Posts Tagged ‘pink’

Three Things You Don’t Know About the Bay to Breakers

Monday, May 20th, 2013

1.  THE TOP OF HAYES STREET HILL _ISN’T_ THE HIGHEST POINT OF THE BTOB FUN-RUN. JUST CHECK THE ROUTE PROFILE:

“Here’s your route profile, starting from the SoMA near the bay going all the way to the breakers of Ocean Beach. See that big incline just before mile marker three? That’s the vaunted Hayes Street Hill. (And actually, the highest part of Hayes Street on this part of the course is near Pierce, not “at Fillmore and Steiner“ and not ”between Fillmore and Sutter.”)

And actually, that part of Hayes peaks at around 260 feet, not 215:

Now, here’s your winner. It’s the 270-something foot high saddle on JFK Jr. Drive betwixt Prayer Book Cross and Stow Lake / Strawberry Hill, where ”Kennedy” is written:

2. THE BTOB FUN-RUN IS A 12K, AND YET IT’S NOT A 12K – THE CLAIMED “WORLD RECORDS” ARE NOT, IN FACT, WORLD RECORDS

“Race organizers and media have reported that the course records set by Sammy Kitwara in 2009 and Lineth Chepkurui in 2010 are also world records at the 12 km distance;[31] however, the International Association of Athletics Federations, the international governing body for the sport of athletics/track and field, does not recognize world records or world bests in either an indoor or outdoor 12 km.[32] The Association of Road Racing Statisticians, a non-regulatory group that collects road running data, does recognize world records in the outdoor 12 km provided that the race course meets certain criteria.[33][34] In order to rule-out the possibility of wind assistancein point-to-point courses, the ARRS stipulates that the course must have “not more than 30% of the race distance separation between that start and finish”, or 3.6 km for a 12 km race.[34] Given that the Bay to Breakers is run on a point-to-point course in which the start and finish of the event are approximately 10.5 linear kilometers apart, the ARRS recognizes two other marks as 12 km world records: Kenyan Simon Kigen‘s 33:46 in Portland, Oregon on May 19, 1985 and Chepkurui’s 38:10 at the 2010Lilac Bloomsday Run.[33][nb 2]

3. MOST PEOPLE _DON’T_ PAY THE ABSURDLY HIGH REGISTRATION FEE. MOST PEOPLE YOU SEE ARE “BANDITS”

HERE’S THE OFFICIAL ESTIMATE: “…more than in the hundreds but less than tens of thousands.” THE REAL NUMBER IS TENS OF THOUSANDS.

“The Bay to Breakers is known for the large number of unregistered runners, or “bandits”, who participate in the race. Ross Mirkarimi, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, reported that over half of the 60,000 participants in the 2010 Bay to Breakers were unregistered.[19] San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom was among the runners in 2010 who did not pay the registration fee to obtain a race number.[19][22] Registered participation was 24,430 in 2010,[23] 43,954 in 2011,[24] 23,072 for 2012,[25], and approximately 20,000 for 2013.[26]

Beware, Car Owners: The Great B2B Tow of ’13 is a Coming This Weekend – Hundreds Will Get Towed by SFGov – Will You?

Friday, May 17th, 2013

I’ll tell you, I’m not exactly sure when the tow away signs went up for this year’s historic Bay to Breakers street party – maybe it was today.

No matter, hundreds of cars are going to get towed this Saturday and Sunday.

It’s going to be epic.

Here are the streets to not park your car upon.

Sometimes they give you a week’s notice, but not this year I don’t think.

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Let’s review.

Before we can have this…

…or this…

From hard-working Steve Nguyen

…we’re going to have to have this:

(I remember it as if it were just two years ago…)

“The Great Tow of 2011:

One car gets away  in the nick of time, but three others aren’t so lucky:

Ted and Al’s had like ten yellow tow trucks ready to go late Saturday night, in the driving rain. (Note how Bank of America is protecting its windows – the IndyBay crowd got to them, smashy smashy, about a year or so back, unrelated to Bay to Breakers.)

