What Petroleum Problem?

High gas prices are a devastating burden for America’s poor but it’s probably the only way to force America to start making wise choices about fuel consumption. How else are we going to start investing in public transportation and get people to stop buying 10 cylinder trucks? Europeans have been dealing with high gas prices for decades and as a result their car industry specializes in small, super-efficient cars and their urban design and public transportation models also reflect the need to conserve fuel.

If a bicycle isn’t already a part of your personal transportation model it probably should be. If you live in an area where riding a bike isn’t practical you should probably ask why.

Copa del Rey: UE Llagostera vs Valencia CF @ 20:00

Valencia will begin the Copa del Rey competition this season against UE Llagostera. Unió Esportiva Llagostera is a Spanish football team based in Llagostera, Girona, in the autonomous community of Catalonia. Founded in 1947, it plays in Segunda División B – Group 3, holding home games at Estadi Municipal de Llagostera, with a capacity for 1,500 spectators.

 

May the best team win!

David Ferrer gana en Valencia

 
  David Ferrer sumó un nuevo titulo en el Open Valencia 500 tras vencer al Aleksandr Dolgoporov y sucede a Marcel Granollers como campeón en la capital levantina. El tenista valenciano suma su sexto título de la temporada, una marca solo igulada este año por Roger Federer y cierra la temporada de manera excepcional. Para mas información haga click aqui.

Spain Tourism: Extremadura

Everything You Need to Know About Valencia

Here are a few links to find out anything you need to know about Valencia:

Wiki Travel Valencia

Tourist Online Tourist Office

Official Tourism Site of the Land of Valencia

Valencia City Guide

Valenbisi Bike Rental

IX Duatlon de Cheste 2012

   El dia 3 de noviembre se disputará la novena edición del Duatlón Circuito de Cheste 2012, una carrera en la que el trazado de velocidad valenciano acogerá una vez más a 500 duatletas que contarán con sus piernas como unico motor para completar las distintas distancias en las que se dividirá la prueba.

  La jornada arrancará a las 9 de la mañana con la disputa de la categoria absoluta , la prueba Sprint, en la que los participantes deberán completar 5 km de carrera a pié para acto seguido, montarse en sus bicicletas y completar 5 vueltas al trazado de velocidad, unos 20 km, para a continuación, volver a calzarse las zapatillas de running y completar otros 2,5 km corriendo alrededor del circuito. Una prueba de explosividad, en la que los mejores duatletas de la provincia estarán presentes pero en la que duatletas de todas las edades y niveles tienen cabida.

  A partir de las 11 de la mañana tendrá lugar la salida del Duatlón escolar, en categoria prebenjamin, benjamin y Alevin. Y a partir de las 12:30 correrán los infantiles, cadetes y los adultos que estén inscritos en la categoria Flash (2 km running – 10 km ciclismo – 1 km running).

  Un espectáculo distinto en el circuito de velocidad en el que todo el mundo puede participar.   Para mas información http://www.duatloncircuitvalencia.com/

Levante U.D. vs Twente @ 19:00

FC Twente will be bidding for a first win in UEFA Europa League Group L when they head to Spain to face a Levante UD side whose home record in European competition is unblemished.

Twente are yet to celebrate a Group L win ©Getty Images

Standings

Group L

	P	Pts
Hannover	2	4
Levante	2	3
Twente	2	2
Helsingborg	2	1

 

Levante UD have a flawless home record in UEFA competition to defend as FC Twente return to Spain looking to record a first victory in UEFA Europa League Group L.

Previous meetings
• The sides are meeting for the first time, and this is European greenhorns Levante's first game against a Dutch club.
• Twente's seven games against Spanish teams have ended W3 D0 L4 (W3 D0 L1 in Enschede – W0 D0 L3 in Spain). On their last visit to Spain they came up against Levante's regional rivals Villarreal CF, losing 5-1 in the 2010/11 UEFA Europa League quarter-finals.
• Twente coach Steve McClaren also lost at Villarreal, 2-0 as coach of Middlesbrough FC in the 2004/05 UEFA Cup group stage.

Match background
• Levante suffered their first European defeat on matchday two, going down 2-1 at Hannover 96. Up until then, they were the only side in this season's UEFA club competitions who had never lost a game on the continental stage.
• Levante have won both of their previous European home games by a 1-0 scoreline. They have scored at least once in all four of their UEFA Europa League games and have yet to concede at home in Europe.
• Twente have drawn both of their opening Group L games 2-2. Their away form has been erratic this season – they have won one, drawn one and lost one on their last three trips, but they have not lost in 12 European home games (W9 D3) since their last visit from a Spanish team, with Villarreal winning 3-1 in the 2010/11 quarter-finals.

