Where You Scootin' To This Fine Weekend?

buddy boy · Post by **buddy boy** » Wed Feb 02, 2011 11:46 pm

It was 69 degrees in Richmond today. It was too windy for buddy girl's taste to go riding. I was weighing the pros and cons of going for a ride when one of my sons' friends called to ask if I wanted to ride. He has a Kawasaki E650. So off we went to Ashland. It was a nice ride. Had a cup of coffee and fended off young women. Those young women were so devious. They pretended to be more interested in the motorcycle. They must have been intimidated by the sheer awesomeness of my scooter. That's what I'm thinking.

BootScootin'FireFighter · Thu Feb 03, 2011 2:22 am

you do have a sweet set-up. I like all the lights and the step up looking thing on the back. I'll set up a ride to Lake Anna / Charlottesville with the DC group sometime in March, maybe we can meet up for lunch out that way. Are you going to Wildwood in June?

Quezzie · Post by **Quezzie** » Thu Feb 03, 2011 2:59 pm

Siiiiiigh, not going anywhere. It froze overnight, and our driveway is an ice rink.

buddy boy · Post by **buddy boy** » Thu Feb 03, 2011 10:35 pm

BootScootin'FireFighter wrote:you do have a sweet set-up. I like all the lights and the step up looking thing on the back. I'll set up a ride to Lake Anna / Charlottesville with the DC group sometime in March, maybe we can meet up for lunch out that way. Are you going to Wildwood in June?

That would be fun. Let me know about the March ride. I don't know yet about Wildwood. We are leaning toward going. If I make the 7 Hills meeting tonight, I will see if they want to coordinate a meet with your group. I will let you know. If not, I will try to meet up anyway.

Leif · Post by **Leif** » Thu Feb 03, 2011 11:15 pm

Nowhere...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qfNR-ft7A4

Fitting since it is still snowing in Denver

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Fri Feb 04, 2011 1:13 am

Nowhere either....Next weekend going to a motorcycle show. Found out by sheer accident we are having one in my area. So at least something to look forward to......

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Fri Feb 04, 2011 2:16 am

wow. weather getting the best of fellow scooterists all over the country atm, it seems. gotta know when to throw in the towel, i suppose

well here's to weekends to come, however. i am not scooting anywhere in particular this weekend, but scooting nonetheless, of course. errands, family, that sort of thing. all local

the LASMUG is having a great ride next weekend, and that is still on the table. but i have a feeling i will wait until next time out for the bi annual twisty turny curvy thing they do. a bit more practice, a little more confidence and skills might be in order for me before i take that 70 mile ride

i am going out tonight, however, and have installed a Stebal TM80 low tone horn on my Agility as of yesterday. sucker is loud, and while i don't want any near misses tonight or anytime, i wouldn't mind giving it a serious blare or two if need be

if you are scootin' this weekend, keep the rubber side down! oh, and stay out of the snow...

Quezzie wrote:....It froze overnight, and our driveway is an ice rink.

this made me lol for some reason

KRUSTYburger · Post by **KRUSTYburger** » Fri Feb 04, 2011 3:46 am

Hey Dennis, where we scootin to this weekend?! It will have to be Sunday morning because I gotta work Saturday and I SHO AIN'T missin no Supabowl!!! I just finished my terrible t-shirt.

mike_cor · Post by **mike_cor** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 7:05 pm

Had an awesome ride yesterday. Roads were clear since most folks were inside watching the Superbowl, and we had a record high temp for Feb 6th at about 78 F. I headed up to Santa Cruz along a coastal route, rode through Capitola along the beaches. It was terrific and can't wait for Summer when the warm weather is a little more consistent. Round trip about 40 miles!

EDIT: ... and sorry to all those folks with crappy weather! I guess thats why we pay too much to live here.

Post by **ericalm** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 7:22 pm

Hardly scooted at all this weekend, but I spent a lot of "quality time" with my scooters, hunting down an electrical issue in the Vespa and spending half a day washing it. Stella needs a good wash too. Hoping to get to that Saturday.

