With a little help from the company's British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) team, Honda U.K. took one of the company's HF2620 ride-on lawn mowers and turned it into a fire-breathing grass-shredder they called the Mean Mower.
The 688-cc OHV V-twin engine, the stock ride-on mower wasn't enough for Team Dynamics, who prepped the championship-winning Honda Yuasa Racing Civic for the BTCC. So the engineers took the 996-cc V-twin from the VTR Firestorm superbike and built a new frame around it out of chromoly 4130. They then mated the engine to a custom paddle-shift, six-speed transmission; crafted a fiberglass deck; put a 15-liter fuel tank in the grass bag; fitted a new cooling system; slotted in a custom Cobra bucket seat; rigged the steering rack from a Morris Minor (of all things); bolted on a Scorpion exhaust; tuned a custom suspension; and stole the wheels from an ATV.
The result? A 109-hp lawn mower than can hit 60 in four seconds flat and reach an estimated top speed of over 130 mph. But it still wears much of the original bodywork from the stock mower, and most crucially, can still cut grass at speeds of up to 15 mph—which is a lot slower than the 100-mph machine has reached on the track with reigning BTCC champ Gordon Shedden behind the wheel, but is already double what the stock mower can do. See it in action in the video clip below.
Experience a tour of James Burnside's colonial home, barns and summer kitchen, or stroll through the colonial gardens. Young and old can catch the hoop in a rousing game of graces, tackle Jacobs Ladder and take in the sweet smells from the Dessert Tent. Kids can enjoy crafts and colonial costume dress-up, make a bluebird house, and of course, take part in the popular Blueberry Pie-Eating Contest for all ages.
The festival will include more than 30 craft vendors selling everything from wood carvings to pottery to jewelry to homemade blueberry specialties to festival T-shirts. Items purchased at the festival support local vendors and the Historic Bethlehem Partnership’s mission to preserve 20 historic structures—including two National Historic Landmarks—and 270-plus years of history in Bethlehem.
Children can experience life on a farm through colonial crafts and games, a petting zoo and pony rides. There will also be strolling performers, including Phydeaux’s Flying Flea Circus and Wahoo Medicine Show.All young participants will have the opportunity to participant in Back to Your Roots hands-on activities, and will receive a complimentary member card for future programs.
Guides in period dress will be available for tours of the James Burnside colonial house, barns and garden. The tours highlight stories about colonial farming and James Burnside, a Moravian missionary and county representative.
Publishing announced today the launch of Birthday in a Book, a all-in-one children’s party planning series. The first two books in the series of themed party guides are being released today; Princess Tea Party and Mad Scientist. This breakthrough series puts all you need to know in your hands in one convenient, easy to use handbook. Features include, full printable packages, detailed instructions and picture tutorials for crafts, easy-to-follow ideas that can also be used for other celebrations or events, themed recipes and “Make It” or “Buy It” options that fit almost any budget.
The Make It chapter guides moms in easy step-by-step instructions with detailed picture tutorials. “Little Helpers” will have a blast working with mom on many money-saving crafts like paper flower centerpieces, tulle pom-poms, and a surgical glove chandelier. Use the “printables” for invitations, biohazard labels, princess crowns, bow ties, food labels, much, much more. As an added feature the Buy It chapter has the average price listed and links to where you can order the items online.
As far as we know, no other book provides a countdown for party preparation as clear and comprehensive as is found in this series of books. Moms can relax as the Birthday in Book series provides a detailed schedule for party preparation and a schedule for the actual party, too.
“Many friends have told me that they want to plan parties like mine but didn’t know where to start. I was surprised to find that there weren’t any books available that gave parents the tools needed to create a themed birthday party. That is when Birthday in a Book was born!” says author, Angie Morrissey who is a graphic designer, crafter, party planner and lover of all things inspirational.
The children’s party planning series will be releasing the first eight books of the series in 2013. The two eBook titles; Princess Tea Party and Mad Scientist Birthday are available now. In August of 2013, Superhero Birthday Bash and Night Owl Sleepover will be released. Over the Rainbow and Diggin' for Dinosaur's will be released in September 2013. Let’s Go Camping! and Under the Sea will be released in November 2013. Paperback editions of the entire series are scheduled for release in spring 2014.
Bromstad recommends cutting off the wine bottles' bottoms and stringing the lights through the bottles with outdoor lamp cord. Visit Pinterest, the online projects board, for images of this and other ways to use wine bottles as lighting.
Bromstad is known for creating large pieces bursting with color for his TV show clients. DIYers can do the same for an outdoor space, he says, by using outdoor-safe supplies: pressure-treated plywood instead of canvas, and an outdoor primer and paint. Bromstad uses Nova Color, an acrylic paint that stands up well to the elements.
Distress the plywood before painting to accentuate its roughness, he suggests. Do drip painting a la Jackson Pollock if your artistic skills are limited."Everything that has to be outdoors has to last through the elements," Bromstad says, "so you might as well make it look rough from the beginning."
Both Bromstad and Olsen say concrete blocks are useful in the garden: Stack them to build a wall, cement couch, bench or table. Make it artsy by planting the openings with flowers, herbs or other greenery. Again, Pinterest posts scads of images.
Read the full products at http://artsunlight.com/
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