RobiNZ Personal Blog

4th Anniversary!

It’s blog’iversary time again. 4 years since that first tentative post. To everyone, everywhere, thanks for visiting and subscribing!

Tax Benefits

This month I looked at my pay-slip which stated exactly how much tax had been deducted over the (full tax) year and thought, that’s a lot.

Yesterday, a fairly routine visit to the GP ended up with my Mum being admitted to hospital. Within a hour she was there, through the afternoon a bunch of brilliant Nurses and Doctors did their thing, tests, cardio, x-ray, etc and an overnight stay, just to be sure.

Nobody asked “who is your insurance provider, what is your health plan, do you have credit?” or a worry about cost.

Tax Benefits

My Easter Monday Ride

This 100km loop has a bit of everything:

• A climb up the Waitakere Ranges to Titirangi
• Manukau Harbour coast
• Stop for a drink and watch a few aircraft at Auckland International
• Up Great South Rd to Mt Wellington
• Over Mt Wellington to Kohimarama
• Around the waterfront, Viaduct and West Haven
• Over the North Western Motorway on the cycle path to Henderson & home

Auckland is so thin you actually ride “coast to coast” twice!

Robin, the Rail Trail and NZ Today

For years I’ve subscribed to all three magazines published by Straight 8 Publishing:

• Driver Magazine - The latest and greatest from the new car world
• NZ Today - Travel, social comment and much, much more
• Classic Driver - An in depth look at our motoring heritage

NZ Today issues tend to focus on an area. It began when Allan Dick, Publisher/Editor, wanted to write and photograph topics beyond Drivers automotive scope. Often they’ll be related: Driver may feature a road test drive in an area while NZ Today will have the local history, characters and stories discovered on the trip.

Last week I got NZ Today Issue #25 which includes features on Central Otago and Manawatu. It was a little strange to get a new magazine, only to find I’d already read part of it. That’s because they published a short piece I wrote about cycling the Otago Rail Trail. Thanks Allan!

Kiwi Readers should find it in their magazine stores for the next couple of months, or direct from Straight 8 here

www.drivermagazine.co.nz

Follow the TransAmerica Trail 2008

I’m off for a holiday jaunt to Vietnam, including a few hundred km’s cycling, but imagine contemplating this trip by bicycle! I’ve added the feed to my reader to watch progress!

TransAmerica Trail 2008 - www.transamericatrailcycle.com
I am a 29 year old from London and the plan is to set off in mid April to cycle the 4247.5 mile TransAmerica bike route from Virginia to Oregon, getting back to England in time for my 30th birthday in the middle of June.

One smug cat to test Flikr Notes

Birman
Originally uploaded by RobiNZ

I wondered if Flickr Notes transfer to the blog. Cloe helped me test this.

Fiat 500 2008 for sale in New Zealand already? (on TradeMe)

With the new Fiat 500 still weeks away in New Zealand someone has put theirs on TradeMe.co.nz. On Monday I passed by Ateco (Fiat NZ), while on a cycle ride, to see if they had a 500. It was a public holiday so they were closed but there was no sign of the 500 in the showroom. The reality that you can get a 5 door 1.4 T-JET Bravo for about the same money ($36,990 list) or a 1.9 Grande Punto Sport for less ($33,990 list) makes me wonder about the “relative value” of the 500. Less is more, or style costs?

Fiat 500 2008 for sale - TradeMe.co.nz - New Zealand
Well the first ones are nearly here so i am offering mine for sale as there are no new ones available for a few months...

Malaysia shows need for Formula 1 Qualifying Session 3 110% rule?

Surely after the events in Malaysia the FIA need to impose a 110% rule, run at best pace +10% max, for Qualifying Session 3 to prevent the “fuel save touring”. Either that or allow top-up of the cars to “race fuel” after Q3 so there is no benefit in saving fuel.

Although McLaren were pinged for being the worst offenders it’s plain stupid to allow anyone to trickle around at slow speed to save fuel with cars still doing qualifying runs.

Remember how Gilles Villeneuve died…

Farewell Arthur

I’ve posted regarding Arthur C. Clarke’s death on my CAD Blog. From childhood much of my interest in science, reading, writing and even religion was formed by reading his work. Working with Stanley Kubrick, he made my favourite movie. Thanks Arthur!

RobiNZ CAD Blog: 2001: A Computer Graphics Discovery, and farewell Arthur

The BBC gets Formula 1 rights back, what does this mean for New Zealand?

It will impact us as we get the current ITV feed, via Sky TV (NZ not UK).

I hope it’s a change for the better but that won’t be hard if the Melbourne coverage is any guide. We had no commentary, nothing but ambient sound, for about 1/3 of the Qualifying. In the qualifying and races there are often audio gaps, when ITV go to adverts, and we don’t see, but get the audio for, many of the ITV replays. There is also little or no race build-up and the transfer from NZ to ITV is like amateur hour – often silent film, or just ambient sound before the tired old F1 logo and music sequence runs.