Team facts
• Rosenborg BK and Twente are the only sides to have made it all the way from the first qualifying round to the group stage.
• Levante's Greek striker Fanis Gekas could meet up with two former team-mates: he played alongside Twente's Russian forward Dmitri Bulykin at Bayer 04 Leverkusen (2007–08), and with defender Rasmus Bengtsson during a loan spell at Hertha BSC Berlin in 2009/10.
• Twente left-back Edson Braafheid and Levante right-back Christian Lell were also colleagues at FC Bayern München (2009–10).
• Levante midfielder Nabil El Zhar and Twente goalkeeper Nikolay Mihaylov were both on the books at Liverpool FC at the start of the 2007/08 campaign. While El Zhar made 21 first team appearances for the English club, Bulgarian Mihaylov never featured for the Reds, earning a permanent move to Twente in February 2010 following a two-and-a-half-year loan spell.
• This is Levante coach Juan Ignacio Martínez's first campaign in UEFA club competition. As a central midfielder, he never rose higher than the third tier in Spain, and coached in youth and women's football, working his way up the senior men's leagues to take charge of Levante in June 2011. He is often known by his initials, JIM, in Spain.


UPDATE! Levante 3-0 Twente



Smiles abounded as the Levante UD players mingled with journalists in the mixed zone following their victory over FC Twente; none were broader than Pedro Ríos's. "I always want to score goals," he said after registering twice in the 3-0 UEFA Europa League win. Team-mate Míchel, scorer of the opening penalty, gave the hosts ten out of ten before dedicating the Group L success to the Spanish team's sodden supporters.

Pedro Ríos, Levante winger
The result doesn't reflect how difficult the game was. We did very well in the first half, though they were also trying to create chances. We were well-drilled tactically and in the second half, when Twente tried a more direct game, we did not waiver. We remained patient.
I'm happy with my two goals – I always want to score goals. In recent games I have had chances but not converted. We want to make our stadium a fortress. With our fans behind us we can't lose. Once again our fans showed they were with us. They knew it was a very difficult game.
Anything can still happen in the last three games. Our priority is the Liga, but we will continue to give our all in the UEFA Europa League. In this team everything is always very clear. The key to beating Twente was taking our chances.

Míchel, Levante midfielder
Beating a team like Twente 3-0, a very strong team in Europe, is impressive. We managed to impose our style and everything went very well. I give the team and our fans ten out of ten. Right now we are in a good position and we will try to qualify for the next round. I dedicate this victory to the supporters. The rain was really strong and when you look at them with umbrellas you feel proud of them. This victory is for them.
It's very important that we are stronger in our own stadium and our opponents know it. The key is concentration, avoiding mistakes and remaining patient. They have had more possession and we've been very good defensively and overcame them using counterattacks. We need to get points away, but nobody is going to give them up easily.

Roberto Rosales, Twente defender
It was a tough game, and [in a fortnight when the sides meet again] in our stadium we have to become strong and pull this off. Keylor Navas's save to deny Roberto Rosales was our best chance in the second half and we ought to have got on the scoreboard, but these things happen in matches like that. Now we have to move on and think about the next game.
Now the group is a bit complicated, but we have to move on. Levante are great opponents, very strong at home and with some terrific players.

Nacer Chadli, Twente forward
We did not get a good result tonight. Levante created more chances than us and deserve their win. If we had scored in the first half it would have been better; it did not happen, so after Levante scored we were not able to overcome them.

FORD Valencia

El posible cierre de fábricas de Ford acerca el Mondeo a Valencia (Almussafes). La multinacional paraliza la inversión en una planta belga y en otra inglesa, lo que le obligará a reasignar sus modelos más grandes.

Ford ha paralizado las inversiones previstas para este verano en la factoría belga de Genk donde se fabrica el Mondeo, el S-Max y el Galaxy. También sobrevuela la posibilidad de cierre en la planta inglesa de Southampton, donde se fabrica la Transit (furgoneta grande). Pese a estos recortes, las mejoras previstas en la factoría de Almussafes, necesarias para el lanzamiento del Kuga y la Transit Connect, siguen su hoja de ruta sin modificación alguna.

leer todo el articulo aquí: http://www.lasprovincias.es/20120726/economia/ford-almusafes-mondeo-fabricar-201207261122.html

BATE Borisov vs. Valencia CF @ 20:45

FC BATE Borisov is a Belarusian football team playing in the city of Borisov. They compete in the Belarusian Premier League and are the reigning champions. BATE are the only Belarusian team to have qualified for the group stage of the UEFA Champions League (2008–09, 2011–12 and 2012–13) and for the group stage of the UEFA Europa League (2009–10 and 2010–11). Their home stadium is the Borisov City Stadium and the Dynamo Minsk Stadium (for European matches).

