Last month, Progressive Insurance published a list of collision and theft statistics for 89 metropolitan areas. Chicago surprisingly placed slightly below the national average on both charts, 64th (of 89) “most likely” for collision, and 52nd (of 89) for theft. Just don’t let your bike out of your site in Honolulu, where theft is 4.28 times more likely than the national average. Thanks for the tip, Vespaway.
Category: Rallies and Rides
Waxon7 Headlines Double Door Thursday
As any longtime 2strokebuzz reader can tell you, Waxon7 is pretty much the house band of Chicago scooter parties. Abe (the “singer”) leaves his desk at Scooterworks every night to become the Patrick Bateman of Rock and Roll, stripping it down like a Lincoln Park Trixie layered-up in JCrew for a Chicago winter. Guitarist Vee Sonnets crashed my wedding in a red velvet suit. The other guys in the band, well, I’ve never heard them speak, they’re barely human, just some vaguely hispanic mutants Abe brewed up in his crawlspace to help him spread the word. Add some barely-legal go-go dancers and a crowd full of scooterists, and any basement shithole they play is magic. Thursday night just might be their definitive show, they’re headlining the Double Door, the biggest venue they’ve ever played. Cover is $7, or $5 with this flyer, and they’re handing out W7 t-shirts to their fans. Don’t miss it.
Springtime in Chicago
Ah, the Jewel bags are stuck in trees, the melting snow is revealing fossilized dog poo, illnoise shaved his beard, it must be springtime in Chicago! And so even though the thermometer is showing a balmy 39° and we still have our annual May blizzard to look forward to, Chicago is gearing up for scooter season with several rides:
- Saturday April 8 Chicago Area Scooterist Motorcycle Ride (for scooterists w/motorcycles or 60mph+ scooters), 3-hour ride through Southwest Chicago, meet at Pontiac Grill, 1531 N Damen Ave., at noon.
- Sunday April 9 South Side ride to Top Notch Beef Burger at 2116 w 95th Street. Departs at 11:30 from Ranch de Nitro
- Saturday April 22 Scooterworks ride and open house, details to come.
- Sunday April 23 Walneck’s Motorcycle Swap Meet, Woodstock Illinois
- Saturday May 13 Stock Car Racing at Sycamore Speedway, Sycamore, IL. Racing starts at 8, ride leaves Chicago from Atomix at 6:30 PM
Amerivespa 2006 registration starts April 1
The Amerivespa 2006 site has been updated with a more-or-less final itinerary. Amerivespa is the official national Vespa Club of America rally, and will take place July 27-30 in Denver, CO. Online registration opens on Saturday. Registering online gets you more swag for your money, joining VCOA saves you $10, as well as four issues of American Scooterist and other good stuff.
Fire Stadium is Go
The Chicago Fire has announced plans for a new $70 million (seven crore for our indian readers) soccer stadium in Bridgeview, IL. Good news for 2SB, that’s about as close to Galewood as we could have hoped for, and it’s near the VFW fish fry, the Krispy Kreme, and the Trader Joe’s that we frequent. The team hopes to play there starting in 2006. Westside!
Bocanegra signs with Fulham
2sb’s favorite MLS player, defender Carlos Bocanegra, is leaving the Chicago Fire for a three-year deal with Fulham FC in the English Premier League. He’ll be greatly missed by the Fire, but it’s an awesome opportunity and we know he’ll be the greatest Cottager since George Michael.
Chicago Toys for Tots
Don’t forget that the Chicagoland Toys for Tots Motorcycle Parade is Sunday, December 7th. Groups leave in waves from 83rd and Western starting at 9:30 am, and the ride ends at the Marine Center at Foster and Troy. Scooterists usually meet somewhere before riding to the start, we’ll post a meeting place soon.