The Boss at exactly 20,000 miles in one of her best elements - a road trip. In this case, she is perched on the border between Texas and Mexico. Chihuahuan mountains are in the background.

It’s like nobody told her that she is just a track day special and that she really shouldn’t be doing the things she does. This is a girl with serious self-esteem and the capabilities to back it all up. But we already know what she does well. Let’s check the report card for bad marks:

Despite these issues, the Boss continues to perform beautifully. The Boss 302 Mustang is the best car I have ever bought and a little age has done nothing to change that. She is just getting warmed-up. Her second birthday is on May 31st and I plan to celebrate with some modifications that will make her even better.

Current Modifications:

On The Bed:

How is your Boss holding-up at 20,000 miles? Let me know in the Comments.

J I M M Y

The factory Boss Mustang PCV system increases engine pressure and forces oil into the engine intake, especially during hard track driving. This results in a slight loss of horsepower and a reduction in engine oil at a time when they are needed the most.

One solution is to use an oil separator. This fits in-line with the PCV system and separates oil and oil vapor into a catch can and returns only “clean” air back into the engine. This is a good system, but no oil separator is perfect and some amount of oil or oil vapor will continue to be injested through the intake via the PCV system.

Ford Racing Boss 302S with factory racing breather system.

The 302R and 302S factory race cars use a simple breather system that bypasses the PCV system altogether. This system ensures that no oil is ingested through the intake and should free a couple of ponies. The downsides of this system are that it is more expensive than an oil separator and it almost certainly violates any emission system do-not-tamper laws that many states have, which might cause some trouble when trying to get your safety or emissions inspection sticker.

Ford Racing does not sell this system as a kit. Rehagan Racing does sell this system as a kit, but it is spendy at $425. I put together my own kit for about $235 using OEM parts and high grade hoses and fittings. My version is overkill and a budget-minded person could do this (assuming the use of the core Peterson breather can), for about $150.

Parts:

Please note that if you go through the links I have provided for you, you help support this site and my family. Thanks!

1. (1) – Peterson Fluid Systems 08-0400 Breather Can with AN -12 Ports (about $90)
2. (2) – Summit 220244B – AN -10 to AN -12 Adapter Black (about $10.25/ea.)
3. (2) – Earl’s AT800110ERL – AN -10 ST Ano-Tuff Swivel-Seal Hose Ends (about $13.25/ea.)
4. (2) – Fragola E-Z Clamp Hose End, -10 AN – Black (about $6.95/ea.)
5. (1) – Earl’s 350610ERL – AN -10 PRO-LITE 350 HOSE 6 FOOT (about $57.95)
6. (1) – Dorman 02253 – Bypass Cap Assortment (about $5.00) + (2) hose clamps to secure the caps.

   OEM Parts:

7. (1) – CR3Z-6A664-A – HOSE VENT ($9.44)
8. (1) – 4L2Z-6762-AA – ELBOW, CRANKCASE VENT ($11.31)

Instructions:

1. Mount the breather can.
Find a suitable location on the firewall in the same area as the factory race cars. Measure and mark the location of the band clamp. Drill holes and mount band clamp with your choice of fastener. Since I don’t see the need to ever remove the band clamp, I chose to use rivets. Secure the breather can with the band clamp. Orient the ports as shown in the photo.

Notes: I found that removing the upper strut brace made access easier. I also removed the sound deadening material that was against the firewall. Honestly, I just don’t like the idea of moving blankets stapled around the engine bay. If you don’t remove it, you will have to cut or drill through it to mount the breather can. Finally, I had to remove one of the plastic pins that secures the cowl trim piece to the firewall to prevent interference with the breather can.

2. Make the hoses.
I would recommend first installing the hose ends that mate to the catch can. Connect the hose (using the AN -10 to AN -12 adapter) and tighten everything down (illustration 1). Then measure hose (twice) and cut (once) to proper length. Attach the two (2) plastic quick connectors from the driver’s side vent tube that is no longer needed. Attach the plastic connectors to the hose using the clamp-style hose ends. These connectors fit best into AN -10 hose, which is why I recommend using AN -10 hose and an adapter, rather than just using AN -12 hose. Hose and fittings are priced according to size, so using AN -10 hose and fittings are also less expensive.

Notes: Removing the plastic OEM quick connectors from the vent tube is somewhat difficult, because the tube is hard plastic. I don’t recommend trying to cut against the nipple, because any gouge could be a leak point. This is the technique I used. Cut the hose about 1″ from the tip of the nipple. Then make two cuts into the hose. Grab the tab you have just formed with a pair of needle nose pliers. Then, holding the tip of the tab firmly, roll the pliers so that you are tearing a ribbon out of the hose. If you can get the ribbon all the way to the end of the hose, the pressure fit of the hose will be released and the connector will be free. I took the photo before I had perfected my technique and I was just trying to pull downward, but the ribbon would break before getting to the end. Thin needle nose pliers work better and the rolling technique is the way to go.

3. Replace PCV valve.
On the passenger side of the engine, remove the PCV valve from the head and replace with the same style crankcase vent elbow that is found on the driver’s side. Alternately, you could remove the PCV valve assembly and discard the internal valve.

Notes: I don’t think this matters in any way, but the PCV valve (blue) and the crankcase vent elbow (black) are not exactly the same length.

4. Connect the hoses to the crankcase vents.

5. Cap the intake/vacuum nipples.

Finished!

Servicing:

1. Put breather can in the “service position” by loosening the band clamp (11 mm nut) and tilting the breather can forward. Remove the cap by loosening the 11 mm top nut. Once the nut has broken loose, unscrew the whole cap to remove. THE NUT, THE CAP, AND THE THREADED ROD ARE CONNECTED. In fact, all of the guts are connected to the threaded rod (see photo 3). Use a turkey baster or mityvac to evacuate the oil.

2. At the bottom of the breather can, there is a tapped bung that holds the threaded post. The bung is stitch welded to the can in a way that allows oil to flow beneath it and into a tapped drain, which is the other way to service the breather can. Most of the race cars that I have observed have drain petcocks installed on the bottom of the cans.

3. This is the breather insert.

Notes and revisions:

Sharp eyes will notice that I used small rivets and washers to secure the band clamp. I had properly sized rivets set aside for the project, but once I got started, I realized that my rivet gun did not accommodate the shank of the large rivets. I will replace those soon, so that the breather can is properly secured. It is also possible to use a bracket that mounts to an existing hole in the firewall, so that no drilling is required.

One possible revision is to cut the top of the firewall for easier access for servicing the catch can. This can be seen in the photo of the factory setup at the top of the page. A more advanced revision that I am considering is getting the racing oil pan, tapping it, and running a drain from the breather can into the oil pan, which will make the breather system service free.

In 2013, I attended a Grand-Am CTSCC race and noticed that many of the top teams had begun to run TWO breather cans, one for each head. Instead of mounting to the firewall, the second can was mounted using a bracket.

I noticed both direct hose setups and crossed setups (breather can services opposite head).

The right side breather cans were mounted in the typical way (directly to the firewall), but the new left side cans got their own mount, which clears the firewall lip and should allow for easier servicing.

At appeared that all of the cans had petcocks for draining and all of the factory breather tube connections are now safety-wired.

This article will be posted in the Oil Separator Thread at bossmustangsonline.com. I have to thank a couple of the guys in that thread who did the first DIY versions of this system and were very generous with their experience and help. I recommend consulting that thread, because it will continue to be a current resource as new versions, revisions, updates, and ideas are shared about these systems.

Sound Tube Delete

This is the sound tube. Well, Ford calls it a sound enhancement pipe. Whatever. It’s an ugly plastic tube that runs from the intake to the firewall and is designed to enhance the engine sounds you hear in the cabin. I don’t like it.

Car companies are using various methods of enhancing engine sounds, including playing recordings of the engine through the speakers! Admittedly, this is largeley because they are making the cabins so quiet (something I appreciate at my age) that when you stomp on the loud pedal, you can’t hear anything. I understand the problem, but I just don’t like the solutions. They seem phony to me. It’s the automotive equivelant of putting cards in the spokes.

A second, more practical issue is that the sound tube passes over the oil dipstick, making it harder to check your oil. So, the sound pipe has to go.

1. Pull this out.

2. Buy this (it is widely available at most national auto parts stores). I paid $6.99.

3. Push it in. As you can see, my stereo installer had already drilled the firewall for the amplifier power cable. If I had done this mod sooner, it would have provided the perfect place to use a grommet without having to drill.

