Vespaway

It's Not a Moped!!

One of my pet peeves is that sometimes people call scooters mo-peds. But scooters are not mo-peds and mo-peds are not scooters. You see, a m-oped is a pedal assisted vehicle aka a motorized bike. Hence the term mo-ped, motorized pedal. If you saw the movie Spiderman 2 you would have seen Peter Parker riding one of them (as pictured, left). So when I come across an article by a Wisconsin paper (The Sheboygan Press) which talks about scooters, but calls them mo-peds it makes my blood boil. They clearly SHOW a picture of a SCOOTER in the article, and it is obvious they are talking about SCOOTERS, but they continue to use the term mo-ped. They obviously do a disservice to their readers. They also fail to mention the wide array of scooters that do exists, because they are stuck in a mo-ped mentality. I can’t even bear to quote the article, read it at your own peril here.

Gentlemen, Start Your Engines

The 28th of July 2005 marks the kickoff of Mile High Mayhem #8. Denver, Colorado is not the very center of the United States even if you count Alaska and Hawaii as the Western edges. Nearby Erie is, however, the epicenter of Stateside scooter racing, the midpoint meeting point showdown grounds between the dominant American Scooter Racing Association out of California, and the up-and-coming Eastern States Racing Association.  Mile High Mayhem has been on the rise among our top scooter rallies, indeed for its convenient location, but mainly for its thoughtful organization. Now it's not only a weekend for cruising the Colorado countryside, but a time for testing those ten-inches out on the track. In 2004 the weekend began on Wednesday with the inaugural Scooter Racing Nationals. 2005 sees it the other way around, with the races taking place after the party, on Monday, August 1st.  Maybe this way an idle visitor or two will have a go during Sunday's practice session, decide to enter officially the next day, and call in sick or something. Maybe it's not too late for you to change your travel plans either. I encourage you to try it!  Vespaway Trivia  Guess who that is getting a good look at the speedometer...

Station To Station

In case, for no reason, your RSS feed for updates on Space Shuttle Discovery is being fed by Vespaway and not NASA,  it is up to me to let you know we have achieved liftoff and are on our way to the International Space Station. It says in the status report,

Today the Space Station crew, Commander Sergei Krikalev and Flight Engineer and NASA Science Officer John Phillips will prepare the complex for Discovery’s arrival.

Are they going to bake a flourless cake and hang zero-grav streamers? They should. That's some exciting video in the right-nav there.

Toronto Sun Discovers Vespas, So Excited Writes Two Article in One Day!

Oh you marketing gnomes, I know you are working overtime in Toronto this week. First the Toronto Sun takes us on a historical tour of the Vespa, in "Vespas Then and Now", and then it delves into the style and technical details of the new Vespa LX in the article "The Wheels of Romance, Vespa Goes Back to the Future". Gnomes aside, the first article is a fine summary of the history of the Vespa, and if you do not know the story then it is worth the read. The second article is a great summary of all that the new LX has to offer, which makes it a great read as well if you are not already up on the new model.

London residents continue to turn toward scooters

I came across two more articles about Londoners making the switch to scooters as well as other alternative means of transportation. I have had more than a few people here in New York ask me about scoots as well now that random searches have been instituted on NYC subways and the PATH (from NJ).

From the first article: Londoners are taking to bikes and scooters in increasing numbers after a second wave of terror attacks, choosing to brave traffic in the capital instead of riding Underground trains and buses.

And this from the second article: People are saying, 'I've had enough of this. I don't want to go on the tube again,' " said Alex Melville, manager of Metropolis Motorcycles in central London. He said he's sold 49 Vespas and motorcycles this month, double what he'd expect for all of July.

Alone And Blue

The sky was a grey-blue too. My phone camera didn't quite capture the deep bluestone hue of this P200 parked near San Francisco's City Hall the other day. It almost matches the beaux arts dome, which used to be covered in copper oxidized green, but since the post-Loma Prieta restoration is something more like slate. It was a bright moment for my sleepy soul, though, on the way home from yoga, lying on the sidewalk (the clean curb of a long row of motorcycle parking -- thanks, City Hall!) in my grey poplin suit, trying to get the shot.

