November 4th Links

• The Ch.11 reorganization plan was confirmed already, but it could be years before it becomes effective because "in no event shall the Plan go effective unless and until all Allowed Administrative Expense Claims are paid either in full as provided for in the Administrative Expense Claims Consent Program or, with respect to the NonSettled Administrative Expense Claims" according to the confirmation order. As I covered in a prior article, there is not currently enough cash to pay these claims nor will there be until Sears Holdings gets additional cash from "preference payment" litigation and/or litigation against Eddie Lampert/ESL and others. The judge asserted in court that there is no requirement that sufficient funds to pay administrative claims need to be available on the actual confirmation date-just on the plan's effective date-as long as there is a high level of confidence that there will be funds to pay them in the future. [Seeking Alpha]
• Music is a key aspect of a successful spin class, a motivator. Classes can be searched that way — hip-hop, '80s, classic rock — and there are sing-alongs, and an '80s ride where the instructor reads out poignant memories shared by riders for specific songs. Music is mentioned 174 times in the IPO documents. Peloton has, so far, paid $50 million in licensing fees. The National Music Publishers Association, however, sued, first for $150 million on March 19 and then, after reviewing the full catalogue of archived classes, doubling the claim of the lawsuit. There are, of course, ways around this, like asking Peloton instructors to use lesser-known music, partnering with artists who want exposure, and so on, but as anyone who has ever spun can tell you, the music is kind of the key. When you're stuck, it's "Lose Yourself" you want to hear, or "Like a Prayer," or "Sweet Child of Mine," or "Eye of the Tiger," not some deep cut off a new album from a teenager on the make. [The Cut]
• I pulled the park brake release handle on the left side of the lower dash near the driver's footwell, shoved the tall, bent shifter to the left and up, and slowly let off the clutch. I realized quickly that I could have lifted off that clutch with a lot less finesse because first gear on this truck is absurdly short. With a nearly six-to-one ratio, it is in every way a true "granny gear" that—with the 3.42 axle ratio and 33-inch-ish tires—runs the motor to its peak power RPM of 2,800 revs by about 15 MPH. While I bet that first gear is a godsend for preserving clutch life while towing, for daily driving, I found it best to start in second gear, which offers a Typical For A First Gear In A Manual Gearbox 3.28-to-one ratio. [Jalopnik]
• I also did an oil change, since oil is cheap, and I didn't want to run the engine much with the questionable 12 year-old fluid in the crankcase. Naturally, the oil filter was on tight, so I had to resort to the messy Stick Flathead Into Filter-method, since I didn't have an oil filter wrench. [Jalopnik]
• Let's just say, for example, your starter motor crapped out on you, and you don't have a replacement. Or, perhaps your battery has died. No problem, just grab your jack handle, shove it through the Chevy Bowtie-shaped hole in the bracket on the front bumper, continue sliding it through the hole in the crossmember supporting the grille, and plug it into the crankshaft nut, which has a very strange shape to it. Here's a look at a Land Cruiser FJ40 crankshaft nut that you can buy on eBay. From there, you just crank that handle and hope the thing doesn't backfire. [Jalopnik]
• They will say that nobody goes to Luger for the sole, nobody goes to Luger for the wine, nobody goes to Luger for the salad, nobody goes to Luger for the service. The list goes on, and gets harder to swallow, until you start to wonder who really needs to go to Peter Luger, and start to think the answer is nobody. [NY Times]