The conspiracy theorists will just see it as more cover-up.
Still, damn sexy piece of machinery for 1963.
Yeah this isn't really the right thread, but that is really awesome.
Also unrelated to cars, apparently the CIA used shell companies to buy titanium for the SR-71 from Russia because they were the major manufacturer of titanium at the time. So we were buying metal from Russia to build a plane to spy on Russia.
CommunistCow on
No, I am not really communist. Yes, it is weird that I use this name.
I know it's not a car, but we don't have a thread for full-on machine porn, so I'm dropping this here.
That's a mockup of the SR-71 protoype, the A-12, minus its radar absorbing paint. Just polished titanium. It comes from this National Geographic story about the 1963 Area 51 crash, which has finally been declassified as being of an A-12.
Sorry alien hunters, you and the rapture-tards are in the same boat here.
If you ever go to DC, the Air and Space Museum has a hangar out by Dulles where they have a SR-71 among other lesser planes they can't fit into their main building. Its so pretty I wanted to touch it so bad. Never really appreciated how big it was.
Edwards AFB to Dulles in 64 min 20s. I hope we have some other even crazier secret planes, otherwise its another moon landing thing in my view. We reached so far, and then pulled back.
If you ever go to DC, the Air and Space Museum has a hangar out by Dulles where they have a SR-71 among other lesser planes they can't fit into their main building. Its so pretty I wanted to touch it so bad. Never really appreciated how big it was.
Edwards AFB to Dulles in 64 min 20s. I hope we have some other even crazier secret planes, otherwise its another moon landing thing in my view. We reached so far, and then pulled back.
The problem is we don't really need the planes any more. Satellites can see more, and quicker, without exposing pilots to harm or capture. Now, if China's anti-satellite missiles really take off (hur hur) we may see a shift back to planes, but I doubt it.
Fuel efficiency is all in your foot and your shifts.
When I first got my APR flash, I went from averaging 27 MPG to averaging 23. But it was because I was driving heavy-footed and shifting late because it was so much fun having that extra 50 HP.
I've since eased up on the accelerator and shift between 3-4k RPM instead of 6-7k RPM and I'm back to pulling a 28 MPG average.
I still run it up from time to time, but not nearly like I used to.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
JustinSane07 on
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L Ron HowardThe duckMinnesotaRegistered Userregular
Fuel efficiency is all in your foot and your shifts.
When I first got my APR flash, I went from averaging 27 MPG to averaging 23. But it was because I was driving heavy-footed and shifting late because it was so much fun having that extra 50 HP.
I've since eased up on the accelerator and shift between 3-4k RPM instead of 6-7k RPM and I'm back to pulling a 28 MPG average.
I still run it up from time to time, but not nearly like I used to.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
Fuel efficiency is all in your foot and your shifts.
When I first got my APR flash, I went from averaging 27 MPG to averaging 23. But it was because I was driving heavy-footed and shifting late because it was so much fun having that extra 50 HP.
I've since eased up on the accelerator and shift between 3-4k RPM instead of 6-7k RPM and I'm back to pulling a 28 MPG average.
I still run it up from time to time, but not nearly like I used to.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
As I understand it, no. Your gearing would be the same, and the engine speed would still be linked to the wheels. But you would be able to reach that speed more quickly, at the cost of burning more fuel in that time.
Fuel efficiency is all in your foot and your shifts.
When I first got my APR flash, I went from averaging 27 MPG to averaging 23. But it was because I was driving heavy-footed and shifting late because it was so much fun having that extra 50 HP.
I've since eased up on the accelerator and shift between 3-4k RPM instead of 6-7k RPM and I'm back to pulling a 28 MPG average.
I still run it up from time to time, but not nearly like I used to.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
Regardless of the additional power, your car will go the same speed at a given rpm in a given gear. There's a fixed relationship between the speed the engine spins and the speed the wheels spin for each gear.
That seems extra retarded of them, unless the 750,000 is way off. Your employees took it for a joy ride, wrecked it, and you're not releasing the records to cover it up, will play real well in front of a jury. And they pay legal fees, on top of the 750k
'I'd like to introduce exhibit A'
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ThomamelasOnly one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered Userregular
If you ever go to DC, the Air and Space Museum has a hangar out by Dulles where they have a SR-71 among other lesser planes they can't fit into their main building. Its so pretty I wanted to touch it so bad. Never really appreciated how big it was.
