Jon Quirk

Archive for June, 2011

Untitled feat. Harley Davidson 48 hits 1,000 views

by JonQ on Jun.27, 2011, under Bikes, News

We’ve just hit 1,000 YouTube views on the Untitled feat. Harley Davidson 48 short we produced last week, so a massive thank you to all who have watched and for your comments.

It was all a bit of Sunday morning experimentation really, but I like how the multi-medium mix of poetry, video and music can be used to heighten all three arts. After some very positive conversations, here’s to developing more works in the future.

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#want Yohji Yamamoto Rolls-Royce T-shirt

by JonQ on Jun.26, 2011, under News

Who would have thought that amongst the varied prized possessions of fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto would lurk a Rollys-Royce Corniche?

Yohji Yamamoto Rolls-Royce Corniche T-shirt

Fortunately, we can now all share his love for the Corniche by buying this limited edition T-shirt without the designer price tag. The tee has been produced to help celebrate Yamamoto’s 30 years in fashion, and coincides with an excellent exhibition that is currently running at London’s V&A museum until 10 July. If you can’t make the exhibition, you can still buy the T-shirt from the online V&A store.

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Rain or shine, I’ll take a Harley Davidson 48

by JonQ on Jun.26, 2011, under Bikes, Podcast, Reviews

Rain. That incessant, unyielding kind that I thought only the Lake District could produce, has somehow made its way to London. And on the same weekend I have borrowed a Harley Davidson 48.

Jon Quirk, Harley Davidson 48

It’s only then, weird plastic murmur tapping on my half hat, that I realise it’s an odd argument as to why anybody would prefer to ride two wheels over four. It’s always colder, usually wetter, more dangerous, there’s no radio, no bluetooth for your phone, you can’t really chat to your passengers, you look a bit of a tool arriving at work and, as I recently discovered at an airport check-in, all the time you’ve gained on the road threading through traffic is lost having to strip off your multiple layers of kit.

Jon Quirk, Harley Davidson 48

But having grown up on the smell of two-stroke scooters, I just can’t seem to shake the habit. I value the perspective I get from a bike and, now I’m older, I can finally get insured for less than the price of a small house.

To my surprise, the Harley 48 has proved to be the most most remarkable town bike. The frame is compact and narrow enough to weave in and out of traffic. The chunky tyres, seat and suspension have been set up to make no drama out of potholes and the 1202cc engine has so much torque (98NM), you find yourself just burbling around in any of those five gears. It’s a massively infectious riding style and one that keeps your license in tact.

Jon Quirk

Equally surprising is just how useless the 48 would be on a trek to the Scottish Highlands. The forward pegs and wide bars get uncomfortable at prolonged high speed -  seriously, anything above 60mph and the vibrations hit you hard and the burly ‘potato potato‘ thrum becomes inaudible. All your ears pick up is the apparent ticking noise of an old cinema projector.

Harley Davidson 48, JonQuirk.com

The most frustrating part would be that piddly 8-litre ‘peanut’ fuel tank. The range is supposed to be around the 100-mile mark, but in the city, I was seeing the fuel light flash on after half that. Come to mention it, I find it quite weird that a bike with an odometer and a trip computer does not also have a fuel gauge. I could imagine becoming quite paranoid if I was ever planning a route out of town. Keep this bike in the city however, and you will fall in love.

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Audi RS3 is SO fast, but where’s the fun?

by JonQ on Jun.26, 2011, under News

One third of all UK Audi sales are from the A3, so it’s no surprise that there’s been much anticipation for this ultimate edition, the 335bhp Audi RS3 Sportback. Even at £40k. It is blindingly quick, and can grip in a way that is hard to elucidate verbally.

I filmed the interior with my phone to give you all a tour as this is probably the last time we’ll all get close to this car again. All 500 units coming to the UK are sold.  As you can see, the cabin remains beautifully appointed, if a little bit long in the tooth these days.

I can confirm the DSG gearbox is brilliant. In ‘S’ mode, the transmission intuitively recognises what gear you want and shifts cogs effortlessly quickly, so there’s absolutely no let up. It’s the relentless acceleration that I found most impressive with this car.

Trouble is, four-wheel drive can often anaesthetise the driving enjoyment and although the Audi RS3 is, I repeat, devastatingly quick (seriously, I just don’t know what could beat it on a B-road) you may find yourself having more fun in something else. As long as you’re also cool with that meaning you won’t be the fastest.

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Mille Miglia 2011 review

by JonQ on Jun.26, 2011, under News

The country-wide ardour for all things motoring could only ever exist in Italy, which probably explains the Mille Miglia. What a spectacle. You’ll note by my complete lack of correspondence -- apart from Twitter -- that as soon as the clocks started, the Jaguar Heritage team and I barely had time to sleep, let alone blog.

Mille Miglia 2011, Jaguar D-Type

I was there to do a job for Jaguar Heritage, and after following the Jaguar D-Type around the route during the day, the nights were spent servicing the car and improvising fixes with a boot full of tools. Our drivers finished day one at 2AM, and we arrived at our hotel at 4:30AM.  We were back on the road at 6AM, bleary eyed, yawning and debilitated by a double shift, but buzzing.

Most people will only see these cars in museums, if ever, so it’s just amazing when you’ve got hundreds of these iconic cars descending en masse through the streets of beautiful town after town, spumante and celebration being served up on every corner. Florence in particular was stunning. I drove past the Statue of David that overlooks the city and thought to myself how I’d very much like to return one day.

Adrenalin pretty much carries you through day three, but unfortunately ours was cut short 100kms from the finish when the Jaguar D-Type suffered overheating problems. Our final hours were spent on a roadside somewhere waiting for a trailer home. It didn’t seem fair at the time, but on reflection I think it helped me experience every emotion going. I needed a week to get over the Mille Miglia and still have the smell of racing fuel in my dreams.

Mille Miglia 2011, Jaguar D-Type

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