How was your commute today?

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Wed May 09, 2012 2:36 am

Mine was great! Cool & crisp air with warm sun.

Blogged a little about it here.

How was your commute today?

black sunshine · Post by **black sunshine** » Wed May 09, 2012 2:38 am

it was great except for i took my CAR because the weatherman said that it was going to rain! and it DIDN'T!

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Wed May 09, 2012 2:41 am

black sunshine wrote:it was great except for i took my CAR because the weatherman said that it was going to rain! and it DIDN'T!

If it's not raining when I leave then I throw caution to the wind and ride anyway. So far, I've beat the odds because it hasn't rained (doesn't rain much here anyway, though).

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed May 09, 2012 2:56 am

Really, really crappy. I'm back on the bus since I dumped my scooter the other day. I have to say that getting back on the bus after nearly 3 years of scooter commuting feels a bit like I imagine it would feel if I had to move back in with my parents. I'm so desparate for a scoot that I've been browsing Craigslist and considering all sorts of formerly undesirable scooters.

help. me. please.

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Wed May 09, 2012 3:00 am

pdxrita wrote: since I dumped my scooter the other day.

Oh no! What happened? Can you get it fixed?

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed May 09, 2012 3:07 am

velobuff wrote:
pdxrita wrote: since I dumped my scooter the other day.
Oh no! What happened? Can you get it fixed?

Long story short, I got distracted for a few seconds and when I looked back, the cars in front of me were coming to an abrupt halt. I grabbed two fist fulls of brakes and promptly dumped it and myself. I don't think I could have avoided the dump by braking less since that would have put me into the back of the minivan that I wound up almost underneath. It was totally my fault. As for whether it can be fixed, it's pretty badly damaged. It's at the shop now awaiting an insurance estimate. Hopefully I'll find out tomorrow. Here's the worst of it - the handlebar is severely bent, all of the surrounding plastics are destroyed, and since they're all tied into that area, the brakes, electrical and throttle are messed up. Somehow I managed to hit both sides, so it's pretty bad.

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Wed May 09, 2012 3:16 am

I don't think it'll cost you as much as you think - esp if you have some friends that can put the new parts on rather than your scooter shop. I'm sure all the parts are readily available from Genuine. Honestly, if all you did was bend everything on the handlebars to the point of needing replacement, it's not that bad and they probably won't total it or anything (it's not a Vespa with bent metal body panels)!

Glad you're ok though!

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed May 09, 2012 3:23 am

velobuff wrote:I don't think it'll cost you as much as you think - esp if you have some friends that can put the new parts on rather than your scooter shop. I'm sure all the parts are readily available from Genuine. Honestly, if all you did was bend everything on the handlebars to the point of needing replacement, it's not that bad and they probably won't total it or anything (it's not a Vespa with bent metal body panels)!

Glad you're ok though!

Thanks! I hope it's that simple. I'm itching to get back on it even though I've still got some painful bruises. When I talked to the insurance agent, he said, based upon my description, that it might be totaled, so I've just been bracing myself for that possibility. Even if it's not totaled, I'm counting on being without it for a bare minimum of a month. It sucks because the weather has just now gotten really, really nice. I'm glad others are out enjoying it, anyhow.

skully93 · Post by **skully93** » Wed May 09, 2012 3:23 am

ugh! Sorry to hear that.

I mangled my Italia and replacing my helmet was the most expensive part. Insurance covered it.

SYMbionic Duo · Post by **SYMbionic Duo** » Wed May 09, 2012 4:14 am

looks like my black jack.
i just bent the brake lever back to a useable state and put on bar end mirrors since one of mine was broken.

scars make the bike look more bad ass, imo.

edit: just read more clearly, the handle bar is bent not the brake lever.
So...just bend the other side and you have clubman style handle bars! starting a new trend of cafe buddies.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Wed May 09, 2012 12:32 pm

velobuff wrote:If it's not raining when I leave then I throw caution to the wind and ride anyway. So far, I've beat the odds because it hasn't rained (doesn't rain much here anyway, though).

Yeah, I figure that if I can get to work without getting wet, it's OK if I get wet on the way home; I have dry clothes there.

But Monday and today were both marginal: raining lightly. So of course on Monday I hit every possible red light between home and work. Today I had better luck... until I reached the section of the main road that was inexplicably closed by the police, and I (and a bunch of other people) had to detour stop-and-go through the side streets. {sigh}

Tam Tam · Post by **Tam Tam** » Wed May 09, 2012 12:53 pm

It had rained off & on all day, and I was hoping that it had rained itself out, so it was nice & cool at night to slip out and ride...till it rains

...but hey, I made it home okay, so it is alright.

