KABUL, Afghanistan – The U.S.-led military coalition says seven people died when a civilian cargo aircraft crashed at Bagram Air Field, north of the Afghan capital.
In a statement, the coalition confirmed that all seven civilian crew members were killed in Monday’s crash.
The Taliban quickly claimed responsibility for the crash. But the coalition denied that, saying in a statement to The Associated Press that the militant group’s statement was false.
The coalition said there was no militant activity during the time of the crash.
The coalition said the cause of the accident is being investigated.
There are many things you can do for your skin, and many of these things are not necessarily provided by pharmaceutical industries, in fact many of the fancy treatments we now use are packed with chemicals that in long term affect our skin badly.
Not all of them are bad, you just have to get to know them and your skin, its ok to give them a chance, and they need at least six weeks to work. If nothing has changed by week six, the product will never work for you.
1. Always try natural options, when it comes to nature, the original is better than the copy, since the biological structure of the skin is designed to recognize and utilize natural ingredients.
2. First of all begin by keeping it clean. Cleanse for approximately 2 minutes every night, twice a day.
3. Stop squeezing pimples. When people squeeze, it can rupture the duct that produces oil, causing trauma, infection and, eventually, scarring.
4. Begin from the inside out, avoid sugar intake as much as possible, since everything you put into your body is reflected in your skin.
5. Avoid sugar, but introduce chocolate, dark chocolate will arm your skin with additional flavonols, protective nutrients that researchers believe absorb UV light and increase blood flow to the skin, improving its appearance.
6. Get to know your skin type, this way you will ensure you’re using the correct cleanser and moisturizer.
7. Exfoliate once a week to remove old dead cell material. Use a “fractionated” oil to moisturize, this will mimic and replace your acid mantle, but those with sensitive skin may experience excessive skin irritation and should not exfoliate that often.
8. Have a good sleep; while you’re logging quality snooze time, havoc may be breaking out on your face. Hormonal surges during sleep cause your sebaceous glands to pump oil.
9. Also try to wash your sheets weekly, since when you sleep, lotions, hair gels, and oils sweat off of your body and onto your linens.
10. Take a chill pill; stress slows down the skin’s rejuvenation process. It can reduce cell renewal, destroy collagen fibers in the skin, and break down elastin, thus speeding up the aging process.
For years, Debbie Rowe, Michael Jackson‘s ex-wife and the mother of two of his children, was out of the picture.As followers of the frequently bizarre Jackson family saga know, the former dermatology nurse – who was married to Jackson from 1996 to 1999 – gave her pop star husband sole custody ofMichael Joseph “Prince” Jackson Jr., 16, and Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson, 15, in the divorce.Rowe, 54, was awarded $8 million in the settlement and, except for occasional visits with her children, steered clear of the family. She settled in Palmdale, Calif., about an hour outside Los Angeles, breeding horses, and zealously guarding her privacy.
But now, as a multi-million dollar wrongful death trial pitting the Jackson clan against concert promoter AEG Live gets underway in Los Angeles, Rowe has resurfaced. And sources say she’s grown particularly close to the daughter she never really knew.
In recent weeks, Rowe has spent an increasing amount of time with Paris Jackson – watching her perform in her school play, taking her out to lunch, and hosting her at her Palmdale ranch. Once alienated from her former in-laws, Rowe has the blessing of Paris’s grandmother and legal co-guardian, Katherine Jackson, who sees her as a good influence.
“Paris has been going through a lot of teenage angst and feels a little bit unloved,” says a source. “So about three months ago Paris reached out to her mother and told her she wanted to establish a relationship with her. Debbie was open to it, and Katherine Jackson is supportive of the developing relationship.”
Since then, Paris has spent two weekends with Rowe in Palmdale, helping her with her horses. “She’s enjoyed telling friends in L.A. how she’s helping take care of a pregnant mare on the ranch, and even how she was recently chased by a chicken.”
Unlike his younger sister, Prince Michael Jackson has not embraced his biological mother.
