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Why SUVs And Touchscreens Are Raising Crash Risks · In Wheel Time Podcast

• 0:03
  unknown: Oh.
• 0:06
  Don Armstrong: We've got the in real time car talk show.
• 0:09
  Don Armstrong: Just I'm not sure of anything.
• 0:12
  Don Armstrong: Ever.
• 0:12
  Don Armstrong: I've learned at my age that uh no, I'm not sure of anything.
• 0:16
  Don Armstrong: Just ahead, Death, I'm sure of that.
• 0:18
  Don Armstrong: Just ahead, Caroline Cash with the Governor's Highway Safety Association.
• 0:21
  Don Armstrong: Plus, Jeff has the racing calendar.
• 0:24
  Don Armstrong: And uh we'll have this week in Auto History.
• 0:26
  Don Armstrong: I'll have stories making automotive news headlines this week.
• 0:28
  Don Armstrong: Howdy, along with Mike out of this world, Mars.
• 0:31
  Don Armstrong: There he is.
• 0:32
  Don Armstrong: We always need more Jeff Zeken.
• 0:34
  Don Armstrong: I'm Don Armstrong.
• 0:35
  Don Armstrong: Glad you could join us.
• 0:36
  Don Armstrong: If you're wondering why I'm fiddling over here, well, this is our audio.
• 0:40
  Don Armstrong: We've moved it over here because I don't like the wires sticking up over here.
• 0:44
  Don Armstrong: And uh unfortunately I ordered some new equipment.
• 0:47
  Don Armstrong: Where are they sticking up?
• 0:48
  Don Armstrong: How did those wires go?
• 0:48
  Don Armstrong: They were sticking up over there.
• 0:50
  Mike Marrs: Oh, I can see where they're wiggling like that with early very distracting.
• 0:54
  Mike Marrs: Yeah.
• 0:54
  Don Armstrong: So, um, anyways, back to the drawing board.
• 0:57
  Don Armstrong: So I moved the uh console over here.
• 0:58
  Don Armstrong: So that's why I'm looking over here.
• 1:01
  Don Armstrong: Uh yeah.
• 1:02
  Don Armstrong: I'm not looking at my pedicure that I had, which is absolutely stunning.
• 1:07
  Don Armstrong: But that's another story for another show.
• 1:10
  Don Armstrong: I I would never do it.
• 1:12
  Don Armstrong: I could never do that.
• 1:13
  Don Armstrong: Oh, I thought you were serious.
• 1:14
  Don Armstrong: You do that.
• 1:15
  Jeff Dziekan: I do.
• 1:15
  Jeff Dziekan: Awesome.
• 1:16
  Jeff Dziekan: No.
• 1:16
  Jeff Dziekan: Oh yeah.
• 1:17
  Jeff Dziekan: Never.
• 1:18
  Don Armstrong: Love it.
• 1:18
  Jeff Dziekan: Well, you want to go for pedicure?
• 1:20
  Jeff Dziekan: Call me, I'll go with you.
• 1:21
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, well, not me.
• 1:22
  Don Armstrong: I'm good.
• 1:22
  Don Armstrong: You just go for yourself.
• 1:24
  Don Armstrong: All right.
• 1:25
  Don Armstrong: Um we have our guest now, and her name is Caroline Cash, and she is with the Governor's Highway Safety Association.
• 1:33
  Don Armstrong: Caroline, good morning to you.
• 1:34
  Don Armstrong: How are you?
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: I'm well.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for having me.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: Appreciate the opportunity.
• 1:39
  Don Armstrong: Yes, absolutely.
• 1:40
  Don Armstrong: And it's it's a pleasure to be with you.
• 1:42
  Don Armstrong: Where are we speaking to you from?
• 1:43
  Don Armstrong: What city are you in?
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I am in Frederick, Maryland, and Governor's Highway Safety Association.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: We are in Washington, D.C.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, okay.
• 1:52
  Don Armstrong: Well, that's just down the street from you, right?
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: Well, far enough.
• 1:57
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, well, yeah, I would imagine.
• 1:59
  Don Armstrong: So do you let me ask you this do you drive or take the train?
• 2:02
  Don Armstrong: How do you get between Washington and Maryland?
