The new 2008 PMP graphic at the Jennings event in Florida

According to an old Italian saying “A wet bride is a lucky bride”, so I feel to extend a similar wish to our 2008 PMP graphic. Last weekend the PMP crew was in Jennings, Florida for the customary winter event down South, in the so-called Sun State, but on Saturday the guys (I remained in NYC) were welcomed by heavy rain and unusual low temperatures. Indeed Sunday was a dry day and the temperature went up to 52, warm enough to let starving riders to satisfy their hanger for riding accumulated after almost 4 months of inactivity. I have not met yet the guys to get more details, but I did hear that despite the winter rust, they were going as fast as they could, inspired by the presence of a “Canadian champion” in Jennings for a week of tests.
Anyhow, thank you to Almos we have a few picture about the weekend and the new PMP 2008 graphic too! This year our “painter” Mario Pires opted for a mono-color bike, white pearl with blue reflections, while the graphic, inspired by one of Rossi’s bikes in 2007, was developed by our artist and graphic specialist Diana Sliwa, JS Typography. It is again Diana behind the creation of the beautiful PMP poster/wall paper picture that shows in detail our beloved trademark logo.

On a different note it’s with a lot of curiosity that I post the following picture:

This the GPS layout of the track with info about the rider’s performance as memorized by Almos’s latest gadget on his GSX-R 750: I will let him, maybe in the comment section,to describe the different functions of this expensive toy.
The next track event for us will be only in April, but with all the MotoGp tests scheduled in the next future and all the speculations and suspense that they create the time will go by fast …very fast.

The 2008 PMP graphic soon unveiled in Jennings

Twelve months ago in Jennings we unveiled the new PMP bikes. During the season several other friends decided to join our group, so during the summer it happened more than once to have 8-12 PMP bikes lined up all together in front our tents in the pit areas. The attention generated by the bikes along with our friendly attitude have created the opportunity to meet a lot of interesting people with whom we have hanged out at the race track as well at fun nights out in NYC.
Anyhow, in the last couple of months we have decided to add new graphic ideas so, again with the help of Mario Pires and Diana Sliwa we created a PMP re-interpretation of a design used by our hero, Valentino Rossi, during the past season: next week, the first 2008 PMP bike will roll on the track along with the “old sisters” … pictures will follow!

Isn't she beatiful?

Our friend John Glass has just sent me this beautiful picture of his Ducati 999 and of … his cat along with a very interesting link of a video with the Ducati Xerox Team mechanics at work.
The other cat on the dirt bike belongs to Diana Sliwa from JS Typography: her cat must have sit on all our bikes while she was working on the PMP graphics.

Those …“decals” in Brooklyn: JS Typography

When a couple of weeks ago we went to pick up our new plastics painted by Mario Pires at AJS Autowerks Body shop we were very excited but back in Brooklyn a few guys raised their eyebrows when looking at the flamboyant rainbow flakes of a wonderful paintjob that, to them, it seemed more appropriated on a chromed-up low ride than a race bike. Personally, I was convinced that we had a good combination of colors with a very effective design so we had only to balance those glittery flakes with some original and precious decals.

With our luggage of thoughts and the first of the 5 bikes, Antonio, Naim and I went to see our friend Diana Sliwa. Along with her parents she owns JS Typography, a very successful graphic studio, located at 8659 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214 (718 676-6098 or 718 234-6847).

In the late 90s we were going for bike numbers and decals to another local shop but it was like to go to see a dentist with a terrible toothache: we had to do it, it was going to be expensive and we knew that we were going to satisfy our needs but not our emotions. Let’s be honest … our first few race plastics were just ok, nothing wrong with them, but overall blah, like a dish with no salt! Then, one day, I guess five or six years ago, Robert Lombardi met this young girl, Diana. At that time she was studying fashion design and helping her father in the new typography business. She had probably never seen a race motorcycle in her life, neither her father, but she decided to produce decals for who became her first road racer customer. In the following months her enthusiasm, immense creativity and patience in understanding each client’s need, made the rest: all the motorcycle riders in the neighbor started rely on her expertise to repair, personalize and improve the overall look of their bikes.

In this project we knew only: that we were going to use the PMP and PurePassion logos (trademarks designed by me and developed by Diana a couple of years ago) and that per Mario’s suggestion we should have tried orange pin stripes. We had no clue about what colors and font to use for the numbers, sponsors, and various logos … and how to “manage those flakes” ….

In similar situations Diana is the best: she has a proven method to collect, screen and organize the customer’s ideas to satisfy his or her mode of expression while guiding emotions towards feasible solutions that always remain tasteful.

It took several hours, more than a few espresso macchiati and several attempts to come up with the right combinations of colors to dress up Naim’s bike. We started with the pin stripes, then the numbers, next the Pure Passion decals. For those, as for the front fender PMP logo Diana did a really great job, something that I could compare to a piece of bijouterie: layers of special reflective material that was finally able to counteract the relentless game of rainbows created by Mario Pires’s flakes. At that point it was like to go downhill with the rest of decals ….. the motorcycle ying yang, Lombardi School’s logo, various personal designs, sponsors decals and so forth.

Diana is a multi talent woman. You could never guess what she is doing when you enter her store: printing or painting tee shirts, drawing mysterious women, air brushing helmets or creating sign for her customers.

So, the next time you have a graphic design project, do not forget … those “decals” in Brooklyn.

The new PMP bikes soon in Jennings.

In one week from today, the Pure Motorbike Passion crew will unveil the new PMP bikes in Jennings, Florida. Our "artists" Mario Pires and Diana Sliwa have done a gorgeous job playing with these three colors.