Next weekend, heading for the coast and canyons!

mike_cor · Post by **mike_cor** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 7:32 pm

ericalm wrote:Hardly scooted at all this weekend, but I spent a lot of "quality time" with my scooters, hunting down an electrical issue in the Vespa and spending half a day washing it. Stella needs a good wash too. Hoping to get to that Saturday.

Next weekend, heading for the coast and canyons!

Hope you found the source of that electrical problem. I also need to clean the Buddy and I'm looking around for a good spray and wipe that'll also bring out the shine of the plastics. I hear Meguiar's Quik Detailer is pretty good so I might go that route.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 9:56 pm

ericalm wrote:Hardly scooted at all this weekend, but I spent a lot of "quality time" with my scooters, hunting down an electrical issue in the Vespa and spending half a day washing it. Stella needs a good wash too. Hoping to get to that Saturday.

Next weekend, heading for the coast and canyons!

eric I must ask....half a day to wash a scooter?

i have read some posts from you before about not being so vigilant about keeping your scoots clean, but just how bad can it be it takes half a day?

i am surprised at how long it does take, actually. longer then it used to to wash my car, really. because of all the little peices and trim. but it doesn't take that long!

on another note, i scooted across town to a SB party yesterday, and it was a fun ride. nice ride, and i have discovered the joy of listening to music while i ride. i had been wearing earplugs, anyway. so the headphones aren't much different when it comes to still being able to hear the sounds around me. its just i tend to sing when i listen, and forget i'm outside. people must think i am nuts, singing as i roll down the street!

beautiful day today, too. i was out riding on lunch break, and man oh man. gorgeous day for riding

mike_cor wrote:... I also need to clean the Buddy and I'm looking around for a good spray and wipe that'll also bring out the shine of the plastics. I hear Meguiar's Quik Detailer is pretty good so I might go that route.

that's good stuff. use it on my Agility and the Blackjack. it doesn't shine the BJ of course, but brings out a nice luster in it. i was lucky and found several cans on closeout at Big Lot's a few weeks ago. $2 a pop for what is usually $10+ each, depending where you buy it. i think its because they aren't making the cans anymore, just the spray bottles. works all the same, however. its this stuff

http://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-3316-Qui ... B0009IQX90

Post by **ericalm** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 11:18 pm

JHScoot wrote:
ericalm wrote:Hardly scooted at all this weekend, but I spent a lot of "quality time" with my scooters, hunting down an electrical issue in the Vespa and spending half a day washing it. Stella needs a good wash too. Hoping to get to that Saturday.

Next weekend, heading for the coast and canyons!
eric I must ask....half a day to wash a scooter?

i have read some posts from you before about not being so vigilant about keeping your scoots clean, but just how bad can it be it takes half a day?

It was pretty dirty.

I had the windshield, headset and glovebox off so figured I'd just remove the remaining plastic pieces (floorboard, side fairings, other bits). I washed them all individually inside and out, getting all the nooks and crannies that are usually inaccessible. Then I cleaned up the inside of the metal bodywork with a brush and vacuumed out all the dirt that's accumulated there. The chrome windshield pieces are rusting and needed some serious steel wool and buffing. (Still not as clean as I'd like.) Then I reassembled the body, washed the whole thing. I used a sponge ball drill attachment thingy and went crazy on my rims, fenders and transmission case. I used a plastic polish (Mothers brand) for the first time on those parts and Nanowax on the metal. Then I used my 2-step cleaner and conditioner on the leather seat. I also had streaky paint from a DIY job gone bad on my plastic exhaust cover so I sanded and repainted that with high-heat matte engine paint.

Whew. Half a day!

buddy boy · Post by **buddy boy** » Mon Feb 07, 2011 11:50 pm

I had a full day of riding yesterday. After a half an hour ride into the city, I met the club members for the club's First Sunday Ride. Our Prez took us out to the Chinese Cultural Festival. It was a nice ride through the city, then out to a neighboring county. From there, another member lead us to a bar back in town for a little lunch. Unfortunately, it was closed. Probably getting ready for a private Super Bowl party. So we tried another place back in town. I had a great time getting to know some folks in the club and had a really good lunch. After lunch, I went solo for about 2 and a half hours from the city into the county side and onto home. I left at about 10:15 and got home at around 5:30.