Edwards AFB to Dulles in 64 min 20s. I hope we have some other even crazier secret planes, otherwise its another moon landing thing in my view. We reached so far, and then pulled back.
The problem is we don't really need the planes any more. Satellites can see more, and quicker, without exposing pilots to harm or capture. Now, if China's anti-satellite missiles really take off (hur hur) we may see a shift back to planes, but I doubt it.
One of my favorite SR-71 stories.
There were a lot of things we couldn't do in an SR-71, but we were the fastest guys on the block and loved reminding our fellow aviators of this fact. People often asked us if, because of this fact, it was fun to fly the jet. Fun would not be the first word I would use to describe flying this plane. Intense, maybe. Even cerebral. But there was one day in our Sled experience when we would have to say that it was pure fun to be the fastest guys out there, at least for a moment.
It occurred when Walt and I were flying our final training sortie. We needed 100 hours in the jet to complete our training and attain Mission Ready status. Somewhere over Colorado we had passed the century mark. We had made the turn in Arizona and the jet was performing flawlessly. My gauges were wired in the front seat and we were starting to feel pretty good about ourselves, not only because we would soon be flying real missions but because we had gained a great deal of confidence in the plane in the past ten months. Ripping across the barren deserts 80,000 feet below us, I could already see the coast of California from the Arizona border. I was, finally, after many humbling months of simulators and study, ahead of the jet.
I was beginning to feel a bit sorry for Walter in the back seat. There he was, with no really good view of the incredible sights before us, tasked with monitoring four different radios. This was good practice for him for when we began flying real missions, when a priority transmission from headquarters could be vital. It had been difficult, too, for me to relinquish control of the radios, as during my entire flying career I had controlled my own transmissions. But it was part of the division of duties in this plane and I had adjusted to it. I still insisted on talking on the radio while we were on the ground, however. Walt was so good at many things, but he couldn't match my expertise at sounding smooth on the radios, a skill that had been honed sharply with years in fighter squadrons where the slightest radio miscue was grounds for beheading. He understood that and allowed me that luxury. Just to get a sense of what Walt had to contend with, I pulled the radio toggle switches and monitored the frequencies along with him. The predominant radio chatter was from Los Angeles Center, far below us, controlling daily traffic in their sector. While they had us on their scope (albeit briefly), we were in uncontrolled airspace and normally would not talk to them unless we needed to descend into their airspace.
We listened as the shaky voice of a lone Cessna pilot asked Center for a readout of his ground speed.
Center replied: "November Charlie 175, I'm showing you at ninety knots on the ground."
Now the thing to understand about Center controllers, was that whether they were talking to a rookie pilot in a Cessna, or to Air Force One, they always spoke in the exact same, calm, deep, professional, tone that made one feel important. I referred to it as the "HoustonCenterVoice." I have always felt that after years of seeing documentaries on this country's space program and listening to the calm and distinct voice of the HoustonCenterControllers, that all other controllers since then wanted to sound like that... and that they basically did. And it didn't matter what sector of the country we would be flying in, it always seemed like the same guy was talking. Over the years that tone of voice had become somewhat of a comforting sound to pilots everywhere. Conversely, over the years, pilots always wanted to ensure that, when transmitting, they sounded like Chuck Yeager, or at least like John Wayne. Better to die than sound bad on the radios.
Just moments after the Cessna's inquiry, a Twin Beech piped up on frequency, in a rather superior tone, asking for his ground speed.
"Ah, Twin Beach: I have you at one hundred and twenty-five knots of ground speed."
Boy, I thought, the Beechcraft really must think he is dazzling his Cessna brethren.
Then out of the blue, a Navy F-18 pilot out of NAS Lemoore came up on frequency. You knew right away it was a Navy jock because he sounded very cool on the radios.
"Center, Dusty 52 ground speed check."
Before Center could reply, I'm thinking to myself, hey, Dusty 52 has a ground speed indicator in that million dollar cockpit, so why is he asking Center for a readout? Then I got it -- ol' Dusty here is making sure that every bug smasher from Mount Whitney to the Mojave knows what true speed is. He's the fastest dude in the valley today, and he just wants everyone to know how much fun he is having in his new Hornet.
