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NorthGeorgiaWX

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  1. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Tear it Down

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Home
    So.... the first day was fun to watch! They ripped out the boulder wall, all of the remaining shrubs, tree stumps, and other debris. 
    They started around 11 AM, taking the boulders that made up the old wall, and placing them on the other side of the driveway. That side was pretty steep and I wanted to shore it up as much as possible, so that my driveway stays where it's suppose to stay. That process took about three hours, and after than they ripped everything else out. 
    In these two pictures, you can see the boulders that are being moved.


     
    Here's a good before and after, minus the boulders.

     

     
    The small tree on this end of the drive will have to come down.


     
    I was hoping to keep this tree on this end of the drive, but I'm afraid it will need to go too. It's a beautiful maple, and I hate to lose it. 


     
    All of those boulders that made up that wall, ended up here. It was a perfect fit, as all of the boulders got used.  These will really help to reinforce the bank. 


     
    The rocks have since been covered with dirt and daffodils will be planted all over the bank.

     
    What we're putting down on the bank.

     
     
    I managed to get a time lapse video of the first day of demolition, and this is what it looked like.
     
  2. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Before

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Front Yard
    These are some before pictures of the front "yard". First, a few things about living here in Big Canoe.
    You can't have a regular yard here, meaning, you can't have a grass front yard. I love it, no grass to cut for me! The POA (our HOA) has to approve all the projects like this, and we had to get a variance for the Right of Way for the top wall.  The POA was very helpful, and gracious for allowing us to redesign the front in a manner that helps them and us. For them, it keeps their road from washing away, and for us, it keeps our bank from washing away.  In this post, I'll try to explain why we decided to change the area in front of the house. 
    The pictures probably make the drive look wider and shallower than it is, so they are a little deceiving. The drive is a semi-circle, and this is the entrance that we normally come in from. The only problem here is the stairs and handrail that was about to fall down. One thing you can't tell in these pictures, is how high the road is compared to the bottom of driveway. This entrance is not as shallow as the camera makes it look, and this is the shallow side of the drive. The bigger problems happen as we move toward the right in the picture.

     
    First, the weather station was only sitting there temporarily! One of the primary reasons for doing the renovation was to get more parking/turn around space. The problem here is the space from that garage door, to the wall. It's sometimes an issue backing out of the garage, especially if we park the SUV against the wall, and pulling back in requires getting right up against the wall, and making a wide swing toward the door. It's very tight and the wife doesn't want to do it, so her car parks on the other side of the garage. Also, if multiple cars pull in, the lead car has to leave first so others can get out, so the extra parking space will be nice. That existing boulder wall (that has already been torn down) will be replaced by the lower of the two new retaining walls, and it will be pulled back in 3-4 feet. 

     
     
    This picture gives you a better idea of the slope of the bank. Also notice that the road slopes up about 4-5 feet from this end of the drive where I'm taking the picture from, to the other end of the drive. The other reason for the walls, is to keep the road from washing down into our yard, and to keep the bank from eroding. Many of the plants that were originally planted, haven't survived, so what was left were a bunch of scraggly plants. The area between the road and the top wall will be landscaped, and the 8 feet between the top wall and lower wall will be landscaped, and that is where the water feature is going. You see this better as things start to take shape. 

     
    In this image, you can start to see the slope at the other end of the drive. Unfortunately, the drive slopes can't be changed, but we're use to it. There are a few people that come to visit that get a little freaked out with this steep part, because it is about a 30% slope. 🙂 The upper retaining wall will be 8 feet from the white line at the edge of the road, and those shrubs have already been removed. That's in the next post. 

     
    The plants in front of the house will be removed and replaced by new ones, so that area will look very different as well. 

     
    In the next post I'll show what they accomplished in the first two days of work. Prior to the destruction of the bank, we had four trees taken down, and will probably have to take one more.  We will be replacing those with trees that are friendlier to retaining walls, and I think those might be some Japanese Maples. I would show the plan, but we've had to change it and I don't have the updated copy yet. 
     
  3. NorthGeorgiaWX

    2023 AGLCA Fall Rendezvous

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Loop
    We just got back from the looper gathering at Wheeler State Park over in Alabama, and what an amazing event. So much information, so many beautiful boats (all types), and some of the nicest people that you could ever meet. Many people that were there are in the planning stages, but others are in progress, and others are Gold and Platinum loopers (gold is twice, platinum is more than twice). There were numerous seminars about all aspects of doing the loop, from wind and weather, anchoring, buying a boat, navigation, and many others. There were also sections where experienced loopers shared detailed information about different sections of the loop. I attended two of those, the first was from just north of Clearwater Florida to Miami, and the other was about going to the Bahamas. Really, really good information. People also shared the tools they use for navigation and how to share the location so others can track the path of the boat. There were vendors as well as boat brokers, boating insurance, and other boat related services. There are were also captains that will train you and help bring you boat back to your home port, which is a service we will absolutely use. 
    But probably the best part of the vent, was the Loop Crawls. Every afternoon around 4, we got to go down to the docks and explore all the different boats, inside and out. There aren't many places where you can actually get on 40 boats, and not just any boat, but boats that are actually doing the loop right now. One boat just started the loop 2 days ago. 🙂 Here are a few of the other boats. I should have taken a picture of each boat.






     

     
    We think we found a boat that would be suitable for extended traveling for us. Because there are so many types of boats doing the loop, there is no "perfect" boat. Whatever your personal requirements are determine what boat you choose. Obviously, the wife's likes and wants will play a big part in what boat we get, and it needs to be spacious on the inside, not only for us, but for any guest that would like to travel with us, and it should have the basic creature comforts that you might have at home. 
    What we found was this boat, and it's a 2007 Cruiser 455 Express Motor Yacht. This boat is not for sale (we we tried to steal it from them), but it is currently 2500 miles into the loop. The owners, Peter and Kim Squier were very gracious in allowing us to climb all over their boat and explain all of the features to us. 


