Winter's Last Hurrah

On Monday (March 19, 2012) literally the day before the first day of spring, winter decided to do a bit of last minute showing off.  To put all of this in perspective you have to understand what an unbelievably mild winter we've been having here in Southern Alberta.  I was able to have the sunroof open on certain days in February, and throughout March it's actually been nice enough for shorts for several days at a time. Somewhere along the way I guess we were going to have to pay for all of that good luck.

On Sunday there was no snow, and although the blizzard was in the forecast, come Monday morning it was simply raining on my way to work.  Our office is located just outside of town along the Trans Canada highway, which makes for a nice enough work environment, but then things like this happen.  By noon the snow had arrived in full force and we found ourselves smack dab in the middle of a blizzard.

With temperatures hovering just below zero, the snow falling was heavy, wet, and it stuck to everything.  My office window was quickly glazed in ice, and for a few hours it hid how bad it was getting outside.  By around 3pm I glanced outside to snap a few quick pictures and realized that there was over a foot and a half of snow piling up around some of the cars.  I started to dread the thought that we might actually get snowed in. And what's that? Oh, the plows won't come out here until the evening. Sh*t.

Any panic and frustration I felt about getting my car out of our lot only worsened when I realized what was happening in town.  The highways were all being closed, power outages were reported, and dozens of accidents had already occurred.  From then on I wanted nothing more than to get home that night and I joined the rest of the guys in the web department shoveling, digging, and pushing as many people from our parking lot as we could.  In a making-the-best-of-a-bad-situation kind of way, it was actually fun being out in the snow - especially because people were actually starting to get out of the lot.  

By the time I was ready to go I was relying entirely on the chains that my Dad insisted I hold on to the last time I got my Jag stuck in the snow.  Once again, they were a life-saver.  Had it not been for everyone else's vehicles making tracks before me I'm not sure I would've cleared the lot.  I trudged all the way to the highway with those chains on before removing them, and by the time I got back into town, the roads (although still awful) seemed better by comparison.

It's still amazing to me how much snow fell so quickly that afternoon.  For it to go from clear to a real possibility of being stranded out in the country, like a bunch of school kids in Irvine were, you have to be thankful that in the end it was mostly just a temporary inconvenience.  Now, in truly predictable Alberta weather fashion, the snow is disappearing relatively quickly as temperatures are predicted to return to the teens. As far as I'm concerned, winter can take a break now.      

My office window.

This isn't overexposed, it literally was white out conditions.

The snow piling up.

Calgary Auto Show 2012: Part 2

While the trip to the Auto Show over the weekend may have been inspired by my desire to see all of the new Jaguars, the other big draw was seeing a bunch of the latest supercars up close.  They were all there too.  Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Bentley, and even the first Canadian supercar, Plethore all had their own sections.  Here are a few of my favorite snapshots I took at the event.

For even more pictures, check out my series of posts on Jeeves and the Jaguar about some of the various cars I liked at the 2012 Calgary Auto Show. 

Calgary Auto Show 2012: Part 1

On Friday I took the day off work to head up to Calgary with my Dad to check out the 2012 International Auto Show.  I'd been interested in going since last summer, and thought it would be a cool experience to drive up in my XJ8 and see some of the newest Jaguar models on display.  Of course, it was also an opportunity to bond with my Dad over world class supercars and encourage him to buy me one for my upcoming birthday. I have a strong suspicion that it didn't work, but that could just be part of the surprise.

We drove up that morning and had lunch at Denny's when we got into town.  A meat-lover's omelet and beer is clearly the perfect fuel for an afternoon of walking a trade show, and I'm proud that my Dad and I both share an affinity for all-day breakfasts. I knew it would be a good day once we pulled up to the gate of the BMO Centre where the Auto Show was, and the parking attendant quipped, "You drove this car here just for me, right?"  Just one of the many reasons I love my Jaguar (pictured below). 

Inside, my Dad suggested that we go to the Jaguar section first.  It turned out to be a really good idea as I ended up shooting so many pictures on our way there - and of all the Jaguar's on display - that my camera's battery died shortly after. You can't really blame a guy for being a bit trigger happy with that much eye candy in one room. Thankfully I had my iPod Touch to shoot pictures of all of the remaining cars. 

We were looking at a Jaguar XK and I was telling my Dad about how they'd changed the gear selector to a dial that rises out of the centre console when the car is turned on. One of the Jaguar associates overheard me and approached us. "It sounds like you know a lot about these cars" he said. I admitted that I owned an old Jag and that I had paid a lot of attention to the redesign of the brand.  This was where his tone changed, as suddenly I wasn't just a fan, but a potential customer.  

He told me all about how I could get a discount because of the car show and an added loyalty discount of $18,000 because I already owned a Jaguar.  This was perfect, because it meant that I'd only need to come up with another $100,000 to buy a new XJ. I'm most certainly on the fringe of the Jaguar clientele, but it was flattering to be treated like a member of the club anyway.  Then again, he probably knew right off the bat that I was a man of importance because of the shorts and sneakers I was wearing. 

So, while buying a new Jaguar XJ was never in the cards, it wasn't a total loss as I was incredibly happy and surprised that I did get the opportunity to sit behind the wheel of one.  My brief discussion with the associate also landed me a beautiful (and clearly expensive) card stock booklet about the new XJ and the personalized options available for ordering one.  I figure if I hold on to it for 20 years it could really come in handy when I'm ready to buy a used 2012 Jaguar.  And on an interesting side note, they still do the burl walnut veneer finish that's in my existing car - thank you XJ booklet for that.

All and all it was a really enjoyable day.  We spent about 4 hours wandering around checking out all of the different displays and sharing car stories.  While the supercars were all roped off, it was nice that you could get up close and even sit in a lot of the cars to get a feel for them.  My Dad seems to be on the fence about springing for a Cadillac, but I think with a bit more time I can get him to go for something far less practical - like a Maserati.  It'll take a lot of work, but there's always next year.

Come back for Part 2 tomorrow where I'll be posting more pictures from the Auto Show, including some of the nicest cars we saw from Bentley, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, and Ferrari.  Also, check out my other blog, Jeeves and the Jaguar for more original photo sets of my favorite vehicles at the 2012 show.