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: I actually take the train.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: My home is uh, you know, just uh a couple hundred yards from the station, and I've lived here 20 years and been woken up by the train every morning.
• 2:14
  Don Armstrong: And well, I have to tell you that uh I made one trip up there, and it was so expensive to fly into Reagan International from Houston that they said, you know, we could save$500 if you could go to Maryland and take the train.
• 2:27
  Don Armstrong: I said, I don't care.
• 2:28
  Don Armstrong: What do I know?
• 2:29
  Don Armstrong: So got off the airplane, went over to the train station, got the train, and had a very enjoyable quick ride, I might add, to DC.
• 2:37
  Don Armstrong: So why not?
• 2:38
  Don Armstrong: You know, and I'm sure that you've got your limo waiting for you when you get to Washington.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: My limo are my right and left seat, and they walk me right to the office.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: See, thank you very much.
• 2:49
  Don Armstrong: I bet you she gets pedicures.
• 2:51
  Don Armstrong: I bet you she does.
• 2:52
  Don Armstrong: We're not gonna go there.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: You are right, you are right, and I'm with you on that.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: We'll we'll go, we'll meet halfway.
• 2:59
  Don Armstrong: So, Caroline, first of all, let's talk about uh what your organization uh does, first of all.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: Sure.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: So Governor's Highway Safety Association, we represent the state highway safety offices and territories.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um we try and influence national policy to be as safe as possible, um, and we provide information to those state highway safety offices on best practices.
• 3:24
  Don Armstrong: So it's not just about cars, it's about intersections and people crossing intersections, safety overall.
• 3:32
  Don Armstrong: But you know, the big the big thing right now that I have because we're obviously a car show, is the way that cars are designed and uh especially the front ends of cars.
• 3:43
  Don Armstrong: So if there is an unfortunate pedestrian accident, that person is going to have a higher chance of survival if they're hit by a car.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: That is correct.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we just released on Tuesday the latest pedestrian safety information, and without question, the majority of the crashes that are fatalities are caused by the light truck, which includes SUVs.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you're right, the design, just the hood is higher.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so when you are actually hitting the pedestrian, you're hitting them in a part of the body where they're not as likely to be able to survive that crash as they would be on a on a car hood that's lower and they might be able to roll up.
• 4:30
  Mike Marrs: What were you gonna say, Mike?
• 4:31
  Mike Marrs: Well, I was gonna say, you know, because I'm thinking about my truck, you know, it's like the front is like a big wall.
• 4:36
  Mike Marrs: It would be like hitting somebody or then hitting a wall at whatever speed I'm going, I suppose.
• 4:41
  Mike Marrs: Never thought of that.
• 4:42
  Mike Marrs: Yeah.
• 4:42
  Mike Marrs: Yes, absolutely.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 4:44
  Don Armstrong: Well, and and and the fact that I mean, let's face it, uh, trucks are made for a certain purpose.
• 4:49
  Don Armstrong: And down here in Texas, we don't necessarily buy trucks for that purpose.
• 4:54
  Don Armstrong: We buy them because uh apparently uh everybody like we yeah, like the look of the truck.
• 4:59
  Don Armstrong: Uh and I will say there's some advantages to owning a truck, but for the most part, you'll rarely see, unless it's a worker's truck, rarely find anything in the back bed of the truck.
• 5:10
  Don Armstrong: It's more because of the size of it.
• 5:12
  Don Armstrong: It's almost like a, well, in some cases, many cases now, it's almost like a limousine inside.
• 5:17
  Don Armstrong: Who wouldn't want to ride in that?
• 5:19
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, you know, sure.
• 5:21
  Jeff Dziekan: My my I'm sorry, my question would be that you're you're the governors, you're working with the governors in each state.
• 5:27
  Jeff Dziekan: How closely do you work with the manufacturers?
• 5:29
  Jeff Dziekan: What by what you just said with the design and all that?
• 5:32
  Jeff Dziekan: So that's part of it as well?
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: So we do work with uh the the um car companies, the manufacturers, um, we have relationships with them, and each of them has a safety entity, right?
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: They're they're doing research, they're looking at crash testing, um, and certainly we discuss with them closely um pedestrian safety as well as impaired driving, distracted driving.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: What can we do together to help prevent these crashes, whether it's in the design of the vehicle, whether it's in how we educate the consumer, you know, how many of us have bought a new car that has all these bells and whistles and we really don't know how they work?
