push play: "I don't want a pickle, just want to ride my motor-sickle" the motorcycle song - arlo guthrie alice's resturant 06TheMotorcycleSong.m4a (this and all the other music links will allow you to download the songs if you have itunes. Free legal music, wow!)
So somehow I managed to talk wifey into letting me get a scooter this year. You have to know that I have been planting this seed for about 3 years. I was looking for a Stella, but since they are not making them right now I was planning on giving up. That was until I found an '04 Vespa that only had 100 miles on it. I took it for a ride and was sold. I negotiated on the price like I have been taught and it was mine. Since I got it here are some things I have noticed/learned.
1. Other motorcyclists don't know what to do with scooter riders. They have these special salutes, where they drop their left hand down about 45 degrees from the handle and nod their heads in respect. The guys with the rocket bikes, don't wave at scooterists. Way too cool. The Harley crowd is split. The old dudes with the jackets will wave every time. ( I have to admit, I was kind of surprized by this) The new jacks on the Harleys, not so much. My favorite is when one of the guys that would not usually waves see you at night and can only tell that it is a one light vehicle, they wave. . . and as soon as they realize their mistake, you can see the horror in their face, the hand usually drops quickly to get a scratch or something. I have tried to figure out what to do, and so I decided to wave at all of them. I got the thing because I wanted to have fun, this just adds to it.
2. It is impossible to get pulled over for speeding. Reason being that even though I take the thing about 60mph every day to work, I am riding a scooter, it looks like I am going 22mph.
3. If I duck my head to streamline with the scooter, I can gain a few extra mph.
4. I used to think that the reason people that rode on motorcycles where too cool to smile. That may still be the majority of the truth, but let me just say a bug in the mouth at 45mph is a mistake you only make once.
5. When I ride the scooter, it is "nerdy" when my wife rides it, it is "cute"
6. A motorcycle is for a man who has to prove who he is , a scooter is for a man who already knows who he is.
7. Kindergarteners and 1st graders think Monkey is the coolest when he rides.
8. Rain hurts.
9. Everyone has a comment. My favorite so far, happened when I was riding in the downtown area which was really busy on this Friday night. I was riding next to Timmy who was on his big 'ol motorcycle and a high school kid yells, "hey I like your scooter, it's really. . .red."
10. you can do a wheelie on a scooter.
Turn up the volume, we are in the final stretch. (I use my ipod every time I ride, I can do all the controls without looking, it makes it nice.) "I'm gettin' bugged driving up and down the same old strip gotta find a new place where the kids are hip My buddies and me are getting real well known, Yeah, the bad guys know us and they leave us alone" Get around - Beach Boys Good Vibrations Boxed Set- I am having a hard time finding this song on my drive, I will post a link asap.
So somehow I managed to talk wifey into letting me get a scooter this year. You have to know that I have been planting this seed for about 3 years. I was looking for a Stella, but since they are not making them right now I was planning on giving up. That was until I found an '04 Vespa that only had 100 miles on it. I took it for a ride and was sold. I negotiated on the price like I have been taught and it was mine. Since I got it here are some things I have noticed/learned.
1. Other motorcyclists don't know what to do with scooter riders. They have these special salutes, where they drop their left hand down about 45 degrees from the handle and nod their heads in respect. The guys with the rocket bikes, don't wave at scooterists. Way too cool. The Harley crowd is split. The old dudes with the jackets will wave every time. ( I have to admit, I was kind of surprized by this) The new jacks on the Harleys, not so much. My favorite is when one of the guys that would not usually waves see you at night and can only tell that it is a one light vehicle, they wave. . . and as soon as they realize their mistake, you can see the horror in their face, the hand usually drops quickly to get a scratch or something. I have tried to figure out what to do, and so I decided to wave at all of them. I got the thing because I wanted to have fun, this just adds to it.
2. It is impossible to get pulled over for speeding. Reason being that even though I take the thing about 60mph every day to work, I am riding a scooter, it looks like I am going 22mph.
3. If I duck my head to streamline with the scooter, I can gain a few extra mph.
4. I used to think that the reason people that rode on motorcycles where too cool to smile. That may still be the majority of the truth, but let me just say a bug in the mouth at 45mph is a mistake you only make once.
5. When I ride the scooter, it is "nerdy" when my wife rides it, it is "cute"
6. A motorcycle is for a man who has to prove who he is , a scooter is for a man who already knows who he is.
7. Kindergarteners and 1st graders think Monkey is the coolest when he rides.
8. Rain hurts.
9. Everyone has a comment. My favorite so far, happened when I was riding in the downtown area which was really busy on this Friday night. I was riding next to Timmy who was on his big 'ol motorcycle and a high school kid yells, "hey I like your scooter, it's really. . .red."
10. you can do a wheelie on a scooter.
Turn up the volume, we are in the final stretch. (I use my ipod every time I ride, I can do all the controls without looking, it makes it nice.) "I'm gettin' bugged driving up and down the same old strip gotta find a new place where the kids are hip My buddies and me are getting real well known, Yeah, the bad guys know us and they leave us alone" Get around - Beach Boys Good Vibrations Boxed Set- I am having a hard time finding this song on my drive, I will post a link asap.
7 comments:
The question remains...can YOU do a wheely on a scooter (nice ambiguous language there!)? (*grin*)
Love the picture. Kiersten must have a lesser dose of the paranoia gene that Kimberlie thrives on (and to be honest, a couple slices of such DNA resides in my hereditary combination--not suggesting we are biologically related, if you feel like cracking wise [never used that phrase before--I feel older just typing it]).
Nice blog, Mike.
Do they come in green?
Mike, its not a manual but welcome to the club. And if you think rain hurts snow sucks....bad.
Hey I think number 6 is plagiarism. Just cuz i don't write em down....you get a free pass this time.....
Scott,
Suprisingly, I can, but only when I am not trying. Makes it more fun that way.
Tyler,
Did you hear they were bringing the Stella back. I guess I will have to buy one in a couple of years for wifeys.
I can't believe that soft fluffy snow hurts. Man, I used to think you were tough. How about Hail, bet it hurts like. . .
Mike thanks for putting that link to the motorcycle song on your blog. I had no idea that was an actual song! My dad used to sing that to me when I was a kid - but I thought he made it up! Ah, the memories. Thanks!
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