Naked...

 

Do you know the difference between "naked" and "nekkid"?  "Naked" means you have no clothes on.  "Nekkid" means you have no clothes on and you're up to something.

This naked refers to our dock - it is not up to something.  After cooling down from my bike ride this morning, I went down to the dock, removed all the fenders and lines, and cleaned them before putting them away.

 No boat, and only one line left, strung across the opening to the dock from the water.  More subtle than a "No Trespassing" sign.  ;-)

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On my scooter forum today, a guy was asking about switching from motorcycles to scooters.  His wife has already picked out the scooter she wants (Kymco Like 150), and he was thinking of an Xmax, but has never seen one in person.  He was unsure he'd be happy riding a scooter; wondered if any others have felt the same.  Having been there, I started writing, and the words poured out.  Imagine that.  Here's my response to him...

I have related this before, but I couldn't tell you where to look to search. Yes, we are long time riders. Got my first motorcycle at age 14 and between my wife and I, we have owned 30 bikes over the years. I taught her to ride on the Triumph Bonneville I had at the time when we were in high school. The bikes: 9 Harleys, 4 Goldwings, and a bunch of others. We did a lot of long distance riding over the years. My wife first hooked me on a motorhome when she said, "We could take the motorcycles south and be able ride in the winter," when we lived in the frozen northland.

By 2013, a deteriorating hip made it painful for me to throw a leg over a motorcycle... I came to the decision I was probably done riding. That's when my wife said, "We should get a couple scooters." To which I replied, "Well, that would be embarrassing. I don't think so." So, we compromised... and got a couple scooters. Honda PCX 150s. I was sure I wouldn't like riding a scooter (we had rented them when vacationing)... no shifting, no rumbling exhaust, puny horsepower.

I could not have been more wrong, and being a married guy, I find I am often wrong. We were in Phoenix at the time (visiting our daughter and son-in-law), and we rode those PCXes all over the Valley of the Sun. They topped out just over 65mph, so we stayed off the Interstates... and found out how fun and easy the scoots are for getting around on secondary roads. But, how are they in the twisties? Thanks for asking. Even more fun than "urban cruising." Did ya miss shifting? Not even a little. Who knew? Seriously, why didn't I know how much fun these things could be?? I heard one guy describe them as "Superman's bicycle"... and I get that. If anything, the riding seems to me to be more about experiencing the feel of the bike and the road than with a bigger, heavier, machine.

After 5 years with the PCXes, and pretty much avoiding highways, I decided to look for something with just a bit more umph for those rare times that I wanted to use a higher speed highway to get to better riding. I bought a used Vespa and found out the extra horsepower and a bit more weight were "just enough" for the riding I enjoyed.

By that point, my hip had gotten to the point where I needed a cane if I had to walk more than a block; I had a carbon fiber cane that folded and would easily fit under the seat of the Vespa. I finally relented and went to see a surgeon who specialized in hips and knees. He looked at my X-rays and said, "I can't believe you were able to walk in here - you must have a seriously high pain threshold." One month later, I was sporting a new titanium hip. It was the burning desire to get back on my scoot that kept me going through the physical therapy. At a follow up visit to the doctor, I asked about riding and he said, "You are done riding. I've given you the opportunity to walk normal again, you can't ruin that with a motorcycle accident." I fired him.

Five weeks after the surgery, I took the Vespa out for the first time again. Slow and deliberate. And still needing a cane. Within a few months, I was back to normal riding again and found I could toss a leg over a motorcycle. Mostly pain-free. A friend encouraged me to take his wife's Honda Rebel 500 out for ride. I had the opportunity to try a few other motorcycles once again. What I discovered: none of those motorcycles I rode gave me the same pure riding pleasure as my scooter. My wife had considered another sport bike (she is good rider and leaned more towards sport bikes, while I preferred a dresser), but was waiting to see how I felt about getting another motorcycle. We put a deposit down on a BMW C400x for her.

When the BMW came in at the dealer, it had a "stop sale" on it, due to a recall. After a month of waiting for a resolution to that situation, the dealer offered to give us the deposit back, saying, "I don't know when BMW will have a fix - it could be months." We looked around for another option, and my wife decided to try an Xmax 300. She came back from the test ride with a big smile and said, "You have to try this!" I did... she was right: it is a great ride. It didn't fit me as comfortably as it fit her, so I stayed with my Vespa.

A year or so later, I opted for a new Vespa - GTS 300 HPE. In the meantime, I have put plenty of miles on her Xmax, as well. The Xmax is a lot more bike than a 150. We find our riding together is more fun when the bikes are similarly capable, even if they aren't the same size/style. During the year my wife stayed with the PCX while I was on that first Vespa, I found myself holding back a bit so as not to pull away from her on hills. That isn't the case with her Xmax and my current Vespa (well, she can pull away from me if she really gets on it).

All this to say: for me, a scooter is a great ride. I have enjoyed riding the scoots I have owned. I discovered I don't need a big, heavy, higher horsepower bike to appreciate ripping through the curves. I can toss a leg over a motorcycle again, but the Vespa gives me everything I want from a bike right now. Storage is a consideration for us, and we have room for one bike each. If we were to move away from our house on the water, I would want a garage that would allow me space to have more than one bike... I might get another motorcycle, and maybe even a smaller scooter to add to the Vespa. I don't see that happening anytime soon. But, it is on the table. In the meantime, my wife and I are both happy with the scoots we have. We will be heading out in a couple weeks to spend the summer riding in the Black Hills, while staying in our motorhome in a nice RV resort. Our main reason for going there is for the riding. I have enjoyed the last 8 years of riding scooters every bit as much as any of the great motorcycles we've owned. I have run a Harley Ultra, a BMW R1100RT, and other bikes up and down Iron Mountain Road (the Black Hills equivalence of Tail of the Dragon), and the riding wasn't any more satisfying than it is with our Vespa and Xmax.

Whew... I got wordy again, didn't I? Getting on a scooter kept me riding. Discovering the fun and ease of a scooter has kept me smiling.