Celebrating 15 Years on the Internet #1
Posted by Keith | Filed under BMW, Posts
It’s hard to believe that our first webpage launched on a 5MB shared space with our local ISP over 15 years ago. We built that crude first page with HTML in a text editor and a simple paint program over the Holiday Break in 1996.
No slick domain name, just cheezy graphics, crude formating and photos from the heart of the BMW Z3 world– Spartanburg, SC. At the time, we lived just a couple of miles from the plant and visited often as we waited on our own Z3 to be built and delivered. We shared photos of colors and features that seemed to be changing weekly on the BMW plant’s fleet of loaner Z3s.
The first name of that webpage was “The Upstate South Carolina Z3 Roadster Home Page“. I know it doesn’t roll off the tongue; at least it was self explanatory. As the visitor browsed the various areas of the site they were treated to Johnny River’s version of “Secret Agent Man” in the background. How annoying is that by today’s standards?
Below is a screenshot of what it looked like in it’s glory remember it was 1996/1997 and the Internet was only a playpen compared to where we are today. Visit the Wayback Machine at the Internet Archive to check out other sites over time.
Over the next several months we plan on sharing the various versions of the website(s) over the 15 years we have been doing this as a hobby. You can see how the Internet changed and we changed over the years.
Here’s to the next 15 years on the Internet!
Tags: 15 Years, BMW, HTML, Spartanburg, Z3
PHX Thanksgiving Tradition
Posted by Keith | Filed under Posts, Shows/Events
Every year the International Automobile Show sponsored by Motor Trend makes its rounds through Phoenix over the Thanksgiving weekend. The show opens on Thanksgiving day and allows those who want a break from Turkey dreaming and Black Friday shopping to see some cars. Or perhaps it is a last minute distraction to protect the wallets of consumer’s so they can afford a new car.
We have made this a tradition since we moved to Phoenix. You can usually find tickets for free and the crowds are light in the late morning of Thanksgiving Day–that allows you to get into the cars, walk around and check them out without too much of a hassle. As you enter the hall this year you were dazzled by a large presentation of high end automobiles (Bentley, Rolls Royce, Lotus and Ferrari) secured behind a large rope barrier. Look but do not touch these beauties!
We had a list of cars we wanted to see during the show. We are not actively looking for a new car but, with all of the recent redesigns and new model launches we had a short list to check out. Check out our One Phrase Reviews below.
| Fiat 500 –> | Very Interested, but Forget It |
| Volkswagen Beetle –> | Who Cares-No one else did either |
| Jeep Wrangler Unlimited –> | Upgraded Nicely |
| Mini Cooper Coupe –> | Very Nice |
| Mini Cooper Countryman –> | Very Nice |
| Hyundai Veloster –> | Needs a Real Engine |
| Land Rover Evoque –> | Hipster Material |
| BMW X3 –> | Too Small/Cheap Materials |
| BMW X5 –> | Very Nice, but Pricey |
Make sure you take the opportunity to get out to your local New Car show when it makes it’s rounds this year. It is great to be able to explore the cars without a dealer and have a chance to see how the crowds react to the potential purchase.
Tags: Bentley, Black Friday, Ferrari, Fiat 500, Hyundai, International Auto Show, Jeep, Lotus, mini cooper, Motor Trend, Phoenix, Rolls Royce, Thanksgiving
The List #2 – 5 Cars I Want to Drive from Before I was Born
Posted by Keith | Filed under Posts, The List
I always thought it would be interesting to drive older cars. I use to hear my grandfather talk about driving cars from the 1930 & 1940′s and thought that it would great to be able to experience a time when comfort might not be the first thing on the designer’s mind. Hell, who are we kidding–engineers and enthusiasts built cars at the beginning of the automobile revolution.
Below is a list of 5 cars from before I was born. I won’t tell you when that was but you can take your best guess if I tell you the Ford Mustang was a very new car model.
What are your 5 cars? We would love to hear.
Have one of these gems and want to hook an enthusiast up to help make a dream come true–email me!
Tags: BMW Isetta, Ford Model T, Ford Mustang, Mercedes Benz Gullwing, Porsche 356, Tucker
Happy Veterans Day
Posted by Keith | Filed under Posts
Thank You to all of those veterans and their families that served this country.
Tags: Imperial Palace, Las Vegas, Veterans Day
We are big car/motorcycle fans and even BIGGER BMW fans. We fell in love with the the marque in 1996 and have been dedicated since then.