July 31, 2006
Geely [Chinese] scooters on sale in Middle East
Geely scooters are available in five stroke engine models. The most popular and reliable is the Geely Falcon four stroke. With its powerful engine, this great scooter gets results straight from the crate. Many designs are displayed at the showroom; engines of 50, 100, 125 and 150 cc are available.
'Geely scooters will mainly attract the young generation with its vibrant colors and various models, they hold a great appeal due to their good reputation, practical use and low fuel consumption (1000km/20L),' said Taher Al Husseini, General Manager of Al Khayyatt Motors.
Link.
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July 30, 2006
Scooter Nation
Scoot over, road hogs. Make vroom for "motorized bicyclists," who are driven by saving money and the environment.
They're inexpensive. Great for the environment. They save big on fuel consumption. But the real reason for the recent vrooooom in scooter sales isn't so much reducing greenhouse gas:
Scooters are a gas.
Motorized bicyclists, as most scooter drivers are legally known, will never be mistaken for hog drivers. But for a growing fleet of wannabes, harnessing 50ccs of pure power is satisfying enough. And they are rapidly turning America into the Scooter Nation.
There are an estimated 10,000 scooters on Denver-area roads, a number propelled of late by $3-a-gallon gasoline. But Denver, host to two national scooter rallies this weekend, has averaged seventh of 210 U.S. metro-area markets in scooter sales for three years motoring - remarkable given the region's cold-weather months.
Cathy Reinking of Denver rides a Malaguti 50cc and has since decided, "I will never go back to having a car."
Link.
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Roman holiday on a Vespa
The question was how to best explore this Italian city. The answer came on a Vespa, and his name was Constantino.
The Vespa sped through the winding streets of Rome, high and low, on cobblestone and pavement. It squeezed between cars and competed against them for space, along with a multitude of other scooters.
A cold wind lashed my hair, bumps on the road nearly knocked me off the back. I held tightly to the rider.
"Ooh hoo!" I yelled, while tightening my grip around his waist.
"Having fun?" he asked me through the engine's noise.
"Yeeees," I replied loudly. "Thank you!"
Link.
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Pocket bikes destroyed by crusher
Sixty mini motos [pocket bikes] have been seized and consigned to the crusher in a four-week blitz on tearaway riders in Wolverhampton.
The nuisance bikes, costing hundreds of pounds each, are seized from youngsters who illegally tear around the city.
Many riders have been arrested after dozens of complaints.
At least 17 of the bikes have been taken off the streets in the west of the city, while more than 40 have been confiscated in the east.
Many of the bikes have already been crushed, while others await the same fate.
Police have pledged to continue their zero tolerance approach and warned parents not to throw their money away by buying the bikes as presents.
Link.
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Scooter sales rise as gas costs soar
As gas prices increase, so has the interest in low-mileage vehicles, area retailers say.
"There's been an awful lot of increase and more of an interest in motorcycles," said Les Wells, owner of Spokes, a motorcycle and scooter store a few miles north of Mountain Home.
Customers are looking for a vehicle that does not use much gas but can get to highway speeds, he said.
"People come in and say they need something that gets good gas mileage," he said.
Spokes started selling scooters almost since the store opened a year and a half ago but noticed the increase in interest when gas prices began going up, Wells said.
Link.
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July 26, 2006
New book -- Vespa: 1946-2006: 60 Years of the Vespa
Scooter fans will love the new '60 years of Vespa 1946-2006' book by Giorgio Sarti; it celebrates the milestone of the Italian icon with profiles of each of the 150 different models produced. Each model includes a history, technical specification, product figures, chassis numbers, pictures and factory brochures.
Here's the Amazon description:
Now a venerable icon of Italian style, the internationally known quintessential scooter - the Vespa - was once a two-wheeled revolution, offering mobility to everyone. Today it has come to symbolize scootering status, style, and freedom.
As Vespa reaches its 60s without showing a wrinkle, this book celebrates its decades of incomparable spirit. In glowing images and words, the book shows Vespa in its many guises—as the two-wheeled vehicle of the post-war economic boom; as the symbol of the forward-charging ideas of the 1960s; appearing in romantic films such as Roman Holiday; and promoted in delirious ads that claimed, “Whoever Vespas, eats apples.”
Decades of period ads and famous calendars are included, as well as technical and production information on every model ever built, including rare prototypes and variants. Each model is detailed in over 30 categories, from engine specs to production facts. Filled with stunning color photos and illustrations, the book is itself a stylish tribute to the iconic vehicle it celebrates.
