they are lame wastes of money and resources. Here is one of the more insightful responses I got from my good friend Ryan. I think he gets it because he is struggling with similar thoughts and we grew up working on cars together and so we were steeped in the same water. Here it is:

Nick,

First of all, I don't think you have a problem. At least, your problem isn't with cars. Your problem is being hung up on the fact that your desire to work on cars is wrong. Try not looking at the work as the end product. Look at the effort you expend in finding the diamond in the rough and getting it cleaned up and running sweet as the result. The car, the boat, the bike, the whatever - they aren't the thing that makes you tick, not what makes you happy. What you desire is the work, the searching and the finding, the cleaning and the fixing. And that is OK. In fact, I think that is a beautiful thing.

The past 6 weeks have been a complete blur for me. Today was my first day off of working in that time period - and I only didn't work because I was too sick to get out of bed until after 11 this morning. My boss has a 30 foot sport fishing boat with twin 6-cylinder Volvo diesels. It's been needing a ton of maintenance and repair work for awhile now. I volunteered to help work on it and of course roped Shawn in too since we needed his expertise. It was supposed to be a 5 to 6 day job: dry dock the boat, pull the drives, pull the engines, clean and paint everything, repair what needed to be once we got it disassembled and then slam it all back together. It has turned into a 6-plus week operation. Shawn has been driving over to Arcata to work on it every weekend for the past 6 weeks with Scott and I. And Scott and I have put in countless additional days on our own. It's been a total nightmare. Every. Single. Thing. We've touched has been broken. Both turbos bad (one trashed enough to require removing the head to inspect for damage from the destroyed impeller), both oil pans removed to be cleaned and painted, both water pumps rebuilt, both sea-water pumps rebuilt... and the list goes on and on. Steering bushings trashed, further removal required. And then came the reassembly that brought about flawed and damaged fiberglass work that pushed us back another week. And then we finally got it together and tried putting it in the water on Thursday, and, it leaked. Like a fucking sieve. Boat is now back out with heavy duty marine sealer setting up over the weekend in hopes of patching up the joint where the fiberglass is damaged due to shitty design. Otherwise we'd have to pull everything back apart completely and hire someone to rebuild the entire transom (rear part where drives and engines mount) of the boat. An easy 2 week and $10,000 task - for a professional. After Scott already has to have at least $25 or $30,000 into this so far. It better not leak when we put it back in the water on Monday...

Anyway... I shared all that with you for a reason. While this has been one of the more hectic and crazy few weeks of my life it has also been incredibly rewarding. This isn't even my boat and I feel like it has been a totally worthwhile experience. Why? First of all because it has been the first time in probably over a decade that Shawn and I have hung out together for an extended time. And it wasn't just sitting around, not family or friend time. It was accomplishing a task. Solving problems. Fixing broken stuff. Taking something flawed and making it better. The process has been stressful, it has been disheartening, it has been frustrating. But it has also given us an excuse to be together. It has given me an opportunity to work with my hands again. I missed it. I'm sure you miss it too. Shawn never gets a break from it. I think that both extremes aren't right. But people like me and you and Shawn, we need to create, need to repair, need to bring back the broken from the brink. When those engines fired back up on Wednesday it was a beautiful thing. You've heard that sound before. You know what if feels like to turn a key on what was once pieces scattered across the garage and hear it roar to life. It's not the car or the engine. Who cares about the car or the engine. It's the knowledge that you have made something work that wasn't working when you started on it. You did that. And you probably did it with friends around you. I have gotten so much fulfillment from working with Shawn on this disaster of a project. We've done good work and done it as efficiently and effectively as we could. That's a good feeling to have. I remember getting that same sense of fulfillment all those years ago working with you on the buggy or your panel or the canoe or any number of projects we took on. I know I had been missing that feeling. Maybe you have been too. So maybe it isn't the car. Maybe you're just searching for a sense of fulfillment that fixing cars give you. Roll it around, see what you think.

Thanks Ryan, I think you nailed it. I just like the cars because the represent a clear path to me one that involves hanging out with my pals and one that is extremely rewarding because you can see the end result. We do share this need to create, solve problems and fix things and that is what it is really about. I want that, and the car is the manifestation of all those things in my mind. Would I still get as much satisfaction from putting an electric motor in a 69 Camaro? Hell yeah, because it is about the process and the problem solving and the creating, and if I can make a statement about how lame cars are in their current state all the better!

Car of the Week: Jaguar XK120

The jag that I have always wanted...

Unknown photographer

One of two LT 2's left (Jag's light weight racer version) If you have a good eye you will notice that there are no fender seems as this car has a one piece magnesium body!. Photo from www.conceptcarz.com

Built from 1948 to 1954 and beautiful from front to back. Upon its introduction it was the fastest production car in the world and as you could guess, had a real world top speed of 120 mph. How? Streamlined shape, aluminum body and a 3.4 liter DOHC straight six. I love this car for the way it changes the way you feel about driving. If I were behind the wheel I would take the long way home, I would dress up just to drive it somewhere and I have to buy some driving gloves... alright maybe not the driving gloves. A neighbor in Ukiah purchased one a few years ago and the thing is just amazing in real life. I will always want one but probably will not be able to afford one. Basket cases are $12,000-20,000 and nice ones are up into the $100K mark.

From the 2009 Wine Country Classic.  Photo by: Will Campbell