WELCOME!

I decided to start this blog to as an avenue for me to be able to post about some of the fun things that I do from time to time. It could be a Car Show revue, what I did on Vacation, what I like about this or that automobile, my experience with a photo shoot, what I have in my Automobilia collection, or whatever I think of at the moment. I hope you like it! All feedback will be appreciated.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

MOTO GP/AMA 2011 MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA

Well it was another awesome weekend of volunteering down at the track. I headed down on Thursday after I got out of class and got there around 3:00 pm. I got everything unloaded and did some walking around for a bit. I went over to the riders.org charity auction to see what was being auctioned off. WOW! there was some sweet items that went to some very lucky buyers. I was able to get a few autographs as the riders came out of the auction. I had my 2011 Tickets Advertising poster signed by Alvaro Bautista, Cal Crutchlow, and Colin Edwards. I was also able to get a photo with Colin. Then I decided to just relax for the night.

The next morning it was up at 5:00 am and ready by 6:00 for a meeting of assignments. I was posted at center gate as usual. It's a great place to be working. All the AMA riders coming in and out all weekend was cool. I took the opportunity to talk to a few of them over the weekend. Specifically I spoke to Josh Herrin and Austin DeHaven. Two great riders with lots of potential to go nowhere but up. The other great thing about working the center gate was that Tommy Hayden was right there. I was able to meet quite a few riders over the weekend. This is why I love being there. The memories I'll have for the rest of my life are worth more than a signature.

To continue with Friday, I worked the Fan Pit Walk and I was able to get up and close to some of the best bikes in the world. But not too close. I don't want to overstep my bounds. I left my camera in the trailer and just used my iPhone all weekend. Kind of a rule for this event for those of us in the paddock crew. All business, no interference. It kind of sucks, but I have been dealing with it every year since 2008 and it's not an issue that bother me. Getting to be in the middle of it all is worth it to me. also on Friday was the use of the Rev Limiter Zone for the fans along the Cold Pits from Center gate up to Start/Finish. I was able to talk with some fans that were more than happy to be that close to the action. The other cool thing is this - No other track on the calendar for Moto GP has paddock passes for the fans to get so close to the riders. I think that's an awesome benefit for the fans. No wonder we get fans from all over the world at this event. All I can say is - Thanks for coming! Meeting those that I have met have been great experiences for me. More memories for me to remember.

Saturday was a great day as well. More of the same stuff as was happening on Friday. The only difference was I was pulled away to do a different assignment for about an hour. Can't say where, but it did include being close to the motorhomes and team rooms. I didn't see much though. When I was done with the assignment, I headed out and decided to spend about 5-10 minutes watching the fans in this area. What a happy bunch of fans they were. No photos, no signatures once again, just more visual memories. In the afternoon I was able to watch the AMA Pro America SuperSport race in the Cold Pits on the jumbotron. Seeing somewhat of a local rider, Elena Myers get up to 2nd place was awesome. She finished in 5th. When I say local, she practices about 20 minutes away from where I live and lives about 30 minutes away. Once the race was over it was time to play guard at Parc Ferme. After it was all done for the day, it was time to relax. Hanging out where we always do all weekend at the end of the day. I ended up talking for a bit to Sabastio Ferreira of whom finished 10th in the days race, and Jett Chandler since they had come to hang out with the crew. After a little bit it was time to crash.

Once again, on Sunday it was up at 5:00 am. A long fun day was ahead. It was great! Watching the E-Power  bikes run was interesting, and quiet. Then the AMA Daytona SportBike race. Once again I was watching the big jumbotron from the Cold Pits. I was rooting for Josh Herrin, he was kicking some serious butt, and then something happened. Not sure what, but I've never seen a rider so bummed out. I felt so bad for him. But, he kept his head up and realized, there's always the next race.

