Vespa Parades the Practicality of Urban Scootering
Posted on January 9, 2006 - Filed Under Artikel VIO | 2 Comments
http://www.forbesautos.com/news/headlines/2005/may/vespa_parade_1.html
By Mary S. Butler
ForbesAutos.com
NEW YORK ? Spotting a scooter in midtown Manhattan traffic in the middle of a workday is unusual; seeing 32 of them parade through Times Square is unreal.
On Tuesday tourists queuing up outside Radio City Music Hall, as well as office workers taking a lunchtime stroll through Union Square, witnessed the Vespa LX Parade, which was organized by Piaggio USA, maker of the iconic scooter. The procession was one of several events held in New York City earlier this week to promote the introduction of the Vespa LX. The model?s roman numerals are a nod to the nearly 60 years the scooter has been in production.
First introduced in post-war Europe in 1946, the Vespa became an instant success and has since sold more than 16 million units in five continents. But more than its enduring popularity, the scooter’s appeal was in the freedom it gave to riders. A Vespa can reach speeds of up to 65 miles per hour and cost between $1,000 to $6,000.
Parade organizer Anne Green reached out to the Vespa Club of New York, enthusiast sites such as IScootNY.com and lists like Yahoo! Group?s NewYorkScooters in order to reach the city’s scooter community. Her mission was to tap into the enthusiasm that Vespa owners have for their scooters.
?Vespa is a brand and a lifestyle. There is such a passion behind this,? Green said. With the introduction of the LX, ?we thought this would be a good time to give more voice to the people who have been keeping the brand alive in the U.S.,? she explained.
This coat came from a collection designed by Satya Kulkowitz and was one of several designed by students in the Fashion Design program as part of a Parsons Design Lab collaboration with Piaggio USA. |
In addition to engaging current customers, Piaggio is looking to attract future buyers by tapping into the youth market, said Deborah Spence Helman, a PR representative for the company. One such effort is in its partnership with the Parsons School of Design. Piaggio challenged the students to reimagine the Vespa scooter ? traditionally an icon of modern Italian style ? and update it for a 21st-century America. Students in the Fashion Design, Product Design and Design and Technology programs created new concepts for a lifestyle collection, ranging from wearable technologies, accessories and features for the scooter. The designs were unveiled at Monday evening?s Parsons Benefit and Fashion Show at Chelsea Piers in New York.
Who rides on a Vespa? Read our profiles of a dozen riders, including the Too-Hot Helmeteers, High Roller, Small Wheels and the Modern Rocker.
The Making of an Icon
The motor scooter was pioneered in post-World War II Italy by Enrico Piaggio and Corradino D?Ascanio. Piaggio, the son of company founder Rinaldo Piaggio, was responsible for overseeing the rebuilding of the company?s demolished aeronautical plants in Pontedera and Pisa. He decided that the best way to get production going in these plants was to develop a modern and affordable transportation, Musi explained.
A prototype motor scooter, the MP5, was produced in 1945 ? its design was based on a small motorcycle intended for parachutists. Piaggio wasn?t pleased with this first iteration and asked D?Ascanio, an aeronautical designer who had overseen the design of the first modern helicopter, to redesign it. D?Ascanio found motorcycles uncomfortable and impractical: The drivetrain made riders dirty. To make the experience smoother for riders, he put a gear level on the handlebar. He also designed the method for changing the scooter’s tires, by employing a supporting arm similar to that of an aircraft carriage, according to company archives.
1953 Vespa 125 U |
The first time that Americans spotted a Vespa was in 1953?s ?Roman Holiday? when Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn rode the scooter around the Colosseum; it was also the same year the vehicle was introduced into the U.S. market. In 1960 the two-wheeler played a bit part in Federico Fellini?s ?La Dolce Vita? in the now famous scene where the smoldering Marcello Mastroianni rescues a curvalicious Anita Ekberg, who is trying to flee the paparazzi, by giving her a lift on a Vespa.
1961 Vespa ad |
Scooters were starting to enter the mainstream by the time Piaggio pulled Vespa out of the U.S. market in 1985, when more stringent exhaust emission standards went into effect. It would be 15 years before Vespas would be sold stateside again.
Fashion Forward
The Italian scooter made its U.S. return in 2000 in the form of two models ? the 50-cc ET2 and 150-cc ET4. In 2004 Piaggio sold almost 8,000 scooters in the United States, a 22.6 percent increase from the previous year, according to Ben Billingsley, a PR representative for the company.
Rising gas prices, gridlock and tight parking in congested cities are some of the reasons that Musi attributes to renewed American interest in scooters. ?In many U.S. cities the infrastructure is not growing as fast as traffic is increasing. Alternative means of transportation, including bikes, motorcycles and scooters, are being promoted as alternatives to cars,? he said.
Kadshah ?Kaj? Nagibe, one of the participants in Tuesday?s Vespa parade, said he bought a scooter ?out of desperation.” He was tired of waiting for the subway. “I needed a quick way to get around town.?
Though riders like Nagibe find the two-wheel transportation the best way to get around the city, those who are considering a scooter purchase should be aware of potentially stringent parking restrictions in their area. Municipal and many privately owned Manhattan parking garages do not allow scooters. Groups such as the ParkingNOW! Coalition are campaigning for designated on-street and off-street parking in New York City for the powered two-wheel vehicles.
This Year?s Model
The new LX 50 and LX 150 go on sale this summer. The LX series has a larger front wheel than the ET, which it is replacing. It has an automatic transmission and is available with either a 50-cc ($3,199) or 150-cc ($4,199) sport four-stroke engine. For more product information, or to locate a dealer, go to VespaUSA.com.
All Vespa rider interviews conducted by Alisha Trimble and Cat Rivera; all photographs (unless credited otherwise) by Cat Rivera and Alisha Trimble.
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i am vespa manufacture in lahore do you give me a job in you company .i purache many vespa to some country
saya tunggu terjemahannya..thx