OWNERS DETAILS
Names: Johnny and Jane Cambridge – this is a joint project with both our inputs. Scooter club & town: We are currently members of Vespa Lambretta Club Le Plan de la Tour – south of France – we have a house in the village. We also meet up occasionally with the Cambridge Scooter Club. How and when did you first become interested in scooters: Johnny – When I was about 12 I was dancing to 2-Tone at my dad’s disco; he was a DJ. It seemed a natural progression for me to dress as a MOD and get a scooter probably having watched Quadrophenia, but those years are a blur it was just what you did in those days. Jane – My then boyfriend and his friends all started riding scooters when I was 14 and they were older. With pretty laid back parents I was getting lifts on scooters and couldn’t wait to get my own. What was your first scooter: Johnny – At the age of 15, I had a 1960 Sportique which I paid £15 for. It was yellow with Tartan covers and I hand painted it black in the back garden under tarpaulin sheets. Jane – At the age of 16 in 1981 I had a Vespa 50 Special W-reg dark blue. My dad who had an electrical shop at the time did a swap with Graham Jenkins the local motorbike/scooter shop owner, a TV or was it a CB radio in exchange for a scooter! What is your favourite style of custom scooter: We both agree that anything that has had thought and time, love and sweat put into it has our respect. First rally or event: Johnny – Clacton in 1985, I actually had cancer at the time but didn’t know, not a good start as I was in pain all weekend. Jane – It was Worcester in September 1981. It was my 16th birthday weekend and the first night I slept on a garage forecourt on the way. It’s hard to forget waking up cold and wet with no tent, just a parka. How did you get there: Johnny – Kevin Broome’s Cortina. Jane – Back of boyfriends scooter. Favourite rally/event: We both love the Isle of Wight; it’s the best rally in the world! We were at Vespa World Days in the south of France 2016 on Bobby Lambretta. We were very impressed with the worldwide turn out. What’s the furthest you’ve ever ridden on a scooter: Johnny – Exmouth. Jane – Isle of Wight. What do you like about rallies/events: The feeling of being part of a big family, our kind of people, the smell of two-stroke and noise of scooters. What do you dislike about rallies/events: Nothing as anything goes and it’s great to see likeminded people enjoying life.
spent on it, so far. Paul Yeoman is an absolute master with an airbrush he did Jack The Ripper From Hell custom Lambretta paint and artwork 16 years ago. As well as being very talented he’s a genuinely nice guy, and patient too, which helped immensely with both me and Jane changing our mind about what we wanted. I’ve never been one to put any scooter I’ve built into a show.
“When it comes down to it, the way I see it is any custom scooter has been built to suit the owner’s requirements, and that’s what matters. Depending on which light it is viewed in, the base paintwork appears, magenta pink to orange, with other colours in between. It was available in America, Paul had a contact in the UK who he sourced some from.
“When it was first painted a couple of years ago the paintwork ended up sustaining a bit of damage from both assembling as well as from being ridden. It was, in reality, minor damage, caused mainly where the rear running boards and the side panels touched. I contacted Paul with a view to having a bit of a respray to repair the damage, it transpired
he was experiencing some issues in obtaining the paint. The only person in the UK offering the paint proved to be very hard to contact for a time. Paul via various contacts in America attempted to source some in the States only to discover it had been discontinued so was no longer available. Dependant on who was asked it was referred to as flip paint or the one I prefer, chameleon paint. Unexpectedly, Paul finally managed to nail the fellow in the UK down, he did have some chameleon paint, needless to say, it was bought from him. And subsequently, the minor damage to the paintwork was repaired.”
Back To My Roots
So Many Sides Of You is an ongoing project, with, as already mentioned, some additional gold plating planned for the near future. Johnny and Jane are also considering asking Paul (Yeoman) to add some extra Womack murals in the future. That said, they each have their own individual scooter projects. Johnny having tracked down and recently reacquired his old custom Lammy, Jack The Ripper From Hell, which has, in the interim, passed through the hands of a few owners. While Jane has obtained a Lui 50CL. Don’t expect to see Johnny and Jane’s stunning Series 1 entered in many custom shows, however, if you happen upon their Scoots and Soul stall, a regular at selected National and regional rallies, So Many Sides Of You will be parked up close by. Where the sheer quality of workmanship that’s gone into creating what is one of the best full blown custom scooters in recent times, can be seen in all its glory. A top custom machine, best summed up by borrowing the title of Bobby’s 1986 album title, Womagic. Words: Sarge Photographs: Gary Chapman