Classic Scene-Blog Vespa & Lambretta

Anrollern Berlin 1st of May

2013-05-14T13:15:00Z

It's early. 8 in the morning. Way too early to get up on a holiday. Many had partied themselves into sleep and were keen on sleeping in. Not so the Berlin Vespisti. Their eyes are wide open with the first sunbeam. As if you push a Vespa and let the clutch go to wake up the engine. „Good morning Berlin, Good morning 1st of May!" No thought is wasted on breakfast or bathroom routine. All that matters are question like: Do I have enough oil? Will my clutch work? Are all parts securely attached? Air? Exhaust? Polish the scooter again? Yes? No? Okay, time to get up. I am one of the few guys that wait until the morning to execute the final checks. Most of my clubmates are busy fixing their rides the day before and go the the „Morlocks Scootergang Party“ to work up the right spirit for the following day. But no matter which type of person you are. At 12 o'clock all scooters are on the road and ready to go.

Various groups of scooterists are gathering all over the city to have a little breakfast. At the „CafeRacer69“, at the „Vespenshop“ or at „Heiligs Blechle“. People talk shop and exchange the latest news until the belltower unites the masses. Just like the rats of Hameln, they come from all corners of the city to the Winterfeldplatz in Berlin Schöneberg. All models and colours are getting together. So are old friends. And others become friends. The sun is shining, the birds are singing and the air carries a hint of peace. The belltower strikes 1pm.

Enough of the quiet time!!! Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines!

Within minutes the Winterfeldplatz becomes the center of emotions. Fuel is in the air. A 2 stroke concert with deep basses and gearbox violins. LET'S GO!

The community starts riding from Schöneberg across the Kudamm in Charlottenburg, directly to the nearby gas station. We continue towards Grunewald. After riding along the Havelchaussee, we arrive at the Havel, which greets us with a beautiful view and plenty of sailing boats. Next stop: Grunewaldturm. The restaurant is well prepared and awaits us with grilled saussages, Spätzle, beer and a live band. After the lunch break we continue to the Siegessäule which - befitting our status - is occupied for a while by riding around the traffic circle. From green light to green light tuners and quick-shift-fetishists are competing in strenght. After lots of smoke and noise the community slowly disintegrates and all of the riders continue with their very personal year in the traffic of the city. Always looking forward to the next 1st of May when friends, acquaintances, collectors, tinkerers and enthusiasts will be reunited to celebrate their love of Vintage Vespa and Lambretta scooters.

RIDE SAFELY AND SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!!

Here are our pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sipscootershop

Report: Jan-Hendrik Maibaum

Photos: Christian Holle

Carola "Cafe Racer 69"

Release Party for the book "Retrospective Scooters"

2013-04-25T07:27:00Z

After Niall McCart, Retrospective Scooters' owner & myself agreed to jointly self-publish a book at the beginning of the year; the journey culminated in the launch of the RETROSPECTIVE SCOOTERS book at the Cat & Mutton pub last Thursday night, April 18th, 2013.

The book documents the comings & goings of classic Vespas at the North London classic scooter dealer between June 2006 - January 2013. Every photograph featured in the book has been shot by myself on 35mm film without any 'photoshopping' or post production. Most images were shot on regular film such as Kodak Portra or Fuji Superia; while some were taken on expired Kodak Ektachrome & Fuji tungsten slide film & then cross processed, resulting in full grain images with deeply saturated colours. The photography is the main thrust of the book with limited texts & biographies (Niall McCart, myself - Paul Hart, photographer & Graphic Designer, David Hardy) in English, German & Italian.

The book launch on 18th April organised by Bradley Hall of the New Originals Scooter Club, began at 7.30pm at the Cat & Mutton pub; a cosy little place which sits at the end of Broadway Market, Hackney, East London. Music was ably taken care of by Bradley; taking to the decks along with East London DJs Luke Shropshire & Andrew Almond, spinning a well received selection of Northern Soul. The weather was dry but not exactly temperate, so the turnout of approx thirty Vespas & Lambrettas was pretty good. After some scooter chat & book signings, the evening wound up around midnight & was a nice start to the season, hopefully marking the end to what has been a very long winter!

The RETROSPECTIVE SCOOTERS book is now available to buy online via SIP Scootershop & www.vespamore.bigcartel.com & is priced at 35 € + postage & packing.

Hope you enjoy the book - Paul Hart (vespamore photography, for SIP Scootershop)

Motorscooter Customshow Landsberg 2013

2013-04-17T07:07:00Z

Usually it's us, who load their van each year to visit a custom show. Be it in Ried, in Antwerp or in Bridlington. But when the news reached us that there would be no custom show in Munich this time, another idea rushed into our mind: 'A custom show in Landsberg... that would be nice. As international as possible and featuring all imaginable branches of the scooter scene...' While we had rather been thinking aloud than actually planning in December, only a moment later they day had come. On Saturday 13, April 2013 the Motorscooter Customshow Landsberg opened its gates.

