News, views, gossip, random stuff about my obsession; scooters and scootering! Vespa, Lambretta, Aprilia, Honda, Yamaha, vintage, new, whatever. We cover it. From the Managing Editor of Scoot! Magazine. www.scootquarterly.com

Monday, June 11, 2007

Rock Your Scooter Trips

When I saw Lifepop's cool audio accessory bags for iPod and other MP3 players the first thing I thought was, "Cool! Perfect for scooter picnics and events!" The next thing I thought was, "How do I get one?" That being said I think these bags would be great for weekend scooter jaunts when you want some tunes at your destination, but you don't have a built-in stereo. They have several models which are both baggage and stereos at the same time.

The Groovemaster ($75)is a messenger bag with speakers and an MP3 player interface. It runs on 4 AA batteries. The Rocksteady Gym Bag ($130) is a bit steeper but a funky retro Adidas cool and comes in some flashy colors, but the black is my favorite.


The ChillOut ($50)is a combo cooler/AM&FM radio with aux hookups. This would be perfect for strapping to a rear rack/carrier and taking to the beach or park.

The auxiliary jacks for these bags work with iPods, Zunes and even PSP systems. So go forth and rock your scoot!

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Sunday, June 10, 2007

Remembering 80s scootering scene...

Scoot! is currently working on an 80s issue. We'd like to pay tribute to the 80's (and perhaps EARLY 90s) scooter scene in the US. Things have changed in the past 2 decades, and we'd like to remember the scrubby days of 'zines, photocopied flyers, silkscreen patches, bomber jackets and ironingboard backrests.

If you were a scooterist in the "old days" we'd love to talk to you. We're looking for contributions in the following areas:

1) Photos: Show Us Your Scoots! If you bought a P200 news from the dealer, let's see your proud photos! Were you a mod with an asymmetrical haircut and a scooter with dozen mirrors and a raccoon tail aerial? Were you a scooter boy with a cut-down, a patch-coated jacket and straight-edge tattoo? Send us some of your choicest photos that exemplify the scene. We are looking to run an expanded and 80s-centric Show Us Your Scoots section.

2) Reader's Rides: Do you have a bike currently that is in an 80s style? We want bikes with those rare accessories, funky chrome or definitive 80s mod, scooterboy, skinhead or punk style. They don't have to have perfect paint, but they do have to typify the 80s style. If you've got a good collection of photos of a bike you had in the 80s (even if you don't still own it) we're interested in featuring it. The trick is, e need several photos of the bike at different angles, so you had to pretty type-A about documenting it. If you've got photos like that, we want to talk to you.

3)Rally History: There were some great, infamous rallies in the past. Were you involved in planning them? D you have memorabilia from them such as patches, shirts, flyers etc? Let's create a historical documentation of those old rallies.

4) 80s style: What made the 80s scooter scene? Was it the clothes, the custom bikes, the music, the culture? If you've got some suggestions on what we should cover, we are open to your input. Here's some suggestions to get your mental gears going:
**What accessories, treatments and styles exemplify an 80s scooter? What accessories or treatments were all the rage? Was it checkered tape, chrome, mud flaps, a certain brand of seat, a special aftermarket pipe?
**What were the fashions of the time? Name some key pieces to a scooterist's wardrobe.
**What bands courted the scooter scene? We know how a Bad Manners show could rustle up a parking lot full of scoots, but what other bands has a scooterist following?
**Who were the leading scooterists of the time? Who made the scene what it was? Who was printing 'zines, organized rallies, made parts, ran scooter shops?

Many scooterists miss the good old days, so let's put our heads together and create an issue that stirs up memories, calls attention to where we came from, and perhaps inspires a revival.

send your ideas to aprilATscootquarterly.DOTCOM or email us a brief reply to this post and we'll get back to you.

Happy Scooting!
-april

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Monday, April 02, 2007

I'm Back!

Sorry for the big hiatus. Our website was not able to be updated since February and our webmaster was on a sailing boat off the coast of Italy. Considering that I am kinda dumb when it comes to maintaining a server, I'm glad he's back and able to help.

So much has been happening that I am not sure where to start. Well, the next issue will be out in May. We're in the layout phase right now. We're featuring Scooter Art and All-Girl Scooter Clubs. We've also got some great custom scooters that embody their owners' artistic abilities. Look for reviews of the Piaggio MP3 and the Argo AR150-18. I'm pleased that we're introducing two new recurring sections: Budget Bling, which gives you the scoop on customizing your scooter inexpensively; and Josh's Tattoo Corner which will feature scooter-themed tattoos. If you've got any ideas on future columns for these sections, let me know.

Upcoming features include an article on creating more scooter parking in your town; a "Totally 80s" feature reminiscing about the scooter resurgence in the 1980s; Scooter collections: individuals with mind-blowing scooter collections that inspire envy. If you want to contribute to any of these stories, let me know.

Another cool development is that we've got a new t-shirt in the works, designed by one of our contributors to this next issue. We're hammering out the printing particulars, but let me just say that the shirt is super-cute! It's a fitting replacement for the blue ringer shirt with the scooter couple on it.

There's more to say, but I'll save that for another post. It's good to be back!

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Saturday, December 30, 2006

Blog was messed up...

It appears that many of the blog posts I posted over the past 6 weeks or so didn't make it onto my blog. Sorry! I haven't abandoned the blog, we've just had some technical errors which I think had something to go with migrating it to appear on our site. Most of my old pics disappeared. Ugh! I'll look into ironing it out over the next few weeks.

I am hard at work on the Spring 07 issue which features our Buyer's Guide. It is a TON of work, but I hope that it will all be worth it in the end. Mike will be in layout stages next week.

After all this time in front of the computer and OFF my scooter, I'm looking forward to a weekend away. Josh & I are planning a business trip one weekend in January to Miami to checkout some scooter stuff for the Summer issue. If you live in Miami, let us know maybe we can get together!

I'm also working on some pieces for upcoming issues:
Totally 80s: we're looking for people who were scooterists in the 80s who can send us photos of their old scooters, fashions and the like. With the advent of so many new scooters and scooterists, we'd like to pay hommage to the distinct style of US scootering in the 80s. If you want to contribute or have any ideas, let me know.

Scooter Art: Are you an artist that uses scooters in your art? We want to put together another scooter art issue. Contact me if you are interested or have a tip on a scooter artist. Also great opportunity for those who do custom murals and such on scooters.

Well, back to editing the Spring issue....
-april

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