Ride To Work

My favorite radio station is a black-owned radio station and they're never sorry when little February ends so quickly because, "at 89.5 KPOO, every month is Black History Month."  This is not to say Black History Month is a bad idea. It's more of a random segue, based on what was coming through my speakers and my inbox at the same time. I heard the old saw quoted above from my favorite DJ at the same time as I was opening these photos of Ride To Work Day. Thirty or more New Yorkers took time out of their New York lifestyle to voice their praises of the 2-wheel lifestyle.  That's time they earned by not being stuck in a truck.  Click to enlarge the one on the steps of City Hall to see the rope put up to demonstrate the contrasting measurements of a typical congestive, non-efficient SUV. The fight is on for fair parking rights. Go New York! My other favorite radio stations are WKCR and WFMU. Later on, I'll tell you my top eleven radio disc jockeys on the planet. Meanwhile...

at Vespaway, every day is ride to work day!

Bendable Electronic Paper

Someone who cares about me sent me this news as soon as it came out last week. Since then, I've been trying to think of possible applications for Fujitsu's new programmable paper, other than commercial signage. Will it be the ultimate recyclable Daily News or what? Can I get a suit made out of it? At the very least,

...electronic paper can be conveniently used in conjunction with mobile devices as an easy-to-read and portable display device.

Here again is the the link for the full story on Overclockers. Here on our site, we seem to be establishing a subsection for cool mobile technology. We'll keep you posted.

Idaho Notices Scooter as Gas Prices Rise

From this Idaho Falls article:

If you still feel the need to get around without having to pedal your way around, you can hop on a scooter. These things don't go too fast, but they get great gas mileage.

"They get 80 miles to the gallon, almost religiously," says Rob Turnblom, salesman at Bott Yamaha.

Turnblom rides his own scooter and he says getting around on it is very easy.

"They're fun, easy, and ride very well around a city setting," he says.

When it comes to the high gas prices, this is really the way to go.

"The guys at the gas station don't like it because you only use a buck," Turnblom says.

Mail Call

I appreciate the direct emails I have gotten from many who read the website. Please feel free to continue to email, I will answer all to the best of my ability. Here are two highlights:

Liz P from ReadingPA writes: I purchased my first ever scooter three years ago, a TNG Milano 125cc.  Having had NO experience whatsoever, I had no basis of comparison.  I was a child of the '60s and coveted a Honda 90 in the worst way.  My dad said no.  Now no one tells me no anymore, so I bought this scooter and fell in love….I have decided to sell it and buy a Vespa GT. I've joined the Vespa club and look forward to becoming an official Vesparado.  I am leaning towards the GT, but might consider an ET4.  Any suggestions? I have put about 2500 miles on my scooter in 2 1/2 years.

My response to Liz: GT or ET4? Well, realistically if you don’t have to buy right this moment, then I would add the LX150 into that equation. The LX150 replaces the ET4, it’s the same engine size but it has some updates. The GT is bigger, more powerful but also more comfortable. If you are going to do any highway driving (as I have) then the GT is definitely the way to go. For example I will be switching to a GT this year as I have put over 7000 miles on my ET in the past 2 years. So which one should you go for? Well it’s up to you and what your feel comfortable with as well as what your riding style is. They are all hardy enough bikes to do daily riding.

Joe C from Long Islan, NY writes: I just purchased a 2005 Vespa Grandturismo in vintage green. I am having the time of my life just commuting to work. I am an Oral Surgeon and my colleagues are fascinated by the sight of me riding it. They have nick named my Vespa a Hardly Davidson. What I want to know is how I can contact other owners , I live on Long Island,New York. Enclosed is a photo of the bike.

My response to Joe: I would suggest that you definitely join the New York Scooters Yahoo group (a definite must for anyone in the NYC area) . The yahoo group is affiliated with the famous “Sunday Ride” which has been meeting at Ave A and First Street in NYC every Sunday at 1pm for years now. You can also visit iscootny so see some of the Sunday riders. Additionally I would visit the Gotham Rally forum. This forum grew out of the yahoo group, but is associated with the yearly Gotham Scooter Rally which is a must attend for any NY scooterist and happens every year in late April.

Londoners & Mexicans Turn Away From Public Transport

Citizens of both London and Mexico City are giving up their public transportation systems for scooters. Londoners are turning to scooters for a more independent safer way to travel:

Sales of bikes and scooters have soared since last week's terrorist attacks on London. People nervous about getting back on London transport, or prevented from getting to work using their normal route have been turning to these alternative methods of transport.  Read this Guardian article.

Meanwhile Mexico City residents are turning to scooters to get away from unreliable and polluting public transportation:

Gaspar García, an accountant with the Mexican Postal Service, gave up his car to try the bus, but he is thinking about another alternative: a motor scooter. "I'm going to buy my Vespa," he said. "Most of my colleagues already have one." Read this NY Times article.