And the reply, always with that same, calm, voice, with more distinct alliteration than emotion:
"Dusty 52, Center, we have you at 620 on the ground."
And I thought to myself, is this a ripe situation, or what? As my hand instinctively reached for the mic button, I had to remind myself that Walt was in control of the radios. Still, I thought, it must be done -- in mere seconds we'll be out of the sector and the opportunity will be lost. That Hornet must die, and die now.
I thought about all of our Sim training and how important it was that we developed well as a crew and knew that to jump in on the radios now would destroy the integrity of all that we had worked toward becoming. I was torn. Somewhere, 13 miles above Arizona, there was a pilot screaming inside his space helmet.
Then, I heard it. The click of the mic button from the back seat. That was the very moment that I knew Walter and I had become a crew. Very professionally, and with no emotion, Walter spoke:
"Los Angeles Center, Aspen 20, can you give us a ground speed check?"
There was no hesitation, and the reply came as if was an everyday request:
"Aspen 20, I show you at one thousand eight hundred and forty-two knots, across the ground."
I think it was the forty-two knots that I liked the best, so accurate and proud was Center to deliver that information without hesitation, and you just knew he was smiling. But the precise point at which I knew that Walt and I were going to be really good friends for a long time was when he keyed the mic once again to say, in his most fighter-pilot-like voice:
"Ah, Center, much thanks. We're showing closer to nineteen hundred on the money."
For a moment Walter was a god. And we finally heard a little crack in the armor of the HoustonCentervoice, when L.A. came back with,
"Roger that Aspen, Your equipment is probably more accurate than ours. You boys have a good one."
It all had lasted for just moments, but in that short, memorable sprint across the southwest, the Navy had been flamed, all mortal airplanes on freq were forced to bow before the King of Speed, and more importantly, Walter and I had crossed the threshold of being a crew. A fine day's work.
We never heard another transmission on that frequency all the way to the coast. For just one day, it truly was fun being the fastest guys out there.
Fuel efficiency is all in your foot and your shifts.
When I first got my APR flash, I went from averaging 27 MPG to averaging 23. But it was because I was driving heavy-footed and shifting late because it was so much fun having that extra 50 HP.
I've since eased up on the accelerator and shift between 3-4k RPM instead of 6-7k RPM and I'm back to pulling a 28 MPG average.
I still run it up from time to time, but not nearly like I used to.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
Regardless of the additional power, your car will go the same speed at a given rpm in a given gear. There's a fixed relationship between the speed the engine spins and the speed the wheels spin for each gear.
Yeah that's what I thought. I figured that it had to do more with the transmission than the vehicle's power but I wanted to be sure.
Yep some of them are Europe's answer to NASCAR fans. It's nice that some of them go over to see if the drivers are OK or flip the vehicle over so they can keep driving, but the ones who were laughing and clapping can go fuck themselves.
CommunistCow on
No, I am not really communist. Yes, it is weird that I use this name.
Yep some of them are Europe's answer to NASCAR fans. It's nice that some of them go over to see if the drivers are OK or flip the vehicle over so they can keep driving, but the ones who were laughing and clapping can go fuck themselves.
Im also worried about the ones who dont fucking move when theres a car flying in their general direction. If they get injured, theyre not only fucking up themselves, but theyre fucking up the driver of the car since I assume theyd be pretty fucking traumatized if they killed someone even if it was accidental, I know I would be. There was an accident in San Diego not to long ago that got some publicity where a truck went off a jump and landed on some people, killing a couple of them. The people were standing where they had been told not to, but the track didnt have enough support staff to make sure nobody stood there. I feel bad for the families of the deceased, but I feel worse for the driver.
Yep some of them are Europe's answer to NASCAR fans. It's nice that some of them go over to see if the drivers are OK or flip the vehicle over so they can keep driving, but the ones who were laughing and clapping can go fuck themselves.
Most rally racers will tell you that it's not the cash value of the car they worry about, it's the hours of tuning and learning the peculiarities of each car. My uncle, for example, hand-modified his tyres with a chisel.
