TNJN Radio, Car Nuts & test drives

It sure has been a while since I've posted here. This semester has turned out to be massively crazy and busy. I'm co-editor of TNJN Radio, the internet radio podcasting section of the Tennessee Journalist. We've got six shows covering everything from news, travel, and opinions, to music, sports, and automotive topics.

Three times a week, TNJN Radio broadcasts 10-15 minute news segments covering local, regional and national news. It seems to be going really well and the students participating are enjoying the experience.

As for myself, I produce all the shows by establishing the live stream via TalkShoe.com and later uploading a higher quality podcast version of each show. I'm also a co-host of Car Nuts on Campus. Us four guys talk about industry news, events, new product releases, product reviews, and tech tips on anything automotive. To give the show a little 'street cred,' ASE-certified mechanic Justin Moore serves as our in-house expert.

Test drives are becoming a weekly part of the 'duties' we perform at Car Nuts. We've gone to a handful of dealerships around Knoxville to get a feel of what's available to the college demographic. This week proved to be one of the more exciting testing days.

At Cat Nuts, we try to concentrate on vehicles in the price range of regular college students and the recent college grad. This week we trekked down to Grayson Hyundai to check out the Hyundai Accent, Elantra Touring, and the Genesis Coupe.

Because I showed up a little late, I didn't get to drive the Accent, but drove the Elantra Touring and (most importantly) the Genesis Coupe. All the guys were very impressed with the strides in quality Hyundai has made in the past few years. The fit and finish of the cars is on par with the current American offerings from Ford, Dodge and Chevrolet.

The list of standard features for each car was quite long, especially considering the sticker prices. The base Elantra Touring sells for around $18,000. For that, you get bluetooth, iPod connectivity, voice activated controls, steering wheel controls - along with a host of other goodies.

Of course, the guys of Car Nuts was most interested in the Genesis Coupe. Bathed in a loud lime green, our tester was a 2.0T with the optional automatic transmission. The car first grabs your attention with its swooping, hand carved body lines and proper coupe styling that looks like nothing on the road today (looking past the paint color, of course).

Even with the little seat time I got, I was very impressed with the power output of the 2.0T, the handling and braking of the Genesis Coupe. Hyundai did their homework with this one and you can feel it the moment you set in the car.

The seats are heavily bolstered and form-fitting; the center stack is a no-nonsense cluster of buttons and useful information; and the quality of materials are much improved over Hyundais of yesteryear. Driving the car was an inspiring experience that made me want to own a racetrack...or at least have access to a twisty backroad. However, even on the short loop around town, we were able to find interstate on-ramps that were quite fun.

Acceleration was surprisingly strong for having 4 medium sided adults in the car. I'm not going to say how quickly it accelerates, or how easy it is to get a tire loose, or how easily it surpasses the triple-digit mark on the speedo - but I will say the Genesis Coupe is a fine example of an inexpensive sports car. I'll leave the rest up to your imagination as you watch this video.

Also on today's wish list was the 2010 Ford SVT Raptor. Unfortunately, we didn't get to drive the truck but just sitting behind the two tone leather-wrapped steering wheel while looking over the massive expanse of hood was enough to spark visions of tearing through the desert at 80 mph.

We were also impressed with Ford's Sync system. The salesman showing us around was using the system with a thick southern accent filled with 'umms' and missing 'g's. It never failed to guess what he wanted. Pretty sweet.

And so, this week ends on a couple positive notes thanks to Hyundai and Ford. Hopefully, we'll get behind the wheel of a Raptor and a Genesis Coupe 3.8, but until then, I can be satisfied with today's happenings.

Infographic Galore!

Here's an interesting poster I ran across and thought I'd share.

Created by The Car Connection

An Exciting Weekend...

A long week at work was followed by a really short weekend. However, the weekend was packed with good times.

Starting off on Friday night, I showed the wedding pictures I had taken a few weeks ago to the Bride's parents - the ones who hired me. Anyway, they really enjoyed looking at my shots and were very pleased that everything turned out well. The mom said she will tell everyone she shows the pictures to just who took them. I guess I'm getting my name out there...


Saturday held even more activities and adventures. That morning, dad and I went to the annual First Baptist Church 'Cruise-in' at the church. The parking lot was full of cars and people having a good time. Dad took his Corvette as well. My Cousin Daniel and his kids were there too. They enjoyed looking around and seeing all the neat cars.



After the car show, my parents and I headed to Huntsville Alabama to visit my brother and his family. We got there around 6:30 and hung out for a bit. The growing trend for my brother, dad and I seems to be going to the movies while visiting. So, this trip's movie of choice was Terminator Salvation - a 'shoot-em-up' flick that turned out to be kinda fun. It's nice seeing the references and continuing plot from the first three movies.

The reason for the trip was to see Abby, my brother's oldest, get baptized Sunday morning. Everyone including the in-laws were in attendance for the service. Everything was really nice.



I have come to realize one thing though...I need a bigger zoom lens for my camera.
My 18-55mm lens just doesn't reach far enough. I was having a hard time getting a good shot of Abby in the baptistery. The only question - what to buy... 70-300 maybe? Who knows...

