May 09, 2008
The Amazing Colossal Ducks In Anime
-Soul Eater, ep04
I'm honestly torn between Toshokan Sensou and Soul Eater as to which is the best show of the season. I'd have to say Soul Eater, if only because that's the one that I watch immediately as it hits my hard drive, while Toshokan can wait a while.
Funny, colorful, neat characters, a definite sense of style... I had no intention of watching the show to begin with, but it hooked me REALLY fast. Expect a writeup soon.
-Soul Eater, ep04
I'm honestly torn between Toshokan Sensou and Soul Eater as to which is the best show of the season. I'd have to say Soul Eater, if only because that's the one that I watch immediately as it hits my hard drive, while Toshokan can wait a while.
Funny, colorful, neat characters, a definite sense of style... I had no intention of watching the show to begin with, but it hooked me REALLY fast. Expect a writeup soon.
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May 06, 2008
Super Aguri Is No More (UPDATED)
It's official: SuperAguri has withdrawn from this season's World Championship. More to follow after I get back from work.
UPDATE:
The Pond is hereby declaring that it is no longer openly rooting for any team on the grid. This is a sad state of affairs. When I became a real fan of the sport in 2004, I was drawn to the travails of Zsolt Baumgarter and Minardi. When Minardi was sold to Red Bull and became Toro Rosso, I shifted my allegiance to the newest team on the grid, SuperAguri.
Honda originally created SuperAguri for one reason only: to give Japanese driver Takuma Sato a drive. In 2006, driving a modified 2002 Arrows chassis (one of which came from a display in the Melbourne Airport) to begin with, and a newer body later, the team performed like you would expect a starter team to: badly. Their best finish was 10th in the final race of the year. While Sato started every race, the other seat was passed between three drivers: "Fast" Yuji Ide (who was so bad he had his provisional SuperLicense revoked after the fourth race of the season), Franck "The Barber" Montagny, and Sakon "No Clever Nickname" Yamamoto. Nobody expected what would happen in 2007.
The first shock of the 2007 season came in the opening round, when Takuma Sato managed to get into Q3, with his new teammate Ant Davidson qualifying 11th. The next shock was when Sato earned the team's first championship point by finishing 8th at the Grand Prix of Spain.
But the greatest moment in team history had to be the Canadian Grand Prix, where Sato finished 6th, and but for a botched pitstop could have finished as high as fourth. However, even better than the points was Sato passing both reigning Driver's Champion HWMNBN (earning the "Move of the Race" and drawing crazy cheering from the F1 UPDATE! crew) and eventual 2007 Driver's Champion Kimi Raikonnen for position on track.
That proved to be the highwater mark for the season, as neither driver would finish higher than 11th ever again. Honda began to withhold car updates (at one point, "accidentally" forgetting to send the team the updated nose construction). The team's primary sponsor, SS United Group Oil & Gas Company, defaulted on sponsorship payments, forcing the team to lay off 30 workers. Still, the team showed that it could compete with the big teams, despite having 1/4th the budget and 1/6th the staff of some.
2008 started with financial woes, but things looked hopeful when it was announced that the Magma Group would buy into the team. That hope died when the deal fell through for reasons unspecified. Honda, who already had sunk massive amounts of money into the team with no hope of ever recouping its debt, bailed the team out for the Spanish Grand Prix, but then said no more.
And thus, Super Aguri passed into F1 history, joining such teams as Minardi, Midland, Jordan, Tyrrell, Lotus, and dozens of others. As of this writing, it is unknown what will happen to the team's drivers, though it would not be surprising for them to be picked up as testers by someone.
Goodbye, SuperAguri. You will be missed.
UPDATE:
The Pond is hereby declaring that it is no longer openly rooting for any team on the grid. This is a sad state of affairs. When I became a real fan of the sport in 2004, I was drawn to the travails of Zsolt Baumgarter and Minardi. When Minardi was sold to Red Bull and became Toro Rosso, I shifted my allegiance to the newest team on the grid, SuperAguri.
Honda originally created SuperAguri for one reason only: to give Japanese driver Takuma Sato a drive. In 2006, driving a modified 2002 Arrows chassis (one of which came from a display in the Melbourne Airport) to begin with, and a newer body later, the team performed like you would expect a starter team to: badly. Their best finish was 10th in the final race of the year. While Sato started every race, the other seat was passed between three drivers: "Fast" Yuji Ide (who was so bad he had his provisional SuperLicense revoked after the fourth race of the season), Franck "The Barber" Montagny, and Sakon "No Clever Nickname" Yamamoto. Nobody expected what would happen in 2007.
The first shock of the 2007 season came in the opening round, when Takuma Sato managed to get into Q3, with his new teammate Ant Davidson qualifying 11th. The next shock was when Sato earned the team's first championship point by finishing 8th at the Grand Prix of Spain.
But the greatest moment in team history had to be the Canadian Grand Prix, where Sato finished 6th, and but for a botched pitstop could have finished as high as fourth. However, even better than the points was Sato passing both reigning Driver's Champion HWMNBN (earning the "Move of the Race" and drawing crazy cheering from the F1 UPDATE! crew) and eventual 2007 Driver's Champion Kimi Raikonnen for position on track.
That proved to be the highwater mark for the season, as neither driver would finish higher than 11th ever again. Honda began to withhold car updates (at one point, "accidentally" forgetting to send the team the updated nose construction). The team's primary sponsor, SS United Group Oil & Gas Company, defaulted on sponsorship payments, forcing the team to lay off 30 workers. Still, the team showed that it could compete with the big teams, despite having 1/4th the budget and 1/6th the staff of some.
2008 started with financial woes, but things looked hopeful when it was announced that the Magma Group would buy into the team. That hope died when the deal fell through for reasons unspecified. Honda, who already had sunk massive amounts of money into the team with no hope of ever recouping its debt, bailed the team out for the Spanish Grand Prix, but then said no more.
