drivetofive

NALM 2016 in Atlanta Day 5: Dealer Day, Car Show, & Awards Ceremony

Posted in Legend, NALM on September 17, 2016 by tysonhugie

“We could have a nuclear war and there would be two things that would survive: cockroaches and Tyson’s car.” That was the quote of the day from NALM attendee Steve Dunn, better known to the Legend community as Stevieray. Steve hails from Tennessee and is a long-time friend and family member. Because that’s what this group of people has become to me. It’s an annual family reunion when we get together. Sure, there are always a few nutjobs in the mix and there’s always plenty of drama to go around, but we share a common bond that keeps us coming back year after year.

This morning, we were hosted by Carland Acura in Duluth, Georgia for a meet-and-greet / BBQ. Thanks to the efforts of ground team planning member Kevin Amoth, Carland had allocated an entire parking lot for our group and they served up tasty chicken, burgers, and hot dogs for the group. The Legends flowed and in and out from around 10:00 a.m. to 1:30 or so p.m. when I took off, but in all I think we had more than 30 in attendance – making this one of the largest national meets in the event’s 12-year history. A few extra special attendees brought out their prized cars for the viewing – and some, for the driving.

For example, for the first time in my life, I got to drive a right-hand-drive “Japanese Domestic Market” (JDM) Honda Legend coupe. It’s one of 11 right-hand-drive cars owned by Legend connoisseur Marlow who brought it. It drew a crowd for obvious reasons. The condition was remarkable as the car only had 47,000 kilometers on it. Marlow let me take it for a spin, too. Talk about a trip! I had to get used to not only being on the wrong side of the car, but activating my turn signal with my right hand instead of my left, viewing my rearview mirror at my left instead of my right, and taking a whole new perspective on the traffic around me!

This is the driver’s side of the car! Notice that it’s badged as a “Honda.”

Later in the afternoon, our group got together just up the street from our hotel in Oakwood for a car show and some judging at a parking lot on the campus of the University of North Georgia. Bonus points were awarded to anyone who had special upgrades to their cars, exceptionally nice condition, etc. I pulled my “two minute floor mats,” as Chris called them. They’re called that because they never stay in my car for longer than two minutes before they’re put back in the trunk – I use them for only shows and special occasions since they’re brand new in the box.

The evening events were a cocktail hour, dinner across the street on Highway 53 at a restaurant called “Cookout” sponsored by the ground team, and a closing ceremony / awards distribution event along with prize raffle.

Kevin as usual took command as the Master of Ceremonies in our headquarters of the Best Western, room #218. There were plaques distributed for a variety of achievements including Best Paint, Best Interior, and Best Engine Bay. I took home the Engine Bay one! Kevin also made special recognition of those who had traveled from near and far to be a part of the event.

It was my honor to get a photo with the entire NALM 2016 ground team – minus Alex, who had to leave earlier this afternoon to head to Chicago, at the conclusion of tonight’s activities. These are truly world-class people and have delivered far and beyond the expectation. That “Legendary Ln” sign we were holding? It’s going home with me, along with two others that will soon adorn my new garage back home in Phoenix.

Tyson, Evan, Chris, Kevin, Alan

Until next time, over and out. This year’s event is in the books! Tomorrow morning begins my nearly 2,000-mile trip home.

Following Waseem and others to the initial meet-up at Carland Acura

Lining up in the parking lot

Chris showing off his $41,885 window sticker

Rich’s clean Granada Black Pearl Legend GS

Gabe wore his shirt from the Drive to Five Celebration in 2011.

A few more locals showed up who hadn’t yet participated in any part of NALM.

With Alan and Eric in front of the 1993 L sedan that I once owned.

Looking good there!

More of the parking lot

Acura brought out a $68k RLX Sport Hybrid SH-AWD to show everyone

Marlow’s Japanese-spec Legend. Notice he’s driving on the right side.

More scenes from the parking lot

One of my fave colors: (1991-only) Golden Glow Pearl. You either or love it or you hate it!

Dinner at “Cookout” across from our hotel, sponsored by the ground team

Kevin gave out Love’s gas station booklets and gas cards to a select special attendees (those who had traveled the greatest distances). It was even personalized with the # of Love’s gas stations I’ll pass on my way home.

Kevin handing me one of my street sign awards.

He’s definitely deserving of this award he received himself!

Oh, and here’s that drag-race video I promised! A full-blown NALM summary video will take me some time to prepare, but I couldn’t resist sharing this snippet. Enjoy watching me blow Chris’ doors off. Haha.

(And thanks, Chris, for letting me win)

14 Comments »

NALM 2016 in Atlanta Day 4: Dyno & Drag Events

Posted in Legend, NALM on September 16, 2016 by tysonhugie

No, we’re not talking about dinosaurs and drag shows. We are talking about couple of traditional car-meet activities that took place today as part of our festivities here in Georgia. Here we go, from Wikipedia:

A dynamometer or “dyno” for short, is a device for measuring force, torque, or power. For example, the power produced by an engine, motor or other rotating prime mover can be calculated by simultaneously measuring torque and rotational speed (RPM).

A few horsepower-loving Legend owners put their money where their mouths were this morning at Lamar Walden Automotive in Doraville, Georgia. In the interest of parking ease and sparing a few of us from fighting metro Atlanta rush-hour traffic, most of us carpooled to the venue which was about 40 miles south from our host hotel in Oakwood.

