LONDON / WRAP UP FOR 2015 MARCH TRIP

March 16, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in London

Just wrapping up the last material images from our 2015 March London trip.

We went to an amazing Indian restaurant Dishoom to met up with our friend Ali, a graphic designer emigrated from Ohio who Michelle initially met in SF.

Just a sampling of some local drinks I purchased at Borough Market. The Williams Borthers Red Ale had a nice, solid red ale flavor (my preferred brew). The Kopparberg is a Swedish brand popular in UK for their ciders. The Mixed Berry is one of the few drinks Michelle enjoys and is a pretty great cider, not overly sweet like the more common Strawberry & Lime flavor. Lastly the Wild Raven by Thornbridge was a "Black IPA", something I hadn't come across until I was referred to it by the helpful vendor employee. Easily ended up being my favorite drink during the trip; dark and malty but not too hoppy. Definitely want to try to get that one again!

Here's a few car sightings. By now if you've seen any of the past London posts, you should know that Bentleys are a pretty common sighting in central London (though that doesn't make them any less special!) so let's move on to some more interesting finds.

How about a peach-colored, Custom '57 Chevy pickup for starters? A neat sighting in the States, but in central London it certainly stood out. Not a fan of the wheels, but still pretty cool.

Now for something really different, a Chevy SSR. These things are a rare sighting in the States, so it's pretty much on the bottom of the list of cars I'd expect to see in UK.

I'll finish with this badass 110 Defender. Again, the wheel game is off (I'll take mine with black steelies please) but otherwise it's just the type of truck that'd be amazing to have in the States. That is, if the Feds weren't so eager to steal and crush these trucks.

Car Spotlight / Svelte Vette

January 08, 2015 by Jonathan Chow in Car Spotlight

As I've mentioned before, over the last several years I've grown to appreciate the American cars that I used to dismiss while I was younger. One of the hardest cars to get over was the Corvette, especially given its stigma among some car enthusiasts. To put it simply, I do not fit the 'Vette demograph by any stretch of the imagination, so it was easy for me to be "put off" by many of their owners.

However, over time I learned to manage the subcultures among car enthusiasts, as well as disassociate them and let the cars speak for themselves. And it is then where the C2 really shined for me. It has been stated many times that the original Sting Ray is one of the greatest designs in automotive history, or at the very least American car history, and I full agree with such a bold claim.

There is not a single angle on this car that doesn't ooze with style (ok, the wheel caps are pretty weak, but that can be easily fixed). Like most great designs, this was clearly created by one man's vision, not by a design team like many modern cars often are. Even though this particular model wasn't the ultimate split-window model, it still grabbed and held my attention better than many classic European cars could.

Also didn't hurt that the C2 generation had such a successful racing history. In fact, it was probably more successful than any other Corvette generation until Pratt & Miller came in with their C5 and C6 domination.

It's also the only Corvette I'd ever associate the word "classy" with. Every generation that followed seemed to have a stronger emphasis on getting more bang for the buck, both in terms of visual treatment (C3 Sting Rays) and performance (C4 ZR1, C5/6 Z06). Not that that's a bad thing, and maybe the "classy" association is due to the C2 being a product of the 60's, but I always felt the C2 had that perfect balance between sport and composure that no other Corvette was able to achieve.

Racing, class, bold styling, American roots. Small wonder why it's an icon among icons.

Tangerine Muscle

October 14, 2014 by Jonathan Chow in In The Moment

Some people seem to think the new Z/28 can't be good for track use because it's just a Camaro, but they seem to forget Camaros have always been on the track ever since the very beginning.