BootScootin'FireFighter · Fri Feb 11, 2011 7:59 pm

After the successful all day *personal* photo scavenger hunt (being I was the only one) I did last month in going to all 86 subway stations in DC/MD/VA, I mapped out my next adventure. Again, I needed checkpoints and the goal was to cover every corner of Fairfax County. I chose FFX because it's close to home, and even though it's suburban, there are still many tucked away country roads with turns and lots of trees, and is a lot more scooter friendly than Maryland. I'm also not far from home and close to food and fuel if needed. I mapped out a running route of all 39 Fairfax County fire stations, but here's the catch... they have to be achieved in numerical order. That entails many trips back and forth from one corner of the county to the other, and get's me in every town. I was surprised the most desirable route to do this requires 504 miles of riding. Looks like this excursion will have to wait for spring when I get a lot more daylight to use. That's a lot of time in the saddle for 1 day. Has anyone rode that far in 1 day, other than Howards "iron butt". I'd like to knock it out in less than 14 hours.

Post by **ericalm** » Fri Feb 11, 2011 8:14 pm

504 is feasible for a day, but not easy if you're riding in traffic or on city streets with a lot of stops, etc. I had a slightly shorter route planned once that was going to take me away from the city and it would have a very long day with breaks included.

BootScootin'FireFighter · Sat Feb 12, 2011 12:16 pm

the more I contemplate it, it would really be exhausting, and may take a lot longer than 14 hours. Lower speed limits, red lights, and catching both the morning and evening rushes, then theres meal and restroom breaks. If it was more rural, then I could see it being done. Last thing I need is to be too tired, sore, or irritable while riding on my 15th hour.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 3:08 pm

Maybe drop the "numerical order" requirement? I know my personal scavenger hunt visiting every county in Michigan wouldn't be practical if I had to do them in alphabetical order.

peabody99 · Post by **peabody99** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 3:39 pm

this weekends agenda will be gym, farmers market (buddy for these), then switch to GTS for ride to Coronado Island for beach time and looking at airplanes (some sort of air show going on). Home for nap, then back out to watch sunset at Sunset Cliffs. rough life, I know.

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Sat Feb 12, 2011 5:39 pm

I may need to touch up paint on my exhaust/muffler? pipe when it gets warmer. I had a small "ding" on it right where it curves under the bike from my "missadventure" on the front lawn. I saw some rusting start on that spot before I packet up the bike for the winter. I am figuring once it is de-winterized i relly need to address this before it rusts right through and I need to replace the entire assambly. What type of paint goes there? It gets pretty hot when bike it operated so it needs to be something heat resistant, like original mate paint that got scraped off. I was thinking of everyone's fav. compound to remove the rust gently then washing it off (oily) and repaint. Unless this kind of stuff has to be done by a dealer?

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Feb 13, 2011 4:42 am

Stormswift wrote:I may need to touch up paint on my exhaust/muffler? pipe when it gets warmer. I had a small "ding" on it right where it curves under the bike from my "missadventure" on the front lawn. I saw some rusting start on that spot before I packet up the bike for the winter. I am figuring once it is de-winterized i relly need to address this before it rusts right through and I need to replace the entire assambly. What type of paint goes there? It gets pretty hot when bike it operated so it needs to be something heat resistant, like original mate paint that got scraped off. I was thinking of everyone's fav. compound to remove the rust gently then washing it off (oily) and repaint. Unless this kind of stuff has to be done by a dealer?