A stock Legend – in 2nd generation anyway – was rated at around 200 horsepower when new, but how much horsepower do these cars have 20+ years later? As today’s activities taught us, the number can vary widely. A couple of our members’ cars put down numbers in the high 100’s, and one heavily-modified version achieved 327 horsepower. I took video today that I’ll compile into a NALM summary when all is said and done! Each run had plenty of spectators.

Chris Miller threw me the keys to his 1994 Legend GS 6-speed for the return drive to Oakwood and it understandably felt like home since our sedans are identical twins, separated by only a few VIN sequences. Chris’ car has about 2,000 fewer miles on it, sitting around 148,000.

We stopped for lunch at Zaxby’s and I indulged in some of the best fried chicken fingers I’ve ever tasted. In a little over two weeks’ time, I’m supposed to be competing in a 26-mile marathon in my hometown. The fact that I’m eating so horribly on my vacation and slacking on the workouts means that run is going to be a very difficult one when the time comes.

I test-drove a very rare car back at the hotel: Alan’s 1995 L 5-speed in Garnet Red Metallic. Garnet Red was a color offered ONLY for the 1995 model year (the last year of production), and only on L models. The fact that Alan’s car has a manual transmission makes it even more of a unicorn. It drove incredibly smoothly for 297,000 miles.

And just look at it!

This evening we rolled out en masse toward Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Georgia for the “Year One Fast Friday” at the 1/4 mile dragstrip. My $20 participant entry fee was very well spent. And the few hours of waiting to get my car’s nose to the start line were also well worth the 16.7 seconds it took me to get to the finish line. Maybe I should have gone a little more slowly to really enjoy the scenery along the way? Our crew had a great time and I counted over 15 Legends that raced. This is higher than any previous NALM event to my knowledge.

Since we had such a presence at the venue, the announcer over the loudspeaker frequently addressed our group as “The Acuras” and Chris Miller even had the announcer state something about how I “must have really trusted my Legend” because I’d driven it all the way from Arizona and was about to race it with 546,000 miles on the odometer. I felt a little embarrassed but whatever! My car is burning a lot of oil – after having idled for a long time in the staging lines, when I took off I noticed blue smoke. Time for some valve stem work, I guess.

I turned off the Traction Control System, rolled up my windows, and let her rip when the light went green – or nearly a full second later (sucky reaction time). I blasted through first, redlined in second, and I don’t really remember what happened after that. All I cared was that Chris was just short of a car length behind me on my left side and I had a gigantic grin on my face.

One of the other (non-Legend) folks at the strip made a comment, “Is tonight an Acura shootout event?” Well, yeah! As of this writing, I think our fastest ‘Legend’ was in fact Alex’s BMW 540i with a 15-second something time. I’ll update this post when I learn the final standings for real. Videos are pending, I promise!

The 32-mile drive back to our host hotel went quickly thanks to chat from my friend Eric in the passenger seat, and my friend Ryan had arrived from South Carolina so he was right on my tail. Thanks for checking in!

Breakfast Club

Alex’s 1997 BMW 540i 6-speed is aptly named the “BM Trouble-You.”

Lineup pre-departure

Kevin’s car behind the special coned-off car wash area

Hanging out

En route to Doraville

Alex, Eric, and Waseem shooting the breeze

This is Steve, who came all the way from New South Wales, Australia for this meet!

Evan’s two-tone 1993 LS coupe. He’s from Tennessee

Kevin’s “Polar Bear” 1994 LS 6-speed

He has the 2nd-highest-mileage car, behind yours truly.

But look at that immaculate interior!

Kevin talking Legends with Marc and Matthew

Hanging with Ann Marie and the cutest baby I’ve ever seen.

Heavily modified 1992 Legend driven by Lou from Pennsylvania

Steve D arrived and washed his 2007 RL A-Spec

Following Chris to the dragstrip

Lining up

The RL wearing a Legend badge. Indeed, it was sold as the Honda Legend overseas.

Marc wins the ‘best plate’ award.

Ready to rock and roll.

Kevin at the wheel of my car. Just before I popped the engine bay open for 5 seconds and then said “Show’s over,” as soon as I realized how dusty it was in there. Kevin got a kick out of that.

Tyson, Kevin, Alex, Steve, Waseem

Marc signing in at the dragstrip

Getting our numbers painted on the windows in shoe polish.

Chris lining up next to me on the dragstrip.

Comparing timeslips post-race

Chris, Alan, and me

Racers!

Chris’ car is looking fly with those newly-refinished 16″ wheels

Sunset

Final timesheet standings. I was right lane. Chris ended up making a second run and he undercut me with a 16.50 or so.

Hanging with Eric in the stands. And a goofy face!

Alan got so bored in the staging lanes, he pulled out his camp chair and straw hat to kick back!

Come back tomorrow for our “dealer day” at Carland Acura, a car show, group dinner, and awards ceremony. Things are just getting good out here!

20 Comments »

NALM 2016 Day 3: Oakwood, Georgia

Posted in Legend, NALM, Road Trip on September 15, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer: 546,604

Trip Distance (Day): 670

Trip Distance (Overall): 1,947

Let the games begin! It “feels” like 7:00 p.m. to me, but locally it’s already 10:00 and time to wind it down for the night. One challenge with driving west-to-east, cross-country, is that dealing with all those time-zone losses. I’ve arrived at my destination in Oakwood, northeast of Atlanta.

