I have a piece of the Berlin Wall. A friend of mine has family in Germany. When everything was in place for the wall to come down, he took a trip to visit his family. While he was there, he took a hammer to the wall and removed some mementos for friends and family.

A friend of mine was friends with the owner of one of the local dealerships. When another of our friends asked for a convertible and a bag of Oreos for her birthday, she borrowed a Miata from the dealer’s used car lot. Somehow I was roped into being the chauffeur.

Part of the trick for us will be getting the right car. Neither the WRX nor the Explorer is good for sliding around on pavement.

I’m most concerned about my daughter learning skid control. We may not have snow and ice, but we have plenty of rain and the risk of hydroplaning is high.

Duck walk. It’s an illustration. When I discuss this with people in real life, I have them squat down about half way, then walk around. This is very close to their position on a bike when the seat is too low.

It’s only a “dumb” example if you haven’t tried it. Go ahead, try it. Feel the burn in your thighs? Feel familiar? It’s the same burn you get when you ride your bike with the seat too low. Believe it or not, human physiology matters!

I was looking for a car control school. By chance, I came across an SCCA event in a parking. Next thing I know, the member I’m talking to brings up the possibility of a car control clinic sometime this summer. Bingo!

Squat down and walk like a duck. Now try walking down the street like that. I’d bet you don’t make it a block.

“Although some of the stuff that was used decades ago was just out of necessity and became rare and now when it gets a comeback it is something expensive and special.....” 

With a capital “T” that rhymes with “P” that stands for Pool!

If there’s a season for them, someone’s eating them.

Until you eat him.

The fuel pump relay on my ‘94 Mazda B-3000 occasionally stops relaying. I have to pop the hood, open the fuse box, pull the relay, then re-seat it and it works fine. I’ve cleaned the contacts and replaced the relay three times, but the issue keeps coming back.

I recognized this immediately! Former owner of an ‘83 GL wagon. By the time I needed that spare, it had succumbed to the heat under the hood.

Given enough time, the tire dry rots away. I used to own an ‘83 GL Wagon.

I had this happen after some work on the WRX. Turns out the magic is all in the switch.

You don’t have a right to drive any vehicle. You are licensed to drive based on your competency. Right now, that bar is set too low, especially for high performance vehicles.

When most people say they drove over something, they mean that they hit it with the tires. Thus the assumption on my part...

There’s always a chance of it catching enough air from the front tire to damage the underside of your car.

One of my uncles is an insurance agent. The company he represents does not cover high-end performance cars like Ferrari’s. He’s had a number of clients who purchase new cars on a Thursday or Friday, drive them over the weekend thinking that they are covered under the 30-day new-car purchase coverage, and find out on…