Hotel Bennett, Charleston: Unparalleled Luxury?
By Mrs. SSO I have always wanted to go to Charleston; the advertisements in travel magazines painted it’s charm and romance so beautifully. Earlier this year, my brother-in-law was part of a group invited to Boeing Headquarters where they were given a tour of the Factory and were wined and dined; they were escorted on private tours of the City, they…
5- Karenable
5
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, & Now Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We first stayed at The Londoner at Christmas time 2022. My first Londoner review concluded that: The Londoner, the World’s First Super Boutique Hotel is conceptionally brilliant, but the execution is far from what I would expect given its cost and 5 star rating. It requires more training of the staff is has and more staff; this…
- 5
- Karenable
Sun Valley Tour de Force: The Hotels
Recently we had the privilege of participating in the Sun Valley Tour de Force, in Sun Valley, Idaho. The SVTdF is a wonderful event which raises money for a great charity, The Hunger Coalition, and helps a large number of people in need. The SVTdF is in its 6th year and is a three day event which runs Thursday –…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, But Not Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We were excited to return to London as we had lived there for over a decade – to go back, if only for a vacation was in order now that COVID is ‘under control’. We love just walking around London, especially at Christmas time. It is so festive with all the lights and decorated Christmas trees. I…
- 5
- Karenable
Beneteau Oceanis 51.1 – A Floating Beach House
Owning a large sailboat, our is a Beneteau Oceanis 51, is like owning another vacation home. While a sailboat is technically a mode of transportation, from a cost perspective, the annual ownership costs are much closer to what a ski or beach house run. Given that you could describe our boat as a mobile wind driven 3 bedroom waterfront home,…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q4 2019
Following up on the Q3 car market article (Car Market Q3 2019), I’ve continued to track the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe these are good bellwethers for the market in general. On occasion, I also take a glance at Koenigseggs, the McLaren P1, and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal interest. It’s wasn’t…
- 5
- Karenable
Hypercar & Supercar Market Saturation
Never before have so many different manufacturers announced cars in the $1 million plus category. If competition is supposed to raise everyone’s game, then the cars we should be seeing on the road (or more likely mostly stashed in private collections) in the next few years should be extraordinary. However, I’m concerned that this isn’t quite how things work in…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q3 2019
Following up on the article on the car market in Q2 (Car Market Q2), I’ve continued to follow the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe they are good bellwethers for the market in general. I also tend to take a look on occasion at Koenigseggs and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal curiosity. It’s…
- 5
- Karenable
Monterey Car Week Report 2019
This was our first time at Monterey Car Week. I would probably best describe Car Week as combination of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival spread out over multiple stunning locations and then supersized in the best American tradition. We arrived on Wednesday late afternoon and departed the following Monday morning (see: McLaren 675LT Spider Road Trip). In between, it was…
- 5
- Karenable
The Mystery of Supercar Allocations
The Mystery of Supercar Allocations A not infrequent question I get asked is “how do you get on the list for a limited edition supercar”. As questions go, this is not an easy one to answer. It varies significantly by company and in some cases, the logic completely escapes me. Who gets allocations can also change based on what a particular manufacturer is…
- 5
- Karenable
Monterey Car Week Report 2019
This was our first time at Monterey Car Week. I would probably best describe Car Week as combination of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival spread out over multiple stunning locations and then supersized in the best American tradition. We arrived on Wednesday late afternoon and departed the following Monday morning (see: McLaren 675LT Spider Road Trip). In between, it was…
- 5
- Karenable
Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible
Weekend With A Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible Courtesy of Park Place, our local supercar dealer, we recently spent a few days living with a Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible. Bentley is a brand that has been slowly growing on me over the last couple of months. This transformation started with the Mulsanne short termer we had last autumn. While…
- 5
- Karenable
Bentley Bentayga
Weekend With A Bentley Bentayga We recently spent 36 hours living with a Bentley Bentayga. Our loaner car was a pearly white and instantly earned the nickname “Beluga”. Going in, it was a car I wanted to hate. It represents just about everything I try to avoid when choosing a preferred mode of transportation. It is huge, heavy, and about…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q4 2019
Following up on the Q3 car market article (Car Market Q3 2019), I’ve continued to track the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe these are good bellwethers for the market in general. On occasion, I also take a glance at Koenigseggs, the McLaren P1, and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal interest. It’s wasn’t…
- 5
- Karenable
Our 1st Supercar: Ferrari F355 GTS
I really like the memories that the #day1challenge, currently circulating on Instagram, is generating. It has brought back a ton of recollections about the wonderful cars that we have been fortunate enough to have owned over the years. In many cases we acquired cars in different countries in Europe and promptly drove them back to the UK or Portugal. This…
- 5
- Karenable
Hypercar & Supercar Market Saturation
Never before have so many different manufacturers announced cars in the $1 million plus category. If competition is supposed to raise everyone’s game, then the cars we should be seeing on the road (or more likely mostly stashed in private collections) in the next few years should be extraordinary. However, I’m concerned that this isn’t quite how things work in…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q3 2019
Following up on the article on the car market in Q2 (Car Market Q2), I’ve continued to follow the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe they are good bellwethers for the market in general. I also tend to take a look on occasion at Koenigseggs and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal curiosity. It’s…
- 5
- Karenable
Hotel Bennett, Charleston: Unparalleled Luxury?