And thus, Super Aguri passed into F1 history, joining such teams as Minardi, Midland, Jordan, Tyrrell, Lotus, and dozens of others. As of this writing, it is unknown what will happen to the team's drivers, though it would not be surprising for them to be picked up as testers by someone.
Goodbye, SuperAguri. You will be missed.
R.I.P. 2006-2008
"Made In Japan"
"Made In Japan"
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May 05, 2008
F1 on SPEED: Turkey 2008 (and a SuperAguri update)
The best of the new tracks is on the docket this week, with the third running of the Turkish Grand Prix at the Istanbul Otodrom. Gotta love the four-apex Turn 8! Of course, our friends at SPEED will be bringing us everything live-ish.
To start with, we get LIVE coverage of Practice 2 on Friday, May 9th from 7am to 830am. Will Super Aguri be allowed to run (see below)? Will we get another car trying to hit the Quad-8 retaining wall (which is nearly 100 feet from the track)? We'll find out, won't we?
Saturday, May 10th from 6am to 730am, is (plausibly) LIVE coverage of the Quals session! How will McLaren recover from their disaster in Spain? Will Heikki Kovaleinininninnie be in the driver's seat, or will his concussion open the door for Pete Rose (Pedro de la Rosa) to step in? Will BMW put both cars at or near the front? Or will the Red Cars continue their dominance?
Finally, Sunday, May 11th from 630am to 9am, will bring us the Grand Prix of Turkey, LIVE and in living color. Many questions will be answered, many more questions will be raised... that's the beauty of F1! There will be a replay from 1230pm to 3pm as well for those of you without recording devices.
Now, onto the latest news regarding the SuperAguri situation. As you remember, the Little Team That Could was bailed out at the last minute by Honda, so they were allowed to race in Spain. Since then, however, the team has been in talks with The Weigl Group, based in Germany. Honda, however, has doubts that they can adequately fund a F1 team, so has been reluctant to allow the sale to go through.
The result of this is that, first, the SuperAguri "mobile home" and team trailers had to DRIVE to Turkey, instead of taking a ship. F1 teams have been VERY leery of driving to Istanbul for fear of hijacking (a very real fear, reportedly). Fortunately, the various semis and other support vehicles made it without a snag... only to discover a horrible problem when they reached the track:
They weren't allowed into the paddock.
It seems that Nick Fry, Honda Racing CEO, called FOM (Formula One Management, the group that actually runs the events for the FIA) and said, in effect, that SuperAguri won't be racing because they don't have engines, and don't let them in. This is actually a face-saving move for Honda; if the team's vehicles don't enter the paddock, there won't be a scene if/when they have to LEAVE.
And so the team vehicles sit outside the track, waiting for permission to enter which may never come. Talks are ongoing with Weigl, and there should be some results to report on Tuesday... one way or the other. Part of me wants to think that Honda is stabbing SuperAguri in the back for embarrassing the factory team so badly last year; another, more logical, part of me knows that SA owes Honda a bunch of money already, and why throw more at them? The real answer probably is somewhere in the middle of the two extremes.
Personally, I think we've seen the last of the "Super Best Friends", as Legendary Announce Team member Steve Matchett insists on calling them. No more SuperSato, no more Ant, no more Montreal Marmot Massacres, no more banzai charges and kamikazi dives into the RedBulls...
...dammit.
To start with, we get LIVE coverage of Practice 2 on Friday, May 9th from 7am to 830am. Will Super Aguri be allowed to run (see below)? Will we get another car trying to hit the Quad-8 retaining wall (which is nearly 100 feet from the track)? We'll find out, won't we?
Saturday, May 10th from 6am to 730am, is (plausibly) LIVE coverage of the Quals session! How will McLaren recover from their disaster in Spain? Will Heikki Kovaleinininninnie be in the driver's seat, or will his concussion open the door for Pete Rose (Pedro de la Rosa) to step in? Will BMW put both cars at or near the front? Or will the Red Cars continue their dominance?
Finally, Sunday, May 11th from 630am to 9am, will bring us the Grand Prix of Turkey, LIVE and in living color. Many questions will be answered, many more questions will be raised... that's the beauty of F1! There will be a replay from 1230pm to 3pm as well for those of you without recording devices.
Now, onto the latest news regarding the SuperAguri situation. As you remember, the Little Team That Could was bailed out at the last minute by Honda, so they were allowed to race in Spain. Since then, however, the team has been in talks with The Weigl Group, based in Germany. Honda, however, has doubts that they can adequately fund a F1 team, so has been reluctant to allow the sale to go through.
The result of this is that, first, the SuperAguri "mobile home" and team trailers had to DRIVE to Turkey, instead of taking a ship. F1 teams have been VERY leery of driving to Istanbul for fear of hijacking (a very real fear, reportedly). Fortunately, the various semis and other support vehicles made it without a snag... only to discover a horrible problem when they reached the track:
They weren't allowed into the paddock.
It seems that Nick Fry, Honda Racing CEO, called FOM (Formula One Management, the group that actually runs the events for the FIA) and said, in effect, that SuperAguri won't be racing because they don't have engines, and don't let them in. This is actually a face-saving move for Honda; if the team's vehicles don't enter the paddock, there won't be a scene if/when they have to LEAVE.
And so the team vehicles sit outside the track, waiting for permission to enter which may never come. Talks are ongoing with Weigl, and there should be some results to report on Tuesday... one way or the other. Part of me wants to think that Honda is stabbing SuperAguri in the back for embarrassing the factory team so badly last year; another, more logical, part of me knows that SA owes Honda a bunch of money already, and why throw more at them? The real answer probably is somewhere in the middle of the two extremes.
