Hopefully when people get used to see MP3 scooters on the road, they won't have the pressing need to take a good long look at it. Especially when they're driving and jockeying to get a good look in their side view mirror. I don't mind the attention since it's the scooter and not me they're trying to look at, but I do mind the erratic weaving of the car ahead as the driver tries to see what the heck that is behind him.
I've been mulling this one over for a week. Before the heat wave hit, I was out zipping around town, not headed anywhere in particular, just wracking miles up on the odometer. I was headed down a road that frequently has some light traffic, but I like it because there are some baby curves that are fun to lean in if (when I'm able to get up to speed...it also runs right by a development called "Leisure Town," where one must be 55 or older to live...traffic can be pretty slow right around there sometimes.) Ahead of me was a giant gas guzzler, and just before we hit the curves, he spotted me in his mirror.
Apparently he had a great need to figure out what that thing I was on was, because he kept swerving to the right, trying to get a good look in his side view mirror. He'd slow down, I'd slow down, he'd speed up, swerve back and forth...all while looking in that mirror.
I moved into the left lane so I wouldn't be right behind him if he hit the curb and went off the road.
Towards the end of one of the (gentle, anemic, not scrape-inducing) curves is a 3 way intersection...as soon as I could see it I started looking for left turners at the light. And sure enough, in a tuna-boat Buick was an elderly man waiting to turn left when the light went green. I slowed down, knowing that the only way to make it through before it went red for me was to gun it, and there was no way I was doing that. One, Gas Guzzler Boy was still not paying attention, and two, well, it would have been stupid.
Then the horror hit me...the SUV was not slowing down. The driver was not paying attention to what was ahead of him at all, fixated on looking at the scooter. I held my breath as I stopped, hoping that the old guy in the Buick was more attentive than the guy in the SUV.
And he was. Thank God, he didn't go when he light went green. The driver of the SUV suddenly slammed on his brakes and slid way more than halfway into the intersection. If the elderly guy had gone...I'm pretty sure he would have been hit broadside and hard enough to not survive it.
The SUV crept through the intersection and pulled over, whereupon the woman sitting next to the driver was slapping at his head with both hands, pretty pissed off, I think. The old guy in the Buick was shaking his head when he finally turned. I was about 5 kinds of annoyed and frankly, a little shaken up.
I can deal with the calls out car windows, wondering what the scooter is, when the training wheels are coming off, even the shrieks of I WANT ONE! I don't mind coming out of a store and finding scary looking Harley dudes circling it , I don't mind answering their questions. I didn't even mind coming out of a McDonald's today and finding a bike cop looking at it (although I could have lived without "What happened to your sport bike?" I did not need to know that any of the cops around here can match rider to ride...)
I have a hard time dealing with the idea that I might cause an accident. A fender bender, oh well. That would suck but it's not the end of the world. Fenders can be fixed. But if someone got hurt...
If Gas-Guzzler Boy had t-boned the Buick, the old guy would probably be dead. It wouldn't be my fault, but still...it would have happened because I was there.
So yeah, I think I'll be happier when the MP3 isn't such a novelty.
It is also a giant pain in the ass. So far it's the only thing I seriously dislike about this scooter; you can't see into it as you're gassing up, so there's no telling when you're getting close to full...not until gas gushes out. There is a drain port (you can't see it in the picture...it's just a tiny hole) so area around the gas cap doesn't stay full, but still... I have yet to get gas without overfilling.
Since it's so low on the scooter, I can't even look at the meter to see how much gas I'm pumping. I tried looking up, thinking I would slow to a trickle when I hit 2.2 gallons, but it was too awkward.
There's got to be a better way, I just haven't figured it out yet.
The speedometer on the MP3 indicates it'll do 110 mph. I'm not a speed demon and I don't particularly like going much over 70, I took it out on I-505 today and ran it up to about 85 to see how it felt and how it compared to my previous rides.