“He has anger issues with her,” says the source. “He feels like she abandoned him years ago.”
Indeed, in recent times the source says that Paris and Prince are not as close as they used to be, partly because of Paris’s relationship with her mother.
Rowe is not the mother of the late pop star’s third child, Prince Michael II, 11, who was born to a still-unidentified surrogate mother in 2002.
“Right now Paris is happy with the situation as it is,” says the source about budding the mother-daughter relationship. “It’s even looking like at some point Paris will want to move in with Debbie.”
Both Paris and Prince Michael are expected to take the stand in the wrongful death trial now underway.
The number of people using Facebook is plummeting, with 1.4million British users logging off in just one month.
Despite being the world’s largest social network with more than a billion users, people in Facebook’s biggest markets are deleting their accounts.
In the last month there has been a 4.5 per cent fall in British users, according to independent data.
Users in Facebook’s biggest markets are deleting their accounts and swapping to newer social media
In the last six months, Facebook has lost nearly 9 million monthly visitors in the US and 2 million in the UK.
Experts say as new social media sites grow, Facebook’s users are deserting the network.
They say that figures aren’t helped by the lack of new Facebook members. It is believed that most people who want to sign up to the site have already done so.
New media specialist Ian Maude said the fall in numbers was due to ‘a boredom factor’.
It is believed there is stagnation as most people who want to join the site have already done so
‘The problem is that, in the US and UK, most people who want to sign up for Facebook have already done it.
‘People like to try something new. Is Facebook going to go the way of Myspace?
‘The risk is relatively small, but that is not to say it isn’t there.’
Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg is said to be introducing new features in order to win members back.
The company is working to appeal to younger Smartphone users.
The most significant development is Facebook Home, software that can be downloaded on to certain Android phones to feed news and photos from friends – and advertising – directly to the owner’s locked home screen.
As well as switching off from the network, Facebook users are reported to be spending less time on the site.
The number of minutes spent on Facebook in the U.S has fallen.
The average dropped from 121 minutes in December 2012, to 115 minutes in February, according to comScore.
But Facebook explained that the time spent on its pages from those sitting in front of personal computers is declining rapidly because we are switching our screen time to smartphones and tablets.
Don’t want to sacrifice a great paycheck for the ability to work from home? With these six careers, you don’t have to.
By Andrea Duchon
Growing up, you often think of professional success in terms of your workplace – corner office with a view, anyone? But as you get older, your idea of the most desirable place to work might shift into something a bit more fluid and a little less 9-to-5.
Danielle Mund, a certified career and entrepreneur coach, explains that telecommuting is on the rise, despite recent debates about its merits in business. But which careers can easily be done outside the office?
“The easiest careers to telecommute in are those that aren’t as much about communal decision-making as they are about creation,” says Mund.
“These careers tend to have the need to be free from distractions, like colleagues popping into your cubicle unannounced, for example,” says Mund. But that’s not all. Changes in technology have obviously made it much easier to work remotely. “The Internet and the cell phone have made it infinitely more accessible to work outside of a traditional setting,” says Mund.
Healthy paycheck. Comfortable digs. Never changing out of your pajamas – what more could you ask for? Curious which jobs might lead you home? Keep reading to learn about six high-paying careers where you may be able to literally phone it in.
Love the possibility of making the world a prettier place but don’t want to sit in a cubicle day in and day out to do it? A career as a graphic designer could give you the opportunity to work from anywhere, rake in some decent cash, and follow your creative dreams.
Graphic designers are generally regarded as some of the most creative people on a team. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, they’re the ones responsible for creating visual concepts, selecting colors, images, and layouts, and advising clients on strategies to reach their audience.
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: You may think graphic designers must work in a collaborative environment, chained to the communal table with their colleagues, but Mund says that’s not the case.
“Graphic designers are asked to solve creative problems, which perhaps counter-intuitively, is often something best done alone,” notes Mund. “We now know that creative work – things that require innovation or art – is best done in solitude.”
Additionally, open-plan offices, which are used by most creative agencies, have actually been found to decrease productivity, she adds. “Thus, telecommuting may be even more conducive for this type of work than working in an office.”
