Washington State Troopers remind motorists that the left lane is for passing

Filed under: Etc.

police in side view mirror

The percentage of motorists who really understand the basic tenets of driving vary from state to state. In some areas of the country, hogging the left lane is a vile offense, yet drivers in other parts of the country use it as they see fit. This is incorrect, and it’s also quite frustrating to the other motorists that understand the rules of the road. In an effort to remind drivers that the left lane is for passing, Washington state troopers pulled over 223 left-lane ignorati for ignoring the law.

The police ended up letting 199 drivers off with just a warning. We hope that warning serves as a lesson to make the driver more aware of the rules of the road. Now, if they could just start enforcing this more stringently throughout the rest of the country…

Washington State Troopers remind motorists that the left lane is for passing originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 12 May 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mt. Washington’s 2011 Climb to the Clouds announces classes, opens registration

Filed under: Motorsports

2011 Climb to the Clouds

In September 2010, Travis Pastrana turned our attention to the Mt. Washington Auto Road. While it wasn’t an official crack at Frank Sprongl’s record six minute and 41.99 second blast, Pastrana climbed Mt. Washington in six minutes and 20.47 seconds with his rally-prepped 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI. The purpose of the run was to evaluate the course for the upcoming 2011 Climb to the Clouds event. The evaluation run was a success and race organizers have announced the classes and opened up registration for the hill climb competition.

Carroll Shelby in 1956 driving a Ferrari up the Mt Washington Auto RoadThe first Climb to the Clouds was run in 1904 but the event went dormant in 2000. Now, after a ten-year hiatus, it’s back and the 2011 run will mark the Mt. Washington Auto Road’s 150th anniversary. The 7.6-mile route begins at 1,527 feet and then climbs to 6,288 feet above sea level. Our Editor in Chief was able to “blast” through the 100+ turns in about 25 minutes.

For the 2011 Climb to the Clouds, organizers have created five classes: Open, Rally, Hillclimb, Vintage and Electric. The Vintage Class is an invitation-only category for vehicles from 1961 and older. The Electric Class is for full EVs only – no hybrids allowed. The Rally and Hillclimb classes are broken out according to the standard of Rally America and the New England Hillclimb Association respectively. Finally, the Open Class is just what it sounds like but places restrictions on engine size based on the wheels driving the vehicle and whether it’s naturally aspirated or turbocharged.

The Mt. Washington hill climb competition scheduled to take place June 22nd through the 26th and organizers hope to host a field of 70 cars. With any luck, someone, will be able to arrange for Sprongl and Pastrana to duke it out on the Auto Road.

[Source: Climb to the Clouds]

Continue reading Mt. Washington’s 2011 Climb to the Clouds announces classes, opens registration

Mt. Washington’s 2011 Climb to the Clouds announces classes, opens registration originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 22 Jan 2011 11:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington run from many HD angles

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos

Pastrana Mt. Washington run

HD footage of Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Auto Road run – Click above to watch video after the jump

In case you didn’t get enough of the previous video of Travis Pastrana’s unofficially record-breaking Mt. Washington Auto Road run, there’s now more to see and it’s almost all HD in-car and and on-car camerawork. Think of it as the extended director’s cut. All seven minutes and 25 seconds of it are after the jump.

[Source: Vermont Sports Car]

Continue reading Video: Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington run from many HD angles

Video: Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington run from many HD angles originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 26 Sep 2010 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Frank Sprongl weighs in on Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Auto Road record

Filed under: Motorsports, Audi, Subaru

Frank Sprongl in his Audi Quattro

Frank Sprongl in his 1983 Audi Quattro

Frank Sprongl would like to chat with Travis Pastrana. You see, we recently reported that Mr. Pastrana established a new record for driving up the Mt. Washington Auto Road. Travis’ time of six minutes and 20.47 seconds in a rally-prepped Subaru WRX STI bested the previous time laid down by Sprongl. In 1998, Frank Sprongl and his 1983 Audi Quattro S2 attacked the Auto Road and set an official record time of six minutes and 41.99 seconds. Technology has advanced quite a bit in the 27 years since Sprongl’s Audi Quattro was new, as well as the 12 years since he set the record.

“It’s unofficial to begin with… it’s basically just a test day and he did it with a co-driver and pace notes,” states Sprongl. He adds, “The course has 76 turns and I ran it with no co-driver or notes, I memorized every turn.” He further notes that the Auto Road had longer gravel sections when he made his official run. It has since received more paving. In Frank Sprongl’s opinion, this run is simply Red Bull and Travis performing a stunt for advertising. He does say that he believes Travis put in an amazing effort and it was certainly an excellent run… but was it official or not?

Continue reading…

[Image: Mount Washington Auto Road]

Continue reading Frank Sprongl weighs in on Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Auto Road record

Frank Sprongl weighs in on Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Auto Road record originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 17 Sep 2010 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Podcast #195 – Econoline, Panamera, hot-rod Foresters, Pik-Ups and Mount Washington

Filed under: Podcasts, Ford, GMC, Honda, Lexus, Lincoln, Porsche, Subaru

Click above for the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes, RSS or listen now!

It’s Episode #195 of the Autoblog Podcast, and Chris, Alex, Sam and Dan talk about the half century of Ford Econolines, Porsche’s impressive Panamera sales, the death of the Mahindra deal with Global Vehicles USA, a possible hot-rod Forester, and Travis Pastrana’s obliteration of editor Neff’s Mount Washington hillclimb time (oh, and he destroyed the record by 20 seconds, too.) Two questions cap it at just over an hour this week. Thanks for listening!

