Modern Vespa

Are you doing experiments or do you just have a penchant for amphibians? Inquiring stickyfrogs want to know.

Wonder you didn't see a demo GTS250 with my name on it while you were at Scootech did you ?

Just been out for a 10 mile ride on Hercules the folding bike and I feel great .....cough cough.

A couple of weeks ago I was cycling through some lovely woods when this oik enquired - Oi mate have you got a spare fag ?

He couldn't have been all that bright after all which kind of cyclist smokes?

1 more day.

Billy No Scoot XX

well, i have a pond in my garden. when i moved in it was full of horrible bug-eyed goldfish. the pond filter was stolen by local yoof, so the bug-eyed goldfish went off to live somewhere else, and i converted the pond to a self-sustaining ecosystem. frogs moved in, laid eggs, and voila - hundreds of froglets.

i introduced some newts a year or two later, not knowing that they are, um, 'incompatible' with frogs below a certain size i.e. they will eat them up so every year the frogs lay eggs, and every year the newts grow fat on tadpoles. i don't deal well with carnage, so i'd been giving spawn away to mates with ponds, but they are now all frogged out, so i've got to deal with the spawn myself. last year's hatching tank was a dismal failure - temperature too high, insufficient surface area for oxygen exchange, tank used by local squirrels for bathing. disaster.

this year, i've installed a plaster-mixing tank, which is basically a miniature bathtub. however there was an awful lot of spawn, and the number of tadpoles unfortunately exceeded the limit that the tank could support. hence the massive die-off, and the drastic actions as described above, which seem to have worked, so i've got about 50 happy tadpoles in there now

it's when they all grow legs and start hopping around the garden that the real fun begins. the first time the frogs spawned (before i'd introduced the newts) every single bloody egg hatched, the garden was completely overrun with tiny frogs (i mean, hundreds of them), and i had to cut the lawn with scissors for the entire summer

Wow genie I am truly impressed with efforts to accommodate the little creatures. I will put in a good word for you with the Head Frog next time I see her.

mav on a bike with a ciggy

fags, part of the five a day

Hurrah! And just in time for the lovely summer weather too

Have I pimped the Amur leopard webcam yet? A peek into the sleeping-quarters of mama leopard and two cubs - I am entranced.

There was some ************ (insert suitable words here) speaking on the Radio last week, saying that animals had a right to privacy, mentioning in particular David Attenborough and team putting the camera in the duck-billed platypus's nest.

I hope you asked Mama Leopard before watching, Alice!

Wow. I can think of about a hundred things more important to animals' welfare than whether or not they have a camera trained on them!

I've cleared space in the garage for the Hornet - haven't cleared enough space indoors for bums to sit on yet, but I might get creative changing my lateral filing to a more vertical version.

My rattle-can of paint (for an old X9 top-box) turned up at CBS yesterday, wrong colour! So they immediately faxed Fowl-ups, but nothing arrived today. It can wait a wee while though.

no need to worry about seats jim - all you need to do is wash up a mug or two

I've got to find a mug or two first!

ah. should we bring our own?

I should be OK on the mug front. I'll raid Ed's lair upstairs.

I'm mulling trading in my Harley for a Guzzi Griso 8V. I test rode one last week and really liked it. The Harley is a sweet ride, but I've never meshed with the baggage that unfortunately comes with it (I'm ATTGATT, I actually have got tired of the sound, I don't ride to bars etc etc).

I'm waiting to hear from the shop to see what sort of deal they'll offer me. If it's no good, then I'll just keep the bike and ride my scooters and the other bikes more!

Never let a car/bike shop know you really want something, otherwise they know they can stick it to you...

I don't know how or where this opinion got lodged in my head, but i've always thought of Harleys as an old man's bike

I've always thought of a Gold Wing as an old man's bike and Harleys were for people that suffer from histrionic personality disorder.

Whuut? Huuuh? Speak up dearie, I don't have hearing aid in....



Some Harleys are old farts bikes, like the big overly chromed out touring rides. But others, like the Dark Series, are stripped down, with hardly any chrome. My Street Bob (wikked name, huh?!) is a very minimalistic bike, basically just motor, solo seat, little chrome, matte red paint, black steel with black rims.

I have all sorts of bikes, heck, I even ride scooters!

ooooooh, yes, i'd completely forgotten about those. there's one I park next to downtown from time to time. it's very sexy, and not old-mannish at all I like that it's called 'Bob' - adds a human touch

Mine looks better..











Butt I'm getting greedy for a Griso..

oh well had some bad news yesterday my foot is never going to come the nerve damage is too big for the leg to cope with so .. i am going to walk with a limp the rest of my life and i have to wear a boot .. so i went out and bought a brand new LML star .. i pick it up weds .. cream colour so side panels are going to be painted dark green .. in the style of the fred perry PX .. so im now back as a sccoter boy again .. going to find my old flight jacket with Paddy Smith patches from years ago .. roll on summer

Oh jeez, I'm sorry to hear that (but glad you have a lovely new toy - hope to see it soon). You can use your boot for kicking in Rockers.

