Seeping Matter - Latest Comments

Re: Tim Taylor Would Be So Proud

Laptopständer — Tue, 09 Jul 2013 04:00:03 -0000

The two tone design with white sides/legs with the oak style top and back
panel adds that contemporary look to it. Using it in the living room the
legs easily slide under the sofa to allow the stand to be closer to me
if I'm chilling out on the sofa after a long day.

Re: Circuit of the Americas Follow-Up

boxdin — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 19:40:05 -0000

I did the math, it would have cost us half as much to attend the Baltimore GP (fly)where I have 4 grandkids to see than the F1 Austin (drive).
We too did not attend the F1 race for the reasons you state, but we will be going to the Rolex race in March 2013. I did book a timeshare a half hour away because I had a use it or lose it week, but we really wanted to take the small rv to the track like we do at so many other tracks. Even now, 2/10/13, there is zero info avail regarding RVs at the track. However a brand new RV park w zero amenities has sprung up outside the COTA gate, w a fee of 275.00 for 3 days stay ! No Elec, No water, just a pasture.
I have emailed the track a couple of times and asked what they have against RVs? Over the yrs I've watched many tracks to into bankrupt situations, despite a few successful events, will the same thing happen to COTA ?
A steak dinner says yes. On by the way, that 25 million paid to Bernie is a annual recurring payment. I'm not sure the state of TX is willing to pay Bernie 25 mill every year?

Re: MDMethod – A New Technique for Software Development Estimation

Keighley Josiah — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 15:33:57 -0000

LOL.this is very catchy and informative as well..thanks for the post....

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Kevin Prates — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 20:26:40 -0000

I'm with you on this Matt... I guess we know who has the financial means to complain about a legitimate concern that COTA is not realistically addressing. Great Blog!

Re: Phone Update

mattvryan — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 14:07:50 -0000

I forgot - unlike the Windows 7 phone, my new Android phone is also an EXCELLENT music player.

Re: Circuit of the Americas Follow-Up

mattvryan — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 13:44:29 -0000

Thanks for your comment; glad to help. Hopefully if there is enough noise about this COTA will make some adjustments so that us grassroots fans can support the event.
However, my understanding is that they still have not finalized camping, parking, or public transport options, but they apparently have finalized the "be flown into the track via private helicopter" option, which, among other things, is causing me to think that they really want to create a glamorous, prestigious event that only the rich and famous can attend. This would indeed be disappointing, so I look forward to COTA proving to all of us that this is not the case.

Re: Circuit of the Americas Follow-Up

Cary Glen Noel — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 13:11:32 -0000

Matt,
I am grateful to see my own frustrations so well spoken in this and your previous post. I have been feeling left in limbo about making my plans to attend the USGP. I am an avid F1 fan who hasn't missed watching a race in nearly 10 years, yet I have never been able to attend a race in person. For sure this was the year to do it. Austin is close enough so I figured that I would stretch my budget to attend

I bought 2 general admission tickets. The grandstand seats were too expensive for me considering I would have all the other travel expenses. The main way I knew I could make this work is by doing what I have done many times before at my local tracks, and what I see F1 fans doing at tracks across the world: ON-SITE CAMPING. Can I afford 4 nights at $300 ($1200) for a hotel? Absolutely not. I expect to pay about $50/night for camping and the enjoyment of staying at the track with all my other fellow race fans, as well as the freedom to enjoy some beers during the day and not have to worry about driving.

The airline prices are around $1400 right now for me to fly 2 from the west coast. Driving is an alternative, but not ideal for me considering the extra time I'd need to take off work.

Frankly I could plan a trip to an F1 race in Europe, where I could take public transport and camp at the track, for not much more total cost.

It's amazing to me that we still don't have any solid information regarding camping or parking at this point. What's up COTA?

~Cary

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

mattvryan — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 15:10:23 -0000

I blogged a follow-up to this here: http://www.mvryan.org/2012/...

