Scooter People
It’s been a good ten months or so now since I last drove a car (from memory it was driving from Brugge to Calais in December).
In Sydney I don't particularly miss the car — I live close enough to walk to work, and generally try to walk or make the most of Sydney's feeble public transport system — but I think I might end up getting a scooter at some point. I’ve had friends recommend them and I can't be bothered with a car in the city, so it’s a tempting option. I found this one outside a scooter garage in Newtown last weekend and took a bunch of photos.
I think part of my problem is that if I bought a scooter I’d have to get a beautiful retro Vespa (and ride around saying ‘Ciao!’).
Anybody else here a scooter person? Any tips?
Posted on Wednesday, October 3, 2007 and filed under Life.
Comments
The problem with a beautiful retro scooter is that there's no such thing as beautiful retro protective leathers.
They mightn't go as fast as real motorbikes but the road at 60kph is still going to give you a good sandpapering. (The road at 20kph will even give you a good sandpapering on a push-bike).
Posted by: Mot on October 5, 2007
Dangerous-smangerous.
ok, scooters/motorbikes are significantly more dangerous than cars - but they do rock.
I've been riding a Vespa (new-style) since March of this year for the same reasons you outline - a little too close to work to drive, plus no parking, Sydney traffic nightmares, cost of fuel etc.
I have a "Grand Turismo" which can easly do 100kmph and pretty much beats any car off the light - you need the acceleration to sneak in between the cars and avoid mobile-phone-wielding-lane-changing-without-looking taxi drivers!
I spend about $10/week on fuel (it's $8 to fill the tank) and I live out in East Ryde. It takes me about 35 mins (in rush hour) to commute to Wolloomooloo - a trip which takes well over an hour on the bus - plus you don't have to spend time waiting for the bus/train/whatever.
And finally, riding a scooter is a blast - it's LOADS of fun, and now that the weather is picking up it's loveley and warm too.
Feel free to email me if you want any more info - I did a fair amount of research before I bought.
Cheers,
D.
Posted by: Dunk on October 5, 2007
The comment I've heard from someone here who just bought a scooter: go try riding one before you get too excited. I think there are learner sessions. Unless of course you've ridden one before.
The other comment: only fun until it rains ;)
Still, I'm amazed they're not more popular here. That and Smart ForTwos - why aren't the roads full of them?
Posted by: Ben Buchanan on October 5, 2007
>> think there are learner sessions. Unless of course you've ridden one before.
In order to ride a scooter in NSW you need a full motorbike license. The process for getting one involves signing up for a 7-hour (3.5 hours each day on a weekend) "learner" course and then going to an RTA center an doing a computer test thats v. similar to your car license (and equally easy). This gets you 6 months of riding around on your L-plates after which you then go take a full-day "P" course which then gets you 1 year on your P's before getting a full license.
If you are over 30 and have had a car license (NSW) for 5+years, you get to skip the 1-year P plate thing (you still have to do the course).
limitations on L and P plates are no alcohol, no passengers and 80kmph max speed.
As for it only being fun until it rains - other than the craziness of the past winter, it never rains in Sydney!!! (and it's still fun in the rain - just wetter).
Posted by: Dunk on October 5, 2007
Forgot to mention: due to the increased popularity of scooters/motorbikes there's a pretty significant wait to get on the courses (I had to wait 8 weeks) - unless you are willing to do them during the week in which case it's a little easier..
Posted by: Dunk on October 5, 2007
Adrian had a scooter for over a year. It was great until he fractured his scapular! On route to Port80 it was raining lightly, the first time it had rained for yonks. He went through a roundabout at low speed and the font wheel of the scooter just completely shot out from under him. He arrived at the Queens dazed and in some pain. He couldn't lift his arm but managed to ride the scooter home... A couple of days later x-rays revealed a fractured shoulder blade from top to bottom. Ouch!!
Miles B also had a scooter around the same time. I don't think he rides it any more either.
Posted by: Rosemary on October 5, 2007
PS I forgot to say that it was fun while it lasted! It was heaps faster than catching public transport and cheaper too... about $3.50 per week and that was a daily route 24km in total.
Because of the accident we replaced it with a second hand car... that now collects dust and bills!
Lots of advantages... but safety is definitely a problem.
Cheers.
Posted by: rosemary on October 5, 2007
I've had a Vespa PX200E for about 6 years now. We lived in Northbridge for most of that time and I rode it everywhere. So much fun, so easy to get around, easy to park. It's just great.
Since moving out of the inner city, and since having a couple of kids, I find myself riding it less, but that's probably because I'm not going places that I can really take a scooter at the moment.
The thing to remember with scooters is safety. I don't ride it during winter or during rain. The contact patch on the tyres is too small to be safe (to my mind) and I just don't want to risk it. I also wear a full face helmet. Nothing worse than a face full of bugs, and if you do have an accident, I'd rather come out of it with a chin still attached to my face.
Don't worry with the 50cc scooters. They're just useless. In WA at least, you need a license for 200cc and above, which means lessons. Even if you do go for a 50cc, then lessons are vitally important. You learn a lot about road positioning, and handling at speed. The stuff I picked up has saved me on a couple of occasions.
Also, I'm not sure about the newer models, but at least with the older 2-stroke models, don't kid yourself that you're doing the environment a favour either. They're horribly inefficient at burning the fuel.
You do get around cheaply though :)
Posted by: Jordan Brock on October 5, 2007
Hey, thanks for all the tips and advice guys!
Mot - I take advice from my motorbike and scooter riding buddies who only ride while wearing proper helmets and the mesh safety jackets. A nasty stack is inevitable in Sydney, so fashion be damned, I want to be in one piece.
Dunk - thanks for the tips! And I'm new in Sydney so I can't comment on the rain, other than the damp mess that was this past winter.
Ben - yeah, I'd definitely be giving it a go for a while before jumping in. As for the Smart ForTwos, I guess parking is still pretty hard to find in the CBD with anything bigger than a bike or scooter, so you may as well drive a normal small car? Not sure why they're so rare here. There were heaps in London.
Rosemary - I remember the slightly battered looking Adrian rolling into The Queens one cold and wet Wednesday night.. that kinda put me off scootering at the time. I think Miles' scooter lost out to the BamBug.
Jordan - The newer 4 cylinder engines are apparently pretty good, especially the European-made scooters which are governed by EU regulations. And agreed about winter/rain.
Posted by: Si on October 8, 2007
It's probably the cost that really screwed the smart cars - by the time they were imported, converted and sales taxed to death here, they were pretty expensive for what you got. For the same cost you could get something just that little bit larger and more powerful, from a better known manufacturer. Plus, they stopped selling the funky little coupe.
Posted by: Ben Buchanan on October 9, 2007
Dude where do you put the L plates on a gorgeous retro scooter without making it look lame! im very reluctant to stick them right on the front of my aprilia habana! it will look horrid! : (
Posted by: nicole on May 18, 2008
