This Baby's Mustache, America Superthread

[coolian2]

For an oval ground, Kogarah is nice and compact. I'd love to see a game there.

 

[Axver]

I'm just going to say it. More countries playing softball/baseball have more chance of winning than countries playing rugby. It seems lose-lose, as interesting as it would be.



Aw, Royal Brunei is going off frequency now. Great voice and accent though.

The reason softball and baseball are being cut is because they don't meet the Olympic requirements of enough countries on enough continents playing them. Rugby does. So I question your point.

 

[coolian2]

Another one of my beloved Z3s at the intersection of William and Collins Streets.

To me a tram is like the city circle ones you've been posting. I still can't get used to the idea of new-fangled trams.

 

[Axver]

Here I was trying to be arty.

Two Z3s on William Street about to cross Collins.

 

[coolian2]

The reason softball and baseball are being cut is because they don't meet the Olympic requirements of enough countries on enough continents playing them. Rugby does. So I question your point.

Playing with a realistic chance of winning?

I can't be bothered getting into this tonight, again.

I feel as though rugby at the Olympics would be like football and the Olympics. Some type of weirded out bastardised form of the game with all sorts of odd eligibility rules

 

[coolian2]

Here I was trying to be arty.

Two Z3s on William Street about to cross Collins.

I'm liking that.

 

[coolian2]

More stadiums need the club logo up on them

 

[Axver]

To me a tram is like the city circle ones you've been posting. I still can't get used to the idea of new-fangled trams.

I find the Z class to be a transition class. Although they were built in the 1970s, in terms of their design they still draw upon techniques from the 1930s. Just compare the Z3 with my absolute favourite tram ever, Wellington's Fiducia:

Probably I'm so partial to the Z3 because they remind me of the Fiducia. Roughly similar length and the fronts are clearly quite similar with the slanted windscreen and destination board jutting out and placement of the route number on the top right.

I am entirely opposed to the low-floor articulated trams.

 

[Axver]

Playing with a realistic chance of winning?

I can't be bothered getting into this tonight, again.

I feel as though rugby at the Olympics would be like football and the Olympics. Some type of weirded out bastardised form of the game with all sorts of odd eligibility rules

I suppose it's a question of what you prioritise - global participation, in which rugby quite strongly wins by the Olympic criteria, or chance of winning, which you probably do have a point. If you just used sevens as it is, it would be New Zealand vs Fiji and maybe South Africa would have a faint chance. I bet it'll have weird eligibility rules, though.

Incidentally, apparently cricket meets the global participation criteria and may be in the Olympics soon. The rise of Twenty20 is a big help there.

 

[gvox]

Cool tram pics Axver.. we have a few of them still in Toronto...guess they call them streetcars..but they are not as classic/vintage as those, is that one above still in operation?

 

[coolian2]

I find the Z class to be a transition class. Although they were built in the 1970s, in terms of their design they still draw upon techniques from the 1930s. Just compare the Z3 with my absolute favourite tram ever, Wellington's Fiducia:

Probably I'm so partial to the Z3 because they remind me of the Fiducia. Roughly similar length and the fronts are clearly quite similar with the slanted windscreen and destination board jutting out and placement of the route number on the top right.

I am entirely opposed to the low-floor articulated trams.

Now that's a tram.

 

[coolian2]

I suppose it's a question of what you prioritise - global participation, in which rugby quite strongly wins by the Olympic criteria, or chance of winning, which you probably do have a point. If you just used sevens as it is, it would be New Zealand vs Fiji and maybe South Africa would have a faint chance. I bet it'll have weird eligibility rules, though.

Incidentally, apparently cricket meets the global participation criteria and may be in the Olympics soon. The rise of Twenty20 is a big help there.

lol, i almost have the same issue with cricket, although with Twenty20 it's a bit more open

 

[Axver]

To me a tram is like the city circle ones you've been posting. I still can't get used to the idea of new-fangled trams.

Incidentally, I don't have nearly enough photos of the W class. Obviously, they run the City Circle. They're also used on route 30 across the northern side of the CBD, and routes 78/79, which is one of only two routes that doesn't pass through the CBD - it runs north-south in the eastern/southern inner suburbs. Otherwise, they only appear on other routes on special occasions. Bit of a shame really. We desperately need more trams so I don't see why they don't push some of the stored ones back into service.

 

[Axver]

Now that's a tram.

And here's its controls!