For a few frustrating minutes – or probably closer to 45 – I fought heavy traffic northbound on Interstate 85 from metro ATL and that caused me to be late for this evening’s pizza party here at the Best Western Plus Hotel. No matter, I still enjoyed a few slices and it was great to be reunited with old friends and make a few new ones. This is now the 12th time I’ve attended the National Acura Legend Meet. And it’s my car’s 11th. The only one it missed was 2012 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin when I drove the then-brand-new ILX.

This morning started out bright and early in western Louisiana. The humidity was high as I departed Motel 6 off Interstate 10 and started my eastward journey into the sunrise for the day. The nice thing about today’s drive was that the states went by much more quickly. In a matter of hours I’d crossed multiple borders off my list.

Checkpoint!

Lunch (though my internal time clock told me it was breakfast) was at Starbucks in Jackson, Mississippi and I later had a bite at Burger King in Birmingham, Alabama. The miles flew by and I encountered miraculously few slow-downs on the interstate.

Tonight, I was greeted by the “Ground Team” planning committee members who are putting the event on. Alan Jackson pulled out his informational poster boards and filled the room of 25 or so people in on the game plan for our upcoming couple of days. Tomorrow begins bright and early with an 8:00 departure for our “dyno” event where a few members will have their cars tested to evaluate horsepower and torque performance ratings. A few of us made our way to the parking lot and carried on some Legend chat.

Eric threw me the keys to his 1993 L sedan which coincidentally used to be mine! It’s amazing to see the car here, but now in restored form. Pics of that tomorrow. I also took my friend Marc’s 1994 GS sedan for a quick spin. Both Eric and Marc are based in New Jersey but this year’s event has brought folks from all across the country – including one guy named Leon who drove from Los Angeles and thus has me beat for the long-haul award!

Much more to come!

Departing Shreveport

Quick stop in Monroe, Louisiana

Crossing the mighty Mississippi River

93 octane is tasty stuff. $2.18 is what I paid.

Chubby cheeks. This is a town in Mississippi.

Saw this on multiple vehicles in Alabama. Must be what they use on recently-sold cars for registration!

Closing in on my destination!

Northbound I-85 in ATL

NALM attendee map. The one in Arizona is me! A couple of the Californians didn’t make it, one flew in, and one drove.

Rich’s car, twin to mine but a year newer and an automatic.

Check back tomorrow when the real fun gets started out here! Thanks for following along!

9 Comments »

NALM 2016 Days 1 and 2: Las Cruces, New Mexico & Shreveport, Louisiana

Posted in Legend, NALM, Road Trip on September 14, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer: 545,934

Trip Distance (Leg): 1,277

Trip Distance (Overall): 1,277

Welcome aboard!

It’s that blessed time of year once again when a few dozen crazed Legend fans rendezvous for a multi-day event. This year, the event’s 12th, will be hosted in Oakwood, Georgia – just a bit north of Atlanta. My one-way drive will end up being about 1,900 miles, making this quite a bit further than I had to go last year when the event was in Houston. Here’s to hoping things move toward the west coast for 2017. Maybe I should host NALM in Phoenix?

The last couple of days I’ve been pounding the pavement of I-10 and I-20 through Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Let me rephrase that last one. Teeeeeexxxxxxaaaaaaaasssssss. The state is just gigantic. Today I drove from sun-up to sundown and never left the state. In fact, I drove another 2 hours eastbound in the dark until I finally reached the Louisiana state line after having spent some 800 miles working my way from one end of the Lone Star State to the other. I’m exhausted. And maybe my tried & true Legend steed is as well.

Jason of Driven for Drives was kind enough to roll out some red carpet for me during my stay in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The drive to his place from central Phoenix ended up taking me about 6 hours. I was able to pry my way out of the office (not an easy task when you’ve only had the job a week!) about a half hour early and hit the highway. After a night’s rest, I continued on through El Paso (fought about 1/2 hour worth of rush-hour there) and then it was the open road ahead. “Wide Open Spaces,” as the Dixie Chicks would call it.

I reach a point in my long-distance drives where I fall into a meditative state and time flies by. I’m skipping through a few dozen songs on the iPod, perusing my road atlas, and the next thing I know I’ve gone 100 miles. Luckily most of the speed limits out in rural Texas are 80 miles per hour, but that doesn’t help in cases (like today’s) where I frequently hit construction zones and sudden rain downpours and had to clamp down on the brakes.

This was my dialogue with the service station attendant at Cowpoke’s Convenience Store in Cisco, Texas:

Guy: What kind of car is that?
Me: It’s just an old Acura, a Legend.
Guy: Oh, I saw when you pulled up, the front end looked like an old Skyline.
Me: Haha, nah. Nothing fancy. Just cruising across the country to Atlanta.
Guy: Atlanta? But you’ve only made it to Cisco, Texas.
Me (walking out the door with my newly purchased beef jerky): Well, at least I’m halfway!