4. Go to Lowe’s and buy this.

5. Paint it. Push it on the intake nipple. Never worry about it again.

CPC Fuse Box Cover

This is embarrasing, because I tend to be a form-follows-function guy, but I actually bought a part that is strictly to dress-up the engine. I saw a Boss Mustang with one of these at a Cars & Coffee and I thought it looked like a great accent to the Boss intake manifold. It’s a CPC Fuse Box Cover that simply snaps over the existing fuse box cover. Simple as that. About $65.

J I M M Y

Amazon Links
Using these links to purchase from Amazon helps support this site and my family. Thank you!

The COTA facility is impressive. It’s massive and pristine. The workers are friendly and the grounds are clean. The track is so new that it is almost too sterile for my taste. I’m used to Texas World Speedway, Daytona, and Sebring – tracks with history, tracks with patina. I hope in 20 years, COTA will feel the same way.

Friday

I arrived at the track on Friday with my only goals being to familiarize myself with COTA and to examine all of the Boss race cars. All of the teams were accommodating, if not friendly about me being under foot while I snapped photos of all the race engineering details that I find so interesting. Even though I was walking onto a brand new, world class F1 track in my home town for the first time, I think it is telling that the very first photo of 1600 that I snapped that weekend was a closeup of a brake setup. Nerd. Anyway, I spent a lot of time with the Roush team, because they are a very professional, well-funded team and I wanted to see how the Daytona-winning team had developed their Boss 302R.

Click on the photos to see full-sized versions (1200 x 797). Once a photo has been opened, you will be able to view all of the photos in a lightbox viewer, using arrow keys or your mouse to navigate. If you like, you can also run a slideshow of the photos. 35 photos.

The #61 car of Jack Roush, Jr. and Billy Johnson, fresh off the win at Daytona.

The engine showing some new and interesting details for 2013, like the Apollo-space-program-style gold heat shielding and two oil breather cans.

The #51 car of Joey Atterbury and Shelby Blackstock.

The Brembo Racing rep checks the new braking package, which finally brings braking performance in-line with other performance attributes of the 302R. The drivers claim the brakes are what is allowing them be more competitive this season. The Brembo rep said that it is a brand new caliper and that it will work with 15″ or 14″ rotors.

This is my very expensive upgrade path.

Jim Click’s crew working to get their car ready for practice and qualifying.

I thought I had got around to see all of the Boss Mustang race teams, when the Capaldi Racing 302R drove past me in the paddock! I had met the Capaldi team at the World Challenge Grand Prix of Utah last year. I hadn’t looked for them, because I assumed that they only raced in World challenge, but as Leo Capaldi later told me, they also do as many Grand-Am races as they can. I also hadn’t seen them, because they were literally the last team in the paddock, all the way at the end of the long row of race trailers. I hustled down there and watched the team prep their car.

The crew prepares to do an alignment.

The second practice session of the day was about to start, so I stayed out of the way and didn’t try to introduce myself. After watching for awhile, I wandered up to my seat with my pal Jeff Mangels. Our seats overlooked the Turn 12-13-14-15 complex, which is a really nice section of the track.

Even in practice, it’s nice to see Ford leading Aston Martin. I love Aston Martin, but family is family.

Roger Miller’s car in the fastest color.

The view from the pedestrian bridge over T15.

$20 for a view from the tower. No, you can’t bugee jump from it. I asked.

As race qualifying approached, I went back to the Capaldi Racing tent. It looked like they were finished with the car and just waiting for the driver to get in, so I stepped-up and introduced myself to some of the team that I recognized from Utah. They remembered me and we reminisced for a minute before Sandy Capaldi asked if I was hungry. Hungry? Ma’am, I’m always hungry. As it happenes, there was still some lunch left, so I was able to grab a fresh fajita taco. Again, I want to humbly thank the Capaldi team for their friendly hospitality. I wish I had been able to spend more time with them, but hopefully, I will see them again for the World Challenge race in May 2013.

The Capaldi Boss 302R as seen from the top of the Capaldi trailer.

With brake rotors glowing, the #5 car is overtaken under braking by the Capaldi Boss Mustang during qualifying.

Track owner Red McCombs holds court with the Roush team.

Saturday

Race day! *SPOILERS* Ryan English, Jeff Mangels and myself got to the track early on Saturday and poked around a bit before things got started.

Boss 302R engine with cutaway pieces. I want one of these for my office.

Aston Martin GT race car.

The Capaldi Boss 302R.

The wild and wooley Street Tuner (ST) class. Jason Saini recovers from spinning the #3 MX-5 more than 360 degrees through the hairpin without hitting anyone and then continues on his way. Cue 007 theme for the outstanding recovery and the resultant drop to 007th place. I have the whole spin in a sequence of photos. Maybe I’ll make a gif.

The beginning of the end for the #61 Roush Mustang. After leading the race for eight laps, the #61 car is overtaken by Bill Auberlen in his BMW M3.

The #38 Porsche Carrera in hot pursuit of the #61 Roush Mustang.

The hard-charging Carrera beats the Mustang to the corner and takes 2nd place. The ever-slowing Roush would eventually pit with a fueling problem, falling all the way to 25th.

Roger Miller (#158) and Jim Click (#2) get past the #10 Camaro to place 8th, 9th, and 10th, respectively. The #158 car was the highest placing Boss Mustang of the race.

Bill Auberlen does victory donuts in his BMW M3.

After the CTSCC race, it was time for lunch. I arranged to meet my friends Naomi and Turtle at The Salt Lick. Unfortunately, that was located on the other side of the track. Sometimes, I wish everything wasn’t bigger in Texas. Whew. Big damn track.

After lunch was the fan walk along pit road.

The APR Audi R8.

Oh, hi! The Turner Motorsports BMW M3. It’s there. Just look harder, it’s right there.

Grassroots Motorsports!

After the fan walk, we made our way back to our seats for the start of the Rolex Grand-Am race.

A BMW M3 overtaken by a pack of prototypes.

Close racing between Ford and Chevy.

An intense battle towards the end of the race leaves the #01 car without an important piece of bodywork.

A little race fan watches from up-close.

The APR R8 collides with the race leader and takes him out of the race with a broken rear suspension.

The end of a perfect race weekend. I got to see more Boss race cars up-close, friendly teams, and fierce racing on a beautiful track that I’m lucky to have in my hometown. A special shout-out and thanks to Capaldi Racing and my fellow race fans that I got to see over the weekend: Jeff, Ryan, Eric, Kang, Mike, Jim, JimBo, Ty, Naomi, Turtle, Godfrey, and James. That doesn’t even count the friends-of-friends I met and the friends I knew were there, but I didn’t happen to catch. Yes, as perfect as a race weekend can get without a Boss winning, me driving, or both of those things happening simultaneously. Maybe someday.

J I M M Y

The market offers many outstanding entry-to-mid-level DAQ products from companies such as AiM, Race Technology, RLC, and Traqmate. After an exhaustive amount of research, I selected the AiM Solo DL to be used for my personal development and for the development of the drivers on my endurance racing team.

The AiM Solo comes in two flavors. The regular AiM Solo ($399) uses 10 Hz GPS and internal accelerometers to return accurate vehicle speed and location data on track maps already stored in memory. If a track map is not already in memory, it can easily be added from track manager software, or a custom track map can be created, even if the “track” is a circuit around your neighborhood. The Solo features predictive lap timing and has a screen that can be configured to show only the information the driver wants. The AiM Solo DL ($699) adds the ability to record ECU information from the OBD-II port.

I backed-into my choice of the Solo DL by first choosing AiM and specifically, their Race Studio 2 software. AiM is a leader in this market and their products are widely used by amateurs and professionals alike. A significant selling point was that Ford Racing uses AiM systems on its Boss 302R and 302S race cars. It is one of those MLX (digital dash) systems that I really wanted.

The Boss 302 does not come with oil pressure or temperature gauges and I do not like the Laguna Seca gauge pod that sits on top of the dash. Since I don’t need those gauges on the street, I liked the idea of having an MXL dash to use for the track, but which I could remove for daily driving. Unfortunately, the MXL is out of my price range at the moment. So, I chose the new Solo DL, which has all of the data acquisition features of the MXL, but which does not accept analog inputs (the oil pressure and temps that I wanted). In truth, those extra gauges don’t have anything to do with the primary function of the DAQ. It is simply a way for me to get those things displayed in an acceptable way. I can’t help but point-out that the Corvette Z06 ECU logs oil pressure and temp. If that were the case with the Mustang, I wouldn’t need an expensive MXL dash, I could just display those on the Solo. [shaking fist] “Ford!”

The Solo DL does everything I need to use it as a tool for driver feedback. If I ever upgrade to an MXL dash system, I will not have to relearn new software and I will still be able to review and compare older data with new.

