I’m sorry about your Mom as well, Johnny L.A..
Good luck on your film, though. Are you directing, writing or starring?
And have loads of fun in beautiful Dublin. Have a pint on me. 
I’m the DP (Director of Photography), which means that I’ll be setting up the shots (and operating the camera, since we have a very small crew). I’ve gone through the script and have made some changes. If the Director accepts them, and if I add some more stuff, I might get part of the writing credit as well.
I started a thread in Café Society called ‘Countdown to the film’.
…
Hey, Coldie: It’s gloomy here today, and cold. As much as I like it up here, L.A. didn’t have a ‘riding season’! So when are you going to buy Heloise a bike? 
My condolances, John. It must have been quite the year for you, man. Hell yes, you deserve a break. Fly on over!
When will Heloise get her own bike?
Soon as she gets her license, under Dutch law, thankyouverymuch. None of that American “drive round the cones 4 times and Bob’s yer uncle” shit for us.
But since she needs to get her car license first (long story, but shortly: she needs to do a full exam to obtain a Dutch license, even though she’s been driving in the US for what, 15 years?), let’s focus on that first.
Even then, two bikes will be a nice option only if we have a garage. I think the Divvy’s an excellent starter bike for her in due time. Plus that’ll give me an excuse to buy something faster for myself! Right now, I’d be torn between the FJR 1300 for its sheer power and comfort, and the Honda VFR-800 for its sublime technology and more demanding ride (or so I hear - where’s Spiny, anyway? :)).
Oh well, the Divvy does well for Sunday morning rides in the country side, two up. I’m a bit tall for it, and it’s definately lost all secrets by now, but there’s nothing inherently wrong with a forgiving bike. I’ll repeat those words when I lay down my shiny new FJR in 2 years time, I’m sure.
Definitely go for the FJR. If I didn’t get the R1, that’s the one I’d have bought. Beautiful bike.
Oh, I know. Been in love with it for more than 5 years now. It’s gorgeous. Still haven’t ridden one, though.
But it’s academic until we buy a house with a garage. The Divvy’s on the street, under a cover and 4 locks, but an FJR is uninsurable that way. And it WILL be knicked, for damn sure.
So, maybe in 2 years or so, I’ll be able to materialise this little dream of mine.
And yeah, it’s big, but apparently the sonofabitch will corner just fine when pushed. Holy moly, what an angle. 
BTW John, now that I’ve got yer attention.
Got into a bit of a discussion on a Dutch car message board. The topic was drifting, and some guy posted this picture as an example of supreme bike control.
I told him that this wasn’t bike control, this was just a picture of a guy who’s about to be highsided of his sportsbike.
He maintained it was a controllable drift. Now, I’m a rider and he’s not, and I’ve seen some outrageous drifting in the Valentino Rossi vein, and even this fantastic movie (right-click, save as), but I still maintain that that first picture is a crash in progress rather than a controlled slide.
Whaddayasay?
Coldie, glad to have you back.
Jack
Hard to say. Unfortunately I don’t ride like that myself.
If the back end keeps sliding, it would be a low-side, I think. But if he has control of the rear tyre and he can get just enough grip, then I think he can pull out of the turn.
That’s the thing: I don’t see any smoke. A lowsider would result from a spinning tire losing grip. A highsider would result from a sliding tire suddenly regaining grip when the rider, in complete fear, goes off the gas a tad too abruptly. I think that’s what’s happening here: for a controlled power slide, there ought to be much more smoke visible.
I don’t ride that way, either. At least not on purpose. :eek:
There’s a clue on the picture. It is a very beautiful black line, in a very fluent curve, and it ends below the rear wheel.
Yeah, I saw that… not sure if it was 'shopped in after the fact or not. A true slide mark wouldn’t be so slim. Nor would it be so… regular. And again, where’s the smoke?
Anyways, hope you’re doing well with our resident Game Show Queen.
Depends on the tire. A slick could produce that line. Also, if he was going down, the slide wouldn’t be regular.
No complaints here.
Tough crowd, tough crowd!
I take it you ride too, Arwin?
No!
