Ships Log: Fat Aircraft carrier war games
- Thread starter UtahJoe
- Start date
I'm going to say if you're worried about gear ratios, you're over thinking it. Unless the car you're looking at has a 4.56 and that means the prior owner has been beating it to shit.
Are you limiting yourself to an AOD? A C4 is fine.
And for rear axle ratio, what is your purpose? If you're at the strip or looking for off the line power, 4.10:1 is great, but really horrible even with a normal overdrive. 3.55 is usually the good middle-ground for fun.
https://www.americanmuscle.com/mustang-rear-differential-gears.html
My daily driver 1965 with the stock engine and C4 was fine with the 2.73s for regular driving and 120mph max speed. My 1982 with 4.10s was annoying having to shift halfway through an intersection.
Read that article.
Are you limiting yourself to an AOD? A C4 is fine.
And for rear axle ratio, what is your purpose? If you're at the strip or looking for off the line power, 4.10:1 is great, but really horrible even with a normal overdrive. 3.55 is usually the good middle-ground for fun.
https://www.americanmuscle.com/mustang-rear-differential-gears.html
My daily driver 1965 with the stock engine and C4 was fine with the 2.73s for regular driving and 120mph max speed. My 1982 with 4.10s was annoying having to shift halfway through an intersection.
Read that article.
Car if definitely worth more than 40k if it's an original s code fastback. A paint job would be nice tho. At least they went with a faux Shelby body kit over the Eleanor..
So something a little different that I was thinking about today:
I copied this from an after action report from my grandfathers army unit. 7th armored division, 77th armored medical battalion. December 17th-18th, 1944. This was written but the commanding officer of his unit
One officer and six enlisted men from Company "B" were injured from artillery shrapnel at Laroche. The injured were Capt. Robert B. Dormire, S/Sgt Everett L. Staymates, T/5 Alvin T. Skinner, Pvt 1st class Phil T. Holt, Pvt 1st class Stanley F. Pas, Pvt 1st class Don J. McEachern and Pvt 1st class Charles F. Rex. It was only necessary to evacuate Pvt 1st class Holt and Pvt 1st class Pas. The other five received medical attention and remained on duty. They were awarded the Purple Heart on a division order published the 23rd of December. "B" Company left a clearing section back at Laroche to handle any casualties occuring in that vicinity and the balance of the company moved to Marche on the 20th of December. On this same date, "Hq. & Hq. Company" moved to Rochefort, and "C" Company moved to Aye. Lt. Col. Boland, our commanding officer, proceeded to Vielsalm where Division TAC Headquarters were located. He worked between division headquarters and the "A" Company clearing section on the evacuation of the casualties. On Wednesday morning, 20th of December, the clearing section of "A" Company was cut off from the remainder of the battalion by an enemy break-thru. In the following three days this section with two medical officers and twelve enlisted men treated and evacuated 320 casualties, part of the time being under enemy fire.
One officer and six enlisted men from Company "B" were injured from artillery shrapnel at Laroche. The injured were Capt. Robert B. Dormire, S/Sgt Everett L. Staymates, T/5 Alvin T. Skinner, Pvt 1st class Phil T. Holt, Pvt 1st class Stanley F. Pas, Pvt 1st class Don J. McEachern and Pvt 1st class Charles F. Rex. It was only necessary to evacuate Pvt 1st class Holt and Pvt 1st class Pas. The other five received medical attention and remained on duty. They were awarded the Purple Heart on a division order published the 23rd of December. "B" Company left a clearing section back at Laroche to handle any casualties occuring in that vicinity and the balance of the company moved to Marche on the 20th of December. On this same date, "Hq. & Hq. Company" moved to Rochefort, and "C" Company moved to Aye. Lt. Col. Boland, our commanding officer, proceeded to Vielsalm where Division TAC Headquarters were located. He worked between division headquarters and the "A" Company clearing section on the evacuation of the casualties. On Wednesday morning, 20th of December, the clearing section of "A" Company was cut off from the remainder of the battalion by an enemy break-thru. In the following three days this section with two medical officers and twelve enlisted men treated and evacuated 320 casualties, part of the time being under enemy fire.