I called Jeff at Optimum Motorsports and he spent a lot of time on the phone with me answering my questions about the Solo DL. He also had geeky information about the Boss 302R ECU that I found interesting. Jeff knows his stuff. I was sold, so he sent one out right away.

First Track Test

I had a chance to test the Solo DL just a couple of days later at the 2012 Texas Audi Group State Meet track event at Harris Hill Road. I didn’t have time to mount the Solo (see below) for the track event, so I just plugged it into the OBD-II port, turned it on, and stuck it into the Mustang’s cup holder. I wouldn’t be able to see my lap times, or see the predictive lap timing function in action, but I was more interested in just collecting data for armchair analysis after the event.

Even with my hillbilly installation, the Solo DL worked beautifully – knowing when the car was on track and then quietly gathering a metric ass-ton of data that would eventually be used to condemn my driving. Since it was being powered through the OBD-II port, I had no battery concerns and just left it on all day. I could have checked my lap times at the track, but I was instructing and otherwise enjoying myself, so I couldn’t be bothered. I love that the Solo can be such a zero-overhead device. With very minimal setup, it can be turned-on and chucked into the glove box. At the end of the day, it will still return Apollo 11 levels of telemetry.

At the Bonneville Salt Flats

Since that initial track event, the Solo has been with me to several track day events, a 24-hour road race, and on the Bonneville Salt Flats. In every situation, the Solo DL performed beautifully.

Data Analysis

When I got home, I downloaded the data into AiM’s Race Studio 2 Analysis software.

As someone who makes their living as a QA Engineer in the software industry, I feel qualified to say that AiM’s Race Studio software could use an interface update. There is no doubt that this is flexible and powerful software, but it’s ugly and a little crashy.

Also, there is a very steep curve to learning the analysis software and I haven’t even begun to scratch the surface. It seems clear to me that I will need some training or at least some good tutorials to get the most out of this software. Still, while just fumbling around I managed to find interesting information that I can put to good use. I can see that I’m faster without traction control on. That’s not surprising, but I can point to the data that proves it. I could also see that I wasn’t braking hard enough. That also wasn’t surprising to me – I was on stock brake pads and I was being gingerly on purpose. Finally, I could see that on my fastest lap of the day, I was actually down a whopping 5 mph on the fastest part of the track, compared to another lap (which I must have botched at some point).

Mounting the Solo

Note: This applies only to an S197 Ford Mustang. I can’t verify any other application or platform.

The Solo comes with a metal mounting plate which can be screwed into the dash, attached to a suction-cup mount, or otherwise mounted to the car and then the Solo attaches to the plate with magnets built into the back of the unit. Securing a mounting plate in a race car is no problem, but for my daily driver and track-day car (Boss 302 Mustang), I wanted a temporary mounting solution. A windshield suction-cup mount is an obvious first choice, but I don’t like those because they block my view and I’m not a fan of the lick-stick attachment process. Also, I have had a suction-cup mount fail during hot laps, which left my camera swinging from its power cord, getting smashed to bits against the bare interior of a race car. So, I wanted something temporary, that attached more securely than a suction-cup, and was easily visible/accessible without blocking my view through the windshield.

After a bit of daydreaming and research, I gambled $20 on an iGRIP powerPort Mount (1599). The new Mustangs have a power outlet mounted at the very top of the center console and the iGRIP is designed to plug into the power port and hold a cellphone or MP3 player at the end of a flexible arm.

The iGRIP Mount

I cut-off the mounting tabs on the iGRIP, which left a flat mounting surface. The Solo mounting plate is on the left.

I stuck industrial strength Velcro on both mounting surfaces.

The finished setup.

The iGRIP Mount has worked perfectly, even in very rough conditions. The Solo is very easy to read and does not appear to move or vibrate while driving. Still, I will probably reinforce the base to help with stability. I don’t want to torque the power port too much.

Conclusion

The Solo DL is an excellent device at a class-leading price point. The unit itself is sturdy and well-built with a healthy feature list, all backed by an industry leader. In my mind, this is the current champion in the crowded mid-level DAQ market and the AiM Solo DL comes with my highest recommendation.

J I M M Y

Appendix A – Data logged from Boss 302 ECU:

RPM
Speed
Pedal position sensor
Front left wheel speed
Front right wheel speed
Rear Left wheel speed
Rear right wheel speed
Traction control
Traction control alarm
Fuel level
Instantaneous fuel consumption (1)
Instantaneous fuel consumption (2)
Average fuel level
Fuel flow
Clutch switch
Traction Control Brake Event in progress
Engine Control Engine Event in progress
Brake switch
ABS Alarm
Axle ratio
Malfunction Indicator Light
Fail safe cooling mode
Gear
Tyre size
Stability Control Telltale NO/YES
Stability Control Telltale Text Message (code)
Electronic Stability Control event in progress
Torque
Brake Warning Telltale ON/OFF
Vehicle Yaw Rate
Vehicle lateral acceleration
Steering wheel angle
Tyre revolutions for mile

In Skyfall, the third James Bond film since the 2006 series reboot, Casino Royale, Bond does go back in time, but not in the way you might think. The title Skyfall evokes images of the world’s satellites crashing down at the hands of Quantum, hell bent on world domination in the way Bond villains have done in the past. But the 50 year old franchise is not ready to return to the bad old days just yet. Instead, Skyfall treads where no Bond movie has tread before.

Daniel Craig returns in his third outing as the secret agent with a license to kill. Craig has already proven himself to be the most physical Bond and now, under direction from Sam Mendes, he proves himself to be the most human. Craig has shown the vulnerable side of Bond before, but Skyfall strips away even more of our hero in an ambitious film that feels like yet another series reboot.

* SPOILERS *

The cracking opening sequence in Istanbul begins with a mission going very, very wrong. British agents are down, a list of undercover operatives has been stolen, and Bond is in pursuit of the thief for so long, that he eventually runs out of ammunition and throws his pistol away in disgust. By the time Adele belts-out the best Bond theme in decades, everything has fallen apart. A split-second decision from M (Dame Judi Dench) has left our man shot, missing and presumed dead. The list of agents is out in the wild and the British government is looking to clean house at MI-6. M looks out her window at a rain-soaked London as her world crumbles around her.

When a terrorist attack from Javier Berdem’s psychopathic villain strikes too close to home, Bond drags himself out of his self-imposed death and reports for duty. But he’s a mess, physically and psychologically. He’s wounded. He’s aging. He tries to re-qualify as a double-oh agent, but fails. M’s new boss (Ralph Fiennes) tells her that Bond should be sacked. “It’s a young man’s game now,” he tells Bond. The service’s new Gen Y quartermaster (Ben Whishaw) explains further, telling Bond that he can do more damage to the world’s terrorists from behind his keyboard in a single morning, than Bond can in a year. Later, Bond hears this same speech from his enemy, also a man from the old days, but one who has adapted and survived.

At the heart of Skyfall is the relationship between Bond and M, the last two old dogs of a dying kind of shadowy espionage, confronting their own sticky personal history, but ultimately coming together as they are put under siege, first figuratively and then literally. Under intense scrutiny by Her Majesty’s Government, M retorts with a Tennyson poem that is a statement about her and Bond’s place in the world. Wait a minute, there is no crying in baseball and there is no poetry in James Bond…is there? There is now and I admit that it gave me chills.

Skyfall is the first Bond movie to be shot digitally and cinematographer Roger Deakins turns out maybe the most beautiful Bond film ever. Bond chases his quarry to Shanghai, Macau, and then London, each time giving Deakins a unique palette to work from, visually demarcating each chapter of the story with stunning style. Thomas Newman replaces David Arnold (busy scoring the London Olympics) and produces a restrained score with fewer blaring horns and more synthesizer pads to create a nervous undercurrent throughout the film.

The third act of Skyfall begins in the glowing, icy mists of Scotland and ends in the darkness of Bond’s childhood memories. As far as I could tell, the slightly long ending might as well have been filmed in 1962. There are no clues to the contrary. An icon of the series returns from the Sean Connery days, first as a quip and a chuckle, and then as a bark with the kind of gravity never imagined by the original filmmakers. It was a glorious moment and the best homage yet in the Craig films. Back in time, indeed.

This is the most serious of the Bond films, yet Mendes and return writers Neal Purvis, Rovert Wade, and John Logan allow more humor than in recent years. The balance is almost perfect. Almost. Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace was a two-part story that had Bond falling in love and then seeking solace after his lover’s death, first through revenge and then by confronting his fear that his love had perhaps been unrequited, a lie. Skyfall has our wounded orphan examining age, mortality, weakness, vulnerability, and his duty to Mother England, even though she doesn’t want him. So, what’s next? Are we going to see Bond in group therapy, finding 12-step meetings in every exotic locale he visits? Not bloody likely. As much as I loved the new character development, the tone at the end of the movie seemed clear – James Bond will return and he will be back to business. I can’t wait. Until then, Skyfall stands as one of the best in the longest running franchise in movie history. Well done, old man.