Within no time people from all over the world had let us know that they wanted to participate. Italian mods, French long distance riders, Austrian tuners, German collectors... They all wanted to be part of the show. Wow! But while we were more than happy about the enthusiastic feedback, we also started to worry: What if the venue is too small? What if it's raining? What if the various group won't get along with each other? An event of this size is always quite a challenge and our only option was to plan ahead as well as possible and trust in the momentum of the event.

The plan worked out well and a couple of days before the show, the first internation guests arrived in Landsberg. All of them had brought stunning exhibits. From Greek Pulsar Project's latest work 'Springer Sting' to the high-performance racers of the Italian BSG guys.

On the day of the event not only the visitors but also the organiseres were excited to see how diverse and colorful the scooter scene 2013 actually is: cross racers, rally pilots, Bella enthusiasts, drag racers, 50s nostalgics... round about 1500 visitors had come to see the 116 registered custom scooters and stroll through the fairground. Alongside impressive paint jobs and sophisticated customising, there were also a couple of oddities to marvel at (the Bastert Monotrace for instance). Often times tounge in cheek and always with the utmost attention to detail. Many guests had travelled hundreds of miles to visit the show. Some of them even by scooter. We were really impressed to see, how enthusiastic people from all over the world still get about the 'old' scooters. Once again a huge motivation for us here at SIP to promote the future development of the Vintage Vespa/Lambretta sector.

Alongside the exhibiton, there were also several other attractions: While Toni la Rocca was spinning the records, the visitors had the chance to watch both tattoo artists Bene Bader and airbrush legend Marcus Pfeil in action. The 2pm highlight in the 'separee': Pinion guru Denis Innocente (DRT) hosted an exclusive gearbox workshop and was happy to answer all the questions, the participants asked.

Food and beverages were available in the outdoor area, where also the parts market and the stand of Vollgas Motorroller were located. Tim had brought his dyno and it was incredibly exciting to watch the current elite of high end tuners in direct comparison on the test bench. With more than 47 ps Italian racer Stefano Scauri (BSG) eventually turned out to have built the most powerful engine.

While the visitors and exhibitors had plenty of time to chat or talk shop and enjoy a cocktail at the Tiki-Bar, the international jury had to decide on their personal custom favourites. A hard task in the face of the many stunning exhibits. In the end the following scooters were awarded:

Best Lambretta: 36 - Lars Kirschenhofer

Best Wideframe: 6 - Vespa Veteranen Club Deutschland

Best Largeframe: 55 - sQooter Team Steyr

Best Smallframe: 22 - Peter Didl

Best Streetracer: 13 - Fabian Hauke

Best Vintage Racer: 66 - Raphael Reinsch

Best Racer: 114 - Mike Betz

Best Non-Italian: 58 - Fam. Thiele, Bella Club

Best Paint: 116 - Lukas Louca

Best Display: Tiki Bar - Höllenteufel SC

Furthest Travelled: 102 - Giacomo Salia (UK)

Maximum Respect: 108 - Andreas Barth

Best Custom: 99 - Andi Frey

Best Oddity and Best of All: 109 - Pulsar Project (GR)

A big thank you to all exhibitors, visitors, and helpers for a fantastic weekend. We are already looking forward to seeing you again in Austria next year.

Check out Flickr to see the rest of our pictures. And here's our video:

Vespa rider's attempt on the record

2013-04-04T08:40:00Z

These Austrian guys are incredible. First one of them jumps back to earth from out of space, now another one wants to ride his Vespa right up a rope...

But no worries... SIP customer Günter Schachermayr won't risk his life for an entry in the Guinness book of world records. He'll buckle up during the tightrope ride. Otherwise Sabine would never have dared to announce the idea of performing this coup de main.

On Sat, May 25, "Lumpi L'Incredibile" will ride his Vespa up a rope, tensioned by two cranes. The vertical ascent will leave him at a total height of 25m. Right at noon, the spectators in front of the Gutshofschenke Staffelmayr are supposed to be left speechless by this crazy performance.

A repertoire of 27 tricks

Regularly performing at fairs and stuntshows, 35y old Lumpi hast a total of 27 tricks up his sleeve. The vertical ride is supposed to be the current high point of his carreer, which he plans to develop in the future: Soon he'll participate at a casting of „Das Supertalent“ (A successful German TV show hosted by Dieter Bohlen, RTL): http://www.nachrichten.at/oberoesterreich/steyr/Mit-dem-Roller-zu-Bohlens-Supertalent;art68,1057817

We're keeping our fingers crossed that Lumpi will return safely from his trip to the sky.

German Scooter Champion visits SIP Scootershop

2013-04-03T10:46:00Z

German Scooter Champions!
Reason for celebration here in Landsberg : Through victory in the '2012 Classic Racing Championship' we have earned ourselves the honour of receiving the 'Challenge Trophy', which is now on proud display in our shop. Boris Bannwitz rolled into the shop, recently at around midday, on a pair of in-line skates as if he was paying us a leisurely neighbourhood visit. He had started out on his journey, to bring us the 'Challenge Trophy' for our victory in the 2012 German scooter championship, at 04.00 that morning to commence his trip home at 18.00 that very evening. 1600 km in one day! Respect is due...

