SCTRCST Scooter Internet Radio

 

 Episode 46 [29:30m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

SHOWNOTES: You may not know that this is year to the day that I launch the Scootercast web site and posted the first podcast. It is an amazing milestone given that I always wonder if I can keep it going beyond the next few months. Much of the shows success and my persistence has to do with you the audience who have given me lots of encouragement and direction. Along with “don’t do that”, you have suggested everything from audio improvements to topics like long distance riding, purchasing a scooter, winter riding, rallies and of course music. It seems you either like the music or don’t, everyone has an opinion. So this is the point at which I must pause and thank a few supporters. First to thanks Chelsea over at ScootRichmond. Chelsea was the first person to submit to the rigor of my amateur questions along with my bumbling remote recording skills. She has continued to be a supporter of the show along with Dave Munn and all the folks at ScootRichmond. Second, thanks to Steve Williams from Scooter in the Sticks. Steve has also been on the show and has been for me and many other bloggers, a great literary and content inspiration. Over the past year I have spoke to or exchanged emails with dozens of scooter bloggers, who all point to Steve as an influencing factor in their own development. He is both a gracious individual and a talented writer.
Last week I spoke briefly about interviewing Steve, formerly full time scooper over at the The Scooter Scoop. I was lucky to track Steve down for an interview on Wednesday. He is spending most his time preparing for the International Dealer Expo in Indianapolis and working on strategies for dealer support as Diamo looks to build it’s brand and reputation back up here in the US. We talked about Italjet’s plans for the coming year and his transition from the Scooter Scoop to full time scooter pimping. And I mean that in the best way possible, Steve. So thanks again to Steve for the interview and best of luck in your new venture.

Like I was saying earlier, I have so many people to thank for fantastic first year. It’s hard to believe that the show has garnered so much interest and support. My apologies if I left anyone out. I mention your names on this week’s show, so go and listen. So here goes my effort to thank all of you and please forgive me if I leave anyone out, but I will do my best to give credit to everyone who continues to contribute and make this a success.

So here’s my thanks to you, a SCTRCST engraved Ipod Nano. Now don’t think this is some cast off first gen Nano. This is a brand new Ipod Nano with all the SCTRCST episodes pre-loaded. Look here on the site for the sign up box. Enter your email and you at in. There is only one entry per listener and at the end of February on the last show of the month I will pick a winner from all the entries. I haven’t figured it our yet, but as usual, there will be some consolation prizes.

Music for this show is from the Podsafe Music Network

• Andreas Weise with Take me Higher
• Admiral Twin with Better than Nothing at All

 

 Episode 45 [27:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

SHOWNOTES: Thanks to Ben over at Honky Tonk Dragon for his post acknowledging the mild stone, one year of podcasting and web posts. I won’t spend a lot of time this week talking about all that, but rather will save it for next week. Steve Guzman from the Scooter Scoop, sounds over the moon about his new job with Italjet. It also seems that the rush of preparing for an upcoming Indianapolis Dealer Expo next month, makes it tough to track him down for a full length interview. He has assured me that we will talk and at that point we’ll hear a whole lot more about what the LS Motorsports and Diamo. He reports that there are big plans for getting strong Diamo products out to the public and that he has been to the new warehouse to see for himself that this is not just another promise. Steve has always a wealth of information and is honest about what he considers to be good product and also things that are crap. Stay tuned.
It has been hard to keep up with all the news and emails this past week. It wouldn’t be nearly as tough if I didn’t have a job, but then again I like my job. The month of January is always a non-stop marathon for me. Here in Virginia, it the time the legislature is in session and does it’s work. You could say I am a community organizer, but what that really means is I help other people, usually the poor, the disabled, those without health care and the homeless, make themselves known to politicians and the powerful. Like most of you, I have my own escapes and one of those rejuvenating activities is scooting, but since bragging last week about our balmy weather, the weather gods have struck back with a vengeance. When ever I hear the word vengeance I can help but think of my favorite move, Pulp Fiction and Samuel L Jackson saying “and I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance” just before he kills someone.