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed May 09, 2012 2:48 pm

SYMbionic Duo wrote:looks like my black jack.
i just bent the brake lever back to a useable state and put on bar end mirrors since one of mine was broken.

scars make the bike look more bad ass, imo.

edit: just read more clearly, the handle bar is bent not the brake lever.
So...just bend the other side and you have clubman style handle bars! starting a new trend of cafe buddies.

Yeah, I've been riding mine with damaged brake levers since I got it because the previous owner had dumped it. That was no big deal. If it's fixable, I'm definitely having the handlebar replaced. It's too damaged to take any chances with at this point. Since I'm making an insurance claim, I'll get it all fixed. No need to ride with damage it it's paid for. Now I'm just waiting to find out if they call it fixable or total it.

AWinn6889 · Post by **AWinn6889** » Wed May 09, 2012 10:13 pm

black sunshine wrote:it was great except for i took my CAR because the weatherman said that it was going to rain! and it DIDN'T!

Story of my life.

EDIT: In fact, tonight, while I am here at work, we were supposed to have light rain and possible thunderstorms. It has cleared up for the most part, just a few high fluffy clouds left.

EDIT EDIT: The clouds have moved in, and I can see the rain-- it's a good 20-30 miles north.

Southerner · Post by **Southerner** » Wed May 09, 2012 10:35 pm

black sunshine wrote:it was great except for i took my CAR because the weatherman said that it was going to rain! and it DIDN'T!

I'm farther down the Chattahoochee than you are but we finally got a little bit today. Not much, maybe a half inch total.

I've been riding the car all week and grousing because the expected rain didn't come. Until today.

chas · Post by **chas** » Wed May 09, 2012 11:43 pm

My commute is about 5 miles on surface streets and today it was 75 degrees and sunny. It was gorgeous.

So far the commute was the best part of my day and the worst part of my day was having to turn off my scooter when I got to where I was going. I would have ridden all day if I didn't have somewhere to be.

uberjj · Post by **uberjj** » Thu May 10, 2012 12:34 am

Best commute ever -- first commute on the scooter. Totally made my morning!

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu May 10, 2012 12:54 am

With all this talk of handle bars(BTW I did get drizzled on for 10 minutes on commute), has anyone considered mounting ape-hanger handle bars on your scoot?

scootavaran · Post by **scootavaran** » Thu May 10, 2012 2:33 am

I got rained on today coming back from the maintains. COLD!!!!!!
lol and right after i put up my Corazzo max jacket for being to hot.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:19 am

Raiderfn311 wrote:With all this talk of handle bars(BTW I did get drizzled on for 10 minutes on commute), has anyone considered mounting ape-hanger handle bars on your scoot?

Too much self-respect.

Southerner · Post by **Southerner** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:26 am

Raiderfn311 wrote:With all this talk of handle bars(BTW I did get drizzled on for 10 minutes on commute), has anyone considered mounting ape-hanger handle bars on your scoot?

I'm sure it's been done but it would strictly have to be for style as they are positively detrimental to handling.

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:31 am

I rode up a mountain on my way home!

Here are some pics

http://phalanx.phpwebhosting.com/commin ... -way-home/

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:32 am

uberjj wrote:Best commute ever -- first commute on the scooter. Totally made my morning!

It's so addictive. You'll hate days when you have to drive your cage or take mass transit

scootavaran · Post by **scootavaran** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:37 am

velobuff wrote:I rode up a mountain on my way home!

Here are some pics

http://phalanx.phpwebhosting.com/commin ... -way-home/

Great pics! The last pic looked like your scooter was tipping over.

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Thu May 10, 2012 3:42 am

scootavaran wrote:
velobuff wrote:I rode up a mountain on my way home!

Here are some pics

http://phalanx.phpwebhosting.com/commin ... -way-home/
Great pics! The last pic looked like your scooter was tipping over.

Yeah the side stands on those things are a little short, IMO.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Thu May 10, 2012 7:47 pm

I make it awesome every single day.

pugbuddy · Post by **pugbuddy** » Fri May 11, 2012 1:27 am

Didn't die. I'll take that right now.

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Sun May 13, 2012 1:22 pm

My commute Friday was chilly.

I dint we're my skiing gloves so my hands were frozen but dry.

Left work @ 2:30 to rain & snow!!!!

