A lot going on in the world...

I just realized that I haven't posted since late January and with everything going on in the world, it seems like January was a really long time ago. With a war going on in Ukraine, it's hard to feel the optimism one usually feels when spring is approaching. Gas prices have jumped twice in the past 2 weeks, when they were already at an all time high, at over 1,60$ per litre. Today, it's over 2,00$. Still, life goes on (for us, at least). We have been busy with work, but we still managed to take a few days off last week for the boys' spring break. 

We have been going to Deschaillons as much as possible, but it's been strange never having guests over there. We finally did something we have been wanting to do for a while: take the boys skiing. I cannot overstate how well their first skiing experience went. I booked them a private lesson together, and after 90 minutes, they were pretty much ready to ski on their own. I had not been skiing in something like 25 years, but it turns out I still remember how to ski (at an intermediate level, if that). I think I was helped by the fact that skis have evolved (parabolic skis now being the norm) and are easier to use. It went so well on their first day that we went skiing a second time a week later, at the same hill, Mont Gleason, which is about an hour from Deschaillons, near Victoriaville. We will try to go one more time before the season wraps up.

We also went to the Beauce area at the begninning of spring break. It's a pretty area and our hotel was nice. There are, however, many "Freedom Convoy" supporters in that area. I spotted what were probably some of these people in the hotel, people who chose not to wear masks indoors. During the second half of the week, we headed to Ottawa. There were few Freedom Convoy supporters left in the city (thankfully), but there was still a feeling of emptiness in the downtown area. We stayed at the Château Laurier hotel, which was really nice. We had found a good deal online in the aftermath of the occupation of that area of town. We visited three different museums and relaxed in front of the TV. It was a nice break.

There has been literally no progress that I know of on my Civic. Hopefully the snow will clear soon, enough so that I can take the M3 out of storage at the beginning of April. It's hard to believe that spring is "just around the corner"...

I've seen a few more of these electric Audis. I like the way they look

The house looks good with a bit of snow on it.

The off-road version of the Bronco looks the part

There has been quite a lot of skating this winter

When the neighbours are out of town, I have room to wash the BMW in the garage

Cool off-road modified Impreza

The Mustang still looks good...

... much better than its German equivalent.

Cadillac always makes good-looking performance models

The new M240i... not ugly...

... but definitely uglier than the model it replaces.

A rare 2-door version of the new Defender

Also rare: an Alpina B6

Not rare, but rare to see a Pathfinder of this vintage is such good condition

Too much pop and bang with the exhaust?

The new M3 looks OK from some angles...

... but not all

Unexpected: a "Pink Pig" livery on a Taycan

Fun wrap on this GTi

This is the new Mk.8 GTi... very uninspiring design

They boys with their great instructor, Samuel

First time skiing!

... it was snowing on the day we went skiing

You can't really see it in the photo, but this Celica actually had snow chains on the front tires!

There is a Urus in there somewhere

The boys at the Aviation Museum

Clean Audi S4, V8 and manual

Aston Martin DBX near the kids' school. Not as nice up close as I remembered it.

The "old" M4 was not perfect, but it was decent-looking

The M8 sedan is huuuuge

I think that soon, we will barely see E46 BMW's on the road anymorw

Good winter car

... although I love to see sports cars in winter too. What colour is this?

I really like the Sci-Fi look of the new Ioniq 5, as well as the retro touches.

Thinking about the Civic and driving on track...

Fueling up the Civic

Usually, when we are deep into winter, I start really missing driving the Civic and wishing the track season was underway. In a way, it's worse this year, because I haven't driven the Civic since June when the engine broke. I have been watching a lot of track videos and playing Assetto Corsa (where I have downloaded a couple of Civics to drive) and I don't know if this makes things better or worse...

I was looking at my data from my sessions at ICAR. Strangely, my best lap ever at ICAR (1:46.85) did not come in 2021, but rather in my last session of 2020 (See story here). This is weird, because I managed to head to ICAR five times in 2021 before the car broke. 

1) On April 20th 2021, I was having issues with the vtec cutting out and managed a 1:48.08.

2) On April 27th, I had a clutch failure and on my only clean lap of my 2nd session, I managed a 1:47.27.

3) On May 18th, my exhaust came unbolted in my first session. I fixed it and headed out again, and managed a 1:47.34.