I just hang out with a lot of racing geeks through my GT4 hobby (which, apparently, is getting a motorcycle equivalent early next year … !)
The only time I have been on a motorcycle was on the back of my dads one. And he quit that when I was something like 5 years old, after he had a terrible accident being hit by a car driving through a red light and crashing head first into a brick wall, breaking his helmet clean in two. :eek:
He was in the hospital for 5 weeks with a severe concussion but recovered very well, though he did get bald a little bit sooner.
After that, he never stepped on a bike again, and I’m inclined to stick to his example. In fact, I only got my driver’s licence a year ago (my first car an Alfa 155 1.8 TS - 8V from 1995). I’m going to stick to four wheels, but I did take my car to the Nurburgring 3 weeks after I got my licence. 
Aha! Geek credibility does not equal street credibility, bucko.
Good to hear your dad lived. :eek:
Any crash you walk away from, and all that. Well, figuratively walk away from in this case…
Great taste in cars, man! I’ve had my 166 V6 for about 2 months now, and it’s still an absolute dream. The sheer noise it makes - fantastic. I never want a diesel again.
The Nürburgring… man, what an epic stretch of, uh, one-way toll road that is. One thing I know for damn sure - I’ll never ride a motorcycle there. Too dangerous: no run-off areas, guard rails 1 meter from the track, blind corners, jumps (!)… screw that.
I did drive there once, coincidentally in my first car as well. But since this was a 1989 Peugeot 205 1.4 with almost 200,000 clicks on the clock, it was an exercise in mirroring rather than racing.
Coldie, what took you so long you bastard? Did you get my beer?
Whoah … that’s a beast of a car man! What year? I see a few of them sometimes when I drive through Amsterdam on my black brompton folding bike. You may have seen me sometime … check the new doper photo thread, and I’m usually wearing a black coat.
But yeah, the 155, it handles like a knife, except that you almost don’t want to cut corners with it, because it handles them so well. The 166 might be (well obviously is) a bit heavier and more tuned for comfort?
And yet so many do! It’s mind blowing. But if you like cars and/or bikes, it’s a great place to go to just hanging out a bit trackside and enjoy the parade!
Yeah, I was happy being able to practice in an early version of GT4 before I did the real thing. At least I knew where I could go to avoid the Porsche GT3s and BMW M Coupés that magically appear into your rear-view mirror. :eek:
I also learnt a whole new way to use my indicator - show that I’ll be on that side of the road staying the heck out of the way of crazy fast cars blasting past me.
When I think about it too much, I get scared! But I’d love to do it again - the track is like a roller coster ride sometimes, so steep up and down … And I can dream it by now from GT4.
It’s a 2000, but it’s only got 82,000 on the clock. Rides like new!
Here she is in all her glory.
190 horsies, and a roaring V6. It’s a dream to drive. Yeah, not much of a corner thrasher, although it does remarkably well for a 1.5 tonne car. A bit heavy on the nose in slow corners, but that’s that engine for you. It’s tuned for comfort, but stiff enough to corner fast with confidence. Hell, it’ll even get a little light in the rear on gas lift-off. Reminds me of my old Peugeot 306, now THERE’S a go-kart for you.
But yeah, mostly a comfy cruiser. I love it, it’s got all the bells and whistles (navigation, leather, good stereo, cruise control, climate, what have you), and with Alfa’s notorious depreciation, I can afford one now.
Suprisingly well built, though. The doors sound like fricking vaults, and it has no creaks or rattles to speak of. Un-Alfa like, I’d say. The V6 is supposed to be quite durable as well, with plenty of examples of 400,000+ km’s. Not the cheapest to maintain, but if you treat them well, they’ll last.
The 'Ring is certainly fun even as a spectator. Driving it, well, although I consider myself an OK driver, I’m not much of a racer. Maybe I’ll do it again someday. I cetainly have the BHP to get to some decent speed on the straights now.
TheLoadedDog, what beer are you referring to?
Damn, Jasper. What the hell happened in yer absence? Lookit all those friggin’ smilies.
Anyhoo, glad to hear things are going well for you. Been meanin’ to write, but well, you know . . . I suck.