I recently repainted the cover on my (aftermarket Sito+) Vespa exhaust. You can get a matte black paint made for engines or other high heat paint from the hardware store.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Sun Feb 13, 2011 10:05 am

this fine weekend I scooted to and around the Rose Bowl for a nice walk with some non scooting friends. dogs, food, refreshments. it was a fine afternoon. afterward I rode around the Bowl a bit, and in the hills practicing on some "twisty's" for future rides. still getting my riding chops down, but they are coming along.

i saw a few guys an Honda Ruckus scoots going round and round the area a few times, and wondered if they are part of a local Honda Ruckus crew which used to ride locally a few years back? they have some pretty wild vids posted to youtube, and even went to Vegas on those things. man, talk about a long, slow ride lol.

had a nice evening last night with some friends and family and when I left late in the evening took a detour and decided to get lost. Montebello, Pico Rivera, Whittier, Rosemead....just rode around for an hour and a half or so, Bruce Springsteen on my headphones and having the time of my life. man, it was a nice day of riding. the kind of day that when I get off the scoot at home I just stand and look at it for a moment and think "i can't believe how awesome you are." not me, the scooter, that is. lol

i really love this shit. oh yeah, it's been a game changer right in the middle of my game. no going back, now

ride safe, all. still one more day of the weekend left... to ride!

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 2:37 pm

6:30am Sunday morning. skies are cleared from a good, hard rain, and I just woke up. going scootin' through the hills of San Marino and maybe Alta Dena as soon as I get some water on my face and my teeth brushed. stop for coffee on the way back

it's gonna be a great morning of riding

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 5:54 pm

Watch out for debris on some of those roads! There's all kinds of crap in the streets don here in the southern SFV this morning.

Have a friend in town so between that and the rain, no scootering for me this weekend. Since I started commuting again last year, I get a lot more riding in during the week!

gr8dog · Post by **gr8dog** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 6:16 pm

IT'S SNOWING AGAIN! We're supposed to get at least 12 inches. Last week I saw a scooter and a motorcycle on the road. I will wait until a good hard rain washes the salt off the road. A few nice days had me thinking of getting the scooter out but.... snow happens. That means more salt and sand on the road. Sigh

. So I am scooting nowhere this fine weekend.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 7:35 pm

The roads, sidewalks, and even a lot of south-facing lawns were clear of snow yesterday, and I rode... not just to the lake, but around it, then to one of the better fermented-beverage stores on the north side of town. This morning I went for a quick ride to the grocery store, warily eyeing the few flakes coming down... and emerged from the store to find a solid layer of snow on my Buddy and the roads looking like this:

I don't think I'm scootin' anywhere else this weekend.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 7:41 pm

ericalm wrote:Watch out for debris on some of those roads! There's all kinds of crap in the streets don here in the southern SFV this morning.

Have a friend in town so between that and the rain, no scootering for me this weekend. Since I started commuting again last year, I get a lot more riding in during the week!

w00t just got back, had a great time...

funny you should mention the debris and what not. it wasn't long before i realized the roads weren't dried out enough for spirited riding, and yes, plenty of debris on the streets. one road would be fine, but turn down the next and woah, a whole other story and quite the surprise

so i packed it in but remembered the NBA All Star Game is at Staples Center, so headed down there wishing i had taken a camera, as the one on my phone doesn't work. and even then, it sucked when it did

so off i went, through El Sereno and Chinatown and down Broadway, up Fig and around Staples, hopped off my scoot at the Pantry and had a glass of orange juice and wheat toast. off i go again on through Union / Pico, around MacArthur Park, and up to Sunset via Alvarado. down Sunset through Silverlake and onto Hollywood Blvd, stopping for coffee and a mini scone at Starbucks right there on the Blvd.

back on the scooter, i ride back down Sunset, onto Cesar Chavez and head to Manuals (El Tepeyac) on Evergreen in Boyle Heights where some of the locals stare at my scooter like it's from outter space. I am not sure mexicans ride scooters or how many are around Bolye Heights, as I have read in Mexico the Rancheros like to run them off the road in those big stupid trucks they drive with the cows painted on the doors. i hate those trucks, and as a hispanic must object to them and the bad music blaring from them!