And with that, I was off. Cisco was a pretty neat little down, actually. It’s known for being a historical spot in the story of Hilton hotels. Hilton’s founder, Conrad Hilton, bought a building there in 1919 and it became his first hotel. Back in those days, they would rent out the rooms in 8-hour time intervals! Today, that original building houses the Cisco Chamber of Commerce. I stopped by for a few photos in the rain and checked it out.

In Dallas – the Metroplex – I met up with my friend Scott for a short visit. He clued me in a pretty cool truck stop just a ways up the road on I-20 called Buc-Ees. Sure enough, it was worth checking out. Have you ever been to a gas station that had 38 pumps? Thirty-eight. I think that’s what heaven must look like. No waiting, anywhere. Just pumps for days. I didn’t take the time to check out Buc-Ees in much detail, but I liked what I saw.

So that brings us to Louisiana, and just a few states to go until my arrival tomorrow night at the meeting point. Here’s to a good night’s rest, and thanks for coming along on the journey!

Took this before leaving. These are some leaks from the Legend. I checked oil 4 times so far on the trip and haven’t had to add any. I know there is some power steering fluid leakage and I did add some of that.

Departing the “Land of Enchantment”

And arriving Texas there you have to “drive friendly.”

This is the worst breakfast. But it was also the best. Cinnabon + choc milk.

Lots of 5-4 going on here.

Seeing signs for Shreveport

Meeting up w/ Scott

A visit to Buc-Ees off I-20

And finally, arriving Shreveport!

13 Comments »

First Week of Work; Another Honda Purchase

Posted in House, Legend, Road Trip on September 11, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 544,647

Odometer (ILX): 181,139

Owning a 544,000 mile car is not without its share of drama! I just got the Legend back on Friday from receiving a replacement starter under warranty from Hon-Man in Tempe, Arizona. The old one was an aftermarket unit installed in December 2015 that had intermittent issues. A couple of weeks ago, I had to push-start the car (alone!) in a Great Clips parking lot in Fountain Hills after getting a haircut. That was embarrassing. Luckily, Hon-Man took great care of me. I also had the car’s oil changed yesterday.

We are good to go! On Tuesday evening, we (as in me + you, my readers) will depart on a 3,800 mile round-trip drive to Georgia and back.

The car received a backyard bath yesterday evening, though I know it’ll get plenty dirty on its cross-country journey across 6 states in the coming days. I’ll depart Tuesday after work and do my best to post nightly updates like the ones I gave when Jason and I took our Alaska trip earlier this year.

I still have the training wheels on, but I made it through my first week (well, first 4 days) of work at my new job with Banner Health. Luckily for me, I have a sidekick (Amanda) who started the same day as I did so I don’t have to feel like the only new kid on the block. Tuesday was filled with a half-day or orientation followed by an introduction to our teammembers. The Banner “Corporate Center” at Phoenix Plaza is comprised by two 21-story identical towers at the northeast corner of Central Avenue and Thomas Avenue. My team sits on the 4th floor of the south tower.

As with any large organization, we had our share of hoops to go through this week to get up to speed. Still, I have no work-issued laptop computer and I’m using a “loaner.” And it took us until day 3 to get ahold of our parking passes and elevator badges. In all, I’m toting around 6 different badges on my lanyard. I’d better not lose it!

Access granted:

The team has been most welcoming and I’m starting to wrap my head around the new language and tasks. My role operates in the Medicare & Medicaid realm which means I need to get acquainted with all the laws, regulations, and rules that govern those programs. It’s been a crash course in learning acronyms! EHR, CPOE, MIPS, MACRA, CQM, CAH… these all mean something and sooner than later, I’m going to need to be familiar with the dialect!

One interesting thing about commuting to my new office: If I want to, I can use the “Suicide Lanes.” These are on 7th Avenue and 7th Street in central Phoenix, which run north-south. It’s basically a turning lane that becomes a through-travel lane during certain hours of the day to ease traffic congestion at rush hour. It changes direction based on time of day: From 6-9 a.m. on weekdays, the the suicide lanes run southbound. From 4-6 p.m., they run northbound. And at any other time of the day – and all throughout the weekend – they’re used as turning lanes.

The VW Jetta in this picture was using a suicide lane during my morning commute the other day. Notice how the double-yellow lines are “broken” (not solid). The suicide name – as you can imagine – comes from the fact that it’s possible to meet a clueless motorist head-on who doesn’t understand how the lanes’ directions are managed.

The last bit of this week’s fun comes from another Honda purchase (as if I needed another!). This one is rear-wheel-drive, with a twin-blade design. It’s a self-propelled, variable-speed, 21-inch Honda lawnmower that I snagged from The Home Depot yesterday afternoon. I didn’t get a key-handoff photo (if there had been a key, I would have ) but it was love at first sight when I saw the box being brought out. The slogan on the box read “Very Smart.” Go Honda.

Assembly was a piece of cake – extend the handle, add oil, adjust cutting height, and fire it up. The owner’s manual said that the mower had been started from the factory so I assumed there might be a little gas in the tank. There wasn’t. Luckily I had some fuel in the garage so I filled it up and let her rip. Cutting time was about an hour to cover both the front and back yards. I even got fancy and striped the front lawn diagonally.

Kyle and Dan stopped by to give their approval of my latest purchase.

Video of the first start-up.

Hope everyone else had a great week! Here are the rest of my pics.

