Test Drive Suzuki SX4

Rented a new (as in 26 miles) Suzuki SX4 hatchback with AWD. It took me a few days to notice, but it also had a CVT. The CVT/ throttle interface needed some improvement, as when I was accelerating, and wanted to give it a little more throttle, the CVT would snap up a few thousand RPM and give me a lot more acceleration.


The AWD system was interesting. It had 3 modes: 2wd, Auto AWD, and Lock on a toggle switch. This made the Auto mode the default, but both the Auto and Lock mode (never figured out the difference) both lit lights on the dash.
Speaking of lights on the dash, the car had daylight running lights, but also had a headlights switch. No matter the setting (off, driving lights, lights), a light lit on the dash. Turning to the lights mode did dim the dashboard lights a bit, but I couldn't find a dimmer knob, plus all idiot lights, like the ones mentioned above, stayed at full brightness regardless.
The dashboard also had a bit of a computer, showing you instant mileage, outside temperature w/ ice warning, average mileage, and fuel range.

The seats were cloth and not very supportive, but fine for local trips.
The engine was peppy and did what I asked of it, but with my mild driving, still returned poor MPG. The computer said 22mpg, but the fuel bill vs trip odometer indicated 16mpg. I assume it was full when I picked it up.
As it was a new vehicle, it was missing an ice scrapper, and didn't have the 'tail' antenna installed.

The SX4 AWD was on my short list for an AWD vehicle a few years back, but time has not been good to it, as there are many other AWD vehicles currently available with much better mileage, and some even at the same price range. It was a good rental vehicle for a single person, but for the economy size, I'd want better MPG. The AWD was a nice trade off, one that I'd make in the future on winter months.

Indoor fish

Cooked a fresh .75lb tuna steak Tuesday. What was unusual about this is I did it indoors, and not on my BBQ. I used a frying pan on the stove burner, on high. Nothing in the pan. Cooked it for 5 minutes, 2.5 per side. Middle was still red, outside was white. I'm still alive, so I may have done it right, or I just ate warm sushi.

Ed's Follies Cigars and Beer

Every so often, I get a whim to do something. Off the cuff, spur of the moment, or as I like to call it, Ed's Folly. This doesn't necessarily mean it's a foolish idea, but it's meant to be fun.

This past Sunday the plan was to stay at home with the guys and BBQ on the porch. I had a folly to go down to Longmont, hit the cigar store, and go for a beer at Left Hand Brewery. We'd tried to go to their tasting room before, but back then it wasn't open on Sundays. As soon as we were all together, into the car and off to Havana Manor. Did some shopping there and off to Left Hand, just a few blocks away. The place was packed, and had a live band playing. We each bought a flight of four beers and went outside to consume, and smoke a cigar. We then decided not to have a cigar, so we were out in the cool fall Colorado air. The beers were good, all of them (we had around 8 different beers between the three of us. (A month ago we went to Ft Collins Brewery and didn't sample a beer we liked. That's beer for you.) Of note as being unique and very good were the Wake Up The Dead russian imperial stout and the Fade To Black Volume 3 pepper porter.

New AR build

I've been planning on building a AR-15 gun from scratch for a year or so. I'd been back and forth on the configuration, but it boiled down to a lightweight build. I was torn between a pistol or a carbine. I had also planned on doing it all myself, buying a stripped lower and upper, and all the parts and putting it together as a fun project.
However, I stopped in at a new gun store locally, and they were selling a full lower, very lightweight, for a great price. Then the search was on to get an upper for it. I have a Bushmaster A1 upper in the safe, but I wanted something more modern and lighter. I put together a recipe for the ideal lightweight upper, but it's hard to find these ideal parts all the time, and there was one part/combo I couldn't deal with: a 14.5" barrel with permanently attached muzzle device taking it to 16". I can't legally own a 14.5" barrel, and I didn't want to torque the barrel into the receiver. My plan was to have a local gunsmith do it for me.
In the meantime, I kept surfing all the manufacturer web sites looking for an upper that was close to my recipe, affordable, and in stock. I found one at Loki Weapon Systems, with their LWS STD upper. I chose a 16" barrel with A2 flash hider so I could exchange it for the Yankee Hill model I wanted. It has a 1 in 8" twist barrel. I wanted 1:7, but this will work.