Close Encounters Of The Third Kind

This qualifies as the third in what is sure to be a long series of scooter sightings, even though it does not qualify as a Vespa. The Ducati Brio was manufactured during the 196o's but it proved to be no competition for Piaggio's products. The relic in the picture was parked near Moscone Center the other day. Are we seeing a new way to attract attention at a trade convention?

Note to the owner: Speaking of conventions, if you are the same fellow who was at Scooter Rage 18, you may be pleased to know that, because of you, the trophy category for Best Oddity was restored to the custom show at Scooter Rage 19. Why not try again next year? The bike has only been waiting four decades for some recognition.

Marvel Eleven

At the big Comic Book Convention in San Diego today, Marvel is announcing a big new xbox deal.    I'll take this opportunity to tell you my favorite Marvel superheroes, in order of my meeting them.

    1. The Hulk  2. The Vision  3. Dr. Strange  4. Capt. America  5. Luke Cage  6. Shang Chi  7. Silver Surfer  8.  Two-Gun Kid  9. Spider Man  10. Daredevil 11. Capt. Marvel

Coming soon:

- my Eleven Best Video Games, elsewhere at this Web site.

- ARANA #8, at a newsstand near you.

Scratch That

I did some minor whooping and hollering previously about the upcoming Space Shuttle Discovery launch. This is just a note to say it is still upcoming.  That horse has been scratched for now. No matter -- it's not like it's racing against anyone else. It's just a little problem with the fuel sensor reading full when it should read empty. You can go the Washington Post for the full story.

A Sad Day for a Fine Boston Scooter Club

The Boston Stranglers, a great scooter club in a great city, recently lost a member very unexpectedly and are asking for support. Billy Toth passed away on July 11th of unknown causes. The club writes:

Billy was a good friend, and in the short time that he spent with us, he left a huge impression. He will be missed by a loyal group of friends and his girlfriend, Erin. As Billy had recently begun a new career, he had little money saved. We are working with Billy's family to raise money for a proper funeral. Over the next few days, we ask for the scooter community's help by donating money towards these expenses. We have set up a Paypal account for scooterists who are able to make donations. Donations will be kept confidential, and will be greatly appreciated.

The need is immediate, so please go to this link to make a donation.

Thar She Blows

The top item on the agenda for that ICANN get-together in Luxemborg last weekend was Monday's yes-vote on .mobi --the new mobile-device-specific Internet domain name extension. On Geek.com Christopher Anderson points out,

As anyone who has surfed on a mobile phone knows, everything looks good while you follow the cell-specific links from your cellphone. As soon as you try to go somewhere normal on the 'Net, it blows up.

Whether the domain will be universally adopted on schedule next summer, or the rapid advances in mobile technology defeat its purpose remains to be seen.

Scooters, Blogs & the London Bombing

Here are a few interesting things about both scooters as well as blogs connected to the recent London bombings:

On blogs: Read the BBC article on the blogs that have written about the bombing, and their very interesting take on things, for example, one of my favorites:

"They did their worst, and they managed to disrupt our transport network and get fatalities in the low double figures. That happens on a fairly regular basis anyway, you twits. What's your next trick - a fiendish weather control device which makes it rain on a bank holiday weekend?" --Barry Sarll

On scooters: Check out my orginal comments here wondering aloud whether the scooter came in handy in London, and talking about my personal experience with 9/11 being a catalyst for me to get a scooter. I then linked to this Motorcycle News Article which was looking for the following:

MCN would like to hear from anybody who found themselves and their motorcycle or scooter being brought into the emergency plan to help with the emergency procedure. Please contact Tom Rayner at MCN's Newsdesk by email on tom.rayner@emap.com

Finally, on scooters: Read this Times Online article entitled "After the attacks, Londoners embraced my scooter shuttle". Here is a quote:

For almost 10 years a trusty Vespa has allowed me to avoid the sweaty, dusty and unreliable Northern Line. In fact, I was reminded yesterday that it was an almost deliberate decision after the IRA attacks of the late 1980s and early 1990s which led me to get a scooter to regain a measure of control over my movement around London.

* Thanx to Crystal Waters for forwarding the London Times article to Vespaway. I think we will be hearing much more from her soon!

Another Candian News Story, Worth a Read Especially for New Scooterists

I know I have been posting a lot of Canadian stories after saying that I usually only post about US scooter things. In order to dispel rumors: I am not Canadian, lets get that out of the way. Not that there is anything wrong with that. A person's national preferences are their own private matter and should be treated as such. It's just that all of my clever 'bots that search the internet news sites keep pulling up these interesting stories from Canada. And this story is no exception:

Can a devoted automobile enthusiast trade his four wheels for two this summer? The second in a continuing series.