Now, speaking of prêt-à-porters, this is the main body, this is the largest array for the Golden Gate Park Panhandle:

And here’s the second-biggest grouping, along Masonic:

And there are some on the other side of Fell, typically in groups of six on some of the blocks.

But that’s it.

Not sure where B2B is hiding their 1000+ portable toilets claimed for 2011, at this point, just hours before the Kenyans take off on their winning runs.

Oh well.

And there’s no sign of the fencing neither, except for what they have every year.

We’ll see.

The Great Fence of B2B100 is supposed to have upon it either images of Christ hand-selected by P. Anschutz or photos of people who ran the race before white NIMBYs moved into the Western Addition. (You’ll have to tell me about it…). Anyway, here’s the baby fencing they have on scene already along with, and isn’t this cute, a message from San Francisco Natives for a Fun and Buzzed Bay to Breakers. Apparently, the cops can’t arrest for an open container in San Francisco…

And doesn’t this just break your heart – this Vespa scooter has been forgotten on the slopes of the famed Hayes Street Hill, the second highest point on the “racecourse.” Will Auto-Return charge $700 for its return?

Remember, Transit First.

All right, have a great Bay to Breakers 100!

Sucker Watch: Most Participants Won’t Pay to Enter the 2013 Bay to Breakers Fun Run So Why Should You?

Tuesday, April 30th, 2013

Oh, you are a sucker. Well, then be my guest – pay $48 for a number. And actually, and you’ll enjoy this, sucker, it’s already too late to get a good deal on registration for 2013. Prices be higher now.

Most people who aren’t professional runners  don’t pay and here’s a good reason not to pay:

Your money goes directly to “Christian Billionaire” Philip Anschutz.

And then he takes your $$$$$ and uses it to, over the years, oppose the concept of evolution and fund anti-gay efforts.

(It’s funny that he even took an interest in this historic fun run and street party but he likes running so there y0u go.)

The reason that organizers won’t say how many “bandits” show up for the party is because they don’t want you to think that most people don’t pay.

But, IRL, most people don’t pay.

If you don’t believe me then take a NSFW look right here.

How many bibs do you see? Every year they say they will eject all these people and every year they don’t actually do it.

Now the San Francisco Nike Womens Marathon is different. You see, they give out coveted awards and people just can’t help themselves. And then stuff like this happens; “NO BIB NO BIB NO BIB!

But B2B aint like that.

One difference this year will be a limit on the size of the bags you might carry.

It’s like the size of Fook Mi’s backpack, best I can imagine.

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All right, have a great 2013 B2B.

And if you want to pay money to somebody, just take whatever your reg fee is and give it to Pride or whatever.

End Of Line.

Silicon Valley Photobook: Google’s Sergey Brin in Google Glass Driving a Pink Tesla Model S Batmobile at LinkedIn HQ

Friday, April 5th, 2013

Remind me again why we subsidize Telsa Motors?

Via iPhone 5 owner – click to expand

 

Lyft Taxi Driver Manages to Drive Her Under-Regulated Cab / Private Vehicle Without the Use of Hands – Hurray!

Monday, February 11th, 2013

Let’s see here, the right hand is holding an electronic device, you know, the better to Lyft with.

And the left hand, well that’s acting as a cup holder for a beverage.

That means that some Lyft drivers steer with their knees.

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Hey Lyft! Why don’t you tell your taxi drivers to not violate VC 23123, you know, like every fucking minute of every fucking day they’re on the clock?

Oh you do?

But enforcing the law isn’t your job.

Hey, I know, why don’t you mount cameras on your taxis, you know, the way the SFMTA does with its vehicles?

How about a GoPro facing forward and another one mounted aimed towards the driver, so that he won’t be attempted to break any laws?

The “sharing economy” demands it, I’d say.

