Active Lifestyle Vehicle Awards
Carspondent is the home for the popular ALV awards program sponsored by Tire Rack. In conjunction with Active.com, our automotive experts are constantly reviewing vehicles that fit your active lifestyles. Keep your comments coming!
-
Does This Surfboard Have Airbags?
Volvo PR guru pursues his surfing passion on both coasts
Blind Dog Surf Boards
My buddy Dan Johnston and I have two things in common: our love of Volvos, and our pigheaded determination not to grow old gracefully. Recently Johnston, a long-time member of the Volvo public relations group, moved from company headquarters in New Jersey to North Carolina. Back at the beach, he can pursue his life-long loves: building boards and surfing.
“I started surfing in California around 1962, grew up in Torrance and Hermosa Beach,” said Johnston. “Life was easy back then. We loaded up our old Ford, would drive to San Diego on Friday night, surf at Cardif or head up to Santa Barbara to surf Hammond’s Reef if SD was flat. No internet in those days, surf hunting was a crap shoot.”
Johnston lived in Hawaii for short time, during his enlistment in the US Navy.
“Surfed Sunset Beach with some mainland friends, must have been 10′ out there,” he recalled. “No leashes and nasty swims. “I learned my limit that day.”
Recently, Johnston and fellow surfing buddy, Tom Allen, started Blind Dog Surf Boards, producing custom hollow wooden surfboards. All of the wood comes from managed sustainable forests in the area or pieces they have harvested. Each hollow wooden board takes about 90 hours to craft.
To learn more about Blind Dog’s custom surfboards, visit Dan’s blog site.
-
Volvo Exec Awarded Top NHTSA Honor
Jan Ivarrson receives the US Government Special Award of Appreciation for pioneering safety technology
Jan Ivarsson
Jan Ivarsson, Volvo’s senior manager of safety strategy and requirements, has received the US government’s special award of appreciation for his work in safety technology. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration picks the award winner.
Ivarsson’s career at Volvo spans two decades: he has been senior manager of safety and strategy requirements since 1988. Beginning with the introduction of Volvo’s side impact protection system in 1991, he has been the project leader for many important active and passive safety features.
Most recently, Ivarsson oversaw the development of Volvo’s City Safety system, featured on the 2010 XC60 crossover vehicle. The purpose of City Safety is to prevent or mitigate low-speed collisions due to driver distraction.
Volvo City Safety System
The system is active at speeds up to 19 miles-per-hour. If the vehicle in front brakes suddenly and sensors in the XC60 determine a collision is likely, it pre-charges the brakes. If the driver fails to respond, the car applies the brakes automatically. If the relative speed between the two vehicles is less than nine miles-per-hour, City Safety may help the driver avoid the collision entirely.
Ivarsson sees his honor as reinforcement of Volvo’s leadership position in the field of automotive safety.
“Just a few years ago, we felt that the competition was beginning to catch up with us in the sphere of safety,” he said. “However, over the past few years we have demonstrated the sheer extent of the expertise in our company. Our new passive and active safety systems which are now being rolled out to customers are of absolute first class.”