Salary Potential: What’s more, toiling away in creative solitude could earn you a healthy salary. Top paid graphic designers in the 90th percentile make $77,490 annually, according to the Department of Labor. On the low end of the scale (10th percentile), designers make $26,250, while the median annual wage registers at $44,150.
Education Requirements: You’ll be required to have a bachelor’s degree in graphic design or a related field if you want to pursue a position as a graphic designer, according to the Department. If you’ve earned a bachelor’s degree in another field, you should pursue “technical training in graphic design” and be prepared with a solid professional portfolio demonstrating your creativity and originality.
Think you might have what it takes to be a programmer but aren’t sure you’re cut out for office life? Computer programming may provide the opportunity to ditch the cubicle and work from home – and the pay isn’t bad, either.
Computer programmers create, test, and fix bugs in software programs by working with computer code, says the U.S. Department of Labor. These programs range from simple mobile applications for cell phones to more complicated computer operating systems.
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: The two reasons this career is great for telecommuters stem from the fact that it requires a computer and it involves creativity, says Mund.
“Because you can work from anywhere with only an outlet and an Internet connection, it’s not difficult to choose the place where you’re most productive instead of focusing on punching the clock,” she says.
The second reason, Mund adds, is that despite the technical nature of the work, it is actually quite creative. “Generally speaking, programmers solve the types of problems that must be solved by one person, not a team. When a programmer can work away from distractions like coworkers, he or she can get work done more effectively.”
Salary Potential: And if you work effectively, salary for this career could be in your favor, too. The Department of Labor lists median annual wage for computer programmers as $74,280. The top 90th percentile of employees earns $117,890, while the bottom 10th percentile earns $42,850.
Education Requirements: According to the Department, most computer programmers have a bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field. However, some employers may hire you if you’ve only earned an associate’s degree. Certification is an additional way to demonstrate your skills and give you a competitive edge, says the Department.
Turns out accountants aren’t only working during tax time. In fact, almost all organizations employ accountants to ensure that financial documents and records are in order 24/7. But don’t they have to be working alongside the rest of the office to rake in their hefty salaries? Contrary to popular belief, maybe not.
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: An accountant doesn’t need a group of people around to carry out his or her best work – instead they’re able to get by with only financial records and a spreadsheet, says Mund. “And that, of course, can be done from anywhere – the office, the home, or elsewhere.”
The U.S. Department of Labor backs up Mund’s claim: While many accountants work in offices, some work from home or travel to their clients’ places of business instead.
But don’t think that telecommuting translates to fewer hours. One in five accountants worked more than 40 hours a week in 2010, according to the Department of Labor.
Salary Potential: Accountants earning in the bottom 10th percentile report a respectable $39,930, says the Department of Labor. The top 90th percent, however, could see $111,510, while the median annual salary is $63,550.
Education Requirements: If you want to pursue a career in accounting, the Department says you’ll need at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related field. Looking for a competitive edge? Many accountants get licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to enhance job prospects.
Look around. Chances are that when your eyes focus on something near you, you’ll see text. And where there is text, there’s a writer behind it. Whether you’re reading an advertisement, a magazine, or the lyrics of a song, a writer is responsible for creating it, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
But did you know that some writers are able to work from the couch or their neighborhood coffee shops and still make a decent paycheck?
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: Just like many other careers on this list, the meat of this profession is best done alone. “Input from others during the writing process can stifle the flow of thoughts from brain to fingertip to screen, cause undue fear or pressure for perfection, and so on. Writing on one’s own terms can yield better results than working in a normal office environment,” explains Mund.
The other key factor that makes this a great career for doing just about anywhere with computer access is that many writers don’t have what we would traditionally think of as a boss. As the Department of Labor points out, in 2010 about 68 percent of writers were self-employed. Some industries in which writers might find work include religious, grant-making, or civic work; newspaper, periodicals, or books; and advertising or public relations, notes the Department.