SIP: What makes you ride a train 800km from Bremen to Landsberg?
Boris: I own a November special ticket and have no friends. NO! – Seriously: With christmas just around the corner, I have a present for you! This trophy will look great in your shop!
SIP: Are you happy with the last season?
Boris: Definitely! In the end I won, and we had the chance to ride on many different tracks together with very ambitious racers. We had a great time together.
SIP: How would you describe the scene?
Boris: Concerning technical details and riding skills the scene's on a pro-level right now. Still it allows newbies a smooth entry into the racing scene. I also enjoy the atmosphere and the good spirit of all people involved.
SIP: Your personal highlight of the year?
Boris: That would definitely be the race at the Sachsenring, where you ride on a proper MotoGP track!
SIP: What are your plans for 2013
Boris: defending the title of course. I want the trophy to stay at SIP. The new season starts on April 27 2013. Until then I will train, and test and work on the scooter!
SIP: We wish you the best of luck for the upcoming season. Lots of fun and success!
Boris: Thanks a lot. I'm looking forward to continue our great cooperation in 2013!

Giro Vespistico delle Alpi

2013-04-03T10:37:00Z

Thomas Knickmeier also took part in last years Giro Vespistico on his 1954 Hoffmann 'Polizeikönigin' Vespa. He has since written an article for us detailing his experiences. The German version can be read in full-length in the blog area of our website. Here a few excerpts translated into English:

The day has finally arrived! The Rally was set to start on the 9th of September 2012. The Pinzgau V.C. had invited fellow scooterists on an eventful five-day Rally-tour of the Alps, based on the routes of traditional Rally-tours. As we finally reached Zell-am-See (apparently the secret Vespa capital of Austria) on Sunday afternoon we were greeted by a huge 'GIRO' banner and more than a few familiar faces. The organisers had split the participants machines up into five separate groups: Le Fenomenale 1946 – 1954, Le Storice 1955 – 1964, Le Sportive 1965 – 1976, Le Nuove 1977 – 1995, Le Moderne 1996 – 2012

The technical checks were carried out by two specialist mechanics who had been hired to take care of us all over the whole tour. We, the Giroristi as we were now to be known, were able to load our broken-down Vespas into their back-up van which meant automatic disqualification from the stage, or try and fix it ourselves and by hook or by crook make it over the stage finishing line independently, not an easy choice to make! The first stage commenced at exactly 09.00 hrs. the following morning from the Zell-am-See market square and the toughest European Rally of the year got under way. Through the main pedestrian precinct, naturally at walking-pace! Our individual times were checked and logged twice along each daily stage. Friday we were informed that the end of the first stage should be reached in exactly 220 minutes. Just 1 km before the checkpoint was reached they had erected signs showing its precise location, these signs were also the first confirmation that you had followed the directions correctly. Due to the special stages that also had to be completed within these time allocations, the riders of the Vespa models with headlamps mounted on their mudguards (Faro Bassi) has an especially difficult task keeping up due to their lack of overall power and relative unreliability. After all these old ladies are not as quick climbing mountains as the more modern Vespa Rally models. One of these special stages involved finding a small plaque located at the foot of a certain statue, situated on the market place of a small town along the way, this plaque had an inscription revealing the name of the statues sculptor, which was duly noted as the completion to the special stage. Another involved finding out the postcode of one of the many small Italian villages en-route, no internet research allowed!! (...)

After five days of breathtaking Alpine panoramas, spiced with all kinds of technical challenges, not to mention the difficult weather conditions, we had found a winner. The trophy, with its illuminated globe design covered with various Vespa models, was presented to Robin Davy as the overall winner of the 1st GIROVESPISTICO DELLE ALPI. Holger, who had previously passed the proverbial hat around, award the mechanics with some cash to share between themselves as a sign of gratitude from the competitors. This great pair of professionals were almost moved to tears, thanks again guys! A nice gesture and the GIRO was officially over! 77 participants, the toughest Vespa rally-tour of the year, 6 days, 4 countries, over 100,000 collectively ridden kilometres and 32 almost insurmountable Alpine mountain passes were behind us and I was able to be part of it all! During the speech that Franz held, he summarised “After the GIRO, is before the GIRO” and I will most definitely be taking part in 2014, that's for sure! Finally I would like to give huge thanks and respect to the whole team of organisers for their tireless attention to our needs, for all the help and support provided by other GIRORISTI, for all of the new friends we made and last but not least for the unforgettable experiences that will always belong to my permanent memories. Franz – You have set the standards-and they are the highest yet.