I was greeted with a welcoming gift and this sign in my cube: The cow comes from “MU,” or “Meaningful Use,” which is the department in which I’m working.

Doing some heavy-duty training on Day 2 at work.

The new lawnmower had my name on it. Literally.

“Legendary” performance. This thing is perfect for me!

Finished product. I love the backyard. My swing is still broken, as shown here.

Lastly: My friends Scott and Sandy were featured this week on Petrolicious! Check out the video segment on their story, including awesome visuals of their 1959 Mercury Park Lane and their 1992 Acura NSX.

24 Comments »

Getting Settled at the New House; Career Changes Underway

Posted in House on September 5, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 544,575

Odometer (ILX): 181,009

I’m a week into ownership of my new home and it’s feeling like a great place to be! Along with getting my bearings in the neighborhood and getting a few things unpacked, I’ve added 18 entries to my guest book. There’s just one thing that’s become a bit of a nuisance: I’m in such a centrally located area of town that my friends are always passing by, and they’ve taken it upon themselves to say hello each time they do. Take Jack, for instance. Each morning he drives down my street and gives me a hefty series of honks. The neighborhood may never be the same!

I actually love the visitors and I feel more connected to my friend network than ever. Travels have taken a backseat for now, but I’ll get my fill of the open road next week when I head out on a 3,600 mile round-trip drive to Atlanta for NALM. It’s been nice to have a chance to stick in town. Best of all, I had some special visitors here to help me break in the new pad. Like Grandma, who came down with my mom for the Labor Day holiday weekend.

There are also some changes in the works for me career-wise. After nearly 8 years with CVS Health, I had my last day with the company on Thursday. My departure was quiet and uneventful – just the way I’d wanted it – but I will definitely miss many of the great folks who I’d worked with there.

Out with the old:

In with the new:

The next chapter in my career path will take me to the corporate office of Banner Health, a health system based in the Phoenix area that operates 23 hospitals. I’ll be one of about 40,000 colleagues working for the company (making it the largest employer in the state, with Walmart a close second). My role is in the “Meaningful Use” department at the corporate office. It’s a 3.5-mile one-way commute. Breeze! You know I’m obsessed with timelines and tracking. Here’s how this one played out:

July 18: Online application completed
July 21: Contacted by recruiter via email
July 25: Phone interview with recruiter
July 29: Received follow-up email from recruiter
August 2: Phone interview with hiring manager
August 10: On-site, 1-hour, 4-person panel interview
August 11: Offer extended
August 15: Offer accepted
September 1: Last day with CVS
September 6: Start date with Banner

I’ll let the photos tell the story about my last week or so.

Here’s a photo of my home while being irrigated. It’s a little unnerving to see the water level like this but it’s all by design and the yard is specifically “dished” to hold the water in. Flooding takes place once every two weeks.

View looking south to the backyard from the rear-facing garage door.

My new license plate came for the Integra this week!

CVS main office.

And my new office. I’ll be on the 9th floor here, I think.

Just for kicks, I pulled 4 of the cars into the backyard for a photo.

The new neighbors will soon learn I’m nuts, just like my old ones did!

Arrival of grandma and mom from St. George, Utah on Friday afternoon.

Dinner group out on the town that evening with a few friends.

Car wash party at Kyle’s on Saturday morning, with Kyle’s pup “Cowboy” supervising.

I gave mom’s 2004 G35 a bath. It only has 27,000 miles on it.

Lance and grandma playing Boggle before our BBQ.

Dinner group.

Following is a short video about a very special Honda fan. Helen Musselman has now been featured in the Honda “Kokoro” series of videos for her role as the founder and operator of a Tucson-based motorcycle dealership that has been around since Honda’s earliest days. Thanks to my friend Charles Schnieber for sharing it with me.

Have a great week!

22 Comments »

My New House in Central Phoenix: Introduction and Quick Tour

Posted in Arizona, House on August 28, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer (U-HAUL Truck): 52,122

Odometer (Legend coupe): 544,457

Odometer (Legend sedan): 150,595

Odometer (Vigor): 105,948

Odometer (Integra): 237,259

Odometer (ILX): 180,646

Odometer (NSX): I don’t know! It’s coming back from my brother’s place in a few weeks!

I’ve moved into a garage. Well, not literally, but pretty much.

On Friday, August 26th, I officially closed on a new house that has more garage space than living space, and I’m totally okay with that. Allow me to introduce my residence in central Phoenix. Conveniently located in the up-and-coming “Uptown” area, this 1949 place started life as a simple, brick, 3-bedroom, 1-bath home. It was later remodeled to incorporate an additional bedroom, bathroom, and laundry on the east end. Then finally – and most importantly – a massive multi-car garage was tacked on and the existing carport was enclosed as well. Here was the photo from the for-sale listing that I first saw.

My (2 or 3) avid blog followers may recall that it was Friday, May 27th when Jason and I drove to the Arctic Circle in Alaska. Later that same day, my friend Rob in Phoenix sent me a text message saying that there was a home with a 5-car garage for sale near him. My interest was piqued but I was far too busy road tripping to think about real estate transactions. Besides, I was perfectly content in Scottsdale even though it meant renting out storage units in other parts of town for a couple of my cars. I’d been doing it for over 7 years and was used to the routine. Here was Rob’s text convo (a screen shot from his phone, and the photo is now missing).

