That's what passes for extraordinary writing these days? The insight is a commonplace, the language lumpy, if polished up a bit for the higher brows. A few points for the mildly humorous self-deprecation.
I'm almost wishing that sunset seared his corneas shut. It's almost like Garrison Keilor, when he forgets about keeping track of how many Valium and Xanax he's had for the day.
Perhaps he also cherishes the fine values and strong back of the American pastoral, the one his affluent urban existence has rendered so earthy and exotic?
@Van Sarockin, rogue trebuchet: C'mon dude, chill out. At least for a bit. It's just a bit of taking it not too serious. You can even hang out with me at the next exit of your journey, the beer is on me.
p.s: There is a pretty decent bar in Troy just off the exit which serves some great brews. Chill out. Relax. Laugh.
Because how often do we sit for nine hours, chewing beef jerky, watching the sun rise? Listening to techno? Half awake? It never happens anymore, except after late-summer Mallorcan raves, but even then, there's something to watch other than the Brits stumbling home. Without having to make so much as a single lane change, I'd entered the closest thing to a hemhorroidal flare-up that a young man can feel. I had rolled clean into boredom, my mind as numb as the ass below me. Squinting into orange, I thought about those things that we never let ourselves think about - those things that we actively defend ourselves against thinking about by having so much other stuff to look at and listen to. My god, Kansas sucks so much ass.
@PowerTryp is holding a Fiesta party.: Not necessarily...only for a polyp ligation, otherwise most colorectal specialists can handle everything non-invasively.
@Shamoononon: I shave my legs.: Wow...perfect analogy. There are many days where I'd rather drive from KC to Denver than sit at my desk. Most days, in fact.
As I'm part way through driving across the country, as we speak, I really liked texas. Speedlimits high (75, I pushed 80-85 from Wichita Falls to the boarder, the people were nice, the roads of questionable quality, and all of the two-lane, no median type (it adds excitement). None were particular great driving roads, but I'm sure if you look hard enough they're there.
@Schm wishes he could bring back the funny. .: (Edit: Most of the country. Missouri to Arizona) And make that border, not boarder. What can I say, I'm typing this laying in a cheap motel 8 in the dark in Nowhere's ville (Aka Carlsbad, NM) in the dark.
Edited by Schm, enjoying his first desert winter. . at 08/19/09 11:36 PM
Schm, enjoying his first desert winter. . was starred
Schm, enjoying his first desert winter. . was unstarred
I have to stand up and say that any highway prefixed with an I isn't the best road through any state. Surface roads and old US highways only when scenery and experience matter.
@Al Navarro: Man, nice work on all these, that's a huge amount of comments to tackle. I'd say you deserve this for this thread alone: [bmxmuseum.com] (sorry couldn't get the image URL dealie to work me.)
I have to really try and take a long road trip next year to experience these roads. And, I might have a little bias here, but New York State minus Long Island, NYC, and Westchester, has some really good roads away from the interstates.
Best and most diverse senery... Highway's 1,2,3 in Alaska...
Go from Coastal rainforest with bay so the North Pac. to the Alaska Mnt. range to the rolling tundra near Danali Nat park.
Only down falls Retarded Moose and $5.00+ a gallon gas.
Spiral Highway down into Lewiston ID plusthe magnificent Rattlesnake Grade. Two of the best drives (and apparently rides) most people have never heard of (mainly due to their remote location in SE Washington)
Oregon is a great road-state. Ocean, desert, mountain, roads in decent shape (especially compared to Eastern states), majority of the terra sparsely populated. Motorcycle, car, bicycle, you can't really go wrong.
No. 7 is a shot of the Columbia Gorge, btw, from Crown Point. Just FYI....
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Though said in previous comments, this is well-written and non-douchey. Also, polite corrections of content are always welcome and warranted.]
@ChaoZ: [OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: I agree in terms of actual driving enjoyment/scenery. TOTD is more like an autocross in its relentlessness. Vids always welcome. But be careful you don't lapse into "Hey, look how awesome a car I have/driver I am" mode, because that gets tiresome quickly.]
discontinuuity is tentatively testing the waters of Murlopnik Weekend before plunging again into the fridgid waters that are Jalopnik proper was starred
discontinuuity is tentatively testing the waters of Murlopnik Weekend before plunging again into the fridgid waters that are Jalopnik proper was unstarred
*I-80* through Utah!? Really? When there's Highways 12 and 95? I-80 is an INTERSTATE. Maybe a little more scenic than most, but what an awful suggested route through an incredibly beautiful state. I couldn't read any further after that.
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Thanks for not being entirely douchey in your dismissing of Utah's inclusion/write-up. Hopefully you got over yourself and read the other state's blurbs. Thank you and have a nice day.]