     
    The specs for this boat are:
    Length: 45'6" Draft: 3'3" Beam: 15'4" Fuel Capacity: 500 gals. Water Capacity: 140 gals. Waste Capacity: 100 gals. From Powerboat
     
    Here's a look at a Cruiser 455
     
    I took some pictures, but I discovered after the fact that some of them were blurry, but here are some the show what the video didn't.
    It does have a combo washer/dryer. 

     
    This is the forward stateroom, and it's very roomy.

    Forward head. It has a standup shower. 

     
    Two smaller berths next to the washer/dryer.

     
    Eating area.

     
    Headed down to the Master bedroom.

     
    Master

     
    Master shower

     

     
    Yes... it has a tub. 🙂 

     
    Queen bed

     
    Cockpit area behind  the upper cockpit.

     
    Looking down inside the cabin.

     
    The boat has bow and stern thrusters, and they can be controlled with a handheld remote control. The throttle and steering can also be controlled with a handheld remote. 

     
    This is looking from the slightly lower rear cockpit, toward the front. This top area has heat and air conditioning. At the bottom of the picture is a refrigerator/freezer. On top of the hardtop are three solar panels that provide 1400 watts of solar power for charging batteries. It also has AIS, radar, sonar, GPS, and a full set of Navionics equipment.

     
    I now have Custis Stokes and Associates to help me find one that will suit our needs, so we'll see what they can come up with! If this boats were for sell, I would certainly buy it. 
    This was on a different boat, but a really nice dinghy.

  5. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Good afternoon!
    Sorry, I've been pre-occupied with a hurricane, so now I can re-focus. 🙂
    It's gonna be hot. There really isn't much to discuss, hot and dry are the two key words for the next 7 days. Oh... and no rain. These are the official forecast high temperatures. The DOW is in the top right corner of each image.





     
    Zero rainfall through 2 PM Thursday the 7th. Or so the Weather Prediction Center says.

     
    Dew points will remain in the 50's and 60's, so there won't be much in the way of humidity to add to the heat. All in all, not a bad forecast for the Nationals. I would take the heat over the rain any day, even though I hate the heat. I always found that the heat made me drive worse. 
    Hope you all have a great time. I'll be back tomorrow to complete the forecast.
  6. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Good morning!
    I've been spending my energy watching the tropical system in the Gulf, so it is time to re-focus. We're getting close to September 1 (and the start of meteorological fall), and we are now in range of the official NWS forecast. First, there is no sign of rain through about the 6th of the month, so that's the good news.
    The bad news is of course, the heat. Fortunately, the worst of the heat will remain just to the south over Kansas, at least to start with. We'll start with the highs on August 30th, and go from there.


     
    Close to 100, and on that concrete, it will certainly feel like it. 


     
    These are the high temp anomalies for the 1st and 2nd.


     
    I think the Euro and Canadian ensembles have the best handle on the temperatures, the GFS has been sniffing too much race fuel.



     
    Here how the rainfall totals look through September 3rd. Please don't ask where Nebraska is. 🙂 

  7. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Good afternoon!
    Well, 7 days until the ProSolo starts, so we will now be able to give you a little better idea what to expect with the weather.
    I hope I didn't get too many hopes up about cooler weather, because  I think we can forget about any hope of that happening. The core of the high pressure and the heat, is going to be centered almost directly over Nebraska. Let's just call it the bullseye like it is. Here are the three major global deterministic models, the GFS, Euro, and Canadian. All the images show a 5 day average temperature anomaly from August 30 to September 4. Notice that the GFS is the hottest of the three, and I suspect it's a little overdone.



     
    Looking at a meteogram from each of the three models, we see highs like this. The Euro falls in the middle, so I'd lean on that one for now. 



    Looking at the Euro max temps, this is Thursday, August 31. The date is in the top right corner of the image. The time doesn't matter since the images show a daily max.

     

     

     

     
    If you're looking for rain to cool things off, you'll have to look really long and hard. In these multi run images, you can see the trends from the oldest model run at the top of the image, to the newest at the bottom. If anything, the chance for rain is going down.



     
    Looking past the 3rd, it's not looking any better. These are 10 day average temp anomalies. This particular image is from the GFS ensemble and runs from Sunday, August 27 through Wednesday, September 6. I'll get an update later, for some reason it's stuck at September 6.

     
    The Euro is from Tuesday the 29th to Friday the 8th.

     
    And the Canadian is from  Wednesday, the 30th to Friday night on the 9th. Either way, all are above normal, and all show the greatest concentration of heat right over Nebraska. You're welcome. 🙂 

     
  8. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Good afternoon!
    Instead of using a weather picture as the featured phot on the post, I'd thought I'd dig back through my pictures from past Nationals and highlight a few that I thought were cool. Try to guess the year, and you'll have to tell me who's car it is. 🙂
    I'm still focused on the ProSolo for the next day or two, but also watching the 4th-8th for anything major. If you are driving in the ProSolo and dreading the heat in Lincoln, then things may be looking up, at least for part of the event.
    Here's a look at the high temperatures from the national Blend of Models, and it covers the period from Wednesday, August 30th to Sunday September 3rd. This is as far out as the model goes at the moment, so we'll see where it takes us as we move closer to the event.  Here is the NWS description for this particular model.
    It's basically what the name implies, it's a blend of models, and that doesn't make it right, wrong, or a forecast. But it is similar to an ensemble since it blends many different scenarios into one. With all of that being said, these are the maps. Notice that there are no triple digit temperatures on the maps. The highs would be low 90's to start and dropping back down to the freezing mid to upper 80's by the 3rd. Ok, not really freezing. 🙂 Timing may also vary.





     
    The ensembles are still showing 5-7 degrees above normal for that time period, so we're not out of the fire just yet. 
    Here's a look at the temp anomalies from the Euro, Canadian, and GFS ensembles. The GFS is the outlier and considerably warmer than these two. These are 5 day average anomalies centered on the dates of Aug 30 through the end of the day on September 3.



     
    Right now it looks like a slight chance of a shower each day through the 3rd, but the probability and confidence level is low on that.  No matter how you slice it, Lincoln is either in, or close to the rain "hole". These are 7 day totals from the ensembles, ending the night of the 3rd.