J I M M Y

Click on the photos to see full-sized versions (1200 x 797). Once a photo has been opened, you will be able to view all of the photos in a lightbox viewer, using arrow keys or your mouse to navigate. If you like, you can also run a slideshow of the photos. 30 photos.

Fireworks over Darling Harbour, as seen from my apartment balcony.

Sydney Opera House.

Bar entrance in The Rocks, Sydney.

I just love that there is someplace called Science House.

The Queen Victoria Building.

Spring to Life art installation by paper engineer Benja Harney, hangs from the central dome of the Queen Victoria Building.

Hyde Park, Archibald Fountain, and St. Mary’s Catholic Church as seen from the Sydney Tower observation deck.

The Sydney Tower as seen from the Night Noodle Markets of the Sydney International Food Festival in Hyde Park.

A woman serves hot dumplings at the Night Noodle Markets of the Sydney International Food Festival.

Interesting places can be found by walking through the alleys of the Sydney CBD. The Establishment.

Winding down with some music after a night out. Self-portrait, on the balcony of my Pitt Street apartment at the Meriton.

A worker climbs the scaffolding around the clock tower of Sydney Town Hall.

Spirit figures from the art piece In Between Two Worlds, emerge from Kimber Lane, in Chinatown.

The men’s toilet at the Bavarian Bier Café on O’Connell street.

3 Wise Monkeys Pub.

The Aston Martin One-77 at the Australian International Motor Show.

My favorite car at the Australian International Motor Show (and maybe my favorite car full stop) was Aston Martin’s $4M unobtainium flagship, the One-77. My next favorite car…this Kia.

A lusty statue in Tumbalong Park.

Sculptures containing real whale skeletons, hang from the Cockle Bay atrium.

Australian National Flag flying over Darling Harbour.

Sirens Big Band 16-piece, all female jazz big band at The Basement.

The Sydney Tower overlooking the historic Gowings building.

Interesting architecture.

At the Palmer & Co. speakeasy, legitimate importers of bracing tonics and fortifying liquids.

The Opera Bar at Sydney Opera House.

Sydney at night, from Circular Quay.

The neighborhood pub. This is where I would have a pint most nights with my team.

Scale model of the Sydney CBD at Customs House.

My neighborhood in Sydney.

Partygoers in the rooftop pool at ivy on my last night in Sydney.

J I M M Y

Click on the photos to see full-sized versions (1200 x 797). Once a photo has been opened, you will be able to view all of the photos in a lightbox viewer, using arrow keys or your mouse to navigate. If you like, you can also run a slideshow of the photos. 30 photos.

Just an ordinary day in Auckland Harbor. Wait, what’s that over there?

Oi!

I was working only a few blocks away in a building that overlooks the harbor. On that morning, I noticed several people suddenly rush to the windows to look out. One of them said, “Did you hear? A helicopter has crashed!” I tried to see, but a building was blocking my view. So, I grabbed my camera and rushed down the street. I was on the scene just a few minutes after it occurred.

This stunning video shows the accident. It looks like it is a special effect from a movie, but it’s not. Thankfully, the pilot (and bystanders) walked away.

2011 Auckland ITU Triathalon World Cup.

Andrea Hewitt, the eventual winner of the triathalon.

Occupy Auckland.

Occupy Auckland prepares for a protest march.

A pretty girl walks in front of my lens and proves why I could never be a serious photojournalist.

And now back to coverage of the Occupy Movement, possibly the most substantial sociopolitical protest movement of my lifetime. I wonder where that girl went. She sure was pretty.

The new Whitcoulls Santa stands 20m over the intersection of Queen Street and Victoria Street. The old version of Santa was a tragic thing named the Most Unintentionally Creepy Christmas Ornament in the world.

Finally going INTO the Sky Tower for the first time to have dinner with my team at Orbit, the tower’s revolving restaurant.

But first, a stop at the WETA display – basically, geek heaven featuring a life-size Na’vi.

Tintin at the WETA display. This was months before the release of the movie and I’m ashamed to admit it, but the first I had even heard of it (the movie, not Tintin – I have been a Tintin fan, since I was a child).

Going up into the tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere.

Myself, Joe Terahata, and Jainendra Kumar enjoying ourselves after dinner at Orbit.

Joe takes advantage of the SkyScope fixed viewers on the observation deck of the Auckland Sky Tower.

The view of Auckland City Hall and the Occupy Auckland camp through the SkyScope.

My neighborhood in Auckland. Vodafone, two of my apartments, Victoria Park (Taste of Auckland Food Festival, Audi A1 Arena), and Auckland Fish Market can be seen here.

The WETA exhibit was so cool, we went back again after dinner. Joe takes a closer look at a life-size Nazgûl.

A game of bocce at the Alcatel-Lucent Christmas party.

A very competitive game of bocce.

The Bay of Islands.

Get Fudged in Kerikeri, Bay of Islands.

The candy shelves at Get Fudged.

My rental car at Te Oneroa-a-Tōhē, or Ninety Mile Beach.

The Cape Reinga Lighthouse near the furthest northern point of New Zealand. The lighthouse stands over Te Rerenga Wairua, where the Tasman Sea crashes into the Pacific Ocean.

Distances from the Cape Reinga Lighthouse.

Tāne Mahuta, the largest tree in New Zealand. This ancient kauri tree is likely to have been alive before the birth of Christ. Despite my efforts, I could not capture the enormity of this tree with my camera. It is so massive that it would be easy to believe that it was a model that WETA created for Avatar. It didn’t seem real. But being in the presence of a living thing that big and that old inspired a hushed awe from the visitors as we breathed-in its ancient oxygen. The numbers? This tree is 45m tall and 15m wide. For the Americans – this tree is 50 feet wide! Tree nerds can go here.

My first fish – a beautiful Red Snapper.

This is one of things it turned into.

Look at that lovely sign.

J I M M Y

We checked-in to St. David’s Women’s Center. Even though the facility, room, and staff were all tip-top, Wednesday just ended-up being a parade of frustration and disappointing news. Sure enough, Nicole’s platelets were even lower than the day before. So, she was put on a steroid cycle that was to last 72 hours, after which they would induce labor. This was not going to plan at all. We didn’t want to induce labor in the first place, much less have to spend three days in the hospital before even starting. Nicole also got some bad IV sticks that made her hand swell-up so badly, she looked like she was wearing a catcher’s mitt. It was gross.

Thursday morning brought some good news – Nicole’s platelets had rebounded and were above a safe level. Unfortunately, she was still only at 1 cm, so they used something called Cervidil to help out. It would take 12 hours and even then maybe it would work and maybe not. Nicole had contractions all day Thursday, but they were so easy and irregular, that she hardly took any notice. She spent the day visiting with my mother and so little was going on that I went to work! When I got back to the hospital Thursday evening, the contractions were better than ever. They were still easy, but at least they were becoming more regular. I enjoyed watching the contraction monitor, because it made a graph that looked like the old Atari Lunar Lander game.

Late that evening, Nicole’s contractions finally started to become more pronounced and they were causing Nicole some discomfort. For the first time, we began to put our birth plan into practice. We used a natural-birth technique called hypnobirthing, which used hypnosis, meditation, breathing, and massage to control the pain and allow the body to easily do what it is already built to do. Nicole was breathing through the contractions (called surges in hypnobirthing), while I gave her soft-touch skin massage. This went on for about an hour. The on-call doctor came in and measured Nicole. She was 7 cm and at -1 station. But since she was checked, she no longer had the Cervidil. The doctor made a face as if to say, sorry hon, you still have a ways to go. The doctor and nurse left us to our breathing. My mother settled into the sofa with her journal. I set my mind for a long night. I looked at the clock. 10:30 pm. I wondered where I could get some coffee.

Not even a minute later, Nicole grabbed the front of my shirt and balled it into her fist as if she were threatening me. Maybe she was. She was clearly in more pain than she had been in just a few minutes before. After the surge passed, she looked at me. Something had changed. Her eyes looked wild, like those of a caged animal. She looked at me and said, “I want to push this baby out.”

I hadn’t expected or planned for that. One of the fundamentals of hypnobirthing is that there is no pushing. I froze.

“Call the nurse”, she said.

“Uh, should I call her direct number or should I push the red button on your remote control?”

“CALL THE NURSE!!!”

I pushed the red button. “Can you send Lisa in here? She wants to push the baby out,” I said.

