History (very long, read at own risk) Farewell! - 04/26/05 05:33 PM
My first CDW was a 1996 Mondeo 2.5 Ghia. It was a 5 door in Ash black with a black leather interior and heated seats! My second was a 1997 Mondeo 2.5 Ghia X w/ Full RS kit. It was a Diamond White with Alchemy Leather interior 4 door and was my most favorite CDW ever. I have owned 2 Estates (English for wagon) both Ghia Xâ??s; one Red with a full RS kit (think SVT Wagon!). I also owned a 1997 Mystique LS and in august of 1999, I bought my Silver SVT new from a dealer I came to hate. 7 CDWâ??s in all over a 9 year period. Shortly there after I discovered some on-line communities. A few people were talking contours on Edmunds. There was this mail list thing. Dan Squires had a good name. Then I had my first dose of contour.org. Like crack or heroin (I can only imagine) I was addicted. First I lurked. Then I bought a KKM. Then I bought Dan Squires Supertrapps. Then I cut out my resonator. FAQâ??s became available. More exhaust mods. I joined a local car club (www.redlinemotorsport.com)
More mods. My 1st set of wheels â??? 17â? Team Dynamics DTMâ??s. By now I was frequenting the site on a daily basis. I met Dave Dempster and had an in depth conversation about nitrous. I got the stereo bug. Hello Nakamichi and a/d/s. Then came Venom. AC/DC was always in my CD player. They released the VCN2000 for imports and I had to have it in my SVT. There was a trip to Hell with CEGerâ??s from around the state of Michgan. Mystrgrym (sp? , now world tour) gave a few rides in the first supercharged SVT â??? Chinaman shot some cool video. About 3 months of bugging Python Industires and VCN225-49 was sent to me, the first VCN2000 Nitrous kit for the Duratec V6. I started going to car shows with Redline. I added a second bottle. My trunk was useless, but it looked good! Then came SZ02. Late night Venom installation completion â??? thanks Brian, Mike, Chris, Tim, Brad, John and others! It had some electrical glitches that we finally got worked out. Add copious amounts of JUG (where are those pics anyway?) I dynoed with www.exceedspeed.com and pulled a 179.9 FWHP, no bottle. I was happy with that.
By now I was into my 7th or 8th exhaust, searching for the perfect balance of power and noise. I learned to hate drone, rasp and moosing. Doug welded up one that was OK, but mediocre compared to the final iteration. He does quality work at a fair price, but I found something better (read more expensive, hey, you get what you pay for). I would later fix the moosing with a .20 copper plug. The exhaust would require a bit more of an investment. Devin Pearce at Payne Technologies designed and fabricated what I consider to this day to be the best performing and best looking system available. It took 11 tries I think. I rolled a set of 17â? OZ Supertourismoâ??s for a year. They were the only set in the US in a 4x108 â??? I imported them from Demon Tweeks in England. Hard as nails and looked the part of the touring car heritage I was after. Somewhere in there I had my car sent to Rockford Michigan for a week or two. Thanks Todd for the nicely fabbed pre-cats. Thanks Terry for the work and advice. My CEG addiction was full blown now â??? several visits per day from work and from home. I didnâ??t post much, but I read everything. I was loving my car every chance I got to drive it. It was a daily driver the whole time I owned it, so I was happy quite a bit. I bought a B&M shortly after they were introduced and at 15,000 miles I added H&R springs. While I never had a problem with the stock struts, my sole regret is not adding Koniâ??s at the same time.
The CEG continued to grow and I made many friends. There were the oddball wankers too; Citation, CBM, rekcilenob, GAGT and others I fortunately forgot about. Didnâ??t some boneyard claim a bicycle shop was forging him a set of titanium pistons or rods?
I remember pranksters like Bassen and his very first 3L and his Z06. Itâ??s ok though, his GT couldnâ??t escape my bottles on an on-ramp in Western MI.
Ricks roll on video provided mucho entertainment â??? only because he took it in stride and has a good sense of humor. The hub (or was it a bearing at SZ02?) was a bit much though. Sorry Rick. Some cars were wrecked â??? Iâ??m glad Dave was ok in his guardrail incident near Ann Arbor. Steveâ??s videos were always funny. Steveâ??s videoâ??s were always innovative. Yes I mean Xchiang and A2steve. I was right there (and I do mean right there) when Sylvie (again SP?) expressed her displeasure with Bradâ??s right foot. That WRX never stood a chance anyway. Where the F is Ionia anyway? Sorry I couldnâ??t stay at the gas station Antonio, but the wife and kids were on the curb and Tim did get my jack back to me. Moe, where are those (circle of trust) pics? To our philsophers and political junkies - it's been mostly fun. Let me know where esle you post James, I did the occasional education. Pete, you do have a knack for stirring it up. That's OK. Most of the timeI sold the OZâ??s to Roger and landed my favorite wheels of all time â??? 17â?BBS RX. My car was as far as I would take it. A year later I sold it to another CEGer and became a troll.
