The Left Bank, Vail Colorado

I had a brilliant dining experience last night. I went to The Left Bank French restaurant in Vail, with some friends from the area. I was delighted to see escargot on the menu, and promptly ordered them. They turned out just as nice as they were in France when I had them with the natorious Snapper in 1999. I have been looking for a restaurant that serves snails since the Snapper debarcle, so I was happy. The meal was 5 star. The wine list was spectacular, and Pablo will be interested to see that they were sellng magnum's of Chateau d'quem for $499. Of course a bottle like that wouldn't be worthy of corkage without Pablo and MH in attendance, so next time you are going to Colorado let me know. The Left Bank in Vail Colorado is the best French restaurant I have been too since France. ***** from me.

Beaver Creek, Colorado

Well I departed from the Big Apple after sitting on the runway for 1.5 hours because of bad weather. Never encountered that sort of thing before. They even started the movie " Sahara " while we were on the ground. The movie was quite good. It has Mathew McConnehey and Penelope Cruze as the main actors.
We landed in Colorado a bit late and after figuring out the airport, which happens to be the largest in land mass I have ever been too, I made it to Thrifty car rentals to pick up the Dodge Magnum. I drove 120 miles from Denver past Vail to Beaver Creek and checked into the Sheraton for one night. The following day we were meant to settle on a magnificent 7000 sq ft house and I was meant to be staying there right now. But I am now staying at the Bachelor Gulch Ritz Carlton as the vendor wants to settle on Monday. I had to change my airline tickets, as I was meant to get back to LA just in time for the Gregory Johnson and Ted Brown show at Renees on Sunday, but alas I will need to stay here till Tuesday. I have tried Elk and Buffalo since being here, both were nice. I found a local beer called FAT TIRE, Worthy of consumption. Colorado is very nice. Have you been here?

Empire State Building

After I went to Ground Zero, I decided that it was time to scare myself and ascend the Empire State Building.

I am not a particularly excitable person when it comes to being up the top of any tall buildings. Riaz can vouch for that after we went up the Space Needle in Seattle and I had to crawl to the bar on my hands and knees when the building swayed. After I got over the embarassment, I must say, that it was one of the best JD and cokes I have ever had to this day.

Anyways, after 9 years I decided it was time to do it again, but this time I was determined to keep my composure and quietly get some photographic proof and get the hell out of there. Well as I arrived I took a couple of exterior photos of the magnificent building. It was built in 1931 and I was thinking to myself that maybe the lifts are still original....Surely not? I found the way to the ticket center, it said $30 for the express pass which guaranteed fast travel up and down without waiting. The second option was $14 and wait my turn. I felt that to spend $30 to make myself ill would not be prudent, so I decided that I would spend the $14 like any other person and cherish the time ascending and decsending this marvel of the NY skyline.

Well unfortunately the line up was for 1/2 an hour and I had a business meeting, so I prudently went outside, rang Riaz and told him what I almost did, caught a cab up Madison Ave and arrived at my meeting just on time. I was looking forwards to a bit of a scare......I will have to do it another time. Off to colorado in the morning.

Ground Zero

I went downtown today to Ground Zero. For those of you who have not been here and seen it, it is an extremely large site and it is certainly eeiry to look at. It is hard to imagine what the people of NY had to go through when the idiotic terrorists took the place down. It is going to take years to rebuild. It took nearly 15 years to build the first two towers, and I am sure it will take at least 5 years this time. The NYPD were doing a demonstration and there had to be at least 200 Police cars driving around flashing their lights and bliping their sirens in respect of the Police and civilians lost on September 11th 2001. I am glad I came to see Ground Zero.

Election time

I read on Rodney Hide's web site today that the election in New Zealand is to be September 17th. Now it doesn't matter if you want your National, Labour or Green candidate to get in. It is impoant that you give Act your party vote if you want lower taxes, level headed policy, and Rodney Hide in parliament keeping Mr Winston Peters and everyone else to their word, on track and aligned. Don't be sorry after the election, make the right dcision before it. Give Act your party vote.