     
    More tomorrow!
  9. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Good morning!
    We are inching closer to the realm of the medium range global models, so that will be a big help. Yesterday I left out the ProSolo folks, so I wanted to touch on that today.
    First we'll look at the ensembles, since we are just a little too far out to rely on the deterministic models right now. Tropical Storm Harold will be making landfall today over Texas, and that will be bringing some rainfall to Lincoln next Saturday and Sunday. The rain and moisture will wrap around an area of high pressure over OK/TX, and will bring some much needed rain to the central plains.

     
    The next two images are the ensemble temperatures for Lincoln through Tuesday, September 5th. It's hot but still not double digits. The di pin temperatures is due to TS Harold's rainfall.

     
    The GFS ensembles are hotter. 

     
    Compare the Euro ensemble to this Euro deterministic run. Close.

     
    As for precipitation, these images depict the "spread" in all of the ensemble members. The Euro has 50 ensemble members plus one control member. Notice the small stair steps as we get to Sunday the 3rd.

     
    The GFS ensemble shows the same stair step pattern. So for now, it appears that there may be a slight daily chance for precipitation beginning around the 1st and continuing through at least the 7th.

     
     

  10. NorthGeorgiaWX

    2023 SCCA Solo National Championship Weather

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Solo Nationals Weather
    Good afternoon everyone!

    It's been a while since I've posted, but it's that time again! We are still pretty far out in time for most of the computer models, but a few of the ensembles may give us a hint as to what everyone might expect for the start of the Nationals.
    The Euro ensemble goes out to 15 days, so this is what Tuesday, September 5 looks like to the Euro in terms of temperature anomalies.

     
    The GFS goes out slightly further but not much. It's thinking warmer temps than the Euro

     
    And there are the temperatures. We need a few more days to see where the models take this, 

     
    Again, this only goes to August 31st. We do see rain from the tropical system (#9) that is currently in the Gulf, impacting Nebraska before the end of the month, but we just don't know much further than the 5th or so right now, so please check back.

     
    All of that being said, the GFS Extended and Euro Weeklies suggest that Lincoln will be among the hottest and driest places in the country for that week.
    GFS Extended


     
    Euro Weeklies


     
    More in a day or two!
     
  11. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Ever since we were down in the Keys, I've had this desire to get back on the water. My fun on the water started when I was 7 years old and continued through high school. My dad had been a fighter pilot in the Air Force and weather was an important thing to know when flying. So when he put me in charge of keeping track of the weather, I handled that job until I left for college. We went through three boats before I went off to college and missed the rest of the fun, but during the time I was there, we traveled up and down the Cumberland River to Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake, and brought his third boat down from Holland Michigan, where it was made (Chris Craft), all the way back to Nashville. My love for the water was solidly entrenched in me and despite all of these years being on dry land, it's something that doesn't ever really go away.
    Boat #1 - No Name - 17 foot Chris Craft
    I was probably in the 3nd or 4th grade when this picture was taken. I lived in Paris Tennessee when I was in the 2nd through 4th grade and my dad kept this boat at the Paris Landing Marina on Kentucky Lake. I don't remember a lot about this boat except for the time me and my dad took it out to drain some water out that had accumulated after some rain. To do that you had to get up on plane and then open a plug that was located near the lower rear of the boat. Easy enough. Except that the lake was REALLY rough (the lake is almost two miles across at that point) and I was driving while my dad pulled the plug. I was pretty young to be doing that and I remember that it scared the crap out of me. 🙂 But I did get to spend 2-3 years on Kentucky Lake as a kid, and that was the start to my boating fun.

     
    Boat #2 - BobaRue - 32 foot Burns Craft
    We moved back to Nashville and we had the first boat there for a short time before my dad bought this boat. It was a 32 foot Burns Craft houseboat and he spec'd out everything on the boat. I remember going to the factory and looking at all the boats they were building, and listening to my parents go over all the options etc. It was a boat that I spent a lot of years on. We kept this boat at Old Hickory Marina and ran it up and down the Cumberland River to Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake. To do that you end up going through several locks, and being a kid, I loved the adventure! 
    The boat was pretty nice. It used twin Mercruiser 302 cubic inch gas engines that made 215 hp each, and the boat would get up and go! It was great traveling around in all kinds of weather, and we even took it out when it was snowing! Awesome experience! My sister and I slept in the forward cabin, and that cabin had the little window that you see on the side of the hull. 



     
    Boat #3 - Moonraker - 41 Foot Chris Craft
    This was a step up from the house boat and was a much more capable boat in rougher water. My dad bought this boat brand new (he had it built) from Chris Craft in Holland Michigan. My dad, the owner of the marina that we were going to keep it at, and myself, flew from Nashville to Michigan to pick it up and sail it back to the home marina. The plan was to bring the boat down lake Michigan to Chicago, and then through the locks to the Chicago Sanitary Ship Canal where we passed directly through downtown Chicago, At some point past Chicago it becomes the Illinois River, so you continue south to the Mississippi River. Head downstream until you get to the Ohio River and hang a left to head toward Paducah Kentucky. At that point you have two choices to get back to Nashville, get on the Tennessee River and go through the locks at Kentucky Dam, or continue a few miles further and get on the Cumberland River and go through the locks at Barkley Dam. Either way will get you back to Nashville since Kentucky Lake and Barkley Lake are connected by a narrow canal. Kentucky Lake is fed by the Tennessee River and Barkley Lake is fed by the Cumberland River.  Once you're on the Cumberland River you pass through the locks at Cheatham Dam before arriving in Nashville. We continued past the downtown area toward Old Hickory Lake where the boat would be docked. The last lock is at Old Hickory Dam where you make a 60 foot rise to get to the lake. 

     
    The trip was fairly uneventful except for the first 3 days. Lake Michigan is always full of surprises and on this trip that was no exception. We headed south toward Chicago from Holland which is on the east side of the lake. After traveling about an hour or so under pretty nice conditions, the weather took a turn for the worse and the waves got larger and larger. They ended up being so large, that when you were in the trough of the wave, you couldn't see over the top of the next wave. Look at the picture above and you can see how high I am off the water and you start to get an idea of what we were facing. The other issue with waves on Lake Michigan is that the wave period is very short meaning not a lot of distance from crest to crest. Combine the short wave period with the wave height, and we ended up getting the props out of the water when we crested the wave peaks. We finally got close enough to find a place to take shelter, and it ended up being the docks for the ore carriers. They allowed us to stay until the lake calmed down, but that took three days. In the meantime, they were not letting any of the ore carriers leave either. 