I hit 85 mph and the scooter had a whole lot more to give, but I felt like my helmet was about to pop off (that short windshield puts air flow right into my head, I think) and I just wasn't enjoying that much speed. It wasn't as smooth on the Interstate as the SV was--I could hit 85 on that and not realize it--but it wasn't a jarring ride and it never felt like the scooter was straining to keep my considerable weight up at that speed. If I'd had a tank to lean on, I probably could have ducked to get the air to flow over my head, and would have been more comfortable.
Compared to the Rebel, it was a dream. I was able to get the Rebel up to an indicated 80 (it was probably closer to 72-74) and ride it at that speed for lengthy periods, but it wasn't comfortable: the high revs of the engine combined with the light weight of the bike at high speed was sometimes a slightly scary experience, especially when passed by a semi. I didn't meet up with any semis on the Interstate today (did on a road at 50...no issues with wind wake) but I did get passed by a giant SUV and didn't feel like I was being pushed around.
When I settled down to 65, the ride was very nice...65-70 seems to be my personal sweet spot, about as fast as I like to go and still feel like it's a fun ride, not work.
A few miles later I wandered into a residential area; we've all heard the saying It's more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow, and having enjoyed a few low speed spins on the SV anyway, I wanted to see how the MP3 compared. The Rebel in residential areas was all right, but you still have to shift an awful lot on that on sub-40 mph speeds. The SV would tool around in first gear with ease as long as I played the clutch right. It was an ego kick to be able to crawl along at 2-3 mph on it, but it wasn't fun.
I have to admit, just putt-putting along at 20-25 was enjoyable. (I annoyed a driver behind me, but...tough for him. Posted was 25, I wanted to stick to 25, and he could have gone around me instead of riding back there turning three shades of red while wildly gesticulating...) If all a person ever wanted out of this scooter was a sub-45 mph commuter, it would still be a heck of a lot more fun than driving a car.
One thing I noticed that doesn't function as well as it should is the outside temperature sensor. When I started feeling warm I flipped over to see what the temp was and it read 103 degress F. I headed home, not wanting to over do it, checked the Weather Channel and Weather Bug, and it was actually only 90. Not sure where on the scooter the sensor is, but I'm thinking it's too close to the engine to be especially useful.
Bonus! The MP3 already has a power port.
Now all I need is a heated vest and gloves, and then bring on winter...
One drawback to the MP3: the stealth fuel access...
It's only a drawback because it's difficult to see how full it's getting, and it's easy to overfill. There is a drain spout in there, though, so if you do overfill, the gas doesn't just sit there.
Not sure I'd ever use this even if I did carry a purse...
...but at least there's a little loop for someone who wants the option.
That pesky helmet storage...the owner's manual specifies that the area under the seat is designated helmet storage. And the website claims you can get 2 full faced helmets stored in the bike (I don't think so.)
Area under the seat:
Looks like a helmet will fit in there. But I tried to stick one under there...
...with some not so terrific results. The seat wouldn't close (note the white of the helmet.)
A little help from someone at BBO who has the same scooter--turn the helmet on its side, neck facing the bump inside the storage area...
...And the seat closes.
With a little help from tbolt at Rebel250.com I think I have it set up so that the blog can be read in a feeder. Link is in the sidebar under the Thumper picture. It's set up for Atom...to get it in RSS I think you just add (without quotes) "?alt=rss" to the feed url. I hope it works...
Ok...this is where I feel like a moron.
I had not put on nearly 200 miles like I thought. Not even close. And I got all excited when I gassed up at 200 and it took 2.23 gallons, and I was thinking Woohoo! Nearly 90 miles to the gallon!
Um. Well. Apparently a European bike (scooter, whatever...in my head it's a bike) displays in kms. I knew the odometer was reading in kms, but I thought the trip odometer was set to miles...but it wasn't. I tried; I did what the owner's manual said and presumed I had the trip odo correct, but no. FAIL. So my magical 90 mpg was actually 90 kmpg, which put the mileage closer to 55ish.
