redkow97

I love the conspiracy theorists on morning talk radio. "Maybe it's white rednecks trying to start a race war!" Then, "maybe it's black lives matter supporters trying to start a race war!" Right. Because that's what MINORITIES want - a war with the majority. <dramatic eye-roll...>

I was just about to post that I was surprised you weren't mentioned in this thread, but it's been all mustang for about a year now, right? I didn't know you were down to just one bike. The Multi or the Harley?

You missed the joke. Hipsters think they've heard/seen/read everything "before it was cool." "How did the hipster burn his mouth?" "He had to drink his coffee before it was cool." "Why don't hipsters eat popsicles?" "They're bored with everything before it's cool." " If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around to hear it, a hipster will buy it on vinyl."

I realize I am way late to the party, but the thing you need for your first trackday that no one tells you about is MORE FRESH UNDERWEAR. Putting on a pair of fresh, dry underwear after you've loaded everything up, and before you've started your drive home - it changes your whole outlook on life for the next (several) hundred miles behind the wheel. I don't know why I didn't do so sooner, but now I just immediately wash all my gear when I get home from the track, and then re-pack it in a tupperware bin with my track boots, gloves, back/chest protector, sun tan lotion, safari hat, etc. My gross undersuit, socks, undies, t-shirts, shorts, and all that stuff go straight into the washer when I get home, and my boots/gloves air out for the next 24 hours. I bring my helmet into the shower with me and then put it in front of a fan for 24 hours. Keeps it from getting funky or moldy. Extra undies are just a few more pieces of 'riding gear' as far as i'm concerned. I also think throwing a hand towel in your cooler is an awesome idea too. Ice cold water on your head/neck really keeps your head in the game for the next session.

It might be okay if you're not wearing a back/chest protector, but it really depends on the brand. I am about your size, and I have owned 44's that were baggy on me in places. A 42 would probably have been perfect ...from that manufacturer.

...i'm just posting because I'm too lazy to find my points total in my profile, and it will pop up next to this post when I hit "submit reply."

You'll handle it and survive even when they're both home and both screaming. Congratulations. Enjoy it all. They won't stay small for long, and unless you're planning on a third, this is the only time you'll have babies in the house. Also - let people cook for you. Throw shit away and order pizza if you have to, but letting people feel like they're doing you a favor is easier than trying to convince them that you're able to handle cooking on your own. I expect you're off work for a bit. I only took 3 days when our first was born. I have 3 weeks scheduled for the next one.

I predict that these type of accidents will continue to rise over the next 20 years or so, and then taper-off to almost zero in the decade that follows. Right now we're in the infancy of self-driving cars. They are the minority on the road by a vast margin. At some point, that will no longer be the case, and there is lower potential for HUMAN error. That, in combination with better technology, will reduce traffic accidents significantly. It's really unfortunate that someone died, but assuming the Tesla was traveling at or below the speed limit (I didn't think it allowed you to speed on auto pilot), the truck failed to yield, and caused the collision. A self-driving truck would have been able to calculate the distance and closing speed and known not to enter the intersection. We're headed toward a future where everyone's vehicle is talking to each other. If the semi had cleared the Tesla's path by 1cm, it would have looked horrendously dangerous, but a miss is a miss... Like when the Terminator veers off for gas right in front of another car - he knew he had "enough" room, not enough for the approaching driver to feel comfortable with it. Machines don't care about your feelings.