Personally, I think we've seen the last of the "Super Best Friends", as Legendary Announce Team member Steve Matchett insists on calling them. No more SuperSato, no more Ant, no more Montreal Marmot Massacres, no more banzai charges and kamikazi dives into the RedBulls...
...dammit.
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May 04, 2008
Reload of Evangelion 1.01: You Are (not) Alone.
As anybody who's been an anime fan for more than a few hours knows, Neon Genesis Evangelion is pretty much considered one of those "required viewing" shows, along with such titles as Akira and Ghost In The Shell.
As well, anybody who's been an anime fan for more than a few weeks knows that Gainax, the production company that did Evangelion lo these many years ago, has been milking the show for all the money it's worth. To date, there's been the original anime and manga series, three movies, four artbooks, three new manga series, 17 CDs, 22 video games, an uncountable number of figurines, and four pachinko machines. A catalogue of only officially licensed merchandise in 1997 ran to 144 pages.
Well, Gainax has come back to the cow once more, with four "Reload of Evangelion" movies, the first three of which are a reimaging of the original anime, and the fourth to be an all-new ending (hopefully more understandable than the two endings currently extant). The first movie of the lot, "Evangelion 1.01: You are (not) alone." came down the fansub pike a week or so ago. What does this movie have that everything in the past 13 years doesn't?
Honestly? Nothing. It is nearly a shot-for-shot remake of the original six episodes (though with some filler taken out; the 24 minutes of episode 05, where Shinji goes for a walk/runs away from NERV, are condensed to about five minutes here).
In fact, I was only able to identify two shots that were new... and one of them was a three second look at a high school shoe rack.
Okay, so the movie really IS a reimaging of the original. Was it worth it? Click "more" to find out.
WARNING: the extended entry has 25 screencaps, and is emphatically NOT safe for dialup.
more...
As anybody who's been an anime fan for more than a few hours knows, Neon Genesis Evangelion is pretty much considered one of those "required viewing" shows, along with such titles as Akira and Ghost In The Shell.
As well, anybody who's been an anime fan for more than a few weeks knows that Gainax, the production company that did Evangelion lo these many years ago, has been milking the show for all the money it's worth. To date, there's been the original anime and manga series, three movies, four artbooks, three new manga series, 17 CDs, 22 video games, an uncountable number of figurines, and four pachinko machines. A catalogue of only officially licensed merchandise in 1997 ran to 144 pages.
Well, Gainax has come back to the cow once more, with four "Reload of Evangelion" movies, the first three of which are a reimaging of the original anime, and the fourth to be an all-new ending (hopefully more understandable than the two endings currently extant). The first movie of the lot, "Evangelion 1.01: You are (not) alone." came down the fansub pike a week or so ago. What does this movie have that everything in the past 13 years doesn't?
Honestly? Nothing. It is nearly a shot-for-shot remake of the original six episodes (though with some filler taken out; the 24 minutes of episode 05, where Shinji goes for a walk/runs away from NERV, are condensed to about five minutes here).
In fact, I was only able to identify two shots that were new... and one of them was a three second look at a high school shoe rack.
Okay, so the movie really IS a reimaging of the original. Was it worth it? Click "more" to find out.
WARNING: the extended entry has 25 screencaps, and is emphatically NOT safe for dialup.
more...
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May 02, 2008
Not So Much, Instapundit...
Glenn Reynolds, the Instapundit his own bad self, had a F1-related post today:
What Danica is being considered for is a test. Generally this means plunking someone into a F1 car (maybe not even the current chassis) and letting them run a couple dozen laps or so, to see what happens. In many ways, a test session is F1's version of being invited to Spring Training. You might not be expected to "go north" with the Big Team, but sometimes good things happen. In the usual best case, the team would give the driver an extended look... probably as the team's Test Driver.
With Honda, that's a pretty decent gig, as Rubens Barrichello is approaching the end of his career, though he probably has another year or two of decent driving in him yet. The current test driver for Honda, Alex (Man-Mountain) Wurz, is a top-flight racer in his own right, highly praised for his technical knowledge and his ability to describe a car to the team's engineers. Of course, he has five seasons of actual F1 racing under his belt as well (last year with Williams, earlier with Benneton and McLaren). This makes him, at least as valuable to Honda F1 as their two race drivers, Barrichello and Jenson Button.
Button is Danica Patrick's "in" with the team, by the way. The two drove together in the British Formula Ford series, and were, at the time, friendly, though Button made some... unpleasant... comments regarding women drivers in 2005.
If Danica does well enough in test run with Honda F1, it's certainly possible that she could be signed as an actual race driver. Sebastien ("SeaBass") Bourdais tested with Toro Rosso in the off-season, and now is the team's (nominal) second driver, along with Sebastian Vettel, so it's hardly unheard of. Of course, SeaBass had a LOT more success in US open-wheel racing than Patrick, so that worked in his favor, too.
There is some question as to whether she's physically strong enough to drive a F1 car. It's common for a F1 driver to experience 5gs under braking, and 4gs or more in the corners. The problem is that, truthfully, nobody knows if a woman can handle a F1 car because its never been done before. I suspect she can, but it is a valid point.
So, Danica "going F1" really means that she might have the opportunity to turn a few serious laps in a F1 car. After that, it's anybody's guess, though currently there's no real opening at Honda.
Personally, I would love to see Danica get a F1 drive. The attention it'd garner here in the US would be great for the sport, and it'd have to stick in Bernie Ecclestone (F1 supremo)'s craw after HIS deplorable comments regarding women drivers.
And there's no way that'd be bad.
DANICA PATRICK going Formula One?
