redkow97

And like I said before, I think that's a good strategy to generate "buzz" and get the car featured in tech magazines, etc. It also differentiates them from gasoline vehicles in another way. all that said, I don't need my car to be ultra technologically advanced. I WANT an econobox that gets me from A to B safely and efficiently. I want AC, but I don't need power seats. I want power mirrors, but I don't need a heated steering wheel. I want cruise control and an auxiliary input for the stereo, but I don't need satellite internet that streams every song on iTunes as part of my lease. I also want it to cost under $25k new, and not need a $7500 tax credit to be economical! My corolla is almost as budget as you can get in a 4-door. I will replace it with another corolla, just with a few more features than the base "CE" model I currently drive. When I went to the Indy GP, I averaged over 37mpg doing 75+ with the AC on. My day-to-day average is 34mpg in mixed driving. Sitting in traffic on deadman's curve is killing my average! 80 miles a day sucks, but lately I've been taking the 'long' way home and driving 85 miles to avoid DMC. Less stop and go is saving me on fuel economy.

I had to remind myself that you're in columbus, so the plowing load is a lot different than in NEO, but I have never known anyone locally who is happy with the job their lawn tractor does plowing snow. The lone exception is a friend of mine whose father bought a really high-end AWD lawn tractor with a hinged chassis. It wasn't quite a zero-turn, but it was pretty badass. The AWD and the fact that it was probably a Husqvarna engine made it decent in the snow. If you're serious about spending $5k on a mower, I would try to find a 4x4 quad with a plow, and then purchase something like this:

Very cool, but not priced practically. I think Tesla is playing the market right by highlighting a model that will hit 60 in 4 seconds. That draws attention. But they will make real money when they can make a civic competitor for under $20k

I think that's a common sentiment, but not as accurate as people tend to think. Yes, police departments have to financially justify their expenses. But traffic stops are also a pretty effective way of discovering other crimes. Personal beliefs on controlled substances aside, traffic stops often lead to drug investigations and arrests made on outstanding warrants. Clocking speeders is certainly not the most important part of a police officer's job, but I think patrolling IS an important function. The alternative is to have police officers wait in the station (like the fire department) until someone calls - except EVERYONE reports fires, and a lot of criminal activity goes unreported.

Either you're exaggerating, or that's why you crashed. Mystery solved.

It's not really a movie about motorcycles. As succinctly as I can put it, there aren't many fathers or other positive male role models in the film. I didn't enjoy the film. Well made, but not enjoyable.

I haven't had dish since the 2013 race season

3 American rounds was never going to be a long-term sustainable arraingment, and COTA and Laguna Seca are simply better tracks. more exciting anyway. Indianapolis is historic, and the pavement is pretty awesome now, but the layout just isn't famous... Honestly, if you showed me a track map graphic, I couldn't identify Indy. I can definitely identify Laguna, and I think I'd be able to ID COTA. I am a bit surprised that they're keeping 2 rounds that are both in the 'Western' US, but they're probably still far enough apart to draw different crowds. That (in my mind) is the biggest obstacle "US Motorcycle Racing" faces - the sheer size of the country. It's really financially straining for teams to race in Laguna, and New Jersey. AMA Pro used to do that part right, IMHO. They ran the supersport 600's in East and West regions, and then held 1 national event at the end of the year to determine the overall class champion. I'm not sure what the most 'central' track in the US is... Road America, or COTA is my guess.

I never understood buying 'kids' nice newer cars until I had my own kid. Wife's next car (and the only one my kid will ride in) will be a Volvo, or something that crashes as well as one.

I recall hearing that the infield repave bought Indy a few more years. Maybe 5 more, with 2 of those already gone now(?)

And have a life insurance policy.

If this weren't Jinu's old bike, I would be tempted.

I've had mixed experiences at Salt Fork. As a teenager, we were cited for underage possession and had to dump out hundreds of beers in front of the park rangers. As an adult, they huffed and puffed A LOT, checked everyone's ID, threatened to throw us in jail and fine us some ungodly amount PER CONTAINER, and then they left without doing anything. We never drank on the lake. I did a lot of tubing on that lake as a kid, but by the time we were 21+, our buddy's dad wasn't springing to rent the boat and cover our gas any more As small group wouldn't get hassled. A bunch of dudes probably would.