@UglyDuckCar: I was wondering if I was the only one to notice...
Now if I could only find a low hour Swoop owned by a little old Bith who only used it once a standard time cycle to worship with the B'omarrs, that said, I'd also take a SoroSuub X-34 if anyone has a good line on one, I do miss having a convertible.
@UglyDuckCar:
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Congratulations, you are the 1,000,000 person to make this joke in one post. Please read/scan/try to read other comments before commenting? I think this is truly the thing that bothers me most (besides d-baggery), the redundant post.]
@Al Navarro:
Congratulations, you sound like a troll. Apparently being the only other person to have mentioned it makes me the one millionth person. And that person I don't think posted his post before me, so that actually makes me the original one. And it was so briefly mentioned at the very end of the post that a quick scan that I normally do didn't pick up on it. Oh boo. You know stuck up commentators is the thing that bothers me the most.
@UglyDuckCar:
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: (I can't even dignify your comment by commenting as my actual screen name.) No, you were the 4th person to mention it. THE FOURTH. Use the "See Older Thread" and "See all threads" settings and you'll be able to count 4, including yourself. Sure, I exaggerated for effect. It's called hyperbole.]
@Al Navarro:
I apologize for being a normal human and assuming that "show all threads" actually means, "show ALL threads." So when I saw what I thought was "all threads" and did not see any commentary on it, I thought it would be nice to point out. My honest mistake. But really, you have to give us your approval on what's ok and not ok to comment? Really? No sense of smug superiority detected there or anything. If you weren't on jalopnik and if I was forced to make an assumption, I'd say you were a prius driver.
@UglyDuckCar: Dude, did you really not notice the OMBUDSMAN tag? Al was asked to help clean up the comments, and is doing so via advice/criticism. As you'll see from his 100 other critiques in the comments for this same article, it's not a personal attack on you. I can understand not seeing the "Older threads" button, it's rather new, but no need to get smarmy.
And as a champion of the Caliber, which I applaud you for, I'm surprised by the condescension toward the Prius and Prius drivers. That little orange pic of his old Caterham Seven should clue you in, too. Every car is sacred, every car is good (bad Monty Python reference.)
@eggwich, galvenized:
Eh, I'm sorry I'm not familiar with the "OMBUDSMAN" tag. Someone care explain this to me? Also the prius driver thing was a reference to our hatred of "smug" prius drivers, not the actual vehicle itself. Not saying all prius drivers are either, but the point was I thought he was being as smug as the ones we generalize.
Tennessee's pretty nice, especially N-S on back roads around Nashville. And just meandering around Crossville. After that, I like most of Virginia, and paradoxically most of Delaware. Oldest state in the union, Delaware. If you don't mind flat and enjoy tourist traps crowding in on your history, Delaware has a lot to offer.
@Elhigh:
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: There's a reason you're a star, boss. Well done. Non-stars, this here is an excellent non-one-liner/non epic daily-driver comment. More like this, please.]
@I gotta job, I'm gonna pay the rent: [OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Al is getting very very crispy. And your comment has nothing to do with it. BTW, is the drive up to Estes Park from Denver all it is cracked up to be?]
@I gotta job, I'm gonna pay the rent: I was also dissapointed that Colorado didn't make the list. My favorite is I-70 from Denver to Glennwood Springs. Or maybe some of the roads around Grand Junction. Or some of the southern mountains around Canon City.
@Al Navarro: It's a nice drive for sure. Lots of twisties, good scenery (mostly pine and aspen forests), and lots of elk and deer around. There are better roads in my opinion, but it's really hard to find a bad mountain road in Colorado.
discontinuuity is tentatively testing the waters of Murlopnik Weekend before plunging again into the fridgid waters that are Jalopnik proper was starred
discontinuuity is tentatively testing the waters of Murlopnik Weekend before plunging again into the fridgid waters that are Jalopnik proper was unstarred
@I gotta job, I'm gonna pay the rent: Denver is the Mile High City. However higher you get here is your own business. 5,250 ft IIRC. Eastern Colorado is lower. Lots of 13,000ft peaks. Lots of mountain valleys above 7,000 ft. 8,500ft is a rareified set of places. I once traveled with some Texarkanans who rode their dirt bikes up Pike's Peak until there wasn't any more oxygen for their engines.
03:54 PM
03:53 PM
Dearthair: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Canuckistan
03:50 PM
I'm almost wishing that sunset seared his corneas shut. It's almost like Garrison Keilor, when he forgets about keeping track of how many Valium and Xanax he's had for the day.
Perhaps he also cherishes the fine values and strong back of the American pastoral, the one his affluent urban existence has rendered so earthy and exotic?