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_00: So getting that information out, you know, we recently worked with a car company that put hang tags in each of their new vehicles with a QR code and a website where they could learn how that vehicle actually operates, how those safety features work.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: I know, brilliant.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, there are a lot of things that we do together and we partner with them.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um, clearly, we have a lot of work to do, but we are thankful that they are listening and partnering with us.
• 6:46
  Jeff Dziekan: I think that's an evolution because what you just said about the QR code and the hang tag that was called your owner's manual in the past.
• 6:52
  Jeff Dziekan: You agreed it now.
• 6:53
  Jeff Dziekan: You get someone in there that is technical about that automobile, which I bought my car, and the young man sat next to me and he said, This is what it does.
• 7:00
  Jeff Dziekan: And he went through the whole gamut of what the car does.
• 7:02
  Jeff Dziekan: It still has things on there that I'm discovering with backup sensors and rain sensors and things.
• 7:07
  Jeff Dziekan: If the car is dry and you're backing out of the garage and it's wet, the car will automatically stop you because the camera and the sensors are getting hit by water.
• 7:14
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah, so it does stuff like that.
• 7:16
  Jeff Dziekan: That's a feature that I like.
• 7:17
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh, but there's other things that are kind of irritating as well.
• 7:20
  Mike Marrs: So just out of curiosity, so you mentioned distracted driving.
• 7:26
  Mike Marrs: So everybody's got a terminal, basically, a computer terminal now in the middle of their car.
• 7:30
  Mike Marrs: Some of them are pretty good.
• 7:32
  Mike Marrs: You can push a button, you can go to your radio, you can do this, you can, but there's some of them you've got to go three or four screens deep to get your air conditioner turned down or your radio channels, and you're doing 75 miles an hour down the freeway, punching and working on your computer.
• 7:48
  Mike Marrs: That's something that y'all look at or get it.
• 7:51
  Mike Marrs: Oh, absolutely.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the research, you know, looking at those types of behaviors, look, and that's all part of distracted driving.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, very much.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: No question, if your eyes are not up and on the road in front of you and around you, you are being distracted.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_00: Um, one of the things that they are introducing, and it's getting better is the voice activation, so that you're able to hit a button and speak what you'd like the car to be able to do, and the car should be able to turn on the air conditioner, but but not all the cars have that.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: So certainly, you know, we also work with the app stores.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, imagine Google.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: Most people either have a Google-oriented phone or an Apple phone, right?
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: And most of those phones have an app that would allow you to control that display again with your voice.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, these are all things we're working on.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: So, what's great?
• 8:47
  Don Armstrong: How do you address that when it comes to General Motors doing away with uh the uh Apple, Android, Apple, and Android functions and going with the General Motors system?
• 8:57
  Don Armstrong: How do you how do you juggle that?
• 8:59
  Don Armstrong: Because you still got to work with the company, but now they've done away with being able to get your phone into the car like most others.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: Well, and at that point, you are working with the actual manufacturer to ensure that they are having their own voice activation or they are considering how best to design that screen with safety in mind so that you're not having to go through three, four, five screens to get to the air conditioner when you're traveling down a highway.
• 9:31
  Don Armstrong: I mean, it it sounds to be like a you know, you'll need that pedicure to tiptoe through all of the things.
• 9:39
  Don Armstrong: All of the things that you have to deal with.
• 9:41
  Don Armstrong: Am I wrong?
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: Well, we but you know what?
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I will tell you, there is a great deal of focus um and partnership with these organizations and the focus on safety.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, they are the transparency and the partnerships that have come about in the past, I would say, you know, five to ten years is so beyond what might have been anticipated back in the day.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um, there is much more sharing of technology, sharing of the design structure so that we're not having to deal with each one of these manufacturers individually.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there are organizations that we work with that represent several.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but the focus we we have found the partnership to be much more positive and much more uh inclusive of safety messaging and safety work.
• 10:40
  Don Armstrong: Okay, now so here's the here's the one that uh I have become much more familiar with here in the recent, actually recent months.
• 10:49
  Don Armstrong: Uh autonomous driving.
