"I was at the racing school with my Dad, Oscar Jones, 11/7/09. This was the most fun my Dad ever had! You were all so nice and kind to him. I want to thank you with all my heart for making an 83 year old's dreams come true. "
Curtis Jones
15 Extreme Father's Day Gifts
Dad. He's the guy who raised you. Half of you probably IS him. He’s the guy who
put up with you as child. He’s the guy who probably taught you how to throw. But
first and foremost he’s just a guy. Sure he may dress different, think
different, and act different, but he’s still a guy, just like all the other guys
you know. And would any of those other guys like a tie as a gift? How about a
mug? No, of course not. Dads want what all guys want. Something manly, something
cool. Still don’t get it? Let’s take it to the extreme.
Bugatti Veyron - Introduced in 2005, the
Bugatti
Veyron 16.4 is the second fastest production car in the world. Capable of
253.19 miles per hour, what sets the Veyron apart from the rest, however, is it
accomplishes this without cutting the usual corners so many others cut when they
strive to build a car this fast.
Want to build a fast car? Easy. Make it ridiculously light, as aerodynamic
as possible, and put in an engine where the word “powerful” is an
under-statement. Granted... “easy” might be over-simplifying, but you get the
basic concept. Make it streamlined, powerful and strip out as much weight as
possible. There’s the key word. Weight. As in the luxurious interior. Plush
leather. State of the art sound system. Air conditioning. Often, even simple
things like the power door locks and windows. The Bugatti Veyron’s interior
rivals that of a
Bentley or
Rolls
Royce. It is literally that luxurious. The current record holder for the
worlds fastest car is not, which is why it’s also over 1400 pounds lighter. And
what do you get for those 1400 missing pounds? Four more miles an hour. Four
measly miles. It’s 1.56% faster. Take the Veyron. No gimmicks, just one of the
absolute best engineered cars in the world.
Space Flight - In 2009
Virgin
Galactic plans to launch it’s first commercial space flight. The company’s
mission is to fly commercial passengers over 62 miles above the Earth, allowing
them to experience weightlessness for up to six minutes.
Seats currently require an initial deposit of $200,000 for the first 100
tickets, $100,000 for the next 400 tickets, and $20,000 for all passengers after
that. Virgin Galactic has already acquired over $30 million in bookings. Flights
will last two and a half hours in a spaceplane based on
SpaceShipOne,
the vehicle that won the
Ansari X
Prize. SpaceShipTwo, as it is known, will be a little bigger and capable of
carrying six passengers and two pilots. It will also fly a little higher,
allowing for a longer duration of weightlessness for the passengers. The
spaceplane will reach around Mach 3, placing it in the same league as the
SR-71
Blackbird. A number of celebrities have expressed their wish to be aboard
the maiden flights. Names include William Shatner, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen
Hawking.
Shark Diving – Diving in itself is fairly extreme. To put on a
suit that literally provides an atmosphere in an inhospitable environment? It
almost sounds like space travel, and in many ways it is. With space travel
though, there are no masters. In the ocean, however, there is. Anyone who’s
watched the
Discovery
Channel has likely seen a
shark
cage. It seems like the kind of thing only available to researchers or
professional thrill-seekers. Well, it’s not. Anyone with just a little bit of
cash can pay to go on a
shark
diving expedition. Beyond sharks, giant squid and rays can also be spotted
depending upon the location of the dive and time of season. When shopping for
a Shark Diving trip, remember that above all, safety is key. This is a ride
where you definitely want to keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all
times.
Phoenix 1000 Private Luxury Submarine - Under the sea, one of
the last true places where you can really, really get away from it all. Take
some of the most luxurious yachts in the ocean, veritable floating cities. The
Phoenix
1000 arguably trumps them all for one reason alone, it is a submarine.
Hurricane approaching? So what? 30 meters down the water will still be as calm
as ever.
Available through U.S. Submarines, the Phoenix 1000 is 213 feet long and
has a beam in excess of 26 feet. The interior comprises a space of over 5000
square feet. The submarine is filled to the brim with various amenities,
including a docking mini-sub which is capable of excursions down to 2000 feet.
The mini-sub also provides the capability of bringing passengers from the
surface to the Phoenix 1000 already lying at depth. The Phoenix 1000 is also
large enough to carry a small car as cargo for when the sub is docked in harbor.