In the afternoon it was what everyone had come out for. The MotoGP World Championship race. Being in the middle of it all once again on the pit wall watching everyone come out and get ready was once again a priveledge I will never forget. Then the race came! Watching the warm up lap and the start of the race from the pit wall was absolutely awesome.. Then it was over to cold pits to watch it on the jumbotron. What a great race. 35 laps later it was time to get the fencing up for the Fan Invasion for the Podium ceremony. Being on the corner of Parc Ferme as I was last year was just something that is as rare as experience come. Being there when the Honda team came to congratulate Casey Stoner for his win, and Danny Pedrosa for his 3rd place finish. Being so close yet again was a priveledged memory. Then as Mrs. Stoner walked by I made sure to tell her "Congtrats!" She replied with a simple "Thank You!" I thought that was pretty cool. Usually she is so focused on getting away from everyone that she ignores you, but not this time. I was actually surprised. Then I was off yet once again to  do the same duty I needed to do as I did on Saturday. I waited for an hour and then they came through. Firts it was Danny Pedrosa on the back of Brian's Scooter, then about 10-15 minutes later it was Both Casey Stoner and his wife on the back of 2 other scooters. Lorenzo was taken a different route, but once that happened, I was able to go back to the Cold Pits. The whole time I was away, I was watching the AMA Superbike Race on the Trilon. Seeing Tommy Hayden kick some butt was great. I went to Parc Ferme once again to keep the fans away from the bikes. Once there, I saw The Hayden Parents come in for the celebration. I gave mom a hug, shook dads hand and congratulated them both. And then Nicky came in. I shook his hand and congratulated him on his brothers win. I didn't see Roger though. A great family they are too. Once it was all over with, we then had to kick the fans out of the Garage Pits since they were getting in the way of the Teams breaking everything down and boxing it all up in shipping crates. Man what a pain in the butt that can be. The fans were cool for the most part and left. We stayed to keep all the Track workers from coming over the wall to get in the way. I was asked nicely by a few of them to come over and get Alvaro Bautista signature on their bibs since he was sitting on the wall. I also had one girl (Track worker) that was dying to get through to go see Josh Hayes out in the paddock. She asked in such a way that it was hard to refuse. I told her which way to go, and she did just that. Wow! Someone actually listened! Then the day was over and a little bit later it was time to head home. And what a long ride that was.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Up Late AGAIN!

It seems lately that more and more I end up not being able to get to sleep when I really need to. Specifically today! Here is what my day was like.

I got up around 5:30 am and jumped on the treadmill for a 30 minute cardio
Grabbed my breakfast consisting of Koshi cereal, a banana, and a glass of orange juice
Jumped in the shower
Got ready, and left for my morning class
Stopped for fuel and a couple waters on the way to school
Went to class from 8:00 am to 10:30 am
Went to a thrift store and found a couple items
Headed back towards home, but had to go pick up some tickets that I needed to ship to a friend to get into the MotoGP event on Sunday that is helping us out in the paddock, as well as for my Autobody Instructor that I invited
Came home and got all the packages done to be shipped from selling stuff on eBay
Ran to the post office to ship all the packages and the tickets
Went to the store for a couple items needed for dinner
Came home and attempted to read school textbook
Got to a point and crashed on the couch
Woke up for dinner
Went back to reading more in the school textbook
Crashed again!
My wife woke me up to watch a show that was tivo'd
Went back to reading more of the school textbook

By this time it was about 10:15 pm and I really needed to get to bed so I could get up early again for my cardio on the treadmill. But since I'm awake and can't get to sleep, I'm not sure I want to get up that early. We shall see when that alarm goes off at 5:30 am again.