Pink Hello Kitty Limousine Spotted in SoMA – Dream or Nightmare?

Wednesday, December 26th, 2012

I’m going with nightmare:

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Heh: “Laws Don’t Exist Merely to Frustrate the Business Ambitions of Coastal Hipsters” – Writer Paul Carr vs. Uber Taxi

Thursday, October 25th, 2012

Via Monika Bauerlein comes this take-down of Uber Cab, and Lyft and Side Car and the like as well, I suppose.

A quote of a quote:

Matt Kochman… served as Uber’s founding general manager in New York before he left last year. Kochman left Uber to do consulting for transportation brands and startups, fed up with Uber’s irreverent attitude toward regulators. “Discounting the rules and regulations as a whole, just because you want to launch a product and you have a certain vision for things, that’s just irresponsible,” Kochman said.

Yep, pretty much.

Love Pink, San Francisco

Thursday, October 11th, 2012

Financial District, San Francisco, USA:

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San Francisco City Hall: The Largest Classical Dome in the Western Hemisphere, Lit in Blue, Yesterday Night

Friday, September 21st, 2012

This is the scene at the end of Dreamforce 2012, one of San Francisco’s largest events in recent memory.

89,999 registrants had moved on at this point last night – here’s the last one:  

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Yes, the fifth biggest classical dome in the world and first biggest in the New World.

Yes, bigger than the U.S. Capitol. On purpose.

Dreamforce 2012 from Salesforce.com Turns City Hall Blue and Pink – Gala Tonight with the Red Hot Chili Peppers

Wednesday, September 19th, 2012

This is what the 2012 Dreamforce Gala will look like. Deets here and below:

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“Salesforce.com Welcomes 90,000 Registered Attendees to Dreamforce 2012, the World’s Largest Vendor Technology Conference

10th annual Dreamforce grows a record-breaking 96 percent year-over-year — 90,000 registered to attend, including more than 3,000 C-level executives

Additional 100,000 people expected to view Salesforce Live on Facebook

Global leaders Sir Richard Branson, General Colin Powell, Jeff Immelt and Tony Robbins to join Marc Benioff in keynote sessions

Sponsorships rise by 40 percent as Dreamforce partner ecosystem grows to more than 350 companies with a combined market cap of more than $1.3 trillion

Red Hot Chili Peppers to rock Dreamforce Gala

Dreamforce integrates philanthropy with 3rd annual benefit concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, featuring Lady Antebellum, Dana Carvey and an after-party featuring DJ MC Hammer

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 18, 2012 – DREAMFORCE 2012 — Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), the enterprise cloud computing company, will welcome more than 90,000 registered attendees to Dreamforce2012, now the world’s largest vendor technology conference, taking place from Sept. 18-21, 2012.

Dreamforce Gala is Red, Hot and Social
For the first time in Dreamforce history, the Dreamforce Gala will be held in San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza with seven-time Grammy award-winning and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees the Red Hot Chili Peppers performing on the steps of City Hall.

The Concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital
Continuing the tradition of integrated philanthropy at Dreamforce, the Salesforce.com Foundation is thrilled to announce the third annual Concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Thursday, September 20(th) at 6:30 p.m. PDT. The benefit concert will feature Lady Antebellum, Dana Carvey, and an after-party featuring DJ MC Hammer. To purchase tickets or for more information, please visit http://www.theconcertforucsfbch.com/.

About salesforce.com: Founded in 1999, salesforce.com is the enterprise cloud computing leader. Using salesforce.com‘s social and mobile cloud technologies, companies can connect with customers, partners and employees in entirely new ways. Based on salesforce.com‘s real-time, multitenant architecture, the company’s platform and apps give customers the tools to create a social front office and revolutionize the way they sell, service, market, collaborate, work and innovate.”

And thank Gaia that this event has nothing to do with Larry Ellison, cause, you know, the 415 is sick of that dude.