A few weeks ago we posted Audi’s “Friendly Competition” ad spot where they made fun of BMW by pointing out they always fall short when compared to Audi’s vehicles. Today we have BMW’s response. You can judge for yourself if this was a great response, but in our opinion we think Audi wins this round.

“Canada will not own the podium” - Chris Rudge, the chief executive of the Canadian Olympic Committee (February 22, 2010)

In the wake of disappointing results by Canadian athletes, Chris Rudge declared that Canada would not meet its goal of taking home the most medals. However, as the COC declared defeat, Canadian athletes stepped up their game and began capturing medals (mostly gold). Almost as if to spite the COC, Canada began its climb towards the top of the medal standings. We may not have been able to own the podium based on the original goal, but in the end we really did end up owning the podium.

Sidney Crosby celebrates after scoring in OT to win gold

The Canadian Men’s hockey gold over USA was the giant exclamation point on Canada’s record 14 gold medal haul and 26 total medals which put us in third place on the overall medal standings. The 14 gold medals won by Canada sets a new Winter Olympics record (Previously 13, Norway 2002) and is also a new record for most gold medals won by the host country.

As we celebrate Canada’s strong finish at the 2010 Winter Olympics, we must also not forget that the Vancouver games began on a very sad note. The death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili on a training run during the opening day will remain in the hearts of everyone. John Furlong, head of the Vancouver organizing committee expressed his hope that Kumaritashvili’s death will never be forgotten and instead be an inspiration to youths everywhere to be champions in life.

We may not be as loud and boisterous as our neighbors to the south, but we are just as patriotic. For the past 17 days, visitors from around the world got a taste of our patriotism and as they return home they will forever be reminded that Canada is not a giant slab of frozen tundra, that Canadians don’t live in igloos, or travel by dog sleds. They will never forget our hospitality, Tim Horton’s and of course they will never forget that Team Canada won gold in overtime when Sid the Kid scored. Hopefully, after the sting wears off they will return to visit Canada again.

Now you know us, eh?

Mirror, signal, shoulder check, change is the chant that we all know to follow for a successful lane change. We also use our rearview mirrors to give us a better view than our eyes alone when we are backing up. Is this all that mirrors are used for and are these the only times that we use them?

Most of us do not give the rear view mirrors the attention that they deserve. A defensive driver will scan ahead to see what they are approaching, to the sides to see what is around them, to the rear to see what is behind and finally check the instrument panel to monitor their speed and vehicle condition. This cycle repeats every five to eight seconds, so their mirrors do get a regular workout.

The rearview mirror must be consulted before you put your foot on the brake. This may be the only way to decide if you will be hit from the rear if you slow or stop. Being aware of vehicles following you too closely or overtaking you too quickly may make you change your mind about braking or show you that you need to take evasive action.

One last thought concerns moving back into the lane after passing an overtaken vehicle. You should not do this until you can see all of the vehicle you have passed in your rear view mirror. Failing to do this will put the overtaken driver in the position of unintentionally tailgating you.

Reference Links

It appears that Audi is resuming its marketing war against BMW. If you recall, during the first round the two automakers took jabs at each other in magazine ads which progressed to the large “checkmate” billboard ads. Now, Audi restarts the war with its latest punch. I can’t wait to see how BMW responds.

Without doubt, the laws that drivers fail to follow the most often must regard the speed limit. Everyone has a justification for doing so. They range from being in a hurry, which is selfish, to the limit is set too low which is either a reasonable observation or a result of failing to take all factors into consideration.

In the past, speeds were set according to engineering design standards. This was often varied by the 85th percentile rule. The logic behind this was that the limit was most likely to be followed if it was set at what the majority of drivers chose.

More recently, collision data was introduced to the equation. A higher incidence of collisions called for a reduction in the speed limit. This will likely be supplanted by tending toward speeds that will mean road users will survive and injury will be minimized if a collision does occur.

What does the future hold? Perhaps we will factor in the production of greenhouse gases. Fuel consumption rises rapidly with speed and this is directly related to what comes out of the tailpipe.

Obviously, setting a credible speed limit that drivers will accept and follow is a difficult task. However, if it is accomplished there will be a high degree of voluntary compliance and perhaps a safer driving environment.

Reference Links

Have you ever given any thought to how far you can see at night as you are driving along down the highway? High beam headlights seem to overpower the dark, but there are a lot of situations where we are limited to using just the low beams. I was required to calculate the safe speed using only low beam headlights at a seminar and I was surprised at the result.

Most drivers can see a dark object at night with low beam headlamps at a distance of 24 to 25 metres. The average perception/reaction time is about a second and a half. Using these facts, the result is a speed of 38 kilometres per hour. If you travel any faster, or don’t pay full attention, you will collide with the object before stopping.

