Post Build Check underway

Car is currently under the careful care of Caterham Dartford, and today the Post Build Check was started. There's a little list of things that needed attention, some washers we wrong, wiring needs tidying, and the clutch and brakes need bleeding, nothing major as far as I know. :-D I am currently very excited, the final stages leading up to the IVA test and registration are finally underway. Something that, last december felt like a wild dream, is finally becoming a reality.

Look out for the first drive video in the next few weeks :-D.

IVA is a week on wednesday! Here's hoping it passes! If I'm lucky, and everything moves smoothly, I'll get to pick up my car by the 16th!

:-D :-D

Now that, was a great day.

I just want to say, next year is going to be an absolute blast! Every one of the guys I met seem to be like minded individuals, all very excited to be doing the academy, brilliant! It's going to be loads of fun, and a blast anywhere in the pack. Now I miss my car even more, I want to jump in and start driving it! Well, it wont be long, I'm fairly confident it will be ready mid december, but we'll see how smoothly various things go. It's really not long to wait at all, and gives me plenty of time to get a couple things done I had been putting off... :-).

A big thanks to the two guys who gave me lifts to and from, really nice to meet you both, and I honestly would have found it hard to get there otherwise.

I look forward to an awesome year!

Till... well, tomorrow, because I'm sure I'll have something to put up... :-P.

The car has left the building.

The beast is in a truck, actually, by now it's probably sitting in the lot at Caterham in Dartford. In a few weeks I'll be going down there to drive it home.

There's a nice little list of unfinished things that I remembered and wrote down, but I'm sure there's more that I didn't get to. I await the phone call from caterham over the next few days making sure it's ok to do any and all work required, which of course, it is.

On to the really important bit, pictures of the car away from the shed for the very first time! Then a couple of the car in the truck, then of the empty lonely shed... that is very clean and organized, ready for the cars return.

One picture of me with my car before it goes away. I'm very proud to have built this car!

Outside, sunshine, space to take proper pictures... amazing!

In the truck

The truck leaving.

Garage all empty, clean, and organized waiting for the return of the beast.

It was chilly today

So I decided to move some firewood around. The ability for vehicles to turn around in the drive is pretty abysmal, mainly because there was a pile of logs where they shouldn't be. I have moved some, but one massive one needs two people (I can lift one end but can't drag it). Really it needs a tractor, but my dads is 6000 miles away... it was a bit big to carry on the plane :-P. But, tomorrow morning (it is now dark... sun sets at 4:13 here!) I will start digging the dirt that's also in the way, make it easier to turn around, maneuver and generally not hit things.

The beast leaves tomorrow... I wont know what to do with myself! I suppose I should do some things like cut the grass... remake the doors for the garage (current ones are too small)... get insurance on my car, get registration papers and things ready to send to caterham...

There, that's a nice lovely list! Should keep me occupied until the day comes that I can go and collect my car...

Oh, and I need to sort my UK license out :).

Mmmmm petrol

Today I went out and bought 2 new Jerry-cans (petrol cans, gas cans, containers that hold petrol/fuel/gas). They are metal, and so awesome! One big green one, holds 20 liters and looks like something off a military Land Rover! The second is silver, holds 10 liters, and fits in the boot (trunk...) of my Caterham perfectly! So, wise investment, and they're metal, not plastic, so they're just plain awesome.

Pictures :-D.

The big one (so awesome!)

The little one - perfect size!

Blinked and missed it

So apparently 11-11-11 was friday... I blinked an missed it. Just like I blinked and missed 10-10-10 because it was my birthday. At least the world didn't suddenly implode, or get hit by a rogue asteroid, or have an outbreak of locusts.

Car changed to being picked up on the 17th. Oh well, will be a nice christmas time thing to have. I suppose I better find something else to fill my time and my blog with. I like taking pictures, so be forewarned, pictures of trees and streams may be forthcoming.

7 days! That's disgraceful...

7 days is far far too long to have absolutely nothing going on. Really, it is.

Now, I went sailing on saturday (again, so cool). This time it was on my uncles Folk boat Pipkin. It's a very manageable 26ft boat, but because of the design, it's very seaworthy and can take almost anything in its stride.

Some pictures, more here - http://s260.photobucket.com/albums/ii19/320bimmerman/Sailing/

My uncle sailing his boat!

My uncles friend and owner of pipkin (bought it together because they both enjoy sailing).

Not much wind on the way out

My favorite :)

Long time coming

Finally I got the stupid stuff sorted out! Car will be picked up on the 16th and taken away, IVA papers will be sent in ASAP to get a test for the 23rd (hopefully), then some specified time after that, I can drive the car away from the factory! Registration, IVA, number plates... everything can and will be sorted by Caterham, meaning when it leaves on the 16th, the next time I see it will be when I go there to drive it home :-D. Hopefully by christmas... we'll see, I want to get a Nürburgring trip in before Christmas, so hopefully I will have the car for that.

According to last years drivers, it's all about the miles, the more miles on the car the faster the car is, just as well I have so many trips I want to do. Despite starting in december, I should have over 3000 miles on the car come the first event :-).

More as it comes along. I will also update this blog with other goings on in my life... like sailing.