First time riding this scoot in either situation. She held up beautifully. Emphasis on "up"

And I lived to blog about it on my site

siobhan · Post by **siobhan** » Sun May 13, 2012 4:27 pm

Car turned the wrong way onto the one-way street I was on (stopped at a red light). I flailed my arms to get her attention before she turned, but it didn't compute in her groggy morning brain. It was great when the light turned green as I easily got around the car, but everyone else was stuck. Just another regular commutin' day in PVD.

Joker219 · Post by **Joker219** » Wed May 16, 2012 5:49 am

I've had my buddy 125 for 2 weeks now as rode it to work and back (36 miles) the ride there was not bad but the ride home the winds picked up and blew me all over the road. Quite scary for a new rider but I made it just fine, I'll not however be riding in windy conditions again though,(above 10 knots)

velobuff · Post by **velobuff** » Wed May 16, 2012 12:58 pm

Joker219 wrote:I've had my buddy 125 for 2 weeks now as rode it to work and back (36 miles) the ride there was not bad but the ride home the winds picked up and blew me all over the road. Quite scary for a new rider but I made it just fine, I'll not however be riding in windy conditions again though,(above 10 knots)

Get a windscreen & experiment with tucking & your clothing selection (get a jacket the doesn't catch the wind like Corazzo). Consider choosing a route that puts you directly into the wind if possible.

I ride in winds up to 25-35 mph with higher gusts coming off the mountains & such. On one of my routes home I pass by a wind laboratory... :/

Granted my scooter is bigger & heavier but the same rules apply..

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Wed May 16, 2012 4:13 pm

I'm back in the saddle this week with my newish Buddy 125 I picked up over the weekend. So even though it's been a bit chilly in the morning without my windscreen (ETA Friday) and a good helmet (ETA today), and a good jacket (ETA soonish?) any day scooting is sweeter than a day on the bus!

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Thu May 17, 2012 12:57 pm

Sadly no commuting on the scoot for me this week.....
I still haven't gotten over my issue with leaving the house at 0330 on it

And every day this week except today (I'm off) I've done the 'early shift' I did ride 2 days last week when I didn't have to be in until later, and will again tomorrow........

Wheelz · Post by **Wheelz** » Thu May 17, 2012 6:29 pm

I love riding to work, I hate getting to work, but the ride is always great

Swordsman · Post by **Swordsman** » Thu May 17, 2012 7:30 pm

Chilly! I wore my perforated leather jacket sans liner. Body was okay though... my fingers were the ones that suffered. Crap circulation I guess. They were all numb and tingly with bluish nails by the time I got to work. Pretty sure it was low-mid 60's. Bike ran great, though!

~SM

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Thu May 17, 2012 11:52 pm

KABarash wrote: Sadly no commuting on the scoot for me this week.....
I still haven't gotten over my issue with leaving the house at 0330 on it And every day this week except today (I'm off) I've done the 'early shift' I did ride 2 days last week when I didn't have to be in until later, and will again tomorrow........

Really no riding for me this week now.....
Scoot's got a flat

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Fri May 18, 2012 10:34 am

I've been commuting on my bicycle this week. Bike To Work Week, after all. It requires leaving a little earlier (and bringing a dry shirt to change into), but it's a nice change of pace.

jonesygirl · Post by **jonesygirl** » Sat May 19, 2012 7:46 am

My ride into work yesterday evening was great! It was 75 degrees. Now in a few hours I will be riding back home and it will be in the 50's if I'm lucky.

JHScoot · Post by **JHScoot** » Sat May 19, 2012 9:49 am

Slicing and dicing through traffic like a hot knife though buttah!

Capt_Don · Post by **Capt_Don** » Thu May 24, 2012 4:44 am

My ride was sweet today, and it has been so the whole week I have had the Buddy. I have Frog Togs so I do not mind the rain, but I'd rather it not rain.

smarkum · Post by **smarkum** » Thu May 31, 2012 11:06 am

My ride yesterday was PERFECT! Thanks for asking. The morn temp was nice and crisp. The ride home was 78 degrees and a nice slight breeze. The sun was big and proud and incredibly blue. And my scoot has almost 1,000 miles on it and on the last few rides, it feels like a nice comfy glove. I've hit a sweet spot and it is a pure joy to ride. I hear that there will be another sweet spot in about 1,000 more miles! I cannot wait! SWEET! I love my Buddy. I loved my Stella a lot. Over 10,000 miles in 2 and 1/2 years. But I never felt so at ease and almost "at one" with the Stella. But the Buddy . . . WOW!

I JUST checked the weather . . . big time rain chance and quite windy

. Commuting in the cage today. Sad.

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Thu May 31, 2012 9:28 pm

Faaaabulous Daaaaling, simply faaaaabulous.......