My expectation was that a nurse would come to the room and check us again, but apparently Nicole had stumbled upon a very substantial code phrase. The door opened and no less than six nurses came into the room. They quickly began rearranging the room, moving IV stands, and tearing open bags of God-knows-what. A rolling mirror appeared. Like a Transformer, the bed began to move and tilt, while foot rests extended from the side. The doctor walked-in while pulling on her wetworks gear. The room had exploded in activity. A nurse we had never even met before began to help Nicole with her breathing.

The doctor walked to the foot of the bed. A nurse said, “She’s blown away – 10 cm, +3.”

Nicole looked down at the doctor. “I want to push,” she said.

The doctor smiled. “Then push.”

Nicole pushed hard while I continued to stroke her arm and reassure her. That’s when I looked down and saw that the doctor was already holding the baby’s head in her hand! The doctor was smiling and shaking her head. The doctor had me hold one of Nicole’s legs back, while a nurse did the same on the other side. Nicole pushed again. The doctor gave a little tug, but the baby didn’t budge. Finley’s face was contorted into an unhappy grimace. Everyone encouraged Nicole to do one more push. She reared-back, cried-out and our little girl was here.

Nicole called out, “My baby, my baby!”

She’s purple, I thought. Nobody tells you they are going to be purple. They set her on mum’s tummy and I cut the cord. Then we took her over to a heated bed, while the doctor tended to Nicole.

Just minutes old and very, very cross. Measured 7 lbs. and 4 oz., 20″ long.

Mom, dad, and Finley.

Serious lungs.

I took her down to the nursery where they cleaned her up a little and inoculated her against this and that. She didn’t mind getting checked out at all. She got a shot right in the bottom of her foot and she just looked vaguely perturbed.

Beautiful mother and daughter.

Everyone came home on Saturday (not before Finley’s first trip to Taco Deli) and we have been enjoying getting to know one another. Most importantly, everyone is happy and healthy and we are in love with our daughter.

If you would like see more photos of Finley, you might want to check-out her blog here or follow her on Twitter here.

J I M M Y

The Boss Track Attack is a program designed to give owners of the new Boss 302 a comprehensive and hands-on track experience that demonstrates the full performance abilities of their car. The one-day program is sponsored by Ford’s Team Mustang and Ford Racing, and it is completely free. All the new Boss owner has to do is make his way to Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah (just outside of Salt Lake City). For me, that’s about 1300 miles away from where I live.

At current gas prices and with the Boss unable to get anywhere near the EPA’s crack-smoking 26 MPG highway rating, some back-of-the-napkin calculations indicated that driving would be far more expensive than flying. And even at superheroic speeds, it would still take about 24 hours of driving each way. I wouldn’t have any backup or relief and…well, I’m not a kid anymore. In the end, I really had no choice. I had to drive. The Boss and I had to make our pilgrimage. It was the right thing to do. I began making plans.

I called the track and registered for the event. They came back to me with a date of April 24. I was set. A few weeks later, I was looking at the World Challenge site and I happened to notice the Grand Prix of Utah was to be held on April 27-29. I blinked in disbelief. I had been serendipitously scheduled to attend the Boss Track Attack the very same week that the Boss race cars would be in town! I made plans to extend my stay through the weekend. My excitement was palpable. The next few weeks did not pass quickly.

Sunday: Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, and Route 66

On the week of the event, I woke-up at 4am on Sunday morning, finished packing the car, and was on the road by 5am. The excitement of the trip had kept me from sleeping very well, but I felt wide awake. Just in case, I had a large coffee to-go and played deadmau5 at excessive volume. That definitely did the trick. I was alert and quick. I settled into Daft Punk’s soundtrack for Tron: Legacy and wound through the Texas Hill Country on US-290, making great time. Only 1250 miles to go!

Still early in the morning, but almost out of Texas already.

By noon, I was in New Mexico. By 12:15pm, I was tired of New Mexico. No wonder they used to explode atomic bombs willy-nilly out there in the 1940′s – who would care or even notice? So much of that state is just miles of flat, empty desert. The desert can be beautiful, but generally not in the middle of the day. Roswell offered some visual relief, but I had no time to tarry and I was soon back on the road. I took US-285 out of Roswell with a little over half a tank of gas, thinking I would just refuel in the next town. After an hour of driving without seeing any civilization whatsoever, much less a filling station, I began to feel the first signs of range anxiety. My range was less than 100 miles and there was no sign of a town big enough to support a filling station. I would see signs for tiny little ghost towns, but the signs also indicated that there were “No Services.” I saw a sign for Albuquerque, but I knew I couldn’t make it. Was there anything out here? I was driving 20 mph under the speed limit with the windows rolled-up and the A/C off. Finally, I saw a sign for Vaughn and it looked like it was barely within range. Vaughn did have a filling station and I never felt so good about paying too much for gasoline. It occurred to me that the Boss might not be the best vehicle for a long-haul road trip off the interstate highway system.

I got back on US-285 and soon ran into I-40 heading west into Albuquerque. I was delighted to discover that for some distance, I-40 is the old Route 66! Well, it’s not the same asphalt, but at least it follows the same path.

Historic Route 66 sign in Albuquerque.

Once I got outside of Albuquerque, I began to see hills, mesas, and mountains. The light was falling and the landscape was starting to look downright pretty. I’m sorry about what I said about you before, New Mexico.

Somewhere in New Mexico.

I finally crossed into Colorado late in the evening and on a winding little two-lane back road. Night was falling and I was trying to get to Durango, where I planned to stop for the night. It was a good road and I was hustling to make good time, but this scene stopped me.

Two planets line-up over a lonely farmhouse, while the falling sunlight creates flame-like streaks in the sky. This was only the third time I had ever seen that phenomena. I enjoyed the reverie at the end of such a long day.

I finally stopped in Durango. It had been a tiring day, but I had made good time and I was on schedule to arrive in Salt Lake City, with plenty of time to spare before the reception dinner.

Monday: Utah and Track Attack Reception Dinner at Miller Motorsports Park

I started early the next morning and finally got to see Colorado in the daylight. Oh, so this is what all the fuss is about.

It was a lovely view, but I was only clipping the corner of Colorado and I wouldn’t be there for long. I stopped for a snap or two, but I was soon driving headlong into Utah. I had never been to Utah and…well, I hear a lot of strange things about that state. But whatever else it is, it is a beautiful place.

Somewhere in Utah.

This is Wilson Arch. I still had a full day of driving ahead and I hadn’t planned to stop and do any kind of sightseeing, but this was right on the side of the road, so I stopped and ran to the top. It felt good to stretch my legs a bit and get my heart rate up, but I failed to accommodate the fact that I was out-of-shape and now at 7000 ft. above sea level. I live somewhere around 600 ft. above sea level, so that’s a problem. When I got back down to my car, I was out of breath and coughing like a madman. Then I started wheezing and realized that I hadn’t brought my Albuterol inhaler. Now I have done it, I thought. I’m going to die out here in the high desert. Who does that anymore? What is this – the 1840′s? What an idiot. It took a full half hour for my body to calm down. Top Tip: Be sure to stop and enjoy our national treasures, but don’t do stupid stuff.

The rest of the drive to Salt Lake City was a pleasure. Utah is a beautiful state and the excellent roads that wound through the countryside were a delight. I got to Salt Lake City in the afternoon and found my hotel. I unpacked, cleaned-up, and had a little rest before dinner.

I arrived at Miller Motorsports Park just before 6pm for the reception dinner. The dinner was held in the museum, amidst millions of dollars worth of Mustangs, Cobras, and other beautiful machines from the late Larry Miller’s collection. I walked around and met some of the other guests. We were given plenty of time to look at the cars and memorabilia before dinner. After awhile, we were given a formal guided tour, which revealed interesting information about the cars in the collection.

In 1964, this car was used on the cover of The Rip Chords’ album Hey Little Cobra. When Larry Miller tried to buy the car at auction, he expected to pay only around $200,000. However, the bidding was driven up by an unknown absentee telephone bidder. The price went to over two million dollars before Mr. Miller finally secured the car. The mysterious bidder on the other end of the telephone? George Lucas. Before he began making movies, Lucas had been a car enthusiast. Lucas designed the paint scheme of the car for his friend, racer Allen Grant, and for a time, served as the crew chief for Grant during his early racing career.

This 1970 Boss 302 racer is actually the only car in the museum that is on loan. Presumably, this was done for the benefit of the Boss Track Attack guests.

After the tour, we sat down with the nice dinner they provided for us. Cindi Lux, the head driving instructor, introduced herself and welcomed everyone to the Boss Track Attack. We watched a video about Track Attack and then Cindi sat down and talked about what we could expect the next day. We went around the room and introduced ourselves. I recognized a couple of folks from the Mustang forum that I now frequent. We talked about our cars and what kind of track experience we had. I was surprised how few had any previous track experience.