• 10:52
  Don Armstrong: And uh that has got to be a whole nother division that has about 10,000 people in it because it's a it this is a whole new can of worms.
• 11:01
  Don Armstrong: And now the discussion has gotten amongst the manufacturers.
• 11:04
  Don Armstrong: Do we actually need a steering wheel in the car?
• 11:07
  Don Armstrong: And I'm sure that you've read this as well.
• 11:09
  Don Armstrong: So how are you guys handling this when you've got a car that is not being driven by a human being?
• 11:15
  Don Armstrong: It's called a train.
• 11:16
  Don Armstrong: That's called a train.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I I will tell you, uh, there are not 10,000 of us.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: There are there are far fewer of us, but we also partner very closely with with those folks and those manufacturers.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, we have uh partnered with Waymo, for example, and certainly their um, you know, it's it's easy.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_00: We we we tend to you know throw the baby out with the bathwater sometimes.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: And and so when we see a story that covers um a mistake, or um, you know, frequently they've in the pet in the uh press the software issues.
• 11:56
  Jeff Dziekan: Growing pains.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they are.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: That's exactly what they are.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: They are growing pains and they take them incredibly seriously.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: We have never had to say to any of these manufacturers of automated vehicles, what are you doing?
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: They're the first ones that say, stop.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: We need to investigate this, we need to understand what that was about, and we need to make a safety upgrade, a safety change.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so we welcome their focus on safety.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's not perfect yet, right?
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: But the expectation is that the machine will be perfect when we know the human driver is killing over a hundred people a day.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_00: So when you look at the data, there's and there was just there's a study that's going to be released early next week where an individual agency, a separate apart from Waymo, is going to talk about how accurate that Waymo data is and how they are being transparent.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: And the bottom line is the Waymo automated vehicle when it comes to crashes, is far safer than a human driver.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: We don't we don't hear about that as much as we hear about the the times when there are some growing pains or or needs for additional work.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the other thing is we work with Waymo.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um, there's recently been some press about working with law enforcement and first responders.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_00: And so we created an online course for first responders so that they understand how to approach a Waymo, how to work with a Waymo, how to get an operator online to help them if there's a Waymo that they need to move or that there's been a crash.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so those are all things that we're working towards.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we want to increase the um availability of that training and make sure that first responders have everything they need, as well as Waymo taking seriously what happens if a Waymo approaches an emergency situation.
• 14:06
  Don Armstrong: You know, uh on window stickers of new cars now, there is a uh crash rating.
• 14:13
  Don Armstrong: Do you guys have any influence on that crash rating at all?
• 14:17
  Don Armstrong: Does do you you don't participate in any of that?
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_00: No, we don't participate.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_00: That is done independently.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety does uh the science and research, and then we will promote their findings.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_00: We certainly um work closely with them in terms of letting our constituents, letting our state highway safety offices know if there are recalls, if there are issues related to a particular car.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but they they put that information out independently of anyone else having anything to do with that.
• 14:52
  Don Armstrong: So, Caroline, the first the first thing that we learn as children growing up is how to cross an intersection.
• 14:59
  Don Armstrong: Do you guys do you guys provide information to schools and institutions across the United States to this is how we should be teaching the children to cross?
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, we do.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: We work very closely with in um different different partners, uh, state farms, certainly one of them.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: We have a website that was introduced last year, and it's called Generation Distraction Free.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: And the whole point of that is to raise the next generation to understand, going back to what we all understood growing up.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: We didn't have phones, we didn't have all those electronics to distract us from the city.
• 15:37
  Don Armstrong: But we had great bicycles.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_00: We did, but we didn't, you know, we were distracted, and so we need to make sure that people understand they have accountability for their safety.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: Look up, eyes up the number of people I see crossing the street distracted by their phone.
• 15:59
  Jeff Dziekan: Sure, they're on their phone, yeah.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_00: With the driver being distracted by their phone or their console or whatever.
• 16:06
  Mike Marrs: Conversation going on in the backseat.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we just we have to go back to basics, right?
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_00: And remind everybody you are responsible for your own safety.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_00: So make sure you take that seriously.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure you're looking both ways.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, people just you know step out on the curb and without looking.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_00: And so we need everybody to to go back to those basics, right?
