May
02
2008
One of the great rock anthems of my youth is The Who’s My Generation. I can’t tell you how many bands I have played in where all the songs had this message. Of course we always emphasized the most alienating lyrics like “don’t try to dig what we all say” and “hope I die before I get old”. Now that I have a few years under my belt, as well as a few pounds, I understand that some of that was the usual adolescent angst, but still find myself screaming those same familiar lyrics and living a life of paradoxical intention (look it up).
It may be old news to some, but several years ago the BBC put together a documentary on the isolation and imprisonment experienced by the elderly which included the following video of the Zimmers, featuring a 90 year old lead singer. Think about it…are you ever really too old to ROCK?
Apr
27
2008
Show Notes: I’m back from New York where I attended my second Podcamp. Like last year, it was a great opportunity to meet some of the podcasters that I have been listening to and get new ideas for keeping the show fresh. Marcel arrived on Friday night from Denver and we met up with some old NY friends. I thought it a bit prophetic, that on my first morning in NY, I walk out of the hotel and after grabbing a cup of coffee, I ran into a beautiful black Vespa LX 150 along with several other smaller scooters. It made me think about how scooters are becoming more and more common and maybe this scooter podcast has some relevance.
One of the things I have always tried to do with this blog and with the show is to get better connected with people around the world. I was amazed at Podcamp NYC how many people knew each other, but had never met. Many of these friendships were formed through social media, like twitter and it got me thinking, I have a twitter account, but never use it. I was enlightened to find out that twitter is not just posting something stupid like “hey I just picked my nose”. All these new media types were using it to share information, links, resources and things about their passions. You can now follow me on twitter.
I started riding my Vespa GTS to work. This past week, it was in the 70s and as I pulled away from the garage I thought, what a fantastic way to start the morning. Pulling on to the freeway was not such a thrill. On my way home I pulled into the gas station to top off the tank with $4.50 worth of gas. The fellow waiting just looked at me and shook his head. I could tell that he was thinking what I use to think when I pulled our SUV up to the pump, there goes 50 bucks.
I was impressed to find that April of Scoot Magazine had posted over at the Scoot blog, a note that included links to a number of stories about people turning to scooters as a result of the rising gas prices. It is a well done piece and includes links to other articles and news stories on the subject. Several week ago I go an email from a listener who was looking to get her first scooter. She asked all the right scooter information questions, trying to figure out what scooter might be right for her, but my only real advise was, take one of the motorcycle safety classes first. Make sure this is something you want to do.
Websites and bloggers
- Honky Tonk Dragon – congrats to Mr and Mrs Dragon, Ben announces that they are expecting their first child.
- Check the ScooterBBS for the calender. We are heading into prime time for scooter rallies.
Music for this show is by Matthew Ebel. I met Matthew at Pomcamp NYC this weekend. You can get his music at his website or from the Podsafe Music Network
Apr
16
2008
My sincere apology with the lapse in posting. I was so disconnected this past week while in Key West, I am still trying to catchup with everything that happened while I was gone. Although I missed getting a podcast out, I have been working on an interview I did a while back with Iggy Granger, author, scooter tester and an original English mod. Iggy has just published a book on the Scooter Lifestyle. It is a journey of discovery through the scooter scene in England. I will have the interview in this week’s show, along with more scooter information and talk about Key West. Check back shortly for more to come and thanks for hanging in there.
Apr
06
2008
SHOW NOTES: Spring continues to blossom here in Richmond and that means both warm and cold days. I feel sorry for our friends up north who by this time must be praying for spring to come. It seems like scooters are coming out of the woodwork around here and I have been able to ride several time this week without having to bundle up of worry about the weather. Despite all this, Marcel and I will be heading south this week to spend a few days in Key West Florida taking in the sun and generally lounging around. As I understand it, scooting is a way of life in Key West This is the first time I have taken a vacation in months and when we get back, I have Pod camp New York to look forward to. Unfortunately, the pod camp is the same weekend as the Dogwood Delirium here in Central Virginia. So, once again I will have to settle for hearing about all the over eating and drinking along with the usual general mayhem and embarrassing moments from other club members. If you happen to be in Central Virginia and weekend of April 25th consider joining the 7hills gang.
Most of you know that my Vespa Sprint has a new engine in it. What I haven’t talked about is how this has left me with a bunch of spare parts. I happen to be one of those people who rarely throws anything away. As I laid everything out and looked at the blown crank bearing again I notice that almost everything else was in pretty good shape. Dave the mechanic had shown me some damage on the inside of the engine case, but for the most part, everything else was OK, the clutch assembly, the cylinder head, the gear changer and a whole lot more.
It has been a long time since I have bought and sold on Ebay. For a while I was very active trading spare BMW parts, old computer components and other electronics. I think that the experience has changed a lot over the years. It use to be that buy on Ebay was like trading with your next door neighbor. Now you never know who you are dealing with and as I understand it, there are fewer auctions taking place and more fix price items than ever before. Hopefully all the Ebay scooterist will find my spares interesting and I expect the bidders will be like most of the rest of the scooter community, honest.
Scooter Blog Posts
Music for this show is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jan
09
2008
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.
Jan
03
2008
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)
Dec
05
2007
I got a nice email from Harvey in Ottawa, Canada with a picture of his Vespa, titled “Waiting for Spring”. It has been snowing lightly here in Richmond and I expect that compared to the two feet of snow that Ottawa got in November, everyone might ask, “why aren’t you out riding?” Instead of riding, I am standing at the window, remembering those not so long ago 80 degree days and looking forward to the spring too, just like Harvey’s Vespa.