Now, while I appreciate any attention paid to F1 by someone here in the US, the Good Perfesser is in my territory here, so lets look at what this really means.What Danica is being considered for is a test. Generally this means plunking someone into a F1 car (maybe not even the current chassis) and letting them run a couple dozen laps or so, to see what happens. In many ways, a test session is F1's version of being invited to Spring Training. You might not be expected to "go north" with the Big Team, but sometimes good things happen. In the usual best case, the team would give the driver an extended look... probably as the team's Test Driver.
With Honda, that's a pretty decent gig, as Rubens Barrichello is approaching the end of his career, though he probably has another year or two of decent driving in him yet. The current test driver for Honda, Alex (Man-Mountain) Wurz, is a top-flight racer in his own right, highly praised for his technical knowledge and his ability to describe a car to the team's engineers. Of course, he has five seasons of actual F1 racing under his belt as well (last year with Williams, earlier with Benneton and McLaren). This makes him, at least as valuable to Honda F1 as their two race drivers, Barrichello and Jenson Button.
Button is Danica Patrick's "in" with the team, by the way. The two drove together in the British Formula Ford series, and were, at the time, friendly, though Button made some... unpleasant... comments regarding women drivers in 2005.
If Danica does well enough in test run with Honda F1, it's certainly possible that she could be signed as an actual race driver. Sebastien ("SeaBass") Bourdais tested with Toro Rosso in the off-season, and now is the team's (nominal) second driver, along with Sebastian Vettel, so it's hardly unheard of. Of course, SeaBass had a LOT more success in US open-wheel racing than Patrick, so that worked in his favor, too.
There is some question as to whether she's physically strong enough to drive a F1 car. It's common for a F1 driver to experience 5gs under braking, and 4gs or more in the corners. The problem is that, truthfully, nobody knows if a woman can handle a F1 car because its never been done before. I suspect she can, but it is a valid point.
So, Danica "going F1" really means that she might have the opportunity to turn a few serious laps in a F1 car. After that, it's anybody's guess, though currently there's no real opening at Honda.
Personally, I would love to see Danica get a F1 drive. The attention it'd garner here in the US would be great for the sport, and it'd have to stick in Bernie Ecclestone (F1 supremo)'s craw after HIS deplorable comments regarding women drivers.
And there's no way that'd be bad.
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April 30, 2008
Ikkitousen: Great Guardians!
This might be one of the greatest moments EVER here at The Pond...
more...
Yes!!!
The third of the Ikkitousen series is scheduled to hit the airwaves this summer, but a preview clip on DVD was recently released in Japan. Thenceforth, it made its way to way to the 'net, and from there, to my computer.
And now, to you!
From the looks of it, it'll be picking up pretty much from where Ikkitousen: Dragon Destiny ended, though Mou-chan and Hakufu were working in a cosplay cafe at that time.
There's not much else you can tell from the preview, but it's entertaining to watch all the same!
NSFW past the click...The third of the Ikkitousen series is scheduled to hit the airwaves this summer, but a preview clip on DVD was recently released in Japan. Thenceforth, it made its way to way to the 'net, and from there, to my computer.
And now, to you!
MY Mou-chan? Clumsy? Oh, h*ll no!
From the looks of it, it'll be picking up pretty much from where Ikkitousen: Dragon Destiny ended, though Mou-chan and Hakufu were working in a cosplay cafe at that time.
There's not much else you can tell from the preview, but it's entertaining to watch all the same!
Mou-chan commands you to click below!
more...
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April 29, 2008
THIS is why the Pirates have sucked for so long...
The Pirates didn't REALLY wear mesh caps in 1986, did they? And does Leyland's head look a little... odd-shaped under there?
as seen at the Uglybaseballcard blog, a great read for us fans o' baseball.
For the love of all that's holy, why?
The Pirates didn't REALLY wear mesh caps in 1986, did they? And does Leyland's head look a little... odd-shaped under there?
as seen at the Uglybaseballcard blog, a great read for us fans o' baseball.
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April 27, 2008
F1 UPDATE!: Spain 2008!
It wasn't a question of who would win, but which cars would survive... and was one driver uninjured? Lets get to the updatin'!
*LUCK AND ENGINEERING: Those are the only things that kept Heikki Kovaleininninninnie from being smeared across the inside of his cockpit after his front-left wheel rim failed at 160mph (a stone trapped between the rubber and the wheel is expected to be the reason for the failure). His McLaren wound up burying itself into a tire barrier up to the front of the driver's compartment, completely destroying the nose and actually opening the 'bathtub'.
Despite the violence of the accident, Heikki escaped with only a concussion and some bruising to his elbows and knees. He's being kept in hospital overnight for observation, but it seems likely that he'll be allowed to drive in the GP of Turkey two weeks hence.
* THE KIMI & PHIL SHOW: Ferrari ran away with this one, Massa getting past HWMNBN in the first turn, and the race was over. It was just a question of who would be third. Only two safety cars, one of which lasted 10 minutes, artificially kept Hamilton within spitting distance of the Ferraris. Nope, this was a total blowout, and McLaren has got to be runnin' scared now.
* DRIVER OF THE RACE: Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari. He beat back any challenge his teammate tried to put together, drove a nearly flawless race, and delivered a little lost boy back to his parents to boot. Throw in the evil glint he had in his eye when it came time to spray the champagne and King Juan Carlos of Spain was slow getting off the podium, and it was nearly the perfect performance. If he had been able to seduce a grid girl in Parc Ferme, then it could have been better.
* TEAM OF THE RACE: Ferrari. 1-3 on the grid, 1-2 on the podium, fast lap, two flawless drives, and never even close to being challenged? Yeah, that's a good race.