     
    Once we passed through most of the Chicago area, we stopped to spent the night at a small dock on the Illinois River. At some point someone from the other side of the river started taking pot shots at us using a pellet gun. Chicago is NOT my favorite place and I don't care if I ever see it again. But I will have to do it one more time.... and I will talk about that soon.
     


     
    Boat #4 - Eastwind - 53 Foot Chris Craft 
    I don't know much about this boat as I was off in college and working. I don't think my dad had this one for long, and I don't have many pictures. I believe this was taken before they bought it.

     
    Boat #4 - Silver Cloud - 65 Foot Hatteras 
    I never got to spend much time on this boat either. I was living about 8-9 hours away (they lived in Venice Florida) and was working, so I couldn't come down as often as I would have liked. My parents took this boat on part of the "Great Loop", leaving from Venice Florida and travelled all the way to Maryland and Chesapeake Bay. Unfortunately, I wasn't on that trip but sure would have loved to have been there. All of these boats don't mean a lot to most people, and you probably wonder why I have shared this with you.

     
    When we were down in Key West and we took that sunset cruise, I walked up to the bow of the boat and stood for a while. The sound of the water, the warm wind, and the feeling of freedom flowed all over me and brought back all of the of memories of being on boats. There is just something magical about it that I can't even describe. 
    A few months ago I discovered a site that was discussing a boat trip called the "Great Loop",  so I started reading about what that was all about. 
    "Loopers cruise the 6,000-mile Great Loop route aboard their own boats completing a circumnavigation of the eastern U.S. and part of Canada via mostly protected inland waterways. The Great Loop route follows the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the Chesapeake Bay, and the New York Canals northwards, goes across the Great Lakes, south on the Inland Rivers, and then east Gulf Coast to complete the Loop."
    Here's a basic map of the loop. There are alternate routes in some areas, and lots of places to enjoy side trips along the way. 

     
    The loop has been done in as little as 6 weeks and as long as 12 years, but generally it takes people a year or so to complete the entire route. There is no timeframe for completion. However, there are certain times of the year when you need to be on specific sections of the loop. During the winter, you need to be down south as most of the marinas and facilities are closed on the northern part of the loop. So you do the northern part during the summer and the southern part during the winter. People generally do the loop counterclockwise as that direction keeps you from having to sail upstream against the strongest currents, so you're doing the downhill portion from Chicago to the Gulf in the spring and up the east coast in the fall. Maybe... Weather, side trips, trips back to the house for a little break, all dictate the timing of where you will be at any specific time. 

    Some people take extended side trips off of the main route. For example if you are in Florida during the winter, you might as well head over to the Bahamas to spend a little time there, or around the Tennessee area, I would explore the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers as far as they go. Once you get up to New York, some people head up to the seaport towns of New England. It's all about what you want out of the trip.
    So.... Amy and I have decided to start looking for a boat so we can participate in this big adventure! There are some size restrictions for boats that want to make the loop, and it all comes down to the draft of the boat, both water draft and air draft. A lot of the time you'll be traveling on the intercoastal waterway as well as some shallow offshore areas and canals. A boat for the loop needs to have 5 feet or less of draft in order to keep from hitting the bottom and/or tearing up props. The out of water height (air draft) is just as important, as there are some fixed bridges that are pretty low, so you generally want a boat that is less than 17 feet high out of water, although there are alternate routes that allow you to go a little higher. Many boats have mast and antennas that fold down for those situations, but it's critical to know the exact height of the boat for this trip. The boat will probably be int he 40-50 foot range.
    Otherwise, get whatever boat you'll feel comfortable in for an extended amount of time. The boat doesn't have to be fast since in most areas you can't go fast anyway.  It needs to have at least 250 mile range since there is a stretch or two with no place to stop for fuel, and with diesel engines that is not a problem. Diesel engines are a must as well as the latest electronics (navigation, radar, radios, beacons, auto pilot). A good solid dinghy is a must as well as bow and stern thrusters, the capability of enclosing the fly bridge and aft deck, walk around beds in the main cabin, cat walks down the side of the boat, as well as other miscellaneous things that I'm sure I'll have to add. I would love to have a Great Harbor 37 or 47, so I may start my search with that in mind. Can't wait to get started!
    I now belong to the Great Loop Association, and they have a ton of resources for making this journey. This site will answer any questions you might have about the loop.
    AGLCA | Homepage
    WWW.GREATLOOP.ORG  
    Here is an article from some loopers about traveling through the "Dismal Swamp" that I thought was pretty cool.
    Great Dismal Swamp – For Many Moons
    MINDFULMARY.ORG We're here! I've been looking forward to this for a long time, having heard about it for decades. We had to time it right to arrive at the southern lock at opening time, since the two locks that book-end the canal open on a schedule. We traveled in a parade of three boats...a Nordic Tug…
  12. NorthGeorgiaWX
    If changes are made, the latest changes will appears here. 
    Last Update: 01/23/23
    2016 Obsession Red Sedan

    Xtreme-DI high pressure fuel pump Xtreme-DI fuel cam ZZP valve springs Deatschwerks DW400 low pressure fuel pump JMS Voltage Increaser for low pressure fuel pump Renick Performance charge pipes with Synapse bypass valves Renick Performance cold air intake GM throttle body for LFX motor Renick Performance vacuum tank  Renick Performance downpipes Vibrant 4” resonator with custom 4” single mid pipe Turbobay turbo's with custom designed inlets ZZP rear trailing arms  Carlyle rear toe bars Renick Performance RP 556 wheels, 19x9.5 and 19x11 Renick Performance Swift springs Michelin PS4S tires, 275/30-19 and 305/30-19 ZZP Flex fuel sensor  Renick Performance carbon fiber mirror covers AEM Wideband Sensor Stainless brake lines Porterfield R4S pads and Motul 600 brake fluid Renick Performance blacked out grills and emblems Roof wrap GTechniq's Crystal Serum Ultra ceramic treatment Tuned by Justin Schmidt  
    2017 Phantom Gray Coupe