Salary Potential: If you find yourself in the top 90th percentile as a writer, the Department of Labor says you could make $117,860. The bottom 10 percent earns $27,770, while the median salary is $55,940.
Education Requirements: Much like the career itself, the path to writing isn’t written in stone. Still, if you’re interested in going down that path, the Department has this to say: “A college degree is generally required for a salaried position as a writer. Many employers like to hire people who have a degree in English, journalism, or communications.”
If you love public speaking and don’t mind long hours, a career as a public relations specialist could be right up your alley. But despite how “public” this career seems, you might be surprised to learn that you could carry out some of these duties remotely.
Public relations specialists write press releases and help clients communicate effectively to the public, says the U.S. Department of Labor.
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: Because press conferences take place outside of the office, it’s clear why these professionals wouldn’t need to be there all the time, says Mund. But there are other reasons this career is great for telecommuting, too.
Public relations specialists are communicating constantly – but that doesn’t mean they need to actually be putting in face time to do that, she says. “This is the kind of job twentieth-century technologies, like phones and the Internet, were made for: immediate, scalable communication and information.”
And the need for that immediate communication doesn’t always happen in the office. According to the Department of Labor, people in this profession are often attending meetings, giving speeches, and traveling – which means putting in office time may be less common than other careers.
Salary Potential: Of course, that doesn’t mean this career path rewards you any less. The median annual wage of a public relations specialist is $54,170, says the Department. The top 90th percentile earning wage is $101,030, and the bottom 10th percentile is $30,760.
Education Requirements: Typically, says the Department, to pursue a career as a PR specialist, you’ll need a bachelor’s degree in fields employers prefer, such as journalism, public relations, English, communications, or business.
Ever wonder how and why your computer works when you turn it on and open up a program? The answer is software developers. These creative types develop the applications that run on your computer or other devices, and constantly work to make sure that they function correctly, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. But how are they able to work from their couch and still make a great salary?
Why It’s Ideal for Telecommuting: Developers, like programmers, work exclusively from computers, so they’re already set up to telecommute. Mund says that this career also requires a type of creation, so it’s best done when you can get into the “flow.”
She defines flow as a state of concentration and complete focus on the activity in front of you. And as anyone who’s worked in an office before can tell you, “flow” isn’t as easily achieved in a traditional setting where you’re likely to be distracted.
Salary Potential: If you earn median salary as an applications software developer, you could expect to see $90,060, according to the Department of Labor. The top 90th percentile makes $138,880, while the bottom 10th percentile makes $55,190.
Education Requirements: If you want to pursue a career as a software developer, you’ll probably need to have a bachelor’s degree, notes the Department. Most computer programmers have one in computer science, software engineering, or a related degree. These professionals also have strong computer programming skills, says the Department.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — After door-to-door sweeps proved fruitless, law officers urged residents of a small town in Northern California to lock their doors and keep a close eye on streets and yards for a man who stabbed an 8-year-old girl to death in her house.
The attacker, only described as wearing a black shirt and blue pants, was the subject of a broad search Sunday by the sheriff’s departments of Calaveras and surrounding counties, the California Highway Patrol and the state Department of Justice.
Leila Fowler was stabbed to death on Saturday at the home inValley Springs, Coroner Kevin Raggio said. Sheriff’s officials say investigators have collected fingerprints and what they believe is DNA from the home. Calaveras County Sheriff’s Capt. Jim Macedotold the Modesto Bee (http://bit.ly/14CJ5s2 ) authorities hope to have lab results on the evidence in a week.
“This is way too close to home,” Julia Poland, who took her 13-year-old daughter to an afternoon news conference on the search, told the Bee. “This kind of thing does not happen here.”
Leila was found by her brother — reported by local media to be 12 years old — after he encountered a male intruder in the home. When the intruder ran away, the boy found his sister stabbed. She was pronounced dead at a local hospital, officials said.
Authorities spent Saturday night and into Sunday conducting a door-to-door sweep of homes scattered across hilly terrain, checking storage sheds and horse stables, and even searching attics.