• 16:28
  Jeff Dziekan: So do so.
• 16:29
  Jeff Dziekan: Obviously, you work with the students as well for bus safety and things.
• 16:33
  Jeff Dziekan: Great.
• 16:33
  Jeff Dziekan: Yes.
• 16:34
  Mike Marrs: One of my wife's pet peeves is that she doesn't think anybody knows which side of the street to walk on.
• 16:40
  Mike Marrs: When you're walking, no sidewalk, so you're walking on the edge of the road.
• 16:44
  Mike Marrs: You know, she's constantly pointing out how people are walking on the wrong side of the road.
• 16:48
  Mike Marrs: So simple things like that that apparently we're not teaching, like you're talking about.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_00: Well, and I think, you know, the the truth is we've become a culture that that you know it's it's sort of the the instant gratification or you know, I'm independent, I'll I'll do my thing.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_00: And and so people don't necessarily pay attention to those basics.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_00: And that is definitely something that we we are constantly promoting basic safety measures, whether you're in the car, driving the car, whether you're crossing the road, whether you're you know, pushing a stroller, you're in a wheelchair.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_00: Everybody has to practice those basic safety measures so that we can reduce the number of people we are killing on our streets.
• 17:37
  Don Armstrong: Well, Caroline, you know, uh that clock over your left shoulder hasn't moved since we have to do it.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: I knew you'd ask.
• 17:46
  Don Armstrong: And I I and I know that time flies when we're having this interview with you because you've been such a wonderful guest, and we thank you for that.
• 17:53
  Don Armstrong: And I'll send you some triple A's or whatever you need back there for that clock.
• 17:57
  Don Armstrong: But it's been bugging me ever since you've been on it.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_00: It is a reminder to me, quickly, my grandfather's clock.
• 18:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it is a reminder to me how far we've come from when five o'clock used to be when everybody was having a cocktail and getting in their car.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: We have changed that.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_00: We have a lot of work to do, but it is a reminder of how far we've come.
• 18:20
  Don Armstrong: And that time has now begun at seven o'clock instead of five o'clock.
• 18:24
  Don Armstrong: That's your next appointment for pedicure.
• 18:26
  Don Armstrong: That's right, for my pedicure appointment.
• 18:28
  Don Armstrong: Caroline Cash, we thank you so much for joining us today.
• 18:31
  Don Armstrong: Thank you.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: A pleasure.
• 18:33
  Don Armstrong: Thanks, Gabby.
• 18:34
  Don Armstrong: All right, uh, coming up here on the In Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 18:37
  Don Armstrong: Um, we are going to get into some stuff that you're really going to like, like the racing calendar, this week in auto history.
• 18:46
  Don Armstrong: We've got tons of stuff coming up.
• 18:48
  Don Armstrong: Uh, just ahead, Jeff has the racing calendar.
• 18:50
  Don Armstrong: Mars has this week in auto history, and I'll bring you this week's automotive news headlines.
• 18:53
  Don Armstrong: In-wheel time car talk show continues, and we're back in a flash.
• 18:58
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• 19:58
  Don Armstrong: The N-Wheel Time Car Talk Show thanks you for 15 wonderful years.
• 20:02
  Don Armstrong: Yep, our first show aired May 7th, 2011, on the local radio station.
• 20:06
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• 20:10
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• 20:10
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• 20:15
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• 20:17
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• 20:22
  Don Armstrong: It's been a great ride, and we hope to bring you more fun and adventure right here on the Idwill Time Car Talk Show.
• 20:30
  Don Armstrong: Sorry.
• 20:31
  Don Armstrong: Jeff's getting water, and uh we we got our feet kicked back.
• 20:35
  Don Armstrong: Well, actually, our feet just got pedicured while we were in this in this break, and uh, and we're letting them dry.
• 20:41
  Don Armstrong: But it's time now for the uh racing calendar, sponsored by the Texas Muscle Car Club Challenge.
• 20:47
  Don Armstrong: Jeff.
• 20:48
  Jeff Dziekan: I'm glad I could join you.
• 20:49
  Jeff Dziekan: I had to get some agua.
• 20:50
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah.
• 20:50
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh you it's very important to drink water.
• 20:52
  Jeff Dziekan: You gotta hydrate out there, much like the soccer players do.
