CSC Blog

Cyril Huze writes the best blog ever…he’s the guy I want to be when I grow up!    If you’re not reading it every day, you should be!

Our good buddy Cyril Huze, who writes the best blog on the Internet!

And you know what?   Today Cyril featured our Canadian approval announcement!  Just like on our blog, Cyril has a spot for reader comments…so if you’re a CSC rider, please visit Cyril’s outstanding blog and weigh in with your opinion!

Just a few quick photos this morning, friends, of a couple of serious riders…one I saw on Facebook, and the other two from our good buddy Howard.

This first one is of Steve McQueen, obviously taking a break from the Wanted Dead or Alive television series…

I think this is a very cool photo.  I think the car is a Jaguar…any of you know?

And I have been getting some absolutely awesome photos from Howard on his epic 4-month road trip.  Check these great photos from Glacier National Park…

Great photos, Howard, and to you and all of our other riders, please keep them coming!

I know a lot of you folks like to read (why else would you be reading the CSC blog?) and a lot of you are gearheads (same question…why else would you be reading the CSC blog?).

With that in mind, I’ll step out on a limb and make a book recommendation.  Every once in a while I find a book that’s so outstanding I feel compelled to tell other folks about it, and this is one of those times.

I just finished reading Car Guys versus Bean Counters by Bob Lutz.   I bought it a few months ago when I saw it in an airport bookstore while I was on one of my many secret missions, and I finally got around to reading it last week.  Bob Lutz is a certifiable gearhead with the credentials and experience to back it up…he’s held very senior positions with Ford, BMW, Chrysler, and General Motors.  Car Guys versus Bean Counters is mostly about his experiences at GM.  GM brought Mr. Lutz back to help the company find its way again…which is another way of saying that his job was to help GM conceive, develop, and make cars people would want to buy.

A lot of you guys and gals are my age, and you know that in the 1950s and 1960s, GM was absolutely ahead of the rest of the world (I think ahead of the entire world) at producing cars that were exciting.  Think 1955 Chevys, the Pontiac GTO, Corvettes, the Corvette Stingray, the Olds Toronado and Cadillac El Dorado, the 1959 Coupe de Ville (love those fins!), the SS 396 Chevelle, the El Camino, the Camaro, the Buick Riviera, and, well, you get the idea.  It was the golden age for American automobile production and a great time to be a teenager, and GM was at the top of the heap.  Then the company lost its way, and the cars GM cranked out in the mid-70s and beyond were (in my opinion) just awful.

Lutz explains that the reasons behind GM’s fall from glory was not just the financial folks (the “bean counters”), but a pre-occupation with committee-based design efforts that bred a culture of mediocrity.   He makes a strong case for strong-willed leaders who design cars based on their instincts and a connection with the product, not what cost reduction, producibility, and all of the other “ilities” committees will approve.    The good news is that GM is on the way back, and I think you can see that in their new cars.   I especially like what’s being offered by Cadillac and Chevy (I’ve always been a Chevy man).  I love my Subie (it’s one of the best cars I’ve ever owned), but there’s nothing on four wheels more exciting than my Z-06 Corvette.  It’s American made, with the right look and the right sound.  Just like my California Scooter.

As I read the book, I thought about California Scooter Company and why it’s different than any of the other companies I’ve been around.   In Car Guys versus Bean Counters, Bob Lutz basically made the case for having a guy just like Steve Seidner making the design and styling decisions in companies that make exciting products.   I think you’ve seen that in our bikes…from the stock Babydoll, Greaser, Classic, and Babydoll models, all the way to our land speed record bike, the John Deere bike, the Silver Ghost, and many more.  Our bikes get people excited.  You can see it when they buy a California Scooter, you can see it when they ride our bikes, and you can see it in the photos our riders share with us (I’ve got more great photos I’ll post from our buddy Howard’s epic 4-month road trip next week, but in the meantime, you can catch a glimpse of Howard and his CSC in Glacier National Park in the collage below…and trust me, the smile is real).

Steve and a Greaser drawing inspiration from a P-51 Mustang

Good times...clockwise from upper left it's our very own movie star Lupe on a red Classic, Howard in Glacier National Park with his red Classic, two fellows admiring Steve's personal Sarge at the LA Roadster Show, the Silver Ghost, and Sylvain at speed setting the 150cc land speed record

Folks, there’s more custom stuff coming down the CSC pipe line.   Great stuff.  Stuff I can’t tell you about yet.  Stuff that wasn’t designed by a committee.  Stuff that will excite you.