Besides having to deal with school, my adrenaline is a little higher that normal since I will be going down once again to the track for another memorable work weekend. Moto GP is our biggest event and the most stressful. But, that is what makes Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca so exciting to be at. Yeah it may be work, volunteer work at that, but it's the kind of work that is enjoyable. WHY? Well it's all about the experience and where I get to go that others in the world would pay a butt load of money to get into. Last year I was hanging out there with Nicky Hayden during the fan session in pit row. It's all about that type of experience. No wonder I'm having trouble getting to sleep. I can't stop thinking about what experiences are coming up this weekend. I can't wait to get out of class on Thursday and head down.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Championship - 06/09/2011

After the Karting was all done, I wanted to get some photos before the race ended. So I went off to get some photos up at Turn 11 Gate, but forgot I left my camera bag over at Center gate, so over there I went. I stayed for a bit and fortunately I did. I grabbed some shots of Dempsey Motorsports doing a driver change. I put my iPhone camera on, put it on the wall when the car came in and I snapped away with my 40D. It was cool to see so close. Joe Foster came out, Patrick Dempsey jumped in. Yes, the Patrick Dempsey. A cool guy too. After that was all over, I ran back to Turn 11 gate and started grabbing more pics. By this time the race was in a full course yellow. So I walked down the wall to Turn 10 and grabbed some pics and some video with my iPhone. After the race Istayed around to watch the Shifter Karts start up and head onto the track. Then it was time to watch these thing s fly by. I had never watched the Shifter Karts before, and after seeing how fast these things are, I will definately watch the next time.


Patrick Dempsey jumping in
 After a while of watching the Shifter Karts and taking some photos, the race was complete and we gave the drivers a thumbs up as they passed us on their way into the pit entrance there at Turn 11. Then it was over and off I went to watch the fans around the transporters. There was about 20-30 waiting for Patrick Dempsey to come out, but little did they even notice that out the back he went and walked clear across and out of the paddock without anyone chasing him down. Well except for me. I wanted to see if he was coming back in August for the Monterey Motorsports Reunion as he had for the past few years. We shall see if he does or not. If he does, hopefully I'll have a surprise to post on here.

Once I was done it was time to hang out for about an hour then head home. Until the next time.

ANOTHER VIEW FROM TURN 11 GATE

ROLEX SPORTS CAR CHAMPIONSHIP at MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA

Another short video from my iPhone of the cars under a full course yellow.

A VIEW FROM THE WALL at TURN 11 GATE

ROLEX SPORTS CAR CHAMPIONSHIP at MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA
A short video from my iPhone of the cars under a full course yellow.

Dempsy Racing Pit Stop

ROLEX GRAND AM SPORTS CAR CHAMPIONSHIP at MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA

A short video from my iPhone of Dempsey racing during a pit stop. You'll see Joe Foster getting out, Patrick Dempsey getting in. Yes! It is the Patrick Dempsey AKA "McDreamy".

Monday, July 11, 2011

Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge - 06/09/2011

Well I'm not quite sure how to start of here, So here goes.

First thing on Saturday morning I woke up a little later than I wanted. Fortunately, we were staying in Morgan Hill at an Executive Inn & Suites, so it wasn't like we we going to be to late. We, my wife & I, got up and got ready, checked out, grabbed some McD's for breakfast and then hit the freeway. We got to the track around 10:00am. I got my radio, started the scooter, and headed up to Center gate. I hooked up with a couple of the regular volunteers and watched some pit action from the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. While there I ran into, well somewhat of a regular at the track. Justin Bell was doing his work in the pits for SPEED Channel. So I said hello and chatted for a sec, then back to work we both went. The race I really have no idea what went on, other than what was going on within the 50 feet around me. We get so busy sometimes that we don't realize what action there is on the track during a race. After some time I went to lunch back in The Kennel.

After lunch I headed back to Center gate and saw that one of the Mustangs was coming through on a flat bed hauler. It was pretty banged up. I grabbed a few pics while I was there and then off to Center gate I went. As I got there, I had to turn around and well, I ended up having to go work at the Go-Karts that we run at a few events during the year. It's unbelievable how many people flock to these things to run 'em on our make shift track in the Paddock. It was pretty busy there for some time. Then the Grid Walk for the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car race came and we were kind of dead for a while until after the race had been going for a little while. While I was working I ended up talking to a gentleman and his son. I kind of went over to talk to him because he was wearing a Ferrari T-Shirt. Come to find out the guy drives a Porsche. WHAT! AHHH! Oh well! I did tell him though "that it doesn't matter what car you drive, as long as you have fun driving it". Well to make this part continue, He talked me into running the Karts with him since no one else was around to race. So, I got a few others that were working,  grabbed a helmet and jumped into a Kart for some fun. It was a great race. I was doing pretty good until one of our other volunteers smoked me. He does have a lot more experience though. But, I did beat mr Porsche!. YEAH! It was a lot of fun! I usually drive 'em when I get a chance if it gets slow enough to do so. But man do my arms hurt still. What a work out. The continuation of this story coming this week.