Report and Pictures: Thomas Knickmeier

Link: http://www.vespa-alp-days.at/vespistico/home.htm

Link: http://www.vespa-veteranenclub.de/giro_vespistico_delle_alpi.htm

Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brennuskrux/sets/72157631533435575/with/7985136857/

Dates 2013

2013-04-03T10:32:00Z

Here they are... all scooter dates 2013

January:

05.01. - Nighter Red Berets, Skroote Vahns and Sposmoker in Itzehoe (D)
12.01. - Crazy Coconuts Winternutter, Altdorf/Landshut (D)
19.01. - Rollercross Munich (D)
_______________________________________________________________________________

February:

01.-03.02. - Scooterist Meltdown Weekender, Wunderland Kalkar (D)
_______________________________________________________________________________

March:

09.03. - Nighter VespaBurner S.C., Bottrop (D)

09.03. - Scooter Customshow Saarbrücken (D)

08.-10.03. - Customshow Antwerp (B)

16.03. - Customshow Köln (D)
29.-31.03. - Venlo Reloaded 2013 (NL)

_______________________________________________________________________________

April:

06.04. - 8. Stuttgart Scooterists Nighter, Stuttgart (D)
13.04. - Hidden Power SC Allnighter, Ruhrgebiet (D)
13.04. - Anrollern Tarmac Spirits Braunschweig (D)
13.04. - Scooter Customshow, Landsberg (D)
20.04. - The Torch SC Nighter, Oberhausen (D)
20.04. - Anrollern Augsburg (D)

20.04. - DSSC Saarbrücken
27.04. - Customshow und Nighter, Moers (D)
27.04. - Anrollern Paderborn (D)
27.04. - Prengel SC Kick-Down, Köln (D)
_______________________________________________________________________________

May:

01.05. - 13.Maicorso durch das hannoversche Umland

03.-05.05. - 3. Sommerfest LCD with Mad Hornets SC, Kulmbach (D)

09.-12.05. - Challenge Scootentole - Mirecourt (FRA)

09.-12.05. DSSC Eisenach (German Racewars 2013)

11.-12.05. - 1/2 Run Reisegruppe NRW, Hünxe (D)

17.-19.05. - Ferien im Sauerland (D)

18. - 20. - Pfingstrun des Lakescooters S.C. Wahlwies e.V.
31.05. - 02.06. - 11. Run&Race - Liedolsheim (GER)

_______________________________________________________________________________

June:

15.06. - DSSC Aldenhoven
20.-22.06. - Vespa World Days 2013, Hasselt (B)
22.-23.06. - Gölsental Rally 2013, RC Roadrunner, St.Veit an der Gölsen (A)
28.-30.06. - 3. Old Pistons Run, WSZ Wallsee (A)
_______________________________________________________________________________

July:

05.-07.07. - 20 Jahre Racing Skunks Jubiläumsrun, Wilhelmsburg (A)

05.-07.07. - 1. Meetandspeed2013 vom Vespa-Geschwader-Hofstätten

09.-11.08. - Blechkampf - Belleben (GER)
12.-14.07. - Wienerwaldtreffen VC United Scooters, Altlengbach (A)
12.-14.07. - 20 Jahre - Sittenstrolche Schwabach, Crazy Bumble Bees Augsburg and Pacemakers Deggendorf Jubiläumsrun (D)
13.-14.07. - Run in Paderborn (D)

19. - 21.07. - Blech- und Schaltrollertreffen der Vesperados Mindelheim
20.07. - Von 12 bis Mittag, Düren (D)
20.-21.07. - Blech&Schalten Rothenburg Treffen, Rothenburg ob der Tauber (D)
26.-28.07. - Wiener Spitzbuam Scooterrun (A)
_______________________________________________________________________________

August:

02.-04.08. - Harlekins Run, Oerlinghausen (D)
02.-04.08. - Blechreiz 2013, Reutlingen (D)

03. - 04.08. - Vespa Treffen Regensburg des VC Regensburg

11.08. - DSSC Lemelerveld (NL)
16.-18.08. - 6. Burgrun, 1. Linzer Vespaclub "Wespen-Plüsch", Burgruine Reichenau i.M. (A)
17.08. - Sommerparty Tarmac Spirits Braunschweig (D)
23.-25.08. - Rollerspaß im Westerwald III des South Palatine SC, Segendorf Monrepos (D)
23.-25.08. - Ferien im Steinbruch, Kandern (D)

23.-25.08. - Holiday in Hungary - Pannoniaring (HUN)
_______________________________________________________________________________

September:

06.-07.09. - HARZ GRAND PRIX - Harz-Ring (GER)

14.09. - DSSC Saarbrücken

13.-15.09. - Förderun, Falckenstein (D)

_______________________________________________________________________________

October:

05.10. - Abrollern Tarmac Spirits Braunschweig (D)
_______________________________________________________________________________

November:

16.11. - Nighter Paderborn (D)

ESC 2012 ...a review

2012-12-14T14:05:00Z

While the year is slowly coming to an end, allow us a little review of the ESC 2012. After 5 exciting races (Run&Race, Kurvenlage, Harz GP, Blechkampf, Holiday in Hungary) the finals at the Pannonia Ring in Hungary drew a line under an exciting season...