Stay tuned.

I thought I’d start out with a YouTube video of the Canadian national anthem, but I’ll get to that in a minute…

The big news is that CSC motorcycles are now approved in Canada!

Yessirree, we are completely street legal in Canada, and there’s even more good news…to kick start the effort for out neighbors to the north, we’re picking up the freight and customs duties on the first 20 bikes…that’s about a $500 savings!

Our Canadian approval test bike, the Silver Ghost...one of the best-looking customs we've ever done!

I’ve spent a lot of time in Canada in the last few years…Calgary, Edmonton, Kananaskis (K country, one of the most beautiful spots on the planet), Fort St. John, Chetwynd, and more.  I love it up there, and I can only imagine what fun it would be to ride around on a California Scooter.

The Canadians are great people, too.   Their sense of humor is absolutely top notch.   You might not know this, but many of our top entertainers here in the US are Canadians.  Jim Carrey is one of my favorites, and his portrayal of Andy Kaufman impersonating Elvis (from the Man on the Moon film) has to be one of the all time classic movie scenes…

I found the above video looking for something with a Canadian flair on Youtube to include in today’s blog, such as the Canadian national anthem (which is, of course, O Canada!).  Clips with Jim Carrey started popping up, and when I saw that one above, I thought you might enjoy it.

Our weekend wheels - the Starship Subie!

Great weekend…Susie and I hopped in the WRX and rolled up to Palo Alto for a seminar.  I don’t get to go to seminars too often, but when I heard about this one, I knew I had to go.  Not only was it on a topic in which I have a keen interest…it was on the Stanford University campus and it was taught by two real experts (more on that in a moment).

Carla King...rider, writer, and professor extraordinaire!

Another great thing about the Tahoe trip is that I met some very interesting people.  One was Carla King.  If the name sounds familiar to you, it’s because you might have heard of Carla from her solo motorcycle adventures around North America and China.  Just awesome stuff, and her book, American Borders, is a “must read.”   I read it several years ago and one of the reasons I wanted to make the trip to Tahoe was for the opportunity to meet Carla.  I felt like I already knew her from the magnificent writing in American Borders, but there’s nothing like actually meeting someone in person.  So, it was a quick blitz up the 395, and another two days of trying to keep up with Carla on her KLR.  Yep, she’s a real rider, and she’s fast!

I had a very interesting conversation about publishing with Ms. King on that Tahoe trip.  As you may know, I’m no stranger to a keyboard.   Most of you guys and gals know me through the CSC blog, but I’ve also done a few books (if you punch my name in on Amazon, you might be surprised).  Over a hamburger somewhere in the Sierras, I mentioned to Carla that I thought the publishers have generally done a poor job in marketing my books.  I’ve had some big name publishers (Chilton, Sterling, Elsevier, Wiley, and others), and none of them have impressed me.  Carla told me I needed to look into self-publishing, and she recommended an approach.

The latest book, now available on Amazon

Well, that idea really stuck in my mind.  I did what Carla suggested, and I had a question or two in the process.    I pounded out a manufacturing book on delivery performance improvement in pretty short order based largely on Carla’s guidance.  Carla knows the publishing business inside and out, and she gives seminars on this topic.  It turns out that Carla is also a great seminar leader.  I know that because she invited me to her seminar this weekend.   I didn’t have to be asked twice…and early yesterday Sue and I pointed the Starship Subie north.

We talked about blogs in the seminar, and Carla and her teaching partner Laurie McLean mentioned that blog writing is a great way to keep the writing machinery between your ears well oiled.  So hear I sit, tapping away on the California Scooter blog, keeping the literary levers lavishly lubricated (FYI, I also do a blog on some pretty sophisticated manufacturing topics, and you can read that one here).   Laurie and Carla said a lot of folks actually do books based on their blogs.   Hmmm.   That’s an interesting book idea…a book based on the California Scooter Company blog!  I would have thought people would just go to the blog instead of buying a book based on a blog, but Carla and Laurie told me blog books actually do pretty well!

The Gatling Gun...a great story on the original guns and their modern reincarnations!