“It is a difficult area to search, it’s rural, remote,” sheriff’s Capt. Jim Macedo said.
Mass notifications alerted residents about the attack and the search for the suspect, officials said.
“I was working on my tractor and a CHP copter kept flying over my house,” Roger Ballew, 35, told The Associated Press on Sunday.
A SWAT team showed up at his house Saturday night and told him to stay inside.
“It was nerve-racking, I didn’t sleep well,” Ballew said.
Investigators on Sunday were interviewing several people, but no suspects had been named by late afternoon. Detectives were checking out tips that had come in to the sheriff’s office, including possible leads from outside the county, officials said.
“It’s just terrible,” resident Paul Gschweng told Sacramento television station KCRA. “What can I say about it, it’s just a tragedy.”
The station reported that a neighbor told police that a man was running from the girl’s home after the attack.
Investigators were asking area residents to call authorities if they had any information, knew of anyone who had unexplained injuries or may have left the area unexpectedly after the girl was killed.
Valley Springs is a community of about 2,500 people in an unincorporated area of Calaveras County, known as “Gold Country,” in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, about 60 miles southeast of Sacramento.
The county became world-famous in 1865 with Mark Twain’s short story, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County,” according to the Calaveras County Chamber of Commerce website.
The family of Emmett Till says they plan to put pressure on the many sponsors of rapper Lil Wayne, namely his high profile endorsement deal with Mountain Dew. After the New Orleans rapper referenced the deceased teen in a verse on an unreleased remix of Future’s “Karate Chop” single, the Till family is dissatisfied with Weezy’s response to the offensive lyric.
AllHipHop.com got an exclusive quote from the Till family regarding their new course of action, which was sparked largely by Wayne’s inaction and lack of response to the controversy. This latest move comes after the Till family released a video three weeks ago lambasting Wayne even further.
From AllHipHop.com:
Since, the rapper has not apologized, the Till family have told AllHipHop.com exclusively that they intend to pressure Lil Wayne’s sponsors, namely Mountain Dew.
Shortly, the Till Family are expected to make offensive moves forward to further address Wayne and Mountain Dew, a product of PepsiCo. A similar tactic by women’s group UltraViolet resulted in Reebok dropping Rick Ross from their campaign.
Although Epic Records pulled the remix off the airwaves and apologized on Wayne’s behalf, the estate of Emmett Till still aim to hit the Young Money honcho in the pockets in a bid to get his attention.
Emmettt Till was murdered in 1955 after reportedly whistling at a White woman, thus sparking a new charge in the fight for civil rights for African-Americans.
Determining your natural eye shape is just as important as finding the most flattering colors for your lids. Knowing how to apply eye shadow and liner will help you better translate trends and techniques to fit your face. We turned to makeup guru Jeffrey Paul (who has worked with Christina Applegate and Zooey Deschanel) to discover tricks for each specific eye shape—so you can make the most of your peepers!
DEEP SET EYES
Deep set eyes are large and set deeper into the skull, creating the illusion of a more prominent brow bone. Jeffrey suggests brightening up the natural shadowing by dusting on a beige or warm metallic hue on the lid (think peach!) and highlighting under your arches with an illuminating crayon. Because the ends of your lashes likely graze your lids, be sure to apply waterproof mascara to prevent smudges.
MONOLID
Monolids are flat on the surface and don’t have much of a crease, if any. “The brow bone is less defined,” explains Jeffrey. Create definition and the illusion of dimension on your flat surface with a gradient of eye shadows, dark to light. “Shade the darkest color closest to the lash line, the soft neutral hue in the middle, and the shiny color at the brow bone,” says Jeffrey. Always curl lashes for a lift.
HOODED EYELIDS
Hooded eyes feature an extra layer of skin that droops over the crease, causing the lid to appear smaller. “To draw the focus upward, diffuse darker shadow over and out past the crease,” says Jeffrey. Tightline the top waterline to intensify and enlarge your eye shape, and thicken the lash base, which also can disappear under the lid fold.