The Alaska trip concluded and I got back to my daily grind without thinking twice about the Phoenix home. About a week later, Rob sent another text. “Price drop of $20,000 on the 5-car garage.” “Oh yeah,” I thought. “I should at least do a drive-by.” And I did so that weekend. I liked the home. While sitting in the car – my Legend sedan, as it were – in front of the house, I pulled out my phone and shot a quick email over to my friend (and real estate agent) Leif. That was June 11th. Here’s what I said:

The rest of the story – and it’s full of twists and turns, I assure you – I’ll leave for another day if I end up sharing it at all. But hundreds of emails, thousands of dollars, and almost three months later, I own the home.

Or rather, my mortgage company owns it, but my name’s on the paperwork! Here’s a summary of the timeline:

May 27 – Notified of the house
June 5 – Return from Alaska
June 6 – Price drop of $20k
June 11 – Emailed my agent
June 21 – Sellers accepted my contingent offer, my home listed
June 29 – Lowered my price $4,500
July 8 – Lowered my price $5,000
July 18 – Lowered my price $5,000
July 27 – Offer accepted
August 4 – First buyer fell through
August 8 – Back-up buyer’s offer accepted
August 12 – Inspection performed
August 26 – Final repairs completed, both properties closed!

It really was a miracle that things came together in the time that they did. I cannot say enough about the level of professionalism and skill of my real estate agent, Leif Swanson. He was so organized and on the ball. Every meeting we had, his paperwork was filled out in advance and he had the ultimate of respect for my time.

Here’s the verbatim summary from the for-sale listing of my new home:

Beautiful 4 Bed, 2 bath, 1552 sq ft, 5 car garage (split into 3 separate garage units, 2/2/1) lovingly remodeled by artist and engineer. Large back yard, fully landscaped with garden/utility shed, w/ irrigated lot. Split, open floor plan, neutral color palette, 6″ baseboards & crown molding. Large screened patio, breezeway, dusk to dawn outdoor lighting. Interior tile flooring, newer dual pane windows, shutters/blinds, soft water unit, electric hot water tank, and updated 200 Amp electric service. Renovations have been legally permitted & approved through the City of Phoenix. Open kitchen offers pantry, Granite Island, stainless French door refrigerator, and in-island convection oven. See Doc tab for list of additional items to convey.

The property itself is a corner lot with over 10,000 square feet in area — twice as large as the piece of land I sold in Scottsdale. Can you say yard maintenance? That will be a new experience for me! Guess it’s time to start shopping for a Honda lawnmower.

I wasted no time in having company over, as my friend Branson flew down from Salt Lake City to spend the weekend with me. Following are just a few of the many photos sharing the events of this exciting transaction!

Check the 6-minute video for a full tour. Be sure and watch to the very end for a fun blooper.

Home before remodel (taken from Google) – May 2014

After remodels – June 2016. Extreme makeover?

U-HAUL time! I put 78 miles on this thing and it took 2 trips to get my furniture transported.

Retrieving the last load from Scottsdale.

This is how my die-cast model cars were transported. More on that in a second!

Starting to get settled in.

Retrieving the Legend sedan from the storage unit where it had lived for the last 2 years.

Clean-up time at the Scottsdale home!

The banner was the last thing to come down.

Unloading at the new house, with some help from Rob and his Ford Escape.

James paid us a visit in his Fiat that day.

Visit from Lance from Seattle who I bought the Integra from.

Enjoying my back patio.

Saying goodbye to the Scottsdale place one last time.

Friends Chandler, James, Jack, and Rob at the new pad

Following up with Charlie and Cindy, who I bought the new place from. They’d left me detailed (and laminated) notes on each of the plants on the back patio, with care instructions!

Charlie and Cindy were great. They’ve even now sent me photos from throughout the home’s remodel! There was a fireplace removed, a wall pulled down, and the original casement windows were repurposed as a gate in the backyard.

Original windows

Gate to alleyway

The final transaction details came to me via text. The deal was final as of 2:01 p.m. on Friday the 26th!

Making it official with a key handoff. My neighbor Drew took the photo for us.

This is now the first time in over 4 years of ILX ownership that the car will have a garage space.

Removal of the for-sale sign the following morning.

Visit from Justin

Climbing on top of the roof with Branson to find a new home for the model cars.

Perfect!

Pulling the Vigor out onto the back driveway for a day-trip.

James and his mom paid a visit, too.

Official change-of-address confirmation received! Pretty sweet!

Now, time to try out some of the neighborhood cuisine…

Come visit me!

48 Comments »

Quick Trip: “The Quail” Motorsports Gathering in Monterey, California

Posted in California, Car Show on August 21, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 544,256

Odometer (ILX): 180,000

Happy weekend! I spent a day rubbing shoulders with the automotive elite at an exclusive motorsports show called The Quail in Carmel, California on Friday. Some 3,000 entry tickets were pre-sold at $600 apiece. I was lucky to score one for free, thanks to prior involvement with the NSX Club of America and the fact that Acura is a major sponsor of the event. It was a feast for the eyes, ears, and tastebuds.

From the moment I showed my credential and was given a site map / lanyard, I turned my gaze to the entrance of the event. Immaculately manicured lawns were lined with brightly-colored supercars and exotics. Event workers dressed head to toe in white apparel flanked the entryway.