Ace photos, Desmo, and I highly approve of Guzzis. So stylish!

the grisso is a nice looking machine......

as for harleys etc, i don't really get all that "armpits in the wind stuff"

Happy, happy, happy bunny here. The Hornet has a new home, and for the very first time I'll be kennelling a scooter. Bill Dog's previous meticulous ministrations deserve no less. Very chuffed to take ownership of such a well-looked after and properly ridden (no pussy-footing) steed.

I'm so looking forward to taking this to Italy.

8) 8) 8) 8)

nice one jim 8)

Congratulations, Jim - it does look like it's just rolled out the factory.

You lucky bugger.

It's fun and breezy!

Sorry to hear about the foot, but congrats on treating yourself to a new ride!

I woulda done the same.

Awwww, Jim - your scooters got a new baby brother

I stopped off at CBS to see if the paint had come in yet, and a couple of the guys came out and oo'ed and ah'ed at the pristine condition of both the outside and under the pet carrier. I may have used the words 'anal retentive' about the former owner's application of lotions and potions, but I'm sure he'll forgive the pretty accurate description - regardless, the CBS guys were very impressed with the way it had been looked after.

on thursday i just finished building 2 pigeon hole units they have 3 1/2 sheets of 10'x4' 18mm mdf [just to give the idia of weight haha]

anyhow loading them into the van and i managed to plant one on my left hand when the guy i was lifting with tipped it to one side ... flattened my middle finger .. luckily no break but its fatter than a walls sausage and badly trapped nerves ... cant really feel the tip and its bloody painful to change gear

just as i manage to get the scoot on the road ... the vodka seems to be working

Bugger. I'm so sorry to hear that after all the other injuries came reasonably good. I know you'd rather have full use of the foot, but ratchet up that compo!

Getting a new ride is always therapeutic though.

huuh, all this time when I read 'Hornet" I thought you were buying the Honda motorcycle.

the handover wasn't at all traumatic, as the accompanying picture will show ...

but seriously, I'm overjoyed at the thought of it going to someone who is going to ride it and use it properly. I couldn't sell the Hornet to someone I didn't like, and I'm so glad that its first trip will be to the home of its origin I've always been a great believer that if you take care of your equipment it will take care of you. Seriously though Jim, I'm really touched that it's going to a good home and that it's going to be garaged.

Yesterday we also paid a visit to Urban Rider so Genie could try on the new Givi X.01 modular helmet which is a completely different shape than her head, as was every other helmet she tried on that day at Scootech and George White in Shoreditch so it looks as though she will be bringing her open-face to Greece.

After Urban Rider we crossed King's Road and went to a fantastic cafe/gelateria where we were served ice cream, cookies, and lattes by the friendliest cafe owner I've ever met. There are some nice people in the retail industry.

Last stop of the day was Scootech to check that the future Ventilato was still available, and to thrash out the deal. All seems well, in fact it is sitting in the owner's garage, not being ridden. Mid-June looks good for collection, just in time for Amiens. I still have a spare bed in a nice warm hotel in Amiens on the 25-27thth of June, if anyone wants to join me and share the costs.

We ended a near-perfect day (except that I didn't get a helmet ) with a trip to Sadler's Wells to see Marie Chouinard's Body Remix/Goldberg Variations. Where to start describing this piece? it was stunning, original, disturbing, grotesque, beautiful, sexy, painful ... completely engrossing. The soundtrack was fantastic and some memorable moments included a bird-like dancer swooping across the stage in a Zimmer frame, and three women dancing with crutches on their heads, to a frighteningly dark piano soundtrack. Cheers to my upstairs neighbour who provided us with tickets for £1.

Sorry for absence! As usual!

Bill, where's your new GTS??? Thought you would have snaffled the Scootech one.... Genie, do you have your Brompton yet?

As a newbie here, it was nice to see a photo of you guys - I was somewhat surprised to see Bill sporting a tiny pair of wings... is this normal or is it a new means of transport?

Well I had to get home from South West London somehow.

My Ma always said I was a little Angel.

The soon to be ex demo Scootech GT250 is locked up in a garage while the owner of the business is away in Paris but I won't be collecting it until mid June so I'm scooterless.

The Brompton hasn't turned up yet as Genie's employer is faffing around with the paperwork.

Billy Angel Wings.

That is a wonderful photo.

In news so exciting you may all spontaneously wet yourselves, I've revamped my website a bit. Previously it had been unchanged since 2002.

Nice one Alice.

First change to the Hornet - fitted an Optimate charging lead instead of the one previously installed. Next will come fittings for the GPS, and then mounting a top-box. All reversible, but all required for getting to Italy in timely fashion.

Had the Griso twice as a loaner when the GTV's been into Haywards.
Wrenches your bleedin arms off!!
Sound sweet too. 8)