Driver Change - Multimatic Motorsports

Pit Stop - Capaldi Racing

Wrecked Mustang - Multimatic Motorsports


Sunday, July 10, 2011

ROLEX GRAND AM SPORTS CAR CHAMPIONSHIP at MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA


 A short video from my iPhone of some action from the pit wall at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
The Event: Continental Tire Sports Car Festival, Rolex Sports Car Championship.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

WYOMING THRIFT STORE FINDS

While on my trip in Wyoming I hit a couple thrift stores to finds some stuff to throw on eBay. Here are a few Automotive Related items that I was able to find.


Lowenbrau Porsche Hat Pin

Brickyard 400 Magnet

Standard Oil Jacket
Size 36R & 38R

Mobil Oil Flying Pegasus
10K Gold 10 Yr Service Pin

Tori Richards Harley Davidson Shirt
Mens Medium
Not bad either! I found some other items to sell, but they are not automotive items. So, I won't post pics.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

FERRARI F430 on 580

Just a little something to share with those of us that appreciate these fine Italian cars.

I was heading over to Pleasanton to pick up my wife at work when I saw this coming up behind me. Of course, as an avid Ferraristi, I had to pull out the iPhone and get a couple shots and a short video.

Here's the video!

ROAD TRIP - WYOMING PART 6 - HEADING HOME!

Now to get this trip write up finished so I can get some other things added.

We got up somewhat early and had breakfast with the Aunt and Uncle. After about an hour or so, we finally decided it was time to head out. We said our goodbyes and then went to Grandmas to say goodbye to her. Then on the road we were.

Now that we were on the road, we had planned on stopping at Pathfinder Reservoir to see the waterfall coming over the dam. We were told that it was rather high and wanted to check it out. Uncle Bobby had given us directions to get there via a scenic route by turning on Alcove Ave./County Road 407 just to the North of Alcova Reservoir. It was a decent scenic route. We stopped at a few places along the road to take some photos. But then got to one of the places he had mentioned to stop at. We were at Fremont Canyon. This place was very nice. Very deep rock canyons with a ton of water flowing through them. I was hoping to get a decent shot from just across the bridge, but since I don’t have a wide-angle lens, I had to go up high on the side of the mountain to get a decent shot. While walking around, there were several cactus flowers, so I put my camera to use and got several shots of those. Then I got my shot from on the mountain of the bridge and the canyon. Then we were off to get to where we were supposed to go.

We finally arrived at Pathfinder Reservoir, and I took a quick look at where everyone was going to, and coming from. I immediately knew that that was not where I wanted to go. So I looked to a different direction, and that was where I knew I needed to go. I walked to where I had to climb down some rocks to get to the edge of the cliffs in order to get some shots. I put both my Canon 40D and Rebel 2000 to use. I use the Rebel to shoot black and white. I won’t know how those turn out until I take another class at the college. I tried to get as many shots as I could with my 40D of the powerful waterfall coming off the reservoir. It was phenomenal! After about 30 minutes I climbed my way back out and headed back to the car. My wife and I started heading out when I saw another area of the falls that I wanted to check out. This was the area where it comes over the dam. I walked in and got some more shots and then back to the car and off we were. The next stop was lunch in Rawlins, just off the I-80. Now it was time for the long haul to Salt Lake City.