My weekend was probably a lot different than most other people's. I went in knowing that I was there to "work," and figured that any spectating i got to do would be a bonus. Brad runs Superstock 1000, so Jake Gagne sets the pace, with Josh Day and Taylor Knapp rounding out the top 3 most weekends. Gagne turned a 1:38.4 and Brad was struggling to get under 1:47 in practice. The MotoGP riders being there really cuts down on the amount of practice time the riders get, so he was qualifying with maybe 40 laps under his belt at a track that he'd never seen before. Plus it rained on Thursday, so those laps were really only good for learning the layout. Dry qualifying on Friday was the first time he was able to set brake markers and turn-in points at anything close to race pace. Luckily Brad rides really well in the wet, and he made the qualifying cut based on his wet practice times Friday. In Saturday's race, he got an okay start (normally that's a strength for him) and immediately started dropping into the 1:44's, clipping off a 1:43.1 and closing in on the bike ahead of him. Kyle Wyman, Mark Heckles, and a third rider i can't remember got together on the first lap, so that immediately gifted Brad 3 positions, but he also had to slow to avoid hitting them, and the rest of the field gapped the last 3 riders by quite a bit. So 9 or 10 laps went by, and we were watching Brad turn consistent 1:44's, and gain on Max Flinders (#888) ...and then he crashed. I don't know exactly what happened (who ever does?), but the result was that Brad lost the front on the brakes after making a pass into 13th. His bike slid into the path of Max's bike, and they both went down. Max was conscious and up, but either he or his bike were unable to continue. That sucked. Brad was able to pick up the bike and finish the race, but two of the three guys who had crashed on the first lap had come by while Brad was on the ground, and he rode it home in a lonely 16th place. On top of that, when the bike went down, it dumped coolant from the reservoir. Nothing on the tires, but as soon as the bike slowed from race pace, it started to overheat. Brad shut it down, and the bike came in on the crash truck, rather than risking putting fluid on the track. Considering the speed of the crash, the bike was in phenominal shape. Really only cosmetic damage to the bodywork, and the Vortex case guard on the left side probably saved a BIG mess. Sunday morning practice was a joke. 7:30 - 7:45. Brad got back up to speed right away and followed Chris Ulrich long enough to learn that he was using 1st gear in one of the tighter turns that Brad had been staying in 2nd. That knowledge was good for a few tenths of drive, but the bike was still overheating as soon as it slowed from race pace. Sunday's race was a waiting game. With only 1 bike, we had to wait as long as possible to make a decision on whether to run slicks or rains. Everyone went with slicks. I don't know if we disrupted something on the bike in our haste, or if it was all just bad luck, but Brad said he got some front-end chatter, and then lost the front. Anyway, Brad wasn't happy. Understandably. He worked his ass off all weekend to get a good result, and it landed him in the gravel. He never blamed the bike or anyone on the team, but all he would say when he came in with a belly-pan full of gravel was "I'm done." He didn't sound mad - just disappointed. It's a lot of pressure to get a good result for a sponsored ride. All that said, I was super impressed with how quickly Brad got up to speed and how much time he dropped in the race. I think race 2 might have yielded even faster laps. Next time.

I'm in that picture somewhere We were pitted right across from the Dunlop truck. This was taken Sunday, after the people next to us packed up and went home. Their rider didn't make the cut. Our guy struggled. The whole process is a lot more intense than a club race.

the 4-cylinder Camry is a 2.4, yes? That is a bit of a soul-sucker, but the V6 rips pretty good. I actually looked up the acceleration numbers a couple of years ago because i bet a guy i was working with that the Camry was quicker than a Magnum P.I. Ferrari. (I was right).

I have no idea, but i should be getting an update today from people who arrived late last night.

So about an hour ago a friend asked for an extra crew member. Unless something changes in the next couple of days, I'll be in the Twisted Speed Racing pits with credentials 8)

I agree with josh and pauly. The "harmless" prank only remains harmless until a legitimately handicapped person is deprived of use of the electric scooters. Yes, the cops should have handled it differently, but they don't get to decide who calls them, nor do we know what the caller told dispatch. "Two masked men terrorizing customers and employees" or something...

That first officer has the wrong temperament for the job. That said, failure to comply with a lawful order (I.e. Take off your helmet) is obstructing official business, and the officer can legally detain him at that point.

I'm not sure a damper would have prevented that. Setting it down crossed up isn't something you really recover from easily. May have been able to throttle out, keeping the front end light, but that's almost impossible once the bars start slapping.

The 250 offered to me in trade today is 211 dry.

I think it's cheating to go back to a bike he's already owned.

i don't mind spiders. they eat other far more annoying bugs. minus walking my face through their webs, i don't usually evict them from my property.

I have never ridden with any organization who requires any more than taping your lights and removing your plate for Beginner group. So that's basically no bike prep whatsoever. Nelson Ledges is the closest and cheapest track. Mid-Ohio is very nice, but also priced accordingly. It's garbage in the rain. PIRC is less than 2 hours from Cuyahoga County, and (in my opinion) the happy medium. It will cost less than Mid-Ohio, and you can ride it in the rain. The layout is also pretty awesome. You can ride to the track, but it's not the greatest idea. I could fit your bike on my trailer if I happen to be heading to PIRC on a day there is also a bike event on the big track.