So on this day, 75 years ago was when everyone got the reality check that the Ardennes Counteroffensive Later to be know as the battle of the bulge was really happening. I imagine on this day, people like my grandfather had no idea how big this battle would be or that it would be biggest and bloodiest battle for the US army of WWII. 90,000 american causalities in a mere 3 weeks.
whats also interesting is the previous entry in this journal, December 11th, 1944
On the 11th of December, thirty men from the battalion were given the opportunity of witnessing the world premiere of the motion picture, "Saratoga Trunk", starring Ingrid Bergman and Gary Cooper. The picture was shown at the Asta Theatre. A few days later the battalion was able to obtain the picture, to be shown to all those who were not able to witness the premiere, and this showing was also held at the Asta Theatre. We also invited troops from several close-by units to this performance. Our special service officer estimated a crowd of over eight hundred at the showing and although it was not the world premiere, it was nevertheless enjoyed heartily by all the men.
I always found that moment in time fascinating when people go from hanging out watching movies, to the one of history's bloodiest battles. My grandfather was part of a medical unit that supported the 7th armored division... So a very small cog in the whole system. He talked to me many times about this battle.... Not so much the blood and guts, but the intense cold and not being able to warm up. Then he had many great stories of the V1 flying bombs.... Which he knew nothing about other then: when you heard the motor turn off, you ran for hills as you knew it was falling from the sky. He would later be injured by one on new years day 1945. The amount of cities and places his unit moved to in his year in Europe was staggering. I started a project mapping it, but I have only made it thru 4 months so far.
All told the Germans/Americans lost had nearly 200,000 casualties, lost 2000 planes and over 1000 tanks.... Staggering numbers.
JJust something I was thinking about today
I copied this from an after action report from my grandfathers army unit. 7th armored division, 77th armored medical battalion. December 17th-18th, 1944. This was written but the commanding officer of his unit
- 2 –
S E C R E T
On the 17th of December, the entire battalion moved from the Holland area together with the rest of the division. We were now in the First Army, VIII Corps. The division was brought to this new sector to halt a German break-thru (KEY WORDS) which was pending at the time. The battalion arrived on the following morning and took up positions in the following towns; "Hq & Hq Company" at Vielsalm, "A" and "C" Company at Rencheux, and "B" Company at Grand Halleux. On this same day, the 18th, "A" Company set up a clearing station at Beho to handle all division casualties. The division had been committed to action immediately upon arrival of certain combat units. The Germans were reported to be in close proximity to the Division Trains and the entire battalion with the exception of the clearing section at Beho, moved to new localities. "Hq. & Hq. Company" moved to 2 miles west of Laroche, "A" Company to Genes, "B" Company at Laroche and "C" Company at Marcourt, all in Belgium. We were quite on the move these days. Usually on the day following our departure from these towns, we would hear over the radio of the town we had left being over-run by Germans.One officer and six enlisted men from Company "B" were injured from artillery shrapnel at Laroche. The injured were Capt. Robert B. Dormire, S/Sgt Everett L. Staymates, T/5 Alvin T. Skinner, Pvt 1st class Phil T. Holt, Pvt 1st class Stanley F. Pas, Pvt 1st class Don J. McEachern and Pvt 1st class Charles F. Rex. It was only necessary to evacuate Pvt 1st class Holt and Pvt 1st class Pas. The other five received medical attention and remained on duty. They were awarded the Purple Heart on a division order published the 23rd of December. "B" Company left a clearing section back at Laroche to handle any casualties occuring in that vicinity and the balance of the company moved to Marche on the 20th of December. On this same date, "Hq. & Hq. Company" moved to Rochefort, and "C" Company moved to Aye. Lt. Col. Boland, our commanding officer, proceeded to Vielsalm where Division TAC Headquarters were located. He worked between division headquarters and the "A" Company clearing section on the evacuation of the casualties. On Wednesday morning, 20th of December, the clearing section of "A" Company was cut off from the remainder of the battalion by an enemy break-thru. In the following three days this section with two medical officers and twelve enlisted men treated and evacuated 320 casualties, part of the time being under enemy fire.