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Weather for Ottawa, ON, Canada
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17°F
Mostly Cloudy
Wind: W at 12 mph |
Dec
02
2007
SHOWNOTES: I have been very busy at work, but more to the point, I have had one of those weeks where I ask myself, do these people really think I am that smart? You know what I mean, that little nagging voice that you have in the back of your head that says, “if everyone knew how really stupid I was I would be fired on the spot.” I do know that this is my own little nagging insecurities, but indulge me for a minute. After much heartache I have learned that this is a useful little quirk to have, because it keeps me honest, both with myself and with others and also has helped me from getting to far out on a limb numerous times. What the hell does this have to do with scooters? It is related to the idea of making more scooter connections so you don’t get out there and on the web it means getting into groups and forums. Most of groups I know about are through Yahoo Groups. This has got to be one of the easiest ways to communicate with like minded fans and to establish a place where people can ask questions, share information and exchange ideas. Some that I still follow are about disabilities rights, politics and other things more material like McIntosh Stereo equipment, Mini Coopers, Ducati, Harley Davidson Sprint motorcycles and of course Scooters. Some groups are large (thousands of members), but most are small to medium sized (hundreds of members).and each has what I would term its own distinct personality. In addition to the Yahoo Groups, the other place to connect is through the online forums. In my view, the forums provide an avenue to both connect with other scooterist and in most cases, get some of the best free advise in all the scooter community. Many of the scooter forums, like the Internationalist BBS, which has been around for ten years, have more resources on riding, mechanics, clubs and rallies than you are going to find if you do something like google search. And most times, the information is more current accurate and reliable. As one example, the modern Vespa forum includes a section with all the modern Vespa parts and workshop manuals, with a separate section for repairs and technical tips. Now that is a resource!
Scooter Groups and Forums
2StrokeSmoke Group
Bajaj Scooter Group
Chinese Scooter Group
Cushman Group
Genuine Buddy Group
Honda Metropolitian Scooter Forum
Honda Reflex Owners Group
Honda Silverwings Group/
Intenational Scooterist BBS Forum
Maxi-scooters Group
Modern Vespa Forum
Scooter Forum in England
Scooter Forum in Germany
Stella Scooter Group
Suzuki Burgman Group
TwistnGoScoot Group
Two Stroke Smoke (a kinder gentler group than the other)
Vespa Smallframes Group
Vespinoy Forum in the Philipines
Yamaha Vino 125 Group
Yamaha Zuma Group
Music for this show is from the Podsafe Music Network
The Clintons with Fan of the Bean
Lesismore with Sweetest Heart
The Aggrolites with Funky Fire
Nov
25
2007
SHOWNOTES: What a great week. Here in the US it is thanksgiving weekend. That means Marcel has been here in Richmond and I have had four days off from work. There has been plenty of time for hanging out, visiting friends and puttering around in the garage and I want to tell you about what I have been doing with my Vespa Sprint. Those of you who have been following my blog, know that I have been trying to become more social, not always one of my personal strengths. So I have joined Facebook and Myspace and have been shooting out invitations left and right to anyone who posts themselves with their scooter in their profile. In doing this I happen to stumble upon Christian Bauer at scooterfilm.com. He responded almost immediately by sending an email, inviting me to take a look at his latest film Scooterist, a way of life. It is an hour and a half packed full of rallies, racing, wrenching and the scooter lifestyle in England and Germany, and is just fantastic.
I am always amazed at the way people become inspired and how they build those things that they have passion for into their lives. Christian Bauer is one of those remarkable individuals who has taken his passion for scootering and turned it into art, in this case a film about scooting life in England and Germany called “Scooterists, a way of life”. He now lives and works in London, which is where I caught up with him for this interview.
Through December 10th you can get a copy of Scooterists for 20% off, just click here.
I mentioned earlier I have been working on my Vespa Sprint. This is a bike I got about ten years ago from Randall over at ScootRS. I was one of those people who took a chance with Randall very earlier on in his Vespa restoration business and I must say that for the most part I have been pleased. After watching Christian’s DVD I was inspired to pull the carb, something I have been meaning to do for a long time. It has been sticking and hasn’t been easy to set the idle. I am lucky to have ScootRichmond in my backyard and picked up a new Spaco reproduction carb to mount back on the bike. Boy what a difference. I can already feel how much more responsive it is and hopefully will be less prone to get out of whack
Music for this show is from the Podsafe Music Network
The Kind with Whats your Deal
The Gangsters with Dance til you Drop
Dan Elson with Terrifying Lee
Nov
12
2007
Imagine my surprise as I am winging it back to Richmond and in the middle of one of my favorite podcasts DB says “If you are interested in Scooting and some great music, you should totally check it out.” Quick…rewind…did he say SCTRCST? Holy crap, he did and he said he liked it!
Some of you may know that my introduction to podcast consumption came shortly after we bought a 2006 Mini Cooper-S that came with an Ipod. As I searched Itunes I thought “what about mini-coopers” and there they were, Todd, DB and Gabe, “doing what they like to do” talking about the new Mini Coopers. As I listened I asked myself, “why isn’t there something like this for scooters” and so begins the life history of SCTRCST.
Please take a moment and go over to Motoringfile and White Roof Radio and listen to these giants (although I think Todd is a little shorter that the others) of the podcasting interweb.
Thanks again guys, free pimping of the show is always appreciated.
