Contestants 15, 17, 18, and 21 did not make it past the jury of your reading peers. Do not despair, there is always a chance to get called upon via the "Editor's Choice" award, where we apply our strictly subjective, and self-serving criteria.
Note: Some contestants have expressed impatience over the fact that they have not been notified, told what to do, where to show up, what to write etc. Hold your horses. Take a vacation. Buy a new keyboard. You will get notified once the contest is over, and when we know exactly how to do this. As you may already have suspected, we make it up as we go along.
As for sources and methods: All I can say is that carburetor rebuilds on kitchen tables are more popular than ideal inventory levels and item-master systems. I know, this is despicable, but what can I do?
What I can do is present to you the Thursday set of seven writers, from which you choose the three best ones by popular vote. You have two votes. The best three win.
If you haven't entered yet, and if you still want to play: Submission rules are here. Please try to stick to the rules, especially to the part where it says to simply send a note to editors, with "Becoming a TTAC Writer" as the topic. This helps sorting the applications into my proper mailbox. Creative topic writers are subjected to the hazards of spam filters and inattentive Editors. They also may receive a mark on my list, labeling them a potential pain in the neck that doesn't listen to directions. (If you have already lost, and you are thinking of re-submitting: As long as you do it with a new email address, and using a new name, I probably won't notice. But you will be stuck with that name forever!)
And now … drumroll, please
(As you can see, even the orchestra does not listen to directions anymore ..)
The TTAC Future Writers – Thursday Contestants
The rules of engagement, listed below, remain the same as yesterday. Keep in mind, the writing examples are presented here in the same order as they arrived in my mailbox. They are shown unedited, unproof-read, as-is. If no writing examples have been sent, despite the fact that they were requested, snippets from the emails were used instead.
Contestant22writes:
"My appreciation for the front bench seat started in the summer of 98' with a chevy celebrity station wagon. A perfect example of late 80's A-body goodness, it came with a blue velour-like bench seat that had seen generations of my family pile in three wide for the annual christmas road trip. You could count the number of years this bench seat endured by the number of french fries and other fast food items crammed between the seat cushions like rings on a tree."
Contestant23writes:
"Sometimes the demographic stereotypes for particular car buyers exist for a reason. Being a current legal student that first graduated from that big Colorado university in the People's Republic of Boulder and will almost certainly become the basic "yuppie", Subarus have held some appeal to me. The idea of a rugged, capable, different family sedan has piqued my interest for awhile; I nearly purchased a used Subaru several years back, settling on a Volvo when I decided that the comfortable box would be a far greater companion on cross-country drives than the quirky, boxer-engined Subie."
Contestant24writes:
"It was going to be one of those nights, and I knew it. The roommates were all going to a get together and wanted me to join in, for some odd reason. Parties are really not my gig, especially a party where I am the old one at Thirty Nine and the rest of the participants are under twenty six. But I said yes for some reason that still eludes me to this day, especially since we were going to take the roommates car. Now most folks know I am a touch of a car snob, yes I drive a Peugeot that should be getting a pension and I have a odd taste in cars as a general rule of thumb. But let me tell you about my experience with 'the box'."
Contestant25writes:
"This particular RX-7 has 67,000 original miles and remains today exactly as it was when it rolled out of the factory in Hiroshima, Japan, in May of 1983. It was very nicely equipped for the day. High quality velour covered the center of the immensely comfortable bucket seats. There is a sunroof that pops open for ventilation and that you can step out of the car and manually remove entirely to stow in the cargo area for the full open air feel. That is right kids, no electric adjustment for this roof!"
Contestant26writes:
"The Desingo edition lets you pic your own personalized color combo for your new Mercedes. This doesn't come free and it can take some time to get your special ordered ride to your door, but the results are nothing short of stunning. The grade of leather used in the Designo process tops the already high quality hides used in production line cars and a wide array of materials are available to complement the hand-stitched cockpit. Curly Maple, Olive, Bamboo woods, and glossy, deep black piano lacquer and natural stone trim elements are on the menu. Our CL 63 Designo had the $2300 Mystic Brown paint and $8900 Saffron Beige leather upholstery, a heated wood and premium leather steering wheel, the Alcantra roof liner and the Desingo exclusive metallic threaded carpeting options."
Contestant27writes:
"I had considered a GC in 2008 when I bought my Mini, but the exterior styling didn't appeal to me. I began seeing the 2011 GC's on the road and liked the refreshed styling, which is a result of their time with Daimler. I like the masculine sculpted sides, and the clean design of the front and rear. Is every SUV destined to have a chrome strip across the back? In any event I like the look, although the rear taillights could have been LED based instead of the bulbs. Maybe the new 2014 model will make the switch."
Contestant28writes:
"Upon disovering my GPS was stolen, after stupidly leaving my car unlocked and unattended in urban Amsterdam for 3 days, we came to the realization that we had to depend on following Kozan in his rental 128i to get us to the Nurburgring. The drive out of the Netherlands to Germany was uneventful and fast. I was amazed that my little Swedish hatch felt so solid, at triple digit speeds, for miles and miles on the Authobahn.As we neared our destination, I was astonished this was finally happening. It was the little things that made it surreal. Everything from the little racecars emblazoned on the road sign for Nurburg to the excitement of seeing euro only cars like the Focus RS500 made me realize this was finally happening."
R.O.E.
Above are today's contestants. Pick them carefully. The top ones will be around for a long time. Here are the Rules of Engagement:
You are presented with a set of seven writing examples. Their authors haven been carefully anonymized. They have a number instead.
The top three out of each set of seven receive an entry permit into the rarefied world of TTAC writers. Those who don't make the grade and who fail in front of our jury will be sold into white slavery, or worse, recommended for the morning shift at Jalopnik. (Inciting voter apathy could mean that all contestants are sold off, we want and keep the winners.)
The snippets come in the exact order they landed in my mailbox.
The snippets have been chosen by me, in a very subjective way: By looking quickly at the story, and by picking what stands out.
You have two votes for each day. Both votes have equal weight. You may not vote more than once per day and set of contestants. Don't throw away your votes!
The vote for each set runs until the second set appears. That's typically for around 24 hours. Vote now, do not procrastinate. Voting for the last set stops when I say so, also typically 24 hours after the last set goes up.
And now, let's go to the polls!
(No hanging chads. Don't mail or phone it in. Read snippets before voting. Vote now.)
Remember: You have TWO votes. Place your bets.
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.
from The Truth About Cars http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com
No comments:
Post a Comment