One officer and six enlisted men from Company "B" were injured from artillery shrapnel at Laroche. The injured were Capt. Robert B. Dormire, S/Sgt Everett L. Staymates, T/5 Alvin T. Skinner, Pvt 1st class Phil T. Holt, Pvt 1st class Stanley F. Pas, Pvt 1st class Don J. McEachern and Pvt 1st class Charles F. Rex. It was only necessary to evacuate Pvt 1st class Holt and Pvt 1st class Pas. The other five received medical attention and remained on duty. They were awarded the Purple Heart on a division order published the 23rd of December. "B" Company left a clearing section back at Laroche to handle any casualties occuring in that vicinity and the balance of the company moved to Marche on the 20th of December. On this same date, "Hq. & Hq. Company" moved to Rochefort, and "C" Company moved to Aye. Lt. Col. Boland, our commanding officer, proceeded to Vielsalm where Division TAC Headquarters were located. He worked between division headquarters and the "A" Company clearing section on the evacuation of the casualties. On Wednesday morning, 20th of December, the clearing section of "A" Company was cut off from the remainder of the battalion by an enemy break-thru. In the following three days this section with two medical officers and twelve enlisted men treated and evacuated 320 casualties, part of the time being under enemy fire.
So on this day, 75 years ago was when everyone got the reality check that the Ardennes Counteroffensive Later to be know as the battle of the bulge was really happening. I imagine on this day, people like my grandfather had no idea how big this battle would be or that it would be biggest and bloodiest battle for the US army of WWII. 90,000 american causalities in a mere 3 weeks.
whats also interesting is the previous entry in this journal, December 11th, 1944
On the 11th of December, thirty men from the battalion were given the opportunity of witnessing the world premiere of the motion picture, "Saratoga Trunk", starring Ingrid Bergman and Gary Cooper. The picture was shown at the Asta Theatre. A few days later the battalion was able to obtain the picture, to be shown to all those who were not able to witness the premiere, and this showing was also held at the Asta Theatre. We also invited troops from several close-by units to this performance. Our special service officer estimated a crowd of over eight hundred at the showing and although it was not the world premiere, it was nevertheless enjoyed heartily by all the men.
I always found that moment in time fascinating when people go from hanging out watching movies, to the one of history's bloodiest battles. My grandfather was part of a medical unit that supported the 7th armored division... So a very small cog in the whole system. He talked to me many times about this battle.... Not so much the blood and guts, but the intense cold and not being able to warm up. Then he had many great stories of the V1 flying bombs.... Which he knew nothing about other then: when you heard the motor turn off, you ran for hills as you knew it was falling from the sky. He would later be injured by one on new years day 1945. The amount of cities and places his unit moved to in his year in Europe was staggering. I started a project mapping it, but I have only made it thru 4 months so far.
All told the Germans/Americans lost had nearly 200,000 casualties, lost 2000 planes and over 1000 tanks.... Staggering numbers.
JJust something I was thinking about today
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Mtbdog
Well-Known Member
This was hardly the bloodiest battle of WW2. It was for the western allies, but the Russians and Germans lost a combined 1.6 million dead at the battle of Stalingrad in the winter of 1942-1943. This was indeed a large battle but hardly a war changer. That said it doesn't lessen the heroics and bravery displayed by the troops during the Battle of the Bulge, or as the offensive by the Germans was called "The Watch on the Rhine". By this time the war had been decided on the Russian front long before.
Kaleidopete
Well-Known Member
Nice read! Thanks for sharing. I think your grandpa would be happy too.
My uncle Walter was in WWI, 1916, he survived the war, but when he died an old man, I got his Bible he carried through the war.
My uncle Walter was in WWI, 1916, he survived the war, but when he died an old man, I got his Bible he carried through the war.
I meant to say the biggest battle for the US army, im well aware of the battles between Russia and Germany....which were less battles and more complete slaughters. But I posted this moreso just to show one persons view of what was happening in the moment. It most certainly brought about VE sooner, so I would say it had to have some affect on the war.....but obviously, the best the Germans had were long since wasted in Russia.
@Kaleidopete thats awesome....was your uncle was British? Or was that date 9/16/18?
