Tuesday, July 17, 2018

the disaster that was the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans is being animated into a 15-minute animated short : Le Mans 1955


The race, for those unfamiliar, was marred by a crash between an Austin-Healey, a Jaguar, and a Mercedes 300 SLR. After Mike Hawthorn cut his Jaguar in front of Lance Macklin’s Austin-Healey, Macklin swerved into the path of Pierre Levegh’s Mercedes. The crash not only claimed Levegh’s life, but those of 83 spectactors. Several countries – including France, Spain, Switzerland, and Germany – banned racing in the aftermath, and Mercedes withdrew from motorsports altogether. Mercedes wouldn’t return to racing until 1989, and Switzerland only recently began relaxing its ban on motorsports.

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/07/tragedy-le-mans-1955-animated-artful-style/

made of cardboard!


The M10 inline-four Hemi with a single overhead cam from Bavaria. The M10 was the bread-and-butter power unit of BMW from the early ‘60s until it was phased out in the late ‘80s.

When BMW needed something to compete with in the insanely powerful era of turbocharged Formula 1, they turned to the trusty M10 base they’d built their M12 Formula 2 engines on. The F1 variant, the M12/13, would continue to develop into the middle of the ‘80s to the point where it could supposedly produce 1,400hp.






https://petrolicious.com/articles/pulp-friction-bmw-enthusiast-recreates-the-iconic-m10-engine-out-of-cardboard

Kleenex alert... the company owner gave the newest employee a new car, after learning the guy walked to work to make it to his new job, 20 miles, to work as a moving company guy



Carr, who hopes to be a US Marine one day, made the late-night journey after his 2003 Nissan Altima broke down. He calculated it would take seven hours to get to his first moving gig with the Bellhops moving company, AL.com reported.

He was trekking along Highway 280 when concerned police officers stopped to check on his well-being. After Carr told them his story, they bought him breakfast before delivering him to Lamey’s home an hour and a half early.

“We all decided, hey, you know, let’s go get him some breakfast and get him somewhere safe,” Officer Mark Knighten told WBMA.

“Proud to have encountered this young man. He certainly made an impact on us,” the Pelham police department tweeted.  https://www.facebook.com/PelhamPoliceDepartment/posts/2365450876806011


Jenny Lamey, a customer of the moving firm, wrote on Facebook that she and her husband had awoken early last Friday to prepare for movers who were due to arrive at around 08:00

At 06:30, their doorbell rang, and Ms Lamey met Mr Carr, who was accompanied by a police officer from the Pelham police force.

While helping her with the kitchen, she said, he told her of his childhood in New Orleans, Louisiana, and how his family had moved to Houston, Texas, after their home was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.c

"He proceeded to tell us that he had picked up 'this nice kid' in Pelham early this morning," said Ms Lamey.

"The nice kid, Walter, said that he was supposed to help us with our move today."

She continued: "He WALKED ALL NIGHT to get from Homewood to Pelham. Because he needed to get to work. For those reading this that are not local, that's over 20 miles.

Ms Lamey said she offered him a rest before the moving crew arrived, but Mr Carr declined and got right to work.

The rest of the crew arrived and then the craziness started. All of the young men that came to move us yesterday (9 in total) were some of the best young men I have met. Several of them were in college, engineering majors (you should have seen them putting together our beds!!), one of them starts PA school in the fall, some just working hard since high school, some of them had been with Bellhops a while and others had just started! With the way they worked together as a team, you would have thought they had worked together for years.  https://www.facebook.com/jenny.lamey/posts/10214187127164485

Bellhops CEO Luke Marklin, the chief executive of the moving company, after seeing the Facebook post, drove from Tennessee to Alabama and presented his dedicated new employee with his personal 2014 Ford Escape.

After chatting over a cup of coffee, Mr Marklin handed Mr Carr the keys to his own 2014 Ford Escape.



"I am honestly blown away by him," Mr Marklin said. "Everything he did that day is exactly who we are - heart and grit."

An emotional Mr Carr responded "Seriously?" He then hugged Mr Marklin and accepted the keys.

On Monday, he told reporters that he was grateful just to have had the job opportunity.

"This was the first job in a long time to give me an opportunity to get hired," he told AL.com.

"I wanted to show them I got the dedication. I said I'm going to get to this job one way or another."