HOT in NY

I arrived...I found out that my ipod will last just long enough for the flight from LA to JFK. It is hot here, a lot hotter and more humid than LA. Tomorrow is due to be the hottest day of the year. They are predicting 94 degres F which is 34c. The property here is expensive. Hopefully tomorrow I will find something interesting. I want to visit the Empire State Building tomorrow after work, so hopefully there will not be another bomb scare like there was yesterday.

Off to NYC shortly

I am off to NYC for a couple of days to look at property. From there I go to Colorado. I will not be taking my computer, but will update blog along the way as time and computers permit.

Sideways

I watched this brillant movie tonight. It is well worth a viewing if you get the opportunity. It is quite funny and is about 2 guys, 1 of which is getting married, and 1 or which is divorced. They go to north of LA an hit the wine tasting trails. It is a hoot. Watch it with a nice glass or red. As per the title, it is called Sideways.

NHL in full effect.

The Vancouver Canucks

TORONTO — According to Fox News. The NHL lockout that canceled last season came to an end Friday when the owners of the league's 30 teams unanimously approved a labor deal that clears the way for play to resume in the fall.

"Today our board of governors gave it's unanimous approval to a collective bargaining agreement that signals a new era for our league," commissioner Gary Bettman said at a news conference. "An era of economic stability for our franchises, an era of heightened competitive balance for our players, an era of unparalled excitement for our fans."

It also begins the era of the salary cap — the very thing the union vowed not to accept when the lockout began. But a majority of players supported the six-year agreement in balloting Thursday, with 464 of 532 (87 percent) voting in favor.

Under the new deal, players are guaranteed to receive 54 percent of league-wide revenues — projected to be between $1.7 billion and $1.8 billion next season. A portion of every player's salary will be held in escrow if it is determined that revenues are smaller, resulting in players receiving more than 54 percent.

Approval by the league's board governors Friday brings labor peace at last to the league, which has already lost one season, and turns the focus back to the ice.

All players that had existing contracts after last season, will have those deals cut by 24 percent.

A six-day window will begin Saturday, allowing teams to buy out signed players and not have those dollars count against their cap for next season.

With salaries and revenues directly linked, players and owners will need to be partners now more than ever to grow the game.

I cant wait to see the Ice Hockey games again. I am not ashamed to say that I support the Vancouve Canucks and I am expecting a great season for them.

Planning a trip to NZ

I am looking forwards to getting back to NZ for a couple of days early August. It is my friend Ambers birthday in Queenstown, so I will be spending some time in the South Island catching up with old friends. I will then shoot back to Auckland for a nice catch up with family and friends, and then back to LA. It will be good to see first hand how the election campaigning process is hotting up. I hope to see some serious ACT action in Epsom, and I expect to see lots of resistance from National and other parties.

I cant wait to have a steak and cheese pie, a 42 Below Feijoa and Apple Juice at Denim Bar in Parnell, and a home cooked roast chicken with my folks.

Will be lots of fun.

Heat wave

There is a heat wave here on the West coast of the USA at the moment. It is 82 degrees F or 28C in LA at the moment which is nice, but in Las Vegas Nevada it is 117F or 47C. You'd not want to have your airconditioner fail in Vegas today, at that temp you would very quickly dry out.

Just say no 2

According to the NZ herald today:

One of two celebrities caught up in a major drug case is overseas, and says he has no immediate plans to return to New Zealand and talk to police. I wonder why?

The former sports star has been named in court documents as a joint offender in supplying cocaine and cannabis but has not been charged.

The man was aware he had been implicated in the police operation.

"I've spoken to my lawyer and he has said not to comment. I need to sort out exactly what's going on." He needs to find a place like Argentina with no extradition agreements with NZ and start a new life there, unless he wants to get taken by Baba Boo at Mt Eden prison for a couple of years.

Asked when he would come home, the man said: "Not for a while. I really can't say anything until I've spoken some more to my lawyer."