I say bravo to the National Post for doing something more than a fluff piece on scootering. I mean, it’s great to read a few stories on “hey people are finally noticing scooters/aren’t they neat”, but to actually write about the daily life of a scooterist is fantastic. This gives newcomers an idea of what to expect. I do have a few issues with the way the author goes about making the switchover.

#1: He did not take a Motorcycle Safety Foundation course or any other similar safety course before riding. This is a BAD thing. Also he did not have to take a road test in Canada which is rather disturbing. I am pretty sure that in all 50 states you need to take a road test before getting your license, and the BEST way to pass that road test AND become a better driver is to take the MSF course.

#2: He is riding a clutch bike as opposed to a twist & go. I am not sure the age of the bike either, as this story did not list make/model. My advice to all new riders is to get the twist & go, they are easier to ride, and smoother for a new rider, plus almost all new bikes are T&G now. The difference: when you get on a T&G, you simply use a throttle for acceleration, and brakes to stop. With the clutch bikes you are using a throttle, clutch, shifting up and down, and using brakes. This can be daunting for a new user. Also, new T&Gs are reliable, whereas older “classic” bikes (which often look wonderful & I greatly admire) are NOT good bikes to make a daily commute with, as they tend not to be reliable.

#3: (Not a complaint) Kudos for writing about parking being an issue. It is an issue, and cities need to accommodate scooters. I firmly believe that we will change the landscape of the American cities in the next 5 years. The cities need to take notice and begin to accommodate. For instance, where I live it is mandatory to have a parking sticker in a window to park on the street. What do you do if you have no window? The city has not bothered to make accommodations. Also, I have encountered at least one traffic light that is activated only when a car pulls up to it, otherwise it never changes. What is a scooter rider supposed to do in that case?

Anyway, I can write a lot on this subject, having only converted to riding a Vespa ET4 2 years ago. I have put 7000 miles on my bike in that time, and have learned the ins and outs very quickly.

Read the National Post story here. Congrats to Canada for taking such notice of scooters in the past month.

If You Ever Have Too Much Time On Your Hands...

...maybe you will consider doing this:

Creative Director Todd Coats decided that we needed to rev up one of our conference rooms – the one we use for brainstorming and internal meetings. So together we came up with the idea of filling the wall with Post-it notes in a multicolored mosaic of none other than… Elvis. Memorial Day was looming, and I had nothing better to do than spend it with the King.

Read all about it, with more pics, here. Thanks to FARK for this one.

Vancouver, CA Reviews the Vespa GT

Our friends in the North seem to be taking more and more interest in the mysterios scooter. Although they are no sure how to drive it in the snow (hint: you can't) they none the less are pleased as punch to notice them. Here is a fluff piece on the Vespa GT from The Province, a paper in Vancouver.

It seems scooters are everywhere these days, especially in downtown Vancouver and throughout the city core. The three-person team of Daniel Probert with Mark and Kevin Riley runs Vespa Vancouver and they happily offered up some clues to the apparent surge in popularity.

Click here for the full story.

Peace Nick

I can't find my friend Nick. I'm looking for a link to his new pub on the outskirts of London. I have this picture of it, MARS bar (get it?), short for "Mods and Rockers." I know Nick from Secret Society Scooter Club. He was in the San Diego Chapter and then the San Francisco chapter and then he packed up for the Old Country, and then showed up for a visit at the twenty-year reunion, where I met him, though he's not pictured here or here. Secret Society SC puts on an annual event for scooters and motorcycles together with our friends the San Francisco Motorcycle Club and we call it Mods VS. Rockers as though there were some bitter rivalry, as though we all were any more than regular people on bikes. I hear people throw similar rallies in Sydney, Austin, San Diego, New York, Toronto, and of course, Brighton. What was all the fighting about forty years ago?

What is Scooter Anyway?

In my effort to report on all things scooter, I find myself wondering what type of animal Scooter from the Muppets was. I mean, was he like some sort of bird, or something more imaginary like gonzo? Luckily for me (and you) I have found a cutting edge news article that attempts to answer these hard hitting questions.

What exactly was Scooter on "The Muppets"? This question excited a surprising amount of debate among a few people we consulted with. Some argued that Scooter was some sort of a bespeckled bird, like a rooster, others wondered if he was some sort of made-up animal (like Gonzo), and a few got him mixed up with Beaker. We turned to the Internet, and found several FAQs about The Muppets that list Scooter as a (drum roll) ...