* MOVE OF THE RACE: Late in the race, Grizzly Nick Heidfeld was struggling back up the charts after suffering a 10sec. stop-and-go penalty for refueling before the pit lane had been opened during the Heikki Safety Car. After fighting with Giancarlo Fisichella's Farce India for five or six laps, the BMW driver forced Fisi into a small bobble coming out of the final turn. This was enough for Grizzly Nick to close up behind, getting a good tow from the other car. He blew the metaphorical doors off the Italian, then pinned him to the outside where there was nothing he could do to defend his line. Heidfeld then quickly pulled away. While it was only for 9th place (and no points), it was still the class of the passing for the day.
* MOOOOOO-OOOOVE OF THE RACE: Sometimes, even the best racers in the world act like cattle on the ranch. The Mooo-otR was created just for them. This race, there were two worthy candidates. The first goes to Rubens Barrichello, who managed to knock his front wing off... in the pit lane without hitting anybody! He then had to drive an entire lap with the wing jammed tightly into his suspension.
The second goes to Timo Glock, who decided that he really needed to be right where David Coulthard's Chin was, implanting his nose into the rear of the Red Bull for no good reason that anybody could see. Bravo and Moo! to both our winners.
*DRIVER QUOTES OF THE RACE:
more...
*LUCK AND ENGINEERING: Those are the only things that kept Heikki Kovaleininninninnie from being smeared across the inside of his cockpit after his front-left wheel rim failed at 160mph (a stone trapped between the rubber and the wheel is expected to be the reason for the failure). His McLaren wound up burying itself into a tire barrier up to the front of the driver's compartment, completely destroying the nose and actually opening the 'bathtub'.
Despite the violence of the accident, Heikki escaped with only a concussion and some bruising to his elbows and knees. He's being kept in hospital overnight for observation, but it seems likely that he'll be allowed to drive in the GP of Turkey two weeks hence.
* THE KIMI & PHIL SHOW: Ferrari ran away with this one, Massa getting past HWMNBN in the first turn, and the race was over. It was just a question of who would be third. Only two safety cars, one of which lasted 10 minutes, artificially kept Hamilton within spitting distance of the Ferraris. Nope, this was a total blowout, and McLaren has got to be runnin' scared now.
* DRIVER OF THE RACE: Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari. He beat back any challenge his teammate tried to put together, drove a nearly flawless race, and delivered a little lost boy back to his parents to boot. Throw in the evil glint he had in his eye when it came time to spray the champagne and King Juan Carlos of Spain was slow getting off the podium, and it was nearly the perfect performance. If he had been able to seduce a grid girl in Parc Ferme, then it could have been better.
* TEAM OF THE RACE: Ferrari. 1-3 on the grid, 1-2 on the podium, fast lap, two flawless drives, and never even close to being challenged? Yeah, that's a good race.
* MOVE OF THE RACE: Late in the race, Grizzly Nick Heidfeld was struggling back up the charts after suffering a 10sec. stop-and-go penalty for refueling before the pit lane had been opened during the Heikki Safety Car. After fighting with Giancarlo Fisichella's Farce India for five or six laps, the BMW driver forced Fisi into a small bobble coming out of the final turn. This was enough for Grizzly Nick to close up behind, getting a good tow from the other car. He blew the metaphorical doors off the Italian, then pinned him to the outside where there was nothing he could do to defend his line. Heidfeld then quickly pulled away. While it was only for 9th place (and no points), it was still the class of the passing for the day.
* MOOOOOO-OOOOVE OF THE RACE: Sometimes, even the best racers in the world act like cattle on the ranch. The Mooo-otR was created just for them. This race, there were two worthy candidates. The first goes to Rubens Barrichello, who managed to knock his front wing off... in the pit lane without hitting anybody! He then had to drive an entire lap with the wing jammed tightly into his suspension.
The second goes to Timo Glock, who decided that he really needed to be right where David Coulthard's Chin was, implanting his nose into the rear of the Red Bull for no good reason that anybody could see. Bravo and Moo! to both our winners.
*DRIVER QUOTES OF THE RACE:
more...
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April 26, 2008
F1 Quals: SPAIN '08!
This is just a nightmare. PLEASE, someone, tell me that the quals results were just a cruel, sick practical joke?
Bad enough that Ferrari is on pole. Bad enough that they're also 3rd on the grid. But in the name of St. Fangio the Quick, does HWMNBN have to be the one in between them??? It's like someone's been reading this website and chose the result that'd make me feel the worst... not only because of the drivers at the top of the grid, but the two at the back: SuperAguri's Ant Davidson and Takuma Sato. The way the team acted after they were relegated, I'm not even sure they'll start the race on Sunday.
The results:
Kubica's proved that BMW is a legit force to be reckoned with. McLaren has got to be panicking a little bit, since at no time this weekend have they been even close to hanging with Ferrari.
In truth, HWMNBN probably has about five laps worth of fuel onboard, because there's no way the Renault is really that fast; look where his teammate ended up.
The biggest disappointment of the day, though, has got to be Farce India. On Friday, they were looking quite fast, and to only be .1 second ahead of the SuperAguri has got to be something of a blow to their morale. No, I didn't expect them to be in Q3 or anything, but it wasn't going to surprise me to see them in Q2.
Finally, the Hondas will be running the handlebars in the race, but not the wavy rear wing. On, off, on, off... make up your frickin' mind, will ya?!?
So, looks like an interesting race tomorrow, though Ferrari's the odds-on favorite for a runaway, that's for sure. See ya with the F1 UPDATE!
Bad enough that Ferrari is on pole. Bad enough that they're also 3rd on the grid. But in the name of St. Fangio the Quick, does HWMNBN have to be the one in between them??? It's like someone's been reading this website and chose the result that'd make me feel the worst... not only because of the drivers at the top of the grid, but the two at the back: SuperAguri's Ant Davidson and Takuma Sato. The way the team acted after they were relegated, I'm not even sure they'll start the race on Sunday.
