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The Killer Kern Loop 3
Local club invites you to experience return of an annual tradition, Sept. 12-14

By Alex Neal, Bakotopia.com contributor

Scooter: “An animal that pivots on the front feet and scoots the back end around, instead of pivoting on the front feet and kicking the hind feet.” — Webster’s Dictionary

It’s the love and passion of scooters that brought a small band of like-minded enthusiasts together to form the Bakersfield Rally Pilots Scooter Club. On Sept. 12 through 14, the Rally Pilots will be hosting the third annual Killer Kern Loop Scooter Rally in Bakersfield.



This event is sponsored locally by Fred Cummings Motorsports and Bikersfield Leather and Accessories as well as several other California-based scooter retailers such as Labretta Works and First Kick Scooters out of San Francisco, Motorsport Scooters in San Diego, and Bar Italia Classics in Van Nuys as well as the famed Skatelab.

The weekend starts with a bang Friday night at Fishlips where Fat Katt and the Von Zippers will kick off the rally weekend. Then on Saturday, Fred Cummings Motorsports and the Rally Pilots will host a continental breakfast and start their 110-mile ride through some of the most beautiful natural scenery that Kern County has to offer.

The scooters will ride up snaking roads and into the mountains through prairie landscapes, rushing rivers and cows as they make their way through Havilah, and Lake Isabella, then back down to Bakersfield.


Above: The Rally Pilots, L to R: Raja Kumar, Skip Vierra, Sean Williams, Grant Simpson, Alex Neal, Megan Moore, Sarah Williams

Bakersfield has had a long tradition of scooter clubs riding the streets of Bakersfield since the early ’80s when the release of the Movie “Quadrophenia” helped to spark a mod revolution in the imagination of youth trying to find their identities in an ever changing world fueled by anthems of The Who. Then on through the ’90s, scootering continued
when punk and ska culture was dominating the scene.

Bakersfield saw the founding of the San Joaquin Treads Scooter Club as well as the Unforgiven Scooter Club. The Rally Pilots are Bakersfield’s newest scooter Club, being founded in 2005.

Across Europe, Vespas or Lambrettas are simply referred to as “mo-peds.” However, try telling an American who’s riding one that he’s on a nice mo-ped and he’ll sharply retort, “It’s a scooter, not a mo-ped! You see any pedals on this thing?”



Never, ever call a “scooter” in America a “mo-ped.”

Italy’s Enrico Piaggio is credited with the creation of the first “motorscooter” during a time when much of Europe was still coping with wartime gasoline rations.

In December of 1947, the Vespa made its debut. Piaggio gave the bike its name after the president of Piaggio remarked, “Sembra una Vespa!” (“It looks like a wasp!”) And that’s how the name was born with similar aerodynamics and bulbous fenders.



Following Cushman in the 1950s, many manufacturers all over the world have come out with fascinating designs for the American market. The Italian scooters: Vespa, Lambretta, Benelli, Piaggio, Gilera, and Malaguti, followed a grand tradition but were later joined by China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Spain, England, and Germany, who produced such scooters as Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kymco, Phantom, Aprilia, Roketa, Peugeot, Tank, Bandit, and many more.

Immediately following the ride, there will be a barbecue and raffle event with portions of the proceeds benefitting Toys for Tots. The Rally Pilots invite anyone who has a love for Scootering and Fun to come out and join them.

Visit: www.rallypilotsc.com for more information about the Killer Kern Loop Scooter Rally event or joining the Rally Pilots.

Also printed in Bakotopia magazine, issue 36, 9-4-08