Of course, on this day in 1969 Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin became the first people to walk on the moon. I think the need to explore is part of being human and I think a society that spends its time gazing at its collective navel instead of at the stars is a society destined for mediocrity.
“The day we stop exploring is the day we commit ourselves to live in a stagnant world, devoid of curiosity, empty of dreams.”
– Neil deGrasse Tyson
According to Wikipedia, the English name for this day of the week is derived from Old English Mōnandæg and Middle English Monenday, originally a translation of Latin dies lunae “day of the Moon”.
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The Earth’s moon is the fifth-largest among the hundreds in the solar system and is easily the largest relative to the planet it orbits. (Charon is larger relative to Pluto, but the latter is no longer classified as a planet.) The moon currently orbits at an average distance of about 239,000 miles from Earth, but the distance is increasing.
The most “accepted” theory of the Moon’s formation is that it formed after a large body the size of Mars crashed into Earth early in its existence. The impact caused a large volume of material to be ejected into Earth’s orbit and then that material coalesced and formed the Moon.
From the Wikipedia article about the Moon, an amazing picture by Jessie Eastland of a full moon appearing as a half moon during the January, 2018 lunar eclipse, which occurred during the Moon Triple Crown or Trifecta: a full moon, a “Supermoon” and a lunar eclipse.
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I think it will be difficult to segue from that picture to almost anything else, but I’ll try…
I can’t stop thinking about this car, the Rondine concept car from 1963 drawn by American Tom Tjaarda under the auspices of Pininfarina. How much do you think it would cost to have a company fabricate a replica of the body and then install it on an existing Corvette chassis?
Not that I am likely to ever have the means to have this done, but I am already thinking about the complications of installing this on a C7 chassis given the large number of functional vents on a C7 body that, if duplicated here, would probably ruin the looks of this car. Maybe this would have to be installed on a C5 or C6 chassis or if the rear transaxle is incompatible with the body, then a C4. “If you don’t have dreams you have nightmares” is not exactly compatible with “I have dreams, but I live in the real world,” but a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. How did Casey Kasem end each American Top 40 broadcast? I think it was, “Keep your feet on the ground, but keep reaching for the stars.”
#MondayMoonday
#NeildeGrasseTyson
#RondineConceptCar
#CaseyKasem
#somanycarsjustonelife
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Disaffected Musings 
Re; Rondine concept car
I suspect that translating the concept to a working vehicle would have less than optimal results. In addition to the venting you mentioned, there would be issues with wheelbase, track, height, and proportion when using an existing chassis/powertrain. With very few exceptions a concept drawing rarely ends up exactly as drawn when the finished product is shown. There are always details that have to change, whether for space limitations, manufacturing requirements or even that the finished product ends up less than aesthetically pleasing. The same is true whether you are building cars or refrigerators.
I worked in corporate engineering for nearly 20 years and had to deal with it time after time. Product planners wanted “A”, but once the engineering was done you ended up with “A-” or even “B”.
Cost? As the old saying goes; If you have to ask you don’t want to know. I would suspect you would be well into six figures for a build. More if you were paying someone else to build it.
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Thanks for sharing your expertise. I wouldn’t expect an exact replica of the Rondine body to fit an existing modern chassis, but would hope to get 80% and also hope that the missing or changed 20% would not hurt the look too much.
I fully expect such a build to be well into six figures. Skilled labor is not cheap nor should it be. Building a custom chassis/drivetrain could move the build cost into seven figures. It will have to be another dream unfulfilled…
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I happened upon some videos on Youtube taking the original moonwalk videos to 60 frames per second and other quality tweaks. Interesting to view the enhanced videos.
I listen to Casey Kasem’s America’s Top 40 every weekend on SiriusXM channel 70’s on 7. He was a great storyteller of musical trivia.
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Thanks for sharing, sir. What makes the enhanced videos interesting?
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Having seen the originals, there wasn’t anything “new” to see in them. I found them interesting in that the application of a new technology was used to provide a sharper image and smoother motion.
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Thanks for the clarification, sir.
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With the Corvette, the integration of the frame into the body in the latest iterations, will make your concept car difficult to do. Not being too familiar with the different C-versions, probably even a C-5 chassis would be too difficult to accomplish. There are aftermarket manufacturers that make chassis up to C-4. The radical changes that were necessary to make the C-5 would preclude you making your beauty. These aftermarket guys use late model Corvette components to improve the handling and make it easier to obtain parts.
This article may make it easier to understand why the C-5 was such a radical departure from the C-4.
https://www.hotrod.com/articles/corvette-chassis-history-the-c5-chassis-that-dave-hill-built/
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Thanks for weighing in, Philip.
My Rondine/Corvette dream car–the Rondine was actually a Corvette “derivative”—will remain a dream unless we win the lottery. Then, all bets are off. 🙂
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If I win the lottery all bets are off as I have a whole series of car projects to complete as well as a motorcycle or two….or three or four. If I find a Vincent Black Lightning, Katie Bar the Door!
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What is life without dreams?
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