Win a Griot's Garage $250.00 shopping spree by helping Motortopia grow. It's so easy!

Join for Free or Invite others to Join for Free. That's it.

Invite your buddies, club friends, and other car, bike, plane, or boat enthusiasts to join Motortopia! Just use our awesome, trackable invitation system. (or click on "Invite" in the Motortopia top navigatoin bar)

For each person who joins Motortopia from your invitation - you increase your chance to win the $250 Griot's Garage shopping spree! An early Christmas for you.

We'll announce the winner at noon on December 5. 19. So, get started inviting folks to join the best place on the internet for motor enthusiasts.

And, by doing so, you will help Motortopia.com -- entirely created and provided by car enthusiasts.

Thank you.

The Motortopia Team

P.S. and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you!

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Trick our Treat is over. . . but it seemed like a holiday to us.

We promise, we'll get your some car stories and pics soon (tonight) but thought you should have these right away.

And, remember to leave those trophy votes on the photo slideshow to show your appreciation.

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Ladies bring us into this world...and now, more and more, they are takin' us out.

There are plenty of great cars on Motortopia, and a few hearses. We were interested to learn here at Motortopia that women are gaining on men -- as morticians and hearse drivers.

Yep, more and more, women are turning to this profession. Getting you all ready and taking you out for your last ride.

Why is this happening now? Economy? Women bring us into the world, maybe it is best they take us out? One friend I talked with about this said "Hey, maybe this is just a woman's place -- preparing the body, like in the bible."

Well, we don't know -- and frankly don't care too much why -- but thought you would enjoy knowing that our gals are interested our coming and going.

Take a look at some of the great hearses here on Motortopia.


And, read more about women and hearses and becoming a mortician.

1984 Caddy Hearse Limo by harleylifeman (nice flame treatment too!)
1933 Pontiac Henney Hearse by Soapboxman. Hey, the "dirty thirties" may have been bad, but you could go out in style.
A great funeral flower car by Duste. Wow, if you only had that many flowers when you were alive?

. . . and more...do your own search.

Or, read more

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Motortopia will be offline for several hours today for a data center upgrade (from about noon till 6 p.m. ). This is necessary so all of the techies, propeller-heads, geeks, and IT-Network folks (we love 'em all) who make Motortopia happen will be upgrading our data center today. It's a big job and will take us several hours today.

See you soon.

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Now, you would have thought the Germans, with their precision machining and engineering would have done this; but it was a Frenchman, Leon-Marie-Joseph-Clement Levavasseur, (let's call him "V" for short), patented the first V8 engine in 1902 on this day, December 2, 1902.

The V-formation, of course, allows a crankshaft to be turned by eight pistons with only four throws.

And, I remember the first time I stepped on a V-8, how about you!

Leave your V-8 memory in the comments here.

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Most of us have the image of the Hindenburg exploding in flames in 1937 etched in our minds.

Well, now you can have a new image. A full-sized, rigid frame American air ship with passengers flying around San Francisco.

This air ship adventure has been provided to us by a group of investors in California (they think of such Wacky things out there!), and it sounds like a lot of fun.

Imagine, taking your friends and family up for a air ship ride. Maybe we should send up member of Congress so they could get a real look at the country. No lobbyists allowed. Heck, how many air ship rides can 700 Billion buy?

Source: Silicon Valley Mercury News

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Very interesting things to on at our universities, including some great, next-generation, airplane design and development.

This design for a blended wing body is the path to quieter, more efficient, and greener airplanes.

Researchers at the University of California - Irvine tell us that this is the wave of the future and it should first show up on military and transport planes, with passenger jets to follow.

Source:UC - Irvine.

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We love airplanes and great car designs so this futuristic concept "flying car" caught our eye and imagination. The designer, Tibor, a Hungarian student; entered a contest sponsored by his local Porsche dealer. Now, I ask myself, it looks cool, but how does it go forward; much less in reverse? Anybody have ideas for a propulsion system?

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This was a "wish I could'a been there" event.

630 miles per hour and not looking back to worry about anyone catching up.

Gary Gabelich drove the Blue Flame on the Bonneville Salt Flats to a world record speed of over 631 mph.

Ok, this was rocket-powered, liquid nitrogen and all of that...but it was on land, and it was fast.

I fly planes because I like speed and the feel of freedom in the air. Normally, my planes get up around 200 knots (around 230 mph) and when I am close to the ground, you know, about 1000 feet or so, I feel that this is plenty fast. So, imagine 630 mph on the ground.

That's some guts; and some engineering.

And, it all happened today, back in 1970.

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June 21, 2008 is the equinox; the longest day of the year.

What a great day it was in Holdrege, Nebraska for the annual Nebraska State Fly-in and Show 'n Shine. What a great idea...wonderful planes and cool cars all in the same place.

This year, the Nebraska State Fly-in was hosted by the the great folks at Brewster Field in Holdrege, Nebraska. Special effort sure was expended by the airport staff, airport manager Lanny Lambrecht of Lambrecht Aviation, the helpful and energetic folks from EAA chapter 1091 and more.

Ok, we knew it was going to get hot so we started early. I drove on out to Holdrege. (Yes, yes...got my pilot's license in 1981 and I know it is a "fly-in", but I didn't plan ahead much for this ;-) ).

Got to Holdrege and saw that it was also Sommerfest in Holdrege (the ethnic festivals in Nebraska are wonderful!) and easily found Brewster Field.

What a treat. I met the good folks from EAA Chapter 1091 who were a big help at the show. From helping with the Young Eagles "first flight" program to popping pop-corn and cooking burgers, these folks showed that they have the community spirit and know how to do a lot more than build and fly airplanes (which is a wonderful thing).

You all know from my posts that I like history and I learned some interesting history about Brewster Field. I met Sara Brewster Olson who is the Granddaughter of Dr. Donald E. Brewster, for whom Brewster Field is named and who was know in the Holdrege parts as the "flying doctor."

Mrs. Olson related to me some fond memories of her grandpa, including his first medical flight. Apparently, Dr. Brewster was called to help a fellow who had fallen off of an oil rig in Herndon, KS...but there wasn't time to drive so a friend flew him out in a plane..this was early in the 20th century folks. Dr. Brewster flew out with medical kit and operated right in the oil field and saved the derrick worker.

Well, after that, there we many more medical flights to other towns, to farms and ranches. Some of the landing strips were nothing more than pastures marked with a sheet on a fence or windmill to show the doctor where to land. And, he operated on kitchen tables and delivered many a baby at home. Sorta unlike a modern medical experience, heh?

And, apparently, Dr. Brewster was pretty spry. His granddaughter related watching him walk up the stairs in his house at 72 years old....on his hands with his feet in the air!

Wow, now just a commentary, but you don't likely get medical service like that anymore; much of anywhere. It was a good story.

There was a great P-38 flown in by the Fagen Team. Mr. Fagen was proud of this bird, one of only 4 flying P-38's in the world.

And, a lot of big grins from home built owners who explained the "project." Some were six months, some were six years!

Well, it is in the doin' I think.

And, great cars too! Now who thought of that ....great planes and great cars at the same show. Gotta love this.

Watch for some more blog posts about the P-38 and some other great planes and cars, and enjoy the photos.

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