The second celebrity has been named as a person who was supplied with Ecstasy by the alleged drug-ring leader.

He is also believed to be out of the country. Maybe both of these nimrods got wind of what was going down and hopped a jet out as soon as they could. Wonder when they left the country?

The case has sparked a frenzy of internet speculation about the people involved in the bust.....

Entertainment site biggie.co.nz warned members against posting names because it was illegal.

Auckland businessman Aaron Bhatnagar closed down comment on his blogspot after names were published. Some buffoon decided to anonymously publish the suspected names on his site. He very promptly removed them, and then whamo... The Herald mentions this in todays publication.


A property developer, restaurant manager, self-employed businessman and mechanic were among the people charged on Tuesday.

They are due back in court next month. Naughty boys... Bet they will be sweating like rap*&^s right now!

Just say no

A photo of two of the people involved, foolish nimrods.

A couple of Kiwi celebs have been caught with the wrong type of drugs in their possession. It appears that thay have been caught with some cocaine, ecstasy, and cannabis. A few others are involved, and it looks like it might wreck a few tv shows back there in NZ. Name suppression is in effect, but with everything floating around the internet these days I think most everyone knows who thay are already?
The shit has hit the fan.

The accused according to the NZ Herald:

* A 55-year-old company director alleged to be at the top end of the drug ring is facing 22 charges, including possession of methamphetamine for supply, possession of Ecstasy for supply, supplying Ecstasy, supplying cocaine, conspiracy to supply Ecstasy, conspiracy to supply cocaine, offering to supply Ecstasy and offering to supply methamphetamine.

* A 51-year-old property developer faces one charge of conspiracy to supply Ecstasy.

* A 31-year-old restaurant manager is charged with conspiring to supply cocaine.

* A 30-year-old mechanic is charged with conspiracy to supply Ecstasy, supplying Ecstasy and possession of Ecstasy for supply.

* A 39-year-old self-employed businessman is charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine and supplying Ecstasy.

* A 30-year-old man with no stated occupation is charged with possession of Ecstasy for supply.

* Sports celebrity A is listed on a charge sheet having "jointly offended" with the company director of supplying cocaine and cannabis. He has not appeared in court.

* Sports celebrity B is listed on a charge sheet as being supplied with Ecstasy by the company director. He has not appeared in court.

I got a new digital camera

I purchased a Canon S70 today. It is necessary for the property search I am taking on and of course real estate here in Santa Monica. It is a nice all round camera and has:

7.1-Megapixel CCD delivers 3,072 x 2,304 pixel images
*
4x optical zoom lens covers 28-100mm equivalent range
*
Nice mix of high-end features, easy usability
*
Beautiful, rugged, compact design

I am happy with this purchase..... SMILE.

ACT is needed for stability

According to Helen Clark, New Zealand Prime Minister.....

"I am getting feedback with people very concerned about ... the instability of New Zealand First/National Party coalitions -- been there done that. It was not a good experience for people," she said.

I tend to agree with her.....

ACT needs to be there to keep Winston on the straight and narrow... ACT will complete the package as long as NZ First does not flip flop and dare I say it; go left.....

Back to Manhattan and Colorado

I have to go to Manhattan next week to view some nice townhouses for sale. After I do that, I need to go to Beaver Creek in Colorado to settle on a magnificent home that the company will be purchasing. I have been busy traveling lately and it is certainly a magnificent opportunity I have to do so. I really really like Manhattan. I could live there I think.

Stem cell research

What do you think of this topic? Should the US government allow this for the sake of finding cures for people with currently uncureable illness?

Adventure in Limo

I went with a group of people from work to a company called Property I.D in downtown Los Angeles. They sent a limo to pick us up and provided a nice lunch while explaining to us what they do and how they do it. They provide all the disclosures and facts that a prospective buyer would want to know about the property before buying that is in public records or should be known. It goes as far as determining if the property is in a flood, earthquake and fire zone, the various charges pending or due and if the property is in a slip zone. There is also maps and other disclosures. Now they may not be able to get everything all of the time so they back it up with a $20,000,000 insurance policy for each property in this litigous state. It was very interesting, and backs up the fact that in real estate in California you need to disclose disclose disclose.

