Checkered Blog by Checkered Flag is the automotive play place in Hampton Roads Virginia

34th Annual Neptune Festival Winds Down in Va Beach This Weekend

For those of you still looking for something to keep you busy this weekend, check out the 34^th Annual Virginia Beach Neptune Festival at the Virginia Beach Ocean Front. The "Boardwalk Weekend", going on today through Sunday, features the "internationally renowned" North American Sandsculpting Competition. Participants come from as far away as Portugal to turn plain old sand into works of art. Other highlights include live music, a huge arts and crafts show and plenty of delicious food and drink. Also of note, the festival shares over $100,000 of proceeds with partnering charitable organizations like CHKD and the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society.

Every year the Neptune Festival Committee chooses a King who they feel significantly contributes to the quality of life in Virginia Beach, is an active participant in community life and who understands the spirit of the Neptune Festival. This year’s King is David L. Bernd, president of Sentara Healthcare.

Admission is free and the festival runs from Noon to 11pm on Friday, 10am to 11pm on Saturday and Noon to 5pm on Sunday.

Checkered Flag founder and President Edward B. Snyder, pictured below, as King Neptune in 1992.

Watch This Car Go Topless!

Read All About It!

Some interesting news from Forbes about the future of VW

A rather pessimistic assessment of VW, Saab and Jaguar from The Detroit Free Press.

Rumors about Audi’s SUV plans from Mobile Magazine.

Checkered Flag Employees Give Back

Every year a group of Checkered Flag team members participate in the annual United Way Day of Caring. The regional United Way organization matches corporate volunteers with local nonprofit health and human service agencies. This year Checkered Flag volunteers spent the day weeding and mulching (and undoubtedly sweating) in the flower beds at the Southeastern Virginia Training Center in Chesapeake. The SEVTC is a community-based support program for persons with developmental disabilities. Paige Bias, an executive administrative assistant at Checkered Flag summed it up, "It was pretty hard work but a lot of fun, too. It’s good to get out of the office and work with different people in the company!" The following employees took part in the event:

Paige Bias, Andrea Brown, Kelly Browne, Lisa Case, Darlene Epps-Minor, Colleen Gelormini, Margaret Gullins, Sandra Hernandez, Richard Hutsko, Karla Lewis, Anh Mulligan, Olivia Pinto, Brett Shopsin, Angela Steen, Danene Taylor, Pete Troia

Big thanks to all of them for their hard work!

Checkered Flag Toyota-Scion Customer Ivan King

The Checkered Blog recently spent some time at Checkered Flag Toyota-Scion where we ran into (though not while driving) Ivan King, Virginia Beach resident and owner of a 2005 Scion XB. He was nice enough to answer a few questions...

CF Blog: Does your car have a name?

Ivan: Louis Vuitton

CF Blog: Is your car a guy or a gal?

Ivan: A well dressed guy, obviously.

CF Blog: What’s the best thing about your car?

Ivan: Its unique body style.

CF Blog: How often do you wash your car, and do you do it yourself?

Ivan: I wash it myself every couple of weeks.

CF Blog: What’s the worst food spill that you’ve had in your car?

Ivan: Starbucks Frappuccino.

*Warning from The Checkered Blog-If you spill anything dairy based in your car, do whatever you can to get it out of the carpet immediately! It sets quickly and the smell will turn positively rancid over time!

CF Blog: What’s the fastest drive-thru in Hampton Roads?

Ivan: Starbucks, of course. (Ivan’s a barista at Starbucks in Va Beach!)

CF Blog: What’s your dream car?

Ivan: Ferrari, Lamborghini...anything fast.

CF Blog: Best car themed song?

Ivan: Rhianna-Shut Up and Drive

Only in Hampton Roads

The following email was waiting for me in my inbox this morning and I couldn’t help but LOL. I rarely forward emails, if only because I am aware of how subjective humor is and am reluctant to offend anyone or add to an already burgeoning inbox. Although not endorsing the accuracy of these statements, I am fairly confident that anyone who has lived or driven in Hampton Roads for any amount of time will find something to chuckle about here...

Subject: Only In Tidewater...

For the purposes of this document, we will refer to the area as "Norfolk", pronounced exactly that way by Northerners who settle here. Southerners who settle here pronounce it "Nawfalk" and everyone else calls it Norfick".

The word "Norfolk" actually originated in Southern England, over time as a combination of the words "North" and "Folk", as a way of referring to brethren to the north.

Norfolk is composed entirely of "Roads under Construction". The year-round seasonal weather allows for year-round construction. The only way to get into downtown is to move there. Don't worry about getting out. Those arrangements will be made by your next of kin .

All directions start with "Get on 64..." and somewhere include the phrase "Turn at the 7-Eleven." Most people navigate the area using Interstate 64 because of oddball location naming. The immediate problem here is that, in order to access any western portions of the region, you have to travel I-64 East.

I-64, the largest interstate in the state, has two exits that serve Virginia Beach, the largest city in Virginia. The land mass of the beach area is approximately 1% of the city's total land area.

The city of Portsmouth is not at the port's mouth - that would be Norfolk.

The city of Chesapeake is named for the Chesapeake Bay,15 miles away.

Newport News is not a newspaper. The city is, in fact, served by The Daily Press newspaper, based in Hampton.(Newport News is, in fact, named after Christopher Newport because he would bring the news on his ship from England.)

South Norfolk is in Chesapeake and "Suffolk", an old English combination of 'South" and "Folk" is not south of Norfolk, but rather west.