I have done a little investigating into the problems I am having with my Vespa Sprint and will need to deliver it to Scoot Richmond for some serious repair. The kick start won’t engage and if I try to push start it, it freezes up. Of course I am not looking forward to the diagnosis, but it started me thinking about all the possible performance mods I might be able to make to it. So in the spirit of spring riding I have been careening through the on line catalogs for performance kits and dreaming of breaking the 45 mile an hour speed barrier of my little Asian girl. Yes, I did get this bike over the Internet a number of years ago, from Randal at Scootrs in Vietnam, but thats is a story for another time. (Please don’t ban me from the forums)

In an effort to dream a little spring into my life I decided to go out to the Richmond International Raceway to a motorcycle show, thinking, maybe they will have a few scooters, just for fun. The quick story is, of course there were no scoots, even at the booth that had a big vinyl sign saying Scooter Works (I wondered if that was trademark infringement). Despite some beautiful machines, most were over the top hard tail frames with ungodly amounts of horsepower stick in them. One of the most incredible ones was by Boss Hoss Cycles, a production bike the size of a large Harley with a 6 liter LS2 Corvette power plant.

I am looking forward to some under 250 cc scooting as soon as the weather warms up.

Scooter Blog Post and News

Skootin Old Skool’s post about the Stella Scooter in Seattle
Two Stroke Buzz also posts links to a dealer taking shipment of the new Stella
Highrollers Weekend rally in Vegas, another reminder it is coming up in February

Music for this show is from the Podsafe Music Network

Cadillac Woman by Freightrain Jones
Telling on Trixie with Dumb Boy
Peeper Radio with Holmes in 60 seconds
The Moots with Just Let me Know

 

 Episode 44 [29:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

SHOWNOTES: There has been a big development in the scooter blogging world. Many of you may know that one of the best scooter blogs for news and information is Steve Guzman’s The Scooter Scoop. He always puts up top quality blog posts, lots of outstanding pictures, done with a fantastic sense of humor, both about scooting and about those of us who sometimes take our selves to seriously. In a post on Thursday January 10^th, 2008 Steve announced that as if that moment he was “the official point of contact for Italjet USA” he went on to say that “LS Motorsports has brought me on board to manage all aspects of Italjet Sales and Marketing.” which is probably a good things, in that when I looked at the LS site for news, the last post was September 8, 2007. Continue Reading »

I know this is a bit of geek-related old news, but for those of you who missed it, here is the video I mentioned on SCTRCST Episode 43 with Cali Lewis from Geekbrief TV and Geoff Smith’s song “Digg the Code”. On May 1, 2007 an article appeared on Digg’s homepage that contained the encryption key for the AACS digital rights management protection of HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Then Digg, “acting on the advice of its lawyers”, removed posting submissions about the secret number from its database and banned several users for submitting it. The removals were seen by many Digg users as a capitulation to corporate interests and an assault on free speech.

 

 Episode 43 [29:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

SHOWNOTES: I guess that most of you have seen the Vespa that I use for my Podcast logo. It is a red 1967 Vespa 180ss that I got back in 1998, when I was relatively new to scooting. In late 1990 I started looking for a new scoot and the 180ss or the GS kept coming up, but as I read more I was attracted to the style of the 180, the large frame and unusual trapezoid headlight. I also found out that it was a very difficult scooter to find and was cautioned that if I did fine one it better be complete, because parts, especially side panels were hard to some by. Continue Reading »

Sorry for the delay in this week’s podcast. I haven’t been able to get back on track since the holidays, but since my liquor and drug intake has been negligible for years, I don’t have that to fall back on. Let’s just say, don’t worry, I’m all better now and have a dynamite show planned for this weekend, covering the demise of a 1990s scooter shop and how I got a hold of my restored 1967 Vespa 180ss.

In the mean time, enjoy the newly posted Youtube video which is exactly what gets me salivating about going back to Italy and visiting the Piaggio Museum (as I talked about in Episode 42)