How I Spent Larry Craig Resignation Day

I stayed away from airport restrooms, I tell ya.

I decided to go use my 1/2 price breakfast coupon at Cafe Coco, instead.

Coco's front patio.

Our Hero.

The Mexican Sunrise plate. That's eggy goodness, cooked up with peppers, onions, 'maters and a white cheese. Who knew tater tots were Mexican?

Peek-a-boo Vino.

This older Honda Elite SR belongs to a young, skinny dude that works at Coco. Odd coincidence: I first met this guy (and his scooter) at the TNDoS on Freedom Day.

Then, I tooled around downtown a bit, to shoot 9:05 of video for youse what hasn't been to Gnashvegas:


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Cloudburst

Yep. I hadn't even left the parking lot at work this evening when the skies opened up, and the rain came down, hard.

I was soaked. But the rain had stopped by the time I reached Nebraska Ave., and the roads from there, west, were bone dry. I was nearly dry when I hopped off the Vino at the McDonald's @ Charlotte and 47th -- I was there to pick up my online Redbox rental, Knocked Up.

Anyway... Nashville drivers are pretty much assholes. Right?
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The first part of the ride home, tonight. With music by Phil Keaggy.
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My Favorite Scooter Photo

From the Scooter in the Sticks guy. He's very talented with the lens, IMO. Awesome shot. Should be a postcard, if not a poster. Check his blog for other great shots.
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No, It's Not A Vespa

... but it neither bothers nor flatters me that you would ask.

Instead, let me tell you how economical it is, and how if you used one 50% of the time instead of your car, you'd be making a big change in how your lifestyle impacts the planet.

And, they're fun. About as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.
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Tony Hawk/Vino Test Ride

Much of my commute home from work, today. With a few subtitles.
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Random Mutterings

• I hit a squirrel riding the Vino to work, this morning. Probably just grazed it, actually, or I'd be hamburger. I was goin' about 30mph. Funny thang is, on the ride back from Kingston Springs on Sunday, I damn near hit one going 50+mph, on the Kymco. Squirrels: Scooter menace!

• Had a Metro cop on my tail, riding back from work. He was plenty close enough to see that I had no plates, but he didn't bother. Maybe he knows the law! Awesome.
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Silly, I Know

... but for $50, I ordered one, anyway.

What is it?

It's a Tony Hawk Helmet Cam. Now, no more worries about bustin' up the "good" (heh) camera, or having to bungee a tripod onto the seat. Besides, I'm thinking about leaving Friday morning for a 299 mile, cross-state trip. I'll take me all damn day, but I just gotta do it.
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Kingston Springs Scoot (w/Video)

I took a fun li'l trip out to see my buddy Matt, and his ladyfriend, Mona, yesterday. I was glad to have the Icon Pursuit jacket on, as it was rather crisp outside, at speed. :) 41.4 miles roundtrip, according to maps.google.com. The Kymco's first ride outside of Davidson County!

Here's the clip, coming home around 5:45 p.m.:


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As If We Didn't Know

When analysts at Piaggio ran the numbers, they found that if Americans used modern gasoline scooters for 10% of their travel, 14 million gallons of gas and 324 million pounds of carbon dioxide would be spared each day. After commissioning a study on traffic flows, Piaggio also estimated that if 20% of the vehicles in a central section of midtown Manhattan were scooters, total delays would decrease by more than 4.6 million hours per year.

Read the whole article.
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Guilt

I feel a little guilty, 'cause I'm having an absolute blast on the Vino, this week. I feel like the Agility is getting short-changed... but hey, it's all good. I love the Agility, of course, and will be riding it this weekend... it has the Shad(!) and the curry hook, so it's much more practical for shopping. And it has about a 20mph-faster top speed, so it's more practical for the longer rides where I need to be on faster roads.

But for the commute, there hasn't been a moment's worry about keeping up with traffic on the Vino. When I bought it in April, the ride home terrified me, frankly. I had to pull over so many times to let traffic by, I wondered if I'd done the right thing... but from my research, I knew it would be capable of a lot more. Its pokey speed got me $500 off the seller's asking price, but I had no real idea that it would only take $125 to get it up to snuff.