• 20:54
  Jeff Dziekan: I was taking a hydration break, so leave me on the back.
• 20:57
  Jeff Dziekan: You know, yeah, that should we should have that at our work.
• 21:00
  Jeff Dziekan: Well, uh Mike takes one, but he's got brown water that he takes.
• 21:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Oh, that's right.
• 21:04
  Jeff Dziekan: The brown water.
• 21:05
  Jeff Dziekan: Yeah.
• 21:06
  Jeff Dziekan: Okay, racing calendar.
• 21:07
  Jeff Dziekan: There you go.
• 21:08
  Jeff Dziekan: Thank you for that.
• 21:08
  Jeff Dziekan: So we got NASCAR is going on today.
• 21:11
  Jeff Dziekan: They are North Wilkes Wilkesboro.
• 21:13
  Jeff Dziekan: North Wilkesboro.
• 21:14
  Jeff Dziekan: Yep.
• 21:14
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh you got the cup guys, and then you got the Craftsman Truck Guys.
• 21:17
  Jeff Dziekan: I think the Craftsman Truck Guys ran last night.
• 21:19
  Jeff Dziekan: I wanted to see a little bit of it, but I was tied up, so didn't get a chance to do that.
• 21:23
  Jeff Dziekan: NHRA is running this weekend.
• 21:24
  Jeff Dziekan: They're 17th through the 19th, which is through tomorrow.
• 21:27
  Jeff Dziekan: They are actually at Sonoma National.
• 21:29
  Jeff Dziekan: Is it Sonoma Raceway?
• 21:30
  Jeff Dziekan: That's out there in Sonoma.
• 21:32
  Jeff Dziekan: He was tied up.
• 21:33
  Don Armstrong: I don't even want to ask about how that was.
• 21:36
  Don Armstrong: But I just thought I'd bring it up because my mind goes there.
• 21:39
  Jeff Dziekan: Yes, it did.
• 21:40
  Jeff Dziekan: I was busy being tied up.
• 21:42
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh Indy racing.
• 21:44
  Jeff Dziekan: Indy racing's in Nashville this weekend, and they got Portland and all those good places.
• 21:47
  Jeff Dziekan: And then, of course, we talked about the two fifty coming up in Washington.
• 21:50
  Jeff Dziekan: But they when is the Washington race?
• 21:52
  Jeff Dziekan: Uh August twenty second, I believe.
• 21:55
  Jeff Dziekan: But there's a big you know three day event going on there.
• 21:57
  Jeff Dziekan: But Nashville for Indy this week, Formula One.
• 22:00
  Jeff Dziekan: One is in uh where are they at?
• 22:03
  Jeff Dziekan: Oh, they're in Belgium uh the Belgian Grand Prix.
• 22:05
  Jeff Dziekan: So you know what?
• 22:05
  Jeff Dziekan: The trophy is a giant waffle.
• 22:07
  Jeff Dziekan: Did you know that?
• 22:08
  Jeff Dziekan: So good luck.
• 22:09
  Jeff Dziekan: Belgian waffles.
• 22:10
  Jeff Dziekan: I like that.
• 22:11
  Jeff Dziekan: Okay, Mike, you're interested in this one.
• 22:13
  Jeff Dziekan: You've got uh the lawnmower racing.
• 22:16
  Jeff Dziekan: It's actually today, uh, the OK mower racing at the WRD Mow Tor Speedway.
• 22:23
  Jeff Dziekan: That's a good play on words.
• 22:24
  Jeff Dziekan: That's in Claremore, Oklahoma.
• 22:26
  Jeff Dziekan: And uh that's all it's going on.
• 22:27
  Jeff Dziekan: Why don't we have a lawnmower racing event here?
• 22:30
  Jeff Dziekan: Well, I told you my lawnmower story.
• 22:32
  Jeff Dziekan: When I get it back out of the shop, yeah, we'll see.
• 22:34
  Jeff Dziekan: Well tubbing it out.
• 22:36
  Don Armstrong: Don't go, don't go to that place anymore.
• 22:38
  Jeff Dziekan: I I have a connection with the lawnmower place.
• 22:41
  Jeff Dziekan: I know a couple of guys that'll do it on the side, but it's you know, uh newer version, a newer model, and I wanted to take advantage of that.