Leaving the church, we all gathered at Michael's house for some lunch. We left there, starting our 3 hour trek back to Lenoir City. That evening at home, we said our good-byes to Daniel and his family who had been visiting for 3 weeks. They currently live in Japan but are soon moving to Hawaii. (Dan's in the Air Force)

So ended a pretty good weekend, justifying a post on blogger. ha!

Experiences of a Summer Intern

Well, the summer is continuing to be an awesome experience. I've done and learned a lot since starting on May 11. My last post was about my second day at the Knoxville News Sentinel and the adventure I was pulled into. I must say, the rest of that week didn't disappoint. On Wednesday, I went with Erin Chapin and Adam Brimer to the Knoxville Police Department to cover the busting of a prostitution ring. The officer in charge of the operation gave us the low down on what they were doing to stop the illegal activities.

He showed us video tapes from hidden cameras in hotel rooms where they held sting operations to bust prostitutes. It was so funny to see the look on these girls' faces when 10 cops bust through the door!

Thursday held more coverage of the prostitute-busting action. We went back to gather more info and to shoot photos. The cop told us about one night of 'hoe-busting' they lovingly call "Two Tons of Fun." He showed us video of the rather large ladies they had arrested - and all their weight combined...you guessed it, two tons. Wow, I can't believe people actually paid these girls! ewww.

On Friday, I went with Talid to the "Blue Plate Special," an event that brings artists in from all over. They cram themselves on stage with a huge crowd, and jam out. That week's bands were of the bluegrass genre. I never really had a true appreciation for that type of music until then. I felt like I was tearin' down a dirt road in an orange, 1969 Dodge Charger - running from Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane. YEEHAWW!! haha.

The past few weeks have been a little more confined to the newsroom. I've been uploading YouTube videos, posting stories, making SoundSlides, and editing video and audio. It's been fun and educational at the same time - I guess a good combination for an internship.

Check out my staff profile page at knoxnews.com

Experiences of a Summer Intern

So, the summer has gotten off to a great start. I am now the official intern of the online department at the Knoxville News Sentinel. When starting my second day at knoxnews, I was asked to tag along on an assignment by Lauren Spuhler and Morgan Simmons, an online producer and outdoors reporter, respectively. I had no idea what I was getting into or what to expect. Exciting.

The three of us piled into Morgan's extended cab Toyota Tacoma and headed for a small town called Coker Creek. This little outpost in southeastern Tennessee, about half way between Knoxville and Georgia, was an interesting place. Our mission: to capture still shots and video of an artist named Bob Hardin who makes all sorts of knives, carvings, paintings, and wood burnings.

We showed up at this guy's house and found a myriad of objects covering the walls and table tops - each one hand-made with the greatest of care. His friend Cathrine(?), who was Morgan's contact for the story, was also there to document us for her local newsletter that she produces.

As Lauren shot video and took stills, Morgan asked the questions. He had interviewed Bob before and knew what kind of questions to ask. Apparently, in their last interview, Morgan uncovered that Bob had once worked as a hit man in Montana. uhmm. This now grey-haired, frail-looking man standing in front of me now enjoys a life of art. Carving, burning, painting, and forging metal.

After getting all the stills and video we needed, we stopped by the Coker Creek gift shop and post office. There we found nick-nacks, canned jams, books, maps, and keep-sakes. It was a quaint place that looked like it belonged in a movie. Cathrine(?), Bob's friend runs the place and gave us the grand tour of the one-room show.

We made it back to the News Sentinel at around 3:30. What could I possible do that would top a 6 hour road trip with the cool folks from KNS? - Input restaurant data onto the server. ha! At this moment, Jigsha, my boss, has me transferring the information about local eateries from Knoxville magazine onto Knoxnews.com. It's not a horrible task but does get old after 20 entries or so. A quick stop by one of the many break rooms for a drink, and it's back to work.

I think this summer should prove to be a fun and exiting time where I'll learn some pretty valuable things about journalism and working in the "real world."

I'm planning on updating about my adventures fairly often. That way, when it's time to write that paper summarizing my time with KNS for JEM credit, I'll be able to. Having a bad memory sucks.

The end of another semester

Well, it's that time of year again - Summer. Looking back, this has been one of the best semesters I've had, especially at UT. I got to experience some really interesting stuff, take interesting trips, and meet really fun people. I'm truly thankful for the people who've come into my life this semester.

Right now, I'm about to start moving out of my apartment here on campus. I'll update this post later with more detail.

A random road trip

My parents aren't the spontaneous type, but a few days ago, they decided to take a random road trip. Having nowhere to be at that particular time, I tagged along. We drove into the Great Smokey Mountains located here in East Tennessee - not a long drive, but scenic nonetheless.

Most people who live in East Tennessee probably wouldn't consider this a road trip, but we haven't lived in the area long enough or been to the mountains enough times to think otherwise. Being the camera addict that I am, I took lots of pictures. Here's one I took on the banks of the river we stopped to look at. Just figured that I would give a quick, little update.