Bernie might set high standards, and like pressuring hosts like Melbourne to improve their standards, but our view of Formula 1 – only possible via a paid satellite feed – is pretty crappy.

Formula One - Times Online - WBLG: The BBC gets the rights back
Big change for Formula One in Britain as it emerges that the BBC has won back the television rights from ITV from next year(and for the next five years) to go along with its coverage on radio and the Internet.

Ari's Climb Dance

Car had an article on Ari Vatanen, Rally Driver turned EU Rep, and mentioned “Climb Dance”. Watch him controlling 800bhp-plus on the Pikes Peak hillclimb. Forget “Dancing with the Stars”, this is poetry in motion.

A good Friday post...

For Graham, my atheist boss, who gave me some long weekend reading: Letter to a Christian Nation

Fiat buys former Chrysler (before that Daimler Chrysler/BMW) powertrain plant

Fiat add to their South American capacity. Not really surprising when Brazil is their second largest market!

Fiat buys Chrysler powertrain plant in Brazil - AutoWeek Magazine
Chrysler LLC said on Wednesday that it sold its Brazil-based engine plant, Tritec Motors Ltda., to Fiat Powertrain Technologies.

Fiat wows them, and floors them, in London

Fiat arrive in London with a flagship store, and people fall over at the sight of a 500!

Fiat's new flagship store in London had a reason to party - AutoblogGreen
Fiat, maker of the cutesiest bit of neo-retro ever (the 500, pictured above) threw a party to mark the opening of their new flagship store in London's West End

Fiat 500 1.3 MJ Lounge - Top Gear
Ouch. I'm driving through central London in the evening rush hour, and a man in a smart suit has just tripped over a kerb and landed on his face. That's what happens if you stare at the Fiat 500 instead of looking where you're going, sir.

Where I'd like to be this weekend

Australian Grand Prix 2003
Originally uploaded by RobiNZ

It's Formula One time again, which is fan-bloody-tastic.
But I'm not there, which is not.

Vietnam Cycle Tour 2008 with Adventure South

Since 2003, about this time of year, I’ve headed south to join a cycle tour with Adventure South. This meant meeting up with a group of cyclists, most not Kiwis, for a leisurely ride between sumptuous meals . Since 2005 they’ve been “Returning Clients Trips” which meant meeting some friends from previous trips or other returning clients for the first time. Last year we got to the end of the Otago Rail Trail After and realised we’d basically run out of South Island!

That’s why from mid-April onwards I’ll be on a bike, plane, junk or boat somewhere between these places in Vietnam! It’s another Adventure South Returning Clients Trip with people coming from Australia, America, Japan & New Zealand. The plan follows, details in the extended post.

Mekong Delta Bicycle Tour & Northern Excursion 2008

Disappointing, not worthy of the badge - 2009 Volkswagen Scirocco

Looking at the new VW Scirocco, it’s disappointing to the point where I don’t think it deserves the Scirocco monicker. Giugiaro’s original took the boxy Golf into the realm of sporty, but crucially retained it’s character. The new one looks like the result of putting a Honda Civic, Nissan 200SX, maybe even a bit of Alfa, and a Golf in a blender and letting the resulting mixture set.

2009 Volkswagen Scirocco: Official Details & High Res Images - carscoop.blogspot.com
Today, Volkswagen officially took the wraps off its all-new Scirocco that will make its public premiere at the Geneva Motor Show with sales starting in Europe this summer. More of a sporty hatch than a true coupe, the Scirocco shares its underpinnings with the Golf….

Alfa Romeo Mito, no it's Mi.To, why not Alfasud?

 It’s the Mito, no it’s actually the Mi.To!, supposedly from Milano + Torino, but I reckon this little Alfa should have revived the Alfasud name. It’s not from the South but it’s the name I associate with little Alfa hatches and surely we are past the “I can hear it rusting” jokes of the late ‘70’s.

Alfa Romeo Mito: ci siamo quasi ? - AutoBlog.it

Oh Canada - Singing the praises of New Zealand

If you believe some Kiwis, and Kiwi Politicians, there is little to like about New Zealand. Thankfully it ain't true and it’s refreshing to hear someone say it, all the way from Canada!

Singing the praises of New Zealand - NZ Herald

“Canadian entrepreneurs are hearing all about how New Zealand does things better than most.

And the man hailing kiwi successes to the North American audience is a Canadian-born management consultant who spent several years in New Zealand. Ed Bernacki liked a lot of what he saw here, and he's bringing the message to fledgling Canadian entrepreneurs..”

“New Zealand's edge over Canada is easy to explain, Bernacki told the Ottawa Citizen.
"They've simply out-thought us."