Just like the year before, the 2012 season was launched with a training weekend at the Challenge Scootentole in Mirecourt (France). And it was already there that we got a first impression of how this racing summer was going to be: Neither fish nor fowl - leaving us struggling somewhere between deluge and sunstroke. You were lucky, if you had brought more than one pair of tyres. Many of the pilots were riding in new classes and some had actually made a quantum leap forward in terms of riding ability over the winter. Some fast visitors had come from Italy and by the time the weekend was over, everybody had realised that noone was going to muck around on the track, but that it was going to be all or nothing this time. But in the evening all rivalry was forgotten and the pilots got ready for the K8. The spontaneous (and already legendary) paddock party managed to set the direction for the upcoming season: In 2012 the sport-oriented ESC discovered partying. Splendid!

The first race of the official classifications already presented us with the first highlight: 10 Years Run&Race! Not only the participants, but also the local Bella Club and many cheerful visitors had come to celebrate with the Stoneheads SC. It was also at the Run&Race that we saw the only major crashes of the year. One of them in the Standard class, the other one in K2. Although nobody got hurt in the end, suddenly everybody had clearly in mind how rapidly crashes are happening. Maybe it has to do with the 2011 season (shocking in terms of accidents and casualties) that we can note down a very pleasing trend for 2012: While the paramedics were needed at every single race in 2011, the pilots' willingness to systematically destroy themselves seems to have significantly decreased. Despite some minor injuries, all riders finished the season unharmed. We are more than happy about that and really hope that this trend will continue in 2013.

At the Kurvenlage we were once again impressed by the tricks that this racing summer had up its sleeve. Rainwise that is. Within seconds, the track in Wackersdorf became incredibly slippery. Thanks god it stopped raining in the morning and our awkward sliding turned into serious racing action again. As a little highlight on the side, not only the regular trophies were awarded in Wackersdorf, but also the Chris Voicu Memorial Cup for social commitment. This year Erwi was able to carry it home - representative for all the indefatigable and committed people who help to make this racing series happen. We consider this young tradition a great gesture that says a lot about the ESC and the people involved.

Only shortly afterwards another weekend of sunshine and rain: At the Harz GP (the first of two races in the Salzlandkreis area) a lot of last minute organisation happened, in order to avoid the rain. Classes were combined, schedules rewritten... But it was all of no avail. During the endurance race heavy rain was pouring down on the riders. But they didn't seem to care and had a blast anyway. So did the K8 in which (alongside some hot favourites, who had already performed extraordinarily well at the previous races), a couple of new talents were discovered.

Only three weeks later the ESC squad is travelling to the next race in the Wild East. Being the second to last race of the season, the Blechkampf has always been decisive. While Butsch and Stoffi can already celebrate their championship, nothing is decided in the rest of the classes and the pilots have no choice but to race like there was no tomorrow. Doing just that, not only Robert but also two of the ladies have to deal with the consequences and crash quite unpleasantly on the narrow track. Luckily nobody got hurt in the end and the racing day is well nicely finished by another paddock party.

Once again, the last race of the season took place in Hungary. Alongside the ESC championship, the decisive 6h race of the ESC-endurance was scheduled. Two highlights on one weekend so to speak. We also witness the most thrilling K2 race of the whole season. Long after championship issues are off the table. The guys definitely safed the best for last.

Here's a quick overview of the classes:

The K1 (SF - GP Limited) was once again more than thrilling to watch, as it is becoming more and more similar to the K2 as far as riding skills and engine performances are concerned. Unfortunately Bene didn't manage to defend his title and the deserving winner is Maik Persch. Karoo, Da Woidi and Hömmes have also reason to be happy, ranking on third, fourth and fifth position.

Also the SIP team had sufficient reason to cheer this year: As if it was a child's play, Stoffi (SIP/Stoffi's Racing Team) dominated the SF Standard class - one of the few classes in which not the engine performance, but the pilot's riding skills are the decisive factor. Patrick and Achim wound up on the places two and three, shortly followed by Zimbo and Matze. Stoffi also scored in the open Largeframe class (K4) and reached the third place there (behind Roland and Thomas, in the lead of Grete). Putzi (SIP/Munich Bunglers) was not quite so lucky this summer and finished the season on the fifth place. Right behind him Pesi (SIP/Stoffi's Racing Team), who only participated in (and won!) one race this summer. Also Maniac (SIP/GSF) seems to have been pursued by misfortune this time, but still manages to rank in the midfield of classes 1 and 2.

While Butsch won the standardised Largeframe class (K3a - Gran Tourismo) in the lead of Lenki, Toni, Marco and Alex, the 'big guys' Michi, Heizer and Val settled the 'Fozzy bear class' K5b between themselves and the title eventually goes to Austria. Of course the ladies were also accelerating this year. In the end Isa (Desperados Racing Team) deservedly wins the championship in the lead of Sylvie and Nina. Julia and Nicole make the top 5 of the fastest ESC-ladies complete.

The sensation of the year: After missing the championship by a hair's breadth, Rob Leibfarth of SIP Racing Team finally clinches the title in the top tier (K2, SF - GP Open), which makes him the first German K2 champion ever in the history of the ESC. The favourites of the class had been fighting fiercely during the summer but in the end Rob managed to stand up against Marco, Rapfi and Ulf, who were honoured second, third and fourth. Also Markus (SIP/Stoffi's Racing Team), who delivered a spectacular performance in his second year in the K2, made it to the top 5.