My first commute in a couple weeksor more, at least since collecting a nail in my rear tire on Mothers' Day. 60* ish going in this morning at 0700 about 75* on the way home this evening about 1700

Hmmmm....... Tomorrow morning I may try the 0330 to work run, wish me 'luck'......

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:59 am

It was nice. I wore my new helmet. No pressure points with this one. Retracting double visor is really convenient. The weather was lovely, I smiled all the way home.

k1dude · Post by **k1dude** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 1:14 am

Yesterday I had the commute from hell on my way home.

At the first light I started accelerating as normal. I was way out front as usual, when I noticed a car on my right accelerating like crazy. I was still accelerating myself and didn't think anything of it. But the speed limit is 35mph, and the car was going to blow by me at about 45. Normally I don't care, but something told me he had a problem getting beat out at the light by a scooter. So I decided to keep accelerating to see how far he would push it. We were neck and neck and he was still trying to blow past me. We got up to 70bmph (my max speed) in a 35 and he was still trying to pass. I saw the next light coming up and his lane had all the traffic and mine only had a few cars. So I knew he was going to have to brake hard if he didn't start braking immediately. Sure enough, he kept going trying to pass me. It was going to be ugly. He kept playing chicken until the last possible second and he had to slam his brakes on hard! He started skidding and there was smoke as he fishtailed to a stop in the nick of time. Really? It was THAT important to beat a scooter? So to really piss him off I lane split to the front of the line at the light.

So what happened next? A car on my left did the exact same thing. Except this time he passed me. But he had to squeal his brakes with smoke at the next light. Really? I think he was one of those that was pissed that I lane split to the front. So he was going to show me who was boss. But he almost got in an accident to prove his point.

Next, a mile down the road, a car drifted into my lane. As I evaded him, I noticed he was looking down at the center of his dash pushing buttons. I have no idea if he was adjusting his stereo or entering an address into his gps. Either way he almost took me out.

A couple miles later a woman pulled out of a strip mall right in front of me. She never looked for oncoming traffic. As I barely missed her and blew past, she still didn't even notice me.

A few miles later, a big lifted Chevy truck DID see me and pulled out right in my path. I was doing about 50 and he pulled out of a strip mall anyway. It was VERY close and he couldn't give a damn. I had to brake so hard I thought I was going to slide and lose control. He acted like he had the right of way and had this smug look on his face. He refused to look at me.

In the last stretch coming home, another driver had to put me in my place by racing by me. I think he was another driver upset I lane split to the front. He was changing lanes like crazy behind me trying his best to get around me in rush hour traffic. Traffic was moving about 10mph over the limit, so there was no way I was holding him up. And even if he could pass me, he was just going to get stuck behind the traffic right in front of me. He finally got around me by driving like a crazy person. What did he do when he finally passed me? Nothing. No more crazy driving. His only goal was to pass me or die trying. Really? It was that important?

I think I put up with a month worth of commute idiots in one 20 minute stretch. I was just damn glad to get home. Was it a full moon or was it something in the water?

pdxrita · Post by **pdxrita** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 3:14 am

My commute was pretty nice, weather wise. A little drizzly on the way in this morning, but not at all cold. Dry and fairly warm on the way home, so I couldn't ask for much better.

I did have a bit of a weird experience on the way home, though. For the first time since my accident, I decided to take the route that runs past the scene of the crash. It felt a little bit strange approaching it and remembering, but I figured I had to get that out of the way. What was weird was that there was a bicyclist standing on that same corner with his bent up bike tossed in the landscaping as he paced around. I think he was awaiting his rescue ride, just as I had done on that very same corner. The more I think about it, the more I think that the recent remodel of that grocery store, and it's parking lot, has created a dangerous corner. The traffic from the parking lot now backs up onto the street and that's how I had my accident. I'm not saying it wasn't my fault, just that the conditions are bad there. I'm going to keep an eye on that corner and may try to figure out who to contact to report the bad parking lot design and the safety issues it causes. Anyhow... that was my commute. Good but strange.

Capt_Don · Post by **Capt_Don** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 5:12 am

It was cold and raining, I did not have my liner, but my body was OK, I just wish I had worn my gloves with the shield wiper on it... the pants I wore held up well and kept me dry!

gbjbany · Post by **gbjbany** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 5:33 am

Don't take the buddy every day, mostly ride my Burgman, but today was going to be hot so decided the buddy, which has more airflow.
Was a wonderfully relaxing cruise to and from, no schools so little traffic just grinning all the way there and all the way home.

Aaaahhhhhhh !