Cooter says " Dont see the movie" ?

Now this is a contradiction to my last post. According to CNN, Ben 'Cooter' Jones says 'They trashed our show,' calling it "a sleazy insult."

Ben Jones, a former Georgia congressman who played the wisecracking mechanic Cooter on the popular series from 1979 to 1985, said profanity and sexual content in the film make a mockery of the family-friendly show.

"Basically, they trashed our show," said Jones, who read a script of the Warner Brothers movie, which is scheduled to be released next month. "It's one thing to do whatever movie they want to do, but to take a classic family show and do that is like taking 'I Love Lucy' and making her a crackhead or something."

On Wednesday, Jones wrote an open letter to fans on his Web site, urging them to stay away.

"From all I have seen and heard, the 'Dukes' movie is a sleazy insult to all of us who have cared about the 'Dukes of Hazzard' for so long," Jones wrote. "Unless they clean it up before the August fifth release date I would strongly recommend that true blue Dukes fans hold their noses and pass this one up."

A spokeswoman at Warner Brothers did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment on Wednesday.

"The Dukes of Hazzard" was a surprise hit for CBS, pitting "good-ol' boys" Bo and Luke Duke and their moonshine-running Uncle Jesse against the crooked politician Boss Hogg and his bumbling henchman, Sheriff Coltrane, in fictional Hazzard County.

Jones was elected to Congress in 1988 as a Democrat. He lost his bid for a third term in 1992 after his district was redrawn. He owns Cooter's Place, a "Dukes" memorabilia shop in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

Ahh.... I didn't realise that he was a Democrat.....Maybe it is a case of sour grapes because he wasn't offered a bit part in the movie? I will watch it anyways although I am really annoyed that Jessica Simpson is Daisy Duke. Yee Haa

The movie of the summer?

This summer, hide your bridesmaids. So warns the promo for this weekend's new movie, "Wedding Crashers", which is about a couple of bachelors who show up at weddings uninvited to prey on lonely bridesmaids and especially desperate female guests.

The movie cashes in on two common stereotypes about weddings: that women hate attending nuptials alone, and that men, realizing how vulnerable weddings make single women feel, use the occasions to their advantage.

Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn are the stars of the movie, and the previews look very very funny. This looks like it will be a box office hit, and is certainly on my list of too see movies along with The Dukes of Hazzard which is to be released on August 5th.

Woo hoo.......

Horse on the menu

According to the NZ Herald, a restaurant in Hamilton has been getting abusive calls after serving horse...

Canvas restaurateur David Kerr received abusive phone calls in the wake of a story on Monday publicising his "Mr Ed is Dead" horse dish entry in this year's Monteith's Wild Food Challenge.

"It was pretty lively and disgusting and not comforting for the staff," Mr Kerr said. "There was swearing, cursing, horrible language and it prompted a call to the police."

But while wild horses couldn't drag some punters into his restaurant this week, others can't wait to dig in. Mr Kerr was buoyed by the sale of 10 meals on Monday night and a host of email inquiries.

"Some think it is appalling but others are really interested to give it a go and want to know where else they can buy it," he said.

Leading racehorse breeder Sir Patrick Hogan said he would be disappointed if horse took off as restaurant fare.

"I certainly won't be eating horse, that's for sure, whether it is from the Kaimanawa Ranges or thoroughbreds," he said. "I realise I eat lamb and beef but the animals I have mostly worked with are horses and I am passionate about them. There is no need to introduce a new meat product. If there was only one restaurant in Hamilton and it was his, I wouldn't sit at his table."

But Sandra Shearer, Hamilton spokeswoman for the International League for Protection of Horses, said although she would not eat it, she was not offended.

She noted horse meat was regularly used in foreign salamis and was popular pet food here.