Author Giorgio Sarti knows Vespa, and this book is a thorough and thoroughly enchanting tribute to the scooter as it has sped through history, meaning something new to each generation, and in the process making its unique mode of personal transport synonymous with freedom. Officially licensed and includes a foreword from Piaggio Group President Roberto Colaninno.
About the Author
Giorgio Sarti is the author of Bimota: Twenty Five Years of Excellence and The Great Book of European and American Bikes of the ’70s and the co-author of Vespa: From Italy with Love. A noted motorcycling and scootering enthusiast and journalist, his work is known internationally and he takes great pride in not owning a ca and riding 2-wheeled vehicles exclusively.
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London Bobbies teach scoot safety
A scooter rider is killed or seriously injured every day on London's roads - and scooterists make up almost half of all motorcycle casualties in the capital.
To help tackle the problem, the BikeSafe-London scheme is being extended to provide skills days for riders of smaller capacity machines.
BikeSafe, a partnership between Transport for London, the Metropolitan Police and the City of London Police, is targeted mainly at riders of larger motorcycles.
ScooterSafe will target riders of machines under 250cc, and will be tailored towards riding on city roads. It will be further customised to address the needs of riders aged under 20, and for those over 20 who may ride for different reasons.
http://www.scootersafe-london.co.uk/
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NYPD: Razor Scooters "Fairly Lethal"
The police played a 911 call made during Monday's Brooklyn barbecue shooting. The NYPD claimed that housing cop Jason Jeremiah was hit on the head with a Razor scooter, causing him to shoot the attacker and the call seemed to support that: "One guy is down because he beat the cop in the back with a bike, with a scooter, and the cop shot him...He took one of the kid's scooters and he beat the cop across the back."
Officer Jeremiah shot Robert Ramirez in the chest, and Ramirez is still at Brookdale Hospital. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that scooters have been used in other recent attacks and that it can be a "fairly lethal weapon, particularly if you start swinging it."
Link.
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Honda Jet Scooter
Ron Patrick, the guy who put a working jet engine in a 200 VW Beetle, says he's thinking about installing these smaller propulsion plants on his wife's Honda Metropolitan scooter, which would be a nice complement to the Honda jet they'll be selling.
http://www.ronpatrickstuff.com/
via Car Buyer's Notebook.
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High-tech hydrogen scooter
An Industrial Design Engineering graduate from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands has designed and built a working prototype of a scooter, which can be powered by hydrogen. Crijn Bouman, who graduated for his Master's degree with credits, designed the Fhybrid scooter for the purpose of fighting pollution in inner-cities. Industrial designer Bouman: "the look and feel of the scooter are aimed at selling the clean technology inside".
The scooter has an electric in-wheel motor that derives its power from a (Li-)ion battery. This battery (primarily when the scooter is stationary) is charged by a compact fuel-cell system, which derives its energy from hydrogen (from a tank) and oxygen (from the air). The battery moreover stores up energy when the scooter brakes. Depending on the amount of traffic, this so-called regenerating braking system reduces the hydrogen consumption by 10-20 percent. To use the energy generated during breaking optimally, the scooter is front-wheel driven.
Apart from being environmentally friendly, the Fhybrid performs better than regular petrol powered scooters during test drives. The Fhybrid has a top speed of 65 km/ph, accelerates faster than regular scooters and can travel approximately 200 km on a full tank of hydrogen. An additional feature is the parking assistant. The electric engine can be very precisely controlled when travelling at low speeds, enabling the driver to park backwards or forwards without having to push the entire scooter into place.
The Fhybrid is designed to be hydrogen-powered, but for now the prototype is powered by batteries, with the help of a fuel-cell simulator that was specially designed for this project. "A special course and various permits are required to build a hydrogen-powered engine. It wasn't possible to achieve this during the time period of my graduation project", Crijn Bouman explained. "The faculty is now trying to assemble all the necessary means to fully develop the hydrogen-powered scooter."
The Fhybrid's complete drive system and energy management system were built by Epyon, a TU Delft spin-off company, of which Bouman is one of the founders, and in partnership with the Delft Design Institute.
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July 25, 2006
Tour operator wants greater segway acceptance
A Winnipeg businessman is hoping that people zipping around on Segways will soon become a common sight in the city.