Yep some of them are Europe's answer to NASCAR fans. It's nice that some of them go over to see if the drivers are OK or flip the vehicle over so they can keep driving, but the ones who were laughing and clapping can go fuck themselves.
Most rally racers will tell you that it's not the cash value of the car they worry about, it's the hours of tuning and learning the peculiarities of each car. My uncle, for example, hand-modified his tyres with a chisel.
I remember reading a particularly distraught article in (the now defunct) CCC magazine, about their Fiesta XR2 that they were racing in the 750 MC Hot Hatch championship. It was involved in a "racing incident" that left it with some bodywork damage (beat it out with a hammer - the cage provides the structure, not the shell) and a caved in passenger side door.
The door could be replaced from a breaker's yard for £50, but the hours spent taking a holesaw to the original door to reduce its weight could not.
Talk about snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, Hildebrand hitting the wall in turn 4 with no pressure on him and at least a second between him and Wheldon... someone's going to be crying themselves to sleep for a few nights.
Talk about snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, Hildebrand hitting the wall in turn 4 with no pressure on him and at least a second between him and Wheldon... someone's going to be crying themselves to sleep for a few nights.
I don't usually watch Indy, but this was on when I was waiting for a to-go order of food. God is it boring watching those friken oval races. I did notice a few other drivers pitted with 10-15 laps left. So maybe Hildebrand ate it because he was trying to push his tires. *shrug*
Why does mainstream America love the boring types of racing? I'll take WRC, F1, or Australia V8 supercars over NASCAR/Indy.
As an australian, V8 Supercars bore the hell out of me.
For those that don't know, the Bathurst race is one of the biggest on the aussie calendar, and the main race there is purely the V8 supertaxis. I'm old enough (barely) to remember when the race had these V8s in it, along with a wide range of other cars. It was great watching these tiny cars drive around the bigger cars and then keep going flat out across the top of the track (which was the tighter section) trying to build enough of a lead that the big V8s couldn't go roaring back past them on the straights.
Standardised cars in racing are great for working out who the best driver is, but I really don't find it fun to watch.
In other news, got a motorkhana on next weekend, need to resist the urge to play with anything on my car and risk taking it out of action :P
McFodder on
Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
My favourite category (but not so well publicised or televised) is the improved production style - not sure if there is anything similar in the states but I'd imagine it exists somewhere. Cars are broken up into classes by engine size, but all the classes run together. Even within classes, watching the way a FWD like an integra or celica tackles a series of corners and being able to directly compare it to something like an MX5 which is flying up behind it is a lot more interesting to me. By each car having different strengths and weaknesses it creates more passing opportunities as well.
Maybe this makes me a car fan, not a racing fan.
McFodder on
Switch Friend Code: SW-3944-9431-0318
PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
I saw a new Ferrari parked at El Gaucho's in Seattle last night. I'm not sure what it was. Maybe a Spyder. And, driving home tonight I hit 115mph in my 2008 Nissan Sentra. It can easily do 120mph.
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acidlacedpenguinInstitutionalizedSafe in jail.Registered Userregular
edited May 2011
So, I'm planning to meet my dude at the Nissan dealership this saturday to talk about that Juke I've had on order since February. I plan on scheduling visits to other dealerships before hand, specifically Ford for the focus or the fusion, the luxury dealership that has the IS250 I talked about earlier, and of all places Kia for the Sportage or the Forte. Basically, the Kias and the focus I could buy outright in cash on the spot if I wanted, the fusion, the is250, and the Juke I'll have to finance between like 5 and 10k.
That and I figure I could use the other dealership visits as leverage to maybe do some bargaining with Nissan.
I figure at this point I would like to have whatever car I end up with by mid July.
... This deciding on the perfect vehicle thing is nerve-wracking.
Anyone here in the car thread play racing games? I never have, except Mario Kart, but I'm thinking of trying out some sort of realistic racing game. What do you guys suggest in terms of games and controllers? I have PS3 and 360, but no gaming PC.
Anyone here in the car thread play racing games? I never have, except Mario Kart, but I'm thinking of trying out some sort of realistic racing game. What do you guys suggest in terms of games and controllers? I have PS3 and 360, but no gaming PC.
360= Forza 3
PS3= Gran Turismo 5
Regular controller works fine for Forza 3, I have never actually played GT5, so no idea if the regular controller is good enough.