Visit the official ESC website for further information. Thanks a lot to all riders, visitors and volunteers for a successful season 2012. We're looking forward to seeing you on the track next year...

SIP Scootershop at the Veterama Mannheim 2012

2012-11-21T10:19:00Z

Last weekend, the gates to Europe's biggest 'scrap metal parts market' opened once again. Just like every year, the Veterama took place at the Maimarkt fairground in Mannheim on the 2nd weekend of October. For a couple of years now, a delegation of the Vespa-Veteranen-Freunde has also been on board with a booth of their own.

This year SIP Scootershop also had a booth, where we presented our latest classic catalogue and new Vespa and Lambretta products of our own trademark.

But the Veterama is not only about selling. You also go there to meet friends and aquaintances and chat with them about this and that. Not only Vintage vehicle fans will find something to their taste at the Veterama. There are also petrol pumps, enamel signs, decoration material and vintage workshop accessories on offer. The assorment is enormous and spreads on approximately 260.000m² with a total of more than 4500 individual traders.

Chi Vespa mangia le mele - the Vespa campaign of the 70ies

2012-11-12T08:05:00Z

The end of the 1960s was an eventful time, particularly for young people. Including in Italy. The student movement was calming down, the sexual revolution in full swing, in Catholic Italy divorces were allowed, the red brigades killed the Home Secretary, Aldo Moro, the communists had the political majority in the country.

The Italian youth (and all young people in general) longed for freedom and independence. The decision makers at Piaggio at the time saw 16 million Italian young people with a huge need for mobility. In both the cities and the country, to go to school, to work or simply to the ice cream parlour. And a noteworthy available annual income of 1000 million Lira. For the launch of the Vespa 50 Special 1969, a striking new advertising campaign was needed. Gilberto Filippetti from the Leader agency in Florence invented the famous slogan „Chi Vespa mangia le mele“. The advertising campaign behind this was to be one of the most famous of all time, a real icon in product marketing. But what should the unusual sentence mean? The Italian mama likes to ask her son or daughter „Hai mangiato una mela?“ - „Have you eaten an apple?“.“An apple a day keeps the doctor away“. The advert played with the apple as a symbol for health, youth, summer and sun. But also as the temptation of the forbidden fruit of paradise. Big Apple New York. Urban and young. It is easy to be free (including from sickness) and doesn‘t cost that much. Why not pick an apple i.e. get a Vespa? The term „Vespa“ is used in this slogan very cheekily as a verb which actually doesn‘t exist at all. „I ride a Vespa“ simply becomes „I vespa“. Anyone who rides a Vespa is free, young, progressive and even slightly cheekier than all of the others. The trailer in brackets (chi non „Vespa“ no) reinforces the message even more: some are everything that the apple as a symbol represents - and the others are simply not. In 1971, the campaign was extended with the phrase „Melacompro una Vespa“. „I‘m going to buy myself a Vespa“. The fi rst two syllables give the word „Mela“ = apple, a refi ned pun. The campaign continued until 1973. But even today the slogan and the apple as a symbol appear again and again with Piaggio. Furthermore, puns have a tradition at Vespa. Another campaign only featured the made up word „Vespizzatevi!“ which actually doesn‘t exist in Italian. Here a kind of imperative in the second person plural was made out of „Vespa“, as if the reflexive verb „Vespizzarsi“ exists in Italian. „Ride a Vespa!“ or „Everyone should ride a Vespa!“.

But in fact, no extra request is necessary for this.

Many thanks to Robert Steiniger for providing the original posters.

Vespa free

2012-11-05T10:05:00Z

Après 10 ans de « Vespa Top » au sommet du Semnoz où le club a été créé, le Vespa Club des Savoie a décidé de partir pour de nouvelles aventures.
Après quelques balades dans la région, il nous est venu tout naturellement l’idée de faire notre manifestation annuelle à La Clusaz. Ainsi est né la « Vespa Free » au cœur du massif des Aravis.
Comme pour la « Vespa Top », nous avons gardé notre manifestation son signe distinctif « rider sur des routes de montagne ».
Le programme s’est déroulé ainsi :
- regroupement des vespas le samedi matin à côté d’Annecy,
- ride pour arriver à la station en passant par le col de la Croix Fry,
- l’après-midi, diverses animations : course de lenteur, course d’orientation dans le massif, ….
- le soir : tartiflette géante et soirée Radio Meuh dans un grand bar de la station.
- le Dimanche : balade (~100km) qui nous a permis de faire la montée mythique du col de la Colombière.
- la journée s’est terminée par un grand buffet sur la place du village, juste avant la remise des prix et les remerciements de l’ensemble de nos partenaires. Nous avons eu le plaisir, entre autres, d’accueillir le Scooter Club du Sud Est, le Vespa Club de Turin, de Genève, de Chambéry, …. Et « Moucheron » du VaFancoulo Scooter Club qui est venu par la route en 50cc depuis Marseille sous la pluie !!