Launched to great fanfare in 2001, the Segway Human Transporter hasn't lived up to its original hype. At the time, the self-balancing scooter with two side-by-side wheels was hailed as a revolution in transportation.
Craig Harrison of Open Air Adventures is hoping to help change that. His company recently signed an agreement with The Forks to offer tours and demonstrate the Segway.
Harrison is hoping city officials will visit his operation and evaluate the units. He wants the city to come up with a policy to allow people to legally operate Segways on city sidewalks.
Link.
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Canadian Vespa distributor throws a party
Nothing is more synonymous with Italian style and sensibility than the iconic Vespa scooter.
The cool ride has been thrilling riders for six decades, prompting the Leaside-based Canadian Scooter Corp. to celebrate the brand’s anniversary on June 14.
Held at their Esandar Dr. warehouse and corporate office, the two-year-old company, which is the sole distributor of the scooters in Canada, celebrated Vespa’s 60th anniversary in style.
Link.
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New South Orange County Scoot Club in Formation
A dude named Mario MacLean has started a new scoot club in Southern Orange County, which he's calling the Beach Cities Scooter Club -- and here is the link to the Yahoo groups page where's it's virtually parked.
Mario rides this recently restored 86'Honda Elite Deluxe 150, and the following verbiage is his club's welcome massage:
Welcome! This club is for anyone in the south Orange County CA area who wants to meet-up and ride! Classic or plastic, this is an inclusive club, meaning as long as it has two wheels and is a scooter of some sort and you love it, you're in. We can chat, meet, ride, discuss technical issues, BBQ~ Whatever! We encourage the women riders especially to get rolling and sign-up so that we have a well-balanced group. We'll have regularly scheduled rides (To be announced) and lots of fun gigs!
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Brooklyn Man Wielding Metal Scooter Shot By Cops
Melee Ensues Following Loud Cookout, Officers Injured
Police shot a man after a scuffle ensued when officers asked a large group at a cookout to turn down a loud radio, authorities said. Family members of the injured man responded with anger, protesting that he had only been trying to defend his stepfather.
"They shot my son! They shot my son for nothing!" Adriel Morales, in handcuffs, cried out following the Monday evening shooting in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn.
Police said that the man was shot after he smacked an officer on the head with a metal scooter while the officers were attempting to subdue another man who was resisting arrest.
Link.
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July 24, 2006
Speeding Croat gets fined
A young Croat who posted a photograph of himself speeding on a motorbike on the Web was tracked down and fined by the police, the Jutarnji List daily reported on Tuesday.
The 28-year-old, identified only as D.M., filmed himself doing 100 mph on a backroad in northern Croatia and then put it on the Web site of his local municipality.
Police found him three days later.
Link.
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Cycle, scooter sales rise for 14th straight year
Motorcycle and scooter sales continued climbing for the first half of this year, putting two-wheelers on the road to 14 straight years of increasing popularity. Compared to the first half of 2005, among the 15 leading brands, bike sales jumped 10.9 percent through the second quarter, according to Motorcycle Industry Council statistics. Sales of on-highway motorcycles (not including scooters) rose 11 percent in the first six months of the year, and scooter sales alone are up 19.7 percent compared to the same period last year.
"It's exciting to see continued, growing interest in motorcycling across America, and that there are more and more reasons for the demand," said MIC President Tim Buche. "There has been a lot of attention paid to motorcycle and scooter sales this year because of rising fuel prices. The reality is that a long-time trend of increasing motorcycle sales, now more than a dozen years strong, just continues revving along. Sales have gone up every year since 1993. That's when the first 'Jurassic Park' was the summer blockbuster and you could buy gas for under a dollar-fifty."
"Rising fuel prices are just another reason that millions more Americans have purchased a bike, or are seriously considering one," Buche said. "With many motorcycles capable of 50 to 70 miles per gallon, and many scooters getting 60 to 80 mpg, dealerships and manufacturers are fielding a lot more inquiries about fuel economy," he said.
"But during the past 14 years, motorcycling also has found its way into the fabric of American culture," Buche continued, "with two-wheeling getting past old stereotypes and gaining acceptance and traction as a great form of transportation and recreation."