After dinner, I stuck my head into the classroom, which was right next to the museum entrance. Oh, yeah. You have to like a classroom with a racing car in it. I went back to the hotel and tried to sleep.

Tuesday: Boss Track Attack

I arrived bright and early Tuesday morning for the Boss Track Attack. Cindi began the first classroom session with a video of Ford executives addressing the students and explaining why Ford had decided to sponsor the Boss Track Attack. After the video, she jumped right into some basic driving concepts like understeer, oversteer, proper responses to those conditions, and the basic late-apex driving line. Then she introduced the other instructors for the day (Jon, Ronnie, Mark, and Bob). They handed out Nomex suits and helmets, and then we were off to get in the cars! The classroom is important, but I appreciated that there was never much time between track sessions.

We piled into a couple of vans and they drove us to the garage area. They told us to find our car, put our helmets on, and get strapped-in. I spotted the one and only Kona Blue Boss, but it was assigned to somebody else. I was a little disappointed, but was excited to see that at least I got a Laguna Seca (LS). I’m not sure what difference it makes, since all of Miller’s school cars are brought-up to LS specs. Each car gets the LS front splitter and rear spoiler, the LS brake cooling ducts, LS transmission cooling scoop, the 302S front grille, 302S front brakes, a bigger radiator, a roll cage, and safety harnesses. I don’t think the base cars get the LS gauges. They are nice, but I still hate the pod on the dash and I realized after the event that I never looked at them on track. Not even once.

For the first track session, we just played lead-and-follow with the instructors. They went slow and the idea was just to introduce us to the track for the first time. We would be driving the East Course for the day. As we drove around the track, I could see signs indicating the name of each corner: Fast, Faster, Gotcha, Agony, Ecstasy, Windup, Release, etc. We went around a couple of times and then went back for another classroom session.

By this time, they had split the class into smaller groups, so that they could rotate them through various exercises efficiently. It also allowed for better individual instruction. As it happened, I was in a group with only one other student.

After another classroom session tailored to the track, Instructor Bob took us back out and we walked various parts of the track. This was so that we could see subtle elevation changes and other topographical elements that aren’t necessarily apparent at speed.

Bob explains how to negotiate the set of corners known as “The Attitudes.” They form a blind corkscrew that leads onto a back straight. Very fun part of the track.

This is what we were looking at.

Driving through The Attitudes.

After the second track session, we went to the skid car exercise. The skid car is an ordinary Ford Five Hundred outfitted with a system that allows weight to be moved around the car to create low-traction in an otherwise safe environment. In other words, they can make the car feel like it is on ice when it isn’t. Even better, they can do this on the fly and can make the car understeer or oversteer. I jumped into the skid car and in less than 30 seconds, I had spun it ’round like a record, baby. After I had done this a couple of times, Instructor Robbie told me that I needed to shuffle steer. Wait, what? Since the first time I ever got on track, I had been taught to stick my hands at nine o’clock and three o’clock…and leave them there! In fact, to get caught doing otherwise on my racing team was a sure way to suffer endless humiliation and torment by the other drivers. But, while trying to control the skid car, my arms were getting crossed-up and I wasn’t turning the steering wheel fast enough.

Driving the skid car.

The skid car was easily one of the best parts of the day. It was mad fun and I learned more in that car than in any other part of the school. I could have driven that car all day long and felt like I still hadn’t mastered it. I wonder if we could make one?

After the skid car, we got back in our cars to do the heel-toe downshift exercise. Instructor Mark gave us some pointers and then set us loose on a triangle-shaped track where we got up to speed and then heel-toe downshifted from 4th to 3rd. I practice this on the street all the time, so I was practicing going from 4th to 3rd to 2nd. My technique was pretty good (though I still come off the brake just a little when going to blip the throttle), but Mark gave me some instruction about not downshifting at all until after most of the braking is done. I had been starting too early. We went round and round, stopping to get feedback from Mark each time we completed a circuit. After the heel-toe practice, Mark showed us how to use the pit speed limiter and I rumbled back to the garages at a perfect 35 mph, even though I had the accelerator pedal mashed to the floor. I’ll have to remember to activate that the next time I let a valet park my car.

We broke for lunch, which was again provided by the school. While we ate and rehydrated, Mark reviewed what we had learned that morning and prepared us for the afternoon, where we would finally see some open track time.

After lunch, we piled into a van and Mark took us around the track and reminded us about the details of the correct driving line and why we should adhere to it. A few times he took a corner in the loaded van at speed, which I think was a bit terrifying for some of the passengers. When we got back to the garage, the class split into two big groups and for the rest of the afternoon, we alternated track and classroom sessions.

Playing Lead and Follow with Chris Hackleman.

The next track session was a no-passing lead-follow with the student driving and the instructor in the passenger seat giving a check-ride. Instructor Jon rode along with me. After the first lap, he said, “Stop that.”

“What?” I asked.

“Why are you turning-in so late and getting on the gas so early?” he asked.

“I’m a quattro driver. Maybe that has something to do with it?”

He gave me some pointers and then got out of the car after two laps and said to go have fun. He said I clearly knew my way around the track. Later, in the classroom, he drew some driving lines on the whiteboard and showed me what I was doing in the corners. He said that it was very typical for drivers of “cheaty” AWD vehicles, but that a powerful RWD car needed a different driving style.

The last track session of the day was just the students (unless an individual wanted an instructor) and we could go as fast or as slow as we wanted. Passing was allowed on the front straight with a point-by from the lead car. We lined-up single file and Mark sent us out on track one at a time by showing us how to use the launch control feature. I pressed the launch control button, mashed the go pedal down, the revs locked at 3000 RPM, I came off the clutch and shot onto the track!

This would be our one free track session, so I gave it the beans. With better brakes and stickier tires than my street car, the Boss LS really came alive on the track. It was easy to drive, but I was still wary of fully committing to the throttle mid-corner. More track experience will help me with that. Still, I was reasonably quick and I was having mad fun. I got held-up by a student which allowed the Hackleman brothers, a couple of fast guys from Louisiana, to catch up to me. Chris was directly behind me in another Boss LS and Paul was behind him in a regular school Mustang. The school Mustang’s are track-prepped, but down a whopping 125 hp compared to the Boss, so Paul was doing all he could to stay in the game. Once we got around the slow student, I played fox to Chris’ hound and we were off and running. I overdrove the car a couple of times and found myself with four wheels on the red and white gator-strips that line the corners. But the Boss just absorbed the bumps and I pressed-on. After a couple of laps, I thought I would give Chris an open track to see if he could get away from me. I signaled for him to pass on the front straight, but they threw the checkered flag and the session was over.

As a treat (or “payback”, depending on whom you asked), the students were given a couple of laps around the track with an instructor driving. I sat in the passenger seat of my car and a skinny kid named Michael introduced himself and slipped behind the wheel. He couldn’t have been more than 19 years old. He was very friendly and we lined-up to get on track. Once he saw the track was clear, he punched it. We started with the corner combination Fast, Faster, and Gotcha. Michael, who clearly drives on some other plane as myself, took the corners by going faster, fasterer, and still fastererer. He didn’t scare me, he just left me not understanding how he was getting the car to do what it was doing. I hadn’t felt that way since the first time I went to the track and my instructor, Don Istook, took me for some fast laps in my car. Coming out of The Attitudes, Michael got the car bent out of shape while we were going flat-out onto the back straight. We got into a violent tank-slapper and I just knew we were off. Here we go, both feet in. But somehow, he saved it. Again, I couldn’t figure-out how he did it. I saw him move the wheel back-and-forth and jab the throttle a couple of times, but I just couldn’t keep up with what he was doing. We took a couple of laps and pulled-in. I was buzzing.

The Boss Track Attack graduation ceremony.

We went back to the main school building and were presented with our trophies, which are made from Boss pistons and connecting rods. So cool. We also got a Boss Track Attack t-shirt, a pair of racing gloves, and a thumb drive with 400 photos that a professional photographer had taken during the day. I thanked all of the instructors and then told Cindi that I planned on watching the World Challenge race over the weekend. She excused herself for a moment and then came back with a free pass for me to attend the event!