Update: Bate 0-3 Valencia CF

A hat-trick from Roberto Soldado fired Valencia CF to their second UEFA Champions League victory of the season and brought about an emphatic end to FC BATE Borisov's perfect Group F record.

Soldado put the visitors ahead from the spot on the cusp of half-time and, moments after the hosts had been denied an equaliser, doubled the Liga side's lead with a 55th-minute volley. He completed his second treble in Europe's premier club competition midway through the half as BATE, victors against FC Bayern München on matchday two, were brought crashing back down to earth.

Mushroom Season in Spain

Eating seasonally has a different meaning when tradition dictates your dietary calendar. In Spain, fall and spring mean lots of wild mushroom eating. The people of Valencia aren’t quite as crazy about mushrooms as they are in Catalonia but we come a close second. We’ve had a couple of good rains this fall and the markets are bursting with the colors of wild mushrooms.

Setas al Ajillo (Garlic Mushrooms)

Ingredients - for 4 people

• 400 gr mushrooms - thickly sliced if large
• 4 cloves garlic - peeled and sliced
• 1 red hot chili pepper - chopped (optional)
• 1 tablespoon freshly-chopped parsley
• Olive oil
• Salt and black pepper

To Make:

• Slice two of the garlic cloves.
• Heat a little oil in a pan.
• Cook garlic cloves along with chopped chili.
• Cook on medium heat for a couple minutes, mix in mushrooms and sauté.
• Crush remaining garlic cloves with a little salt.
• Mix in parsley, plus sufficient oil to form a paste.
• Stir the mixture in with the mushrooms.
• Cook a further 2-3 minutes.
• Sprinkle with black pepper and serve.

And this recipe from my favorite program in Catalan, Caçadors de Bolets:

Terrifying Video

Valencia CF vs Athletic Club Bilbao @ 20:00

All four Spanish clubs playing in the Champions League will be playing today as they have games on either Tuesday or Wednesday of this week. Valencia stands at 14th in La Liga with 8 points, the same as Bilbao and both teams are already 11 points behind league leaders FC Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid.

                     From Valencia CF:

Saturday night was a happy night for Valencia CF fans, one that will live long in the memory as the team defeated Athletic Club in a gutsy performance. The team was able to overcome adversity, battling back to answer Aritz Aduriz’s brace with three goals: Soldado put away the first equaliser from the spot, followed by Tino Costa with the second, then Nelson Valdez taking the winner. The fans went crazy on a great night for the team, which also saw a return from injury for Éver Banega.

 

The game was exciting from the start. Amorebieta had a big chance to put Athletic ahead at Mestalla, but on the next move it was VCF who almost took the lead. Juan Bernat started the play, followed by Jonas placing a perfect pass for Soldado, who hit the post with the goalkeeper beaten. Bernat, Viera, Gago and Víctor Ruiz all put Iraizoz to the test in a flood of offence. So, of course, it was a cruel twist of fate when former VCF player Aritz Aduriz put Athletic in front against the run of play.

 

Tino Costa wanted to score, and Iraizoz had to make a save to prevent it from a great shot from the midfielder. Finally, in the 26th minute things were levelled out, as Viera went into the box and referee Undiano Mallenco called handball against Ekiza. Soldado made it 1-1 from the penalty spot after he sent the goalkeeper the wrong way. Unfortunately, Aduriz was to score again before the break.

 

On the restart, VCF again looked to turn things around. Soldado only just missed getting on the end of a Barragán cross, then Bernat blasted a shot that was stopped on the line by Iraola. Iraizoz was by far the more active of the two goalkeepers, and VCF went a man up after Ander Herrera was shown a straight red.

In search of goals, Pellegrino’s men went all out and took it right to the limit. The strikes came in the 88 ^th and 90 ^th minute, thanks to Tino Costa firing a clearance back in with his right foot (through the legs of San José) and a stellar finale: Valdez hit a great header in the last moment to make it 3-2 and end a fantastic game for Valencianistas.