There is lots to say about the Ford Mustang.  It’s one of those cars that has a lot of American history, although the new version of the Mustang was designed by Vietnamese immigrant Hau Thai-Tang.

The mustang is also one of the most versatile cars out there, with versions ranging from under $20k to the $60+ for modded versions.

One of the most popular, and most famous versions of the Mustang are the Shebys.  Shelby Mustangs are basically stock mustangs which are taken to the Shelby Automotive factory in Las Vegas and modified with racing features.  The cars are calibrated to ride stiffer, and features like a cold air intake which add horsepower, are added.  Shelby Mustangs also have a distinctive body, with a large air intake on the hood, side intakes, huge 18″ rims, and Shelby racing stripes.

The Shelby GT has a 4.6 liter 319 horsepower engine - a bit more powerful than the stock Mustang GT - but nowhere close to the 500 horsepower Shelby GT500.

I went to see the Shelby GT today, and it was hot.  The Shelby design is impressive…the air intakes give the car a distinctive look, without being gaudy.  The grill is elegant, complementing the slanted headlights nicely.  And the 18″ rims fit the mustang well…a noticeable improvement over stocks that look engineered for racing, but with brushed silver and black aluminum also add a bit of luxury to the car’s appearance.

The interior of the GT is typical Ford - thus quite disappointing.  The sharp, square design of the dash and center panel is…well, very, very boring.  The only highlight of the interior is the signed Shelby plaque and the white ball shifter.  Everything else looks more Ford Taurus than Shelby.  I guess interior design is not a highlight of the trademark american muscle car…and if that was my quibble then I’m just not a good fit for the Shelby.

The sticker for the Shelby GT is around $38k, but the dealer I went to was charging a $10k premium since it’s a limited edition.  I wasn’t there to buy…just to look…thus no late night calls to TJFKAK with purchasing advice.

Still, I wasn’t even tempted to negotiate, or even appraise my existing car.  Although it would have been nice to drive, the car was in the center of the showroom floor and I would have had to show considerable interest to get a test drive.

But I have new respect for Shelby and their work with the Mustang.  I’ve seen various versions of the new mustang on the road, and they range in looks from decent to hideous.  Shelby has done a good job of improving on the design of the Mustang…maybe just a little more queer eye on the interior is needed?

Tonite Barry Bonds tied Hank Aaron’s all-time home run record with a second inning homerun in San Diego’s PetCo Park.  The homer was hit off a 2-1 fastball thrown by Padre’s pitcher Clay Hensley.

Barry seemed to know the ball was gone immediately after hitting it, taking a few seconds to swagger, then pumping his fist once the ball cleared the fence.  He was met at home plate by his son.

The Padres fans responded with both cheers and boos, as expected.  Many fans held up paper print-outs of asterisks, suggesting that Barry’s record is tainted by his alleged steroid use.

Personally, I don’t have a problem with Barry Bonds*.  (*I live in the Bay Area and have seen many giants games and have a Bonds Jersey).  On one hand, it’s sad that the last decade of baseball has been marred by all these steroid scandals.  The thought that all of these great players used steroids makes the game seem slimy and artificial.

On the other hand, if the MLB wasn’t effectively enforcing the steroid rules, then it’s hard to blame players for juicing up.  Rules after all, are only rules if they are enforced.  If the MLB turned a blind eye to steroid use, while enjoying skyrocketing revenue as record after record was set, then I think fans should focus more on the league than individual players. 

It’s too bad that Bonds didn’t tie Aaron’s record at home…where fans would have appreciated his efforts.  But hopefully we’ll see Barry break Arron’s record back at home in San Francisco.  The Giants have one more game at Petco, then they return to SF on Monday.

I thought it would be interesting if the contributors to this blog all confessed something from their childhood that was a particularly naughty act.  Perhaps you have a story about doing something than blaming it on someone else, share!  This could be really fun.

Here’s my story.

In the second grade my friends and I had heard the myth of Bloody Mary.  As the folklore stated, if you spin around in a circle and flip the lights on and off and say her name three times, you would look into the mirror and see “her”  Even at that age I knew how bullshit superstitions were so I concocted a scheme that would involve myself and a henchmen meeting secretly during lunch.   The plan was that we would empty the contents of a felt marker into the sink.  Then we would spread all the ink around the bathroom a la bloody Mary was here style.  So when it came down to business, I met with this guy in the bathroom, I showed him how to take apart the pen then run it under the sink to get the ink out.  This guy started putting it under the sink.  I then said “I’m out, you can do whatever”  I walked back to the lunchroom and after lunch I noticed every student  aghast circling the bathroom.  Everyone was saying “Bloody Mary this Bloody Mary that”  Then I saw the henchman, he was crying as the vice principal was holding him by the arm.  The next move was of course me getting called into the VPs office.  I was being implicated as being the mastermind of the prank.  To those accusations I simply said I had no idea about the prank and I just saw the other guy in the bathroom during lunch and when I left their wasn’t any ink on the walls.  That was it, his fate was sealed and I walked away like Kaiser Soeze.