On the way to Salt Lake City, I noticed a car hauler loaded with cars. One in particular caught my eye. Why? This one was burned out. Then I get right up to it and I started to cry. The car I noticed was a Ferrari Testarossa. Yep! Some idiot blew up the motor and nearly burned the thing to the ground. I took a couple pics with my iPhone just to show to my Ferrari enthusiast friends. The only other stop we had to take was for fuel. Then we finally arrived in Salt Lake City around 6:00 pm. We had planned on being there a lot earlier, but the side trip to the reservoir added on way more time than we thought. OH WELL! We checked in to the Bed and Breakfast we had reservations for, and then we headed out to Red Rock Brewery and Restaurant. The beer was good, but this time our dinner wasn’t as good. But, it wasn’t that bad. No complaints!

The next morning we got up and left around 8:00 am. The weather wasn’t in our favor and we were in the rain for about 2 hours or so until we got in the clear. This was about the time we got to Wendover, Nevada. On our way though, I had noticed several Hot Rods, Muscle Cars and Classic Trucks going the other direction. When I got to Wendover and was going through on the main drag, I noticed that The Rainbow Casino and Hotel parking lot. I was in heaven once again. To bad I couldn’t stay though. What I saw though, was some great rides. They have this event every year on Fathers Day Weekend. HMMM! Maybe I’ll just have to come back when I have the time to get away. After drooling for about 15 minutes, back on the road again we were. Not much else happened, other that a long drive to keep calm and enjoy the view of, well not too much! We kept going except for more fuel, and for another bite to eat. We finally got home around 7:00 pm. Our trip was now over. Time to relax from the long drive and wait for the next event to come.

ROAD TRIP – WYOMING PART 5 – RUNNING AROUND TOWN AGAIN!

Well first off, my external hard drive crashed last week. So, I won't be posting any photos of the trip until I get the drive recovered. Whenever that is, I DON"T KNOW!

Now for the trip -

On Wednesday, The wife and I decided to do a little running around again. I hit a few stores here and there looking for things I might like. I hit the thrift stores and look for anything I might be able to make a profit on. I found some decent stuff too! Not much else to do.

On Thursday, we took grandma to her every Thursday Hair appointment at the JC Penny’s hair salon. I had them drop me off at Starbucks for a good mocha and their opportunity to use their free wife. I thought I would be there for a little while, but they were done in no time. So I told them to leave me here and I would meet up with them where grandma wanted to go for lunch. It was an easy walk across the street. I only got the chance to be at Starbucks for maybe an hour. I got our reservation taken care of for a Bed & Breakfast Inn in Salt Lake City for Saturday so we could break up the drive home.
Once that was done, I did the walk across the street to meet them for lunch.

Once I got there, I wasn’t really that hungry since I had just finished off my banana nut bread at Starbucks. So I just ordered a side of fries and an Ice Tea. Then when the fries got to me, HOLY CRAP! The side of fries was a meal in itself. Once we were all finished, it was back to grandmas to drop her off. She was worn out just from the small amount she did. Age does that to you though. Then once again, the wife and I went to run around and just kill some time. I hit another thrift store and found more stuff to sell. We went to a so-called home décor store. Then back downtown to see if we could find something for our niece. We did find a shirt for her, and my wife got a couple of interesting flower magnets to use at work. She also picked up some Mouse Nuts for her boss. Yes! Moose Nuts. Chocolate covered nuts, in a small bag, with a funny, cartoony moose standing upright covering his jewels. After that, it was into a jewelry store where my wife found some cool earrings and a matching necklace from an artist out of Cheyenne. Oh Yeah! There was a second trip to a bead shop where she had a second set of fly-fishing feathers attached to her head. What the heck is that all about anyways? I don’t get it! But then again, I’m not into that trendy crap.

Once we were done there, my wife wanted to look for a plant to put in grandmas front yard to replace the dead pine tree that was planted there. We looked around and were not able find anything. The one place we stopped at, Herbadashery was pretty decent but not the plants we were looking for. Just herb plants and a small store. While we were there, the town sirens started going off. One of the workers there said something and we were wondering what it was all about. We asked, then she proceeds to tell us, “Wherever you are planning to go, you had better get there, and get there fast. A bad storm was coming, and it was coming pretty fast. So we paid for what we wanted and got out of there. Then on the way back to grandmas, we heard another set of sirens go off. The rain was starting, but not too bad. We got to grandmas and parked the car in the garage, and BAMM!, the storm came.

