In an effort to combat the otherworldly boredom that is the Grand Prix of Sonoma, the Pagoda is publishing links to material that will fill the void left by a lack of race-related discussions. Why? Because there’s nothing worth discussing, obviously. Such is the vast, crushing monotony of Sonoma. On to today’s links.  In the least [...]

From the looks of it, Minnesotans prefer their Major winners exactly like they prefer their fine chardonnays … not-Korean. A impossibly gutsy 72nd hole birdie to seal the biggest upset in PGA Championship history — shown above — deserves a polite clap from the gallery, I’d think. Or at the very least, something more than complete & utter disdain. Yang whipped [...]

Before having our own kids, I vividly remember visiting friends’ houses who did have them. And I vividly remember thinking that they needed to get control of their lives. Why? Because shit was EVERYWHERE, and I was pretty sure I’d just sat on a waffle iron. Worse still, nobody seemed terribly troubled by this. Not us, I thought. NEVER! We will have order & [...]

Oh good. For a second there, I worried that we’d never be lucky enough to see the full arsenal of crazy that America has to offer. The healthcare reform debate alone has brought out most of it, sure. But not quite ALL of it. It needed some backup. This ought to do it. Yes, Vick is [...]

Hey, whatdoyaknow … AJ Foyt’s plane suffered engine failure at 25,000 feet this past weekend. He handled the near-catastrophe well, of course, with a quiet calm that bordered on disinterest. Which is certainly much easier to do when you’re — you know — immune to death & incapable of feeling bodily pain. Because when you’re AJ Foyt, near-catastrophic engine malfunctions at high altitudes [...]

Oh, NFL. You & your gimmicks are so naïve. You probably think we care that HBO’s “Hard Knocks” debuts tonight at 10:00. Let me assure you, Your Majesty … we don’t. We IndyCar folk don’t much care for in-depth looks into the inner workings of our teams. We also prefer our athletes cloaked in PR-speak & Twitter … not bearing [...]

There are only a few moments in our daily living when we get down to the brass tacks of who we really are and what exactly it is we’re doing with our lives — when we face the crushing insecurities & worries & fret constantly lurking beneath the surface. Very few. And for good reason too. That kind of reckless shit is best served [...]