• 22:47
  Jeff Dziekan: Why is the transmission out of it's a brand new?
• 22:49
  Jeff Dziekan: It's about four years old.
• 22:50
  Jeff Dziekan: It's a newer lawnmower.
• 22:51
  Don Armstrong: Man, I had a lawnmower that was 25 years old, the transmission didn't go out.
• 22:56
  Mike Marrs: The frame would rust away before the mission would go out.
• 22:59
  Mike Marrs: You know, I had to do that.
• 22:59
  Don Armstrong: Matter of fact, they're using that transmission in uh the lawnmower racing stuff.
• 23:03
  Don Armstrong: So exactly.
• 23:04
  Don Armstrong: Well, I'm having a tremendous put in it, uh, six speed.
• 23:06
  Don Armstrong: Funny.
• 23:07
  Don Armstrong: So yeah, that's funny.
• 23:08
  Don Armstrong: All right, Mr.
• 23:09
  Don Armstrong: Mars, this week in auto history, it's all yours, sir.
• 23:12
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, we found a few things this week that are coming up next week in the automotive world that might be of interest to be uh you might want to check into a little bit further.
• 23:21
  Mike Marrs: So, for example, on July the 19th, back in 1943, the Alaska Highway received its official name.
• 23:30
  Mike Marrs: So Canada Canada and the United States totally uh built this highway across through uh from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, Fairbanks, and it became the Alaska Highway.
• 23:42
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is also called the Alcan 500.
• 23:46
  Mike Marrs: That's where they had that big race.
• 23:47
  Mike Marrs: It goes up through part of this.
• 23:49
  Mike Marrs: Now it did this to prove that long-distance travel could connect some of the continent's most remote regions and helped open Alaska to future tourism and commerce.
• 23:58
  Mike Marrs: And for the longest time, people would go up there and they would make that drive, but it was a tough drive and uh hard on vehicles.
• 24:05
  Mike Marrs: So now people just fly over it or they cruise around it.
• 24:08
  Mike Marrs: But then in July the 19th in 1955, Disneyland's Autotopia opens.
• 24:15
  Mike Marrs: Now, this was great.
• 24:17
  Mike Marrs: I remember this back in the late 50s when I was still seeing driving that car too.
• 24:21
  Mike Marrs: Yeah, it was right there in the blue one, right there.
• 24:23
  Mike Marrs: And um, it was all sponsored by major automotive companies over the decades.
• 24:28
  Mike Marrs: It got a lot of people came out, brought their kids out there.
• 24:31
  Mike Marrs: Not only was it because of Disneyland, but this was a big major thing because the kids could feel like they were driving after they drove for 10 days to get there.
• 24:39
  Mike Marrs: Now, it became very unusual and it helped general generations associate automobiles with freedom, adventure, and family travel.
• 24:46
  Mike Marrs: However, as a note, now according to the uh state of California, by 2, 1 in 27, no more ice engines.
• 24:55
  Mike Marrs: So Disney's trying to figure out how they're going to handle this.
• 24:59
  Mike Marrs: If they're gonna go to all EV, whatever they're gonna do, but the ice engines are going away.
• 25:03
  Don Armstrong: So that was part of the fun smelling the exhaust and hearing the little putt, putt putt putt putt putt putt going around there.
• 25:10
  Don Armstrong: Yeah, now it's all gonna be well, that's the end of that.
• 25:14
  Mike Marrs: Yep, yep, yep.
• 25:15
  Mike Marrs: Then coming up on July the 21st, back in 1925, Chrysler introduced the Model 58.
• 25:22
  Mike Marrs: Now, this was a very important.
• 25:24
  Mike Marrs: I mean, it kind of looks like it's just another one of the cars that they've got going on here.
• 25:28
  Mike Marrs: But uh, they were trying to be a serious competitor of Ford and General Motors.
• 25:33
  Mike Marrs: So their cars featured hydraulic brakes, they had a lot of other engineering innovations that were not common at the price point they were setting.
• 25:40
  Mike Marrs: And what this really was was the bridge between the Maxwell Chalmers Car Company and the emerging Chrysler Company.
• 25:48
  Mike Marrs: So this was their the real important car that took them out of the Maxwell State and straight into the Chrysler Corporation trying to become what they are today.