On our way back, we were seeing some nice bolts of lightning in the not to far away distance, and hearing some pretty loud thunder. So when we got back we wanted to see the storm. It came through at a rapid 60 miles per hour. When the rain started, I could see the water tower that was approximately 1/2 a mile away, but when it really hit, I couldn’t see past the back of the house across the street. I hadn’t seen a storm like this in so long, that I had to try and get some lightning shots with the camera. Well, I didn’t get a shot of lightning, but of the storm was all I got. I decided to just pull out my iPhone and record it. The rain lasted around 15 minutes, and then it was passed. Heavy Lightning. Loud Thunder. Heavy Rain. Hail. Heavy Winds. All in less than 30 minutes. WOW!

So that was our Thursday in Casper. Friday isn’t much to talk about. We did finally find a plant for grandmas front yard, did a little grocery shopping for dinner, and rested for the drive ahead of us on Saturday to Salt Lake City, Utah. However, tonight we were staying at the Aunt and Uncles place for the night.




Saturday, July 2, 2011

ROAD TRIP – WYOMING PART 4 – TAKING IT SLOW!

Monday was just a day to do very little. I spent my morning running around looking for a few things that I needed to get. My wife stayed with grandma and I ran to get a charger for my camera batteries at Best Buy, and a new showerhead for grandmas guest bath. I had to get that because I broke it. Then it was off to the store to get stuff for lunch. Not much of a day, but a little relaxation it what a vacation is for.

Tuesday, we decided to go downtown and walk around for a bit and check out the old part of town. We only went to a few shops and drove to a few others close by. While downtown, we went into Lou Taubert Ranch Outfitters. We had been here the last time we came were in town 2 years ago, and I can’t believe how much western wear this place has. Not my thing, but incredible. After we were done downtown, we went back to grandmas for lunch.

After a few hours, the Aunt and Uncle came home from their workday. Everyone got ready, except for grandma, and we left for Dinner and short trip up Casper Mountain. For dinner, we went to Lai Thai Restaurant. The atmosphere was good, and the food was awesome. If you are ever in town and want Thai food, then come here. What I ordered , even though I can’t remember the name, was delicious. It had 3 peppers next to the name if that tells you anything. Once we got out of the restaurant we headed up the road to Casper Mountain. Our first stop was to show us Angel Falls, a very cool waterfall of snow melt just pouring over the cliff. And you could walk right up into it if you wanted to. I loved this place! Too bad we were only there for about 5 minutes. We had to keep heading up the mountain. Next time hopefully I’ll have better lenses, and a better knowledge of how to use my camera.

After several switchbacks and a few stops on the way up to see the view of, well, pretty much everything within a hundred miles, we got to the top of the mountain, and kept going. The views from here were very cool. To top it off, the Full Moon Rising was making the view that much better. But, of course, to throw a wrench in the hole thing, Uncle Bobby didn’t fill up the truck with fuel before we headed up the mountain. So, we had to turn around and head back down. On the way down we saw a few Mule Deer grazing in the front yards of a couple houses along the road. Of course I had to stop and get some photos. The Buck was young, and his antlers as small as they were, were still in velvet. It was a cool site to see. I had never been this close and had never seen a buck in velvet before. After that it was down the mountain. Then when we were almost to the bottom, we spotted more deer on the side of the road. By this time it was getting pretty dark, and then Bobby looked over and saw a shot that I needed to take of the Full Moon over the mountains. Well, I took the shot, and like a dumb idiot, I wasn’t using my tri-pod to get the shot right. Oh well! It was worth the try and I thank him for stopping the truck for the opportunity.

Well to finish off the evening, we made it to the nearest gas station with less than 3 miles worth of fuel or fumes in the tank. YAY! Then it was back to grandmas to get some sleep for the next day.