SZ03? I tried for â??04. I heard it was OK. I heard more about a bunch of whining about the cost. â??05 should be a return to participation and fun. If you want drama, stay home and watch TNT. Will â??06 return to Michigan? Will the CEG exist in â??06? I hope so. The current trend of influx of retard morons may prove to be too much. I sincerely hope not. I also know that a few can spoil it for the majority.
For thaose who complain about how the site is run â??? FO. You do not have to be here, you can choose to leave. You can choose not to read posts from people you know are worthless. You can even choose to read and not reply. Replying that a post is stupid is sad. You contribute to the cancerous growth of what usually is a pointless thread anyway. The moderators have tried to apply the rules fairly; itâ??s not always possible. Get over it. Veterans and noobs alike have been banned, both temporarily and permanently. Suggesting otherwise makes you look like an ass as you are wrong and asserting untrue things. Banning people is not ridiculous â??? look at corner carvers.com , thanks Sal! It works. And, to thank Lance is most appropriate. It was his concept. His hard work, his money and his name on the site. However, to thank him only is ridiculous. If you read other parts of this great resource (faqâ??s, Mods, etc.) you will see many people who have contributed to this site over the years. Louis, Nick, John, Andy, Marty, Ray (RIP ï? ), and so many others. Donâ??t overlook our un-named technical advisors, Chris, Brad, Rick, Demon, Brian, Terry, Pete and so many others. Thatâ??s not even mentioning the software/hardware people (thanks again Perry! For the CEG stuff and the personal stuff) who have worked to keep the site up and running for so long. Or, the countless financial benefactors. I think we set a record for donations in the shortest period of time not to long ago for ANY website.
The younger, newer members are a big part of the problem here. So are some of the older â??think they know it all and have a bad attitude members.â?? Mostly itâ??s the newer, younger punks though. Face it, the platform is aging and becoming cheaper. As this happens younger people can afford the cars. Younger people are inherently, as a percentage of any group, less mature. If you fit this description, please go away and come back when/if you grow up.
The number of times I have read LMAO, let alone actually LMAO is immeasurable. Thanks for the laughs!
My final thoughts here; steps to being a respected member of an on-line community:
1. Remove head from ass
2. Think.
3. Think again about consequences, relevance and importance.
4. Post.
Although you may not like it, Iâ??m not leaving entirely. I cannot boldly say I am leaving for good and never to return. My addiction is too great. I will revert to being the lurker I once was. At some point, I will have something of value to say. Or, more likely, some turd will piss me off so much so that I reply in a less than professional manner. Yes, failing to take my own advice. Hey, Iâ??m human. Probably not though, if this applies to you, youâ??re not worth it. I will continue to Moderate through 5/15.
For those I havenâ??t mentioned by name, my apologies â??? my memory does suck sometimes. For those others (read: immature wanker SOBâ??s) who I didnâ??t mention by name, itâ??s because I donâ??t have anything nice to say about you.
Thanks again to Lance and to all who have made this a great place over the years. I hope the site does re-flourish into what it once was.
Best wishes to all
Mark
PS. Below is the newbie suggestions hijacked from corner-carvers.com. It might not be a bad idea to implement many of those rules here.
Do not try to impress us with big words. Chances are you don't really know what they mean and you have no idea how to use them in the proper context. We DO know what they mean and we will mark up your post like a 3rd grade English teacher with a beehive and a hairy mole on her chin.
Absolute Statements are Critical Lightning Rods; use them with care, or risk grounding.
Use the WAG label as a get out of jail free card.
A single post in all caps will get you banned or worse. Guaranteed.
When you ask a question, try to be as specific as you can. Rather than ask a general, sweeping question ("what suspension parts are good?"), try to narrow it down to a specific subject ("Konis vs Bilsteins for a street/open track car?"). Let us know what your intended purpose will be, make, model, and year of car (we welcome all types here), and what relevant mods (if any) you already have. Without this basic information, we can't accurately answer your question.
Use the search function BEFORE you post a question. We don't like rehashing a subject that was discussed just last week, last month, or a even last year if nothing new is brought to the table. We like to be thorough in technical discussions, so chances are good that your question was answered if your topic has been brought up before. In addition, use wildcards in your searches. A search for tire* will find both tires and tire. Finally, don't search for a URL and expect to find out if a link to another site has been posted; that does not work.
Go easy on the signatures. A couple of lines will do. We're more substance over style here. You're here because you want to learn more about cornering your car better. We can assume that you either have a ton of stuff done to your car, or you're going to shortly. If we want/need to know we'll ask.
Do not start a thread asking about 'what kind of music do you guys listen to. . . .' That is considered quite gay, and you will be christened Homo Dancing Queen. This is a car website, not [censored] 'Soul Train.'
Silly usernames (Barry Mccockiner), usernames that imply useless superiority (Supastreetcarkillah), or usernames with alternating caps (tYpERfORdezZcOrt) bring little to no credibility to your posts, and will probably end up getting your dumb ass banned. Try using your own name, and say nothing you wouldn't want associated with it.