Jake's got the right attitude. On a holiday weekend, police are playing a numbers game. They're going to have a high visual presence to deter speeding and enforce limits, but I would find it shocking if they were not concentrating almost exclusively on major highways and main roads. More traffic = greater effect and potential for catching someone. Believe it or not, they would prefer for people to see them and slow down, rather than having to write a bunch of tickets. Also keep in mind that police officers are just human beings with a job to do. They would much rather be at a barbecue with their families and friends than at work on a beautiful day. Some may be jealous of your fun and act vindictively in response, but many will look at you and think "Nah... Not today." Have fun guys. I need to get my XR street-legal for one of these back road jaunts. I don't expect anyone to wait up for me. Maybe I could keep up with the cruiser folks who are more interested in the scenery, while I see if i can keep it pinned in 5th through the turns

The schools that manage to stay operational do so because they are doing something right. I would be less concerned about whose name is on the school, and more concerned with who the individual instructors are. Nick Einch (sp?), Jason Pridmore, and a bunch of other people whose names escape me have good reputations as excellent INSTRUCTORS, as well as being great riders. If you want to go to a specific school because they rent __________ bike, or run at ___________ track, then go for it, but you might get just as much out of more local instruction through a traditional trackday org that offers private coaching. Pridmore may be able to turn lap record pace at any given track you visit, but a guy who is 2 seconds a lap slower is still plenty quick enough to help you improve a LOT. You planning to run your 675, or rent a liter bike? Calabogie is a HUGE track in Canada, and I know they rent Kawasakis for their riding schools. It only takes a few hours to get used to them saying "zed ex ten."

The amount of money they are putting into that facility is mind-boggling to me... They must have spent $250,000 just paving the new entrance and making the paddock bigger. Then add in the new garages, all those trees they have ready to plant, etc. That's not even mentioning the kart track repave and the South track construction costs. Total investment in the last couple of years has to be over $10,000,000. I hope they get a motoAmerica round or something. The place deserves it.

You're entering Hoblick levels of bike ADHD :-) Saw the 150R out this weekend. Rumor is you picked up a Grom. What else is in the garage these days??

Nice video. I probably saw you a few times without realizing it. I watched a couple of A sessions from the top of the hill inside the exit of turn 1, and saw several intermediate sessions with Gavin passing people on the outside on his EX300. Would have said hello if I'd known you were there!

Yeah, but then I have to store it somewhere. The new tow vehicle will pull 5,000 lbs., so a 6x12 v-nose would be totally doable at some point, but I'm not sure where I would keep it. I can fit a car through the gate next to my house. I assume it's 8' wide.

I'm really just not sure how much weight it will add... And windows won't be light either. I'm going for sparse, efficient, but not shoddy...

Please talk me out of this, or confirm that it's a decent idea. I started to think about enclosing my Harbor Freight folding 4x8 on the 14 hour drive home from the Herrin Compound in GA. Because it was late January or early February, the roads near home were covered with salt dust, as was my bike when I got it home. Upon uncovering it this spring, it was a crusty rusty mess - no real damage, mind you, but a hassle to clean up, and something I'd like to avoid in the future. So, as a 14 hour drive is likely to allow, I began brain-storming ways to enclose the trailer in the future. This would be extra beneficial to me now that I have a hitch on my car, because I would previously sleep in my wife's SUV (the new SUV doesn't have a hitch yet). I can easily fold down the seats and fit an air mattress in the SUV, but no way I can sleep in my car - so sleeping in the trailer is an appealing option. General thoughts: Weight is a huge factor here. The trailer capacity is 1100 lbs., and i'm definitely going to have a 150 lbs. bike on it, and probably 250 more lbs. of cooler and canopies. Everything else should fit in the car itself, but that is already pushing half my cargo capacity, and adding towing weight to the corolla... I figure sides/roof/frame need to weigh 250 or less. Preferably under 200. With this in mind, the plan would be to get 4 sheets of some sort of thin paneling (the type of stuff that was in my parents living room instead of drywall). use two 4x8 sections for walls, one for the roof, and cut one in half for the front and rear. If aluminum sheeting is affordable and light-weight enough, I would consider that as well. The roof and rear section would be removable. Then I can load/unload standing completely upright, install the rear section, and slide the top onto the whole contraption. I figure securing it with box latches, or even ratchet-straps is sturdy enough. Because it's going to have to be thin paneling, I expect to build a ladder-frame for the sides and roof. That would be out of 1x3's or possibly angle-aluminum. That's all just to add some rigidity and ensure it doesn't collapse under wind-loads while towing. If I'm going to do this, I would also try to find some cheap (scavenged) RV windows and I'm thinking the door from a pop-up camper would work. Initially, I had planned to put the door on the rear section, but I think it makes more sense to frame it into the curb-side. Then I install some simple battery-powered LEDs on the bottom of the roof, and I have a nice little space to sleep on an air mattress, with full weather protection, and windows for a cross-breeze if I want. I can also throw a tarp over the top and stake down the corners to create covered space for shoes, etc, or just stick them under the trailer in a tupperware container (which is where my riding gear is stored anyway). The plan is also to NOT sacrifice the folding functionality, so it has to come apart relatively easily. Wing-nuts? Cotter pins? I would store the sides and roof in my garage or shed, then fold up the trailer like always... Am i nuts, or does this sound like an okay plan?

