Post by bluegoatwoods on Oct 3, 2016 22:49:48 GMT -5
Hello, folks!
I've spent my entire life riding and driving almost everything from bicycles through motorcycles, automobiles and heavily loaded pickups with heavily loaded trailers, up to straight trucks. But no scooters until recently. I'm a two-wheeler by nature and only drive on four wheels when I must.
I've always liked scooters. Just never got around to getting one. But some years back I rented a 50 cc scooter for my wife while we were visiting a place that has such rentals. She loved it. I rode it once, too. It was about as I'd expected and I certainly did like it.
I also remember about thirty years ago now driving along and just off the roadway, under a street light, there were parked about a dozen scooters of the Vespa type. The riders were standing around in those long green rubberized canvas raincoats. They couldn't have looked more like the cover of "Quadrophenia if they'd tried. No doubt they were trying. That's exactly what they had in mind. I remember thinking, "I'd like to join those guys!" But I didn't. And I'd still like to even today.
About 15 years ago I bought my wife a Honda CM400 motorcycle. She was friendly to the concept. But it was too tall for her and that didn't work out. She will not ride a bicycle. But I've really, really, wanted to get her on two wheels. For more than twenty five years now I've been trying and failing.
The last couple of years I'd toyed with the idea of getting her a scooter. Finally this past January I said to her, "You know....I've been thinking about getting you a scooter". She turned to me with the most eager face I'd seen in years and said, "Tell me more!" or something like that. I do remember it was short and to the point. The point was: YES!
We went down to the local Honda dealer the next day. I remember it was January 6. I'll bet those guys didn't expect to sell a scooter that day. They definitely did not believe we'd be riding on that day. We didn't get the bike home until about Sundown. But we were riding that evening. Taking turns. We didn't go far from home, of course. And during the remainder of the winter there were days that she couldn't ride. Too much snow and ice on the roads. But she rode when she could.
And when spring actually came she just took off like a Saturn V rocket. She doesn't look for excuses to drive her car. She rides her scoot. Rain doesn't bother her.
As a matter of fact, she's just a bit reckless. She'll learn, of course. But I have to rely on the absence of bad luck until she does. I've tried to reign her in a bit. But if I'm too heavy-handed about that, then she'll grow rebellious and it'll be counter-productive.
But she's kind of a nut with her scooter.
I knew, too, that I'd buy myself one sooner or later. But I didn't expect it to be soon. This is a fairly significant purchase, after all. But just as spring was getting in gear a 2009 Kymco People 150 showed up in the neighborhood, for sale at a pretty darned good price. I couldn't pass it up so I pulled the trigger.
I haven't been sorry, of course. My only regret is that I didn't do it a whole lot sooner.
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I've spent my entire life riding and driving almost everything from bicycles through motorcycles, automobiles and heavily loaded pickups with heavily loaded trailers, up to straight trucks. But no scooters until recently. I'm a two-wheeler by nature and only drive on four wheels when I must.
I've always liked scooters. Just never got around to getting one. But some years back I rented a 50 cc scooter for my wife while we were visiting a place that has such rentals. She loved it. I rode it once, too. It was about as I'd expected and I certainly did like it.
I also remember about thirty years ago now driving along and just off the roadway, under a street light, there were parked about a dozen scooters of the Vespa type. The riders were standing around in those long green rubberized canvas raincoats. They couldn't have looked more like the cover of "Quadrophenia if they'd tried. No doubt they were trying. That's exactly what they had in mind. I remember thinking, "I'd like to join those guys!" But I didn't. And I'd still like to even today.
About 15 years ago I bought my wife a Honda CM400 motorcycle. She was friendly to the concept. But it was too tall for her and that didn't work out. She will not ride a bicycle. But I've really, really, wanted to get her on two wheels. For more than twenty five years now I've been trying and failing.
The last couple of years I'd toyed with the idea of getting her a scooter. Finally this past January I said to her, "You know....I've been thinking about getting you a scooter". She turned to me with the most eager face I'd seen in years and said, "Tell me more!" or something like that. I do remember it was short and to the point. The point was: YES!
We went down to the local Honda dealer the next day. I remember it was January 6. I'll bet those guys didn't expect to sell a scooter that day. They definitely did not believe we'd be riding on that day. We didn't get the bike home until about Sundown. But we were riding that evening. Taking turns. We didn't go far from home, of course. And during the remainder of the winter there were days that she couldn't ride. Too much snow and ice on the roads. But she rode when she could.
And when spring actually came she just took off like a Saturn V rocket. She doesn't look for excuses to drive her car. She rides her scoot. Rain doesn't bother her.
As a matter of fact, she's just a bit reckless. She'll learn, of course. But I have to rely on the absence of bad luck until she does. I've tried to reign her in a bit. But if I'm too heavy-handed about that, then she'll grow rebellious and it'll be counter-productive.
But she's kind of a nut with her scooter.
I knew, too, that I'd buy myself one sooner or later. But I didn't expect it to be soon. This is a fairly significant purchase, after all. But just as spring was getting in gear a 2009 Kymco People 150 showed up in the neighborhood, for sale at a pretty darned good price. I couldn't pass it up so I pulled the trigger.
I haven't been sorry, of course. My only regret is that I didn't do it a whole lot sooner.
