I followed your link. Yeah there were a few asshats. I respnonded to that thread as I had just bought my first scooter a couple of months earlier.I decided a scooter looked like some cheap fun so I started a thread on Advrider. I got some good advice but I also ran into some absolute toolbags.
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Hello Scooter People!
I'm starting to think I need one of these things. I don't know anything about scooters. There are a lot of names I'm not familiar with. Looking on CL,...www.advrider.com
I've seen a lot of posts from scooter riders about being looked down on for riding a scooter but that hasn't been my experience. I get a lot of positive comments and negative ones are extremely rare. I friend of mine who live in the N. GA Mountains resisted getting a scooter for a long time but finally bought a Vespa a couple of years ago. He can't believe how much attention he gets on that scooter compared to his motorcycles. He gets a lot of thumbs up from sportbike riders.I'm pretty sure many men won't pick one up as a practical second bike due to their feeling of inadequacy and fear their friends and acquaintances will judge them. I've witnessed men come to terms with the fact that the Sportster isn't really a "girl's bike", so imagine some men confronted with riding a scooter? It's a shame, because it's so much fun to zip around on.
That's how things are in Europe for the most part. Kids start out small and end up being better riders and drivers over time.I put a kid on a Yamaha Zuma 50 until their auto insurance rates dropped. Five years of scooting resulted in no accidents, very little transportation expenses, and a keen awareness of traffic. I think riding a small displacement scooter is a fine way to introduce youngsters to motorized transport.
I've ridden the little Zuma occasionally over the years and may add a Honda mini-moto to my garage to fill that role.
That's a great pictureI never stooped so low as to SAY I ride a scooter..... I ride a Step-thru-Chassis Motorcycle.
My forte is touring, and I've circumnavigated all 5 Great Lakes, been down to Alabama, Georgia, BRP, Great Smokies, Dragon, etc multiple times, been out to Cape Hatteras and the East Coast, all on a "scooter".
A 5,000 to 7,500 km trip is fun for a two week jaunt.
Oh, and I've also crossed the Egyptian Sahara Desert on a "scooter" while touring Egypt.
Just a scooter rider.... NO!!! I'm a Motorcycle rider who simply appreciates a different kind of ride at this point in my life.
Steve
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