When we got home from our nice NOT 87-just-60 mile long ride, the Spouse Thingy got the owner's manual out, worked around its major typo, and set the odometer (regular and trip) to miles. So yay for him, that made me happy. But all totaled I only have 175 miles on it, and I thought I was way over 250 by the time we got home.
His brain works in ways different than mine...when I mentioned to him the engine lugged a little bit going uphill, he surmised that perhaps the dealership fueled up with low-octane gas. When I filled up today I used 91 octane (highest the AFB gas station had; the manual says it should get 95 octane. I'm not even sure I can get that anywhere around here) and we headed up a decent enough hill (Peabody Road near the prison for anyone local.) No lugging at all; it zipped up the hill with no problem, and even accelerated to the point I realized I better slow down lest a LEO be waiting over that hill.
After that we headed towards one of my favorite roads (Pleasants Valley)...it's about 11 miles of baby twisties, with a posted speed limit of 45. Stress posted. Most riders seem to tear through it a whole lot faster than that. I'll hit 55 on the straights but I slow for the curves...lots of deer and peacocks and trucks turning left in the middle of blond curves on this road, so it's not worth the risk to go too fast.
On the way up Pleasants Valley I took it easy, just enjoying the ride. At posted speeds the scooter handled even the tightest near-hairpin 15 mph curve smoothly, and hugged the longer curves nicely.
From there we turned onto Highway 128 and headed up towards Monticello Dam for a few more twisties; I throttled up a little bit and tried to ride through them the way I did on the SV. I was never in danger of dragging a peg, but I usually took those over the speed limit. The scooter handled them just fine, though maybe a tiny bit more anemically. I don't think I was leaned over near as much, but I didn't struggle to hit and maintain speed. It went zoooom.
We stopped just short of the dam and turned around; on the way back I made some intentional stabs at setting my line a little late in curves, and was impressed at how well I could make adjustments (I was trying to think of typical things a brand new rider might do...going into a curve too hot, trying to adjust by slowing down...) I never came close to going over the line or off the road. Didn't have to lean harder, just slow down a bit. That's one thing that sticks with me--you can roll off the throttle in mid curve with no worries.
Ok, so far I can. It might be a YMMV thing.
And I'm getting a better hang of the wheel lock. As long as I'm not stopped before making a turn, it's kind of kicky to use it. Unnecessary for the most part, but kicky.
A tad under 200 miles on the scooter, and there are some definites to riding the MP3, aside from the fun factor--and it is a ton of fun. I admit, I was worried that moving from an SV650 to a scooter would be, hmm, less than cool, but it's far from being the weenie-ride I worried about. It's pretty much like riding a small cruiser, but without the tank to grab with your knees, or shifting to think about.
Saturday morning I geared up and took it to a nearby church parking lot to get more familiar with it: lots of going in circles, braking, swerving, more braking... overall it felt pretty good. The brakes are very responsive without being too grabby, it's got a good turn radius, accelerates well (though not nearly as fast as the SV...but ya gotta expect that), and does very slow speeds smoothly. I could creep along slowly enough that the You-May-Lock-The-Wheels light flashed at me, and zip up to fast-parking-lot speed quickly.
After about half an hour of that I hit the streets, deliberately looking for streets with varied speeds, and long slow curves. One, I wanted to get a better feel for reading that speedometer, and two, I wanted to work on scrubbing the tires so that I'd be able to take it out and open up on curvy roads. Well, that and I wanted to see how well it leans into curves. And it turns out, it leans pretty well, and it's very flickable.
I did about 50 miles just around town, and other than being pointed at (a lot) it was a fairly uneventful ride.
On Sunday I headed out into some wind; I normally hate riding in the wind, but I wanted to see how well the MP3 faired under windy conditions, and how it felt on less than perfect roads.
Bear in mind, windy to me is anything over 15 mph winds...I can ride in it but I don't enjoy it, and the windier it gets, the less I like it. I headed out with the wind blowing at about 22 mph with 30 mph gusts; probably weenie winds for other riders, but annoying winds for me.