He continued: "I want people to know this - no matter what the challenge is, you can break through the challenge. Nothing is impossible unless you make it impossible."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-44854370
https://www.facebook.com/jenny.lamey/posts/10214187127164485
https://nypost.com/2018/07/17/student-walks-20-miles-to-new-job-so-ceo-gifts-him-a-car
https://twitter.com/PelhamPoliceAL

There is only one of the Back To The Future screen-used DeLorean in private hands, and, more remarkable, it's really a VW Beetle with the DeLorean body over it so it could take the rough terrain driving in the old west scene s




one of the three left in the world (and the only screen-used DeLorean in private hands) cost car collector duo, father and son, Bill and Patrick Shea of North Central Massachusetts a whopping $440,000 back in 2011.

It was actually a VW chassis and the reason is that the director needed a DeLorean that could take the punishment of unforgiving terrain for the scene where Marty Fly had to drive the DeLorean Time Machine across the sparsely vegetated desert. Obviously, the lackluster DeLorean DMC-12 won’t be able to take the beatings and so, it was decided that a dune buggy set up was the way to go.

https://mikeshouts.com/original-delorean-from-back-to-the-future-iii/

the 2018 Ford Eagle Squadron Mustang GT


Designed to pay tribute to the Eagle Squadron and the Royal Air Force’s 100th anniversary, the one-off model was jointly developed with professional drifter Vaughn Gittin Jr. His involvement in the project is clearly visible as the car has been equipped with an RTR carbon fiber widebody kit.

The changes don’t stop there as the Mustang has a front spoiler, canards and an RTR illuminated grille. Designers also installed aerodynamic side skirts and a Gurney flap on the existing rear spoiler. Lastly, the car was given an eye-catching camouflage exterior which draws inspiration from the Spitfire fighters used by the Eagle Squadron.



https://www.carscoops.com/2018/07/700-hp-ford-eagle-squadron-mustang-gt-debuts-goodwood/

Now imagine a version of this that is a powerful and agile as a World Rally Championship car


Customization experts Memminger is known for its restorations of the Volkswagen Beetle, having made them since the mid-‘90s. Now the company has decided to show what it’d do if it were to create its own Roadster, named the 2.7 after the liter size of the air-cooled boxer engine. Providing 210 horsepower, it would use a 5-speed gearbox and have custom bodywork that sits on a welded tubular steel frame that’s visible from inside the car.

The rest of the interior sees tartan-lined racing seats while the wheels use disc brakes borrowed from the 911, alongside lightweight 18-inch alloy wheels.
https://hypebeast.com/2018/4/memminger-beetle-roadster-2-7

industrial designer Marc Newson has created a book, and work of art, in tribute to Ferrari‘s 70th anniversary. The leather-bound books are signed and numbered to a limited 1,947 copies.


The handstitched Collector’s Edition is implanted in the Ferrari motor–inspired aluminum case created by Newson, which was closely collaborated upon alongside the Italian automakers. Inside features exclusive content from the Ferrari Archives, which also includes unseen photographs and documents pertaining to the brand’s rich legacy.

The Art Edition, of which only 250 exists, is raised by a sculpture designed by Newson inspired by the 12-cylinder engine



https://hypebeast.com/2018/5/ferrari-marc-newson-taschen-book

Hot Wheels Car Care Products will be the presenting sponsor of the PPG Syracuse Nationals July 20 – 22 2018 at the New York State Fairgrounds in the company’s hometown of Syracuse, NY.


The Hot Wheels Car Care Crew will be stationed near each gate educating, demonstrating, and selling their professional appearance products.

“We’re proud to be the Presenting Sponsor and the Official Appearance Products of this landmark event in our hometown,” said Dan Pikarsky, Founder and President of Americana Pro Detailing Products. “We’ve developed easy-to-use, professional-grade blends for our Hot Wheels Car Care line.

 In fact, this week alone we’re participating in SPOCOM in Anaheim,
The Hot Wheels Legends Tour in Chicago,
 Street Scene 2018 in Liverpool, NY,
and NHRA Mile High Nationals in Denver, Colorado,
partnering with John Force Racing and Laughlin Motorsports."

http://prnewsbureau.com/hot-wheels/

Paul Smith x Sports Purpose 1965 Porsche 911




the bold stripes are not limited to the exterior; they extend into the inside with the Porsche customizer stripping out most of the interior to allow the colored stripes to shine in the cabin.



https://mikeshouts.com/paul-smith-1965-porsche-911/

Revoked license 28 yr old driver, going the wrong way, smashes into El Camino. 2 guys died on a test drive




Division Street runs through a busy section of Waite Park. Monday night, it’s where 77-year-old Roger Nelson met a potential buyer of his 1970 Chevrolet El Camino. A car that won trophies. A car he loved.