PROTRUDING EYES
Protruding eyes create the appearance of projected lids in the eye socket area. Luckily, the bulge gives you plenty of lid space to play with! “To keep the lid from overpowering your look, blend darker tones all over your eye,” says Jeffrey. “Because dark tones recede space and size, smoky eyes work great with this eye shape!” Apply thick liner along your upper lash line to further diminish some of the space.
UPTURNED EYES
The upturned eye takes the form of a classic almond shape, with a natural lift at the outer corner. “The lower lid has more emphasis and looks longer than the top lid,” explains Jeffrey. To even out the upper and lower proportions, he suggests applying dark shadow or pencil along the outer lower corner to bring down the lifted effect. Whether you’re creating a standard smoky eye or a vibrant masterpiece, always use the mirror effect by swiping the colors along the bottom lash line.
DOWNTURNED EYES
Downturned eyes have a slight dropping on the outer corners. This is the perfect shape for creating a sexy cat’s eye shape. “Apply a liquid liner along the top lid and extend outward and upward at a 45 degree angle,” says Jeffrey. This effect will create symmetry and add va-va-voom!
CLOSE SET EYES
Close set eyes are less than one eyeball width apart. “Creating the illusion of more space is simply a matter of using light eye shadows in the inner corners,” says Jeffrey. Try frosty white or sparkling nude hues. “Dab extra mascara or add individual lashes to the outer corner to pull the focus outward.”
WIDE SET EYES
Wide set eyes are more than one eyeball width apart. To bring your peepers closer together, “Rim your top and bottom lash line with a black liner as close to the inner tear duct as possible,” says Jeffrey. Use a mascara comb to swipe all of your tiny lashes from mid eye to nose.
This is a great quick-look poster with a few of the many things you can do with that coconut oil you bought that’s just sitting around.
It is not appropriate for high-heat cooking, other than that, at my house we use it for everything. Oil pulling, teeth brushing, hair frizz, baking, sauteing, nail fungus, dandruff, hand moisturizer, bug bites… this stuff is amazing! I don’t know what I ever did without it! You can mix a few drops of essential oil for scented moisturizer or flavored mouth cleaner, personal preference. Enjoy!
The last time I’d found myself astride an electric bike was over four years ago, when CNET reviewed the Schwinn Tailwind in March of 2009. That bike was jerky and awkward, very heavy, and a bit of an eyesore.
Fast-forward just under half a decade to April 2013, when I find myself standing in front of the sleek, red frame of the new Specialized Turbo. Electric bike, you’ve come a long way, baby.
Design
The Specialized Turbo is a good-looking bike. Period. And I don’t just mean “good for an electric bike.”
The bike blends road/racing bike looks with commuter bike proportions. It looks fast but rides comfortably. For example, the top tube slopes downward as it sweeps back from the front of the bike, flowing smoothly into the rear triangle seat stays, but more importantly freeing up valuable crotch space and stand-over clearance when stopped and straddling the bike.
The straight handlebars are your first hint that this bike and its upright riding position is best suited for a race to the office rather than to a finish line. On this bar, you’ll find an SRAM DoubleTap thumb shifter for clicking through the Turbo’s 10-forward gears, brake levers, a cycling computer, and thumb controls for the e-assist system, which we’ll get back to in a bit.
At the front and rear ends, you’ll find lightweight 700c wheels shod in low-rolling resistance tires that have an odd, smooth finish that makes them look a bit like naked inner-tubes to my eye. The Turbo hauls itself to a stop with front and rear disc brakes and, at its most basic, gains forward propulsion from your legs spinning the cranks.
The cables for the rear derailleur and brakes are routed through the frame for a smooth appearance and snag-free operation. As are the cables for the battery pack and e-assist system. Speaking of which, where is that battery pack?
Turbo electric assist system
Take a close look at the Specialized Turbo and you’ll see that the downtube — that’s the one that angles down from the front of the bike towards the pedals — is significantly thicker than the other tubes that make up the frame. That’s because the downtube houses the 342Wh (watt-hour) battery pack.
