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In most of the Western World, motorcycles are seen as a means of easing inner city traffic congestion. But, in some parts of the world, even the efficient transportation options of motorcycles are not enough to keep the roadways moving.

Such is the case in Vietnam, where there is a movement to ban the use of motorcycles within the Hanoi city limits. With the roads already resembling something out of a Mad Max scene, even scooters and small-displacement bikes appearing to be to many in number there (Note: I’m not sure I agree with this premise -JB).

For many readers, it might be hard to get excited about a story that covers a scooter design, but hang with us for a second. Yamaha is at the 2016 Vietnam Motorcycle Show right now – the first first motorcycle show event held in Vietnam – showing off its latest creation, in Ho Chi Minh City.

Regular A&R readers will know how massively important the Southeast Asian market is to the big manufacturers, especially the Japanese brands, but the Yamaha 04Gen scooter concept debuting in Vietnam today is important for Western riders as well.

Congratulations and welcome to 2013. We imagine that there are a few of you who aren’t firing on all your cylinders yet today, so we will ease you into a new year of motorcycle news with a nice little video, which was made by the folks at Skateboarder Magazine. No, your hangover is not making you see things, we are in fact talking about skateboarding on a motorcycle site.

You see, there is an interesting intersection between the skateboarding and motorcycle subcultures — something about the desire to go one’s own way, to engage in some activity of questionable safety, and to enjoy life in the present, much to the chagrin of everyone else. The crossover may no be as obvious in practice, but it’s there.

For instance, when Harley-Davidson finally figured out that it needed to start appealing to consumers under the age of 40, the first demographic it targeted (with some success) was the skateboarding crowd. Take a look at some of the earlier Harley-Davidson Forty-Eight ads, and see if you can’t pick up on the LBC living, Airwalk wearing, grinder vibe that’s going on there.

So as we already said, for your viewing pleasure today we have a nicely done video by the folks at Skateboarder Magazine, which covers their motley crew riding and skating through Vietnam. The whole piece is a great example of what it is like to travel in Southeast Asia, and puts a lot in perspective as to just how massive the market is there. The traffic is a bit insane as well, especially for these novice riders.

Fresh off the awesome truck, this time-lapse video seems apropos to our earlier discussion regarding motorcycling in Southeast Asia. A short film featuring tens of thousands of photographic stills, photographer Rob Whitworth has not only managed to capture the dense urban nature of Ho Chi Minh City but has also found a way to translate it into a very eye-catching depiction. It’s part chaos, it’s part art. It’s all Vietnam. Video & 18 stills after the jump, while a more detail Q&A on the project can be found at WORD HCMC.

In Alabama, it is illegal for a driver to be blindfolded while operating a vehicle. In California, it is a misdemeanor to shoot at any kind of game from a moving vehicle, unless the target is a whale. In Florida, if an elephant is left tied to a parking meter, the parking fee has to be paid just as it would for a vehicle. In Texas, it is illegal to drive without windshield wipers. You don’t need a windshield, but you must have the wipers.

Yes, America has some stupid laws, but not nearly as this one just passed in Vietnam where it is now illegal for anyone with a chest size of less than 28 inches to operate a motorcycle. Not to make stereotypes, but we don’t know that many barrel chested Vietnamese bikers, and the averages would seem to back us up on the generalization that Vietnam leans more to the petit side of things (the average woman weighs 102lbs and the average man 121lbs…whereas the average American weighs the combined weight of both a Vietnamese man AND woman).

For those who haven’t been to Vietnam, nearly everyone rides a motorcycle/scooter on the city streets. The Vietnamese government cites safety being the reason for the law, so…I guess having millions of people walking around while the 10 remaining “fatsos” of Vietnamese jet-rocket down what should be barren city streets is safe. Ok Universe, You win.

Source: Lawguru & Autoblog

I’m pretty sure Kate Moss would still be allowed to ride a motorcycle in Vietnam…but only pretty sure.