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

mattvryan — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 11:51:14 -0000

Those are my suspicions as well. I figure people behave rationally, and so when I don't understand something I have to construct the reality wherein I would make the same decisions as they are. And in this case, that reality is one where the organizers are intentionally trying to exclude the grass roots supporters and create a glamorous event targeted only at the wealthy. I don't see any other explanations that make sense.
I appreciate your comment. I've given up on trying to get meaningful information from COTA on this, but it looks like you've gathered some pretty meaningful information. If you can get to the track by helicopter but not by driving yourself there, clearly this is an event not meant to cater to people like myself.
Maybe I'll save my money and go to Spa next year. Weekend tickets are about half the cost of COTA, and Spa is a dang awesome track.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Austin — Sun, 29 Jul 2012 22:28:52 -0000

This is an event for the super rich. They have focused their attention on the jet set, getting helicopter transport figured out, but little else. Why? Because they see us poor folks as not worth their time. Fill the venue with "whales" and who needs the shrimps. No walk-ins, no bicycles, no camping, RV spot costs $15K. I understand the folks employed by COTA need to troll here and put lipstick on this pig. Fine, They can keep their race, I'll keep my money. (Except what they've extorted from the State of Texas. I'd rather spend the same amount on a wonderful trip to Monoco. Perhaps my faith in the small-fry is over rated, but I think their price-exclusion will be their downfall. Just ask Austin Lyric Opera. They went the same route and are hanging on by a thread after twenty of years of strong attendance.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Chazac — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 21:27:00 -0000

I think I will watch this one on Television and attend the race in New Jersey NEXT YEAR. I had high hopes for the Austin Race...but I can't afford it. And I don't buy all the excuses that Matt and others give.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

mattvryan — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 12:19:20 -0000

I'm not sure how to make any sense of your comment, but I'm guessing that you are suggesting that the weekend would cost less than a pair of slicks, and using this as an argument for me to just wing it and go.

That argument assumes that I buy slicks to race with, which simply isn't true, so the whole argument falls on it's face right there. However, just for fun I priced out a set of slicks on Mickey Thompson's website, and the most expensive ones I found were about $400 each, not much more than the ticket price to attend the F1 race. That doesn't include any hotel stays, food, or 3000 miles worth of gas. So unless you are thinking of sleeping in a ditch on the side of the road and walking to the race every day, I don't see how you could do this for the cost of a set of slicks, assuming you are a person who buys slicks in the first place. Especially if you are buying two F1 tickets, like me.

And of course all of this is completely beside the point of the article. You didn't tell me how I'm supposed to get to the track either, or where I am to camp while I'm there.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

JohnInAustin — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:35:07 -0000

Racing is an expensive hobby. I think you can easily make a weekend of this for the price of a set of slicks.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

mattvryan — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 20:28:56 -0000

The following comment was e-mailed directly to me. I'm adding it by permission of the person who e-mailed it.

"I also agree with Matt on this. I don't consider myself to be vastly experienced in attending these types of events, having never been to an F1 GP, but having been to several FIM GP events at different venues (i.e. MotoGP and World Superbike) as well as several smaller series (i.e. ALMS, Rolex, AMA Superbike, etc), I hope my comments will be somewhat pertinent.

"The issue here isn't about finding fault with COTA, because I can only imagine this would be a huge undertaking, and lets hand it to them, up until New Jersey signed on to attempt a 2nd F1 GP on the banks of the Hudson, Texas and the investors involved were the only ones with the guts to do something like this in the US. Take Utah for example. Having hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City with great success, Miller Motorsports Park and the State of Utah are well equipped to handle an event such as an F1 GP with far less capital expenditure compared to building an all new track in Austin. The venue (Miller Motorsports Park) is wonderful (having been named FIM venue of the year in recent years), requiring minimal upgrades to be worthy and acceptable for hosting an F1 GP (namely, paving the runoff areas surrounding the super-safe turns and adding a grandstand or two). Transportation to and from the facility is simple and convenient with Salt Lake International Airport just 30 miles away. Hotels and camping areas abound as they were built in preparation for the massive influx of tourists during the Olympics (and Miller provides both camping and parking for all fans on its own premises with a partnership with an adjacent park for additional camping). But none of this was enough to encourage anyone in Utah to provide financial support for an F1 GP. It would have been 'political suicide' to allow such an expensive event to be hosted there. So, you have to hand it to Texas and the investors at COTA for even doing this in the first place. I sincerely hope that this turns out to be a HUGE success for both COTA, its investors, and the State of Texas.