The cylindrical battery is locked into place and can be removed from the bike with a key. You have two options for charging the battery.
The first is on-bike charging, achieved by removing a magnetic cap from the downtube and connecting a proprietary charging cable directly to the bike. This is good for times when you can bring the entire bike indoors, such as your own dwelling at night.
The second option is to remove the battery from the bike and plug the charger directly into the cylindrical pack with the same cable. This is good for times when you can’t bring the whole bike with you — for example, the bike can stay in a secure bike room at the office while the battery charges at your desk.
Both charging options take about four hours to top off a completely drained battery.
Power from the battery pack is sent to a hub motor on the rear axle that provides electric assist when it senses that you, the rider, are pedaling forward. Specialized kept repeating that the Turbo was supposed to feel like “you, only better” — the idea being that the electric assist gives the sensation of the cyclist being just a bit stronger than he or she actually is, sort of like a good tailwind or a slight downhill incline.
The rider is given the choice between four electric assist modes. In Turbo mode, the electric motor gives its full 250 watts of available assistance. Eco mode reduces that output to about 30 percent, or about 75 watts, for increased range. There’s a No-assist mode that lets your legs supply 100 percent of the forward thrust. Finally, in Re-gen mode, the electric motor applies drag to the rear wheel to help recharge the batteries. You do not want to be riding around in Re-gen mode unless you’re coasting down a long hill. Applying the rear brake automatically shifts the bike into Re-gen mode until you release the lever.
Specialized assured me that the electric system is completely waterproof and will work in subzero climates and at triple-digit temperatures. In a word, this bike should be safe. Just wear your helmet and keep your head on a swivel.
How far the electric assist will last you is a bit tricky to explain.
On the road
Explaining the Turbo’s range is a bit tricky because of that specific “electric-assist” bit of nomenclature. You see, the bike never really runs on 100 percent electric power. The rider is always supplying a portion of the forward thrust — part of that whole “you, only better” mantra. So the range you’ll get from the Turbo’s battery pack depends on a number of factors, from your leg strength to your gear selection out of the 10 available, to the amount of coasting or climbing that you encounter. Specialized tells me that you’ll get about an hour’s worth of cycling, but the number of miles that you can cover in those 60 minutes will vary.
The Turbo has an estimated full-assisted top speed of 27 mph, so let’s assume that on a perfectly flat road with no stops, you could eke 27 miles out of the battery. My testing took place on an approximately 11.7 mile loop, starting on San Francisco’s Embarcadero, taking us through a fast blast through the Marina district and over a pretty serious climb near the Golden Gate bridge. It used 62 percent of the battery, which seems to back up that range estimate.
Once the battery runs out, the Turbo reverts to being a standard leg-powered bicycle, so technically the range is limited only by your physical fitness.
Specialized has done a pretty good job of making the electric assist mostly seamless once you’re moving, but I ran into a bit of unsteady lurching when attempting to mount or dismount at traffic lights. The bike never felt dangerous, or like it was getting away from me, but the sensation took some getting used to. I’d recommend that any cyclist do their first few starts in Eco mode, familiarizing themselves with the bike before blasting off with the full Turbo.
Track stands at stop lights are difficult, but not impossible. Thanks to the electric assist, however, highly technical moves like this are more a matter of finesse than leg strength.
Once underway, the Turbo is a revelation. The way that the bike accelerates and holds speed is, frankly, unbelievable. Our demonstration group was flying past spandex-clad cyclists hunched over their road bikes without breaking a sweat, in an upright position, and in relative comfort. My personal top speed of 24.8 mph was just below the stated maximum 27 mph. Hills were a non-issue and, to a degree, so was gear selection. With the full support of the Turbo mode’s assist, pulling away from a stop in top gear was just as easy as it was in first gear. Gear selection became more of a range conservation and comfort concern than a necessity for maintaining speed.
The disc brakes slowed the bike quickly when necessary, and though I had my reservations about the smooth tires, the bike was nimble enough to carve city corners and weave through traffic with nary a slip — although I would still still be leary of the slick trolley track and embedded Muni train tracks embedded in San Francisco’s downtown streets.