Things sure have moved on from that. Melbourne trammies have a pretty fancy set of buttons and knobs at their disposal now.

 

[coolian2]

And here's its controls!

Things sure have moved on from that. Melbourne trammies have a pretty fancy set of buttons and knobs at their disposal now.

Ah, the good old days.

Reminds me of this cartoon

 

[Axver]

Cool tram pics Axver.. we have a few of them still in Toronto...guess they call them streetcars..but they are not as classic/vintage as those, is that one above still in operation?

Yeah, it seems North Americans call trams "streetcars" - it's looked on with peculiarity by most people here!

The one you're asking about, no, that's not still in operation. It's preserved in New Zealand at the Wellington Tramway Museum - it dates from the 1930s, and Wellington tore up the last of its tramway in 1964.

In Melbourne, the oldest operational trams date from the late 1930s. Not too many of them around. Most trams date from the 1970s or more recently.

Here's one of the 1939-1955 vintage trams (not quite sure when exactly this one was built) in regular service in Melbourne:

Here's our newest type, from 2002-04:

 

[Axver]

Ah, the good old days.

Reminds me of this cartoon

That's great.

Here's the controls out of an even older Wellington tram, from 1925.

 

[coolian2]

Shit, i just realised i need to be kinda productive tomorrow. I'll go to sleep at 3am, aka 8 minutes away

 

[Axver]

I've posted this before, but it's one of my favourite photos. Two old preserved Wellington trams.

In the foreground is #159 from 1925. In the background is my beloved Fiducia #239 from 1939. The last Fiducia, #252, was actually built as late as 1952 - after some Kiwi cities had already ripped up their trams! (Auckland's were gone in 1954) It lasted only 12 years until Wellington ditched its last lines, but it's preserved at the Wellington Tramway Museum with #239.

 

[Axver]

lol, i almost have the same issue with cricket, although with Twenty20 it's a bit more open

Yeah, Twenty20 could be fairly interesting. ODI would take forever and Australia would own everyone.

I do wonder, though, if being in the Olympics would help broaden the scope of winners for either sport. Probably not. But optimism, you know.

 

[coolian2]

Those really are great.


And so much better than trolley buses.

 

[Axver]

Shit, i just realised i need to be kinda productive tomorrow. I'll go to sleep at 3am, aka 8 minutes away

I meant to be productive tonight. But pictures! Too fun. Ah well. I still have an hour until my planned bedtime of 2am to do work.

 

[coolian2]

Yeah, Twenty20 could be fairly interesting. ODI would take forever and Australia would own everyone.

I do wonder, though, if being in the Olympics would help broaden the scope of winners for either sport. Probably not. But optimism, you know.

It might, over time, increase the global appeal.

 

[gvox]

Ax that's pretty funny - your oldest in operation is older than our oldest, and your most modern probably beats out ours by a good few years, that really does look modern!

I need to dig a few out...they're mostly red with some yellow and red ones too..

you can see older ones here:

http://transit.toronto.on.ca/spare/0700.shtml

seems like a site you'd get lost in for a bit man, if you like trams!

 

[Axver]

Those really are great.


And so much better than trolley buses.

Ugh, I hate trolley buses. I mean, I'm glad Wellington's got some, as they're cleaner than regular buses, but if you're going to tie your transport network to fixed infrastructure, it makes sense to simply make it a tramway - even more efficient and much higher capacity.

 

[coolian2]

Ugh, I hate trolley buses. I mean, I'm glad Wellington's got some, as they're cleaner than regular buses, but if you're going to tie your transport network to fixed infrastructure, it makes sense to simply make it a tramway - even more efficient and much higher capacity.

Yeah, but those screeds of cables look awful

 

[coolian2]

Anyway

 

[coolian2]

I'll just

 

[Axver]

Ax that's pretty funny - your oldest in operation is older than our oldest, and your most modern probably beats out ours by a good few years, that really does look modern!

I need to dig a few out...they're mostly red with some yellow and red ones too..

There are some even more modern ones running about - we've just imported five from Mulhouse in France that were built last year. We've got them temporarily, until 2011 when new trams we've ordered will arrive. I haven't seen the Mulhouse trams though; they're still being tested. The Melbourne network is incredibly diverse; it's the second largest tramway in the world, so you've got all kinds of trams running around.

I'd like to see the ones you have there!

Edit: Beat you to your edit - thanks for the pic and link!

 

[coolian2]

spam it up