I wont tell you the answer, why ruin it for you? Instead please feel free to read about it here.

Out In The Heat

Another new map app allows us to stay on the sunny side.

Weather Maps lets you view real time weather information on a map. This can provide some very interesting information, particularly in areas with microclimates, such as San Francisco.

Each temperature tag bubble sports a tail indicating wind direction and, like eighth- and sixteenth-notes in music, wind speed. This link is for the info page, since high traffic has recently slowed load times, but click on the Weather Maps link at the top and then enter your zip code. Note: it works best with Firefox.

Out In The Cold

I was in Maine and New Hampshire over the last few days. The weather was suitable for swimming in the North Atlantic. I'm used to seeing many different Vespas every day in San Francisco even in foul weather (see photo) so I was surprised not to find a one while I was away. I saw countless motorcycles, their riders all smiling at the sunny freedom the weekend afforded. Is it that the big bikes fly South for Winter in a way Vespas would be less inclined to? Hey, Maine! Hey, New Hampshire -- the "Live Free Or Die" State! What is the excuse for not visiting the Vespa dealer in Boston?  There is no excuse for every one of the hundreds of riders I saw going helmetless when there's a Davida dealer on a lovely stretch of Highway 1  between Belfast and Camden but, I understand, no helmet law and, yes, glorious weather. Hey, waitaminnit, there has got to be a huge untapped market for Vespas up there. It's time for someone to open a boutique in Maine, New Hampshire, or how does Vespa Vermont sound, Brattleboro?

Caveat Emptor: I am not an employee of Vespa, i.e. they do not pay me so I may be speaking out of turn in terms of timing et cetera for a new shop in New England. I do know they have a rigorous process in place for anyone interested in becoming a dealer. Maybe Mainers will have to continue relying on Boston for more than Baseball and Basketball. 

The Mad Bastard Rally: circle Lake Ontario in 24hrs on a Scooter

Normally I just post on scooter happening’s in the US, but I just could not resist writing about those crazy canucks and their 800km in 24hr rally around Lake Ontario. While I am not sure exactly what a “km” is, and I am too lazy to google for conversion, I am almost fairly sure that their “hours” are equivalent to our “hours”, and doing 800 of anything roughly equal to a mile in 24 hours is nutty, just nutty. Go Canada

This was serious business. This was a rally for scooters only, clockwise around Ontario, through Toronto and over to Kingston, across the international border and back through Rochester and Niagara Falls

More than 800 km and a strict 24-hour time limit. No wonder it was called the Mad Bastard Rally.

Click here for story

Scooter Pizza anyone?

I live in Bayonne,NJ. We have a LOT of pizzerias in this 3 mile long town. A lot of VERY GOOD pizzerias. This town is just blessed with wonderful Italian food in general. But I digress... anyway I used to tell my local favorite pizza shop owner that I would deliver pies for him on my beloved Vespa ET4. He laughed and never believed me. Well eat this mr. local pizza owner, this comes to us by way of the Winnipeg Sun:

It's a gimmick and a gas saver.

Expect to see a shiny red scooter zip up to your door when you order a piping hot pie from Doughboys Pizzeria.

It's what shop owner Charlie Mazza is calling a first for Winnipeg.

"Friends told me they saw scooters delivering pizza in Mexico. That's where I got the idea," said the two-year owner of the Pembina Highway shop. "I thought it would work here. If you don't work hard and you're not aggressive you won't make it. There's a lot of competition out there."

click her for the story

Saw Your Scooter

So, yeah, the idea is that, since there's a camera in my telephone, I can take pictures of all the scooters I see, no matter where I find myself, and post them here, with a caption such as "PX150 - warm and fuzzy on Peachtree Street, Atlanta," and you can elbow your pal whom you know parks her prize in that vicinity, then she can go online to see if her scooter is famous. Well this one I happened to capture in the wild a few feet from the front door to my apartment. It's got snakeskin upholstery and the plate cover says Vespa Scottsdale. Did someone recently move from Arizona to San Francisco? Welcome to the neighborhood.

More Discovery

This was one of those cases where the XML feed really saved me from doing all the anxious checking by myself. NASA and a few of their friends went into a meeting Wednesday morning, it got to be Thursday, Thursday afternoon and they weren't done yet. At last word came of a press release and the word was 'Go' for Space Shuttle Discovery's Return to Flight on the 13th of July. The image here is a link to a webcast of the preparation proceedings on the 10th of July. I'm sure some information about a webcast of the actual takeoff will be provided soon. The XML will tell.