You're braver than I would have been. That's embarrassing. Where were you standing when it fell? I am super paranoid about this happening to me every time I walk a bike anywhere, and almost always have it leaning slightly toward me so it doesn't get away.

Might be able to reinforce something rated for 100 lbs. so that it's robust enough to handle more weight. On my carrier, the 'arms' adjust to accommodate various vehicles. The interlocking 'teeth' on the pivot point is the weak link. Eliminating the folding functionality by completing the triangle would firm up the whole structure quite a bit. Or you could probably build one from angle aluminum at home depot...

the action is well-oiled and smooth. Beautiful gun. I wish it had the original peep sight, and not the cheap scope currently mounted... IMHO, optics aren't are just one more thing to break or go out of calibration, etc. At least on something like a bolt 22...

Finally getting around to shooting this. Other than cleaning and oiling it, is there anything I should do before shooting it? Probably hasn't been fired in 10 years...

If you're looking to lose faith in humanity and occupy 20 minutes of your time... The comments are pretty much exactly what you would expect. And someone linked to each suspect's facebook profiles. in summary, here are the various accounts being alleged: - McDonald's employee allegedly called one suspect's biracial children the N word. No confirmation that's the case. - McDonald's employee is alleged to have been fired on-the-spot (which would explain why she was in the parking lot with customers who had just been in the store). But that's disputed. No confirmation that the employee was actually terminated - the counter-allegation is that she was hospitalized. CONFIRMED INFORMATION - Neither the suspects, nor (m)any of the commenters have even remedial grammar skills.

Try to reserve judgment. We don't know all the facts. I wish they had posted the surveillance footage. It's not impossible (or even unlikely, in my experience) that the employee was rude, gave poor service, and essentially "deserved it." Still, that's not a defense to a criminal charge. Might keep them out of jail though.

After deciding on the 2013-2015 Sorento, we ended up buying the 2016 model, lol. Inventory turn-over prevented us from driving the 2014 "EX" model with AWD and leather. We did drive an (almost) identically equipped 2015 example with pretty much every option except AWD and no third-row seat. Both of those were features I wanted... So we looked at (and ended up buying) a 2016 "LX" model without leather seats (smaller touch-screen, manual seat adjustment instead of electric, no blind-spot detection - you get the idea). But the reasons we bought it were: 21,000 miles on the clock (10-20k fewer than the other examples we had looked at), AWD, 3.3 liter V6 (290hp!), and third-row seats. I sat in the third row, and i'm pushing 6' tall. It's really not uncomfortable, even with the second row slid all the way back. that said, we'll almost never use the third-row, except when it's us and 2 other couples looking to take 1 car out instead of 2... After a week of ownership, I am thoroughly impressed with this vehicle. Road noise is nonexistent. It pulls damn hard for being a mid-sized SUV (0-60 in 7.5 or less), and will tow 5,000 lbs. If you're not flooring it or towing, it gets 25 mpg in mixed driving thus far. Not bad for a 7-passenger AWD grocery getter. I wish I got to drive it more often!

top 5 intro posts of all time. welcome.

you need an eBay account and a lot of patience. GLWS.