And here’s another…I’ve been thinking about a Mustang/California Scooter book ever since I became one of Steve’s soldiers in the CSC squadron.   About 20 years ago I wrote a book about the history and modern applications of the Gatling gun (that’s a heck of a story…starting with the Civil War era Gatlings all the way to modern Vulcans used on high performance military aircraft).  When I first learned about the California Scooter Company and how it emerged from Steve’s purchase of his 1953 Mustang Pony, I immediately recognized how the Mustang/CSC story paralleled early Gatlings evolving into modern high-rate-of-fire gun systems.

I always thought a story about the original Mustang Motor Products Corporation and the current California Scooter Company would make a whale of a book.  I’ve got a lot of great photos of both Mustangs and CSC motorcycles, tons of great information on both companies, and I think this would make for an interesting book.

But what I think doesn’t really matter…it’s what you think that’s important.

So, folks, what do you think?  Would you be interested in a book about the original Mustangs and today’s modern CSC motorcycles?   Let me know with a comment here on the CSC blog, and if there’s enough interest, we’ll launch this project!

One of my favorite photos...a new CSC and our 1953 Mustang Pony!

And hey, another email just popped into my inbox…check this one out from the Boss himself!

Joe,

Can you post this used CSC on the blog, please?

If someone out there is looking for a killer deal, this bike won’t be in the showroom for long.  It is a 2011 with only 277 miles on it.   This Classic has a bunch of cool accessories:  Chrome solid disc wheels with chrome billet hubs, chrome exhaust, chrome foot controls, chrome lower fork legs, and a billet registration holder under the triple tree.   This bike includes an extra chain and a 29-tooth sprocket, and the stock exhaust. 

This is one of the last bikes we sold in 2011 with the script logo on the tank.   The bike is perfect and it does not have a scratch on it.   Please tell our readers to give T.K a call at 909-445-0900.  This bike will sell fast at the price we have on it.

Steve

Wow…I know the price, folks, but you have to call T.K. to hear it yourself.  Check out these photos Steve sent to me just a short while ago…

Somebody is going to be a happy camper on this one, folks!

Will it be you?

Hey, folks, check this out!

Joe,

Attached is a picture taken in the front of my summer cottage on Galiano Island, British Columbia, about halfway between Vancouver and Victoria.  The island is perfect for the bike, as you can’t go much faster than 35 mph and gas is $1.40/liter here.  Note that I have the “quiet” exhaust installed.  The Mountie on our island frowns on “naughty” residents who “disturb our peaceful community”! 

Best to you and CSC,

Norm

Norm, thanks very much for taking the time to write to us and for sending that great photo…looks like you are living life to the fullest.  Ride safe and be nice to your Mountie…word has it that you and the RCMP might be seeing a lot more CSC motorcycles in BC real soon!

You’ll remember our blog post from a few days ago, when Cindi and Andre were having a tough time deciding whether to go for an orange Classic or our Greaser model…

Well, the vote is in, and Andre picked up their new bike (the orange Classic) yesterday!

Best of luck to you two!  Ride safe, and we’ll see you on the road.

Our good buddy Howard is continuing his epic Scooter saga, and I just received three more great photos from him!

Here’s Howard and his CSC motorcycle at one of his many destinations during this trip…

And two more with these comments…

Joe,

When I was in Kingman, AZ for the Mustang/Cushman meet, I met a fellow from Bozeman, MT.  Don told me to call him when I got to Bozeman, which I did.   He was tied up until today, when we finally got together and he took me on one of the best rides, so far. 

We rode the Hyalite Canyon Road to Hyalite Reservoir, where the picture was taken.

Howard

Thanks very much, Howard.   And folks, here’s the photo Howard sent to me from the Hyalite Reservoir, along with a photo of Howard’s new buddy Don and their two classic bikes.

Don, that’s a mighty nice-looking Cushman!

And folks, keep those photos coming…we love receiving them!

You may recall this photo we showed you a year or so ago of our good buddy TC on his Mustang at the top of Pike’s Peak…

TC rode his bike all the way to the top of Pike’s Peak back in 1966!

And do you know what? TC is still riding and winning awards, except these days he’s doing it on the motorcycle Mustang would be manufacturing if they were still in business…the California Scooter! Check out these photos TC sent to us…

The recent TC photos are from Manteca’s 4th of July parade, where TC took 2nd place honors in the classic cycles and cars category!

Congratulations to you, TC, and thanks very much for sending these great photos to us!