03:53 PM
03:57 PM
p.s: There is a pretty decent bar in Troy just off the exit which serves some great brews. Chill out. Relax. Laugh.
03:36 PM
/personalized
03:39 PM
03:41 PM
03:51 PM
That is so deep...
03:53 PM
03:55 PM
03:57 PM
08/19/09
08/19/09
Gotta love the free Wifi. Jalop on da go!
08/20/09
08/19/09
08/19/09
08/19/09
[bmxmuseum.com] (sorry couldn't get the image URL dealie to work me.)
08/19/09
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Good comment. However, please change your screen name. I think even the "victims" would agree with me.]
08/19/09
08/19/09
Go from Coastal rainforest with bay so the North Pac. to the Alaska Mnt. range to the rolling tundra near Danali Nat park.
Only down falls Retarded Moose and $5.00+ a gallon gas.
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: See below for A) previous mention of Alaska, B) my POV on use of the word "retarded". In short, it's stupid.]
08/20/09
08/20/09
08/19/09
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Excellent use of supporting YouTube footage.]
08/19/09
No. 7 is a shot of the Columbia Gorge, btw, from Crown Point. Just FYI....
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Though said in previous comments, this is well-written and non-douchey. Also, polite corrections of content are always welcome and warranted.]
08/19/09
Above is an excerpt of my run of the Skyway.
08/19/09
08/19/09
BTW, good job keeping everyone civil today.
08/20/09
Also, I'm not usually a fan of techno either, but it kinda works with Samuel Barber for some reason.
08/19/09
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Thanks for not being entirely douchey in your dismissing of Utah's inclusion/write-up. Hopefully you got over yourself and read the other state's blurbs. Thank you and have a nice day.]
08/19/09
08/19/09
Now if I could only find a low hour Swoop owned by a little old Bith who only used it once a standard time cycle to worship with the B'omarrs, that said, I'd also take a SoroSuub X-34 if anyone has a good line on one, I do miss having a convertible.
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: Congratulations, you are the 1,000,000 person to make this joke in one post. Please read/scan/try to read other comments before commenting? I think this is truly the thing that bothers me most (besides d-baggery), the redundant post.]
08/20/09
Congratulations, you sound like a troll. Apparently being the only other person to have mentioned it makes me the one millionth person. And that person I don't think posted his post before me, so that actually makes me the original one. And it was so briefly mentioned at the very end of the post that a quick scan that I normally do didn't pick up on it. Oh boo. You know stuck up commentators is the thing that bothers me the most.
08/20/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: (I can't even dignify your comment by commenting as my actual screen name.) No, you were the 4th person to mention it. THE FOURTH. Use the "See Older Thread" and "See all threads" settings and you'll be able to count 4, including yourself. Sure, I exaggerated for effect. It's called hyperbole.]
08/20/09
I apologize for being a normal human and assuming that "show all threads" actually means, "show ALL threads." So when I saw what I thought was "all threads" and did not see any commentary on it, I thought it would be nice to point out. My honest mistake. But really, you have to give us your approval on what's ok and not ok to comment? Really? No sense of smug superiority detected there or anything. If you weren't on jalopnik and if I was forced to make an assumption, I'd say you were a prius driver.
08/20/09
And as a champion of the Caliber, which I applaud you for, I'm surprised by the condescension toward the Prius and Prius drivers. That little orange pic of his old Caterham Seven should clue you in, too. Every car is sacred, every car is good (bad Monty Python reference.)
08/20/09
@eggwich, galvenized: Also, just in case anyone is interested, I present the AT-ATs of Oakland, said to be George's inspiration by many...
08/20/09
Eh, I'm sorry I'm not familiar with the "OMBUDSMAN" tag. Someone care explain this to me? Also the prius driver thing was a reference to our hatred of "smug" prius drivers, not the actual vehicle itself. Not saying all prius drivers are either, but the point was I thought he was being as smug as the ones we generalize.
08/19/09
08/19/09
[OMBUDSMAN'S NOTE: There's a reason you're a star, boss. Well done. Non-stars, this here is an excellent non-one-liner/non epic daily-driver comment. More like this, please.]
08/19/09
If you're going N-S, make sure to drive along the east side of the Continental Divide, and visit the divide, itself, whenever possible.
Cottonwood Canyon road, FTW! Perfectly cambered, dirt on the far side, so no traffic to speak of because it doesn't really go anywhere.
08/19/09
08/19/09
@Al Navarro: It's a nice drive for sure. Lots of twisties, good scenery (mostly pine and aspen forests), and lots of elk and deer around. There are better roads in my opinion, but it's really hard to find a bad mountain road in Colorado.
08/20/09
08/20/09