Friday, June 29, 2007
Trabi parked at EUR800
Two days to go on the Trabi auction and it's parked at EUR800. Much as I'm tempted to lay down a four-figure bid to secure the car (it's my 40th birthday today, so nyah), the domestic debate over what is going in our garage goes on. So no more bids, yet, from me...
Labels: Alpentour, auto, odd, oldtimer, petrolhead
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Na na Nano
Second time around, the iPod experience (TM) is better. The 8GB Nano is super-light and has adequate storage space for a few days' worth of music non-stop. And here's a thing, the supplied headphones are louder than the set supplied with the 4G 20GB 'pod. I haven't checked the tech specs yet to see if the impedance is different. I suppose "louder" headphones = longer battery life.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Shifting gear in an auto SL
One thing that's really noticeable about driving a 20-plus-year-old car is how automatic gearshifts have advanced. The 280SL boasted a four-speed automatic, pretty advanced for '84, but by modern standards, not so responsive.
Step on the gas when the straight six is spinning at less than 3500 rpm in any gear and you get what we named "Flounder" mode. For a more brisk pace the only answer is to manually shift down, as the 'box wouldn't kick down from S to the higher of the two L gears.
So we named these gears:Oberflounder
Mittelflounder
Niederflounder
After that, the standard comment on a lack of grunt-on-demand was: "Oh, you must be in Mittel...." etc.
Step on the gas when the straight six is spinning at less than 3500 rpm in any gear and you get what we named "Flounder" mode. For a more brisk pace the only answer is to manually shift down, as the 'box wouldn't kick down from S to the higher of the two L gears.
So we named these gears:
After that, the standard comment on a lack of grunt-on-demand was: "Oh, you must be in Mittel...." etc.
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Falling behind the Trabi
It looks like someone else is more determined to have the Trabi than me and fair enough, my needs are for next summer. Broaching the subject at home last night wasn't exactly greeted with a rapturous response...
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Outbid already!
The Trabi auction is getting interesting - with five full days to go, my early high offer has been beaten. I'm way within my maximum price comfort zone and have the best part of a year to buy a Trabi 'vert, but will keep you posted on the auction.
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Hooked on oldtimers
The Alpentour really has gotten under my skin. Found myself bidding this morning on an eBay auction for a pristine-looking 1989 Trabi convertible - with a TüV through 2009 it should be good for some topless motoring this summer AND the Alpentour next year.
I'm only sharing the link on a need-to-know basis - the fewer bidders, the better! If you want it, email me.
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Monday, June 25, 2007
The Cockroach
Picture the scene: a line-up of lovingly-restored classic cars, like early 70s Mercedes-Benz SLs, roadster and convertible E-type Jaguars, a Porsche 356, a Alfa Spyder, and ... a Dutton.
A what? You may well ask. It's a kit car that was popular in the UK in the 70s and 80s, usually cobbled together from old Ford Escorts including the classic crossflow Ford Kent engine, and not forgetting the tail-lights from a Reliant Robin. It's loosely related to the Caterham 7, which itself was based on the old Lotus 7.
Quite a pedigree.
However, not quite so easy to simply stand on the loud pedal and see the Dutton recede in your mirrors, except on the autobahn or auto stradale, and that's not the point of a classic car tour of the Alps.
Point-to-point on mountain passes, a well-driven Dutton is very quick indeed - and the driver on our tour was in that class.
As the proud owner put it, the Dutton is a "mountain runner". Or a cockroach - they're both bug-eyed, ugly, and extremely hard to kill: the Dutton is made from fiberglass. It's also fast, just like a 'roach, and in the case of the Dutton we had on the Alpentour, it even had the mottled orange/brown color. Here's a picture of an American cockroach - unfortunately we didn't take any of the actual Dutton but I'm also linking to a similar one...
A what? You may well ask. It's a kit car that was popular in the UK in the 70s and 80s, usually cobbled together from old Ford Escorts including the classic crossflow Ford Kent engine, and not forgetting the tail-lights from a Reliant Robin. It's loosely related to the Caterham 7, which itself was based on the old Lotus 7.
Quite a pedigree.
However, not quite so easy to simply stand on the loud pedal and see the Dutton recede in your mirrors, except on the autobahn or auto stradale, and that's not the point of a classic car tour of the Alps.
Point-to-point on mountain passes, a well-driven Dutton is very quick indeed - and the driver on our tour was in that class.
As the proud owner put it, the Dutton is a "mountain runner". Or a cockroach - they're both bug-eyed, ugly, and extremely hard to kill: the Dutton is made from fiberglass. It's also fast, just like a 'roach, and in the case of the Dutton we had on the Alpentour, it even had the mottled orange/brown color. Here's a picture of an American cockroach - unfortunately we didn't take any of the actual Dutton but I'm also linking to a similar one...
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Next year's entry?
Next year will be the 10th annual Alpentour, and Gerry's fifth: he and I have been starting to think about a suitable car to enter into the 2008 event. It has to be a convertible and of course a head-turner - we ain't got the money to buy into the Ferrari league. Ideas? Email me.
Meanwhile as we ripped up the A95 autobahn on the way home, our mirrors were suddenly full (and I mean full) of silver Lamborghini: not any old Lambo but a Gallardo. He came out of nowhere - and was just as quickly gone. By the time we'd found the camera and turned it on, the Lambo was already vanishing. Not surprising for a car with a v-max of 300-plus kmh, on a pretty open autobahn.