It arrived yesterday, and I'm happy. I was expecting a thinner barrel, but it's still lighter than my Bushmaster upper, has a free float barrel system. The gas block rail is lower than the receiver, I'm wondering if my front sight will be too low.

Ducati test ride

I attended the last scheduled Ducati test ride today (sunday 6/19). I got to do a 40 minute test of the new Diavel. I wanted to test it as I hoped its low seat would allow me to touch the ground easy, and it would be a comfortable reach to the bars. The stock seat (I rode a Carbon model)(not worth the extra $3000 for the 12 lbs saved) was very comfortable, held me well. The bike can change the power delivery, but it doesn't change suspension like the Multistrada does. The 100hp urban mode had enough power, but it felt heavier, and I needed to use more throttle to do the same thing as the 162hp modes did. Clutch was very smooth. Suspension was a little rough, but there is an easy to reach knob that allows me to adjust the rear, but I didn't have time to try it out. Power delivery was smooth, even at low RPMs. As a naked bike, airflow was there, but smooth. Noise was low too. They make two different windshields, I wonder how much difference they make. The digital dash said I made 42mpg the time I rode. Dash has 2 trip odometers, and I can change the fuel display too.

I can see buying the regular $16,995 model if I were to get a new bike. It's a better motorcycle than the Thunderbolt, but the T-Bolt has bags, mabye better wind protection, a more upright seating position. So, it's better, but not better enough for a switch.

p.s. They took some pictures of me astride the bike with an umbrella girl, and they gave me a USB drive when I left, but pictures of me are absent from the drive. How's that for a dagger to the heart? "Thank you for coming, here are pictures of everyone else having fun." Of course, after hearing about the pictures, I decided not to take any myself.

Greeley Blues Fest 2011

Ditched work FRI night to attend the free concert evening. It started with an outdoor concert attended by hundreds, and they served food and stuff. I missed that. Afterwards, at 8pm, 10 acts played at the same time at bars and restaurants all over downtown. I planned on listening to a bit of each and having a beer at each venue, to support downtown businesses. These are my views:
-Started at Patrick's and listening to Clam Daddy's. 3 guys, guitar, stand up base, and harmonica. Loved their sound. Had a Left Hand Milk Stout and a Arrogant Bastard. Place was standing room only.
-Went next door to the Mad Cow. Place was packed, but no music. Between sets?
-On to the Penalty Box. Again no music, swapping bands.
-downstairs to Jager Bar, again no music.
-Over to the Rio. Rob Wilson was performing. Enjoyed his music. Had a margarita.
-Down the Street to Dutch's. Jack Handley Band was more Funk than Blues. Had a Corona.
-Missed Sky Nightclub. Don't know why.
-At the Kress, Felonius Smith finished a song and went on break.
-Walked to the Clarion, Sammy Dee Morton was almost funk, playing a big room. Had a Ginger Bee. It didn't taste as sweet as I'm used to.
-Over to Roasty's. Enjoyed Gretchen Troop Band, even waiting through a 20min break for more. Had another Corona.
-Trying to pickup the missed locations. Again no music at Mad Cow. Back to the Penalty Box, but skipped do to line. Downstairs at Jager had a 20 oz PBR, as I listened to Willie Houston. Couldn't finish the beer, awful, and I was full.
-Finished up back at Patrick's. Winding down, loved the Clam Daddy's. They finished about 12:30a. Was offered a shot, drank Jameson.

Fun evening, but I paid a bit for it today. I wish downtown was always this hopping.