The results:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 1:20.701 | 1:20.784 | 1:21.813 | 17 | |
| 2 | HWMNBN | Renault | 1:21.347 | 1:20.804 | 1:21.904 | 18 | |
| 3 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:21.528 | 1:20.584 | 1:22.058 | 16 | |
| 4 | Robert Kubica | BMW Sauber | 1:21.423 | 1:20.597 | 1:22.065 | 13 | |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:21.366 | 1:20.825 | 1:22.096 | 14 | |
| 6 | Heikki Kovalainen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:21.430 | 1:20.817 | 1:22.231 | 15 | |
| 7 | Mark Webber | Red Bull-Renault | 1:21.494 | 1:20.984 | 1:22.429 | 19 | |
| 8 | Jarno Trulli | Toyota | 1:21.158 | 1:20.907 | 1:22.529 | 19 | |
| 9 | Nick Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | 1:21.466 | 1:20.815 | 1:22.542 | 20 | |
| 10 | Nelson Piquet, Jr |
Renault | 1:21.409 | 1:20.894 | 1:22.699 | 18 | |
| 11 | Rubens Barrichello | Honda | 1:21.548 | 1:21.049 | 12 | ||
| 12 | Kaz Nakajima | Williams-Toyota | 1:21.690 | 1:21.117 | 15 | ||
| 13 | Jenson Button | Honda | 1:21.757 | 1:21.211 | 12 | ||
| 14 | Timo Glock | Toyota | 1:21.427 | 1:21.230 | 16 | ||
| 15 | Nico Rosberg | Williams-Toyota | 1:21.472 | 1:21.349 | 15 | ||
| 16 | SeaBass | STR-Ferrari | 1:21.540 | 1:21.724 | 15 | ||
| 17 | David Coulthard's Chin |
Red Bull-Renault | 1:21.810 | 6 | |||
| 18 | Sebastian Vettel | STR-Ferrari | 1:22.108 | 10 | |||
| 19 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Force India-Ferrari | 1:22.516 | 11 | |||
| 20 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Ferrari | 1:23.224 | 8 | |||
| 21 | Ant Davidson | Super Aguri-Honda | 1:23.318 | 9 | |||
| 22 | Takuma Sato | Super Aguri-Honda | 1:23.496 | 9 |
Kubica's proved that BMW is a legit force to be reckoned with. McLaren has got to be panicking a little bit, since at no time this weekend have they been even close to hanging with Ferrari.
In truth, HWMNBN probably has about five laps worth of fuel onboard, because there's no way the Renault is really that fast; look where his teammate ended up.
The biggest disappointment of the day, though, has got to be Farce India. On Friday, they were looking quite fast, and to only be .1 second ahead of the SuperAguri has got to be something of a blow to their morale. No, I didn't expect them to be in Q3 or anything, but it wasn't going to surprise me to see them in Q2.
Finally, the Hondas will be running the handlebars in the race, but not the wavy rear wing. On, off, on, off... make up your frickin' mind, will ya?!?
So, looks like an interesting race tomorrow, though Ferrari's the odds-on favorite for a runaway, that's for sure. See ya with the F1 UPDATE!
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April 25, 2008
SuperAguri is on the track for P1! UPDATED!
SuperAguri is participating in Friday Practice session 1! This is good news, as Honda had given them a deadline of Prac1 to get a financing deal done, or they'd have their engines pulled.
Takuma Sato took his car onto the track a couple of minutes into the session.
That live timing and scoring system on formula1.com is pretty darn spiffy, y'know that? Oh, sure, it meant that I had to stay up until 3am Pond time to find out if my favorite team still existed, but it's a small price to pay.
It's now 311am, and Ant Davidson has started practicing, too.
Now, the big question is, will they be in P2? If they are, you can pretty much guarantee they'll be racing for real come Sunday. If not, no chance at all.
However, this little duck won't be awake for it. I'm going to bed right now.
UPDATE: Indeed, SuperAguri did take the track for P2 as well. While they couldn't get a deal done to provide them with funding, Honda realized that since the team is already in Spain, they may as well fund them for one last race and use the SA cars as testers, so as to get the race data from the engines for their own team's use.
So SuperAguri gets another stretch of time to obtain funding. It doesn't look good for the little team that started out driving the 2002 Arrows chassis. Damn shame; last year looked so promising.
The only real interesting thing to come out of P2 was Heikki Kovelaeinnienninnie's McLaren coughing and dying, and Lewis Hamilton only being 11th on the timesheet. One can assume they were working on race setup and fuel runs, but it's still not a pleasant thought for the team.
Oh, and Honda IS running the handlebars in the race, AND a new rear wing to boot:
Takuma Sato took his car onto the track a couple of minutes into the session.
That live timing and scoring system on formula1.com is pretty darn spiffy, y'know that? Oh, sure, it meant that I had to stay up until 3am Pond time to find out if my favorite team still existed, but it's a small price to pay.
It's now 311am, and Ant Davidson has started practicing, too.
Now, the big question is, will they be in P2? If they are, you can pretty much guarantee they'll be racing for real come Sunday. If not, no chance at all.
However, this little duck won't be awake for it. I'm going to bed right now.
UPDATE: Indeed, SuperAguri did take the track for P2 as well. While they couldn't get a deal done to provide them with funding, Honda realized that since the team is already in Spain, they may as well fund them for one last race and use the SA cars as testers, so as to get the race data from the engines for their own team's use.
So SuperAguri gets another stretch of time to obtain funding. It doesn't look good for the little team that started out driving the 2002 Arrows chassis. Damn shame; last year looked so promising.
The only real interesting thing to come out of P2 was Heikki Kovelaeinnienninnie's McLaren coughing and dying, and Lewis Hamilton only being 11th on the timesheet. One can assume they were working on race setup and fuel runs, but it's still not a pleasant thought for the team.
Oh, and Honda IS running the handlebars in the race, AND a new rear wing to boot:
Mmmm... bendy!
