automotive

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2015 Sacramento International Auto Show

Posted by Snob on October 17, 2015
Posted in: Automotive, canon 5D mark III, Events. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment
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Shelby Mustang at the Sacramento International Auto Show

The best time to catch this show is on it’s opening day – today. It wasn’t anywhere as packed at it will be this weekend. For me this meant I could walk the showroom floor fairly leisurely, take my time to check out the coming year’s models and chat with the various representatives about their new models.

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Hyundai had a very nice, well put together display and some compelling products as always.

I felt the overall energy or theme (if there was one) this year was one more of refinements, enhancements, and low key releases of new tech. Most new models seemed to be more evolutionary than revolutionary. There’s nothing wrong about that. I think it’s a good thing actually. What this meant was that almost every automaker had a better, improved product offering overall. I was hard pressed to find a vehicle with poor build, fit or finish. The designs all held their own. Quality was decent to very high throughout. I couldn’t help but think to myself “how traditional mainstream automakers have come a long way”.

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Toyota FCV

Some of the latest alternative fuel vehicles on display included the Toyota FCV – a car I often wonder what it really accomplishes, considering Hydrogen is still a very expensive fuel, cumbersome to store, FCV power trains are about as complicated as internal combustion power trains but most mind boggling of all, the fact that most Hydrogen is derived yet again from fossil fuels. “At present, 95 percent of America’s hydrogen is produced from natural gas. Through a process called steam methane reformation, high temperature and pressure break the hydrocarbon into hydrogen and carbon oxides — including carbon dioxide, which is released into the atmosphere as a greenhouse gas.” [Popular Mechanics]. So it really doesn’t address the bigger problem. It will be interesting to see if this goes anywhere or it ends up being just another road show for the automotive industry lobby in the capital, not unlike the rest of the vehicles at the California Fuel Cell Partnership over the last couple decades.

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Cadillac ELR

Cadillac ELR EV caught my eye. Great design and style. This is a vehicle I will have to research further. Overall Cadillac put on a good showing as always. There were a few Teslas on display as well. Almost every major automaker had some kind of Hybrid on display. The Polaris Slingshot was also a very interesting piece. I would like to test drive one for sure.

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Aston Martin Rapide

I also got to check out an Aston Martin Rapide for the first time. Rick the representative from Aston Martin Walnut Creek was gracious enough to let me take a closer look at this piece of exquisite art on wheels. Below are what I considered the highlights from the show. I hope you enjoy them and feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.

24 Hours of LeMons – Arse-Freeze-Apalooza 2014

Posted by Snob on December 8, 2014
Posted in: Art, Automotive, Canon 7D Mark II. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

It was that time of year again this past weekend. Once again I was rendered speechless. This time not because I was awestruck by the sheer raw passion fostered by this highly democratized version of endurance racing, but by laughter at the pure creative comedy inspired by a race structure that is forcefully, unbelievably, almost religiously cheap. It is impossible to be so financially invested in this race that you forget to just have fun racing. It is genius! Any form of glamor or glitz will immediately starve to death at the 24 hours of LeMons as the culture is decidedly void of the requisites. Sure not all teams are built and equipped equal but all cars are about as close to equal as any other race could ever hope to be. You can go to all the big races you want, but you haven’t felt this kind of passion until you spend at least one day at one of the many 24 Hours of LeMons races nationwide.

I covered this race last year and posted about is here:
24 Hours of LeMons – Arse-Freeze-Apalooza

The weather this year was challenging. Last year’s was dry, cold but clear. This year’s was wet, foggy, not as cold and very poor visibility. Nothing is ever perfect.

Los Luchadores del Fiero Libre
As always I had to cover my favorite team the Luchadores of Fiero Libre. Since the last time I saw them at Sears Pointless, they’ve had a few mishaps, including an unfortunate accident that wrecked the whole front of their Fabled Fiero. The new front end came off a red fiero. This prompted a rebirth of the Fiero Libre as a red-ish speed demon. It was more of an evolution of the team. This year their theme was Luchadores dressed as Michael Jackson in Thriller!!! WTF!!!??? Yeah, I thought so too! Upon arriving to their pit, all the rain and fog disappeared as I was welcomed by the comedy. I was in stitches the whole time. Here are highlights from my coverage of Team Fiero Libre from setup, drivers’ meeting, pre-race prep and race start.

Setup and Prep
Upon arriving and checking-in with Team Fiero Libre, I walked around and snagged a few candid shots of the various teams just waking up and getting ready for the long day ahead. Spirits were high despite the very damp and gloomy weather. Folks were as happy and friendly as anyone could be while following their bliss. Humbling indeed.