By Mrs. SSO I have always wanted to go to Charleston; the advertisements in travel magazines painted it’s charm and romance so beautifully. Earlier this year, my brother-in-law was part of a group invited to Boeing Headquarters where they were given a tour of the Factory and were wined and dined; they were escorted on private tours of the City, they…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, & Now Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We first stayed at The Londoner at Christmas time 2022. My first Londoner review concluded that: The Londoner, the World’s First Super Boutique Hotel is conceptionally brilliant, but the execution is far from what I would expect given its cost and 5 star rating. It requires more training of the staff is has and more staff; this…
- 5
- Karenable
Sun Valley Tour de Force: The Hotels
Recently we had the privilege of participating in the Sun Valley Tour de Force, in Sun Valley, Idaho. The SVTdF is a wonderful event which raises money for a great charity, The Hunger Coalition, and helps a large number of people in need. The SVTdF is in its 6th year and is a three day event which runs Thursday –…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, But Not Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We were excited to return to London as we had lived there for over a decade – to go back, if only for a vacation was in order now that COVID is ‘under control’. We love just walking around London, especially at Christmas time. It is so festive with all the lights and decorated Christmas trees. I…
- 5
- Karenable
Beneteau Oceanis 51.1 – A Floating Beach House
Owning a large sailboat, our is a Beneteau Oceanis 51, is like owning another vacation home. While a sailboat is technically a mode of transportation, from a cost perspective, the annual ownership costs are much closer to what a ski or beach house run. Given that you could describe our boat as a mobile wind driven 3 bedroom waterfront home,…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercars We Have Sold
Supercar Ghosts With the McLaren Senna arriving shortly, I have been reflecting back on the different supercars I have owned over the years. They basically fall into three groups; missed and would like it back, enjoyed owning but it was time to move on, and thank god it’s gone. For the sake of brevity, I will only touch upon my…
- 5
- Karenable
Summer Car Recommendations for Every Budget – 2019 Edition
For us, the end of ski season this weekend marks the beginning of the driving season. Hence it’s time to update our summer recommendations for 2019. For this year I have changed the criteria a bit. The new cut off for consideration is 1990 (vs. 1970 in 2018). The budgets are all in US $ and I have given a few more American…
- 5
- Karenable
Jaguar XJR-15: Driver’s Seat
Based on the Le Mans winning Jaguar XJR-9, the XJR-15 did not stray far from its roots. The XJR-15 is raw and quite brutal. Far more a Le Mans race car than a road car, it is completely lacking in creature comforts. When driving an XJR-15, full concentration is required at all times. Just getting into the XJR-15 is an…
- 5
- Karenable
Karen’s First Sports Car: Jaguar XKR
By Karen I used to be very conservative with cars; they were a means to get reliably from A to B. Think Honda, Audi, BMW…. then I met SSO. One day, early this century, I told SSO that I loved the Jag XKR convertible but I could not get my head around spending that much on a car. We discussed…
- 5
- Karenable
Summer Sport Cars for Every Budget – 2018
Summer Recommendations for Every Budget - 2018 Edition I original wrote a short blog on summer recommendation for different budgets six years ago (the original blog is attached below). Recently I was asked by a group in Australia for an update. As I am now based on the west side of the Atlantic, the budgets are now in US $…
- 5
- Karenable
Sun Valley Tour de Force: The Hotels
Recently we had the privilege of participating in the Sun Valley Tour de Force, in Sun Valley, Idaho. The SVTdF is a wonderful event which raises money for a great charity, The Hunger Coalition, and helps a large number of people in need. The SVTdF is in its 6th year and is a three day event which runs Thursday –…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q4 2019
Following up on the Q3 car market article (Car Market Q3 2019), I’ve continued to track the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe these are good bellwethers for the market in general. On occasion, I also take a glance at Koenigseggs, the McLaren P1, and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal interest. It’s wasn’t…
- 5
- Karenable
McLaren 720S Spider vs. the McLaren Senna