Mtbdog
Well-Known Member
What the battles in the west did was save Western Europe from communist domination of the continent. At Potsdam, Truman remarked to Stalin he should be proud of making it to Berlin. Stalin replied, "Peter the Great made it to Paris", so you can see where he wanted to go. Great write up. Just for the record the battle started on Dec. 16.
Kaleidopete
Well-Known Member
He was British, that's how they wrote it.
I figured, wasnt sure....I know the US wasnt in WWI until 1917. So if that was 9/18, that would have been during the Somme.
Thats true, but I posted this today with the journal entry being 17th/18th for a couple of reasons.....
My grandfather was a combat medic and part of a medical battalion, so by its nature, it was a reactionary force....thus they were "bivouacked" (camped out) away from the front lines doing nothing when the attack started. When he wrote: moved from the Holland area together with the rest of the division. This was totally not typical with the other entries....Typically the companies (A,B, and C. ) would move around independent of each other on various days.....on this day...someone told him to move all of the companies together to one location..Thus something big was going on here......at least thats how I read it. Its interesting to read some of this and think about if he was writing it after the fact, or in the moment. Probably a little of both.
Also, its well known that the US really messed up the early part of this battle and the higher ups were in complete denial of how big the attacking German force was, thus the response was slow.
Mtbdog
Well-Known Member
The Germans also had a streak of cloudy days that grounded the allied air forces. When the sun came out it was a turkey shoot for Pzkw, Sdkfz, and other German mobile units. The P-51's and P-47's had a field day. Are you a WW2 buff also? I've studied it extensively and am riveted by it even now. It made the world I grew up in.
oh absolutely.....War history in general, but WWI and WWII I find most interesting.
In fact, @UtahJoe you should let me introduce you to my father...Purple Heart in Vietnam, a number of active duty promotions until he retired as a Full Bird Colonel from ARMY. The reason you should meet him is because he is the President and CEO of InfoAge https://infoage.org Military and communications museum in Wall Township. Tons of history and engineering stuff...let me know we'll set it up !
This is amazing Brian....Recently I was listening to Carlins podcast about the Japanese invasions following Peal harbor, which went into alot of what your grandfather is talking about.....Just unbelievable what was going there, thankfully he made it out.
I have no idea how I didnt know about this place....that looks awesome, will definitely have to check it out! Very cool.
Mad River Glen
So I wanted to make a little write about this trip because quite frankly, it was awesome.....
Mad river glen, ski it if you can....blah blah blah...I have heard this tag line forever...When I was a kid and used to spend every weekend in vermont I would hear people talking about MRG and how hard it was. Our ski club had a house in Manchester, so MRG was far and the few times we went that far, my dad wanted to go to Sugarbush...so we never made it to mad river. After i came back from living in Utah....I mean I still love vermont, but there is very little in Vermont that entertains me like Utah does. After 40 years of skiing, i really just long for bare essentials....Skis, good terrain, minimal crowds, woods, and good snow is a great bonus....What i can do without...
man made snow (its a thing, but its never good, its there)
high speed lifts....not always a bad thing, but in the small mountains of vermont, its a great way to ensure there will be many people on the hill at once
hotels and or villages on/around the mountain...including waterparks or any other disneyland like features...any of this crap at a ski hill...even if its good, its so absurdly overpriced.
grooming
wide trails
overly complicated trail maps with alot of window dressing....this is a great way to tell if the mountain you are at is more fluff than substance.
So back to MRG. My coworker and her husband have been a part of the montclair ski club for many years and the ski club has a house about 500' from the hill....She invited me and my family up for the weekend and I could not tell her yes fast enough. I had never been to mad river, but I have heard enough about it to at least want to check it out.
the map of mad river is what i love...Utah maps used to be more like this...as in....Here are some areas...but really, go where ever you want and ski it.
So we arrive and I notice that the base of the hill doesnt have a giant lodge and a airport sized parking lot.....two pluses right off the bat. The house sleeps about 35 people and we spent the evening hanging out with the other familes getting to know everyone. Our room was small and had 4 bunk beds....perfect, thats just fine.