More important than the outright speed was the effortlessness that the electric assistance afforded. I ride my bike to work almost every day, and almost every day I show up damp with perspiration. I was amazed to find that after an 11-plus mile ride at an average speed of just over 14 mph, I’d not even broken a sweat.
San Francisco is a town known for its hills, but the Specialized Turbo doesn’t care about hills. It allows any rider to make up for fitness deficiencies while still getting some of the fitness benefits of riding a bike — not to mention the fuel savings and sanity savings of not having to find a parking spot in a crowded urban environment. I could definitely see myself riding one of these to work and around town daily.
What’s the catch?
However, the Turbo isn’t without its drawbacks. For starters, the thing weighs 50 pounds. Specialized itself admits that this is a hefty bit of kit, but in a sizzle reel that preceded our ride, showed a guy carrying the Turbo down stairs. Call me lazy, but I would not want to shoulder this thing up or down three flights of stairs like I do with my current bike — itself no featherweight at about 22 pounds.
Fortunately, once both wheels are on the ground, the electric assist more than makes up for the heavyweight, and you won’t really feel the bike’s mass unless you go trying to bunny hop curbs.
The other issue is the price. At $5,900, this bike is an expensive purchase and is targeted at a very specific niche of bicycle commuters who can afford to spend a lot of money on a bicycle and don’t mind doing so.
Now, I know a lot of guys and gals who ride around on $200 bikes who would gasp at paying that much for a set of wheels, but I also know people who commute into work on $4,000 carbon-fiber race bicycles. So whether the Turbo is overpriced or not is highly subjective. I’m sure that there are a number of potential riders who would like to be able to ride more, who have the disposable income of the spandex set, but perhaps aren’t as physically fit or willing to shower at the office.
Here’s how I look at it. In a densely packed city like San Francisco, a bike isn’t just a bike. For many riders, a bike is also a reasonable replacement for a car. It’s not hard to put myself in those shoes, because they are my shoes. Spending $15,000-plus on a compact car that brings with it the headaches of parking and paying for fuel versus springing $6,000 for a damn fine electric bike that could get me anywhere I’m going just as fast, if not faster is not a tough choice. Living in a city like SF, I have to say I’d pick the bike.
There is no better way to complete your goals by challenging yourself, so why not? There is no better trainer than ourselves, and let’s faceit, if you don’t do it, no else will do it for you.
The best part is, you don’t need anything else but yourself to hit a whole range of lower body muscles with the following exercises.
• Your glutes with the squats and sumo squats (remember to contract your glutes when returning to stand to increase the effectiveness)
• Your quads and hamstrings with lunges and squats (to increase resistance, go low in the lunge and squat)
• Your calves with calf raises (perform with step to increase difficulty)
• Your lower abs with leg raises (slow and controlled movement)
As billed, the song is a cover of Amy Winehouse’s “Back To Black,” but flips the song in almost a chopped and screwed style. The remake kicks off 3 Stacks harmonizing and crooning before Queen Bey closes things out over the groove produced by Hollywood Holt of The Treated Crew.
It’s a radio rip, for now, so forgive all the incessant chatter over the song. Actually, the guy with the British accent is actually Mark Ronson, who was crucial in introducing Winehouse to the American audience and produced about half of her breakthrough Back To Black album. Previously, the OutKast rapper and Beyoncé worked together on the song “Party,” from her 2011 album, 4.
The Great Gatsby soundtrack, which is executive produced by Jay-Z, is in stores May 7. The Great Gatsby film is in theaters May 10. Listen to Beyoncé and André 3000’s version of “Back To Black” below.
Let us know what you think of this new version in the comments.
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“Back To Black” originally appeared on Winehouse’s 2006 album of the same name, and was co-written and produced by Ronson. Beyonce and Andre 3000 previously worked together on “Party,” from her 2011 album “4.”
Listen to Winehouse’s original version of the song below:
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