Editor’s Note: The following article was written by my brother, the Wine Collector (his high security well armored wine cellar is probably worth more than my garage), after our annual Thanksgiving gathering. Every year our families get together, and when we are hosting it, the festivities always include a number of drives. The Wine Collector is a bit of a car enthusiast…
- 5
- Karenable
New Arrival: McLaren 720S Spider
Back in May I did an article on the McLaren 720S Coupe vs. Spider. In the summary I wrote: The 720S Spider losses nothing over the 720S Coupe. In fact, you gain a tiny bit in ride quality and the option of a ton of fresh air on a sunny day. If I had to choose today, which one would I opt…
- 5
- Karenable
Hotel Bennett, Charleston: Unparalleled Luxury?
By Mrs. SSO I have always wanted to go to Charleston; the advertisements in travel magazines painted it’s charm and romance so beautifully. Earlier this year, my brother-in-law was part of a group invited to Boeing Headquarters where they were given a tour of the Factory and were wined and dined; they were escorted on private tours of the City, they…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, & Now Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We first stayed at The Londoner at Christmas time 2022. My first Londoner review concluded that: The Londoner, the World’s First Super Boutique Hotel is conceptionally brilliant, but the execution is far from what I would expect given its cost and 5 star rating. It requires more training of the staff is has and more staff; this…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, But Not Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We were excited to return to London as we had lived there for over a decade – to go back, if only for a vacation was in order now that COVID is ‘under control’. We love just walking around London, especially at Christmas time. It is so festive with all the lights and decorated Christmas trees. I…
- 5
- Karenable
Beneteau Oceanis 51.1 – A Floating Beach House
Owning a large sailboat, our is a Beneteau Oceanis 51, is like owning another vacation home. While a sailboat is technically a mode of transportation, from a cost perspective, the annual ownership costs are much closer to what a ski or beach house run. Given that you could describe our boat as a mobile wind driven 3 bedroom waterfront home,…
- 5
- Karenable
Porsche Carrera GT to a Beneteau Oceanis 51.1
A Porsche Carrera GT has been near the top of my bucket list for quite a few years now. This year, for the first time in a while, the stars all started to align, and it looked like it might actually happen. Then Covid-19 hit, lockdowns were imposed, social distancing became the in trend for 2020, and the Carrera GT…
- 5
- Karenable
Beneteau Oceanis 51.1 – A Floating Beach House
Owning a large sailboat, our is a Beneteau Oceanis 51, is like owning another vacation home. While a sailboat is technically a mode of transportation, from a cost perspective, the annual ownership costs are much closer to what a ski or beach house run. Given that you could describe our boat as a mobile wind driven 3 bedroom waterfront home,…
- 5
- Karenable
Planning Our 1st Epic Drive of 2021
I have hope that things will get better this year with the roll out of the Covid-19 vaccines and that by September or October a road trip will be possible. In great anticipation, I reached out to a group of friends with whom we have been doing road trips for over a decade now to gauge interest. It’s a great…
- 5
- Karenable
Porsche Carrera GT to a Beneteau Oceanis 51.1
A Porsche Carrera GT has been near the top of my bucket list for quite a few years now. This year, for the first time in a while, the stars all started to align, and it looked like it might actually happen. Then Covid-19 hit, lockdowns were imposed, social distancing became the in trend for 2020, and the Carrera GT…
- 5
- Karenable
Supercar Market Update – Q4 2019
Following up on the Q3 car market article (Car Market Q3 2019), I’ve continued to track the Ferrari F355, Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, and the Porsche Carrera GT, as I believe these are good bellwethers for the market in general. On occasion, I also take a glance at Koenigseggs, the McLaren P1, and the Special Series Ferraris out of personal interest. It’s wasn’t…
- 5
- Karenable
Hypercar & Supercar Market Saturation
Never before have so many different manufacturers announced cars in the $1 million plus category. If competition is supposed to raise everyone’s game, then the cars we should be seeing on the road (or more likely mostly stashed in private collections) in the next few years should be extraordinary. However, I’m concerned that this isn’t quite how things work in…
- 5
- Karenable
Hotel Bennett, Charleston: Unparalleled Luxury?