"The motorcycling demographic is widening, from baby boomers who are coming back to bikes, to Generation Y Americans into adventure sports, entire families and growing numbers of women who ride," Buche said. "Motorcycles, scooters, even gear and leather riding jackets are more fashionable than ever. We used to have to look hard to find positive motorcycle imagery in pop culture. Now you see bikes everywhere, spicing up advertisements for a wide range of major industries, in fashion layouts, in runway shows, in store windows, in art museums, in the form of toys at the local department store and with many celebrities, CEOs and folks from all walks of life."
"Another factor with the soaring sales has to do with the bikes themselves," said Ty van Hooydonk, director of product communications with Discover Today's Motorcycling.
"Motorcycles and scooters are simply better than ever, in performance, style and variety, and still very affordable," he said. "The latest Cycle World Buyer's Guide lists more than 400 models. And it's not just sportbikes and cruisers and touring bikes. There are emerging niches between these broad categories, appealing to a wider array of personal taste in bikes. There's a fun little $3,000 sportbike that gets 74 miles per gallon. There are beautiful big cruisers that cost $12,000 or less. There are many desirable bikes at these prices and beyond that Americans aspire to own and enjoy."
"Whatever the reasons for buying motorcycles and scooters, safety comes first," van Hooydonk said, stressing five key messages for all riders: 1) Get trained and licensed, 2) wear all the proper protective gear, and that includes a helmet made to Department of Transportation (DOT) standards, 3) ride unimpaired by alcohol or other drugs, 4) ride within your own skill limits and 5) be a lifelong learner by taking refresher rider courses.
Sales Background
In 2005, motorcycle and scooter sales topped the one-million level for the third straight year, high marks last seen during the 1970s. The MIC lists 1973 as the zenith for annual motorcycle sales, when Americans bought more than 1.5 million bikes. Sales for 1979 topped the one-million mark, then cooled in the 1980s and early 1990s. Motorcycling began its 13 years of increasing success back in 1993, with sales growing every year since.
1992 - 278,000 1999 - 546,000
1993 - 293,000 2000 - 710,000
1994 - 306,000 2001 - 850,000
1995 - 309,000 2002 - 936,000
1996 - 330,000 2003 - 1,001,000
1997 - 356,000 2004 - 1,063,000
1998 - 432,000 2005 - 1,116,000
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UK cops threaten to crush pocket bikes
POLICE in Ipswich have today warned youngsters who illegally ride mini-motorbikes that the bikes will be confiscated and crushed.
Martin Barnes-Smith, inspector for west Ipswich, said plain clothes officers had been on the look-out for youngsters in the Chantry area who had no tax, MOT or insurance and said two bikes had been taken away over the weekend.
He said: “This is a problem all over the country.
“Children have these bikes and they don't realise they are motor vehicles and need to be licensed, insured and taxed because they are sold a lot as toys.
Link.
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Be on alert for motorcycles, scooters
Ohioans are being reminded to look out for the safety of motorcyclists and scooter riders today as the state observes Motorcycle and Scooter Ride to Work Day.
The national event, in its 15th year, "reminds motorists to share the road safely and shows the benefits of motorcycles and scooters for transportation," said Bob Secrest, coordinator for Motorcycle Ohio, a part of the Ohio Department of Public Safety.
Safety is Joe Baylor's main concern when it comes to riding his Suzuki. The 36-year-old software engineer said he always wears jeans, helmet and a leather jacket when he rides.
According to the Motorcycle Safety Foundation — a national, not-for-profit group that promotes motorcycle safety — close-fitting jeans, leather riding pants, jackets and other abrasion-resistant materials are the best clothing options to help reduce the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Link.
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Daredevil cyclist wipes out
Motorcycle daredevil Trigger Gumm crashed Sunday while attempting a world-record motorcycle jump at a northeast Oklahoma casino.
Gumm, 38, fell far short of his attempted goal of 315 feet. Riding a 450cc Service Honda outfitted with a custom-built engine and specially designed shocks, Gumm hit a ramp at about 90 mph and launched about 70 feet in the air before he landed on the top of a dirt ramp, lost control and crashed over the handlebars.
Gumm waved to the crowd while being treated by medical personnel. He then got up and walked to a waiting ambulance, which took him to a local hospital.
Link.
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July 22, 2006
Chicago Vespa dealer files bankruptcy
A modish image and $3-a-gallon gas are pushing sales of Vespa motor scooters to record heights in U.S. cities — but not in Chicago.
With the area's only Vespa dealer in bankruptcy, the Italian manufacturer has stopped shipping new scooters here. Vespa of Chicago is selling what's left of its inventory out of a single location in Lincoln Park.