So we get stiff once in a while. So we have a little fun. What’s wrong with that? This is a free country, isn’t it? I can take my panda any place I want to. And if I wanna buy it a drink, that’s my business.
Anyone here in the car thread play racing games? I never have, except Mario Kart, but I'm thinking of trying out some sort of realistic racing game. What do you guys suggest in terms of games and controllers? I have PS3 and 360, but no gaming PC.
Forza 3 is the best console racing sim, followed by Shift 2 Unleashed. If you can play Forza 3 then I wouldn't really bother with anything else. I guess you might like Gran Turismo 5 but it still just doesn't hold a candle to Forza.
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L Ron HowardThe duckMinnesotaRegistered Userregular
edited May 2011
I think Forza 3 is a piece of inaccurate shit. There's no fucking way you can convince me that the original Mazda Miata from 1990 is more tail happy than a Ford Mustang, when you disable ABS and traction control, neither of which the car never originally came with.
Also, I saw some dude with a new Maserati Quatroportte (or however you spell it) driving down the road. I'd pimp it. It was a nice silvery-grey color. I don't think many cars would be able to pull off the same color. Wish I'd have gotten a pic, but driving in a manual transmission car in traffic kinda hard to do so.
Posts
Still, damn sexy piece of machinery for 1963.
PSN: Beltaine-77 | Steam: beltane77 | Battle.net BadHaggis#1433
Yeah this isn't really the right thread, but that is really awesome.
Also unrelated to cars, apparently the CIA used shell companies to buy titanium for the SR-71 from Russia because they were the major manufacturer of titanium at the time. So we were buying metal from Russia to build a plane to spy on Russia.
If you ever go to DC, the Air and Space Museum has a hangar out by Dulles where they have a SR-71 among other lesser planes they can't fit into their main building. Its so pretty I wanted to touch it so bad. Never really appreciated how big it was.
Edwards AFB to Dulles in 64 min 20s. I hope we have some other even crazier secret planes, otherwise its another moon landing thing in my view. We reached so far, and then pulled back.
So let me ask you this, does your car need less acceleration to hit certain speeds and stay there?
Like, in my old Scion, I knew that at holding a constant 3.5k rpm in 4th gear I would be doing 85mph. If I were to add, like, 30-40 hp to that car, would I would be able to hold 85mph at say, 3.2k rpm instead?
Err, what?
As I understand it, no. Your gearing would be the same, and the engine speed would still be linked to the wheels. But you would be able to reach that speed more quickly, at the cost of burning more fuel in that time.
Regardless of the additional power, your car will go the same speed at a given rpm in a given gear. There's a fixed relationship between the speed the engine spins and the speed the wheels spin for each gear.
That seems extra retarded of them, unless the 750,000 is way off. Your employees took it for a joy ride, wrecked it, and you're not releasing the records to cover it up, will play real well in front of a jury. And they pay legal fees, on top of the 750k
'I'd like to introduce exhibit A'
One of my favorite SR-71 stories.
It occurred when Walt and I were flying our final training sortie. We needed 100 hours in the jet to complete our training and attain Mission Ready status. Somewhere over Colorado we had passed the century mark. We had made the turn in Arizona and the jet was performing flawlessly. My gauges were wired in the front seat and we were starting to feel pretty good about ourselves, not only because we would soon be flying real missions but because we had gained a great deal of confidence in the plane in the past ten months. Ripping across the barren deserts 80,000 feet below us, I could already see the coast of California from the Arizona border. I was, finally, after many humbling months of simulators and study, ahead of the jet.
I was beginning to feel a bit sorry for Walter in the back seat. There he was, with no really good view of the incredible sights before us, tasked with monitoring four different radios. This was good practice for him for when we began flying real missions, when a priority transmission from headquarters could be vital. It had been difficult, too, for me to relinquish control of the radios, as during my entire flying career I had controlled my own transmissions. But it was part of the division of duties in this plane and I had adjusted to it. I still insisted on talking on the radio while we were on the ground, however. Walt was so good at many things, but he couldn't match my expertise at sounding smooth on the radios, a skill that had been honed sharply with years in fighter squadrons where the slightest radio miscue was grounds for beheading. He understood that and allowed me that luxury. Just to get a sense of what Walt had to contend with, I pulled the radio toggle switches and monitored the frequencies along with him. The predominant radio chatter was from Los Angeles Center, far below us, controlling daily traffic in their sector. While they had us on their scope (albeit briefly), we were in uncontrolled airspace and normally would not talk to them unless we needed to descend into their airspace.
