Life has been so busy around The Garage that the Carnival of Wheels has definitely taken a bit of a back seat lately. I began this edition a couple of weekends ago and now I’m watching the Formula 1 boys paddle their canoes around Monaco. So let’s get going on this hot lap around the auto blogs, because there are LOTS of submissions!

When the media talks about women in motorsports, usually they are referring to drivers as they are the most visible and possibly the most news worthy. The reality is that women are involved at many levels, but few are seen in a team ownership capacity. Sheila Scarborough from The Driving Woman recently sat down with Lori Morgan from JD Motorsports who compete in the Nationwide Series. In this insightful chat we learn about Morgan’s roots on an Ohio farm, being the Mother figure on the team and get some idea of what it costs to run a car at that level. How does 14 grand a weekend just for tires sound?
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It seems like forever since we’ve had a morning like this. Here I am, on the deck with a coffee, starting this week’s Carnival of Wheels while the dog tries to decide whether to poo or not. Believe it or not, we still have snow in spots, yet here I am in my shorts enjoying the sunshine, feeling my batteries recharge. This CoW is probably going to come at you in dribs and drabs, as there is still lots of life going on in The Garage, so why don’t we get rolling with a pretty big CoW.

Last week, I bashed Brian Vermette’s grammar and this week, RaceDriven has fired back with a barrage of NBC’s automotive related programming. Can an American version of Top Gear get away with product bashing like the Brits do? Will a full series of the remade Knight Rider create ratings? Perhaps they should have Larry The Cable Guy stand alongside Adam Carolla to give a reel genuine American twist. Maybe cast Gary Coleman as the third spot!
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Wow, life has been crazy in the real world lately, which means that the virtual world has been taking a back seat lately. Like the farthest back seat on a big yellow bus. It has been all I can do to create a post here and there every couple of days, let alone put together the Carnival of Wheels. Hopefully, life will return to normal soon, and with it the publishing frequency. For now, let’s share a pint and cruise some of the submission for the CoW that I was supposed to do last Sunday.

First up on the grid today is a newcomer who calls himself mleighto and writes a blog called Car Show Kiosk. mleighto has submitted a post about the care that needs to be taken when purchasing a clone type car. This is a pretty touchy subject with many people and I’m sure our own Gary Faules may have a comment or two on this post.
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Lot’s of you web savvy techie types have been reading Guy Kawasaki for years. Now, Kawasaki and his team at Nononina are helping us non techies find fuel for our passions. At the recently launched Alltop sites, surfers can find single page aggregators of daily news on a variety of topics including cars. On it you’ll find many of the usual big market suspects, as well as a few other sites you may not have discovered before. The Garage is well positioned right in the middle! Check it out.

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Here we are on week 50 of the Carnival of Wheels. There isn’t anything automotive on TV and the weather outside is frightful. The storm that battered Texas and everything to the north have finally made it’s way to the Toronto area. Outside, the snow that has threatened all night is now beginning to pile up, with giant wet flakes. Getting the Christmas tree later today should be a treat. For now though, the fire is bright and the coffee is hot so let’s get strapped in and take a quick lap around the auto blogs.

Ok, is it not bad enough that we are living through a the most wintry fall in years here in Ontario, but Alborz from Australian Car Advice has to send me a his Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster review? With shots of the car on the beach no less! Oh well, I suppose the Chrysler 300 AWD tester in my driveway is better suited to this weather anyway.
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As Christmas approaches, it seems like there is more and more piling up here in The Garage each week. As a result, some things end up being passed over. Unfortunately, that seems to be happening to the CoW a lot these days. With this being the 49th edition, it’s hard to believe that I’ve been doing the CoW for almost a full year! While it can be hard to keep up some times, I still look forward to the Carnival of Wheels each week and I hope our readers and bloggers do too. Having said that, let’s all strap in and get ready for a hot lap around the auto blogs.

Wow…sorry folks, I wrote the above on Sunday and now here it is Wednesday and I’m finally getting around to finishing it up. Let’s get on with it and then get back out to the Christmas shopping!

First up we have Jeff Fisher from Driving Enthusiast, who spent some time in LA recently and was able to take in the LA Auto Show. Jeff has a bit of a woody for the upcoming Evo X (don’t we all?) and took the time to get a few detail shots of the cars on the show stand. It’s just a shame that car fans weren’t allowed t come up close. Sorry Jeff, but I was sitting in one yesterday! Still no drive though.
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With the LA Auto Show going on this week, one would think there has been a ton of excitement. Maybe there has been, but it seems to have passed me by. Maybe I’m just a bit on the crusty side, maybe I’m too far away from it all but I haven’t felt the excitement. Today is the last race of the season for NASCAR and that pretty much wraps up all the series I think, so maybe I’m just feeling let down because there is no racing for a while. No worries though, as we’ve still got the Carnival of Wheels to keep us busy on a Sunday morning! So grab a java, tighten down the shoulder straps and get ready for a hot lap of the auto blogs!

First up, we head back over to the land of Race Driven, where Brian is still talking about Bruton Smith and the tracks at New Hampshire and North Wilkesborough. Personally, I don’t think you can move a track. If you move it, you are essentially creating a new track. Something is lost along the way.
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Watchful readers will have noticed that we had some technical difficulties here in The Garage yesterday which precluded the writing of the newest edition of the Carnival of Wheels. Fear not though, as the problems have been rectified and things are back to some sort of normal, so let’s get on with it.

A Brock Commodore without engine and suspension enhancements can be likened to a meat pie without sauce!

That’s what Craig Wilson from AutoFix has to say about the upcoming release of all new Brock Commodores. It’s great to see Craig back in the CoW.
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