Talk:Scooterboy

Merge to Mod (subculture)?
I agree that this is a notable topic as subculture, and that the term "scooterboy" was used to refer to it. However how is this different from Mod? (recognising that not every Mod rode a scooter). I can't see any distinct difference between these two groups, one merely being an alternate term for a subset of the other. Accordingly I would suggest merging this to the existing larger article for Mod. Andy Dingley (talk) 21:28, 9 February 2012 (UTC)


 * Good idea. I support that. --Biker Biker (talk) 22:06, 9 February 2012 (UTC)


 * I strongly disagree. Mods are not scooterboys and scooterboys are not mods. The two terms are not interchangeable. They are two different subcultures, with different styles, tastes and habits.Spylab (talk) 03:26, 10 February 2012 (UTC)


 * When is a scooterboy not a mod? To quote, "the days of Crombie coats and two-tone 'tonic' trousers," - that's mod, not just scooter.
 * The only way I can see scooterboy as distinct from mod is the culture of the '90s and onwards when scooterists were no longer anything like so closely connected to mod, but there were closer links with clearly non-mod skinheads.
 * To digress slightly, this was the "third generation" of skinheads that now included a substantial race-agnostic or strongly anti-racist element, as a reaction to the implied-racist skinheads of the '70s (Skins didn't begin as racists, but by the dark days of the NF '70s, non-racist skins were thin on the ground).
 * Oddly though, you've just removed text on the grounds (which I'd agree) that "Skinheads started in late 1960s, not early 1970s," so as to remove the claim that scooterboys were "a late-1960s/early-1970s" group.  So which way is it?  I cannot see "'60s scooterboys" - they were simply mods. I could see "'90s scooterboys", of the post-mod, purely scooter, fraternity, but that's not what the article is currently describing and it would need sourcing. Andy Dingley (talk) 11:08, 10 February 2012 (UTC)


 * From what I have read (from people who saw it first-hand), the scooterboy subculture was at its height in 1980s Britain. Those scooterboys didn't dress neat like mods, didn't modify their scooters in the same style as the mods did, listened to more styles of music than mods did, had more focus on scooters than mods did, and had conflicts with mods. In the mod subculture, the scooter was a form of transport and a style accessory. In the scooterboy subculture, the scooter was the prime focus, and everything was centred around them.Spylab (talk) 13:33, 12 February 2012 (UTC)

While the first Scooterboys evolved from the late 60's and carried on mainly in Lancashire and Yorkshire in the 1970's, it was the 1980's that they were really established themselves as a mass subculture, with the largest weekend rallies reaching attendance figures well over 10,000.

As someone who was a very active Scooterboy in its 1980's heyday, I can assure you it was definitely not part of the mod subculture. The connection with Mods is that Mod subculture preceded scooterboy culture both in the sixties and then again in the late seventies revival.

The Scooterboy was focused around scooters and Rallies. The majority of rallies were at seaside resorts, often objected to my local councils with venues decided at annual meetings of scooter club representives (no 1's)  Dress for the majority was the flight jacket,rally patches, boots however most of the youth cultures of the time were represented (punks, Psychobillies, Skins, Casuals, long hair greebos etc) with the unifying factor of scooter riding. Scooters were individualised in a multitude of ways e.g tuned, "ratted" (Matt Black,)chopped, cut down,expensive customisation. With themes from a multitude of musical genres, history, films etc.

Music was provided by DJ's and live music and centered around Northern soul, ska, punk, psychobilly and alternative. Behavior was drink and drug fueled, wild and loud. with little respect for the law. While violence featured, after all it was mainly male teens or twenties from throughout the country, going on mass to seaside resorts to drink, it was not the aim of the majority. If mods attended the scooterboy rallies or events they were often very poorly treated. They had their own subculture that was focused around reviving the 1960's style in cool behaviour, smart dressing, 60's sounds and transport (mainly scooters) from the 60's customised as they would have been in that era.

Further Reading: http://www.scootering.com/ Scooter Boys by Gareth Brown (1994) Scooter boy is a generic term that incorporates all scooter riders from pyscho billy, mod skin( all variants) casuals and peaple who just like scooters. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.130.203.153 (talk) 06:28, 11 March 2017 (UTC)