Next morning we get up and eat breakfast then make our way over to the hill. My plan was to ski with Allison and Bob as long as they lasted then get a tour with the people in the club. It was snowing hard and the entire mountain was in a thick fog, so I really couldnt see much of it. Getting covered in wet snow on every trip up the lift
So on my first trip up the lift I notice moguls everywhere, no grooming, rocks, lines thru the trees.....basically if its ground and has snow on it....go ahead and ski on it. I like this place already.
My wife/son and I did a few runs on the easy stuff, but Allison wasnt feeling well so her and bob went in the lodge for a while....I linked up with the crew and hit the iconic single chair.
I have never been on a single chair...T, J, bars, 2, 3, 4, 6 person lifts, 125 person trams, but never a single chair. You hop on that thing and you can sort of feel the magic of this place.
The group was a little unsure of my ability to ski...I mean there are many levels of skiing much like mountain biking...you can be great at ripping groomers, like you can be great at ripping flow trails....that doesnt mean you know how to ride rocks, or ski more technical stuff. So we hit up the easier fallline trail first.....Soon as we get to the top I see its all moguls, rocks, trees...complete mess....if this was a trail in new jersey, there would be 9 pages of warning for you to read first. Now this is my kind of skiing. The cover is thin right now as VT hasnt gotten a ton of snow so far this year...this meant I hit a shit ton of rocks, but it just adds to the challenge. We linked up a number of great sections into a really enjoyable run.....By the end, the crew knew that they didnt have to worry if i was going to die, so we moved on to the harder stuff.
They were all excited to show me the famous Paradise trail......Which starts out with a really cool traverse thru the trees on top of the mountain. I was informed there was a cliff that you have to jump down....SWEET! I dont get to hear that too often when im taking my son to shawnee. This run is great...steep, narrow, raw, moguls, rocks, ice cliffs and always a tree you have to work around.......This is everything I love about skiing....its hard to find in the east....this is what I would spend all day everyday doing when i lived in Utah. We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring every hidden hole we could....the woods were kind of thin, but we did still spend alot of time in there. By the end of the day I was beat...I havent done this kind of skiing in a while and it beats the snot out of your legs.
Skiied back to the lodge, cleaned up, had a group dinner with everyone and discussed the day. Just brought me back to when i was a kid at our old ski club.....just being around real ski enthusiasts...which if your favorite place is MRG....you kinda have to be.
It snowed all night and was still snowing hard at 830 when we caught the first chair up....The amount of true pow days I have had in Vermont....very rare....First few runs were excellent....we made run after run until my legs were beat and the crew wanted to get lunch....I met up with Bob while everyone was eating and we did about 4 runs until he got cold and tired. Then I spent the rest of the afternoon with the crew.
What a trip....The snow was thin as i mentioned and to say I TRASHED my skis is an understatement.....but that was one of my best days of skiing in the east. MRG really is special...everything I love about skiing and 0 of what i dont love. Add in the vibe of being in vermont...and a mountain that reminds you that you are in Vermont....you want a sandwich at the cafe, someone will make it for you, it will be awesome and it will take vermont time until its ready. At no time was I mildly concerned that someone out of control might wipe out my son.....As a single on the double chair lift line...you are expected to find someone to ride with...when skiing in some of the harder areas...you run into someone solo and you help them pick some good lines or offer for them to join you.....its just an experience you would never know skiing at lets say Hunter. When I went to grab my familys ski passes the lady at the counter just gave me the ticket for my son and did not want to see a DNA test to confirm his age. And my tickets we $60 and $50 for saturday/sunday....THATS value for your money.
The terrain is great, not Jay Peak great, but better than smuggs and stowe...Stowe actually never impressed me, like at all. its 2 hours closer than Jay, so theres that part....0 fluff which gives it an A+ rating in my book, I mean christ, I cant even say things like that about my beloved home state of Utah anymore. Have to say, the place blew away my expectations.
So I wanted to make a little write about this trip because quite frankly, it was awesome.....