A diver lockout chamber is also provided with the option of decompression.
Relatively large open spaces throughout the Phoenix 1000 also allow for
customizations curtailing to the owners individual tastes. Basketball courts are
not unheard of. Estimated cost of the Phoenix 1000 is $78 million.
Race Car Driving School - Shameless self-plug, we know, but
this list would be incomplete without it, so here we go. Often seen as the realm
of celebrities preparing for a role, or race car drivers themselves, the reality
is any dad who can physically get himself into a racecar can take
professional
lessons on how to drive one.
Schools are available throughout the world, offering every type of car and race
track imaginable. The number one aspect to look for though is
safety.
Ensure that the school has a good safety record and makes use of a head and neck
safety restraint such as a
Hans
device. After that, what you want to look for is fun. The best schools allow
you to feel the thrill of racing by allowing passing and even drafting. What you
don’t want is a school that makes you feel as if you’re stuck on the
Autopia
at Disneyland lap after lap.
Skydiving - If you’re fit enough to jump off a table then you’re
fit enough to dive out of a plane. Skydiving to this day is considered one of
the staples of extreme sports. Ironically, it’s also one of the safest. The
first known blueprints for a
parachute
were drawn by Leonardo DaVinci in 1485. In the year 2000, a parachute built
from those plans was used with complete success. Beginning skydivers will likely
do a tandem dive their first time out, meaning they’re strapped to an instructor
who takes care of the parachute themselves. Accelerated free falls are also
sometimes done for a first jump. With these, the skydiver is in full control,
but is escorted down by two certified instructors. Some prefer just going once
or twice for the thrill, but if interested, one can also become a certified
skydiver them self.
Super Bowl Tickets - There is no sports event in the United
States that can hold a candle to the
Super Bowl.
Live under a rock? It’s the annual championship game of the National Football
League. Happening on a Sunday at the beginning of each year “Super Bowl Sunday”
has become a de-facto national holiday in the United States. Food consumption on
“Super Bowl Sunday” is only trumped by Thanksgiving itself. So how does one get
tickets? Officially, tickets are distributed to the public through a random
drawing. There is officially no other way. Tickets are not sold to travel or
ticket agents. Entries for the drawing are accepted between February 1st and
June 1st. Those selected have the opportunity to buy two tickets. There are, of
course, other means of acquiring tickets under the table for those who are
resourceful.
Army Surplus Fighter Plane or Bomber - No joke, these are available. When
fighter jets are made obsolete by newer models, they are not necessarily
dismantled. More often then not, they are
put
up for sale in the private sector. Weapon systems are obviously removed, but
one can still experience the excitement of flying a plane specifically designed
for combat. United States fighter jets, Migs, bombers, and even Messerschmitt’s
are available for purchase. Original and Replica World War II era planes (and
even jets) restored to flight condition sell for around $2 million. Newer
military jets such as the L-39 Albatros can be bought for $200,000 - $350,000.
Various suppliers and resellers can be found on the internet. Pilot’s license
not included, but classes are available.
Arctic Expedition - If the Russians build anything well it’s
machinery that needs to be tough. When one thinks of a pleasure cruise they
often think of the tropics, warm weather, and sunshine. For the adventuresome
sort, however, this could be seen as a little... boring.
Quark
Expeditions, on the other hand, offers cruises to the North Pole. More
impressive is the ship itself, the
“50
years of Victory ”, a Russian icebreaker powered by two nuclear reactors
(yes, nuclear) pumping out 75,000 horsepower. Few outside of the military can
say they’ve been the passenger of a vehicle powered by atomic energy. The “50
Years of Victory” is capable of breaking through ice over nine feet thick. The
ship sports amenities such as a gym, two saunas, a pool, massage service,
lounges, a library, and a bar. Every cabin has private facilities and exterior
views. Trips to the North Pole take just over two weeks and prices range from
$22,000 - $35,000.
Wildlife Safari - There was a day when people would go on
Safari to hunt the animals and bring back their skins and carcasses as trophies.
Fortunately, those days are mostly over (ironically, today you can pay to hunt
poachers).
These days, safaris are all about seeing the animals, and shooting them
with a camera instead of a gun. Safari’s can range from all out roughing it, to
pure luxury, enjoying all the comforts of home (and then some). Roughing it
usually involves the actual land travel to the wilderness and dealing with the
roads found in such areas. Luxury safaris, however, commonly fly visitors into
the wilderness. Both have their drawbacks and benefits. Which one is best
depends on the traveler.