"This issue is about instilling confidence in the fans and helping them to make plans regarding transportation to and from the track and selecting a place to stay. Unfortunately, at this point, my experience with COTA does not give me the confidence I need to travel over 1500 miles one way to come to the event. I can't really complain about this, as they are obviously under serious pressures from several fronts and having to prioritize which challenges to address first. However, having selected to neglect this portion of the event planning will force me to spend my money differently for this year (having already attended World Superbike, I think I will go to MotoGP at Laguna Seca where camping and parking are available). Of course, my 2 or 3 tickets will not make or break the success of the F1 event. However, I just can't help but wonder if there are others (obviously there are at least a few based on comments here) that will find it challenging to support the event this year as well. Hopefully, for the sake of having this wonderful event be a success in America, I represent a minor segment of racing fans and therefore the event will be successful. Then, after COTA gains experience from its inaugural year (which I really hate to miss), I will plan to attend F1 in Austin in 2013."

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Spiers Imports — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 18:17:53 -0000

Sorry Chance, but I have to agree with Matt & Joe. I have attempted to get info about onsite RV parking for a year, and also received the generic "It's in the works." and even one that indicated that there will, in fact, be RV camping onsite on a first come first serve basis. All I see now is that you have to have purchased premium seating tickets to be eligible to purchase any form of onsite parking. I can't get an answer, and now just about every hotel room is booked! I am considering offsite rv parks, but not sure where to do that because I don't know how I will get to the track. It is a big, unorganized mess right now. My husband and I are avid F1 fans, have been to races in other countries, but this is a mess.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Joe — Tue, 29 May 2012 19:13:58 -0000

I could not agree more with Matt. It took 4 emails before they addressed my camping question and the best I got was still in the works but probably just RV sites no tent camping. I've been to F-1 races in Europe & Indy and camping at the track is a standard at race tracks. The average race fan is left out of the planning.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

mattvryan — Tue, 29 May 2012 00:49:32 -0000

Wow, there is so much I could say here, but I'll just leave it at this: Sounds like you've been to the track, so maybe you can answer my questions: Where do I park my car, and how do I get to the track?

Also, I'm getting the impression you live nearby. Maybe I can stay with you? After all, you should support me in this because you are a RACE FAN.

Re: Hello, Circuit of the Americas – Anyone Home?

Chance Bolton — Thu, 24 May 2012 11:28:02 -0000

Dude, Don't be such a Debbie Downer. First off, they have a staff. I have been to their office in downtown Austin. They are there. Secondly, can you imagine the enormous scope of what they have to do in a very limited time frame, not to mention working through the litigation. I was at the track about a month ago and things are looking great. Recent photos show significant progress since I was there. Hammering out the logistics for an untested event of this size is a major undertaking. It has to go right, so I imagine they are working the details to the nth degree. I am sure that everything will not go perfect. There will be issues. You will not be ushered to the track in golden carriage led by unicorns. It is expensive, I will give you that, but this is a brand new facility built with private funds, not the infinite capital of Dubai's royalty. Investors expect a return. I would suggest you have a little patience, faith and a some loyalty to the sport. You should support this event because you are a RACE FAN.

Re: The Start of the Race

mattvryan — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 03:48:13 -0000

When you are riding a dirt bike you generally take a corner with your inside foot extended forward. This helps to balance the bike as you lean it over and put weight on the outside of the bike to improve traction.
On a motorcycle, the rear brake is applied via a pedal in front of the right foot peg. Thus right turns are more difficult than left turns, because when you are turning right you cannot simultaneously brake the rear wheel and also extend your foot forward to balance.

Since there are already twenty guys cramming themselves into a tiny space and the risk of crashes is already high, usually the track designers try to avoid making it any more complicated by making the first turn a left turn, allowing the riders to brake better entering the turn.

Re: The Start of the Race

Ransom Smith — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 01:08:26 -0000

Wait, what is the reason for the left-handed corner?

Re: Mom’s Journal

dandkhansen — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 19:58:59 -0000

I cried when I read her journal. Thanks for putting your thoughts down, Matt. And I love, mom.

Re: Mom’s Journal

Rebecca Hunt — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 14:40:48 -0000

Thanks for sharing this so I could read it. You mom is so wonderful and I think it's great that she typed up and gave you guys her journal. This entry is very inspiring, thanks, Matt :)

Re: Alabama’s Secret

Mike — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:39:26 -0000

Ridiculous indeed...

Re: How Many Pushups Can You Do?

Dustin Davis — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:17:50 -0000

I would, but I just herniated my back... because I never do push-ups.

Re: How Many Pushups Can You Do?

Matt Ryan — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:12:01 -0000

Some clarifications (based on questions people are asking):

- This is open to women as well as men, sure. Young, old, male, female, nerdy, awesome, whatever.
- Only real pushups are allowed - straight body through the back, hips, and legs, with only your toes and hands touching the floor. No knee-pushups.