I think that it is also popular in Germany....

I don't know would you eat it?

JPM wins the race

Juan Pablo Montoya claimed the race win at the British Grand Prix in his McLaren today. He managed to get past Alonso at the first corner and with exception of a few race leader changes with pit stops etc, he lead most of the way.
Giancarlo was in for 3rd position until he stalled the car after a pit stop. I bet there will be some car door slamming going on in the Renault camp right now.
Fernando Alonso is still leads in the points for 2005 and is in a good position to claim the Championship this year. Problem is that he has Kimi with the taste of blood in his mouth and 7 times world champ Michael Schumacher folling up behind, as you can see by the points board below.


2005 Drivers Championship
Pos Driver Nationality Team Points

1 Fernando Alonso Spanish Renault 77
2 Kimi Räikkönen Finnish McLaren-Mercedes51
3 Michael Schumacher German Ferrari 43
4 Rubens Barrichello Brazilian Ferrari 31
4= Jarno Trulli Italian Toyota 31
6 Juan Pablo Montoya Colombian McLaren-Mercedes26
7 Giancarlo Fisichella Italian Renault 25
7= Nick Heidfeld German Williams-BMW 25
9 Ralf Schumacher German Toyota 23
10 Mark Webber Australian Williams-BMW 22

Alonso claims pole at Silverstone

A large disappointment for Kimi and McLaren as his engine blew 7 minutes into the session. He claimed 2nd in qualifying, but due to the rules he will have to loose 10 positions for the beginning of the race and start at 12th position. This happened last week in France when he qualifyied in 3rd position and had to start in 13th due to engine failure. Now he did finish 2nd at France and he is very determined, so watch Kimi climb the ladder tomorrow at the English Grand Prix.

I notice that Jacques Villeneuve at Sauber put in a good qualifying effort and ended up in 11th position qualifying in front of both the Red Bulls and Williams BMW cars. He seems to have gained some confidence knowing that BMW has purchased Sauber and having another year in his contract with Sauber will give him a chance at some podiums next year. He qualifyed right behind 7 times world champion Michael Schumacher.


Pos No Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points

1 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:19.905

2 9 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:19.932 Engine failure again. Start at 12th

3 3 Jenson Button BAR-Honda 1:20.207

4 10 Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 1:20.382

5 16 Jarno Trulli Toyota 1:20.459

6 2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1:20.906

7 6 Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 1:21.010

8 4 Takuma Sato BAR-Honda 1:21.114

9 17 Ralf Schumacher Toyota 1:21.191

10 1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:21.275

11 11 Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-Petronas 1:21.352

12 7 Mark Webber Williams-BMW 1:21.997

13 14 David Coulthard Red Bull Racing 1:22.108

14 8 Nick Heidfeld Williams-BMW 1:22.117

15 15 Christian Klien Red Bull Racing 1:22.207

16 12 Felipe Massa Sauber-Petronas 1:22.495

17 19 Narain Karthikeyan Jordan-Toyota 1:23.583

18 21 Christijan Albers Minardi-Cosworth 1:24.576

19 20 Patrick Friesacher Minardi-Cosworth 1:25.566

20 18 Tiago Monteiro Jordan-Toyota

**Kimi Raikkonen receives 10 position grid penalty for engine change, therefore 12th.

Bombs in London

It seems that there has been many terrible terrorist explosions in London shutting down the city and killing at least 33 people. I have called friends in London and they are all ok at this stage. It seems that the police are working hard to catch the killers within 24 hours. I hope that this is not the start of a domino effect.

Dubya crashes bike into policeman

AUCHTERARDER, Scotland... Accroding to CNN, President George W Bush collided with a British police officer during a bike ride Wednesday evening, suffering scrapes on his hands and arms that required bandaging, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The officer, from the Strethclyde Police Department in Scotland, was taken to a local hospital as a precaution. He was treated and released, after an evaluation revealed no fractures, McClellan said.