Mad river glen, ski it if you can....blah blah blah...I have heard this tag line forever...When I was a kid and used to spend every weekend in vermont I would hear people talking about MRG and how hard it was. Our ski club had a house in Manchester, so MRG was far and the few times we went that far, my dad wanted to go to Sugarbush...so we never made it to mad river. After i came back from living in Utah....I mean I still love vermont, but there is very little in Vermont that entertains me like Utah does. After 40 years of skiing, i really just long for bare essentials....Skis, good terrain, minimal crowds, woods, and good snow is a great bonus....What i can do without...
man made snow (its a thing, but its never good, its there)
high speed lifts....not always a bad thing, but in the small mountains of vermont, its a great way to ensure there will be many people on the hill at once
hotels and or villages on/around the mountain...including waterparks or any other disneyland like features...any of this crap at a ski hill...even if its good, its so absurdly overpriced.
grooming
wide trails
overly complicated trail maps with alot of window dressing....this is a great way to tell if the mountain you are at is more fluff than substance.
So back to MRG. My coworker and her husband have been a part of the montclair ski club for many years and the ski club has a house about 500' from the hill....She invited me and my family up for the weekend and I could not tell her yes fast enough. I had never been to mad river, but I have heard enough about it to at least want to check it out.
the map of mad river is what i love...Utah maps used to be more like this...as in....Here are some areas...but really, go where ever you want and ski it.
So we arrive and I notice that the base of the hill doesnt have a giant lodge and a airport sized parking lot.....two pluses right off the bat. The house sleeps about 35 people and we spent the evening hanging out with the other familes getting to know everyone. Our room was small and had 4 bunk beds....perfect, thats just fine.
Next morning we get up and eat breakfast then make our way over to the hill. My plan was to ski with Allison and Bob as long as they lasted then get a tour with the people in the club. It was snowing hard and the entire mountain was in a thick fog, so I really couldnt see much of it. Getting covered in wet snow on every trip up the lift
So on my first trip up the lift I notice moguls everywhere, no grooming, rocks, lines thru the trees.....basically if its ground and has snow on it....go ahead and ski on it. I like this place already.
My wife/son and I did a few runs on the easy stuff, but Allison wasnt feeling well so her and bob went in the lodge for a while....I linked up with the crew and hit the iconic single chair.
I have never been on a single chair...T, J, bars, 2, 3, 4, 6 person lifts, 125 person trams, but never a single chair. You hop on that thing and you can sort of feel the magic of this place.
The group was a little unsure of my ability to ski...I mean there are many levels of skiing much like mountain biking...you can be great at ripping groomers, like you can be great at ripping flow trails....that doesnt mean you know how to ride rocks, or ski more technical stuff. So we hit up the easier fallline trail first.....Soon as we get to the top I see its all moguls, rocks, trees...complete mess....if this was a trail in new jersey, there would be 9 pages of warning for you to read first. Now this is my kind of skiing. The cover is thin right now as VT hasnt gotten a ton of snow so far this year...this meant I hit a shit ton of rocks, but it just adds to the challenge. We linked up a number of great sections into a really enjoyable run.....By the end, the crew knew that they didnt have to worry if i was going to die, so we moved on to the harder stuff.
They were all excited to show me the famous Paradise trail......Which starts out with a really cool traverse thru the trees on top of the mountain. I was informed there was a cliff that you have to jump down....SWEET! I dont get to hear that too often when im taking my son to shawnee. This run is great...steep, narrow, raw, moguls, rocks, ice cliffs and always a tree you have to work around.......This is everything I love about skiing....its hard to find in the east....this is what I would spend all day everyday doing when i lived in Utah. We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring every hidden hole we could....the woods were kind of thin, but we did still spend alot of time in there. By the end of the day I was beat...I havent done this kind of skiing in a while and it beats the snot out of your legs.
Skiied back to the lodge, cleaned up, had a group dinner with everyone and discussed the day. Just brought me back to when i was a kid at our old ski club.....just being around real ski enthusiasts...which if your favorite place is MRG....you kinda have to be.
It snowed all night and was still snowing hard at 830 when we caught the first chair up....The amount of true pow days I have had in Vermont....very rare....First few runs were excellent....we made run after run until my legs were beat and the crew wanted to get lunch....I met up with Bob while everyone was eating and we did about 4 runs until he got cold and tired. Then I spent the rest of the afternoon with the crew.
