Just a quick post to update you on some GREAT news. The armadillo jacket is featured on the latest Think! campaign pushing Car drivers to notice motorcyclists on the road by thinking more about the person riding the motorcycle.
The armadillo Camo night vision jacket is worn by the character Tom ‘the shy retiring type’ its a nicely styled ad.The campaign’s message is that motorcyclists are a wide range of people, with names, personalities and families just like car drivers.
The new campaign aims to take this idea one step further, by exploring the notion that awareness of motorcyclists can be increased by making drivers think more about the person riding the motorcycle.
Apparently research uncovered by Dr David Crundall, of the University of Nottingham, shows that empathy with motorcyclists is important. Drivers with relatives who ride motorcycles have been reported to have fewer collisions with motorcyclists and have better observation skills in regard to motorcycles.
We are glad to be a part of it and road visibility is something we are very conscious of when developing our current and all future collections.
It’s a simple blog post this week, little chatter but lots of shiny scooter goodness. The 25 photos below are some of the finest I’ve encountered in the last year or so, plus a few that don’t quite fit in that category. My own scooter may or may not also be amongst them, ahem.
Last June I was in Boston at the tail-end of a 3 month trip around the United States of America (and a bit of Canada) and I met up with some chaps from the Boston Stranglers S.C.. I’d meant to hook up with a few different stateside scooter clubs while on this tour but didn’t end up doing for various reasons. As soon as I saw this lot’s website though I knew I wanted to get involved, the people and scooters looked very cool.
Jon ‘Roadkill’ Rhodes was the bloke I was communicating with and he offered to give me a tour of the city on my favourite mode of transport. Having not been on a scooter for about 12 weeks by this time, I of course jumped at the chance. Jon has a decent collection of 5 or 6 scoots in different stages of restoration, I got to go out on a very nippy little 1992 Vespa PK50 with a Pollini 133 kit while Jon himself was on a gorgeous standard 1968 Vespa Primavera.
The weather was mimicking Manchester rather too well in that it was leathering it down but this is not something a hardcore scooterist snivels at, we had a great blast round Boston anyway. We headed off from the Jamaica Plain neighbourhood over to Eric’s (another club member) scooter repair shop, Metropolis Scooters. That was a cool place that I enjoyed mooching about and after a quick chat with Eric and check-over of the scoots we were on our way again. We went through a fair few towns before heading up the Chickatawbut Road (I love that name) through the Blue Hills directly south of Boston, from here we should have been able to go up to the overlook which would offer good views of the city but it was closed for some reason. So instead we went out onto the peninsula connecting Nut Island (I love that name too) for some happy snaps. In the city we went past JFK Library, Boston Garden (where The Bruins and The Celtics play), Castle Island, North End (basically Little Italy, that was the best bit for me), Mass Ave bridge and MIT to name a few. Then it was time for a couple of pints at the pub for the weekly meet-up of The Stranglers, a good set of lads they were too. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and night. Cheers Jon.
That was the first-time I’d ridden a smallframe and it handled really well, I do not intend it to be the last.
I met up with Eric again the following night and he took me to a punk night near Harvard, after that he showed me a couple of garages where he stores his scooters. I couldn’t count them all, it was a veritable treasure trove. There was all sorts of rare and vintage stuff that he’d imported from Europe, including some Maciolettas which I’d never had the chance to see in the flesh/metal before. Here’s what I’d envisage they might look like once fully restored.
Be sure to get in touch with these guys if you’re visiting Boston and have a leaning towards all things 2-stroke, they’re very kind and hospitable so I’m sure they’d welcome any other scooterists from around the world in the same way they did me.
One other thing I wanted to say; American scooterists (and the the Boston Stranglers particularly) deserve a fair bit of kudos really, the amount of miles they rack-up on their journeys to domestic far-flung rallys is ridiculously impressive. The Stranglers are often visitors to rallys on these shores too, long may it continue.
Recently a number of fellow Lyons (including our most famous member, Mani of Stone Roses and Primal Scream fame) were jammy enough to make it on to the set of Channel 4’s Shameless as extras in an episode with a mod vs rockers theme. If I hadn’t been busy gallivanting I might have got in on the action myself, doh.
It’s episode 9 which should mean it gets an airing on the 23rd March so tune in to see some smart scoots and the lads in leathers getting what for. There’s a few photos below to wet your whistle and some more are available on a friend’s YouTube feed here:
Claire Dodd from the club assures me that the bloke who plays Frank Gallagher (David Threlfall) is a very well spoken chap which in my book makes him a proper actor rather than just someone who sounds exactly like they do on the telly, off the telly. Well there you go.
A few months back during my 4 month tour of Europe (not on 2 wheels) I found myself in Tuscany armed with the information that the Piaggio Museum wasn’t much over half an hour away via the train from Florence where I was staying, result.
It’s situated on the grounds of the factory in Pontedera and it’s directly on the way to Pisa which most tourists end up visiting while in the area. It’s also free entry in. So if you’re into scooters and round those parts, it’s a must.
The Vespas they had on show were mouth-watering, some absolutely mint classics as you’d expect. I’m thinking of planning an elaborate heist at some point in the future, the Italian Job if you will. If anyone wants in then give me a shout.
I’m Dan, a keen scooter enthusiast and member of Manchester Lyons S.C.. The folks at Armadillo have kindly asked me to do a bit of blogging on scooters and scootering around the World and I’ve happily agreed.
To start us off I’ll briefly recall my mini-adventure last year from Manchester into the Scottish highlands on a unmodified (at the time!) PX125 complete with girl on back and various large bags and camping gear.