Dark objects such as pedestrians and deer are commonly found on the roads we travel at night. Granted, there is other light to see by in town, but out of town approaching and passing other vehicles we are hurtling along at 80 and 90 or more, and using only the low beams. This seems to be a compelling reason to be a little more careful with our speed at night to me.

Now consider what could happen if one of your headlights were not working, or that both were so coated with dirt from winter driving that the full light output was not available. Complaints about vehicles with only one headlight are common and one only has to observe and count to see that this is true. For your own safety it is well worth the time and money to keep your headlights clean and in proper working order.

Reference Links

Photo: Heang Uy (flickr: heanguy)

If you are a habitual jaywalker, this morning may not be a good day to do it. Calgary Police and Calgary Transit officers will be out in full force starting at 6:30am targetting pedestrians who jaywalk. The goal of the blitz is to increase awareness of the dangers that jaywalking poses.

Police departments from all across Canada have been focusing on pedestrian safety after a rash of pedestrian deaths in Toronto and one just last month in Calgary. In all of these cases, the pedestrians were crossing the street at an unsafe spot.

“It’s a concern to us and that’s why we’ve decided to take this initiative,” he said, adding the idea that drivers are always to blame in pedestrian-vehicle crashes is simply untrue.

“Anybody who uses the road has a responsibility to make sure they’re using the road properly, safely and lawfully.” - Const. Peter Adria, Calgary Police Service

The safety blitz is expected to run through to the end of the morning rush hour and if the past is any indication, the City of Calgary will be getting a nice injection of revenue after this is all said and done. Last summer during a crackdown on pedestrians on 8th street and 7th avenue, officers were kept busy issuing warnings and tickets.

Last year, one of our sponsors offered up Valentine’s Day special for our forum members. I know there were many happy customers who took advantage of the great deal and this year Beyond Roses (no relation to us) is back again with the same deal.

For $60, you get 12 long stem, premium, red Colombian roses elegantly designed and hand wrapped complete with greens and baby’s breath (gypsophila) for $59.99 + GST INCLUDING DELIVERY! Other colors are available for only $50.

From the vendor:

This is not your typical, out of the bucket, mass produced dozen roses. What we are offering is an elegant, ‘boutique style’ arranged bouquet. Our product is not just quickly bunched together and thrown in a sleeve. Our intent is to impress not only your special girl on Valentine’s Day but to earn a repeat customer for future promotions.

We would like to repeat that this is not your typical ‘grab and go’ low ticket bunch of flowers. An equivalent product will cost significantly more at a retail outlet.

Beyond Roses is a local wholesaler/importer of fresh cut flowers with over 15 years experience in the floral industry. They pride themselves in their commitment to the quality of the products and service.

I know there will be a ton of repeat business from those that ordered roses last year, but for those that have never ordered roses from Beyond Roses you’ll want to take advantage of this offer. They will deliver to any address (including restaurants) at any time that you request.

For more information, pictures and instructions on how to place your order please check out the discussion thread on our forums: Valentine’s Day Roses Delivered in Calgary

Note: This offer is only available in Calgary and Area

McLaren unveiled their 2010 Formula 1 contender this morning at Vodafone UK’s headquarters and heads are starting to turn. The MP4-25, which will be piloted by Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button in the 2010 championship features a very aggressive rear diffuser, shark fin engine covers, side exhausts, and a much longer wheelbase and sleeker shape than the outgoing MP4-24 which struggled against the competition in 2009.

McLaren’s engineering director Paddy Lowe has stated during the launch that the team went with a very aggressive diffuser approach that pushes the limits of the FIA’s interpretation of diffuser legality. “You will see we have produced a fairly extreme incarnation of that but we won’t be alone in that. We believe you will see some pretty extreme solutions on our competitors’ cars as well.”, said Lowe. “This is the first car in which we have had a clean sheet of paper to really exploit the interpretation that was developed last year for a design of floors.”

Recall that last year, the double diffuser concept pioneered by Brawn, Williams and Toyota were under heavy scrutiny during the first few races of 2009, where many teams complained and the FIA had to officially rule their legal status. The extreme diffusers was what led Brawn GP to dominate early season and run away with both drivers and constructors championships.

Ferrari has already voiced their displeasure at the competition’s new diffusers. “We were and still are convinced that the double diffuser concept was illegal. We feel there may still be interpretation over this, as the rules leave the door open to many possibilities. It’s up to the FIA to supervise, but we are rather worried.”, said Ferrari technical director Aldo Costa.

How will the new McLaren stack up against the competition? The team is confident with their radical design, but the same thing could be said last year during launch day, where the team found themselves 2.5s a lap slower than the top cars at the first race. Find out next week when winter testing officially kicks off!

source: Jamesallenonf1 on twitpic

source: Jamesallenonf1 on twitpic

In 2008, Formula One announced that it wouldn’t return to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix. To celebrate the return of the Canadian Grand Prix for 2010, Sebastien Buemi drives an F1 car on the frozen waters located near the circuit Gilles Villeneuve.