bronze lions
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Spotted recently on the veritable bleeding edge of Astoria and Sunnyside, a humble narrator could barely withstand the amount of reflected light this “cool car” was bathed in. A sunny morning, this Viper GTS and its spectacular detailing nevertheless seemed aglow as if with some otherworldly light.
from wikipedia
The Dodge Viper (renamed ‘SRT Viper’ as of MY 2013) is a V10-powered sports car, manufactured by the Dodge division of Chrysler. Production of the two seat sports car began at New Mack Assembly in 1991 and moved to its current home at Conner Avenue Assembly in October 1995.
Although Chrysler considered ending production because of financial problems, chief executive Sergio Marchionne announced and showed on September 14, 2010 a new model of the Viper for 2012. All Vipers are V10 powered with a manual transmission.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Gray, wrinkled, and definitely worse for wear- this sort of car would be a ridiculous thing for one such as myself to be seen in- this is a young mans automobile. It would be ridiculous to see an older person climb out from behind the wheel, although it would require one to afford it.
from caranddriver.com
The Viper GTS/R is a street legal concept race car. Like the non-concept GTS-R race car that was introduced in 1996, the GTS/R concept’s 8.0-liter V-10 engine is dry-sumped and delivers 500 horsepower, 50 more than the standard motor. This concept car is also just over three inches lower than the current GTS coupe, the rear wheels were moved three inches backwards, and the A-pillar was positioned three inches forward. The interior is all-new and constructed largely of clear-coated carbon fiber.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It reminded me for all the world of the sort of plastic model kits which were slaved over in childhood.
Luckily, the folks over at revell.com have a viper model kit on sale for those of us with lesser means and lowered expectations.
certain phases
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This is another one of the shots I’ve been chasing all summer. It is not an easy thing to photograph a lit up moving thing from another moving thing, at night, and capture the background in acceptable sharpness- even on Maritime Sunday.
20th Annual Great North River Tugboat Race & Competition
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just starting the “develop” process on the shots gathered at today’s Working Harbor Committee event, the running of the 20th annual Great North River Tugboat Race and Competition. The winner of the race is pictured above and below. That’s Kirby Marine’s Lincoln Sea.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It will be a couple of days before the entire set of photos is ready, but I figured that it made sense to rush a couple out for today. Happy Labor Day.
Project Firebox 51
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Spotted this one on Russell street in Greenpoint, a hard to find H.P. TEL Firebox, hidden in plain sight.
The last time I saw one of these models was in Bushwick way back in 2010. Check out the post here.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Quoting from the post mentioned above:
It seems that when the fire system, pipe and pump wise, was first laid down in the early 20th century, technological infancy limited the number of streets that could be served by high pressure lines. Reserved for high rises, factories, and high density tenement blocks- the high pressure water common today was only available in certain areas. However, should the need arise, a fire chief carried a key that would access one of these “H.P. TEL” fireboxes which would send a command back to the firehouse to throw open the valves that would pressurize the lines flowing through its district.
The TEL stands for telegraph, apparently, and the whole scheme ceased to be necessary sometime in the 1950′s.
bland face
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A lot of this Newtown Creek thing involves going to meetings in Greenpoint- this monitoring committee or that alliance or just some gathering at which an unelected official or designated regulator will speak at. This consumes quite a bit of time, which is amplified in my case, as I walk to the place from Astoria. Not a long walk by any stretch, roughly 3 miles, but sometimes it feels as if I spend all my time walking to and from the Greenpoint Avenue Bridge.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Long have I been intrigued by this little fix a flat building which sits at the cross roads of Greenpoint Avenue, Van Dam St., and Review avenue on the Queens side in Blissville. Run down, it seems to be held together with tape and tacks, but there has always been something about the structure which has caught my eye. “Something” seems significant about it, given its location. Despite efforts at finding that something, it has always remained an enigma. Until now, thanks to the NYC Municipal Archives LUNA website.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This shot, of the Sobol Brothers SOCONY station at the intersection of Greenpoint and Van Dam, is from August 20, 1930- roughly 82 years ago. SOCONY, of course, stands for Standard Oil Company of New York. Standard used to franchise out filling stations, in the same manner as its modern day incarnation ExxonMobil does. The name SOCONY indicates that the signage went up after 1911 when the Standard Trust was broken up, incidentally.
click here for the giant sharp version of the NYCMA image.
Also, at the ever reliable fultonhistory.com, I found this ad for the company, which seems to have had several locations in Queens.