Autoblog Podcast #195 – Econoline, Panamera, hot-rod Foresters, Pik-Ups and Mount Washington

In the Autoblog Garage:

2011 Honda Odyssey
GMC Sierra 3500 HD
2011 Ford Edge

News:

  • 50 years of Econolines
  • Porsche Panamera selling like stroopwaffels
  • Details on Mahindra’s deal unravelling
  • Goings on at Lincoln
  • Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Auto Road record
  • Hotter Subaru Forester

Hosts:
Dan Roth, Sam Abuelsamid, Chris Shunk, Alex Nunez

Runtime: 69:34

Gallery: Old Ford Econolines


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Feedback:

Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com
Voicemail: 734-288-8POD (734-288-8763)

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Autoblog Podcast #195 – Econoline, Panamera, hot-rod Foresters, Pik-Ups and Mount Washington originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 14 Sep 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Watch Travis Pastrana’s run up Mt. Washington

Filed under: Motorsports, Videos, Subaru

Travis Pastrana at Mt. Washington – Click above to view the video after the jump

We broke the news, now watch video of Travis Pastrana’s record-setting run up Mt. Washington behind the wheel of a race-prepped Subaru WRX STI. Sure beats the hell out of Herr Neff’s time of 20-some minutes…

Gallery: Travis Pastrana breaks Mt. Washington Auto Road record

Travis Pastrana breaks Mt. Washington Auto Road recordTravis Pastrana breaks Mt. Washington Auto Road record

Continue reading Video: Watch Travis Pastrana’s run up Mt. Washington

Video: Watch Travis Pastrana’s run up Mt. Washington originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Travis Pastrana spotted on Mt. Washington, record attempt in the works?

Filed under: Motorsports, Marketing/Advertising, Subaru, Celebrities

Travis Pastrana at Mt. Washington

As if his success in motocross and rally racing weren’t enough, Travis Pastrana may be looking for still bigger mountains to climb. Mainly, Mt. Washington in New Hampshire, the tallest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288 ft.

Autoblog reader Andrew Stowell caught up with Pastrana at the famed Mt. Washington Auto Road where the multi-medal X Games winner was reportedly scouting turns, making pace notes and filming some interviews for what should be a new YouTube sensation if he accomplishes this mission.

Travis Pastrana's Subaru WRX at Mt. WashingtonAccording to Stowell, Pastrana’s plan is to break the Mt. Washington Auto Road record of six minutes and 42 seconds set in 1998 by Frank Sprongl driving an Audi Quattro (see Sprogl’s run in full after the jump). Pastrana will supposedly be driving his X Games rally WRX STI, though when Stowell caught him he was behind the wheel of a stock WRX for practice.

Astute readers will remember my own tale of tackling the Auto Road this summer in Autoblog’s long-term 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT, which I accomplished in around 25 minutes amidst heavy tourist traffic. The eight-mile road is not for the faint of heart with over 100 turns. True, Pikes Peak is longer at 12.4 miles and turnier with 156 curves, but that famous stretch of Colorado road rises at an average incline of just 7 degrees. The Mt. Washington Auto Road reaches for the skies at a 12-degree angle, and the road is narrower too. So let’s just say it’s no drive in the park.

We’re not exactly sure when Pastrana will possibly attempt a record run, or if in fact that’s what he’s doing there. Subaru of America told us that it’s a Red Bull-sponsored stunt and they’re not involved, and Red Bull Motorsports has yet to respond to our inquiries. Nevertheless, our man on the ground claims the attempt will happen on Thursday. We’ll keep you updated when we find out how he did.

Continue reading Travis Pastrana spotted on Mt. Washington, record attempt in the works?

Travis Pastrana spotted on Mt. Washington, record attempt in the works? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Sep 2010 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT: Taming the Mt. Washington Auto Road

Filed under: Sedan, Etc., Subaru, Long-Term Garage

Mt. Washington Auto Road

Taming of the Mt. Washington Auto Road – Click above for high-res image gallery

In our last long term update, I mentioned that my wife and I took the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT on a two-week road trip up to New England. Our ultimate destination was Bar Harbor, Maine, though a stop in New Hampshire on the way home became our most memorable vacation moment of all time.

After spending Fourth of July at the Mountain View Grand Resort & Spa, we decided to drive up Mount Washington and visit the Mt. Washington Observatory at its summit on our way out of town. I knew little about Mt. Washington, but my wife had visited this tallest peak in New England as a child and claimed she and her family had hiked up to the summit.

The story goes her father had convinced them all to hoof it up to the top rather than hitch a ride on the mountain’s Cog Railway by offering them each the price of the train ticket as bribe money. Sounding like something my father-in-law would do, I trusted my wife’s memory was accurate and imagined a post card-quality bluff, easily scalable by a trio of children and their persuasive father.

This is the story of how wrong I was, and how the 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT fared as our mule on the harrowing eight-mile ascent up the Mt. Washington Auto Road.

Gallery: Taming of the Mt. Washington Auto Road

Mt. Washington2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT on Mt. WashingtonRoad to the Sky safety instructionsView from Mt. Washington

Photos copyright (C)2010 John Neff / AOL or their respective owners (see gallery for credits)

Continue reading 2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT: Taming the Mt. Washington Auto Road

2010 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT: Taming the Mt. Washington Auto Road originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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