Gumball 3000 - Founded in 1999, the
Gumball
3000 is a world famous, 3000 mile rally that travels around the world on its
public roads. The rally is infamous for speeds in excess of 150mph, confiscated
licenses, and confiscated cars. Ironically, the rally is not a competition, with
no awards given for speed or arriving at checkpoints first. Official timing is
not even provided.
Cars at the rally are a collection of everything from rental cars to Bugatti
Veyrons. Anyone can apply for entry, but the entrance fee if one is accepted is
approximately $120,000. Previous celebrities who have run the Gumball 3000
include Billy Zane and Jason Priestley in it inaugural year as well as
McConaughey, Johnny Knoxville, and Adrien Brody in later years.
Private Golf Lessons – Dad’s golf swing. The stuff of myth, the
stuff of legends... the stuff of punch-lines and ridicule. Most dads would
suggest the typical solution, “better clubs!” Wishful thinking, dad. Golfers
always grin at the thought of better clubs. What dad really needs are lessons at
an
exclusive
golf school. Doesn’t sound extreme? Then you haven’t been to golf school.
Classes can range from group weekends, to private sessions, to full on retreats.
And these aren’t simple classes regarding technique. High-end golf classes cover
the mental, physical, AND mechanical aspects of the game. As you can probably
guess, lessons like these aren’t just for dads. Golfers who compete in
tournaments often take these classes and even their golf swings improve.
Military Tank - It’s a Tank. What more could you want? Built to
be the most militarily powerful overland vehicle available, tanks are the
epitome of manliness. While you might not be able to
drive
a tank down the highway without stealing one, services do exist where
one
can drive a tank all they want and maybe even fire the canon. Pay enough and
these services will even provide a wrecked car for you to run over. Often times,
the driving area provided will allow the driver to plow through shallow lakes,
ride up steep hills, and crash through debris that would leave even the toughest
4x4 stranded or destroyed. If just driving a tank isn’t enough,
these
military vehicles can be purchased often within the same price range as a
normal car.
150” Plasma TV - At the
2008
Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas, Matsuhita Electrical Industries
debuted, under their Panasonic logo, the worlds largest Plasma TV. A 16:9 ratio
150”
Television. In other words, the screen is 6 feet tall and 11 feet wide.
This gives the TV’s screen a surface area equivalent to nine 50 inch TV’s.
Admittedly, often times this is a gimmick as the actual image quality of the
picture is substandard to smaller TV’s. Not so with the “Life Screen” as
Matsuhita is calling it. The Life Screen has four times the resolution of their
current displays. Interestingly enough, the technology behind the world’s most
extreme TV was invented in 1964 for the PLATO computer system. Being at first
cheaper than a standard CRT, they were actually quite popular in the early 70’s.
The first full color model was developed by Fujitsu in 1992. With sizes as large
as the Life Screen’s 150” display, Plasma TV’s are now entering the arena
against projection screens (and Plasma TV’s don’t require a dark room). While no
official price has been announced for the Life Screen, estimates place it
somewhere in the vicinity of $150,000.
Private Rail Road Car - Few things can possess heaping amounts
of both manliness and romance. One of these is trains. They have the incredible
machinery, but also the beautiful journey. Vintage, luxury rail road cars can
vary greatly in price, reaching as high as $1 million. Restoring the car can add
further hundreds of thousands of dollars. And then there’s the retrofitting,
bringing the car up to today’s regulations and safety standards, which also adds
to the total price. One might wonder then why someone would do this? Why
purchase
a rail road car that is only going to sit as a curiosity in one’s backyard,
let alone bother bringing it up today’s standards? ...Why? Because these cars do
not sit in some backyard. They are fully functional, still in use, and for less
than $2 a mile, Amtrak will attach your private car to one of their trains and
take you wherever you want to go. The
American
Association of Private Rail Road Car Owners would be the place to start if
you’re interestred.
We may not all be billionaires with limitless resources at our disposal, but we
all have a dad. Some things on this list may only be for the wealthy, but others
are readily accessible to even the average Joes. So ditch the tie, and spare dad
the mug. Dad is a guy and deserves something guys like.