This was not just your everyday “car show” in a Home Depot parking lot with people plopped down on camp chairs and shooting the breeze. Instead, wait staff brought around wine, champagne, and caviar. There were 5 or 6 different tent pavilions with free regional-themed food and live music. And I don’t think any vehicle on display had a value of fewer than six figures. Many were seven.

I made the rounds as I worked my way toward the large Acura display and was greeted by a couple of colleagues who were already there: Chris Willson from Science of Speed, and May Lee, the VP of the NSX Club of America. On display was an elevated white platform with the Acura Precision Concept in the middle, with the NSX GT3 racecar on the left and a ‘street’ NSX at right. Around 11:00 a.m., seasoned racecar driver Dario Franchitti arrived for some interviews. I shook his hand and we talked a little. He’s no stranger to fast cars, having won 4 Indy races. He’s ordered a “Nouvelle Blue Pearl” 2017 NSX which will be delivered to him later this year.

Right down the street, the Bonhams collector car auction was taking place all day. My friends Scott and Sandy were selling their 1959 Mercury Park Lane – lot number 74 – and hoped for a good outcome. I caught a shuttle ride over there to meet up with them. The entire area was bustling with people, music, and activities – with auction bidding coming over the loudspeaker in a British accent. “Nine hundred fifty, do I have nine hundred fifty?” he’d ask. Seriously? $950,000 – people spend that kind of money on cars. The most expensive car sold this week in Monterey was a 1955 Jaguar D-Type that went for $19,800,000 at RM Sothebys Auction on Friday night. Pocket change.

The quick in-and-out Monterey trip capped off with a car event that differed greatly from The Quail. It was called Concours d’LeMons, and it was a tribute to “the oddball, the mundane, the truly awful of the automotive world.” Scott, Sandy, and I cruised in their Mini Cooper over to check out the festivities in Seaside on Saturday morning. The Concours is free and “you get what you pay for.” This tongue-in-cheek poke at the hoity toity Pebble Beach and Quail crowds seems little a little more my style. We saw an Amphicar, a couple of AMC Pacers, and of course a Yugo on the grounds. My friend Jason Cammisa from Motor Trend was on-hand as one of the judges.

And with that, I was dropped at the curb of the cute but functional 4-gate Monterey airport and shed my fleece sweater, knowing that in about 2 hours I’d be back in the desert’s inferno and dealing with nearly twice the temperature. Thanks for coming along for the adventure! And, many thanks to the folks at Acura for making it possible for me to attend. Here’s a very short video, along with some of the other photos I took.

Porsche-mania: Cars for sale at Bonhams.

Breakfast is served

Ultra rare BMW “Z1” with only 34 kilometers on it. This went for $90,000.

Ferrari something-or-other that’s worth more than any home I’ll ever own.

Love these lines.

Hey, finally a red car I can relate to. This 1991 NSX with 85,000 miles looks showroom fresh and belongs to Acura headquarters.

A few celebrity sightings, including this one with Acura’s Chuck Schifsky.

RealTime’s Peter Cunningham, whose collection I visited in Milwaukee last month.

Science of Speed’s Chris Willson

Acura PR’s Gary Robinson

A few folks from Hagerty Insurance, including Jonathan Klinger who inspired this blog 5 years ago.

Like the colors of Skittles candy.

With my buddy Donny from Cadillac, leeching off the free food at the Rolls Royce booth.

Feasts for the eyes, too.

Acura CEO Jon Ikeda – a friend of mine since his days with the Acura Design Studio.

Scott and Sandy’s 1959 Mercury with 40,000 original miles, which went for $40,000.

Scott and Sandy themselves. Thanks for the hospitality, guys!

As seen from the parking lot of the Concours d’LeMons. Hey, wait?

The original owner of this 1987 Chevy Cavalier was especially proud of it. And he’d driven it all the way from Michigan!

Before you go, check out the website of author Darius Nabors. He and his friend Trevor set out 59 weeks ago to visit all 59 national parks in 59 weeks. They’ve achieved their goal! I learned about Darius while thumbing through the American Airlines magazine on my flight from Phoenix to Monterey on Thursday night. Congratulations, Darius!

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My Car Went to Idaho Without Me, Some Attic Finds, and a Road Trip to the Landfill

Posted in ILX, Road Trip on August 14, 2016 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 544,176

Odometer (ILX): 179,669

Statistics can be fun. I never thought I’d utter (or type) those words when I took Stats as a sophomore in high school, but today I’m a numbers junkie and I enjoy them – especially in automotive applications. Like this: In an AutoTrader search query on August 9, 2016, I pulled up all the 2013-2015 Acura ILX models for sale in the country. Here’s what I found:

863 automatics (83,033 highest miles)
27 manuals (63,578 highest miles)

So 27 manuals out of 890 total cars = 3%. That makes my car pretty rare.

I have to admit, my conscience has gotten to me: In recent weeks, some of the miles on the ILX weren’t “earned” by me personally. My friends Jack and Chandler borrowed the car for a 2,166-mile, 5-day road trip to Boise, Idaho and back for a wedding. When flight pricing didn’t look reasonable and attendance was critical (Chandler was a “best man”), I offered up the ILX to them because it’s a reliable and fuel-efficient car for long trips. And you know the miles don’t scare me a bit.