That gesture from Cindi sums-up the generous attitude of everyone I met that was associated with Miller and Boss Track Attack. The program itself was beyond my expectations. It was executed with the highest level of professionalism by instructors who were always helpful and friendly. The facility and track is world class. The break-out groups were small enough to allow for a some individual instruction. They never dumbed-down the concepts, even when addressing novices. This made the lessons palatable by experienced drivers, who I believe can always benefit from occasionally reviewing the fundamentals. The instructors were always encouraging and they would frequently remind us that we were there to have fun. In the end, it was the attention to detail that made it. Nothing felt thrown together. The catering was spot-on. All classroom and track materials were provided. Drinks were provided. The program kept a strict clock and there was no chance that we wouldn’t get to do something we were promised we would do. Receiving a Certificate of Completion was not unexpected, but a trophy made out of a Boss piston? Racing gloves? A thumb drive with 400 professional photos of your day? The Boss Track Attack program and the folks from Miller Motorsports Park and the Ford Racing High Performance Driving School were so good, that I don’t feel like I can adequately convey how impressed they left me. Probably best to just say – thank you.

When I have the scratch, I am determined to return to Miller and attend their four-day race licensing school.

Wednesday: Bonneville Salt Flats

On Wednesday, I drove west on I80 towards another temple of speed – the Bonneville Salt Flats. Since the 1930′s, the Salt Flats have been the home of the landspeed record, their vast, flat expanse (some 46 sq. miles) allowing even rocket cars to stretch their legs.

The Salt Flats are a barren expanse of hard packed salt crust, but surface conditions are variable and not always ideal. The salt crust is several feet thick in some area but tapers off to just a few inches thick towards the edges. Underneath the salt crust is mud. From November to May, cooler weather slows evaporation of the flooded lake bed, sometimes leaving the surface a salty slush. Don’t skip ahead, this is important information. In the 1840′s, The Donner Party suffered their tragic fate, in part, because their wagons wheels became mired in the mud found below the salt crust, which delayed their travel into the Sierra Nevada mountains until the deadly winter was already underway. Now, what is it they say about those that don’t know history are doomed to repeat it?

I arrived at the cul-de-sac at the edge of the salt flats and from the road I could see a car out on the salt. At first, I thought somebody was just doing what I was about to do. But the car wasn’t moving and even from a distance, it appeared as though the front end was sitting too low. A blown tire?

I drove out onto the salt and made my way towards the car, but as I got closer, I could see there was nobody in the car. The area seemed slushy and slick, so I turned away and drove further out onto the flats where it felt more solid. The flats are, well…flat, but they aren’t perfectly smooth. There are ruts and ridges from rainwater. I wondered how the car would handle those at speed. During sanctioned events, the course is prepared with a sled, which smoothes the driving surface.

After driving for awhile, I stopped to take some photos of the car. The salt flats afford a beautiful, surreal, and photogenic landscape. Lighting is obviously bright and uniform.

I took a towel and tried to wipe down the car of the salt that had kicked-up on the drive out. That’s when I realized how nasty this stuff was. I brushed the salt on the rocker panels and nothing happened. It was solidly encrusted on the body of the car. In fact, the whole surface of the car was covered in a thin layer of salt. I ran my hand across the body and it felt like sandpaper. After driving through the slush near the road, I couldn’t imagine what the undercarriage looked like. The salt sticks to everything like glue. Corrosive glue. Weaponized salt. I needed to get off this crap and find a car wash.

I spent about half an hour taking photos and then I packed away my gear. I drove further into the flats to accomplish my other goal – a top speed run in the Boss.

The Boss is electronically speed limited, so I already knew the answer to the perennial question “what’ll she do?” But, I wanted to see it for myself and I wanted to do it at Bonneville. It was part of the pilgrimage, it was correct, it was safe(ish), it was legal. I had already taken the Boss to 135 mph on a public road secret test track in Mexico, so I knew that it would reach terminal velocity quickly. Still, I gave myself a good long stretch of salt. After driving awhile, I started to see the flags that mark the official course. I hadn’t realized that they left them up year round.

I finally turned the car around and lined-up along the flags so that I could see them extending into the distance. I set the Solo DL to record the run and checked my camera. Even when dry, the salt crust creates traction problems, so I accelerated slowly through the first two gears, even short-shifting lazily. In third gear, I started to push on it. Then I shifted to fourth and fully committed to the throttle. It was a strange sensation. The car was making its glorious noise, long moments screaming at the top of her rev range, but outside, not much appeared to be happening. The blinding white salt lost every bit of detail, looking just like pure light and not providing any visual indication of speed. The mountains in the distance did not appear to be getting any closer. Only the occasional course flag flying by in a flash let me know that I wasn’t in some kind of simulator. The ride was rough, but not so much that I needed to back off. Hell, I was driving with one hand. I shifted into fifth. It was so loud at the end, I could barely hear the car hitting the limiter. I took a couple of photos and then the car lurched and I let off the gas.

The Solo DL indicated 156 mph. It was the fastest I had ever been in a car. I checked the data when I got home and I had gone 156.8 mph at 7493 rpm in 5th gear. I would love to see what the Boss could do without a speed limiter. She still has another gear!

When I got back to the road, I parked and watched a team unload Volvo’s Mean Green hybrid diesel truck from it’s trailer and take it onto the salt for a photo shoot. As it happens, this is the world’s fastest truck. Even though the truck holds the FIA records for the standing 500-meter, standing kilometer, and flying kilometer, it was in Utah to attempt to break its own records. The truck now boasts 2100 hp, almost 5000 torques, and improved aerodynamics. Good luck crazy Swedes.

After they finished their photo shoot, I walked out to the immobile car that I had seen out on the salt.

The tire marks told the tale. It looks like they were doing fwd donuts when they broke through the salt and into the underlying mud. The driver tried to power out, but only dug the car into the mud all the way to the body. There was evidence of a rescue attempt, but at some point they abandoned the car.

I drove back to the hotel, but not before stopping at a car wash and washing the car twice.

Thursday: Rest and a Mustang Cobra II

On Thursday, I stayed in the hotel all day and tried to get some rest. I love hotels. I find their comfort a decadent treat. Also, I don’t have a TV, so it’s always a pleasure to fire-up, in this case, a 52″ LG LCD and watch some shows.

I thought I would be a bad boy and look at the hotel’s adult channel, but all they had was Charlie’s Angels. Stupid Utah. Anyway, I watched a couple of episodes, which featured the Mustang Cobra II. Somehow, perhaps the worst Mustang in history had snuck into my awesome Mustang Week. Still, it was quite fun watching Charlie’s Angels. Of course it is a terrible show in every obvious way, but if you look carefully, there is some goodness there. The show was made in the 70′s, which means that many of the cars driving around in the background are from the 60′s. I had fun just spotting cool cars that we never see anymore. I watched one episode in which Timothy Dalton plays a roguish gentleman thief that Charlie calls “James Bondian.” A few years later, Timothy Dalton would be James Bond! Anyway, in the show, he drove a beautiful and rare Porsche Carrera 3.0.

I stayed in all day, got some rest, worked on my blog, watched about a thousand episodes of Law & Order (there is always one playing on cable somewhere), and went to bed.

Friday: World Challenge Practice and Qualifying

I arrived at the track on Friday and immediately set-out to find the Boss race cars. Luckily the three cars were right next to each other.

First up was Paul Brown’s championship-winning and current championship-leading Boss 302S clone. I walked around taking photos of everything I could inside and outside of the car. Maybe more than actually watching the race, I was here to see how they had built these cars. The crew was very nice about it. After awhile, I moved to the #26 Boss 302S of Capaldi Racing. Again, I walked around taking photos and the team was very nice about me being underfoot. Then I walked over to the Motorsport Development Group’s #16 Boss 302R. The smurf blue Boss is driven by Alec Udell, who is only 16 years old!

Matt prepares the car for practice.

For whatever reason, maybe because they were from Texas, I really took to this team. The crew, Cody and Matt, were exceptionally nice to me and let me ask them every dumb question about the car that I could think of. Bob Udell introduced himself and then walked me around and introduced me to his son Alec, Stuart Robinson of Motorsports Development Group, and Mark Wilson, the Engineering Manager of Ford Racing. These guys could not have been more friendly. So, I pretty much parked myself in their garage all day and just had fun watching the team operate. I am the captain of an amateur endurance racing team and I found it fascinating to compare and contrast the differences (and similarities!) of our two teams.

One similarity that all race teams share is having to deal with the politics of the sanctioning body. I have certainly tasted bitter lemonade. This is especially true in a series with different cars that have to be artificially adjusted in order to keep the field competitive. This is how Kias(!) can be competitive racing against Mustangs and Camaros. The Mustangs have to use an inlet restrictor to bring their power down. But at high altitudes, where the thinner air already reduces their power, the restriction is too great. This doesn’t apply to turbocharged cars, like the Kia, because they don’t suffer at high altitudes and the team felt like the Mustangs wouldn’t be able to keep up. They appealed to SCCA, but their appeal was rejected.

