PORSCHE SINGLE-SEATER
NEWS OF a particular Porsche displayed at the Essen Motor Show1 prompts me to recall my own once-in-a-lifetime experience piloting a single-seat Porsche. Known as der Volksschlepper, this vehicle gets … Continue reading
DOUGLAS WORLD CRUISERS
ONE OF the grandest adventures in aviation occurred in 1924 when a trio of U.S. Army Air Service Douglas World Cruisers became the first aeroplanes to circumnavigate the globe. The … Continue reading
WRONG WORDS
AS A linguistic hobby, I’ve been collecting two kinds of misused words, one category dating back more than 200 years, the other defined as recently as the current decade. They’re … Continue reading
BENETTON B186
THE RECENT U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, reminds me of my own Formula 1 drive. (It’s difficult to work this into ordinary conversation—but it can be done.) The car … Continue reading
HIGH TECH, WHY TECH
AVOWED TECHIE though I am, some modern automotive offerings have me wondering. Here are my current citations in both categories, High Tech and Why Tech. Rear view camera. High Tech! … Continue reading
MATRYOSHKA
AT FIRST glance, the phrase “Matryoshka Holmes” looks like one of Sherlock’s obscure Russian relatives. And, in a sense, this is correct—by way of China, in more ways than one. … Continue reading
SPACE FRONTIER 1952
DESCRIBED AS “the story of the greatest adventure awaiting man,” Across the Space Frontier is a wonderful book written by top space scientists in 1952. A good many of their … Continue reading
WHAT IS A SPORTS CAR?
THE QUESTION “What is a sports car?” was addressed in Road and Track by no less than John R. Bond. And, indeed, when John and his wife Elaine assumed control … Continue reading
BROTHER, CAN YOU SPARE A DIME?
THE U.S. Department of Labor has provided us all with an entertaining and thought-provoking gizmo at http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm. As its name suggests, the CPI Inflation Calculator uses the Consumer Price Index and … Continue reading
ARE THERE OPERA DIVOS?
HOW HAVE I waited this long to write about opera? Wife Dottie introduced me to its joys—and madness—quite a few years ago, and I’ve never looked back. For neophytes, let … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 