Wednesday, April 29, 2009

NPR Waxes About Ellis Island Casino


Last week, NPR ran a story as part of David Greene's 100 Days project. He drove across the US to gauge what is going on in our country during Obama's first 100 days. One of his stops was at the Ellis Island casino in Las Vegas.

Two years ago, the Las Vegas High Roller's Weekend was based there. It's no Wynn or Bellagio or whatever, but we had a comfortable, inexpensive room and the casino and restaurants were inexpensive and good quality. Perfect for cash-poor scooterists such as the Scoot! team.

This year, we stayed at the Tropicana, and old Vegas lady who has seen better days, but was still enjoyable. But the prices were more than we wanted to pay, so we went to Ellis Island for gambling and food. $10 for breakfast for 2; a $6.99 steak dinner; $1.50 microbrewed beer-- AND I won $40 on a Wheel of Fortune slot machine. Yay! The food was so great and the service exemplary that I left a $4 tip on the $10 meal, and it was still half of what I spent on my meal for one at Outback Steakhouse (don't ask!),

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

News Release: Riding into History


I received this release for an event in Florida which draws lots of scooters as well as motorcycles.
-april

PRESS RELEASE:
The 10th Annual Riding Into History Features Vetter Scooter Seminar

Riding Into History, one of America’s premier vintage motorcycle and scooter events, will return to the beautiful World Golf Village near St. Augustine, Florida on Saturday, May 16, 2009. Motorcycle Hall of Fame member Craig Vetter and Speed Channel star Dennis Gage will be the Grand Marshals.

Vetter, acclaimed designer and Motorcycle Hall of Fame member, will present seminars at 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM on Saturday. Admission will be free to these audio-visual presentations during which Vetter will take the audience through the fascinating History of American Scooters in one, and his ongoing quest for increased fuel economy in the other.

Riding Into history features Charity Rides, a Concours d’Elegance, the Biker’s Ball and the Historic Ride. All of the proceeds from Riding Into History will benefit the Buddy Check 12 breast cancer charity, which was founded by First Coast News anchor Jeannie Blaylock. Ms. Blaylock will serve as the host of the Biker’s Ball.

The event is presented by Riding Into History Inc., a non-profit organization comprised of volunteer members from several organizations, led by the BMW Motorcycle Owners of Northeast Florida (BMWNEF) and the Historic Motorcycle Society (HMS).

Between 300 and 400 antique, vintage and classic motorcycles and scooters from all over the country are expected to enter the Concours, which will feature Classic American Makes. Thousands of spectators are once again expected to enjoy the event which also includes, exhibitors, entertainment, clubs and a variety of food. Admission is still only $10 at the gate for the Concours. Various packages are available for the Biker’s Ball and the Charity Rides.

Dennis Gage will autograph DVDs of his Speed Channel hit “Trippin’ on Two Wheels. All proceeds will go to Buddy Check 12.

Internationally known motorcycle artist Don Bradley will once again provide the original artwork for the posters, which have become collectors’ items. Posters, t-shirts and other items will be available at RidingIntoHistory.org and at the event.

Sponsors include Harley-Davidson of St. Augustine, Miller BMW Motorcycles of Tallahassee, Sargent Cycle Products, Chopper City, St. John’s PowerSports and Mercedes-Benz. The media sponsors are RoadBike and American Iron magazines, as well as Cox Radio of Jacksonville. Riding Into History is an AMA sanctioned event.

The World Golf Village is located just north of St. Augustine on I-95, exit 323.
For additional information go to RidingIntoHistory.org, or email info@RidingIntoHistory.org. You can also call 904-708-9434.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Musicians Tour California Via Vespa

Press release from Piaggio USA:
JASON REEVES, BRENDAN JAMES, AND AMBER RUBARTH TO LAUNCH THE VESPA EXPERIMENT

THREE SINGER-SONGWRITERS TOUR THE CALIFORNIA COAST ON SCOOTERS TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING

April 20, 2009 — Burbank, CA — On April 30th, singer/songwriter Jason Reeves will gather his friends and fellow musicians Brendan James and Amber Rubarth and embark on The Vespa Experiment, a two-week tour of the California coastline during which they hope to raise awareness about global warming. The three artists will leave behind the concrete jungle of Los Angeles and ride Vespas up the Coast with just the basics: camping gear, musical instruments, and a vision: to inspire young people to consider their impact on their environment.

“It seems like back in the late 60s and early 70s, people turned to folk singers and songwriters for inspiration and answers to difficult questions,” Reeves says. “We were very motivated by that idea and hope to influence a new generation to become more environmentally aware as they grow up and take command of their future.”

To that end, the artists have linked up with Greenpeace, who have come on board as a partner to help deliver their message. Greenpeace volunteers will be present at events to engage attendees and urge people to take action to protect the natural beauty of the West from the devastating impacts of global warming. It is critical that Californians act now to protect the state’s beautiful forests, coastal areas and farmlands.

Attendees will take action at the concert by signing a giant postcard banner, writing letters, and making phone calls to local Representatives, urging them to be bold in their support for global warming solutions in Congress this year.

