“Do what you can.
With what you have.
Where you are…”
Getting The Picture
Paying Attention: Stunned by the big prices being paid at auction for fine art? A Picasso [ “Les Femmes d’Alger (Version ‘O’)] was sold this year for $179.5 million . At the same auction, a sculpture by Giacommetti went for $141.3 million (with fees). The fine art world is quickly becoming a very wealthy neighborhood. But there is an alternative and it’s a very attractive one: photography. For decades, photography has slowly been rising in status as a desirable form of art to collect. Now, the trend is accelerating and there are more good pieces of photography on the market by more good photographers than ever before. And, most importantly for the theme of this post, photography is (relatively) affordable. But don’t take my word for it. here’s Bloomberg on why Photography is the is the segment of the art market you should be in.
The Fine Print: Photo illustration from Crafty Dogma, via FLICKR, uploaded on 6 September 2011. Used under Creative Commons License. Thank you for sharing.
The (Secret) History of Back To The Future
Paying Attention: In the midst of all the hoopla about what Back To The Future has been to the American Culture (spurred on, no doubt, by the October 21, 2015 future date seen in the film series second part) we might have forgotten what Back to the Future might have been, if another actor, Eric Stoltz, had remained in his role as Marty McFly. New York Magazine nailed the backstory of how the movie franchise removed Stoltz and replaced him with Michael J. Fox. Maybe you knew about the big replacement(the film was in production and a lot of footage had to be reshot); maybe you didn’t. But in any case, it’s a terrific read. And the moral of the story is…….method actors don’t do comedy particularly well. The second moral: Michael J. Fox was the right guy.
The Fine Print: Photo of mural on a brick wall by Gary Knight, via Flickr, taken by Gary on 16 June 2012. Used under Creative Commons license. The photo has not been altered. Thanks, Gary, for Sharing.
Churchill on tough times
“If you’re going through hell….keep going'”
Everything Old is New Again
Paying Attention: From Bloomberg.com, a great, short video on Rod Embry and his company, which turns about 6 to 8 restored and upgraded Porsche 356s a year. Are they restored precisely to be the way they were when they left the factory? Not. Rod doesn’t do that. He makes a modern 356, updated for the times we live in. A very good, short piece on the care and craftsmanship that goes into making a special car even more special. Thanks to Bloomberg for making this available.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy YouTube. Video from Bloomberg.com, 2015. All rights belong to their respective rights holder. Thanks for sharing.
World Endurance Championship, 20 Sept 2014
Season's Greetings: A Bill Murray Christmas Special Is Coming
Paying Attention: Netflix changes the expectations, again, with a new Christmas special starring Bill Murray. One more reason to like the Holidays (and Bill Murray).
Rear View Mirror: The 2015 Risi Competizione Season
The season starts at Daytona. The No. 62 roars into the night at the 24 Hours of Daytona. Photo (C) Regis Lefebure.
January
The year for Risi Competizione starts with the 24 Hours of Daytona. The long-distance endurance race came back on the competitive calendar when ALMS/IMSA were taken over by NASCAR. It’s a long race that comes at the very beginning of the racing season, although there is a “Roar before the 24” testing session before the big race. This year, the testing session was on January 9th-11th and the race itself was on January 23-25. Risi brought the by-now-familiar Ferrari F458Italia, No. 62, in Rosso Corsa, and four drivers to handle the 24 hour race time span: Pierre Kaffer, Giancarlo Fisichella (the regular Risi Comp drivers for 2015), Olivier Beretta (a Risi Comp regular from seasons past) and Italian Davide Rigon. Kaffer did the qualifying work and took Q6. The team started sensibly and well, and by 11:00PM—approximate halfway point—they were actually leading, but then an electrical connection issue arose, the car was taken behind the wall, and the decision was made to keep it there, ending the race for the team.
Working it at the 12 Hours of Sebring. Against all odds (and a bunch of factory team cars), Risi Comp finished 2nd. Photo (C) Regis Lefebure.
March
If it’s March and you’re racing sports cars in America, it’s the 12 Hours of Sebring (19-21 March). Risi Comp was back at The 12 in 2015, where they have won 3x times in a decade. This time, the driving team of Kaffer and Fisichella had a new (but familiar) face to take some stints: Andrea Bertolini. You may remember Bertolini from his previous time with Risi Comp, which was back in 2005 when Risi Comp was campaigning the Maserati MC12 for Maserati Reparto Corse (the Maserati factory racing team) in ALMS. Bertolini knows his way around a race track: he was FIA World Champion in a Maserati MC12 in 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2010. Fisichella put the car on the grid in Q5 and after the 12 Hours were finished, the No. 62 Ferrari took it’s first podium of the season, finishing 2nd, despite long odds fighting the factory Porsches, Corvettes, and BMWs and nursing an engine that had some temperature issues through the last stages of the race. The team also won the first of many DEKRA awards for flawless pitstops and performance efficiency.