That was the least of their worries. By the end of practice and qualifying, the MDG 302R had lost a cylinder and the Capaldi 302S was completely down and out.

The Capaldi Racing Boss 302S comes in on flatbed. Forum guys who complain about the factory splitter being too flexible might want to take a close look at this photo. Bending is better than breaking. And yes, I watched it flex.

Mark Wilson looked under the car and said, “That’s cute.” This is what he saw. That hole isn’t supposed to be there.

In the end, the Capaldi team threw in the towel on their own car, but would help the MDG team swap-in an engine from a stock Boss 302 that had recently been delivered to Miller to become a school car. Matt asked me if I wanted to help. I told him I was all in. I went and got my work jacket from my car and we got busy.

The beautiful new donor car – MP0002.

Helping the team swap motors. Why does this seem familiar? Photo: Cody Young

Mark Wilson begins the investigation for his Morbidity and Mortality Report. He would eventually find a broken valve spring. Team 302R pulled their engine more quickly, because race car!

Finally, it’s out.

It took a couple of more hours to get the engine into the car. The race cars may use stock engines, but they use the transmissions from the GT500. So that had to be changed, too. Once we got the engine up and into the car, we called it a night. The team would finish everything else in the morning. They gave me a ride out to my car and I got back to the the hotel around 1am.

Saturday: Race Day!

I slept-in the next morning, but the real team was up early to complete the engine swap. By the time I got to the track, the job was done and everyone was enjoying breakfast.

Sandie Capaldi making omelets (to order!) for the hungry Boss teams. Later in the afternoon, she made us fresh smoothies. She’s a saint.

Race Day seemed less hectic than the day before, so I walked around the paddock and found my friend Don Istook, who was competing against the Bosses in the GTS class with his brand new Audi TT RS. Don had been my very first performance driving instructor and we had been active in the Audi community for years. He hadn’t had much time to develop the new car (he had previously campaigned a TT S), so there were some issues. Even though he had StopTechs all around, he felt like the brakes needed to be sorted a bit better. A more troubling issue was that he couldn’t turn-off the traction control, which was preventing him from powering out of corners like he needed. He was also on a fully stock suspension. It’s a neat little car and I’m looking forward to when he gets it dialed-in. I wished him good luck.

Don Istook and his Audi TT RS.

After lunch, Mark and I walked down and watched the cars stage for the race. Mark stopped and chatted with all of the Mustang and Boss drivers. While we standing there, a Cadillac CTS-V race car drove past us to stage. I apologized to Mark in advance for the heresy, but then told him that I thought the Cadillac was the best sounding race car I had ever heard. Period. I had heard the first generation race cars at Sebring, back in 2007 and they sounded the same way. They make a deep, guttural thumping that I could feel in the ground and in my chest. I don’t care which engine is in there, the Corvettes don’t make that sound, and neither do the Camaros. Mark agreed.

Finally, the cars went to grid and I staked out some turf at the end of the front straight. I couldn’t see all of the track, but Turn 1 was good to see high speeds, awesome braking power, and maybe a little action in the corner, too.

The flag dropped, the lights went out, and the race was underway! A Volvo went into the dirt to make a pass at the start, but despite the maneuvering for position, everyone made it through the first corner. The GT cars are shockingly fast and the works cars (Cadillac, Volvo) can brake very late from the high speeds of the front straight. It was a beautiful thing to watch. Still, despite the works cars and their unobtainium kit, there was an ordinary Porsche that eventually made it out front. The Cadillacs were in the hunt, but the Volvos suffered reliability issues, one of them finally having to be towed back behind the wall.

In GTS, just as the team had thought, the over-restricted Mustangs couldn’t even manage to stay in the lead pack. Still, Alec was tearing-up the track, eventually gaining twelve positions and only missing the Hard Charger award by one. Better yet, he passed championship leader, Justin Bell, and led him the entire race…with an engine from a stock Boss 302…that I helped put into the car. I couldn’t help but feel a bit proud.

Alec might have done even better, but he lost his ABS early in the race. Here he is locking a rear wheel, while trying to stay ahead of Justin.

* SPOILER * The big news of the race was the two Kias (Michael Galati, Colin Braun) leading the race in GTS. They stood to place first and second, but less than two minutes after this photo was taken, on the last corner of the last lap, they collided and took each off the podium, along with the leading Acura of Peter Cunningham! Andy Lee, sitting in fourth place with his Camaro, shot forward and took the checkered flag! Cue 007 theme.

You can watch the whole race on World Challenge TV here.

Immediately after the race, I helped get Stuart, Bob, and Alec to the airport for their flight back to Texas. I returned their rental Expedition back to the track and spent another hour or so having a beer and with Cody and Matt. I said goodbye to everyone and wished them luck at Laguna Seca. I wished I could join their traveling circus, but real life beckoned.

I got back on the road and made haste. This time, I drove through the night and only stopped for a couple of hours at a rest stop, just before sunrise and when the hallucinations were getting really bad. I took a different route back and found myself in a part of Texas that didn’t appear to be useful for anything other than slowing down travelers. But eventually, I made my way into Central Texas and the lovely roadside wildflowers in the hill country of home. In a life full of road trips and adventures, this had rated as one of the best of my life. I saw parts of America that I had never seen. I thought I would be alone, but I had made friends and had been invited into an experience that I thought I would only watch from the outside. It was beyond what I had hoped for and all because I bought a silly little car.

J I M M Y

In Memory of Carroll Shelby, who passed away on May 11, 2012, the day I first published this entry about going to a museum and seeing his legendary cars.

I immediately logged-in to my account and looked at the charge details, which looked like this:

04/08/2012 Sun EXPERIAN *CREDITR877-297-7790 CA – $21.55
Merchandise & Supplies
Internet Purchase
877-297-7790

Doing Business As: CONSUMERINFOCOM
Merchant Address: 535 ANTON BLVD #100
COSTA MESA
CA
92626
UNITED STATES

The same charges occured on the 8th of Feb, Mar, and Apr 2012.

I called Amex and disputed the charges. I had never done any business with that company, nor had I ever subscribed to services from them. The agent said that the vendor was part of their “no-signature” program and that I would have to call them directly.

I called the business number from my statement and got an auto attendant identifying the company as CreditReport.com. I was quickly routed to an agent. I explained the situation and he said he would look into it. He asked me for my name and DOB. That didn’t turn-up an account, so he asked me for my CC number. I had initiated the call and they were already charging my card anyway, so I gave it to him. Using that number he said that he found the account and that it belonged to somebody named “Yolanda.” I told him that I didn’t know anyone by that name. Without any further investigation, the agent said he would refund the charges. He also said that it was clear that the card had been compromised and that I should contact my CC company.

I called Amex again and told the agent what had happened. She cancelled my card, arranged to have a new card (new number) sent to me overnight, and then she put a temporary (five months) block on Experian. Crisis averted.

I felt lucky that even though my card number had been jacked, the only thing it had been used for was a subscription to a credit reporting service. What kind of hapless thief was this? If it wasn’t so nerve-racking, it would be comical. I tweeted The Case of the Ironic Credit Card Thief so that my friends could have a chuckle and then I went about my day.

That evening, I was having dinner with my friend Eric Fluhr and I recounted this episode to him. He asked about the name of the company in question and when I told him Experian, his face lit-up. “That happened to me and to my mother and brother, too!”

He told me his story and it was the same as mine, word-for-word. And that is when the penny dropped. All of the unanswerable questions suddenly had an answer. How could a consumer protection firm not use the most basic security measures to prevent CC fraud on their own systems? Why did an Experian agent allow me to cancel and reverse charges on a credit card which I did not prove was mine? Is there a mysterious cabal of credit card thieves who only use the stolen numbers to subscribe to a credit monitoring service? Of course not. It doesn’t make any sense. Who would stand to make any money from… oh.

Experian, through their subsidiary websites ConsumerInfo.com, CreditReport.com, FreeCreditReport.com, FreeCreditScore.com (and perhaps others) are charging consumer credit cards without authorization. It’s not even fraud, it’s just old-fashioned theft. I don’t know if they are feeding stolen credit card numbers to outside contractors who then sign-up for services, or if it is a completely automated in-house system. If the FBI can be bothered to look into it, maybe we will find out someday. Until then, I would not recommend doing business with this company in any way, shape, or form. If you ever see a charge on your credit card statement from Experian, call your credit card company immediately and block Experian charges from your card. Then call your State’s Attorney General.

If this happens to you, know that you aren’t alone. There are 468 complaints and counting on this site alone:

ConsumerAffairs.com/Experian

You can also Google the telephone number to find hundreds more.

Good luck. And remember to check your credit card statements every month!

J I M M Y