When Dinosaurs Roamed The Earth

... and Michael Jackson still had his original nose, Suzuki used to make scooters under 400cc, they say.
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Maybe NOT Kissin' Cousins

That's the Kymco Yup 250 (left) and the People 250. I got to wonderin' if I could replace some body panels (the front ones, expecially), but I didn't happen to notice the much smaller wheels on the Yup, did I? :)
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Norm's River Roadhouse

Now HERE is a place we should set for a scooting event. It's got it all -- it's far enough away from town to give people a nice ride through the rural areas, they have live music, GREAT BBQ, camping, fishing and more.

What more do you need, people?

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Beer Run

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Nekkid BRU

Fuck the Big Ruckus. THIS IS THE SHIT.

:lol:
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Flo @ ESS

It's not everyday you get to meet a celebrity at your local scooter shop... and sitting on a Genuine Buddy 125, at that.
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I Needed That

A night ride through Percy Warner Park, that is.

I didn't know if it'd be open, but the signage at the Belle Meade end of the park said 11:00 p.m., so in I went. Cautiously, mostly... it's VERY dark in there, and the paved surfaces were half wet, half not. It's tough to know where the edges are unless one slows down. Keep in mind, this is NOT familiar territory for me, so I kept a civil throttle in hand.

About 40 minutes in, I stopped at what looked to be a scenic overlook, and opened a beer. I sat in silence, had a smoke, and listened to a large critter (presumably a deer -- I saw two in the park, tonight) crashing through the dense foliage. I sat at a picnic table, enjoying my beer, watching the distant lightning consistently flashing through the shadowy canopy of trees above me.

It was heaven.

Nice to get out of my head for a while, it was.
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SYM Fiddle: Lovin' This Bike

And again, a big shout-out to Josephine @ ESS for loaning it to me while the Kymco People 250 is in the shop. The parts they ordered for the People 250 from KymcoUSA last Monday didn't arrive last week, so I'm very grateful for the loaner Fiddle.

The SYM Fiddle is a ballsy li'l 49.4cc scooter that really makes me miss my Yamaha Vino. 10-inch wheels do make for a "twitchier" riding experience, but also one that's more responsive. I can flick this bike from one side of the lane to the other with barely any effort -- just a brief lean, and you're where you need to be, ASAP.

Josephine uses IPONE 2-stroke oil in her Fiddle, which is ostensibly strawberry-scented and smokeless. Smokeless, I can attest... but it doesn't smell anything like any strawberries I've ever huffed. :)

Overall, I'm so impressed with the quality of the Fiddle that I'm putting SYM at the top of my tryout list for my next scooter. I really like the looks of the Citycom 300i, so maybe I'll give that one a test ride, soon.
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Quality Product

If the plastics and/or vinyl on your scoot are looking sad, tired or sun-faded, this here is the stuff: Mothers Back-to-Black.

Easy-to-use, and reasonably priced, B-to-B will make your plastics come back to life. Best of all, it's not terribly oily, so you can even use it on your floorboard mat.

Available at Advance Auto Parts and other fine automotive shops.
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Open Apology To KymcoUSA

Mea Maxima Culpa.

Although I didn't intend to go over the top with my open letter to the CEO of KymcoUSA, my dealer reminded me today that in fact, KymcoUSA has never denied me a warranty claim, and he's right. I haven't lodged one, as of yet, but I will.

I just assumed that any claim would be denied, because I'm a second owner, without all of the paperwork that I've read elsewhere on the 'net would be necessary to file such claims.

However, both my local dealer (who is handling the repairs) and I feel that KymcoUSA is a stand-up company, and willing to "work the problem" through to a mutually-satisfactory resolution. If my previous comments were seen as disparagement of Kymco, I sincerely apologize -- I did not intend for that to be the case. To forestall any misunderstandings, I've deleted the post describing what I thought had been a very fair description of my experiences with KymcoUSA (which have been overwhelmingly positive!), to date (including their dispatching of Mike Hancock to look at my Agility 125, a couple of summers ago).

I'll keep the blog updated with further news, as it comes in, but I think KymcoUSA is willing to work with me and James to "do the right thing" where my latest issues with the People 250 are concerned. I appreciate their help, and James' help (really, no one could hope for a better scooter dealer), throughout, and I hope that is very clear to everyone reading -- thank you for staying with me on this.
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Video: Bill Meek & Sandy

I love this -- I've known about Bill & Sandy for a while, but I finally got to meet them, yesterday, at the ESS 2nd Anniversary Ride.

It's very impressive, in person, I'll tell ya.

For more Bill & Sandy, see Sandy's website.
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Free T-Shirt

I can ride with pride, now that I have a t-shirt with a curvy cartoon woman on the back of it. :) Well, that and Kymco sounds like they may be helping me out with my repair issues on BRU.

Thanks, Kymco!
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