April
The series’ annual trip to Los Angeles for the Tequila Patron Sportscar Showcase at Long Beach (the Long Beach GP for short, or, for even shorter, “Long Beach”) was held the third weekend in April, from the 17th to the 18th. The race, like the time period, is compressed. Not a lot of practice time. Not a lot of space in the pits. Not even a very long race (one hour and 40 minutes). The course at Long Beach is 1.968 miles long and, as with all street courses, packed with right hand turns, a couple of nice straights, pavement that is uneven and unpredictable (at best). Fisi and Kaffer were behind the wheel as the team settles into the start of the “regular” season run. Fisichella put the Ferrari into 3rd on the grid and when the final checker dropped, the team took it’s second 2nd of the year, finishing only 2.9 seconds behind the winning BMW factory team. As an added bonus, Risi Competizioen took home their second DEKRA award for clean, fast, and efficient pit stop performance. The performance of the team in pit stops will become one of the highlights through the season.
Risi Comp’s F458 Italia goes down, down, down through the signature turn at Laguna Seca–The Corkscrew.
May
May means Laguna Seca (officially, Mazda Raceway) and the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix Powered by Mazda. Stick with Laguna Seca and everyone will know what you’re talking about, but…nomenclature aside, this is always one of the best stops on the circuit because the track is challenging and beautiful and it’s located in one of the very best places in America to race (or play golf when you’re not on the track). For 2015’s race at Laguna, the team had new and high hopes as the latest ACO-Homologated Aero Package for the F458 Ferrari had just been approved. Drivers were again Giancarlo Fisichella and Pierre Kaffer. Kaffer handled qualifying and put the car into 3rd on the grid. After the race had run its’ full (and normal) time of two hours and forty minutes, the team finished fourth. It did, however, pick up yet another DEKRA award (that’s three in a row). Racing would now be put on hold for the annual June “Le Mans Break” to accommodate those teams making the trip to France for the 24 Hour Classic.
In front of the pack at Watkins Glen, in one of the rare moments that ran was not coming down. Photo (C) Regis Lefebure.
June
From a classic West Coast race track to a classic East Coast race track, the team spans the nation to participate in the IMSA/TUDOR series. This month, the action is at Watkins Glen, former home of the U.S. Grand Prix for so many years, for Sahleen’s Six Hours Of The Glen, June 26th-28th. Drought may be a problem in California but was not in upstate New York, where Watkins Glen is located. There was so much rain that qualifying was cancelled, with the cars placed on the grid according to their position in the overall standings. Rain plagued the entire race and Fisichella and Kaffer finished 5th. The good news was that the team did not suffer any damage (other than a good soaking) during the very treacherous and long race.
July
After Watkins Glen, the next stop would be another storied track, this one in Canada: Mosport. (Officially Canadian Tire Motorsport Park) . The race was the Mobil 1 Sportscar Grand Prix sponsored by Hawk Performance and it was held on the 10th-12th of July . Race time was back to the norm for the series, two hours and forty minutes. Back to drive for Risi Comp were Fisichella and Kaffer. The car was qualified in fourth and ran as high as 2nd on the high-speed/high-downforce track, but finished the race in 6th position. With four races left on the schedule for 2015, the team headed home and started prep for Road America.
Road America: a classic American race track . Pit stop speed once again made a difference in the race. Photo (C) Regis Lefebure.
August
August had two IMSA/TUDOR GTLM races scheduled. First up: Road America at Elkart Lake, Wisconsin, for the Continental Tire Road Race Showcase, on the weekend of August 7th-9th. This is a very high speed track that that has worked, in the past, to Risi Comp’s advantage. This year, Fisichella qualified the car in 3rd and he and teammate Kaffer brought the No. 62 Ferrari to the checkered flag in 3rd , picking up another podium. Once again, the team posted the fastest pit stops in their class. All year, the Risi Comp team has put up fast pit stops to help the drivers and, once again, they were rewarded with another podium. The team picked up it’s Fourth DEKRA award of the season at Road America.
