Rocketboy's MINI Blog - Archives

Well, we all know what Sara Trafford thinks about MINI Coopers, I wonder what else Sarah Trafford thinks about TV?

Never has there been a more inaccurate name for a television series than that of MTV's pseudo-reality-television program The Real World.

In 11 seasons of Real World, there have been more unrealistic representations of fringe counter-cultures than one can count on two hands and two feet. Between the disproportionately large number of practicing homosexuals, to the strictly enforced ideology, MTV's The Real World is bringing up a generation of people who honestly believe this carefully crafted charade to be a true reflection of modern life.

Well, she doesn't like shows like The Real World (not that I blame her, but I just think the show is highly un-entertaining.)

But one thing is clear: the success of this program does not bode well for America's future.

And apparently she thinks that it's part of the downfall of what she deems to be a 'moral' society. Of course, she also thinks that

small cars just mean more vehicles on the road and thus, more pollution

and

"We're not Europe, so let's try to stop being Europe," she said. "Let's be proud of our heritage, we're big and happy. Why don't we just have big cars?"

Umm, sure. Let's ignore the fact that my heritage is European. Let's also ignore the fact that the USA's heritage is also European. Last time I checked, the Revolutionary War was a revolt against England, a European country.

And look here for other great examples of the types of sources that she uses for her 'news' stories. Let's see how long it takes her to make some sort of pseudo-witty comment in this article. Oh wait! In the first line!


Sorry, the article really, really, bugged me.

Erik...

My response to Who You Callin' Mini? Small Cars Go Big Time

Did you look for the biggest idiots to interview at the end of the article? I love Fox News, but the stores on your website really leave much to be desired. Case in point, the story about Mini cars.
"“I’m hating Mini Coopers,” said Sarah Trafford, 23, a 5-foot-11 Washington, D.C., graduate student. “When I get in them, I have to be all hunched over. They’re massively uncomfortable and unpleasant to ride around in.”"

My 50 year old father who's just under 5'11" is in no way "all hunched over" when he rides in my car. My friend's 6'2" 250lbs (not overweight, think more of a bouncer/landscaper type build) remarked that he had more room in my car than his full sized pickup truck. With just under 3'6" of legroom, and over 3" of headroom, someone who is only 5'11" should not be hunched over in any way shape or form.

"John Finn, 57, of Bath, Mich., is leery of the safety of compacts — high-end or not — when surrounded by sport utilities on the highway. He said he wouldn’t let his children drive anything but SUV when they were teenagers."

I'm not a SUV basher, but I do realize that a truck with a high center of gravity, and more mass than you average car does NOT make a safe ride for a teenager. There's a reason that you need a HIGHER class of license to drive a larger/heaver commercial truck than a smaller one. It's because the more mass and size a truck has, the more difficult it is to drive and control. Giving an new driver with little experience a large truck to start off with is irresponsible at best. No wonder why John Finn is leery of the safety of small cars. He think it's a good idea to give green drivers large heavy trucks.

And again from Sarah Traford:
"Trafford said small cars just mean more vehicles on the road — and thus, more pollution. She doesn’t think compacts like the Mini make sense in the U.S."

I think that the college that she is a graduate student in should be in danger of losing it's accreditation. If she thinks that if cars are made smaller, somehow there will be more people driving, she really needs to start from square one. Her logic does not even come close to making sense.

Nice attempt at trying to add a FUD factor at the end of an article by not citing people who buy into the 'Bigger is ALWAYS better' myth. But the attempt is so totally transparent because the person that wrote the article was so lazy that they couldn't even be bothered to find someone who knows what they are actually talking about.

Erik...

This was posted up back in January, but I thought I'd repost it.