They're almost getting embarrassing, these guys.
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April 24, 2008
What in the HELL???
First, there was the McLaren MP4/21 with its "viking horns":
At the time, these were radical and crazy...
Then, there was BMW and their very short-lived vertical nosefins:Ugly AND dangerous, what more could you ask for?
It's unknown if they'll be running the "handlebars" in the race, but they're in the paddock at least. Now Honda wants to get into the act:
Honda: Because our livery isn't ugly enough yet...
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April 23, 2008
40.
It's April 23rd. People who were born today include William Shakespeare, Max Planck, Admiral Karel Doorman, "Sunny" Jim Bottomley, Warren Spahn, Shirley Temple, Roy Orbison, Kenji Kawai, Valerie Bertinelli, Andruw Jones, and John Cena. Wrigley Field hosted its first baseball game on April 23rd, 1914, too.
And in 1968, in a hospital somewhere in Chicago, me.
At this moment, let us spare a moment's sympathy for my mother. I was a big baby, pushing 10 lbs... and I was over a month late, originally scheduled for St. Patrick's Day. Thanks, Momzerduck!
So today, I turn 40. Nobody is more surprised than me.
UPDATE: The candles on my birthday cake...
And in 1968, in a hospital somewhere in Chicago, me.
At this moment, let us spare a moment's sympathy for my mother. I was a big baby, pushing 10 lbs... and I was over a month late, originally scheduled for St. Patrick's Day. Thanks, Momzerduck!
So today, I turn 40. Nobody is more surprised than me.
UPDATE: The candles on my birthday cake...
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April 22, 2008
F1 on SPEED!
The vacation is over for the teams, and the racing is back on! This weekend is the Grand Prix of Spain, and SPEED will be there for us... thankfully! Unfortunately, there's no replays of ANY sort for this race, so either you tape it or you wake up early. Your choice.
Friday, April 25th brings us LIVE coverage of the 2nd Practice from 7a to 830a. The biggest question on the lips of the F1 Circus is "will SuperAguri participate?" They've been having financial problems all season, and Honda is refusing to sink any more cash into the team (pure spite, I tell ya!). At one time, a buyer for the team had been found, but for reasons unknown at this time, the sale fell through. While reports are saying that the team is in Catalunya, there's still some question as to whether they'll make it onto the track. Cross your fingers, Pond readers!
Saturday, April 26th, from ; font-weight: bold;">7a to 830a, brings us the Quals session, plausibly LIVE. Ferrari and McLaren are looking to teach those upstarts from BMW-Sauber that they ain't part of the big boys yet. BMW wants to solidify their toehold, and Renault and Williams are just dreaming of the front row. Will SuperAguri make the grid? Will a RedBull car fall apart when someone leans on them? Whither Canada?
Then, finally, Sunday, April 27th brings us the Grand Prix of Spain LIVE from ; font-weight: bold;">630a to 9a. Will the abrasive asphalt of the Circuit de Catalunya help the grip while burning the tires off the rims? Or will we have cars slipping and sliding again due to the lack of traction control? Either way, the tires are going to be screaming... I wonder if there'll be any frontrunners on a three-stop strategy? My guess is no, but I've been (very) wrong before.
All times, of course, are Pond Central. Add one for the east coast, subtract two for the Pacific (though they've got a different schedule anyway), and subtract seven hours (and add a day) for Wake Island...
Friday, April 25th brings us LIVE coverage of the 2nd Practice from 7a to 830a. The biggest question on the lips of the F1 Circus is "will SuperAguri participate?" They've been having financial problems all season, and Honda is refusing to sink any more cash into the team (pure spite, I tell ya!). At one time, a buyer for the team had been found, but for reasons unknown at this time, the sale fell through. While reports are saying that the team is in Catalunya, there's still some question as to whether they'll make it onto the track. Cross your fingers, Pond readers!
Saturday, April 26th, from ; font-weight: bold;">7a to 830a, brings us the Quals session, plausibly LIVE. Ferrari and McLaren are looking to teach those upstarts from BMW-Sauber that they ain't part of the big boys yet. BMW wants to solidify their toehold, and Renault and Williams are just dreaming of the front row. Will SuperAguri make the grid? Will a RedBull car fall apart when someone leans on them? Whither Canada?
Then, finally, Sunday, April 27th brings us the Grand Prix of Spain LIVE from ; font-weight: bold;">630a to 9a. Will the abrasive asphalt of the Circuit de Catalunya help the grip while burning the tires off the rims? Or will we have cars slipping and sliding again due to the lack of traction control? Either way, the tires are going to be screaming... I wonder if there'll be any frontrunners on a three-stop strategy? My guess is no, but I've been (very) wrong before.
All times, of course, are Pond Central. Add one for the east coast, subtract two for the Pacific (though they've got a different schedule anyway), and subtract seven hours (and add a day) for Wake Island...
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April 21, 2008
Clannad's End, or "Can I Get A Light Cue?"
It took me nearly two weeks to swallow down the trepidation and watch the last two episodes of Clannad. I knew that ep22 would finally show us Nagisa's play, and that filled me with dread... because, underneath everything that I've become over the years, there's still a part of me that wishes I could have followed my dream and become a lighting designer for the theatre.
Like the "Old Man", I had to let that dream go, though not for the same reasons.
In fact, recently Clannad had been punching some very touchy buttons in me, for reasons that will become clear later this week. It took some serious effort for me to finally open up ZoomPlayer and run the final eps.
So imagine my surprise when I found myself doing something I hadn't done in a long time...
more...
Like the "Old Man", I had to let that dream go, though not for the same reasons.
In fact, recently Clannad had been punching some very touchy buttons in me, for reasons that will become clear later this week. It took some serious effort for me to finally open up ZoomPlayer and run the final eps.