Au vue de l’ambiance générale de ce weekend, la station de La Clusaz nous a demandé de réorganiser l’édition 2013 de la Vespa Free. Plus de photos ici!

Bridlington Custom Show 2012

2012-10-30T15:20:00Z

It’s already been more than a decade since our last visit of the Bridlington Custom Show. We are sure it won’t be that long until our next trip as this event was a true highlight on our agenda. About 3,000 dedicated Lambretta and Vespa riders follow the invitation of the Lambretta Club Great Britain (LCGB) every year to meet in the picturesque coastal town of Bridlington in the Northeast of England. It was just the same last Saturday, 27 October 2012, when the hard core of the British scootering scene set out for this destination again. By the way, you can accept hard core at face value when considering the journey on a scooter at this time of the year.

Whoever has had the opportunity to browse through Scootering magazine knows what to expect: loads of airbrush paintworks with the most diverse themes (preferably enshrinement of war heroes, Quadrophenia motives or logos of pertinent alcohol as well as energy drink brands), sophisticated engraving artworks on steering heads or engine casings as well as two predominant types of male visitors – either skinheads in combat boots, army camouflage pants, olive-coloured bomber jackets which are mostly there to work as a basic layer for the patch timeline of its owner showing his scooter rally attendance, as well as massive amounts of inked skin.

But no need to worry, they’re just playing, or rather competing for one of the coveted trophies. Our Glorious Basterd couldn’t take home any laurels in the gallant company of such awesome scooters. Nevertheless, heaps of visitors flooded the SIP trade stand to talk the builder of the Basterd and hear him explain the technical details. Those who did not press their noses against the cabinet with our product news made sure to grab a free copy of our Vintage Vespa catalogue. The catalogues were gone faster than the tickets for the Olypmpic women’s beach volleyball tournament in London. Enough proof for us that the scene remains loyal to the print medium despite the current online shopping trend.

All in all this a most refreshing event which 100% radiated the ambiance of the typical British scootering scene. Those who had the chance to take a peek outside the hall were immediately reminded of the days of Brighton. Just without the rockers and with relaxed Mods and Skinheads as well as numerous scooters which definitely deserve the tag “Custom”.

We would like to say thanks at this point to Simon Collins and the LCGB for the awesome organizational effort. This time, the stereotypically well-organized Germans were only runner-up in this category that went without any trophies.

Check out Flickr for the rest of the pictures!

See y’all at Brighton 2013.

Scootentole 10h race in Magny-Cours

2012-10-30T14:36:00Z

This little "Bol D'Or" for geared scooters took place on the Nevers Magny-Cours "club" circuit, a slightly big track 2,5 km long, 10m wide. Inaugurated in 2003, this recent circuit is a real billiard table, very secure (no walls or Armco barriers) and even his most sinuous version leaves two straight lines, 550 meters and 250 meters, and several fast curves.

27 teams on the starting grid, including german, austrian, italian and swiss scooters. Unexpected and good for this first edition ever. On the grid eleven small frames challenges lot of PX, Cosa, T5 and... three "big" Lambretta. One of the small frames, a V5A (tuned by Seventies Scooter Pièces) was driven by 5 girls !

Race program : Saturday, two hours practise and lap timing. Sunday all day racing, start at 9h00, arrival at 19h00. Only one scratch ranking; top speed, strategy and reliability are the keys.
Start Le Mans style on dry track early in the morning. After some battle with the Imola Corsa Lambretta and sQooter.com austrian Vespa PK, german GSF-SCK Endurance Team (Betz-Putz-Buttner) leads the first hours but always glued by Authentik Scooter PK Quattrini. Unfortunately the "german dream team" (Zuera 24 Hours 2012 winners) has to stop after broken the exhaust, and finally crash the scooter in a fast curve. At this time experienced drivers Palloume-Azcue-Labarère (Authentik Scooter I) extend their lead at the end of the race. Team Burzock PX 220 Pinasco (Nobleaux-Nobleaux-Jules) finish second coming from behind after fuel problem the first hour. Seventies Scooter Boys (DiPalma-Baguet-Grand-Barbot) are brilliant third on their V5A 133 Polini tuned by Gilles Desmercières. Behind them, the switzerland team "GDB small" (Vespa PK 136 Malossi) takes the 4e ranking after an endless fight with Wok Café Nimes (PX 213 Pinasco), Vespa Club Auvergne (V5A 133 Polini) and Racing Mob Creusot (PK 133 Polini)...

