Steve Vaught of thefatmanwalking.com had the misfortune of getting sick just before his interview Wednesday on NBC’s “Today Show” and “Dateline.” You can read the gory details here on the Jan. 18 entry in his journal.

But I just watched the “Today Show” video, and he seemed calm and thoughtful while talking live from Terre Haute, Ind., to “Today” host Katie Couric. His illness wasn’t apparent.

You can watch the video here. Go to the “More Today Show Video” segment near the top of the page. It’s the seventh of 18 segments archived. (Note: Playing the video requires Internet Explorer.) The video is nearly six minutes long.

The video also contains early footage from when Vaught was over 400 pounds. He’s lost nearly 90 pounds so far. Even though he has plenty of weight left to lose, his physical improvement is apparent.

I got an e-mail from the City of Albuquerque this afternoon informing me that El Vado Motel’s new owner, Richard L. Gonzales, has appealed the Landmarks Commission’s recommendation to make El Vado a city landmark.

The appeal will be introduced Feb. 6, the same day the city council was to decide the landmark issue. A city staffer told me the appeal will “more than likely put the recommendation on hold until the appeal has been heard by the Land Use Hearing Officer.”

I’ll get a copy of the actual appeal in a few days. But at first glance, this sounds like another Hail Mary from Gonzales. Unless he’s uncovered something egregious committed by the Landmarks Commission, the appeal will be denied. I read nothing in the hearing transcript that raised a red flag.

Raleigh Bicycles is offering a Route 66 model. Check it out.

Hat tip to Scott Piotrowski at 66 Productions for letting us know about it.

The Route 66 University blog has them for you. And they’re all road-themed, so far.

Jon Knudsen of Albloggerque, a blog site based in the Nob Hill neighborhood of Albuquerque, says El Vado Motel being put up for sale for $3.25 million is “sad lesson in greed.”

It sure seems like the owner is not only asking the city to bail him out of an idea that wouldn’t fly with the community, he wants to get rich beyond what he would have made if his set of condos had been built. Sin Verguenza. Shameless.

Go read it. He gets one thing wrong, though. Richard Gonzales didn’t buy El Vado for $1.3 million. He bought it for between $660,000 to $670,000, according to two trustworthy sources in Albuquerque.

So Gonzales is not shooting for $2 million in net profit in three months, but nearly $2.6 million, give or take a few thou.

Knudsen’s sentiment still applies. Just more so.

NOTE: Knudsen’s blog has been update to reflect the more accurate selling price.