    Aric Miller HPFP DSX Flex Fuel Sensor AEM Wideband Sensor Xtreme-DI low pressure fuel pump Renick Performance downpipes Renick Performance cold air intake ZZP rear trailing arms  Renick Performance RP 556 and RP 416 wheels, 19x9.5 and 19x11 Michelin PS4S and Yokohama AD08 tires, 275/30-19 and 305/30-19  Renick Performance sway bars SPL adjustable end links Stainless brake lines Porterfield R4S pads and Motul 600 brake fluid Renick Performance blacked out grills and emblems Eibach springs GTechniq's Crystal Serum Ultra ceramic treatment Tuned by Justin Schmidt
  13. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Siblings

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Car
    01/21/23 - Updated a few sections, mostly the mod section. For more updates and changes see the additional blog posts. 
    Well.... my wife really needed a nicer car as hers was getting old and she has been a Cadillac girl since she had her 2001 Cadillac SLS in Obsession Red. So.... we found one a little newer in the color she likes. 🙂
    This is the newest addition to the family... a 2016 ATS-V sedan. 🙂 Yes, another ATS-V.  

     
    This one is a little special though. It looks pretty unassuming doesn't it? Just your normal Cadillac if you didn't know any better. But if you thought you might like to have a little run against it, you had better come loaded for bear. This car was originally built to be the fastest ATS-V in the country, but that isn't our goal for it now. The times below were done before the turbo's were replaced with a couple that should be good for 700 whp. As it sits right now, and running on E85, this car makes approximately 700 hp at the wheels... and that's a lot more than my car makes. The guy that owned it said he liked to mess with Hellcats and this is a V6. 🙂These next two image are a little old now, there are at least multiple ATS-V's in the 9's so the target keeps moving. These highlighted numbers were recorded before the new turbos and before the next tune I'll throw at it. 


     
    The car has the following modifications:
    Xtreme-DI high pressure fuel pump Xtreme-DI fuel cam ZZP valve springs Deatschwerks DW400 low pressure fuel pump JMS Voltage Increaser for low pressure fuel pump Renick Performance charge pipes with Synapse bypass valves Renick Performance cold air intake GM throttle body from LFX motor Renick Performance vacuum tank  Renick Performance downpipes Vibrant 4” resonator with custom 4” single mid pipe Turbobay turbo's with custom designed inlets ZZP rear trailing arms  Carlyle rear toe bars Renick Performance RP 556 wheels, 19x9.5 and 19x11 Renick Performance Swift springs Michelin PS4S tires, 275/30-19 and 305/30-19 ZZP Flex fuel sensor  Renick Performance carbon fiber mirror covers GM Morello Red carbon fiber interior trim Tuned by Justin Schmidt Sounds like this car will be a good 1/2 and 1/4 mile car. 🙂 A car with the EXACT same mods (including the TurboBay turbo's) running on E70 made this power, so hopefully this is what it's making now. I talked to the guy, they had to tune it down on the street because it is breaking the tires loose at 100 mph. The bump dip in the curve is where they pull out power for the dyno in high gear, apparently the computer doesn't like something at that RPM range on the dyno.


     
    It still handles like mine does, it had the same identical suspension and wheels and tires before I upgraded mine. Actually the tires on this car are the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires which I'll be putting I have on my car. I have new wheels ordered so she'll have the exact same wheel/tire setup in a few weeks (changed). I'm considering getting some Yokohama ADVAN Neova AD08 R tires (200 treadwear) to go on my car.  So I'll mount the new front tires on her new wheels and then put those on my car, the my wheels and front tires on her car, and then take the Michelins on my rear wheels and put those on the new rear wheels for her car, and take the new rear tires and put those on my rears. Confused yet? Since I want to autocross this year, I want the 200 treadwear tires on my car. I should wear them out before it gets cold next fall, and I'll put something else on them.
    Once I've had time to play with it, I'll post some more information. 🙂 In the meantime, here are some pictures I took with both (or all three at times) Caddy's. 
    Here's a link to a few more pictures. We will be getting the hood repainted since it got a little sandblasted making high speed runs in Florida. 🙂 
    https://photos.app.goo.gl/b3tentypc9yQE8Wf8



     



  14. NorthGeorgiaWX
    EDIT: The room has been put on hold indefinitely due to a new adventure that we've decided to undertake.
    I finally have the as-built drawing from Shawn Byrne and the first revision of the equipment list from Adam Pelz. The as-built is 21 pages of drawings that I won't show here, but this is one of the pages.

     
    Here is the equipment list for the moment. This shouldn't change very much as this point. There are miscellaneous bits and pieces like cables and other connections that will be needed, and all of that was included in the equipment list. I already have a nice rack with lots of space, so all of the rack equipment in the list below (with the "r") will fit. 
    (1) - Seaton Sound SS2-4000-DS18 (2x4000 watts) for sub (r) (2) - Seaton Sound DS212-8 Dual 12" subs (2) - Wisdom Audio SA-3 Amp (500 wpc x3 channels) (r) (for Left, Center, and Right) Each speaker requires two channels of amplification) (1) - Wisdom Audio SA-8 Amp (375 wpc x8 channels) (r) (for surrounds and Atmos speakers) (1) - Lumagen Radiance Pro (r) (1) - Trinnov Altitude 16 (r) (1) - JVC NZ9 Projector (1) - Stewart Filmscreen WS25138HHMG2APX acoustically transparent screen (3) - Wisdom Sage Cinema Line 2 (L/C/R) (8) - Wisdom Sage Cinema Point 2 V2 (surrounds and Atmos) (1) - Roku Ultra Streaming device (r) (1) - Reavon UBR-X200 4K Blu-Ray/SACD/DVD-Audio player (r) (1) - Roon Nucleus (r)  (1) - Kaleidescape Strato C player (r) (1) - Kaleidescape Terra Movie Server 12 TB (r) Everything will be controlled by Crestron control devices and all of this will work independently from our existing Control 4 system. I will have a connection from the Trinnov to our existing Sonos system. 
    Right now the installation is scheduled for September but I think I'll be lucky if it's all working before Christmas. 
  15. NorthGeorgiaWX
    It's done! The final finishing touches were completed yesterday and other than adding/moving things on the walls, there is nothing left to do.
    The vanity and sink installation was basically the last item to complete. Glenn came over yesterday and got everything hooked up and working.  You can see the spigot on the left side of the vanity and that's my hot water connection for washing the cars. 