Kirkwall in the Orkney Isles was my ultimate destination and we got there succesfully via lots of pretty towns and cities and some gorgeous scenery directly through the centre of the highlands. The photo is of some firth or other. I can’t remember if it was the first, third, fourth or fifth firth we had seen. Blimey.
I didn’t see a single other scooter in about a week and half but there were lots of motorcyclists touring and some of them couldn’t believe we were doing this on a 125 with 10′ wheels, neither could I at times. One German couple on a fancy BMW bike were that amazed when we spoke to them that they actually tailed us from Taigh Iain Ghròt (or John o’ Groats when I’m not spitting) for a couple of miles with the girl on the back taking pictures of us from a variety of angles. It was the first time I’d ever been ‘papped’ and a very unusual experience.
One snapped clutch cable in a dodgy Glasgow suburb while on route to my cousin’s wedding reception was the only techinical issue encountered, not bad for a 1000+ mile round trip eh. She also held up well on the steep gradients for the majority of the time, the only really hard-going bit was a paricularly nasty stretch of the A9 near Aviemore where a few more CC wouldn’t have gona amiss. Vespas, great until you tinker with them.
It was a fantastic trip and if you can get the good weather as we did, it’s a wonderful country for a wee bit of scootering.
If the fancy takes you, you can read more of my travelling tales (sadly not all scooter related) at http://sendthebuggerback.com.
Over the last couple of months, I’ve been priviliged enough to have been able to road test the stylish and chic Macintosh from the latest Armadillo range. Given that the summer just passed in London was one of eccentric weather to say the least, I’m happy to say I’ve managed to put this funky jacket through its paces on numerous rideouts in all sorts of weather.
What amazes me about this jacket when you first see it, is the
detailing. Double breasted with waist buckle strap, buckle strap
sleeves with hidden storm cuffs (perfect for holding out the cold and
wet and keeping the warmth in) and a nice buckle and strap on the
neck, not to mention the epilates and storm flap venting! It would be
easy to mistake this for a high fashion item in your mens boutique!
So, with the style perfect for the classic scooter riding Mod through
to modern twist and go clothes stylist, lets look at the
functionality.
D30 technology is a big selling point here. Subtle padding in the
shoulders and elbows/forearms keep the jacket lightweight while
retaining a high level of mobility for the wearer. There is also a
waterproofing in the weave of the material, which keeps 100% of
moisture OUT which I’ve never come across before either. There are
plenty of pockets in this garment too, perfect for all your ipods
(theres a nifty valve for your headphones), passports and house keys
if you fancy a quick jaunt to the French Riviera on your steed! It’s
also worth noting the mac is lightly lined too, so it keeps out the
chill and wind to low teens if you decide to ride with nothing but a
t-shirt underneath (done many a time!).
I’ve definitely had all sorts of weather thrown at me in the last
couple of months during one of the most tumultuous London summers ive
seen. Still, this has provided me with a great testing ground for the
mac. Daily commutes from one side of London to the other helped me
test the agility of the mac while zipping through traffic at various
speeds and angles; numerous warm lazy Sunday evening rides from Bar
Italia with cotton shirts underneath meant the mac could breathe and
keep me cool while we pitched up at along the river in Richmond; a
ride to the Ace Cafe for their monthly Mods and Minis night in the
hammering rain and freezing cold saw me bone dry from the waist up (I
should invest in some decent waterproofs) as we staggered into the Ace
for a cuppa to the shock of over 100 mini owners; and the mac really
impressed me while riding to the Isle of Wight Scooter Rally for the
August Bank Holiday, when, on the journey to Portsmouth, a severe
weather warning was issued for heavy rain and squalid conditions with
a rather warm temperature. No matter though, after 3 hours in the
rain there wasn’t a drop on my clothes underneath and I was nice and
toasty so you can imagine I was the envy of many a soaked shivering
scooterist on the ferry queuing for their coffee!
My only negative aspects are the longer sleeves but I can see why it has
been made this way to accommodate riders arms fully stretched and
the fairly exposed neck area means that the rider should be wearing a
scarf or similar under the mac to protect that area of their bodies.
But aside from that its bang on!
So here we have an agile, lightweight, protective, warm and above all
stylish mac, all for a more than reasonable price. For me, it ticks
all the boxes so thats the two thumbs up from this El Presidente.
Nicky Bubbles
El Presidente
Bar Italia Scooter Club London
Armadillo have shot their first commercial its been an amazing 2 days. The results are going to be stunning.
Darkfibre, a directing team from England directed the film; the DOP was amazingly Michael Bonvillain, of Lost, Fringe and Cloverfield fame. The music will be scored by High frequency Bandwidth (aka the ORB)
The story “A mysterious scooter rider travels through the streets of a metropolis, in a slightly surreal landscape. Suddenly – and out of the blue – our hero finds himself involved in a series of bizarre accidents that will severely test his and his Armadillo jacket’s resistance, as he’s caught in a world made of explosions, evil pie-throwing clowns and more… will he be tough enough?”
This, in a nutshell, is the synopsis of the new Armadillo viral for this fall. A collection of over-the-top and crazy stunts shot in high definition and high-speed to glorify the style and the technical quality of the product.
Last week we joined the Bar Italia Scooter Club on a rideout the weather was beautiful. We kitted the club in armadillo product, the pictures look great.
I’m looking forward to joining them again in a few weeks.
Check out our online store where you'll find the latest in stylish scooter wear.
Our design philosophy is simple: get all the benefits of technical performance fabrics with classic garment styles that you will always want to wear, from funnel parkas to classic macs.