The artists chose Vespas to focus attention on the positive and immediate environmental impact of scooters as personal transportation. “If the 69% of Americans who own two or more cars would just switch one set of four wheels for two, the reduction in fuel consumption, emissions, congestion and cost would be significant – not years from now, but right now,” said Paolo Timoni, President and CEO, Piaggio Group Americas. “Even if Americans were to switch just 10% of their total mileage to scooters, they would consume 14 - 18 million gallons less fuel per day and carbon dioxide emissions could be reduced by 324 million pounds per day.”

As Reeves, James and Rubarth travel north, they will be accompanied by a photographer and film crew, who will document their journey as they perform at clubs, park amphitheaters, mountaintops, and campgrounds along their route; engaging with fans and leading discussions about the environment, and even leading songwriting sessions with community activists and kids from local schools. The footage and photographs will be edited into webisodes to be posted on each of the artists’ websites and at www.myspace.com/TheVespaExperiment enabling fans to follow the artists’ adventures as they unfold and communicate with their peers about what they are seeing.


The Vespa Experiment tour dates are as follows:


4/30 Carlsbad, CA, The Museum of Making Music**
5/1 Costa Mesa, CA, Sutra Lounge
5/2 Hermosa Beach, CA, Saint Rocke
5/3 Los Angeles, CA, Roxy
5/5 Ventura, CA, The Lodge at Zoey’s
5/7 San Luis Obispo, CA, Downtown Brew
5/10 Monterey, CA, Monterey Live
5/12 San Francisco, CA, Café Du Nord

** Jason Reeves & Brendan James only


More Performances & Special Events TBA.

For latest updates, please visit www.myspace.com/TheVespaExperiment.

Scooter Collector: Tea Towels at Sur La Table



Thanks to Renee A. for tipping me off to these cool new tea-towels sold by Sur la Table. They are 22" x 14" white cotton with an embroidered scooter lady or a funny chef. $8 each may make them a little dear to use daily in the kitchen, but they are quite cute! Great housewarming gift or a part of a wedding present for some scooterists.

Blog entry soundtrack: "Bring on the Night" by The Police

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Moving day!!!



The last time we moved I thought I would cry it was a 12+ hour day with too much heavy lifting and not enough happy times.

This move is going much better. Giggy made a wooden ramp so we could slide the boxes down the two flights of stairs instead of a fire line to carry them up as last time.

Out new office has a huge roll-up door and plenty if roomy shelves made solid by Giggy's super carpentry skills.




Here is Eddie unloading the truck on the second trip.




Here is Lucky who was the shelf monkey and lifted boxes onto the proper shelf.




Bicycle Brian taking a rest.





Jon having a beer break.

Post From My iPhone

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Saturday, April 11, 2009

LALO today in San Francisco

Today is the San Francisco Loose Association of Lambretta Owners ride. Since I don't own a lammy, I won't be riding, but I will meet up with the crew at the end of the ride. House mate Lori & my BF Jon rode up there this morning while I went to the nursery to get some tomatoes and pole beans. Yum!

Friday, April 10, 2009

Scoot! Mag offices closed 4/15-4/22

Scoot! is moving on up the the East Side...well, actually only about 5 miles away and into a space that is double what we have now. No more 2nd story space with no elevator! We're all first floor, baby! And a roll-up door!

But before we can celebrate, we have to do the moving. So, we'll be closed from 4/15 through 4/22. It takes a while to move tons of paper, ya know.

The website will still accept orders, but we won't ship them until we can find the packing tape. Our toll-free phone number will still work, but our standard phone and fax will be changed. All mail can still be sent to our P.O. Box.

For those who com to AmeriVespa, we hope you'll stop by the office to say hello!

Blog entry soundtrack: "Flowers" by the Psychedelic Furs

Thursday, April 09, 2009

Monkeys ride space scooters

Video from YouTube...Nice looking future-lammy & vespa. Animator must be a fan.

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

The Cake Eaters- indie film with scooters


Mary Stuart Masterson's film directorial debut, The Cake Eaters opened in limited release last month and is making its way around the film festival circuit. The film features a character who rides a Vespa ET, although I can't tell if it is a 50 or 150 from the trailer.

While the film is still showing in limited areas, you can order it on DVD from Netflix.

Thanks to Josh for the tip.



UPDATE 4/22: I saw this film this past weekend. Only a small amount of scooter action. An interesting indie film, but the ending was lacking.

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Amazon's new motorcycle shop...and an update

Apologies for my absence from blogging. I got back from Vegas and them promptly developed a terrible cold that involved two days of fever, lots of coughing and me laying in bed while my housemates had a party at our house. When I miss a party, you know I must be sick!

So, I'm back and ready to tackle more scootin' news. One example is Amazon.com's new Motorcycle and ATV store. Looks like the identified another place where they weren't stomping the competition. Most of the products are sold by other vendors, so let's hope that these retailers are getting the benefit of Amazon's name while still maintaining their own business. As with all Internet purchases, do your homework. I prefer to buy locally, but some local retailers just don't carry the items that I need.

Blog Entry Soundtrack: "This Town Isn't Big Enough for Both of Us" by Sparks