New Rider
Currently Offline
Posts: 2 
Likes: 0
Joined: Oct 18, 2014 15:01:16 GMT -5
|
Post by ranger1100ky on Nov 30, 2014 3:24:48 GMT -5
For my money... a 150cc is just NOT built for the job of interstate riding... Use your best judgment... the end goal of any scooter ride should be to complete the ride and park yourself and your scooter at your destination in one piece. I have been riding two wheels since 1949, powered since 1964. When I killed my 652cc cruiser I wanted smaller. I rented a Vespa LX150, found it as totally acceptable, and bought one. Since then I did two Mojave June Moon rides, 2013 and 2014 -- 370 miles between dinner and breakfast (late breakfast last run.) I have also went camping, once west Sierras, once east Sierras. My scooter is 150.5cc, 11.7 bhp, can do over 65 mph, and is freeway and Interstate legal anywhere. After over two years on my Vespa I know that a 150cc Vespa is just fine for Interstate Touring. Yep... if you know your equipment is up to the task... that's all well and good. 11.7 on the horsepower... and able to do over 65... and with experience to boot? No reason why you shouldn't ride it on the interstate if it pleases you. On the other hand... I'm right around 8 horsepower. If the speedometer's not a liar... (I wouldn't bet on it...), my scoot buzzes at about a max of 70 MPH. Being a little more suspicious of the speedometer like I am... I'm putting my money on 55 MPH actual speed... MAYBE 60 at wide open throttle, on level ground, with a tail wind. It's a Jonway Valero 150cc scooter... and my understanding is that the speedometers are a bit 'generous' in what they register, from an accuracy (inaccuracy) viewpoint. What I 'might' get by with at zero-dark-thirty... would be more than a little risky during the morning rush. |
|
New Rider
Currently Offline
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Joined: Oct 18, 2014 15:01:16 GMT -5
|
Post by ranger1100ky on Nov 28, 2014 2:30:32 GMT -5
For my money... a 150cc is just NOT built for the job of interstate riding.
Sure... it 'can' be done... and I can see making a short jump of 5 to 10 miles via interstate during off hours.
But much more than that, and I'd want to be on a 250cc, minimum.
In Kentucky... the prohibition on limited access highways against motor scooters, pertain as follows.
(4) "Motor scooter" means a motor vehicle having a seat or saddle for the use of the driver and designed to travel on not more than three (3) wheels with a motor which produces five (5) horsepower or less.
My Jonway Valero, runs 'about' 7.8 horsepower... so is technically 'legal' for entering onto interstates... by a factor of 2.8 horsepower.
You can almost BET... if I 'have' to get on the interstate... I'm going wide open throttle, and only making the run for as short a period as possible, during non-peak hours.
It MIGHT be a consideration for me, during the very early morning hours... when I'm commuting to work.
I'll spell this situation out so you can see 'why' I 'may' consider it...
1.) I travel from about 0300 to 0400, going to work, when traffic is extremely light.
2.) The winding two lane back-roads... are not as well lit...and VERY dangerous from the perspective of surprise hazards like dead deer laying on the road, etc.
3.) The interstates usually are decidedly better lit up, traffic is much lighter, and even with surprise debris encounters, I still have a LOT of room to play with, without going into oncoming traffic.
Bearing this all in mind... in this unique situation... the interstate MAY be the 'lesser of two evils' from a safety view... at least for PART of the trip.
But really... it boils down to rider comfort level... after the legal hurdle is cleared, which in my case, it is. And I'm rather reticent, to put a scooter with wide open throttle on the interstate, when I 'know' how drivers drive on the interstate.
It's a real 'grey area'... because a 150 is right near that borderline of almost being too weak for the job.
Another consideration... is that the moment I cross a state line... say, Indiana or Ohio... I may run into legal issues THERE... because their laws may differ from Kentucky's laws.
If you 'are' considering taking a 150cc scooter on the interstate... DO YOUR HOMEWORK... not just of the laws in your state... but also, on the driving habits of the motoring public.
In my case... a short 3-5 mile 'jump' on the interstate at zero-dark-stupid might make sense from a safety view...
That same ride at rush hour? Well... it might launch my new career as a human specimen of 'roadkill'...
Use your best judgment... the end goal of any scooter ride should be to complete the ride and park yourself and your scooter at your destination in one piece.
|
|