And while the dealer insists it is still open for sales and service, many Chicagoans are having better luck buying Vespas out of town, from dealerships as far away as Downstate Edwardsville.
Link.
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Vespa GTS 250 review
The Vespa GTS 250 has it all: an iconic brand, a fuel-miserly engine, and more style than a Milanese tailor.
Life as a commuter does not get any better than this. Anyone seeking stylish, economical, not to mention environmentally-friendly transport should look no further.
The hardest part of riding the new Vespa GTS 250 ie? Getting official approval to do so. Once the licence is safely tucked into your wallet, life definitely takes a turn for the easier. On the Vespa you whiz across town where once you crawled.
You can park outside your destination, and the only people that may take offence at your choice of transport are grumpy ol' Harley riders - who seem to think the entire population should wear black leather, and hang out at tat parlours and wet T-shirt contests. The Vespa's obviously way too classy for them. But, then again, it may even be too classy for me.
For this is the Porsche 911 of scooters. It has the same iconic and recognisable shape as the Vespa PX-series, and stops short of super-excessive performance while still delivering enough to qualify as a genuine sports machine.
The 911 is the only four-wheeler that can claim to have comparable enduring appeal. In design terms, the Vespa is the kauri tree of the personal mobility forest, and can trace its form heritage all the way back to 1948. That's some 15 years before the first 911 made its world debut in 1963, and nine years before the Harley Sportster first made an appearance in 1957. Where Triumph Bonnevilles have come, then gone, then come again, Vespas have endured as the tuataras of the two-wheeled world.
Link.
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Putting vroom back into Vespa
Standing in front of one of his company’s most coveted products, a curvaceous 1100cc Moto Guzzi Grizo, Piaggio chairperson Roberto Colaninno admits he has never actually ridden one. “I’m too scared; I’d kill myself in five minutes,’’ he laughs.
Colaninno took control of Piaggio in 2003 and has since transformed it from an ailing icon into a profitable company, with prospects of breaking into emerging markets such as India and China. He says he was drawn to the company, whose other classic Italian brands include Vespa Aprilia and Gilera, not because of the desirability of its products, but rather as what he matter-of-factly calls an “industrial investment’’.
The 60-year-old, who was the chief executive of Olivetti in 1999 when it launched its successful takeover of Telecom Italia, has turned the company around based on a combination of cost-cutting and the introduction of new products, such as the MP3, a three-wheeled scooter that was shown in the United Kingdom for the first time this week.
Link.
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July 21, 2006
Close-up view of golf tee aided by Segway
TNT cameramen are using a Segway scooter at the British Open in Hoylake, England, to get a close look at golf shots without annoying the players.
BBC loaned a specially designed Segway scooter to TNT on Thursday so a cameraman could ride while attached to a delicate Steadicam at the British Open, held at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club.
Link.
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Gas too pricey? Scoot
Sure, it costs a few pennies more, but Dan Bryden does not mind paying a little bit extra for premium gas these days. He is saving so much on gas, he figures, why not splurge a bit?
Of course, that has probably got something to do with the fact that the Weston resident only stops to fill up every other week or so, if that, and usually spends less than 10 bucks to fill up his tank.
In a summer when most people are cursing the price at the pump, Bryden is saving hundreds, if not thousands, by leaving his car at home, and instead buzzing around town on a motor scooter.
"You put $3 worth of gas in it and you go for 150 miles," he said yesterday. "I can fill up the tank for three bucks or fill up the tank on my car for 55 bucks."
Link.
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July 17, 2006
Veni, vidi, Vespa
Marcello Mastroianni would be proud. And not just because his countrymen at Vespa's parent company, the Pontedera, Italy-based Piaggio Group, pulled off a financial coup on July 11: A stentorian initial public offering on the Borsa Italiana thoroughly beat expectations, defying a weak market by rallying 14 percent on its first day of trading.
Like Mastroianni's sexy, swaggering cinema persona, Vespa has managed to maintain its classic image through a period of 8½-proportioned chaos and confusion.
Three short years ago, a successful IPO was the last thing on Piaggio observers' minds. Decades of mismanagement, a failed venture in China, and severe market-share incursions by much larger Asian firms like Yamaha and Honda had brought the iconic scooter maker to the brink. Then, in October, 2003, maverick Italian entrepreneur Roberto Colaninno stepped in, beginning the robust turnaround that led to the winning stock play.
Link.
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