Ghetto-tabulous language, street slang, and ebonics are all not welcome here. "sup, dog?" is not acceptable in any post at any time. Nor are the words "dope, mad, tight, hella, or da'bomb" unless they are used in the context that our friend, the dictionary, places them in.
Use the spell check function in your word processor. Then cut and paste your posts into the BB.
Big sigs suck. They waste space and are weak methods for getting people to be impressed by dumbasses. Here's a short rule you guys (and girls!) can live with... Short sigs on CC.com - that's it. If you include a long sig as part of your posts, that will be altered once as an educational measure. Any use after and your user name will be deleted. If you want people to know what bolts you use to hold the LEDs on your hood and which hand you prefer for taking a piss, get a website and include a link.
Please do not tell us that you are a "good driver" and outcorner Corvettes in your stock 1989 GT. We don't care, and if you have to tell us you are a good driver then in all likelihood you aren't. People who actually are good drivers don't have to broadcast it.
If you are new, your post count will tell us this fact. Please don't announce to us that you are new. We know already. Instead lurk, lurk, lurk until you find a topic you have something of value you can contribute to. Telling us you are new will get the minimum in cordial accolades however if you post something stupid at a later date we will remember you and come down much harder. On the other hand, if you "blend" in and post useful info you will slowly gain respect from the "elders".
In addition to being an excellent source of road race and auto-x related tech, cc.com is often a source of lively political and philosophical debate. But like the technical discussions, before entering such a debate, oh newbie, there are a few things you should know: Be prepared to back up your opinion with some reasonable sources. Opinions are like [censored], everybody has one. Opinions are also like [censored] in that no one wants to look at your un-wiped one just for the hell of it, so before you post be prepared to have your opinions questioned, ripped on, torn up, or worse. This board is not your soap box, we don't hold hands, and we only sing Irish drinking songs (although certain poetry is also acceptable). Saying, "you guys are a bunch of big meanie heads" will be of no help as we don't care. Saying, "I'm going to take my ball and go home" will be of no help, as we are well stocked in balls and don't need your wussy pink ball cluttering up the place anyway.
The next guy who provides a link to a site that seems intent on crashing the entire internet through the use of pop-up ads and windows without a warning is going to get a Trac-Link shoved so far up his/her ass that they're gonna "pop-up", too.
Kindly reserve "cute-sie" indications of your uncontrolled physical glee and/or responses to posts (especially YOUR OWN posts) such as <G>, <EG>, <EFG>, etc., for the express purpose of amusing the trailer-trash at whatever [censored]-house-come-chat-room you report to every evening on AOL. It ain't funny, it's actually never cute-cute, and quite frankly, you're neither all that clever nor amusing anyway.
Don't post a question in multiple forums in hopes of "getting more responses." Most members go through every forum when they visit, and they will come across your post regardless of where you put it. Having the same topic occurring in multiple forums makes it difficult to keep track of what's going on and increases the chances of duplicated effort.
Use a meaningful thread title. You want readers to know what the thread is about before they enter the thread. The forum software allows thread titles to be quite long; use this to give your thread a meaningful yet succinct title. A thread title like "brake question" is not nearly as effective as one like "Need help on master cylinder sizes." In addition to drawing the appropriate expertise to your thread, a good title helps when searching the forums at a later date.
Anyone schooled in economics is familiar with Gresham's Law: bad money drives out good. Well, indifferent moderating invites a Gresham's Law of Online Interaction: idiotic postings drive away contributors who have something interesting to say.
"Stang" is a word that inbred cretins use to describe what happened to them when they threw their MGD bottle at the wasp nest growing on their trailer and is not an acceptable substitute for "Mustang", not even if you put an apostrophe in front of it.
Don't even think about posting the most recent amusing picture, funny story, or warning that the atmosphere is on fire that your best friend from accounting just emailed to the company directory. We'll see them whenever the thing invades our inbox.
Checking sources is an important aspect of posting with credabilty. If something you are posting sounds too good to be true and you are relying upon someone else's words to make a point, take your ass out to www.snopes.com or www.google.com and make sure you're not spreading misinformation, which is a capital crime here in CC land.
If you're going to discuss politics, try to make sense: read George Orwell's "Politics and the English Language," available through your favorite search engine.!
Random
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. Being a moderator is always going to be a thankless job , as you're always stepping on someone's toes . Up until recently , those people could take it maturely . I've always tried to keep an open mind about it , but you an only keep it open so long (unfortunatley) . I just wish everyone that pi$$es & moans , complains & whines could realize how GREAT of a site this really is ! Sure , you're gonna get your feelings hurt once in a while (by being moderated or whatever) , but being a total baby about it is going to RUIN this GREAT site . The dedication to a (now defunct) car platform has always amazed me from the beginning . I'd like to see it return to the site it once was . I know that's not possible , but a man can WISH , can't he ?? 