but Manuals is always good, as they know me there from when I was....5 years old, at least. so i have more coffee and a breakfast burrito. Manual gives me two shots of Tequila (gotta love it. he won't serve beer / wine because he is across the street from a catholic church, but he will get you smashed on tequila first thing Sunday morning. also, he has a shrine to the Virgin Mother in his parking lot lol), i let the buzz pass, and i am on my way once more....

up to Pasadena because i need to waste more gas as i put a couple ounces of Seafoam in the tank before i left and want to run it through. as i ride down Colorado Blvd i see an old coworker of mine walking down the street with his family and pull over to say 'hi.' they are going to church and invite me with them. so, what the hell, i figure. i am not religious, but have a good time even if i do stay for just half an hour. it was nice

hop back on my scoot, gas up, now here i am back home

i must say it's the best 4 and 1/2 hours i have spent in the morning in awhile. made possible by getting around town outside on two wheels. its just...a whole different way of life. i like it

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 8:08 pm

3PM, it's up to nearly 50* here I'll head to the coffee shop for a while....

jmkjr72 · Post by **jmkjr72** » Sun Feb 20, 2011 8:44 pm

Stormswift wrote:I may need to touch up paint on my exhaust/muffler? pipe when it gets warmer. I had a small "ding" on it right where it curves under the bike from my "missadventure" on the front lawn. I saw some rusting start on that spot before I packet up the bike for the winter. I am figuring once it is de-winterized i relly need to address this before it rusts right through and I need to replace the entire assambly. What type of paint goes there? It gets pretty hot when bike it operated so it needs to be something heat resistant, like original mate paint that got scraped off. I was thinking of everyone's fav. compound to remove the rust gently then washing it off (oily) and repaint. Unless this kind of stuff has to be done by a dealer?

you need vht header paint regular engine paint or regular ht paints will not hold up

then the key is going to be you have to have some down time as to work properly it needs to cure properly

that means you either have to bake it in the oven or let it sit for 24 to 48 hours there will be instuctions on the can

Post by **ericalm** » Sat Mar 12, 2011 11:38 pm

Weather's gettin' better all over! Hope more of us are out riding.

This weekend, the LA Scooter Group is doing our long-awaited tour of (some of) LA's best doughnut shops. Skootz planned this one. He's obviously trying to undermine my diet, ha.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 2:40 am

As I've done a number of times in the past few months, I scooted to the nearby lake, where I went for a walk on it. Sort of. At one point the ice started giving way under my feet. I don't think I was in any danger of going through; the top few inches had been partially melting by day then partially freezing by night, making them just a bit porous, wet, and crackly in places, and suddenly each step resulted in a distressing "crunch". Rather than getting my feet wet (or possibly breaking through the ice and subsequently freezing/drowning) I remembered my ice-safety training and dropped to my hands and knees to distribute my weight over more area. (Did somebody say something about a diet?) It was kind of a long crawl to the nearest fishing pier, but I arrived safe and (mostly) dry.

And lived to snap some pix of the swans after my hands warmed up.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 9:20 am

well i won't be scootin' for donuts, thats for sure

i think nature is lovely, TVB. but eric most likely has you beat on this one for the weekend

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 12:46 pm

JHScoot wrote:i think nature is lovely, TVB. but eric most likely has you beat on this one for the weekend

Given a choice between donuts and an icy death, I think I'd choose the donuts as well.

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 2:17 pm

It's not a competition!

rajron · Post by **rajron** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 3:19 pm

In less than an hour we are heading out to Las Cruses, NM from Albuquerque; about a 500 mile round trip, we are spending the night there, we did this trip last year almost to the day; two wheels on the ground – will post pics sometime next week.

MYSCTR · Post by **MYSCTR** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 9:39 pm

Went out for Jamba and a movie.

peabody99 · Post by **peabody99** » Sun Mar 13, 2011 10:00 pm

63 and sunny. after gym,errands, and chores we are now ready for a quick ride along the seaside and then relax and people watch with a glass of crisp Greek table wine and a plate of black olives.