     
    The other item that he did, we install the hose reel for the air compressor. This went in the small closet that is behind the vanity and was mounted to the floor. 

     
    You can see the hose sticking out of the wall. It's self retracting and can lock into place, so I can drag it all over the garage to air up tires and then give it a tug and it retracts back into the wall.

     
     
    I'll make one final post where I can thank all of the people that helped to make it all possible. In the meantime, here's a link to all of the pictures from start to finish.
    Garage Makeover - Google Photos
    PHOTOS.APP.GOO.GL 195 new items added to shared album
  16. NorthGeorgiaWX
    The Eagle has landed!
    I placed the order in October for the vanity and it finally arrived yesterday, Glenn has already started the work to install it. I will be installing a spigot for a hose on the left side of the vanity so I can have hot water for washing the cars. On the right side, I will have a hole in the wall for the air hose. I had Bruce Jankowski install an electrical outlet in the closet (that door to the left) and I now have my air compressor in the closet. Not only is it much quieter, but it is also hidden from view. Now the only thing you'll see is the hose sticking out out of the wall.


     
    The sink. 

     
    This new air hose reel will be mounted to the floor in the closet just like you see it here. Once it's installed, I'll adjust the black hose stop so that only a little bit of the hose sticks out.

     


     
    Almost done. This was the last major piece to install. I did talk to Bruce about possibly installing some lights in the recessed area that use to be storage, so we may do that at some point, but otherwise this will complete it. 
    Next post:
     
  17. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Design Update - 03/09/22

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Media Room
    After all of this time, they are finally making progress on the room design! I finally have some detailed drawings and they are now working on the as-built plans. 
    This image shows the placement of the speakers in relation to the seating position and screen. The magenta speakers are ceiling, and the aqua color speakers are in-wall. It would be nice to have a larger room, but I have to make do with the space I have. 
    Fortunately, the ceiling, side and rear speakers will be the Wisdom Sage Cinema Point 2 v2's since the Planar Magnetic Driver module can be rotated 90 degrees and tilted 22.5 degrees, providing any seat in the room the clarity for vertical, horizontal, DOLBY ATMOS®, DTS:X®, and AURO-3D® installations. I have no place to put the left/right side speakers, so those will be in the ceiling as well, and the Trinnov processor will aid in focusing the sound where it should be. 
    There are four ceiling speakers, two side speakers, and two rear speakers, for a total of (8) Point 2 V2's and (8) channels of amplification.

     
    Here's a side view looking toward the wall with the windows. The windows will have motorized blackout shades. 

     
    Looking toward the front wall. The two speaker cabinet is a custom Seaton Sound Submersive F2+ dual 15" sub. It has two 15" drivers with a 4000 watt amp and there will be another one of these (a slave version that runs off of the amp for the front sub) in the rear, so basically 4000 watts across four 15" drivers. Each of these sub cabinets supposedly act like like 18" subs. The three front speakers are the Wisdom Sage Cinema Line 2 speakers. Each of those speakers has two 24" planar magnetic drivers and six long linear excursion, high-output woofers, and each speaker requires two channels of amplification, so the front three speakers require a total of 6 channels of amplification, for a grand total of 14 channels. Not sure which amps will be used just yet. 
    The projector screen is acoustically transparent, but I'm still waiting on the final equipment list, so not sure of the screen brand yet. 

     
    Looking toward the rear wall. You can see the same sub that was in the front is also on this back wall. The projector box can be seen near the top of the ceiling.

     
    I hope to get the as-built soon and get started on this. It's been more than a year in the works. 
  19. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Just found out that my garage came in 2nd place out of more than 500 entries in RaceDeck's garage of the year contest!  
    2021 RaceDeck Garage of the Year Contest Winners Announced - RaceDeck
    RACEDECK.COM The fourth annual RaceDeck Garage of the Year contest has come to a close and it was nothing short of pandemonium! The RaceDeck crew received a record number of entries vying for the 2021 Garage of the Year, largely due to the over $5,000 worth of prizes on the line for contest winners, with the … Continue reading 2021 RaceDeck Garage...  
    I have all of the pictures at this link, from start to almost finish!
    Garage Makeover - Google Photos
    PHOTOS.APP.GOO.GL 159 new items added to shared album  
    Next post:
     
  20. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Garage Update 1/22/22

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Car
    Still waiting on the paint touch ups but most people wouldn't notice. We managed to get some more pictures on the wall, installed the new blinds on the windows and doors, and I got the new toolbox to replace my old red one. I added a rubber mat to the top of it to protect the finish. Other than the vanity and sink, I think we're just about done. 

     

     

     

     
     

     
    Next post:
     
  21. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Garage Update - 12/25/21

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Car
    Finally, the paint is done! They will come back after the first of the year to touch up any areas I might find, but otherwise it's done. I'm extremely happy with the way it turned out. 
    I'm still waiting on the vanity and sink to arrive and the blinds (they will be black) for the windows have been ordered and should arrive the second week of January. I have found a new toolbox to replace the old red one I have. I needed a small workspace in addition to the storage for tools, and this box fits the bill. I think I'll stain the wood on the top to something darker but otherwise, this will work perfect

     
    I still have more to put on the walls, but I need to think that out before I make a bunch of holes. 
     








     
    Next post:
     
  22. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Garage Update - 12/20/21

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Car
    More progress made today and they may be finished painting tomorrow 🤞
    The ceiling is done. They need to go back and recut the red in a few places, and there are a few spots of ceiling paint on the wall that they will touch up. The louvered door that covers the refrigerator went back on this morning. 
    The garage door side is the focus now and they made good progress on that today. The paint wasn't dry when I snapped this picture, but you can see some drier areas on the left door. All of the trim around the doors will be painted that same color. You can click to enlarge any image.