We listened as the shaky voice of a lone Cessna pilot asked Center for a readout of his ground speed.
Center replied: "November Charlie 175, I'm showing you at ninety knots on the ground."
Now the thing to understand about Center controllers, was that whether they were talking to a rookie pilot in a Cessna, or to Air Force One, they always spoke in the exact same, calm, deep, professional, tone that made one feel important. I referred to it as the "HoustonCenterVoice." I have always felt that after years of seeing documentaries on this country's space program and listening to the calm and distinct voice of the HoustonCenterControllers, that all other controllers since then wanted to sound like that... and that they basically did. And it didn't matter what sector of the country we would be flying in, it always seemed like the same guy was talking. Over the years that tone of voice had become somewhat of a comforting sound to pilots everywhere. Conversely, over the years, pilots always wanted to ensure that, when transmitting, they sounded like Chuck Yeager, or at least like John Wayne. Better to die than sound bad on the radios.
Just moments after the Cessna's inquiry, a Twin Beech piped up on frequency, in a rather superior tone, asking for his ground speed.
"Ah, Twin Beach: I have you at one hundred and twenty-five knots of ground speed."
Boy, I thought, the Beechcraft really must think he is dazzling his Cessna brethren.
Then out of the blue, a Navy F-18 pilot out of NAS Lemoore came up on frequency. You knew right away it was a Navy jock because he sounded very cool on the radios.
"Center, Dusty 52 ground speed check."
Before Center could reply, I'm thinking to myself, hey, Dusty 52 has a ground speed indicator in that million dollar cockpit, so why is he asking Center for a readout? Then I got it -- ol' Dusty here is making sure that every bug smasher from Mount Whitney to the Mojave knows what true speed is. He's the fastest dude in the valley today, and he just wants everyone to know how much fun he is having in his new Hornet.
And the reply, always with that same, calm, voice, with more distinct alliteration than emotion:
"Dusty 52, Center, we have you at 620 on the ground."
And I thought to myself, is this a ripe situation, or what? As my hand instinctively reached for the mic button, I had to remind myself that Walt was in control of the radios. Still, I thought, it must be done -- in mere seconds we'll be out of the sector and the opportunity will be lost. That Hornet must die, and die now.
I thought about all of our Sim training and how important it was that we developed well as a crew and knew that to jump in on the radios now would destroy the integrity of all that we had worked toward becoming. I was torn. Somewhere, 13 miles above Arizona, there was a pilot screaming inside his space helmet.
Then, I heard it. The click of the mic button from the back seat. That was the very moment that I knew Walter and I had become a crew. Very professionally, and with no emotion, Walter spoke:
"Los Angeles Center, Aspen 20, can you give us a ground speed check?"
There was no hesitation, and the reply came as if was an everyday request:
"Aspen 20, I show you at one thousand eight hundred and forty-two knots, across the ground."
I think it was the forty-two knots that I liked the best, so accurate and proud was Center to deliver that information without hesitation, and you just knew he was smiling. But the precise point at which I knew that Walt and I were going to be really good friends for a long time was when he keyed the mic once again to say, in his most fighter-pilot-like voice:
"Ah, Center, much thanks. We're showing closer to nineteen hundred on the money."
For a moment Walter was a god. And we finally heard a little crack in the armor of the HoustonCentervoice, when L.A. came back with,
"Roger that Aspen, Your equipment is probably more accurate than ours. You boys have a good one."
It all had lasted for just moments, but in that short, memorable sprint across the southwest, the Navy had been flamed, all mortal airplanes on freq were forced to bow before the King of Speed, and more importantly, Walter and I had crossed the threshold of being a crew. A fine day's work.
We never heard another transmission on that frequency all the way to the coast. For just one day, it truly was fun being the fastest guys out there.
