In my entire life, I have only owned sports cars, and only one with a fixed roof and more than two seats (sort of). As I get older, slightly more practical, and more environmentally friendly, this may change, but my love affair with the automobile continues.
“How are you doing without the old MG?” is a question I’ve been receiving a lot lately. And the answer may be a surprise:
Very well, thank you. Can’t say I am really missing her. Actually, it’s been a big relief not having to deal with ignition points, valve clearances, dual carburetors, carburetor dampers, distributors, fuel pumps, hydraulic fluid, bewildering electrical maladies, knockoff hammers, tubes in the tires, etc. Maybe I’m still in denial mode.
And of course, there’s Goldie’s replacement: the Buell. Continue reading »
The end of an era. Goldie — my (usually) faithful British roadster that was the subject of my very first web pages 12 years ago — is leaving me. Last Thursday was our last drive, the Last Dance, and tomorrow morning will be the Big Goodbye. A trucking company is coming to pick her up and transport her new owner, Steve, in Quebec (yes, Canada!). There she will get to mingle with Steve’s other MGs — including an MGA — and presumably be driven more than under my care, at least when the snow up there rescinds.
The decision to sell the MGB was not an easy one. Continue reading »
While Elaina’s California plates had an appropriate message of “2CSTARS” (considering how many nights we have driven home with the top down and could see the stars shining over pastures devoid of light pollution) in Colorado, the move to the new state meant having to get new plates. Hence, “RCKNSOL.” See the web page for my 1991 Alfa Romeo Spider for the official meaning.
Welcome to the page of my Foglio Green Italian steed, “Elaina”!
Her body was styled by Pininfarina, the same Italian design studio that penned many Ferraris.
Her cockpit sports other charms shared by those vehicles donning the famed prancing horse: the straight-arm, bent-knee Italian driving position; sumptuous, tanned Italian leather; and circular, rotatable vents, the type that Italians prize. Continue reading »
This is a tribute to Lina, my former BMW Z3, the most competent motoring machine I have owned to date. She was sold in order to simplify my life while I trained for some milestone athletic events that year (most notably, the Davis Brevet Series, Ironman Coeur d’Alene, and Paris-Brest-Paris), and also to make room for a 1991 Alfa Romeo Spider that I purchased after the events were over. During the intervening months, Goldie was my only car and daily driver. She filled in Lina’s big shoes rather respectably!
&title='91 Alfa Romeo Spider "Elaina, feeling at home among the mediterranean colors in Fremont, CA. Her official color is Foglio Green, a type of forest green. (Sep 27'03 Sat)")