Labels: Alpentour, auto, Lambo, oldtimer, petrolhead
An expensive weekend
A weekend participating in the Freising Oldtimerfreunde Alpentour 2007 rally with my colleague Gerry has reawakened my interest in cars and is probably going to prove expensive. After two days of cranking up and down Italian mountain passes in a 1984 Mercedes 280SL my interest has been piqued and I'm hooked (again) by wind-in-the-hair motoring. We weren't bothered by the little bit of rain, again it was Italian rain.
More to come soon - meanwhile here's one of the 100-plus snaps: on the Austrian/Italian border on the 2509-meter Timmelsjoch pass.
Labels: Alpentour, auto, oldtimer, petrolhead
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Just too hard to explain
The other night I just had to grin and say "thank you" because telling the truth would have been too hard to explain. I was leaving a golf club after a private tournament (I'd taken the beginner's course) that was followed by dinner, and I was carrying a trophy for a mini-golf tournament. Upon leaving I was widely congratulated...
Kind of strange to receive the congrats for a trophy I hadn't won in a sport I don't play at an event that didn't have anything to do with the actual silver cup. Under these circumstances I decided that a smile and a fast exit were in order.
Kind of strange to receive the congrats for a trophy I hadn't won in a sport I don't play at an event that didn't have anything to do with the actual silver cup. Under these circumstances I decided that a smile and a fast exit were in order.
Labels: odd
Monday, June 18, 2007
Four steps to 320kbps
Am I the only one who makes MP3s in such a convoluted way?
1. Rip to wav file with Winamp
2. Convert top MP3 using winLAME
3. Sort out peaks using MP3Gain
4. Tag using mp3tag
Is there an easier way, without compromising quality or filename integrity?
1. Rip to wav file with Winamp
2. Convert top MP3 using winLAME
3. Sort out peaks using MP3Gain
4. Tag using mp3tag
Is there an easier way, without compromising quality or filename integrity?
8GB Nano is Apple's second chance
Love the iPod, hate the fragility of a hard-drive based version and the rubbish battery life of my 4G model (on days that it deigns to work), so an 8GB Nano is my second iPod.
Since I'm mid-way through the task of encoding all my CDs at 320kbps it's going to be quality, not quantity. 320k on a Nano is undoubtedly overkill but short of creating a second set of lower bitrate CD rips, I'll still be able to fit in around 900 songs.
What to put on it? I'm thinking about new stuff only. Apart from the singles I haven't listened to the full albums from bands like Snow Patrol and Arctic Monkeys. Also I want to try much-hyped artists such as Amy Winehouse to see what all the fuss is about.
"This would be a perfect introduction to iTunes!" you exclaim. Indeed - except that I still buy my music on CD and rip it at the bitrate(s) I want...
Since I'm mid-way through the task of encoding all my CDs at 320kbps it's going to be quality, not quantity. 320k on a Nano is undoubtedly overkill but short of creating a second set of lower bitrate CD rips, I'll still be able to fit in around 900 songs.
What to put on it? I'm thinking about new stuff only. Apart from the singles I haven't listened to the full albums from bands like Snow Patrol and Arctic Monkeys. Also I want to try much-hyped artists such as Amy Winehouse to see what all the fuss is about.
"This would be a perfect introduction to iTunes!" you exclaim. Indeed - except that I still buy my music on CD and rip it at the bitrate(s) I want...
Thursday, June 14, 2007
No time for Quicktime
Is it just me or is Quicktime one of the cheekiest PC applications of all?
It's like a weed: once it gets on to a system it spreads and unless you get
the roots out (in this case digging around in the registry), it just keeps
coming back. Worse still, it tries to bring its friends. I don't want or
need iTunes on my machine any more than I need Real Player.
It's like a weed: once it gets on to a system it spreads and unless you get
the roots out (in this case digging around in the registry), it just keeps
coming back. Worse still, it tries to bring its friends. I don't want or
need iTunes on my machine any more than I need Real Player.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Sitting pretty in the Technorati top 5 percent
This blog has reached the dizzy heights of place 3,392,917 on Technorati. Since Technorati is "currently tracking 86.1 million blogs and over 250 million pieces of tagged social media", that means top 5 percent :-)
Talking of top 5, if you're after a laugh, check Dory's new blog.
Talking of top 5, if you're after a laugh, check Dory's new blog.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Önly in Österreich
Just back from a few days at Lake Garda in Italy. The drive there takes us across the Brenner Pass, and fearful of long weekend queues at the toll booths, I registered and paid online in advance for the "Video Maut" - which uses number-plate recognition.
On the outbound trip, the only hitch was that the longest line was for ... the Video Maut booth.
On the return trip, the longest line was for ... the Video Maut booth.
But then - a hitch. Our car registration wasn't recognised - the barrier dropped and we were diverted to a toll booth to explain ourselves and pay up.
Shurely shome mishtake, I suggested.
Oh no, came the answer: it's quite common that the system doesn't recognize umlauts in vehicle registrations. In Österreich of all places. Perhaps only in Austria!
On the outbound trip, the only hitch was that the longest line was for ... the Video Maut booth.
On the return trip, the longest line was for ... the Video Maut booth.
But then - a hitch. Our car registration wasn't recognised - the barrier dropped and we were diverted to a toll booth to explain ourselves and pay up.
Shurely shome mishtake, I suggested.
Oh no, came the answer: it's quite common that the system doesn't recognize umlauts in vehicle registrations. In Österreich of all places. Perhaps only in Austria!
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