What a trip....The snow was thin as i mentioned and to say I TRASHED my skis is an understatement.....but that was one of my best days of skiing in the east. MRG really is special...everything I love about skiing and 0 of what i dont love. Add in the vibe of being in vermont...and a mountain that reminds you that you are in Vermont....you want a sandwich at the cafe, someone will make it for you, it will be awesome and it will take vermont time until its ready. At no time was I mildly concerned that someone out of control might wipe out my son.....As a single on the double chair lift line...you are expected to find someone to ride with...when skiing in some of the harder areas...you run into someone solo and you help them pick some good lines or offer for them to join you.....its just an experience you would never know skiing at lets say Hunter. When I went to grab my familys ski passes the lady at the counter just gave me the ticket for my son and did not want to see a DNA test to confirm his age. And my tickets we $60 and $50 for saturday/sunday....THATS value for your money.
The terrain is great, not Jay Peak great, but better than smuggs and stowe...Stowe actually never impressed me, like at all. its 2 hours closer than Jay, so theres that part....0 fluff which gives it an A+ rating in my book, I mean christ, I cant even say things like that about my beloved home state of Utah anymore. Have to say, the place blew away my expectations.
So I came back here to do a little mustang update.....and I realized that I never got around to recapping my trip to Sedona/Utah or Rays a couple weeks after......Its a little late for that now..But given the current times...I was think about how lucky I was that I managed to get 3 vacations in before this whole mess started.
Its been 6 weeks now since I was last in my office....really its not that bad....The days my wife is working and its just me and bob...If my work is busy, it gets rough. But overall, I figured I have saved about 30 hours of commuting time in the past 6 weeks....1 tank of gas in my in car....been averaging over 10hrs a week on my bike...Really, hasnt been too bad for me personally. I mean outside of my teaching my sons kindergarten...this is absolute fucking bullshit on a stick.
Now that I have 3 full suspension bikes I have been keeping myself entertained cycling thru them. I think I finally have the perfect mix of mountain bikes...100mm XC bike for going fast, 120mm all mountain bike that is good at everything, 150mm 27.5 for bombing downhills and is still pretty good at everything else. Usually this time of year I would be road bike 3 times a week, mtb 2...getting ready to start racing....Feels so strange after 11 years of this routine.....If racing started tomorrow, id say I would be ok...I havent been doing any race efforts, but a good 3 week block of training and I think I would be in form. I think i have done 6-7 weeks in a row of 10hrs or more...which I dont think I have ever done. Lucky for me...the two closest parks to my house havent closed, so no illegal riding required.
On the mustang front....I last left off when i started to put the dash back together...since then..
I got the steering wheel sorted out and the steering column wired...
I kinda forgot about the firewall insulation...so I had to back track a little to get this piece in...but it wasnt too hard...I mean anything under the dash is a pain in the ass
Then I put the heater box back together and got it installed
After this I took a bit of a break for a couple of months...sometimes I just need to walk away...Im not slapping this car together, so every part needs to be planned, thought out and if im not in the mood, I just walk away and come back later.
Anyway, so when I picked back up I started sorting out every loose wire under the dash and where is goes...this car has so little wiring and still pages of wiring diagrams...i cant imagine a new car.
Hooked up the windshield washer pump.....my 64 galaxie had a modern style electric pump that worked pretty much the same way as your modern car does....my 67 mustang has a pump you have to pump with your foot tho...but it has a relay so that when you pump it...it triggers the wipers...point being, I have no idea the thought process behind this system.
I also started getting the rest of the interior parts sorted out.
They make repo versions of these vent panels...but they are about $350....I took a crack and restoring the originals...I think they came out ok
These are the side panels that go next to the rear seats....My dad painted them in the 70s and the paint is pealing off...They also make repros of these, but they are also $350 and from what I have read, they are total crap. So I took these apart, sanded them down and gave them to the guy who painted the car....I was going to paint them, but he will do a much better job. I have some new lights and speakers for this, just waiting to get them back
I got the dashpad, instrument cluster and dash trim installed....This was a huge ass pain that took me probably 8 hours of tweaking, shimming, adjusting to get everything to line up nicely.