Vegas trip notes

Back from Vegas.
notes by category:
Blue Man Group was a good performance and poor crowd which took a bit away from the show. The theater is smaller than the Luxor, I think. My ticket was bought via Allegiant Air. Got a great seat at a great price. There were two Allegiant references in the show, but otherwise I didn't notice anything else new. I was happy with the set list, mostly their old stuff. No classic song remakes (e.g. rabbit or baba o'reiy)
Saw Jubelee at Ballys. A classic Vegas show, it had showgirls, singers, acrobats. Felt a little hokey at the beginning, a bit summer stock musical, but I got into it after a bit and really enjoyed it. I was 2 rows behind the isle, and was surprised how many people left their seats during the show, sometimes to get more drinks.

My trade show felt fresh and different after a 5 year absence. They added manufacturer presentations, the exhibit hall was only open two days. They limited the possible size of each both, allowing more manufacturers in the hall, but it felt a bit empty.
I would liked to have had more evening events. Yes, we're in Vegas, but I'm there to learn, not to gamble or see shows. There was only one demo night, and they threatened to shut the lights off like they did last year. This, to me indicates that they need more demo time / nights.

Travel both ways was smooth. Had my bag searched by TSA on the way out. They relocked the bag (actually they locked it more). I was put up in a very nice room on the High Rollers floor. It was a half suite, with a bar, table and four chairs, couch (pullout) with coffee table and two end chairs. My queen size bed was a pull down, and was comfortable. Having a bar meant I didn't need to keep getting ice to keep drinks cold. I over bought drinks- 2 32oz Gatorade and a 12-pack of coke cans. I ended up leaving 1 Gatorade and 1 coke. I bought them all at a 7-11 a short walk from the hotel. I know of no other place where 7-11 is considered a cheap place to buy stuff. There was a Walgreen's on the strip in the Pails, and prices there were much higher, and they STILL didn't have the Walgreen's exclusive beer. Next trip I'll grab some at an off strip Walgreen's.

Checked out a bunch of watch stores, and as predicted, nothing caught my eye, or felt better than my Omega ti SMP. I did have one salesperson tell me that Rolex is much better made than my Omega.

Buffet FAIL!

Tried to do a buffet here. First morning the breakfast buffet was closed. Then, I never had 24 hours without a sponsored meal, so I didn't do the Buffet of Buffets 24 hours, 7 different buffet, one price. No lunch or dinner buffet at Ballys, but I was planning on walking through to Paris for theirs. Instead I was near Earl of Sandwich so I grabbed that, plus I was invited into a Thai meal. Still have half a sandwich left. I could take it back home and do breakfast buffet ( it's open now ), but I'll just save the cash.
Next time...

Ped o meter

I walk a lot in Las Vegas. The new Nintendo 3ds has a built in pedometer that rewards me for walking by giving me in-game money. I wish I had it this week, but it comes out next week. Ah well. I have the usual blisters on my pinky toes and heels, but also had an unusual one on the ball of my foot. I think it was the slip-on shoes I was wearing (makes airport security easier).

Vegas show number 2

Another night with nothing to do. Didn't want to horn in on another group's trip to the pinball museum. So I'm seeing Jubilee here at Ballys. 10:30 show, wakeup call 6:45am for my flight home.

The show

Going to see Blue Man Group tonight. I haven't seen them here since they moved from the Luxor.

Luggage is slow

Sitting at the front of the plane gets you off fast, but doesn't make your bag arrive any faster

Vegas bound

Off to Vegas once again, this time on a business trip. I expect 12+ hour days during the show. I am going to have(what turns out to be) two days before the show starts, or one evening and one daytime.
Going to the big knife store on Monday is too far to walk (12 miles), and I don't have a vehicle. I'm planning on checking out the north end of the strip, with the 'new' Wynn being my destination. My travels will be watch centered, but I'm currently real happy with my Omega Ti SMP. Since I got it back it's running +/-1sec/day. It's light, it glows well, fits nicely (now that I added a 1/2 link), easy to read, unusual (grey dial special edition). It's making all my other watches seem superfluous. It may cause a sell off now that's I've found THE watch. Only a ti SBGA031 Grand Seiko has any hope of dethroning it as my EDC watch.