Yeah that's what I thought. I figured that it had to do more with the transmission than the vehicle's power but I wanted to be sure.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozntieZs8Bg
And here's 11 minutes of rally drivers getting handled by turns.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5NEnwp13g4
Yep some of them are Europe's answer to NASCAR fans. It's nice that some of them go over to see if the drivers are OK or flip the vehicle over so they can keep driving, but the ones who were laughing and clapping can go fuck themselves.
Im also worried about the ones who dont fucking move when theres a car flying in their general direction. If they get injured, theyre not only fucking up themselves, but theyre fucking up the driver of the car since I assume theyd be pretty fucking traumatized if they killed someone even if it was accidental, I know I would be. There was an accident in San Diego not to long ago that got some publicity where a truck went off a jump and landed on some people, killing a couple of them. The people were standing where they had been told not to, but the track didnt have enough support staff to make sure nobody stood there. I feel bad for the families of the deceased, but I feel worse for the driver.
Most rally racers will tell you that it's not the cash value of the car they worry about, it's the hours of tuning and learning the peculiarities of each car. My uncle, for example, hand-modified his tyres with a chisel.
I remember reading a particularly distraught article in (the now defunct) CCC magazine, about their Fiesta XR2 that they were racing in the 750 MC Hot Hatch championship. It was involved in a "racing incident" that left it with some bodywork damage (beat it out with a hammer - the cage provides the structure, not the shell) and a caved in passenger side door.
The door could be replaced from a breaker's yard for £50, but the hours spent taking a holesaw to the original door to reduce its weight could not.
http://www.motoringtv.com/watch-motoringtv-p127719&epId=127880&yr=1989
1:30-6:30 is my uncle being interviewed with some rally clips of his.
Yeah, 500 hours to modify the car into rally-worthy condition.
After watching that, I will be sticking to Dirt 3 for my personal rallying needs...
Thats a Gallardo Superleggera. So awesome to see one in person
I don't usually watch Indy, but this was on when I was waiting for a to-go order of food. God is it boring watching those friken oval races. I did notice a few other drivers pitted with 10-15 laps left. So maybe Hildebrand ate it because he was trying to push his tires. *shrug*
Why does mainstream America love the boring types of racing? I'll take WRC, F1, or Australia V8 supercars over NASCAR/Indy.
I just want to GO HOME!
For those that don't know, the Bathurst race is one of the biggest on the aussie calendar, and the main race there is purely the V8 supertaxis. I'm old enough (barely) to remember when the race had these V8s in it, along with a wide range of other cars. It was great watching these tiny cars drive around the bigger cars and then keep going flat out across the top of the track (which was the tighter section) trying to build enough of a lead that the big V8s couldn't go roaring back past them on the straights.
Standardised cars in racing are great for working out who the best driver is, but I really don't find it fun to watch.
In other news, got a motorkhana on next weekend, need to resist the urge to play with anything on my car and risk taking it out of action :P
PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
So you hate every main stream version of racing?
My favourite category (but not so well publicised or televised) is the improved production style - not sure if there is anything similar in the states but I'd imagine it exists somewhere. Cars are broken up into classes by engine size, but all the classes run together. Even within classes, watching the way a FWD like an integra or celica tackles a series of corners and being able to directly compare it to something like an MX5 which is flying up behind it is a lot more interesting to me. By each car having different strengths and weaknesses it creates more passing opportunities as well.
Maybe this makes me a car fan, not a racing fan.
PSN / Xbox / NNID: Fodder185
That and I figure I could use the other dealership visits as leverage to maybe do some bargaining with Nissan.
I figure at this point I would like to have whatever car I end up with by mid July.
... This deciding on the perfect vehicle thing is nerve-wracking.
360= Forza 3
PS3= Gran Turismo 5
Regular controller works fine for Forza 3, I have never actually played GT5, so no idea if the regular controller is good enough.
Forza 3 is the best console racing sim, followed by Shift 2 Unleashed. If you can play Forza 3 then I wouldn't really bother with anything else. I guess you might like Gran Turismo 5 but it still just doesn't hold a candle to Forza.
Also, I saw some dude with a new Maserati Quatroportte (or however you spell it) driving down the road. I'd pimp it. It was a nice silvery-grey color. I don't think many cars would be able to pull off the same color. Wish I'd have gotten a pic, but driving in a manual transmission car in traffic kinda hard to do so.