• 26:01
  Mike Marrs: The other thing coming up July the 22nd is uh something everybody you should remember if you've got any age on you at all, is parking meters.
• 26:10
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is the first parking meters were approved in Oklahoma City of all places.
• 26:15
  Mike Marrs: And uh it was installed.
• 26:17
  Don Armstrong: That's why nobody lives there anymore.
• 26:19
  Mike Marrs: Exactly, because of the parking meters.
• 26:21
  Mike Marrs: Now, they were obviously very unpopular with motorists, but they became an important part of the automotive infrastructure and they influenced traffic management in cities across America because that's how they could get people in, get people out, and it also became a source of revenue for many cities.
• 26:39
  Mike Marrs: Coming up on July the 24th, we're gonna find something that this I found this really interesting.
• 26:44
  Mike Marrs: I had no clue that GM was had a Cadillac 16.
• 26:50
  Mike Marrs: 16-cylinder engine.
• 26:52
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is for their concept back in 2002 that they revealed this.
• 26:56
  Mike Marrs: It was a massive luxury car with a massive V16 engine in it.
• 27:02
  Mike Marrs: Now, it's really a good-looking car, and you can see how a lot of the designs that have come up since then have followed this as far as the body lines and things go, but it's just uh it was part of the thing that they were moving into that line and this concept car is what generated a lot of buzz at the car shows at the time.
• 27:19
  Mike Marrs: Unfortunately, it never made it into production beyond the concept stage.
• 27:24
  Mike Marrs: And coming up on July the 25th, now I really like this one.
• 27:27
  Mike Marrs: And and one of these days we're gonna do some more stories on it, but it was the first, 1971, the first Cannonball Baker C2 Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash.
• 27:37
  Mike Marrs: Now, this is where it started in Red Ball Garage on the East Coast and went to the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach in California.
• 27:46
  Mike Marrs: Now it was automatic uh organized by Brock Yates.
• 27:50
  Mike Marrs: There's a lot of reasons, the big story behind that.
• 27:53
  Mike Marrs: But the bottom line is the idea was to get from New York to California as soon as possible on public roads.
• 28:00
  Mike Marrs: Now it was very controversial, became what they called an outlaw race.
• 28:04
  Mike Marrs: And uh there's a lot of movies that were made about this race.
• 28:08
  Mike Marrs: And in 1981, the biggest one, it was the first of a series of three, was the Cannonball Run.
• 28:14
  Mike Marrs: They made a couple of remakes after that, but there's several others.
• 28:17
  Mike Marrs: The Gumball Rally is the one I like the best, but it was based on the 1979 Cannonball Baker C to C2 Shining C Memorial Trophy Dash.
• 28:26
  Mike Marrs: So, and that was really the last one it was, but it was based on a true story about a real race.
• 28:32
  Mike Marrs: Okay.
• 28:32
  Mike Marrs: That's some things you can look at this coming week in automotive history.
• 28:35
  Don Armstrong: All right, thank you, sir.
• 28:36
  Don Armstrong: We'd love to hear from you.
• 28:37
  Don Armstrong: Shoot us an email.
• 28:38
  Don Armstrong: The address is info at inwheeltime.com.
• 28:41
  Don Armstrong: We're back right after this quick break.
• 28:42
  Don Armstrong: Stay with us.
• 28:44
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• 28:52
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• 28:59
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• 29:35
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• 29:37
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• 29:44
  Don Armstrong: The NWL Time Car Talk Show thanks you for 15 wonderful years.
• 29:48
  Don Armstrong: Yep, our first show aired May 7th, 2011, on the local radio station.
• 29:52
  Don Armstrong: Then it was a move to the digital world and social media, and you followed.
• 29:55
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• 29:56
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• 30:01
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• 30:02
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• 30:07
  Don Armstrong: It's been a great ride, and we hope to bring you more fun and adventure right here on the In Wheel Time Car Talk Show.
• 30:15
  Don Armstrong: That's it for this podcast episode of the In Wheel Time Car Show.
• 30:19
  Don Armstrong: I'm Don Armstrong, inviting you to join us for our live show every Saturday morning on Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and our InWheelTime.com website.
• 30:29
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• 30:37
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