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New race teams or new cars?
I spotted a few cars I did not recognize from last year’s spectacle. They could be from entire new teams or new cars from previous teams. Considering these cars were already dead, or should I say already dead anything is possible. If there were ever an automotive zombie apocalypse, this is what it would look like!

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Misc race and action shots
Below are some miscellaneous track shots from the race. Please feel free to contact me if you don’t see your team car here. I may have some good shots in my archives and am more than happy to share them with you. There is no licensing fee for shots from my coverage of the 24 Hours of LeMons races. Please feel free to re-post, re-blog and publish with proper credits of course. 🙂

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24 Hours of LeMons – Arse-Freeze-Apalooza

Posted by Snob on December 12, 2013
Posted in: Art, Automotive. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

This past weekend I had the pleasure and honor of attending for the first time, a race at the Sonoma Raceway here in California. It was the final race of the year for the “24 Hours of LeMons” series Arse-Freeze-Apalooza. The entire experience rendered me speechless, in tears (from laughter), in disbelief but most of all humbled by the the raw passion, and determination to play hard by each and every person and team at the track that day. I’ve been told before that my passion for my hobbies can sometimes be too much… well, let’s just say this weekend I saw what the big leagues look like. If you are not familiar with this race please enjoy yourself looking through their website:
http://www.24hoursoflemons.com

Here is a Car and Driver writeup that will get you up to speed on the whole idea behind the 24 Hours of LeMons:
http://www.caranddriver.com/features/beaters-rule-the-24-hours-of-lemons-feature

Team: Fiero Libre!
I was there primarily to support my friends’ team: Fiero Libre. I was up and on the road before sunrise heading from Sacramento to the Sonoma Raceway. Nothing prepared me for what I saw upon arriving just after sunrise. The entire park was chock full with teams, busily propping up their $500 beaters for the day’s race in sub zero temperatures! There was cheer everywhere. Everyone was in a great mood, the kind of mood only present when you’re really doing the only thing you’d rather spend your precious life doing. Great camaraderie! I finally found the Fiero Libre Luchadores amidst all the chaos. Below is a photo chronicle of the day’s events. They had worked their way to the top of their class but experienced a set back just an hour and half from the end of the race. The original ignition coil on the Fiero finally gave up after decades of torture. With no spare in sight, the team concluded they’ll just have to let the race go this time – then they proceeded to crack open some cold beers with all the gusto of someone who just walked across the Sahara.

Team Fiero Libre at the 24 Hours of LeMons
Fiero Libre cockpit
Fiero Libre
Fiero Libre
Team Fiero Libre prepping for start
Fiero Libre cockpit
Fiero Libre cockpit
Fiero Libre at race start
Team Fiero Libre just after start of Race
Team Fiero Libre pushing hard in the morning
Team Fiero Libre at top of their class in the afternoon.
Bad ignition coil towards end of the race
Team Fiero Libre diagnosing the fault
Fiero Libre cockpit
Fiero Libre cockpit
Fiero Libre engine
Team Fiero Libre!!!

Gearing up for the Race!
There was so much creativeity and the attention to the madness and detail was impressive to say the least. My thoughts raced from “oooh that is ingenious” to “oh my god, I cannot believe he/she actually did that!”. Yes I said SHE! I spotted a lot of girls/ladies in the thick of it, and a few at the steering, just waiting to let it all rip to hell. Here are the highlights. Be sure to look closely at these cars and their teams. It’s pure entertainment.

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The Race!
Once started all you heard echo throughout the hills were the painful screams and cries from over 150 $500 beaters. Cars that were already left for dead but somehow missed the crusher. Cars that had become perfectly comfortable in the afterlife but were seemingly, unfairly yanked back into this world, forcefully resuscitated, revived by hook or crook and flogged till they awoke and screamed out of the gates as if they had just seen the devil himself. Running down the track, begging for death to come and take them out of their misery! Comical does not even begin to describe my entire day. I very quickly forgot my hands and feet were frozen numb and aching.

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Final laps and end of the race for some!
Towards the end for the race, while Team Fiero Libre tried to revive their trusty Fiero, I decided to walk around and see what everyone else was up to. Many other cars did not make it through the day and some where busy hustling through their final pit stop and driver change. Team Blowes’ level of pride and professionalism was particularly inspiring. These guys really took their sport serious. Enjoy the highlights below:

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