One thing I noted pretty fast: while *I* don't like the wind much, the MP3 doesn't seem to mind it. I encountered a few gusts that made me lean just a little, but for the most part the scooter didn't move. It felt like my helmet wanted to pop off my head a few times, especially when I got over 50 mph, but the scooter held steady. It went on roads that had it hitting me from all directions, and was only surprised by a side gust once when the scooter leaned a little further than I expected. Head winds were where my helmet felt like it wanted to launch.
There are a few roads around here badly in need of repair; I learned to avoid them on the Rebel (I want to keep the fillings in my teeth, thank you very much) and could tolerate them on the SV (since I could get up on the pegs a little better.) The MP3 is closer to the SV in handling seriously bumpy roads; I didn't have to get up on the floorboards as I would pegs on a bike, but the suspension handled them nicely and the jolt from them was dampened by the seat. And for someone with a bad back, that's greatly appreciated.
A few noted things:
- The MP3 doesn't care much for hills. I hit a long, moderately graded hill, and the engine lugged a bit. I was able to get it back up to speed (40 mph on this road...I admit, I was doing about 50) with a little more throttle, but I'm not sure it had a whole lot more to give.
- It's fairly forgiving of newby mistakes. Go into a curve too fast, and you can ease off the throttle a bit instead of leaning harder. Accelerate from a stop too slowly, and you don't have to worry about stalling and/or dropping it.
- Short riders might have problems on the MP3. I'm 5'8" with a 32" inseam, and I can't exactly flat foot it. While you can lock the wheels at stop signs and lights, you still have to be able to move the scooter around with your feet to back it up, and it's not always feasible to lock the wheels.
- You feel all of the 550-odd pounds when trying to back it out of a slightly sloped parking slot. Pretty soon I'll have killer-calves.
- If you're not on the throttle, it's effectively in neutral. Put the parking brake on when you park, or it will roll. Do not ask me how I learned this...
Oh, and with a little help online from someone who's been riding an MP3 for a while, I finally got a full faced helmet stored under the seat. Yay.
That was a long six weeks. So long I think it was actually seven weeks. But who's counting?
The salesguy called around noon on August 15; my scooter was there (blue, just like I hoped for), had just come off the truck and they were charging the battery. It would be ready around 5 o'clock...if we wanted to come in and start the paperwork, we could.
Awesome.
After everything was signed and checks were handed over, Augie the Salesguy delivered the bike, showing me how everything worked, especially the wheel lock. Along with showing me everything came the warning: if you have the wheels locked and are not upright, you better commit to the throttle on acceleration, or it will tip over. He learned this the hard way with a 75 year old customer who started to go over; he grabbed the side of the scooter to try to save her, and popped his hamstring.
That was a few months ago and he's still limping.
I played with the wheel lock on the way to procure food, and realized its use is an acquired skill, and I might be better off just putting my feet down.
We stopped for dinner, and then I rode the 25 miles home. First impressions:
- The speedometer has both kmh and mph, but the mph numbers are very small, red on black, and hard to see. The kmh numbers are big and very easy to see. I foresee a speeding ticket in my future.
- Seat slopes forward a little, which will take some getting used to.
- There's supposedly enough storage space for 2 full faced helmets; I can't even get one in there. The opening for the trunk is too small, and the seat won't latch with on under it. I can get my jacket in there, though.
I would have ridden longer, but after geting dinner it was pushing 7:30, and being night blind, I needed to head home. By the time I pulled up into my driveway I was already feeling the fun, and looking forward to taking it out in the morning.
click to biggify
The Background
When the riding bug first seriously bit me, I was riding around the neighborhood bike paths on a little Schwinn electric scooter. I was zooming along at 10 mph and loving every second of it, but damn, I wanted to go faster.
Now, it wasn't my first experience on two wheels that didn't involve pedaling; about 23 years before I zoomed around Provo and Salt Lake City Utah on a little orange Honda Express moped (that's not mine pictured...) It topped out at 25 mph, but was a wicked fun way to get around, and was really all I needed.
Over the years the Spouse Thingy and I talked about "someday" learning how to ride a motorcycle, but it was always one of those maybe kinds of things.
When I was longing for more speed on my little Schwinn, I had the idea that I'd get myself on of those spiffy little 49cc scooters; after all, I just wanted to putt-putt around town and I was never going to go out on the Interstate. A little scooter is all I'd need.
Then I found out I would need an M2 license to legally ride a little scooter around town; the Spouse Thingy just shrugged and told me to take the riding class--hell, maybe I'd want something with a little more speed, like a 125cc scooter.
So I took the class.
Oh yeah, I wanted to go faster. And since I learned on a 125cc Kawasaki Eliminator--a "real" motorcycle--that's what I wanted. It was fun and it zoomed, and was everything I could possibly need. I still had no intention of getting on the Interstate.
Before I actually took the Basic Rider's class, I started lurking in some motorcycle forums. A couple I actually participated in. I learned of at least one really good book I should read, and I was given tons of very good advice on About.com's motorcycle forum. The consensus: get at least a 250cc motorcycle. Not much bigger, but definitely not the 125. Even though I didn't want to get on the Interstate, I would want more power than the 125 would give me...power to get out of potential trouble.
I didn't get it, not then, but I listened. I bought a Honda Rebel, a nice 250cc (all right, it's actually about 235 cc) that screamed wheeeeeee and was very forgiving of all my newby mistakes.
I went from feeling Oh my God I'm going to fly off the back of this bike! to zooming past a bike cop at 30 mph over the speed limit (he idn't pull me over...I still don't know why.)
Oh yeah. And that whole never getting on the Interstate thing...I totally did.
I rode the Rebel for a year and a half; I didn't "outgrow it" or need more power, but I was at a point where I wanted more power. I wanted something that would do everything I could possibly want a bike to do, one I would never actually outgrow, one that would be comfortable on long rides, and...oh, yeah, fun on the Interstate.
Enter the Suzuki SV650.I vacillated for a couple of months before buying a second bike: cruiser, or sport standard? I loved the SV 650 but wasn't sure I could tolerate the riding posture. I coveted the Suzuki M50 but was wary of moving up to a bike that heavy. The S50 was an option... I also had my eye on a Yamaha FZ6, but after some wise advice crossed it off my list.
The SV won out. It was light and flickable, and Id spoken with several people whodescribed it as "the perfect bike." It would do everyting I wanted a bike to do, and I would never outgrow it. It had all the power I could ever want.
I had more fun on that bike. It was great for cruising around town, tore up the twisties, and made potentially boring backroads fun. It really was just about perfect.
Now, I've known all along that eventually I would wind up on a step-through scooter, but I assumed the SV would be my ride for a good 7-10 years. There was no reason not to; while I have bad hips (hence, knowing I would be using a scooter at some point) they weren't that bad yet. I had time.
And then a guy in a giant blue car pulled out in front of me. I stupidly grabbed too much brake, locked them up, and launched off the bike. I went one way, my bike wne the other, and the assmunch in the giant blue car watched as I hit the ground...and then he left. I was a pile of Might Be Dead in the road, and he left.
But...whatever. A bunch of other people stopped to help, kept me from doing something stupid like moving, and I got to take a nice ride in an ambulance. A couple hours later, naked (because they cut my clothes off), I was released with nothing but bruises and a couple of raspberries on by elbow and knee.
So I thought.
I had landed on the left side of my body; my shoulder started to bother me, and then my hip started to hurt more than usual. I did all the exercises prescribed by my doctor, and while my shoulder improved, my hip did not. My mobility was declining to the point that I had difficulty just getting on my motorcycle, and a few times had to enlist the help of total strangers to get off.
A few months of that, and the realization that the situation was not going to improve and would likely get worse, spurred me into agreeing with the Spouse Thingy: it was time to start thinking about a scooter.
So I put a deposit down on a Piaggio MP3 (if I had to ride a scooter, it was going to be the spiffiest one), sold my SV, and waited six long weeks for it to arrive.
Six very long weeks.
Almost as long as this post.