Monday night, that car was crushed and 61-year-old Richard Tomlinson of Grantsburg, Wis., was killed as he was test-driving it.  Roger Nelson’s family members say he was a retired truck driver, father of four and a grandpa. Nelson, who was on the passenger side, also died.

“It was pretty catastrophic. I don’t want to speculate as to the speed of the striking vehicle, but from my experience, it would seem to me that he was traveling at a pretty above the posted speed limit,” Waite Park Police Chief David Bentrud said.

Police say the wrong-way driver, Charlie Barnett, had just gotten out of jail that day after violating an order for protection.

According to state records, Barnett’s driver’s license is revoked. It also showed he was arrested and booked into the Stearns County Jail on July 8 and released on July 9 after being cited for a misdemeanor no-contact order violation. It’s his fifth no-contact order violation out of Stearns County since being charged with domestic assault in January 2018.



https://www.facebook.com/groups/996045710517424/permalink/1619522634836392/
https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2018/07/10/wrong-way-fatal-crash-waite-park/
http://knsiradio.com/news/local-news/man-charged-wrong-way-crash

Monday, July 16, 2018

the Duke Ellington School of the Arts had a fundraiser, and the raffle prize was a 2019 Chili Red hardtop Mini Cooper!

..............................................................................................................................................................

This raffle was a fundraiser, the proceeds of which will support the activities and programming of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts (DESA).

It was formed through a partnership with MINI of Sterling, The Ellington Fund, and the school's parent organization SHADE.

This was the 1st all-school raffle; parents, staff, faculty, students 18+ years old, and community members all sold tickets on behalf of the school

Tickets sold could be designated toward 1 of 8 arts departments (dance, theater, music, singing, art, etc) to adults over the age of 18 (so a student might get the car, but only if their parent was feeling generous enough to share).

This year's winner is a friend and donor to The Ellington Fund. When informed that she was the grand prize winner, the first thing she said was that she couldn't believe it because she never wins anything!

The school may do another All-School raffle next year, perhaps with a different car, or perhaps with an entirely different grand prize, tbd.

About the school, I learned of it from Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, when Jerry Seinfeld was filming an episode with Dave Chappelle, and they stopped by the school to drop off Dave's Emmy, to inspire the students by showing an example of the accomplishments that the former students have accomplished. How cool is that!!!

When they walked into the school, they passed the grand piano that Steve Wonder donated to the school... seriously, wow.


If you look back at the concerts (Performance Series of Legends) that have been there at the school, they've been fundraisers, and both Stevie Wonder in 1994, and other incredible musicians, like Patti LaBelle, Earth Wind and Fire, Sting and Paul Simon, and Smoky Robinson!

These five performances cumulatively raised $2 million.



it's so impressive that the DESotA is focused on by the Kennedy, and celebs take a moment to inspire the kids, like Dave Chappelle's Emmy, and Stevie Wonder's grand piano.

Starting young, learning in a disciplined yet improvisational manner, flourishing in a tough world, developing a lifelong network of fruitful relationships—all these accomplishments are represented in the life of the composer, bandleader, and Washington, D.C. native, Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington. His are the qualities we have worked to instill in graduates since the Duke Ellington School of the Arts was founded over forty years ago. We do so by guiding 9th to 12th grade students through a full academic course of study and an arts major: Dance, Literary Media and Communications, Museum Studies, Instrumental or Vocal Music, Theatre, Technical Design and Production, or Visual Arts.

From the beginning, public and private partnerships have supported the school, which in 2000 evolved into the Duke Ellington School of the Arts Project (DESAP), which includes the D.C. Public Schools, the Ellington Fund, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and George Washington University.

http://www.ellingtonschool.org/ellington-fund/2018-mini-cooper-all-school-raffle/
http://www.ellingtonschool.org/ellington-fund/performance-series-of-legends/

An Arizona man was arrested for pretending to be a police officer when he attempted to pull over a car, which happened to be occupied by two Arizona state troopers. (thanks Allen!)

Disbro was driving a black Dodge Charger on Route 51 in Phoenix

The Arizona Department of Public Safety said they are not sure if Disbro had pulled over any other motorists, but asked anybody who may have been stopped by a black Dodge Charger to reach out to them.

https://943wsc.iheart.com/content/2018-07-16-man-pretending-to-be-cop-pulls-over-two-police-officers/

Hard to believe that people are still imitating cops, after all these years with so many of them getting busted