Bush "visited" with the police officer for some time after the accident and asked White House physician Dr. Richard Tubb to monitor his situation at the hospital, McClellan said. The president was expected to call the officer later, McClellan said.

It looks like there may have been a bit of excited activity over there in Scotland. It is reported that the President was traveling at quite some speed....

Nothing like getting run over by George... Hope he had his insurance card on him.

Happy 4th of July

It has 60-foot high faces, eyes 11 feet across, noses 20 feet long, and mouths that stretch 18 feet and is visited by 2.5 million people a year... Mount Rushmore - located in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The sculpted heads of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt were carved from a solid mass of granite. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum was commissioned in 1927 to carve the massive tourist attraction. It took 14 years to complete and cost a mere $1 million, and is now considered priceless.

Is ANZUS to be reformed?

USS Texas visiting Auckland in 1983

According to the NZ Herald: The United States is publicly calling for "comprehensive dialogue" with New Zealand to repair a relationship it implies has lacked trust and respect since the rift over anti-nuclear legislation in the mid-80s.

The call was made in a hard-hitting speech in Wellington last night by departing United States ambassador Charles Swindells - though he did not use the word "nuclear" once.

This looks like a slight policy change from the USA's point of view. I am sure that they still use the neither confirm or deny policy, so unless it is a diesel cargo boat I am not sure if NZ would allow the vessel in. NZ's law would need too, and should be ammended to at least allow nuclear powered vessels in. It is not the cold war anymore, and if a USS sub rolls in it does not mean that a Russian Typhoon class is tailing with it's weapons locked in on the US vessel. The only worry would be people trying to damage the vessel, which would happen if it was deisel, electric, or nuclear powered anyway.

I call upon the NZ government to get into these dialogues forthwith..... Resurect ANZUS and order 10 or 20 F16 while you are at it... If Labour doesn't I am sure that NATIONAL / ACT / NZ First will...

The New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act, 1987 bans nuclear weapons and nuclear-powered ships from entering New Zealand's territorial waters.

The Prime Minister may grant approval to foreign warships if she is satisfied they are not carrying nuclear weapons.

Renault take the win at French GP

I got up at 5am and watched the race live...... Kimi worked well to go from 13th to 2nd, but Alonso does it again, his 5th win of the year.

Pos No Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points

1 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 70 Winner 1 10

2 9 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 70 +11.8 secs 13 8

3 1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 70 +81.9 secs 3 6

4 3 Jenson Button BAR-Honda 69 +1 Lap 7 5

5 16 Jarno Trulli Toyota 69 +1 Lap 2 4

6 6 Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 69 +1 Lap 6 3

7 17 Ralf Schumacher Toyota 69 +1 Lap 11 2

8 11 Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-Petronas 69 +1 Lap 10 1

9 2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 69 +1 Lap 5

10 14 David Coulthard Red Bull Racing 69 +1 Lap 15

11 4 Takuma Sato BAR-Honda 69 +1 Lap 4

12 7 Mark Webber Williams-BMW 68 +2 Lap 12

13 18 Tiago Monteiro Jordan-Toyota 67 +3 Lap 19

14 8 Nick Heidfeld Williams-BMW 66 +4 Lap 14

15 19 Narain Karthikeyan Jordan-Toyota 66 +4 Lap 17

Ret 10 Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 46 +24 Laps 8

Ret 21 Christijan Albers Minardi-Cosworth 37 +33 Laps 20

Ret 20 Patrick Friesacher Minardi-Cosworth 33 +37 Laps 18

Ret 12 Felipe Massa Sauber-Petronas 30 +40 Laps 9

Ret 15 Christian Klien Red Bull Racing 1 +69 Laps 16

Fastest Lap: Kimi Räikkönen 1:16.423

Alonso captures French GP pole.

A great day for Renault at their home Grand Prix. Not so great of a day for Kimi as he has to start from 13th position because of an engine change after practice yesterday. Michael Schumacher is slowly getting up amongst the action, with Williams BMW dropping like a lead balloon....Hopefully Michelen have their act together for the race tommorrow.......I am looking forwards to watching this race.