     
    Here's the opposite wall. The trim and ceiling are darker than they look in the picture. 

     
    This wall is pretty much done except for a few minor touch ups.

     
    This picture is not in focus. The camera was having a hard time focusing on the red wall and I should have fixed that, but hey... it is what it is. They still have some trim paint to do on this wall, the door needs to be painted, and some cut in work on the red, but almost done. You can also see where the vanity and sink will go back in. I need to call them to see when it might ship. I ordered that in October and I think it was a 12-14 week lead time... it should be about done. 

     
    You can see the blue in the ceiling color even though the camera doesn't show it exactly like your eyes see it. 

     
    The garage door wall should look great once the doors and trim are finished.

     
     
  23. NorthGeorgiaWX
    They are still working on the garage but things are moving along nicely. They finished up the woodwork today. The trim for the wainscoting is up and the shoe moulding is down on the floor. Other than paint and getting the vanity for the sink, it's just about done. I have pictures and neon and things to go on the walls, so I just need to get some paint in there! In that box on the floor is a new air hose reel that will go inside of the little closet on the right hand wall. I'm going to make a hole on the wall for the air hose to stick through, so the reel and compressor will all be hidden.

     
    The painters will have to go over some of the trim again since I changed the color after they got started. You can see the lighter color trim on the closet doors versus the newer darker color on the refrigerator door trim as well as the trim around the opening. All of the doors and the rest of the trim (including windows and the garage doors on the inside) still need to be painted. 

     
    You can see the red color that the walls will be painted (Sherwin-Williams "Real Red"). They had to paint a strip of red before they put the wainscoting trim on, so that's why there is only a little bit at the moment.

     
    The ceiling will be the blue color on the far left in this image. It's almost black. (Sherwin-Williams "In the Navy")

     
    We're still waiting to get the vanity and sink, it's been ordered for a couple of months now. 




     
    The trim around the garage doors still has to be painted as well as this side of the actual doors. 

     
    Next Post:
     
  24. NorthGeorgiaWX

    Design Update - 11/27/21

    By NorthGeorgiaWX,


    Media Room
    As you can see, this has been a slow project, but we're finally getting somewhere. I have more plans and now have a speaker list and screen size.
    This is going to be a 7.2.4 home theater system, and that's really about all you can fit into the room. Again, my primary focus is on music and sound quality so the video part takes a second seat. 🙂 But with a 9 foot wide screen and the correct projector, that's not going to be too bad either. 
    Here's the room. To get your bearings, the top of the image is the outside wall and those red diagonal lines are the windows. The right side of the image is the front of the room and the bottom of the room is open to a hallway. You can start to see some of the challenges with sound management since the room has glass on one side and open on the opposite side. Those speakers you see out in the middle of the room will be in the ceiling and the speakers at the top and bottom (either side of the sitting area) are the left and right surrounds. On the back wall are two rear channel speakers and a subwoofer (actually a dual cone subwoofer, more on the speakers below). 
     

     
     
    Here's a side view (left) looking toward the windows. They will have a motorized blackout shade that we can control remotely. There are actually 5 treys in the ceiling. There is one large one and four other ones inside. There will be LED lights that will make the treys look like they are floating below the ceiling. 
    The right image is the front of the room. It shows the three front channel speakers and the other dual cone subwoofer. Everything is hidden, you won't see any speakers or anything else. The projector screen is 9 feet across but the height will be determined on whether I go with 16:9 or 2.35 aspect ratio, and I still haven't decided on that, nor has the projector been picked out. If I go with 2.35 the shelf on top stays, if I go 16:9 it has to go. 
    The side view looking out the windows (the three windows have shades over them) is on the left, with the front of the room to the right. The right side image is looking at the front of the room.

     
    I finally have a speaker list! YEA!!!
    Front Channel - All three speakers for the front channel will be identical, and I'll be using the Wisdom Audio Sage Cinema Line 2 speakers. The center speaker will be behind the screen while the other two to the sides. I will need a total of 6 channels of amplification to power these speakers as each speaker needs two dedicated channels.
    SAGE CINEMA LINE 2 - Wisdom Audio
    WWW.WISDOMAUDIO.COM Targeting high-performance media rooms and private cinemas, The Sage Cinema Series models are dedicated to hidden installations behind projection screens and fabric walls. The Line 2 features the award-winning Sage 24” Planar Magnetic Drivers, and six long linear excursion, high-output woofers. The Line 2 delivers a new level in...

     
     
    Surrounds and ceiling speakers - There are two side surrounds, two rear surrounds, and four ceiling speakers, and they will all be the Wisdom Audio Sage Cinema Point 2 V2 speakers. I like the idea of keeping the same speakers for all the surrounds and ceiling. I will need 8 channels of amplification to power these.
    SAGE CINEMA POINT 2 V2 - Wisdom Audio
    WWW.WISDOMAUDIO.COM The Sage C20i offers the ultimate high-end audiophile loudspeaker in a slim and stylish design that fully integrates into any home. Perfectly suited for home theater and media rooms, C20i produces the highest level of sonic refinement and performance available from an in-wall speaker. The Sage C20i includes a large planar magnetic driver – and...
     
     
    Subwoofers - There will be two subwoofers in the room, one in the front and one in the rear. Each cabinet contains two 15" cones and a 4000 watt amp, so a total of 8000 watts of bass power. We will be crossing over to the subs at 80 hz. 
    SubMersive F2+ & F2-Slave Subwoofer – Seaton Sound, Inc
    SEATONSOUND.NET  
    Ours will be hidden so we'll just get the plain black version. They do make prettier versions though. 🙂 They also make other models of subwoofers.