As expected the confrontation between Vespa and Lambretta, small and big frames, tuned and origine engines, were a "régalade" ! Seven small frames in the top ten, means all types of scooter can compete on a motorcycle track. That means anyway that modern small engine kits are fast and reliable. The big frame battle is won by 213 Pinasco cylinders (3 engines tuned by french sorcerer Philippe Burzock !) with three Vespa PX in top-eight ! The first 210 Malossi PX, driven by Lyon team (La Drouille/Sud-Est Scooter Club) is 10e. The first origine engine (the only one !) is La Drouille Racing, 17e on a Vespa PX200... behind the Seventies Scooter Girls finally found 15e on their V5A 133 Polini ! The blue Lambretta Lynx / Authentik Scooter & Casa Lambretta France, was 4e after 3 hours...just before breaking their Mugello 200. The drivers (Fraval-Guigue-Arneguy-Bazard) re-start half an hour later with spare engine (a road RT195) and finally took an unexpectable 11e position ! The two italian Lambretta were faster and rather impressive, but spent too much time with technical problems. Maybe next year ?

This first edition is great success for french organizers (Scootentole & Retro Scooter Club Nevers). Despite the Magny-Cours Club circuit starting grid will accept no more than 35 scooters, they expect some belgium, dutch, portuguese, spanish and british teams, making a bigger international scooter race next year...

Ranking / classement général définitif
1. Authentik Scooter I – FRA – 337 Tours (Vespa PK Quattrini water cooled),
2. Burzock Team – FRA 320 T. (Vespa PX 213 Pinasco),
3. Seventies Scooter Boys – FRA – 310 T. (Vespa 50 Special 133 Polini),
4. GDB Small –CH– 303 T. (Vespa PK 136 Malossi),
5. Wok Café Nîmes – FRA - 302 T. (Vespa PX 213 Pinasco),
6. VCA Vespa Club d’Auvergne – FRA – 302 T. (Vespa V5A 133 Polini),
7. Racing Mob Creusot – FRA – 301 T. (Vespa PK 133 Polini),
8. Frog Racing Team – FRA – 294 T. (Vespa PX 213 Pinasco),
9. Vulcan SS Racing Team –FRA – 293 T.(Vespa PK 133 Parmakit),
10. La Drouille / Sud-Est – FRA – 291 T. (Vespa PX 210 Malossi),
11. Authentik Casa Lambretta- FRA – 289 T. (Lambretta LD200 Stage4),
12. GDB Large – CH – 289 Tours (Vespa PX moteur T5 172 Malossi),
13. Italian Scoot – FRA – 288 T. (Vespa PX 210 Malossi),
14. Stihl Racing – GER – 284 T. (Vespa Cosa 210 Malossi),
15. Seventies Scooter Girls – FRA –279 T. (Vespa 50 Special 133 Polini),
16. GDM Vespa Club des Savoies – FRA – 274 T. (Vespa PX 177 Parmakit),
17. La Drouille Racing – FRA – 259 T. (Vespa PX 200 moteur stock),
18. SPRT – FRA – 258 T. (Vespa PK Quattrini M1),
19. MitoLambretta – ITA – 247 T.(Lambretta Special 185 Mito-VNR),
20. Imola Corsa – ITA – 237 T.(Lambretta Super Monza 225),
21. ASCC Team Austria by SQooter.com – AUT – 233 T. (Vespa PK Polini Evo),
22. Véloce Racing – FRA – 231 T. (Vespa T5 152 Polini),
23. TVSC Paris – FRA – 228 T. (Vespa PX 177 Pinasco),
24. Fucking Team - FRA – 227 T. (Vespa PX 213 Pinasco),
25. GSF-SCK Endurance Team – GER – 234 T. DNF (Vespa PK 133 Polini Evo),
26. Black Out – FRA – 230 T. DNF (Vespa Cosa 177 Pinasco),
27. Authentik Scooter II – FRA – 226 T. DNF (Vespa PX 210 Malossi).

Meilleur temps en course : 1.34.768 à 96.11 km/h (Imola Corsa / Lambretta Super Monza 225 cm3)

VPI 2012

2012-10-15T10:19:00Z

After 6 exciting races in Corridonia, Castelletto di Branduzzo, Ortona, Varano, Precenicco and Viterbo the Italian championship VPI is now decided.

Visit the official website for details. Also make sure to check out the championship TV channel with interviews and racing footage galore.

Congratulations to Crimaz, Mauropapà and Gianluca Fabbri who delivered a spectacular racing performance during the season and rightfully made it on the podium of the VPI OPEN.

Of course we are especially happy to see that SIP supported pilot Michael Hilton still managed to rank second (behind Federico Biondi and ahead of Matteo Piacentini) in the highly competitive VPI CLASSIC, after he had to change categories after the first race. Congrats, guys!

20th anniversary of the Minusschrauber Rollerklub - DBM finals 2012

2012-10-10T09:26:00Z

On 22 September 2012 the Minusschrauber Rollerklub held its 20th quartermile speed race in Bremen, where the finals of the DBM took place.

The buten un binnen Magazin (Radio Bremen) made a little clip about the weekend. Also make sure to check out the stunning pictures on Bengt Lange's Picasa page.

Two dates are already fixed for 2013: The traditional Pfingstrun in Wahlwies will take place from 18-20 May. The Vespa-Geschwader-Hofstätten's first meetandspeed2013 will be held on 5.-7. July.

Visit the DBM website! for detailed information about the race in Bremen and the upcoming season. Here are the results: