Week Nineteen Of Volvos & Royal Babies
Last week’s column ended with my expressing nerves at how my first video editing effort might be received. .
‘He was an old dog and this was a new trick.’ Let’s go see how old..’ And I am delighted to report that in the very first week, it shows signs of working. My barometer is the Known-Good Alpine video output that takes off nicely and then can really cook like crazy. I have one Alpine headunit video that is North of five thousand hits, that was uploaded on 15th January 2015 and was in the midst of the Las Vegas #InternationalCES video material. Atsuhiro Takeda of Alpine had required that the clip we made with a pre production unit, be embargoed until the product had shipped to dealers and was available. The other videos around it are on a few hundred, some way less! It really is a meritocracy
Anyway, the full edit attempt on the Car Audio & Security Open Weekend and the EMMA round one sound off has got to 316 views at time of writing and is outperforming the best of the more recent Alpine selection. (All on view on Talk Audio TV, above and to the left. Hover over the magazine tab and select from the drop-down.) So I am both chuffed and sighing in relief!
Yet said sigh of relief was as nought compared to the delight of engaging with the deeply lovely people at Volvo Car UK. Likewise, the main Volvo dealer that sold me my lovely car, Sentinel Volvo. For between them, we are organising the retrofitting of the OEM fore-and aft drivers’ aide camera systems tomorrow. This requires a pukka slice of hours from the Sentinel Volvo workshop. My Crucial Cog there said, ‘It’ll be good training in how to fit these, for my technicians’ and the team who deal with the press at Volvo Car UK were receptive, friendly when they ‘˜didn’t know me from Adam’ (OK, poetic licence, 2 points offence) and above everything else, simply came through with a significant investment in believing my pitch! I can tell you that I am no better than I was in reverse nor parking straight, so need these really badly. Incidentally, that video referenced above, also features my first shot using the Manfrotto window-sucker cam-mount, which I shall be using inside the car. I am still awestruck by what I have got. The full model of which is XC70 SE Lux T6 AWD with Polestar optimisation. Here’s the tech sheet for the enthusiasts. Link I have been off goofing on the Polestar site and learned that the ‘˜real’ Polestar Volvo makes 350bhp versus my ‘˜mere’ 329
I got a phone call from the BBC, asking if I would have anything to say about the new DVLA red tape reduction and what it means for car renting abroad come June 8th. I of course had their arm off at the shoulder and motored off to Salford from Watford at the drop of the hat, to check into the delightfully decorated Holiday Inn at Media City. It has an other-worldliness of poshness and broadcasty folks. For as well as big bits of the Beeb, it has a massive slice of ITV there, too. All clean and almost American in its ‘˜pleasantness’. I get up, scant four hours sleep later. Man still on desk says, ‘You didn’t have a long sleep, did you?’ and I thought, ‘˜you too.’ Not realising he was night shift, as I was to be across the square at ten past six to get my pasty face slapped and to check I knew what the heck I was on about It’s where they make Match Of The Day and do all the BBC sport too.
I get ushered into the hallowed BBC Breakfast studio, having been given some anti-shiny-nose slap and sat down with a microphone up my shirt, in a moment when a video clip is being shown. I have to sit, happy and expectant, quietly, while the sport gets presented, right across my face yet out-of-camera line of sight. It’s exciting. You can see the Autocue, see their monitors, and have four huge broadcast cameras like cycloptic Daleks with eyes as big as deep sea squid, gazing at you in unison. Then, (and I was waiting and hoping it would SO not happen) the earpieces of the presenters went off and I saw their body language become instantly more erect and began to chuckle inside as I made a bet with myself.
I won my bet.
Baby Princess Charlotte Of Cambridge bless her little choochy face, decided it was time, and at six of a Saturday morn, had compelled mama and pops to get to the maternity unit to come join us. Sadly, I do not warrant a gun salute at my arrival, so was equally as quietly removed from the sofa. I went back to the hotel, ate a sumptuous breakfast and drove home full of sausages, guilt and unrequited adrenaline.
They were profusely sorry and I even got a nice mail from the producer. I said not to fret for a second and that I shall dine out on it for ever
Adam Rayner On Line Editor!