Mike Reedy 1941-2011

We just finished the above commemorative illustration of the legendary Mike Reedy, who passed away earlier this month. Reedy was an icon in the RC industry and will be sorely missed.

Illustration P1 Brand/J.Filipow©2011

The Road to 200 MPH / Nic Case & Team Associated

Two years ago, we posted an entry on Nic Case and his 2009 speed record.

Today, Case continues his quest to build and drive the world's fastest RC car, with help from Team Associated and many others. Case recently ran a few test runs in Bakersfield, CA.

Some of the specs: electric power; ten pound car, with ten horsepower (1:1 HP/weight ratio!!??); three-inch diameter foam tires, spinning at 28,000 rpm; and like full-sized F1, an aesthetic that blends a bit of aircraft tech to keep the car planted into the tarmac.

There is no doubt, with assistance from the resources at Team Associated, including Cliff Lett and Curtis Husting, that Case will achieve the 200 mph target soon.

Godspeed!

CHARGE: Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed

Filmmaker Mark Neale has created a new film, Charge, that documents the process of building/racing zero-emissions, electric Moto GPs at the Isle of Man TT. Narrated by Ewan MacGregor.

Beautiful stuff.

Neale writes:

The movie follows several teams to the world's first zero-emissions grand prix on the Isle of Man in 2009 and on their return in 2010.

For the visionaries, this is history. For the petrol-heads its blasphemy. What is racing without the sound and fury of internal combustion engines?

CHARGE is about the future. It's about change. It's about the dream of a clean, green world. It's about the dream of winning.

CHARGE is proof that maniacs on motorcycles can be a force for global good.

Boys of Bonneville

From the Price Museum of Speed comes this great trailer for Boys of Bonneville: Racing on a Ribbon of Salt. Beautiful footage of beautiful machines from the earliest days of speed runs: Ab Jenkins, the Mormon Meteor.

“Boys of Bonneville: Racing on a Ribbon of Salt” reveals an unsung hero and self-made man who pioneered the Bonneville Salt Flats as the Fastest Place on Earth. More than a century later, many of Ab’s speed and endurance records remain unbroken and the legacy lives on in his custom-built racing car. Looking like something Batman would have owned, the story comes full circle when Ab’s son Marv restores the 12-cylinder, 4800-pound “Mormon Meteor” to its original glory for ceremonial laps on the salt. Featuring Patrick Dempsey as the voice of Ab Jenkins, and interviews with Jay Leno and Col. Andy Green, current land speed record holder.

The Luckiest Guy Alive / Camilo Pardo

Interesting trailer for an upcoming documentary on Detroit-based automotive designer/artist, Camilo Pardo.

Sagmeister for BMW CULTURE

Stefan Sagmeister is easily one of the most interesting and conceptual designers working today. Thankfully, BMW is aware of this and recently commissioned him to create the limited edition CULTURE monograph.

The internationally celebrated graphic designer Stefan Sagmeister has created the design of the publication CULTURE, a book describing the BMW Group's international cultural commitment. The limited edition of 1488 hand-signed copies, which are not available for sale, is based on an unconventional concept: CULTURE also features an integrated, remote-controlled car, a book that can be driven around. As a whole, the numerical arrangement of all book covers would make a square measuring 7 x 7 metres depicting a graphically abstracted image of the legendary BMW "four cylinder" building - the company headquarters in Munich built by Karl Schwanzer in 1972 - from a bird's eye view. Consequently, each book cover becomes a fragmented, unique specimen.

Notice the parting shot as the book suspiciously rolls away under it's own power....

Volvo Art Session

Although not as interesting as the tradition of BMW Art Cars, Volvo has created their own marketing initiative to showcase artists' creativity.

Volvo Cars Switzerland presents: the final Volvo Art Session film. 10 street artists spent 5 days repeatedly painting, spraying and designing a snow-white Volvo S60 against a white background. A high-end camera shot an image of the vehicle and the background every ten seconds. Now, after extensive post-production, the final Volvo S60 Art Session timelaps clip is finally premiered.