Nathaniel Salzman

Chicago area designer, writer, maker and journalist.

Scooters & Motorcycles

June 6, 2010

Ride log: Holiday weekend wrenching

June 1, 2010 — Last October I read a book about the pleasure of working with one’s own two hands. In a way, all that Shop Class as Soulcraft did was remind me of things I already knew I enjoyed, but that reminder has really impacted my quality of life since then. I was already – Read More –

May 17, 2010

Ride log: My bike the boulder

May 5, 2010 — In ancient greek mythology there is a story of a king called Sisyphus. This precocious fellow garnered the wrath of the gods through hubris and treachery. His now famous punishment was to roll a boulder up a hill, only to see it then roll back down over and over again. This, – Read More –

May 12, 2010

Ride log: Branching out big time (part three)

May 1, 2010 — “You wanna go for a ride?” the Mrs asked. We’d just arrived home a few minutes before. She in my MINI, and me on our latest acquisition, a 1980 Honda CB650. I’d snapped a few photos and had mostly recovered from the mild trial of the ride home. I had to – Read More –

May 11, 2010

Ride log: Branching out big time (part two)

May 1, 2010 — With a bike for The Mrs sorted, now it was time to find something for me. I really liked that we’d found her a Honda, and so I wanted one too. I have a fondness for Honda because I’ve owned a couple of their cars and driven them beyond 200,000 miles. – Read More –

May 10, 2010

Ride log: Branching out big time (part one)

April 29, 2010 —Back in 2008, I got really interested in the idea of a Cafe Racer motorcycle. As far back as 2006 I’d been watching a lot of American Chopper, and though I rarely got too excited about the kinds of bikes they build, the whole notion of a proper motorcycle was something that – Read More –

April 24, 2010

Ride log: The morning scooter commute

April 20, 2010 — It’s 7:30 a.m. My garage door groans its way open. Morning light spills into my little one-car garage. It’s about 40º out. It’s gonna be a cold ride this morning. Better get my balaclava. I walk around the back of my Vespa GT200L, my hand on the seat like I’m rounding – Read More –

April 2, 2010

Ride log: Scooter tweetup

April 1, 2010 — Social media is still a pretty young phenomena, yet its presence in our culture is already pretty profound. We’re now able to connect with people more easily than ever. Some lament that this ease means that our connections are less meaningful. I suppose that’s true if you have 1500 Facebook friends – Read More –

March 31, 2010

Ride log: TNR!

March 23, 2010 — In a lot of scooter cities, there’s a standing, weekly, come-one-come-all ride. In the TC, ride night is on Tuesday and it goes by the illustrious name of TNR — Tuesday Night Ride. Each year the ride meeting place oscillates between St. Paul and Minneapolis. This year, it’s St. Paul’s turn. – Read More –

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