     
    Main Processor - Of course the main processor was decided right up front, and that is the Trinnov Altitude 16. Hands down the best processor in the world. Plus I am thrilled to have the best calibrator in the world coming to calibrate the room. His name is Adam Pelz and he's the expert when it comes to managing the Trinnov Processor, and he's worked extensively with Wisdom Audio Speakers. To give you an idea of his demand, he's in Bahrain right now doing a calibration. 🙂 
    Trinnov | 20-Channel Reference Immersive Sound AV Processor
    WWW.TRINNOV.COM The Altitude16 builds on the success of the Altitude32 and Trinnov's exclusive platform with 20-channel immersive sound decoding and best-in-class Room Correcti

     
    Amplifiers - It will come down to one (or both) amp series in their line. I will need 11 channels of ~500 watts each, so 5,500 watts of power. That doesn't include the subwoofers. 

    AT54X Series - Amplifier Technologies Inc.
    ATI-AMP.COM These amps come with 1 to 4 channels of amplification, each channel making 500 watts of power. This was going to be the amp I was going to use and may still be. I would need three of these.

    But... these are an option I am seriously considering. 
    Signature Series 6000 - Amplifier Technologies Inc.
    ATI-AMP.COM
    These come with 1 to 7 channels of amplification. It makes slightly less power (450 watts) into 4 ohms (which is the impedance of all the speakers) than the other amp, but these are sonically better amps. I could get away with two of the 7 channel amps. I need to talk to Adam and Shawn to see if this power output would work ok with the main speakers, and make sure I can achieve the required sound levels.


     
    Time to start ordering equipment!

     
    Projector
    Last but not least, we've settled on the JVC DLA-NZ9 projector. Since we have a bright room, I needed a projector that could give decent light without always closing the blackout shades, and this new JVC projector fits the bill.


  25. NorthGeorgiaWX
    Originally start the post on September 21
    Yea, this isn't inside the house, but it is part of the house. 🙂
    I am in the process of doing a garage makeover at our house. First, you have to understand that I'm a car guy and have been all my life, so I baby our cars, so it's only fitting that I have a nice "bedroom" for the "babies". 🙂 I'm working with Amanda Dame (she's right here in Big Canoe, click to email her) to coordinate all of the work and design. 
    I don't have any real good before pictures of the garage now, but it's not in terrible shape. But I wanted more of a car guys garage, and was originally thinking about something along these lines but I've since changed my way of thinking in terms of the flooring. More about the design in a minute.

     
    Our garage already has an epoxy floor but it is starting to come up in several places and the only way to fix it is to strip the epoxy from the floor and start over, and that is not a cheap thing to do. In order to get epoxy to stick, the concrete has to be meticulously prepared and if not, you have spots where it will lift off the surface, and that is exactly what my floor is doing.


     
    I love the floor, but I don't want to go to the expense and effort to fix it and run the risk of it happening again. I figured the floor was the first place to start in the design because that color would dictate the color palette for the walls and ceiling. I have been looking at interlocking tile floors for a while now, and I thought I had my floor figured out. I wanted that fancy "race" look much like what you see in the image above and something like this image.

     
    Those tiles look like this. 


     
     After thinking about that for a while, I didn't want a tile that "drained". I want a floor. The disadvantage to the self draining tiles is that they have to be vacuumed, you can't sweep them. So any dirt or bug that gets in the garage falls into the holes to the surface underneath. Nope, not for me. So what else is there?
    This was never going to be a true "working" garage. Think of it as a living room for the cars. 🙂 So, along those lines, I've decided on these interlocking tiles (same company) in a smoked oak color.


     
    To give you an idea what the floor looks like with a car sitting on top of it, here's a picture. As you're looking also notice the darker color to the ceiling in the left half of the image. I'm going with a darker color ceiling. 

     
    RaceDeck is the company that makes the flooring.
    Smoked Oak Garage & Display Flooring - RaceDeck
    RACEDECK.COM Everything looks good parked on Smoked Oak display flooring. This RaceDeck flooring offers a vintage reclaimed wood look that will stand out at any car show  
    So now that I have the floor picked out we'll move on to the room colors. That will have to wait until I get the floor sample from RaceDeck, and then we'll sit down with Amanda and talk colors (the sample is on the way). We're looking at using three to four colors in the room. I'm adding wainscoting all around the lower half of the walls, so that will be one color, the wall above that will be a different color, and the ceiling will be some dark color. There may be a thin border color between the wainscoting and upper wall, but not sure yet.
    We've already complete step 1 with the room, as I just had Bruce Jankowski come out and remove the old fluorescent lights and replace those with recessed LED's. What a difference! It's like a showroom in their now! I'll have to go count but there are at least 16 lights total. The run down the sides of both walls as well as between the cars. Plus, I can now dim the lights, so if I want to detail the cars I can turn them up, if I just want to relax the cars I can turn them down. LOL! Yes, the cars must rest. 🤪


     
    I took some pictures at night so you could see how bright the lights are. Click to enlarge. 
       
     
    What you probably notice in the picture are the shelves to the right of the red car. Those are built in so they are going to be ripped out as they are in the way when opening the car doors. So those will all come out and I've decided to replace the tub sink with a small vanity and sink. I'm not going for the industrial look and I want to hide the pipes etc.. 🙂 That needs to be done before the floors go down, so I need to search for something that will work in that spot. I love having a sink out there but don't like the look of the one that is there. 

     
    We have one area in the back of the garage that we need to cover up. I've debated the best way of doing that and considered doors and other things like that, but it's such a large opening (83" wide and 97" tall) that doors would become impractical. 

     
    In my searching I found a company that makes curtains in custom sizes and they have some that are race related. 
    Race car Window Curtains & Drapes | Block Out | Custom Sizes
    WWW.VISIONBEDDING.COM VisionBedding is the home of unique bedroom decor! We have a wide variety of custom bedding and custom home decor to choose from. Shop now at VisionBedding.com!  
    So I've decided to go that route for now. I'll have a custom curtain (1 panel) made to fit the opening. 
    I have other accessories planned, there is a piece of neon (a nice garage HAS to have some neon!) that I'll be ordering (below),

     
    as well as a few other car and garage related clock, signs, etc. 

     
    I'll add more information in the comments as we start the work on the garage. 

Various Links

These are links to various pages on my Daculaweather.com site

NWS Links

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