By Mrs. SSO I have always wanted to go to Charleston; the advertisements in travel magazines painted it’s charm and romance so beautifully. Earlier this year, my brother-in-law was part of a group invited to Boeing Headquarters where they were given a tour of the Factory and were wined and dined; they were escorted on private tours of the City, they…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, & Now Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We first stayed at The Londoner at Christmas time 2022. My first Londoner review concluded that: The Londoner, the World’s First Super Boutique Hotel is conceptionally brilliant, but the execution is far from what I would expect given its cost and 5 star rating. It requires more training of the staff is has and more staff; this…
- 5
- Karenable
The Londoner Hotel: Conceptionally Brilliant, But Not Ready for Prime Time
By Mrs. SSO We were excited to return to London as we had lived there for over a decade – to go back, if only for a vacation was in order now that COVID is ‘under control’. We love just walking around London, especially at Christmas time. It is so festive with all the lights and decorated Christmas trees. I…
- 5
- Karenable
The Bayside Restaurant: Home of New England’s Best Lobster Roll
This is actually the first standalone restaurant review we have ever done. All the prior one’s have been included in road trip reports. However when a restaurant consistently makes the best lobster roll in New England, it has earned the right to have its own review. The Bayside does, and it certainly has, for the two years since we first…
- 5
- Karenable
To Cork or Not to Cork?
Editor’s Note: The following article was written by my brother, the Wine Collector (his wine cellar is probably worth more than my garage). The Wine Collector is a bit of a car enthusiast himself and he has owned a Ferrari 430 Spider for many years. Do screw cap wines and supercars go together? You don’t buy a Ferrari or a…
- 5
- Karenable
Micro Supercar & Hypercar Manufacturers
About a month ago I posted an article on the saturation of the Hypercar Market (Too Much of a Good Thing). In the article I mentioned a number of micro manufacturers who have jumped into the hypercar market recently including Apollo & De Tomaso, ATS, SCG, Brabham, and Gordon Murray Automotive. In that article I picked the winners and losers in terms of…
- 5
- Karenable
Hypercar & Supercar Market Saturation
Never before have so many different manufacturers announced cars in the $1 million plus category. If competition is supposed to raise everyone’s game, then the cars we should be seeing on the road (or more likely mostly stashed in private collections) in the next few years should be extraordinary. However, I’m concerned that this isn’t quite how things work in…
- 5
- Karenable
Monterey Car Week Report 2019
This was our first time at Monterey Car Week. I would probably best describe Car Week as combination of the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Goodwood Revival spread out over multiple stunning locations and then supersized in the best American tradition. We arrived on Wednesday late afternoon and departed the following Monday morning (see: McLaren 675LT Spider Road Trip). In between, it was…
- 5
- Karenable
The Mystery of Supercar Allocations
The Mystery of Supercar Allocations A not infrequent question I get asked is “how do you get on the list for a limited edition supercar”. As questions go, this is not an easy one to answer. It varies significantly by company and in some cases, the logic completely escapes me. Who gets allocations can also change based on what a particular manufacturer is…
- 5
- Karenable
Ambitious Plans of Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus
Ambitious Plans of Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus When I was considering putting down a deposit on a SCG 004S ( Decision Time 004S), I took a long look at the rest of Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus’ planned range. To say the least, Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus (SCG) has ambitious plans both on and off the race track. I can’t think of another small car company that…
- 5
- Karenable
