Zero continues to really know how to promote their vehicles and to do so at a very low cost.
I have been the owner of a 2012 9-kWh Zero electric motorcycle since February and so far have ridden it 2800 miles. Last Friday I received a call from Zero's promotion department asking me if I would like to give them an interview about how I liked my Zero, my motorcycle riding history and electric motorcycles in general. Never having been in a movie before (I am not to sure what the CIA did with those shots of me that they took with their surveillance drone), I said sure, that sounds interesting and it might even be fun. So we set up an appointment for a two-man video crew to visit my home on Monday at 1pm.
The Zero film crew showed up on time (not something that happens too often with my local utility crews). The cameraman was very enthusiastic about my garage and they interviewed me there, standing in front of the Zero while the cameraman and interviewer stood next to my R1200R, while they interviewed me. They also really liked my garage and took film of all of my motorcycles, wall posters and shelves of hazardous chemicals. I spoke about my motorcycle riding history and why I liked to ride the Zero for about 30 minutes and they seemed very happy with my comments. They commented that I did a better job than most of the paid celebrities that they had filmed in the past.
After the interview, they asked me if I would ride around to scenic areas of Pacifica where I would be filmed riding my Zero. So I rode to Roberts Road, overlooking Highway 1, where they filmed me riding back and forth - with the Pacific Ocean in the background. Then I took them down the road to Rockaway Beach, where they filmed me riding around in the Nick's Restaurant parking lot - with the Pacific Ocean in the background. After that it was off to the Pacifica State Beach parking lot, where I rode around and they filmed some more - with the Pacific Ocean in the background. Finally, I rode up and down 4-lane Fassler Avenue a couple of times - with the Pacific Ocean and Rockaway Beach in the background.
The cameraman seemed thrilled with the shots that he got of me riding. But I wouldn't want his job. He did much of his on-road filming while standing in the back of the moving pickup truck. Luckily, the truck did not have to make any quick maneuvers and the police must have been on a donut break that afternoon, as they didn't get into trouble for filming without a permit or for riding unsecured in the back of a pickup truck bed. This process took about two hours and we finally returned to my home. But on the way back I made a couple of passes by the local Union gas station, while I slowed down to look at the $4.70/$4.80/$4.90 fuel price sign. That was my idea and the crew really liked that. At 3:30 they thanked me for my time and cooperation, we said goodby and they took off. So ended my day as a movie star.
And guess what? I won't have to report any additional income for this year to the IRS.