1 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 1:14.412

2 16 Jarno Trulli Toyota 1:14.521

3 9 Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:14.559 Has an engine penalty starts in 13th place.

4 1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:14.572

5 4 Takuma Sato BAR-Honda 1:14.655

6 2 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1:14.832

7 6 Giancarlo Fisichella Renault 1:14.887

8 3 Jenson Button BAR-Honda 1:15.051

9 10 Juan Pablo Montoya McLaren-Mercedes 1:15.406

10 12 Felipe Massa Sauber-Petronas 1:15.566

11 11 Jacques Villeneuve Sauber-Petronas 1:15.699

12 17 Ralf Schumacher Toyota 1:15.771

13 7 Mark Webber Williams-BMW 1:15.885

14 8 Nick Heidfeld Williams-BMW 1:16.207

15 14 David Coulthard Red Bull Racing 1:16.434

16 15 Christian Klien Red Bull Racing 1:16.547

17 19 Narain Karthikeyan Jordan-Toyota 1:17.857

18 20 Patrick Friesacher Minardi-Cosworth 1:17.960

19 18 Tiago Monteiro Jordan-Toyota 1:18.047

20 21 Christijan Albers Minardi-Cosworth 1:18.335

Congratulations

Congratulations to my friend and roommate Christopher, who got engaged to his longtime girlfriend Stephanie yesterday....... (ha she said YES)

Congratulations to Andrushka and Antje Niven who got married in Auckland New Zealand yesterday. All the best and good luck with moving to Europe. Sorry I couldn't attend. I hope Pablo made a great speech.

1959 Cadillac Convertible

I want one of these beautiful automobiles. They don't make them like this anymore, look at those beautiful fins...... Problem is, is that they are now commanding over $100,000US for mint condition vehicles. Good motivator to make some money.....

Updated the blog

I am learning a bit more about HTML. It is quite interesting to be able to change colors and fonts to make my blog a bit different. Now I have a mission to learn another language....

McLaren is on top

Pedro de la Rosa was the only driver to dip under the 75-second barrier today at Magny Cours in the first two practice sessions of the French Grand Prix weekend. The McLaren Mercedes driver dominated the opening session of the day and then put in a blisteringly fast time at the end of the second session to give him the fastest two laps of the day overall. I cant wait till the qualifying and the race. Hopefully Michelen has got the tire situation organised this week....

1. 35 DE LA ROSA McLaren Mercedes M 1'14"460 213.263 Km/h
2. 10 MONTOYA McLaren Mercedes M 1'15"129 + 0'00"669
3. 1 M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari B 1'15"204 + 0'00"744
4. 5 ALONSO Renault M 1'15"242 + 0'00"782
5. 6 FISICHELLA Renault M 1'15"380 + 0'00"920
6. 38 PANIS Toyota M 1'15"483 + 0'01"023
7. 2 BARRICHELLO Ferrari B 1'15"605 + 0'01"145
8. 16 TRULLI Toyota M 1'15"774 + 0'01"314
9. 17 R.SCHUMACHER Toyota M 1'15"925 + 0'01"465
10. 14 COULTHARD RedBull Cosworth M 1'16"371 + 0'01"911
11. 11 VILLENEUVE Sauber Petronas M 1'16"430 + 0'01"970
12. 3 BUTTON BAR Honda M 1'16"597 + 0'02"137
13. 12 MASSA Sauber Petronas M 1'16"753 + 0'02"293
14. 4 SATO BAR Honda M 1'16"890 + 0'02"430
15. 37 LIUZZI RedBull Cosworth M 1'16"987 + 0'02"527
16. 7 WEBBER Williams BMW M 1'17"107 + 0'02"647
17. 8 HEIDFELD Williams BMW M 1'17"192 + 0'02"732
18. 39 DOORNBOS Jordan Toyota B 1'17"574 + 0'03"114
19. 19 KARTHIKEYAN Jordan Toyota B 1'17"790 + 0'03"330