College Friendships
Going off to college is scary. When my oldest granddaughter went from two decades of daily contact with parents, family and friends, 1500 miles away to a new state where she’d be totally on her own, I worried. Making College Friendships I wanted to encourage her to not feel lonely, and to make new friends…
Read MoreAggressive, Arrogant, Assholes in Supercars
Do you drive a supercar? Like a Lamborghini, Ferrari, McLaren, Bugatti, Aston Martin, Maserati (or Corvette, Porsche or BMW) and, do you behave like an asshole behind the wheel? Of course you don’t. But guess what, people think we’re assholes, and I say “we” because I drive one of the brands listed above. Many think…
Read MoreBest Tips Ever for Staying Safe on the Street
Motocops put more miles riding in the areas where the most motorcycle accidents and deaths happen and yet, proportional to the miles driven, they have only a fraction of the accidents compared with all riders. Why? Because cop training is far longer and more intense than any other rider training. I will explain why…
Read MoreThe Evolution of Automotive Passion: From Triumph Spitfire to McLaren
Last year, in 2023, I sold two iconic collector cars, my 1969 Lotus Elan and 2002 Acura NSX. The Lotus I owned for 50 years, purchasing it when I was just 21. The NSX I held for just 18 years. I’ve written about both of these cars in detail here [https://stevelarsen.net/cars/]. Of course, I miss…
Read MoreA Quitter’s Guide: Dunning-Kruger Effect
The Dunning-Kruger effect popped into my consciousness recently. A friend had responded in a decidedly authoritarian tone explaining why my assessment of a particular vehicle’s performance was wrong, backing up their assertion with a personal anecdote. This is classic Dunning-Kruger — the less we know about a particular topic, the more we think we know…
Read MoreRIP Stu Oltman
Before collaborating with Oltman on many articles for Motorcycle Consumer News (MCN) magazine, I knew him as the slightly curmudgeonly Honda Goldwing expert who dispensed advice to riders in the GWRRA (Goldwing Road Riders Association) at their monthly meetings at Chompie’s Deli on Shea Blvd. in Scottsdale, AZ. Stu’s level of mechanical and electrical expertise…
Read MoreShocking Tesla Truths – A Perspective
Those following this newsletter know of my Tesla involvement. I’m a car guy. My initial unpremeditated purchase of the Tesla Model 3 happened in early 2020. No long study or evaluation. Just boom. I wrote about that experience in May 2020. For context, you should read about it here. In late 2021/early 2022 the new…
Read MoreA One-of-a-Kind Journey
After participating in an international riding competition as a member of the Arizona Precision Motorcycle Drill Team and taking second out of 15 teams, our group of riders split up to ride back to Phoenix from Nashville, TN. The competition had been held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. Teams from the USA and Canada had…
Read MoreThe True Saga of Indian Motorcycle: A Tale of Triumph and Tragedy!
I’ve just finished Frank J. O’Connell’s book, Jump First, Think Fast, and found it more fun, interesting, and inspiring than I had thought possible. I’ve known Frank and his wife Barb for more than twenty-five years. There was never a doubt Frank’s life and career would make a great story. However, Frank’s collaboration with writer…
Read MoreSpain, Andorra, Portugal: A Scenic Journey Not to be Missed
In all, we spent 21 days away from Phoenix. From Sept 20 th to October 10th. Roughly 1,600 miles on a rented 2022 BMW 1250GS with Maggie navigating driver Kim Marin’s rental car, mostly following the seven 1250GS rental bikes with nine passengers across 3 countries. The weather was highly cooperative, the roads amazing and…
Read More