Anyway, back to Vegas: It'll be in the 70s during the day, so pleasant to walk around. Gonna try and do a show Sunday night.

Christmas 2010 Indy watch and retail notes

Retail seems to be down from last Christmas. Many stores I remember from last year are gone. Replacements seem sub-par vs what was there (e.g. Sony left, replaced by a Toys R Us outlet).

Big shakeup in watch stores. Many brands I'm used to seeing are gone, especially when two stores carried the same brands, now just one. Is it possible contracts came up in 2010 and weren't renewed?
Reis Nichols didn't lose anything, but I don't remember seeing Breitling, so maybe that. A remodel at Reis in the watch area means a lot less Rolex on display / less stock.
Hoffmeister lost Rolex, their main watch brand, so their displays were sad. They even covered wall displays with wrapping paper to look like presents to hide the empty shelves. I wonder what they'll do once the season is over.
Barrangton was about the same, shuffling a few brands in/out. Maybe a little less Tutuma, which never felt current.
Went to Moyers up in Carmel for the first time. They had Breitling, Tag, Bell & Ross, Victorinox, Carl Bucherer, and a few others. Stock levels very good. they had some rarer Tags- 2Silverstones, 2 Grand Carreras. The Breitling Super Ocean is BIG, and I liked the brown dial and LOVE mesh band (with removable links). The blue dial wasn't bad either. Used, they had a Deep Sea, a 2-tone Sub, and an IWC Chrono in yellow.
Midwest Jewelry had used Baum & Mercer Capeland S Chrono at $1200. The butterfly clasp wasn't working correctly- the buttons had to be pushed to close the clasp, as well as release it.
Aronstam lost Breitling and had no sport brand to replace it, so nothing for me.

Indianapolis Auto Show 2010 Notes

Every year after Christmas I head downtown to check out the Indy Auto Show. It's squeezed between LA and Detroit, so there's no reveals and few concepts, save pre-production models. The Indiana Convention Center work is just about done, and this year we entered on the west side; the last few years we entered from the south into the GM wing. To the notes:
The new Dodge Durango was there, but up on a display with the doors open, so you couldn't get close. From what I read/saw, it's a longer version of the new Grand Cherokee. It has a third row seat.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee seems big, bigger than the Explorer. Both high trim models have dial up terrain. Didn't see ride height adjustment on the model I sat in, but and interesting feature (or is that the Ford feature?). Nicer than the current GC, but I don't think as nice as the Ford Explorer.
The Ford Explorer is super high tech, with a touch screen center stack and two displays flanking the speedo. There are various screens for the center stack, including Audio, Climate, Phone. These are cool to play with, but I wonder if removing the tactile buttons and knobs will lead to drivers needing to spend more attention looking at the center stack rather than the road. Heated and Cooled seats were a idea I can endorse. Has a 3rd row seat, is almost a foot longer than the Jeep, but weighs the same, costs the same, gets the same mileage. Still need to read some comparisons between these two.
The freshened Dodge Charger looks better from the front, worse from the back. The interior is totally different, I don't like it.
The Nissan Juke is a strange looking crossover, based off the Versa. Available AWD, great mileage of 25/30, interesting interior I would judge average, but a review I just read mentioned a changing lower center stack, which I couldn't see with no power to the vehicle. The AWD is only available with the CVT.
The Mini Countryman, the AWD 4 door Mini is bigger in every way to the other Minis, but still looks and feels like a Mini. As good mileage 23/30 as the Juke. The interior has a center rail system that you can attach different modules to.
Chevy Volt looks OK, but again, it was up on a dais so I couldn't look/touch it.
Chevy Cruise WOW! I first sat in the LTZ, $22K version, and was very impressed. Wanted to sit in the entry model LS ($17K) and see the differences. Still very, very nice. MUCH better than the outgoing Cobalt.
Strangely, the Subaru Legacy can have better mileage than the smaller Impreza. They need to put the 2.5 from the Legacy in the Impreza for even better fuel economy.
Suzuki was a no-show. Toyota Land Crusier and Matrix were no-shows.