Tam Tam · Post by **Tam Tam** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 7:33 am

k1dude wrote:Yesterday I had the commute from hell on my way home.

At the first light I started accelerating as normal. I was way out front as usual, when I noticed a car on my right accelerating like crazy. I was still accelerating myself and didn't think anything of it. But the speed limit is 35mph, and the car was going to blow by me at about 45. Normally I don't care, but something told me he had a problem getting beat out at the light by a scooter. So I decided to keep accelerating to see how far he would push it. We were neck and neck and he was still trying to blow past me. We got up to 70bmph (my max speed) in a 35 and he was still trying to pass. I saw the next light coming up and his lane had all the traffic and mine only had a few cars. So I knew he was going to have to brake hard if he didn't start braking immediately. Sure enough, he kept going trying to pass me. It was going to be ugly. He kept playing chicken until the last possible second and he had to slam his brakes on hard! He started skidding and there was smoke as he fishtailed to a stop in the nick of time. Really? It was THAT important to beat a scooter? So to really piss him off I lane split to the front of the line at the light.

So what happened next? A car on my left did the exact same thing. Except this time he passed me. But he had to squeal his brakes with smoke at the next light. Really? I think he was one of those that was pissed that I lane split to the front. So he was going to show me who was boss. But he almost got in an accident to prove his point.

Next, a mile down the road, a car drifted into my lane. As I evaded him, I noticed he was looking down at the center of his dash pushing buttons. I have no idea if he was adjusting his stereo or entering an address into his gps. Either way he almost took me out.

A couple miles later a woman pulled out of a strip mall right in front of me. She never looked for oncoming traffic. As I barely missed her and blew past, she still didn't even notice me.

A few miles later, a big lifted Chevy truck DID see me and pulled out right in my path. I was doing about 50 and he pulled out of a strip mall anyway. It was VERY close and he couldn't give a damn. I had to brake so hard I thought I was going to slide and lose control. He acted like he had the right of way and had this smug look on his face. He refused to look at me.

In the last stretch coming home, another driver had to put me in my place by racing by me. I think he was another driver upset I lane split to the front. He was changing lanes like crazy behind me trying his best to get around me in rush hour traffic. Traffic was moving about 10mph over the limit, so there was no way I was holding him up. And even if he could pass me, he was just going to get stuck behind the traffic right in front of me. He finally got around me by driving like a crazy person. What did he do when he finally passed me? Nothing. No more crazy driving. His only goal was to pass me or die trying. Really? It was that important?

I think I put up with a month worth of commute idiots in one 20 minute stretch. I was just damn glad to get home. Was it a full moon or was it something in the water?

Yep, to some folks it really is that important to beat out a scooter. My commutes to work this week has been awesome because I'm the road at 3 am...but coming home is weak as no one wants a scooter to leave them at the light. Then, when they realize that you are really moving fast, their pride kicks in and they HAVE to beat you. And nothing is worse than a jack ass who looks right at you doing 40 mph, and still lazily turns into traffic right in front of you...damn, but that makes me love my Stebel horn even more!

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:28 pm

k1dude wrote:Really? It was THAT important to beat a scooter?

Really? It was THAT important to not let him?

I think I put up with a month worth of commute idiots in one 20 minute stretch.

You had one the whole way home, from the sound of it.

I get it; I know what it's like, and maybe if I had a bike capable of playing chicken like that I would've done the same thing. But don't complain about other people driving crazy when you did 70 in a 35 zone just to piss someone off.

k1dude · Post by **k1dude** » Sat Jun 02, 2012 3:52 pm

Yes, I get your point. But like I said, I normally don't care and let them go by. The last time I pushed it like that was four years ago. Basically the same thing happened. The guy trying to pass me in a souped up Honda Civic almost took out a van and himself trying to get past me doing 70 in a 40. So I swore to myself I wouldn't ever do that again. Because people get stupid crazy around a scooter. Somehow they perceive it to be a threat to their manhood or something. Whatever the reason, it causes irrational and dangerous behavior.

So I broke my own rule doing it again. I have no idea why, but I did. Maybe I was just sick of running into idiots with problems like that. Maybe it was building up over 4 years. Whatever the reason, I did it again against my better judgement. And I did it twice that commute.

But, that being said, I don't appreciate your tone or being called an idiot. I wasn't the instigator in any of the instances. Perhaps I behaved no better, but I wasn't the one who started it. I'm sure you've always conducted yourself with utmost control your whole life. You're perfect and we should all be just like you.

Modern Buddy

How was your commute today?

How was your commute today?

got rained on playing Scooter Tag

Wind is scary!!

Re: Wind is scary!!