So imagine my surprise when I found myself doing something I hadn't done in a long time...
more...
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April 19, 2008
How Many Licks Does It Take To Get To The Center Of Ducks In Anime?
-Princess Tutu, unknown episode.
She's a girl duck named Ahiru... and she dances ballet. And people think anime is just about giant robots and tentacles...
Screenshot taken from the AMV entitled "Hold Me Now", just a fun, fun vid, even if you don't speak German Swedish.
-Princess Tutu, unknown episode.
She's a girl duck named Ahiru... and she dances ballet. And people think anime is just about giant robots and tentacles...
Screenshot taken from the AMV entitled "Hold Me Now", just a fun, fun vid, even if you don't speak German Swedish.
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April 18, 2008
C2K
And that, ladies and gentlemen and ducks, is the 2000th comment here at The Pond, according to the little counter down on the right sidebar.
Holy mackerel. This duck is amazed. Thanks to Steven for the comment, and to everybody who's taken the time to speak their minds about my lack of one. Without y'all, The Pond would be nothing more than an empty water-filled hole in the ground with one weird, anime- and F1-obsessed waterfowl talking to himself in it.
Which is a very surreal mental picture, if you think about it...
2
Hmm... how about this: Top 10 reasons why HWMNBN must not be named.
Posted by: Steven Den Beste at April 18, 2008 11:32 AM (+rSRq)
And that, ladies and gentlemen and ducks, is the 2000th comment here at The Pond, according to the little counter down on the right sidebar.
Holy mackerel. This duck is amazed. Thanks to Steven for the comment, and to everybody who's taken the time to speak their minds about my lack of one. Without y'all, The Pond would be nothing more than an empty water-filled hole in the ground with one weird, anime- and F1-obsessed waterfowl talking to himself in it.
Which is a very surreal mental picture, if you think about it...
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April 17, 2008
Hmmm.
I'm finding myself at a loss of what to blog about. Nothing is particularly jumping out at me right now. Sure, there's a race coming up, but that's NEXT weekend. There's a big event in my life coming up, but that's NEXT week. Now? I'm not even motivated enough to watch the last two episodes of Clannad (and then Toei's movie version).
So lemme hear from ya! Gimme some ideas, 'cause I'm fresh out.
Meanwhile, here's a completely unrelated picture:
So lemme hear from ya! Gimme some ideas, 'cause I'm fresh out.
Meanwhile, here's a completely unrelated picture:
Durrrrr...
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April 15, 2008
I Like Big Ducks In Anime And I Cannot Lie...
-Soul Eater, ep01
Surprisingly fun show, I must admit. Just make sure you get the "Latenight Edition" or the "Uncut" version... or you'll miss out on half the fun. I've been trying to figure out where I've seen this animation style before, though, and it's right on the tip of my tongue (ducks have tongues?).
Thanks to Don over at The Kawaii Menace for bringing my attention to this appearance of Ducks In Anime!
UPDATE: No sooner did I type that did the show with a similar animation style jump to mind... Re:Cutie Honey! Maybe a little bit of Dead Leaves thrown in, too.
-Soul Eater, ep01
Surprisingly fun show, I must admit. Just make sure you get the "Latenight Edition" or the "Uncut" version... or you'll miss out on half the fun. I've been trying to figure out where I've seen this animation style before, though, and it's right on the tip of my tongue (ducks have tongues?).
Thanks to Don over at The Kawaii Menace for bringing my attention to this appearance of Ducks In Anime!
UPDATE: No sooner did I type that did the show with a similar animation style jump to mind... Re:Cutie Honey! Maybe a little bit of Dead Leaves thrown in, too.
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April 14, 2008
Chiyo-chan Gets A Facelift.
So I wake up this morning, brush my teeth, get a morning beverage, settle in front of Chiyo-chan (my smart and wonderful computer), and hit the power button on the 19" CRT.
Nothing. Oh, it degausses itself, but nothing else happens, except for making this frightening "click. click. click. click. click." noise.
Crepe. Dead monitor. Well, I DID only pay $99 for it at Big Blue Box four years ago, I think that's decent enough value... but no matter what value I got out of it, it was still dead, and I was still without a working monitor.
Fast-forward to now. Chiyo-chan is now connected to a 19" HP widescreen LCD... specifically, the w1907.
Oh. My.
I have to play with it some more, get the brightness/contrast levels to my liking (out of the box, it was bright enough to give me a headache), but this thing was a revelation.
Then I hooked it up to the computer via the included DVI cable.
Imagine all your life, you've been driving a miserable 4-cyl Yugo. Then someone hands you the keys to a McLaren F1 supercar...
Yeah, it's kinda like that.
I tell ya, Morty, this thing is GOOD.
Nothing. Oh, it degausses itself, but nothing else happens, except for making this frightening "click. click. click. click. click." noise.
Crepe. Dead monitor. Well, I DID only pay $99 for it at Big Blue Box four years ago, I think that's decent enough value... but no matter what value I got out of it, it was still dead, and I was still without a working monitor.
Fast-forward to now. Chiyo-chan is now connected to a 19" HP widescreen LCD... specifically, the w1907.
Oh. My.
Then I hooked it up to the computer via the included DVI cable.
Imagine all your life, you've been driving a miserable 4-cyl Yugo. Then someone hands you the keys to a McLaren F1 supercar...
Yeah, it's kinda like that.
I tell ya, Morty, this thing is GOOD.
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April 13, 2008
Bad Ideas for Anime Crossovers: KANONKON
-Kanonkon, ep02
In this scene, Yuuichi meets fox-girl Chizuru for the first time in seven years.
I'm going to hell for this, aren't I?
-Kanonkon, ep02
In this scene, Yuuichi meets fox-girl Chizuru for the first time in seven years.
I'm going to hell for this, aren't I?
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