After Road America, the team went south and east to Virginia International Raceway (Danville, Virginia) for the Oak Tree Grand Prix race on August 21st-23rd. Last year, the team won at VIR. This year, it was a little different. Kaffer qualified the car into 3rd position on the grid and he and Fisichella brought it home in 3rd, for another podium finish. Along the way, Kaffer collected the fastest lap (1.42.457) . Next up: home to race COTA in Austin, Texas.
September
Circuit of The Americas (COTA) could be considered Risi Competizione’s home track. Team Managing Director Giuseppe Risi owns the Ferrari of Houston dealership and the Ferrari of Austin dealership, and the team was looking forward to a short trip to Austin and the chance to race in front of the home crowd. COTA is a high downforce track—it was designed with Formula 1 cars first and foremost in mind—and, throughout 2015, high downforce has not be a performance advantage for the Ferrari F458. With the factory teams (Corvette, Porsche, BMW) in full force, Risi Comp qualified in 8th position, but took 2nd in the race, due to superb pit stop work (again). It was a somewhat unexpected result and one that was richly deserved. Now, to the season finale.
The rains of Petit Le Mans. Frequent. Heavy. Dangerous. Threatening. Photo (C) Regis Lefebure.
October
Petit Le Mans was the season ender for the IMSA/TUDOR series, a 10 hour/1000 mile endurance race held October 1-3 at Road Atlanta (Braselton, Georgia) in which the team has traditionally scored well. In fact, Risi Competizione won the very first Petit Le Mans in a Ferrari 333SP in 1998. This year, however, the familiar track was to take on unfamiliar overtones, as a huge rain storm, a byproduct of Hurricane Joaquin, blanketed the entire southeastern United States. The team qualified in 3rd position but finished in 5th position, in a race so hampered by rain and flooding (and accidents and offs) that it was shorted to five hours and 20 minutes.
And with the end of Petit Le Mans, that was the end of the 2015 Risi Competizione IMSA/TUDOR Season (and the final campaign for the Risi Competizione No. 62 Ferrari F458 Italia…Next year, the 488GTB will be the weapon of choice). The tally: three seconds, two thirds, four Dekra awards.
Season’s Greetings: A Bill Murray Christmas Special Is Coming
Paying Attention: Netflix changes the expectations, again, with a new Christmas special starring Bill Murray. One more reason to like the Holidays (and Bill Murray).
True Danger: The Rolling Stones In Transition
The Hunt For New Music: It’s hard to remember a time when The Rolling Stones were not on our playlists. They broke through in the mid 1960s, the anti-Beatles, slightly dangerous, a band against the man, the revolution with some blues-oriented chops, and then they really dug their heels into the culture: scandal, arrests, tax flight, banishment, diplomatic PNG status, drug charges, high profile marriages, affairs, and divorces and became really, truly, culturally dangerous, the band your family warned you about, the band that was without “Satisfaction”, the band that put “Street Fighting Man” and “Sympathy for the Devil” on the charts. With one exception (we shall not mention it here), they stayed true to what they did best: blues-based rock & roll. And they also stayed true to being The Rolling Stones, which meant no messy breakups of the type that plagued so many great British (and American )bands, constant touring and a consistent production of albums. Through it all, Mick and Keith never lost sight of the fact the Rolling Stones are a very, very, very, profitable international business and you can still be yourself–away from the band–but you damn sure better show up for rehearsals and bring it when the band’s on stage. They’ve survived mysterious deaths (Brian Jones), retirements(Bill Wyman), replacements (Mick Taylor, Ian Stewart) but the show goes on–on time, with power and passion. It’s Mick and Keith and the man Keith credits as being the glue who holds it all together–Drummer Charlie Watts–and Guitarist Ronnie Wood, who came over from Faces to join the Stones, who’ve always been the band he was most perfectly suited to play with.
It all started in the last century, and in the documentary film The Second Wave presented here, for your education and enjoyment, the development of the Rolling Stones from a British band into an international legend is examined–complete with interviews, rare concert footage, and behind the scenes coverage that shows the difficult, thrilling, agonizing intoxicating development of the world’s best rock & roll band. This is powerful, very well done, insightful, and compelling. As with all music documentaries, shows, and videos, bump it to the flat screen and run it through the stereo. And play it loud.
The Fine Print: Embed courtesy of YouTube (thank you) posted by Treble Clef (thank you for sharing). All rights belong to their respective artists. This installment of the Weekend Concert Series dedicated to the biggest Stones fan I know, Dr. Robert O “Bullet Bob” McAlister (PhD, Rice University…) who is intensely sharp on any subject you would like to discuss, but, please note, you’d best be prepared to take it down to the molecular level if you take it up with the Bullet, because that’s where he rolls….