MINI Of Canada has a rather nice section about winter driving. There's videos, driving tips, and a winter driving quiz. Granted, most of the info should be common knowledge for us Western New Yorkers, but hey, it's never a bad time for a refresher. But two more tips, A: Powered Wheels Slide, therefore, Un-Powered Wheels do NOT Slide. The long and the short of that is sometimes it's better to put your foot on the clutch and drive, than it is to hit your ABS. Trust me, next time you're in a snowy, but empty, parking lot, try turning with your foot on the break, and the ABS active, and then with your foot on the clutch. You'd be amazed how not panicking and not hitting the breaks helps. this is why I avoid automatics like the plague. you lose a LOT of control during the winter And tip number 2, or B:, if I'm following the counting system I started, don't forget to clean off that roof! The last thing that you want happening is a 3'x4' sheet of ice crashing down on your bonnet when you come to a stop, or even worse, smashing into the windscreen of the guy driving behind you...

Erik...

Want to drive a MINI like a madman (or woman), but want to avoid the costly insurance rates, jail time, and hospital visits? Well, here's how you can do it. Bust out your Game Cube/Playstation 2/X-Box, and have at it. But the issue is, where to start? What's a good MINI driving game? Here's a good place to start.

An oft overlooked game, but still quite good, is Namco's R:Racing Evolution. (I've only played the X-Box version, but it does come in Playstation 2, and Game Cube versions.

R:Racing Evolution was overlooked when it was released, because it was trying to dance between a Grand Turismo type simulation racing game, and a Project Gotham Racing type of arcade game. People were confused by exactly what it was intended to be. A racing game with a lot of settings, or one where you get points for style. To further add to the confusion, Namco re-introduced storyline mode that was first seen in Ridge Racer 4, so nobody was quite sure where the game sat in the range of racing games. But to me, it was just the perfect mix. I like Grand Turismo, but sometimes, I just don't want to have to change 10 different sliders on my car. I liked Project Gotham Racing, but to me it got old quick because there was no real motivation to keep playing. R:Racing Evolution with it's great mix solves both of the problems.
Another 'strange' feature that the game had was that the other drivers 'talked' during the race. One of the complaints was that it was quite repetitive. That, I won't deny. What's good about it is that it kind of lets you know what's going on in the game. When you give one of the computer racers a big hit with your car, they'll say something about it. And you know that next time that they are near you, they will try to repay the favor. It's nice because it gives you the impression that you're actually racing against people, and not the same scripted AI. The computer racers also have 'Pressure' meters. When you're behind one of the other cars, the AI will feel the 'Pressure' of you driving right behind them. Keep the pressure on for long enough, and they'll screw up. Just like real human drivers do sometimes.
I also like the nice variety in cars in R:Racing Evolution. You can drive anything from the old Alpha Romeo Giulia, to a Bently Prototype racing car. And of course, you can drive a MINI. Not just one, but there's a few different variants. The 'real' MINI, a rally style MINI, and a fantasy tuned MINI, with gobs of horsepower.
My best example on how impress I am with this game has to be the fact that I bought it over the summer, and I'm still playing it. It's one of the very rare games that I want to finish 100%. For me, that really says a lot.

And hey, at just under $20, it's a nice game at a nice price.

I'd suggest it.

Erik...

(*ahem*) What could be a better Christmas present saving money? That's why if you have broadband, why not put it to work? Ditch the phone company, and switch to Vonage. Vonage is a service that uses your pre-existing broadband internet connection for your phone service. You can still use your regular phone, your regular answering machine, and your regular caller ID box. You even get to keep your existing phone number. The only difference you'll notice on a regular basis is how much less you're spending. The two plans are $24.99 for unlimited calling in the US and Canada, or you can spend $14.99 for 500 minutes a month, also good for anywhere in the US and Canada.

Not only is it cheaper than regular phone service, the list of extras you get for free are great. Free Caller ID, Free Voicemail, Free Call Waiting, Free Call Fowarding, and more.

It's also great if you have friends or family living in another part of the country, or even in England or Mexico. Why? Because Vonage also has 'virtual' phone numbers. What that means is that if you live in say, Iowa, and you know someone in London England, that you'd like to talk to more, but the long distance rates are just too expensive, with Vonage, you can get a London, England phone number. That way, it's always a local call. Or, with Vonage being active in the UK, you blokes can do the very same thing in reverse.

(Hey, it's been a while since I did some cheerleading for Vonage.)

