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In The Moment / 2015 Monterey Historics

August 17, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in In The Moment

August means two things for me nowadays. Hot weather and Monterey Motorweek! The two aren't always hand-in-hand, but unfortunately, this year it was pretty intense. Fortunately though, so was the action! Shelby was the main sponsor this year and though I wasn't able to check out the new GT350 up close, they sounded amazing racing around the track. But I didn't come here for new cars, so let's get to it!

The day seemed to start off alright, but we soon ran into some hurdles. After I was picked up by Mike, we went to grab Kenny but was stopped for 30 minutes to allow a marathon to go by. At least traffic was pretty light when we finally got down to Monterey. After grabbing our gear and throughly dowsing ourselves with sunscreen, we headed to the track. 

We expected it to be hot this weekend, but we didn't expect the sun to be so intense. Our game plan was to comb through the paddock, grab lunch and head to the car carousels parked in the inner pits and end the day watching cars go by up at the infamous Corkscrew. 

It did seem like there was more F1 cars entered this year than in the past. Sure the better known cars like the John Player Specials and the blue Tyrrells get more attention, but these lesser known entries were more interesting. I mean, just look at those stacked exhausts! 

I'll be posting up more detailed coverage on the cars themselves, but for now, check out Ferrari's first and latest supercars. Personally, I haven't been the biggest fan of the LaFerrari's looks (as mentioned in a previous post) but this blue was absolutely stunning! The blue, grey wheels, and light cream interior is a perfect combo for me. 

Of course, the Historics has always had a bias for American metal. If anyone's into muscle cars, this should be marked on every calendar. Me personally, I've always been more into Japanese and European cars, but over the last decade I've learned to appreciate American cars and the racing examples at Laguna is easily my favorite "style". 

One thing that was apparent around noon was that it wasn't only the people who were suffering from the heat. These F1 cars were trying to get back into their pits as quickly as possible since they're only means of cooling is having the air flow through their cooling systems at 100+ mph. Crawling in traffic sent their temperatures soaring and several were visibly overheating. 

This guy couldn't handle the heat in his suit, so he needed to shed off on the way to his tent. 

Pretty cool motorized bicycle spotted in the pits. The livery is spot on. 

Some new cars that were showcased in the paddock. Some ultra-rare production, some pure conceptual, and some in between such as the very good looking black NSX. I've been critical of the continuous stream of delays the car has been weighed down by and the almost entirely unknown hybrid powertrain, but the styling hits it for me in the same way the updated 1st gen R8 did. It doesn't seem too over-stylized, or at least to my eyes. 

There was an offroading demo hosted by Land Rover in the middle of the track. Mike was chosen to be the driver and we quickly hopped into the Discovery 4 since we were eager for the strong AC the car had. At least for these few minutes, we were able to escape the heat. The LR did really well though, I must say, with zero slippage detected from the wheels and pretty impressive articulation from the suspension, unlike the Evoque you see in the image above. 

Certainly one of the highlights was this Skyline race car which was brought in to go up against 240Z's, 901's and CLS's. Unsurprisingly it sounded very similar to the 240Z's, but the sight alone was still very special, even as someone who's been lucky enough to always be around them. 

Finally, we wanted to end the day just sitting in some shade and watching cars go by. So up to the Corkscrew we went. 

Even modern cars, the drop can be pretty intense, so I couldn't imagine it in these older vehicles (with their older tires/suspensions!) pushing as hard as some of the drivers did. 

The Corkscrew is always the most popular location on the track for spectating, and the wonderful shade was especially welcoming. 

Another year and another Historics in the books. Can't wait till 2016!

August 17, 2015 /Jonathan Chow
Monterey, Historics, 2015
In The Moment
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NorCal Corgi Con 2015

June 30, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in ParkertheCorgi

It's that time of the year again! When all NorCal corgi owners, and some beyond, gather together at Ocean Beach SF for some shorty dog madness!

Needless to say, our little guy was pretty happy running around with all of the other corgis and corgi fans. The weather kept shifting between a little too warm and a little too chilly, but overall it was pretty nice considering Ocean Beach's typical grim treatment. 

Of course, non-corgis are welcomed as well to enjoy in the festivities. Honestly, this is probably for the better since Parker tends to be more interactive with other breeds. 

This guy named Odie was particularly well matched with Parker, the two were rough housing for quite a while. 

Dog enjoying his new family. Traitor  -___-

June 30, 2015 /Jonathan Chow
Corgi, ParkertheCorgi, Corgi Con, 2015, Ocean Beach, Dog, Meet, NorCal, SF
ParkertheCorgi
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MONTANA / Day 6

June 29, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in Trips

Last day for the 2015 family trip, we stopped at a lake in Idaho, Coeur D'alene before heading to the airport to fly home. A great town, albeit a lot larger and more contemporary than any of the other places we've been visiting on the trip. While we were there, they were setting up for an Ironman even happening that weekend. With temperatures predicted into the 90s, it was looking to be an extremely difficult event for the athletes. Around town, we spotted a huge folding chair that even made my brother and I look like little kids, a 4 person paddle board, and an old vintage sign that had something very familiar on it. All in all, a great fun trip and one that put yet another positive impression for the NorthWest. Montana is definitely a place I look forward to going back to, hopefully with more hiking and camping. 

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June 29, 2015 /Jonathan Chow
Family, Idaho, coeur d'alene, lake, 2015, Trip
Trips
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MONTANA / Day 2

June 22, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in Trips

Today we left Spokane Washington and headed east to Montana, passing through Idaho along the way. Idaho was really stunning with dramatic mountains, lakes and seas of pine trees. Unfortunately though I was driving so no pictures for now. When we finally made it into Montana (only 2-2.5 hours in) we pulled into a rest stop and I grabbed some shots, including some fuzzy caterpillars that were climbing around on the rocks. After we made it to Missoula, our destination for today, we walked around downtown which while not quite as wonderful as Spokane, had a really great small-town vibe to it. Calm, open and laid back but without ever giving off that "ghost town"/"trapped-in-the-past" feeling. Definitely wouldn't mind revisiting, especially with a bike since cycling seems to be pretty popular here. 

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June 22, 2015 /Jonathan Chow
Montana, Family, 2015, Missoula, Trip
Trips
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MONTANA / Day 1

June 21, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in Trips

Last year in 2014 my family went to Maine for our family vacation. So for 2015, we needed to go someplace different, why not Montana? Yup! The final destination is Glacier National Park but we begin our trip in beautiful Spokane Washington. Seriously, when the plane was approaching the airport, I was having serious doubts about how Spokane would be like since all I saw was flat, empty cropland. But the city itself is a wonderful blend of valleys, trees, streams, waterfalls, and an AWESOME architecture vibe. Think traditional industrial brick factories (already a favorite of mine) peppered with some geographical 70's lines and curves. It makes for some great building shooting. 

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June 21, 2015 /Jonathan Chow
Family, Vacation, Washington, Montana, Spokane, Summer, 2015
Trips
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  • Car Spotlight 19
  • Film 18
  • In The Moment 42
  • Japan 19
  • London 56
  • Outdoors 12
  • Paris 17
  • ParkertheCorgi 9
  • Philippines 20
  • Seoul 5
  • Trips 56
  • UK 16

Life's a trip, enjoy the ride