I made a little video...now everything works when I turn the key on
I took a break from inside the car and did the bumper and the letters on the trunk....waiting for decklid trim piece to come in.
Im converting the car to 3 point seat belts, so i started on that the other day....cutting a hole in my new headliner was pretty nerve racking
Then I started on the carpet...and wow is this a pain in the ass. the carpet I bought has this really thick plastic backing and is super rigid...so this has been alot of work...im about 30% done now...my new console came in....been test fitting it
So progress has been good....Mechanically...I need to figure out the parking brake set up and put the exhaust on it and it should be ready to drive.
The windshield is on order and when it comes in, I have someone who is going to install that and the rear glass.
Then ill put the fenders and hood on....at that point, id say I can take it out for a road test.
Its been 6 weeks now since I was last in my office....really its not that bad....The days my wife is working and its just me and bob...If my work is busy, it gets rough. But overall, I figured I have saved about 30 hours of commuting time in the past 6 weeks....1 tank of gas in my in car....been averaging over 10hrs a week on my bike...Really, hasnt been too bad for me personally. I mean outside of my teaching my sons kindergarten...this is absolute fucking bullshit on a stick.
Now that I have 3 full suspension bikes I have been keeping myself entertained cycling thru them. I think I finally have the perfect mix of mountain bikes...100mm XC bike for going fast, 120mm all mountain bike that is good at everything, 150mm 27.5 for bombing downhills and is still pretty good at everything else. Usually this time of year I would be road bike 3 times a week, mtb 2...getting ready to start racing....Feels so strange after 11 years of this routine.....If racing started tomorrow, id say I would be ok...I havent been doing any race efforts, but a good 3 week block of training and I think I would be in form. I think i have done 6-7 weeks in a row of 10hrs or more...which I dont think I have ever done. Lucky for me...the two closest parks to my house havent closed, so no illegal riding required.
On the mustang front....I last left off when i started to put the dash back together...since then..
I got the steering wheel sorted out and the steering column wired...
I kinda forgot about the firewall insulation...so I had to back track a little to get this piece in...but it wasnt too hard...I mean anything under the dash is a pain in the ass
Then I put the heater box back together and got it installed
After this I took a bit of a break for a couple of months...sometimes I just need to walk away...Im not slapping this car together, so every part needs to be planned, thought out and if im not in the mood, I just walk away and come back later.
Anyway, so when I picked back up I started sorting out every loose wire under the dash and where is goes...this car has so little wiring and still pages of wiring diagrams...i cant imagine a new car.
Hooked up the windshield washer pump.....my 64 galaxie had a modern style electric pump that worked pretty much the same way as your modern car does....my 67 mustang has a pump you have to pump with your foot tho...but it has a relay so that when you pump it...it triggers the wipers...point being, I have no idea the thought process behind this system.
I also started getting the rest of the interior parts sorted out.
They make repo versions of these vent panels...but they are about $350....I took a crack and restoring the originals...I think they came out ok
These are the side panels that go next to the rear seats....My dad painted them in the 70s and the paint is pealing off...They also make repros of these, but they are also $350 and from what I have read, they are total crap. So I took these apart, sanded them down and gave them to the guy who painted the car....I was going to paint them, but he will do a much better job. I have some new lights and speakers for this, just waiting to get them back
I got the dashpad, instrument cluster and dash trim installed....This was a huge ass pain that took me probably 8 hours of tweaking, shimming, adjusting to get everything to line up nicely.
I made a little video...now everything works when I turn the key on
I took a break from inside the car and did the bumper and the letters on the trunk....waiting for decklid trim piece to come in.
Im converting the car to 3 point seat belts, so i started on that the other day....cutting a hole in my new headliner was pretty nerve racking
Then I started on the carpet...and wow is this a pain in the ass. the carpet I bought has this really thick plastic backing and is super rigid...so this has been alot of work...im about 30% done now...my new console came in....been test fitting it
So progress has been good....Mechanically...I need to figure out the parking brake set up and put the exhaust on it and it should be ready to drive.
The windshield is on order and when it comes in, I have someone who is going to install that and the rear glass.
Then ill put the fenders and hood on....at that point, id say I can take it out for a road test.