Erik...

I just bought the new Sims game for my X-Box, "The Urbz", and in it, was a code to download 4 songs by The Black Eyed Peas. Not being a fan of the Peas, I thought I'd offer it on a first come, first serve basis. The only think that I ask is that the first person who d-loads it post in the comments that they used it, as it's a one-time only code.

Erik...

**UPDATE**
After A: Not including the directions, and B: posting the wrong code up, Wen from www.peopleshow.com picked up the free songs... congrats and enjoy...

The MINI Club of WNY's very own Jack was featured in the New York Times recently, in an article about Yellow Cars.

Laurie Reiter, 49, an ultrasound technician from Youngstown, N.Y., is from the school of car buyers who thrive on attention. She considered red when she was buying a 2003 Mini Cooper, but decided it was too common. As she browsed the showroom, "Liquid Yellow" jumped out as the perfect fit.

"People just buy cars for transportation," she said. "But there are still a few of us who really love our cars."

When she and her husband, Jack Empson, also 49, drive their Mini to nearby Niagara Falls, they sometimes feel like the main attraction. "People turn around and stare at us," Mr. Empson said, "after they came hundreds of miles to see the falls."

Of course, I'm sure the same thing could be said of any MINI, no matter what color.. :)


Erik...

You might of already heard this, as it was posted on MotoringFile a few days ago, but in case you have not, well, I'll leave it in Gabe's words...

You'll have to excuse this non-MINI related post but today I was laid off from my job as a creative director/graphic designer. It was completely unexpected. Due to just having bought a house (yeah - good timing) I'm going to be hitting the pavement hard and heavy to find something as quick as possible. I've been laid off before (anyone remember that whole dot-com thing) but now that I'm older and have more responsibilities I'll have to double my efforts to find something good fairly quickly.

So just this once I'd also like to ask my readers for some help. If anyone knows of any mid/senior level graphic design/web design full-time, freelance, or contracting jobs (specifically in the Chicago area) please let me know by emailing me at motoringfile.com.

Beyond that I've also been toying with the idea of trying to find something within the automotive industry - even if it involves a slightly different kind of position. That could include both the press or manufacturers. Moving would have to be a considering if I go that route but I don't want to rule that out at this point.

Good luck to you Gabe, as someone who's been there before, I know how bad getting laid of sucks. But on the plus side, it very well can lead to something bigger and better than you had before.

Erik...

Not much to say about this one, it's just a sensible article about depreciation, which I figured would be a nice counterpoint to an article I posted up earlier...

Erik...

If you're in Western New York (and I'm using the very liberal definition of WNY here, I'm talking all the way out to Rochester...), and you're looking for something to do with your MINI, why haven't you been to the MINI Club of WNY yet? Lately, what you've been missing is the monthly Dinner Meetings. Last month, we went to the Cannonball Pub in Wyoming. This month we went to the Shogun in Williamsville, and next month we're planning on going to the Dinosaur BBQ in Rochester.

So stop on over to the club message board, and then stop on out for dinner. Even if your MINI is packed away for the winter (you know who you are... :) ).

Erik...

This past week I put my snow tires on. A little early? Heck ya. I didn't want to risk it this year, as my summer tires are, well, summer tires. We've already had two dusting of snow in WNY, and we were actually expecting more snow this past Friday, but alas, no snow. Not that I'm complaining mind you, but it would be nice to have had a reason to put them on already. At least now I'm ready for the snow when it does hit.

Erik...

It's not dead yet, just on the backburner for now....

so I leave you with this...

In the song by Ministry, 'Jesus Built My Hotrod' there's a movie/tv quote that goes:

Nobody with a good car needs to be justified

Think of that next time someone wants to do some stoplight racing. Me, I drive fast for me. Not anyone else. And if it makes someone feel better about their dull, boring choice of cars, hey, good for them. While they are off driving in a rustbucket, a car with 20 lbs of stickers, or some 'first ever' car (which shares the same platform and some interior pieces as a Malibu Maxx), I'm still in my MINI. That's all the justification I need.

:)

Erik...