4) On May 25th, nothing broke. The weather was hot, and I managed a 1:47.68.

5) On June 1st, I only got out for one session before it rained, and I was dealing with traffic in the intermediate group. As a result, I only managed only a 1:48.54. 

I couldn't know at the time that this would be my last session at ICAR in 2021 (my engine failure at Calabogie happened on June 18th). You always think you will have more time to do stuff, and then time runs out! 

Watching videos of other people's cars (and even my own videos), I am not envious of the cars they have... I really am satisfied driving my Civic, and I don't wish it was an M3 or GT3. I'm just envious that they are on track and I am not. My car is in pieces now, but I really hope Choo will be able to put everything back together in time for the track season this year. 

Looking at the data from ICAR in 2021, I can see that I am not 100% consistent yet from lap to lap or session to session, but I can still see some improvement. I really, really hope I will get to attend a whole bunch of evening sessions this year...

First road trip in the 535i

There are not a ton of normal activities that we are allowed to do during this phase of the pandemic. Luckily, we have a comfortable car and we can drive... and drive. We decided to take a short trip to Gaspésie right after Christmas and it was a real pleasure making the trip in a luxury cruiser like the 535i. The holidays have been weird, because we hardly saw any friends or family. I've had time to watch quite a few cool car videos and have been playing Assetto Corsa a lot. I am focusing on learning the Nordschleife so that when I one day travel there, I will at least know what the next corner (sort of) looks like, and also on driving as many virtual laps as possible at Tremblant, Mosport and Calabogie. It's nowhere near as fun as actual track driving and it's really making me miss my Civic and summer!

Pit stop in Murdochville

Jules with a moose

Cool Van

Enjoying the hot tub at the hotel

One of many, many visits to the pool

The Fiat 500 is so much smaller than a current 3-series

I found this old photo in my archives of the only era when I had 2 race cars (2002-2003)

Still some cool cars on the road

...including this 370Z

I've seen a bunch of these Audi's, but was never able to get a photo!

... memories of the track in 2021

... and of summer in general

Can't wait to drive the Civic again...

... and of course the M3

Good car vs. fun car

I have been driving the 535i for about a month now. It is an excellent car. It has snowed a bit and the car does pretty well in slippery conditions, although not as well as the Saab. I enjoy the driving experience to a certain extent, mainly because the car is so comfortable and luxurious. It performs well: not too harsh or soft over bumps, more than enough power. However, it is not fun to drive, at all. I wonder if I should not have chosen a less luxurious but more fun model, like a 2011 328i (manual, normally aspirated) or a 2012 320i or 328i in manual. Part of the problem is the size and mass of the car, and part of it is the automatic transmission. There is very little feel for what the car and the tires are doing when you drive it. I already miss the M3 (it will be back on the road in the spring) and I really miss the way the Saab drives. As I look at the BMW's I see on the road, I wonder if BMW still makes any fun cars at all, or whether all cars are now less fun. The new Supra is a beautiful car, and not too big, but I wonder if it is fun to drive, or just a smaller version of the 535i... I hope that at some point in the future I can get a small manual car, just to have a bit of fun when I'm driving, and to do some TSD rallies with Josée... something like a Honda Fit, a Mini, or a Fiat 500. 

Now that it has begun to snow, most of the cool cars are parked for winter. Here are some photos from the last few days before it snowed. 

First part: WHEN BMW'S WERE FUN CARS

Local manual 635csi

I love these wheels on the E46

I've never driven an E36 Kompact, but I imagine they are fun...

... like a mix of en E30 and E36

A more modern model, but still seems as if it would be fun

I've seen this modified E24 many times

Another clean E46

Yet another 635csi at the same garage near Laurier...

It's sitting very high, which makes me wonder if the engine is even it in.

Other interesting spots:

Old 7-series wheels look cool on the F10, but I think these tires are not tall enough

TT on Rotiforms looks more modern than a new Audi

The previous generation 3-series wagon was a good-looking car

Nice colour for this G-Wagen

Small cars from the 80's and 2010's

Aggressively modified STi

The Supra looks great on the road

Another cool spot at the local garage...

... an Ur-S4

M-Package F10 5-series, just like mine except for the colour

The new Civic is not ugly, but not especially pretty. I like the wheels on this model.