Hampton Boulevard is in Norfolk and does not go to Hampton.

Northampton Boulevard is not in the north of Hampton. It is 22 miles southeast of Hampton, in Virginia Beach.

Chesapeake Boulevard runs parallel to Hampton Boulevard and does not go to Chesapeake.

There is no Norfolk Boulevard but there is a Norfolk Avenue in Virginia Beach. It does not go to Norfolk.

Atlantic Avenue parallels the Atlantic Ocean. Strangely, so does Pacific Avenue.

Chesapeake Beach, nicknamed "Chic's Beach", is in Virginia Beach. Chicks do not go there. Chics go there, but it's named after a guy, Chic Leddington.

Meanwhile, Ocean View Avenue has no view of the ocean unless you use a high-powered telescope and a crane.

Bayview is too far from the Bay to see it and Riverview has no view of any rivers. Shore Drive has no shore but runs along beside miles and miles of military bases. Military Highway, an apt name for the main thoroughfare of a primarily military area, will not actually take you to any military bases.

The Northwest River is actually in the Southeastern part of the area.

Deep Creek contains no deep creeks. They do have a canal though.

The area of Dam Neck contains no dams. Similarly, Oceana Boulevard does not come near the ocean.

Norfolk Naval Shipyard is in Portsmouth.

One of the largest Coast Guard bases on the east coast is in Portsmouth, 21 miles from the coast.

Hilltop is not on a hill or near a hill. Actually when the area was all fields, prior to 1963, you would have noticed only a slightly higher elevation.

If someone says they are on Princess Anne Road you have to ask them which zip code they're in. The road meanders seemingly at random through many cities. No one is quite sure where it ends - or even IF it ends. Getting lost in this area is no problem. Just keep going and turn wherever you like and you'll soon end up either on or crossing Princess Anne Road.

Everyone in the country lived here once or knew someone who did. You will be hard pressed to find a native of the area. Everyone here is from somewhere else, due mostly to the fact that Norfolk contains the largest naval base in the world.  If you criticize the drivers here, you are really criticizing the drivers of the whole country.

Think about it.

Checkered Blog In The Spotlight

The Checkered Blog was recently featured in Ward’s Dealer Business, a highly regarded magazine for professionals in the auto dealer industry. Ward’s has been reporting on the auto industry for over 75 years and publishes two monthly magazines, Dealer Business and Ward’s Auto World as well as several "reference annuals", including Ward’s Automotive Yearbook and Ward’s Vehicle Facts and Figures.

Ignorance Is Not Bliss In An Emergency

The Checkered Blog would like to suggest that everyone spend some time on this website which was put together by the American Red Cross, local Hampton Roads Government Emergency Management Agencies, the Virginia Department of Health and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management. PrepareHR.org has a ton of valuable information that we all should be familiar with in the event of a weather related emergency or other disaster. Information includes emergency preparation checklists developed by The American Red Cross, evacuation routes designated as such by The Virginia Department of Transportation and maps of flood prone areas from the Hampton Roads Emergency Management Committee. There is also an email function where readers can ask questions regarding preparedness or suggest an addition to the website.

At Hyundai's Request, I've Thought About It

Hyundai’s unorthodox new advertising campaign urges consumers to "think about it". The campaign, which is barely a week old, is comprised of print ads, television spots and a website, none of which showcase Hyundai vehicles in the traditional sense. There is no loud rock music nor is there a plethora of fast cars zipping down unbelievably winding roads. Actually, in most of the commercials, there is not a car in sight! Marketing Daily calls them "unbranded" ads. The commercials feature instrumental music and video footage of rural, suburban and urban landscapes and pose questions such as, "Shouldn’t you drive a car that inflates your intelligence, not your ego?" Another spot, perhaps my favorite, states that, "The logo is there to tell you what the car is, not who you are." Absent is the overdose of youthful exuberance so often exhibited by featuring driving that could only be performed by a stuntman on a closed course. I like the ads. They do make me think. I’m just not sure if they make me think about buying a car...watch a few of the spots and then tell us what you think...

Meet Checkered Flag's Kim Sandy

What is your name? Kim Sandy

What do you do at Checkered Flag?  I am the service and parts director for Checkered Flag Jaguar-Porsche-Audi

How long have you worked there? Four years, seven months

Which Hampton Roads city/county do you live in? Norfolk

How long have you lived in Hampton Roads? Native -- I was raised in Virginia Beach, moved away for a short time to Northern Virginia, and returned home to Hampton Roads in 2003.

What are your hobbies?  Spending time with my son (we take long walks together), working out, and I love relaxing on my porch swing.

What is your favorite restaurant? Forbidden City and any Mexican restaurant.

What is in your MP3 player/CD player right now? Well, it's a six-disc changer, so it's mostly loaded with country and a few southern rock CD's.

What movie have you seen most recently?  I haven't been to the movies in about 10 years.  I love watching Court TV or anything having to do with forensics.

What pets do you have? A Saint Bernard who thinks he's a lap dog (he's my 150-pound baby) and a border collie/pit bull mix.

What is one thing about you that people would be surprised to know?  That I was a semi-finalist in the 1998 Division 2 drag race finals held in Rockingham, NC.

What is one invention you couldn't live without? Well, I guess I would have to say automobiles.  If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be where I am.

What is the best thing about working for Checkered Flag?  It's the people.  I am so happy to have the team that we have hear at Jaguar-Porsche-Audi.  I am sure you hear that a lot. But I truly couldn't be more pleased with the group of people here. They all give it 110% every day and make me feel so proud.