Anyway, there'll be some Kymco riding this weekend. :)
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Shields Up

Scattered (not) smothered, covered. These came in, yesterday. The boots, tomorrow.
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Virst Vanderbilt Vino Vommute

It was a dark and stormy night... well, actually, more like a dark and foggy morning, when I rolled out at 5:40 a.m., to snag those sweet, sweet Scottish opium burritos. Anywhoo, all's well. I got to work early, the Vino had no trouble keeping up with traffic, and it was fun as all get-out. It's quite amazing how much zip it has... 50cc of fury, indeed!

More photos this evening.

UPDATE: I can't decipher Blogger's gotdamn CSS, so the 390x520 portrait photo is at the other blog. Btw, in the photo above, can you tell that's a Metro cop car, passing by?
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My Vino: Holy Frickin' Shit, Batman!

Oh, baby.

This li'l bike is smokin' crack, now. This may be the best $125 I ever spent, scooter-wise.

I took it for a spin 'round the 'hood... had it up to 40mph in no time. I'm guessing a stiff hill (like the one on Premiere Drive) is gonna bog it down, a bit, but I'm thinking this thang may just be a decent backup for the Kymco... for commuting. I'll come back later, and let ya know. :)

UPDATE: Man, I cannot believe this thang. Took a trip to my favorite local hill on Premiere Drive -- the one that used to consistently bog the Vino down to 9mph, indicated. Now? At the crest, the slowest it was going was 28mph...! So, it now has about 3x the power it had, prior to the work. Yeah, that'll work. ;)

Dang. I feel like a kid at Christmas. :) I think I'll ride it to work, tomorrow, just because I can.
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Day 92, 1002.1km

Turned over 1000km, Monday evening, on the ride home -- 1002.1km as I parked it, to be exact. I left at 4:15 from work, to try to outrun the rain that was heading in... I've now had several commutes in light rain (and was out Saturday morning in a fairly heavy downpour, briefly), and I'm getting more comfortable with it, but honestly, I'd rather not scoot in the rain.

Which is why today is exciting -- I should have the Vino back from the shop, this evening. As I mentioned previously, I was having the drive belt replaced, and the exhaust and variator de-restricted. Well, the guy called last night to say it was done. He also said the belt that was on it looks fine, and I'm getting that back as a spare. The main problem was that it was clogged up with carbon deposits. He cleaned it out good, pulled the restrictor washer out of the exhaust (the variator washer was already missing, he said), and it's a bit peppier, now. I guess I'll see this evening, assuming it isn't just pouring the rain (which it looks like it may be).
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Day 88. 963.7km

Closing in on 1000km.

Rode yesterday in the rain. No problems... just rode slower and even more carefully, as though I don't ride carefully every day.
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Day 85, 887.4km

551.4 miles. Wow.

Came out of work, today, and saw an orange Genuine Buddy 125 parked right beside my Agility. I bet it came from ESS, even. I just noticed that the Buddy has smaller wheels... 10"?

I think the Agility is lonely, now that the Vino's in the shop.
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Non-Essential Gear

Heh. Get yours, today! They have your number.

Also, just had a local guy who came recommended (and needed the work) to come get the Vino to do the belt replacement, and to de-restrict the variator and exhaust. He quoted $100, total, parts, labor and pickup, which seems really reasonable. I'll give him a bit extra if he wants to deliver it, as opposed to me enlisting a pickup-driving pal.
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Gear Buys

All stuff I needed for safety and security...

Icon Motorhead boots, for ankle and foot protection...

Dowco Guardian Weatherall Plus cover, for the Agility 125...

Dowco Guardian scooter cover (like the one I had stolen... it seemed more green, than grey, though) for the Vino 50...

... and a Canyon Dancer, to help on those occasions when I need to enlist the help of a pickup truck to help transport either scooter.
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Scooter Cat

The neighborhood black cat checks out the scooters.
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