Category: Sightings

Scooters pop up all over the place

RIP, Reg Dunlop

Reg Dunlop on a Honda Elite A sad farewell to hockey player/coach, pool hustler, old-west outlaw, parking-meter scofflaw, philanthropist, motorsports fan and team owner, and scooterist, Paul Newman. On top of all that, he made the best damn pretzel sticks known to mankind, and I’m not being glib. He was a great actor, and a great human being.

With all his superlative accomplishments in film, “Slap Shot” might not have been his most critically acclaimed movie, but what other film is so crass, funny, and ridiculous while being so well-acted, gritty and poignant? Hard times demand comedy, do yourself a favor and watch it soon.

“Forever Vespa”

A review of Pippo Cappellano and Marina Cappabianca’s film Forever Vespa from the 13th Cathay Pacific Italian Film Festival in New Zealand. The reviewer is a Vespisti (and admittedly a bit snobby about it!) with an astute grip on the current scooter craze, he notes that it’s an independent film so well-supported by Piaggio’s archives that it sometimes appears to be a Piaggio promotional video. It’s played at a few festivals, but I can’t find a trailer or any more info… anyone?

Will Hoge writes about his scooter accident

Nashville musician Will Hoge was struck by a van on his way home from a recording session earlier this week. The officer’s description of the accident upset a lot of scooterists, and Hoges’ blog post is a beautifully-written first-person account of the confusion and pain and drama of a serious accident.

I don’t want to put words in Will’s mouth (he’s clearly much better with words than I am, even in his hospital bed), and we look forward to reading more of his perspective on the accident, which he’s promised to post, but his story drives home a point that seems obvious on the surface, but that most people forget from time to time:

A top priority in motorcycle and scooter safety (even above protective gear in my estimation) is giving your undivided attention to your surroundings. Anything can happen at any time, and it pays to be 100% aware and prepared for anything, always. I’ve posted before about how foolish it is to ride when you’re riled up after a near-accident or confrontation with a driver, but there are many other kinds of distractions, and the good (A good day at work, love, lust, or, in this case, the chance to work with Bruce Springsteen) can distract you just as much as the bad. I’ve had plenty of near-misses, most were avoided because I was carefully watching the road. Other near-misses were caused by lapses in my attention, and I was luckily saved by the other driver reacting quickly. Most accidents can be avoided if someone’s being careful, but it’s not smart to leave it up to the other guy. In most situations, it’s up to you to control your destiny, and you can never take another drivers’ actions for granted. It’s likely that Will was watching the road carefully and got creamed anyway, it happens all the time (and that’s where good protective gear sure doesn’t hurt), but he implies that he had a lot on his mind, and that the collision was a total surprise.

Get well fast, Will, The Boss will still be around when you’re ready. Our wishes are with you.

“Hamara Bajaj” commercial

I was just Googlestalking someone (more about that link in a minute) and found the famous “Hamara Bajaj” commercial in her YouTube favorites. I’ve always heard how great this commercial is, but never seen it until now. Assuming the swastika at :28 holds a different meaning in Indian culture than it does in Western culture (I’m pretty sure it does), it is a very touching tribute. Now MAKE SOME, Bajaj! I stand by my assertion that Bajaj will unveil the perfect scooter exactly one month after the worldwide scooter boom comes to an end.

Australian Yamaha scooter TV ad

Via Steve, a nicely-done Australian Yamaha TV commercial showing the economical aspects of their scooters. Genuine and even PiaggioUSA are working on pretty limited budgets, but you have to wonder why Yamaha and Honda, who actually do run national spots on cable TV, haven’t done anything like this here in the U.S. yet. If it wasn’t for the Australian coins shown at the end (and if they added a few models to their lineup), they could even run this one.

Pininfarina CEO killed in Vespa accident

Andrea Pininfarina, the 51-year-old CEO of Italian car design company Pininfarina, died this morning when his Vespa collided with a car near Turin. Pininfarina was the grandson of legendary car designer Battista “Pinin” Farina. The company was famous for their designs for Ferrari and many other carmakers.

Thanks for the links, AxeYrCat and Ericalm

“Yo, Martha!”

Martha meeds DiddyAn excerpt from a Martha Stewart book:

Another entrepreneur whose intensity, curiosity, research, and devotion to quality impress me is a gentleman who first flagged me down on an East Hampton back road several years ago. I had decided to go for a ride on my turquoise Velocifero scooter and was zipping along when I heard a shout “Yo, Martha!” Across the street on his own turquoise scooter was Sean “Diddy” Combs, the rap star who used to be called Puff Daddy and then P. Diddy.

Thanks for the photo, Dawson.

Lambretta Pato commercial

A TV commercial for the European-market “Lambretta” Pato (aka the Lance Milan, ZNen ZN151T-F, Flyscooter LaVie, etc.), not to be confused with the Lambretta International Uno and Due sold in the U.S., or an actual Lambretta. The only thing sadder than a Chinese Lambretta is putting end credits on a commercial on YouTube. (Via motoblog.it.)