The only thing I asked in return was that Jack take and share a few photos from along the way, and that he did! Here’s the route they took, with the Utah leg northbound and the Nevada (return) leg southbound.

Lots of the eastern Nevada area is foreign to me. I’ve been a few places out there, like Wendover during my open-road race in 2007, and the town of Rachel, when I toured the Extraterrestrial Highway around Area 51. As it turns out, I’m probably not missing a heck of a lot though. Jack sent a photo from the entry to Wells, Nevada: “Gateway to the East Humboldts.” Originally named for a swampy area near town along the Humboldt River, it got its start as a passenger train stop along the transcontinental railroad.

The historic El Rancho Hotel there has lots of history, having been opened from 1952 to 1980. Currently there’s not much happening there, but luckily it hasn’t been left completely to ruin. Note that the El Rancho Hotel is not to be confused with the similarly-named Hotel El Rancho, which is in Gallup, New Mexico. I visited that back in 2013.

Historic pic

Today

Jack reported that much of the drive looked something like this. I told him to go ahead find out what the ILX’s speedometer was governed at. I’m not sure if he did or not, but on a road like that, how could you NOT be tempted to have a little fun?

Next they arrived in Ely. It’s a town about four times larger than Wells, but still only home to about 4,200 people. This town is (or was) a key stop along the railroad. A steam locomotive in the background of the old train station pays homage to that past. Ely (pronounced “eely”) was a boom town in the early 1900s thanks to the discovery of copper. This photo was taken in front of the Northern Nevada Railway Museum.

Ely lies at the eastern end of U.S. Route 50 which was named in 1986 by Life Magazine as “The Loneliest Road in America.” That just makes me want to drive the entire 408-mile stretch of it! Adding that to my road trip destination list right now, in fact.

Thanks to those travels, Jack and Chandler brought me back a few souvenirs in the form of slaughtered bugs. I took care of them promptly the next day. Wouldn’t want them to bake in!

This is how you do summer in Phoenix.

I’m in the process of cleaning out my house for a potential move (I’ll know this week if things are final, then I’ll spill the beans accordingly). But after spending most of my Saturday indoors boxing things up, I decided it was time to brave the heat and climb into the attic to see what kind of relics had been stashed up there. My iPhone overheated – that’s how warm it was up there.

My home was built in 1979 and has been updated very little since then. I’ve lived there for almost 8 years. The attic was a storage area for 5 boxes of Christmas decor that I needed to bring down. But while I was up there, I decided to root around a little and see what else I could find. The access point is a trap-door style ladder in the garage, akin to the one Clark Griswold uses in National Lampoon’s “Christmas Vacation.”

Well, looky here. I found some luggage up there that’s not mine. This is a “Lady Baltimore” suitcase with an American Airlines tag on it. Google reveals that this brand of luggage was big in the late 1950s. Oddly enough, it’s locked and I don’t have a key. Feels empty inside but I need to get in there somehow anyway just because my curiosity is getting the best of me.

I also found some steel-toed boots up there. Again, not mine.

And a STOP sign. Where in the world did the prior owners of my home get that? It’ll make a nice addition to my future garage anyway.

My favorite find was this poster. I’ve had it since I was about 13. “Justification for Higher Education” with a series of fancy cars and a nice oceanfront home. About 20 years later, I’m pretty much there – but minus the ocean, and with vintage Acuras instead of Porsches and BMWs.

The ILX got landfill duty to transport and dispose of a bunch of lumber and miscellaneous garbage that I piled up. I think I was the only person out there roaming around in the trash and mud in an Acura. But until I get a pickup truck, this is the best I can do!

I even felt compelled to put together a 3-minute video about my landfill experience. Riveting, it is not. But if you’re so inclined:

This coming Thursday night, I’m off to Monterey, California to “The Quail” Motorsports Gathering. It’s part of Monterey’s week-long focus on automobiles and a very exclusive event, as only 3,000 tickets are made available. Face value of each? $600! Luckily Acura is a major sponsor this year and I scored a ticket for free thanks to helping out with last year’s NSXPO.

Have a great week!

18 Comments »

Legend Spy Shot Roundup #8

Posted in Legend, Spy Shots on August 9, 2016 by tysonhugie

Greetings!

I guess I might as well kick this draft post out the door. I’ve added a few photos tonight that tallied it up to an even 80 Legend sightings. My last Roundup was posted on April 20th. So in fewer than four months, I’ve received 120 total cars. That comes out to a little more than one car per day hitting my cell phone or email. Here today, courtesy of you my readers and friends, I bring you:

80 Legends
11 NSXs
11 Vigors
3 TLs
3 ILXs
7 Preludes
1 CL
1 RSX
1 Integra
1 EL
1 European Accord

A few winners to feature as we kick things off:

My favorite picture in the lineup is brought to you by Rob, who had traveled to Hawaii for work and who made a special visit to the local Acura dealership in Maui to pick me up a license plate. Thanks, Rob!

Second place goes to James, who even during his vacation in Paris this summer, managed to find a pretty nice looking second-generation coupe. I wonder if this car is still there. As of July 1st (just a little after James’ trip), all cars older than 1997 were banned in Paris as a smog-control measure. Yikes.