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 7:33 pm

peabody99 wrote:63 and sunny. now ready for a quick ride along the seaside and then relax and people watch with a glass of crisp Greek table wine and a plate of black olives.

I HATE living in Pennsylvania!

iMoses · Post by **iMoses** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 7:40 pm

Here in KC we had the 28th Annual Snake Day Parade...

Our group KC Scooter Riders participated. It was a nice sunny day, and a little warmish even though it was only 57 degrees~

Here are 2 picts

BigBenlor · Post by **BigBenlor** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 8:19 pm

On Saturday, a couple of scooter "buddies" (not buddy's) got together and rode the Rocky mountain's front range. About a 30 mile ride with a stop here at the "Garden of the Gods" colorado springs. this is a picture of the 3 scooters in front of Pikes Peak (14,110' on top of the big snowey rock in the background) Then we ended our ride in fountain colorado for a frisbee golf stop. Cheers to the good weather!

rajron · Post by **rajron** » Tue Mar 15, 2011 12:39 am

Spring Break Road Trip
Last year (http://modernvespa.com/forum/topic62102) we took a similar road trip during spring break, but, this year the weather was much better, no snow or ice on the road ways. One way from our house to Las Cruses is over 250 miles, altogether with side trips an all we traveled over 550 miles in two days.
Most of the way we took the freeways, the scooters performed flawlessly – sometimes on steep inclines and strong head winds we wished we had more power otherwise it was OK.

We started out all smiles, but by the next day at 4:30 in the after noon, after 550 miles we didn’t have much spring left.

About midway we stopped in Socorro for lunch, both going to Las Cruses and coming back to ABQ

We met this guy in Mesilla who was riding his bicycle from Chicago to the west coast, southern route, then he was going to ride north to Oregon and ride back to Chicago, he said he just needed to get back home by August!

Mesilla Plaza was a Confederate head quarters for the Arizona Rebels and is one of the first places settled in the Las Curses valley. Entrance to La Mesilla

Mesilla Plaza facing north

Mesilla Plaza facing south

Kathleen found something she likes – a typical scene of the many shops in the Plaza

We stopped by Hatch famous for their green chilies

<

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Tue Mar 15, 2011 2:15 am

rajron wrote:We met this guy in Mesilla who was riding his bicycle from Chicago to the west coast, southern route, then he was going to ride north to Oregon and ride back to Chicago, he said he just needed to get back home by August!

Quoted with jealousy.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sat Oct 08, 2011 8:58 pm

Beautiful fall weather this week with temps in the 70ºFs, so I had to go for a scoot today. Rode a couple hours following the Grand River upstream into Ionia County and back. I almost hit a big turtle (snapper, maybe?); it's nice to have a vehicle that you can make swerve just by swiveling your hips.

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Sat Oct 08, 2011 10:10 pm

Heading with a group to Jerusalem Mills, a historical site tomorrow

scootavaran · Post by **scootavaran** » Sat Oct 08, 2011 10:54 pm

Drum Pro · Post by **Drum Pro** » Sat Oct 08, 2011 11:21 pm

Over the bridge and through the woods to grandmothers house, I go. Seriously!!! (L.o.L) I like to go there once a week and help them out around the house. They are in their late 80's and can't do their yard work so I do it for them.

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Oct 09, 2011 2:18 am

Nowhere!

Tomorrow is Ciclavia, when many roads are shut down to all motorized vehicles. Only cyclists and pedestrians! I missed the past couple and have a new bike so I'm pretty stoked about this one.

LunaP · Post by **LunaP** » Sun Oct 09, 2011 6:00 am

Sigh. Looks like boyfriend will be drowning in schoolwork tomorrow, which is my day off. It's supposed to be sunny, and a high of 80 (wow!) sooooo

that means Sailor Scoot and I will be taking a solo ride.... somewhere! Shopping? Wandering? Showing off to friends who haven't seen her yet? Who knows? Think I'll take the camera with me and see what I come back with...