I’m tired and don’t have a lot of energy to write. But that’s not a product of winter riding. Last week I made a picture of the snow on the road in front of the house as I was doing the morning check to see if I was going to ride to work. I made this with a little digital camera moments after I photographed my bike riding neighbor with the Leica M6.
Winter riding, especially in snow, can lead to devastation. Mostly I focus on the risks associated with cold, ice, snow, and the potential for accidents. I rode to work a couple days agao when there was a brief break in the weather that allowed the roads to clear a bit. But on some of the secondary roads there is still much to be wary of.
I got to work fine but I did notice that no one plows the motorcycle spaces. I had to gingerly back the Vespa over some snow and ice to nestle it into position beside the box truck that was awfully close. It was there first and the only reason it wasn’t closer was the snow and ice. So perhaps it’s a good thing.
The real devastation is mechanical. If you are going to ride year round in a climate that believes road salt is one of the seven wonders of the road then you had better swallow hard. It means your scooter is just another vehicle on the road. A daily rider. And if you ever look underneath a car it is covered with rust and corrosion. My exhaust system is one year old. When the weather warms and the salt is gone I’ll pull it off and repaint it. Geez…
Anyways, I enjoy riding more than cleaning. And the scooter will just have to take it’s knocks like a car. And when it falls apart I suppose I will have to get a new one.
I am curious though how you deal with your two-wheeled machines. I know lots of people who treat them as fine antiques and will wash and polish after each use. Others are more lax in their cosmetic maintenance but as you can see this is more than cosmetic.
Having been traumatized at age 16 during a trip to Cleveland by the sight of 3-4 year old cars with really serious rust, I’m really good about flushing out the undercarriage and wheel wells of my car.
As for the scooter, my motivation is making it more pleasant to work on. The PX’s 2-stroke engine generates considerable quantities of ooky schmutz that collects on the engine and rear suspension, so I hit it with a high-pressure shot at the self-serve car wash at regular intervals, or before doing any maintenance.
In Seattle, they don’t put salt on the road, even on the two or three days a year when the overnight dusting of snow melts and freezes. I just impose a limit of 35 deg. F on riding, since at that temperature or below, ice can still form in places that get no sunlight.
__Orin
Scootin’ Old Skool
Steve… I treat my scooter like my car. I wash it once a year whether it needs it or not….
Then again, we don’t get much salt on the roads in this part of NC. Like you, I’d rather just enjoy the ride.
Grill paint, if you dont mind black paint, will stay on longer in a hi temp environment like that muffler. It doesn’t burn off, which is what your OEM paint did.
I use a low pressure hose on my Bonneville twice and usually three times a week to limit the corrosion of the salt air. I also use a spray on cleaner which I then brush and rinse off once a week. After a ride to dry it off I spray the bike with an anti rust compound. And i polish the green paint with ever kleer, which is more I think thatn you wanted to know!
Steve,
Where is that crazy weather? I’m in VA and we just got flurries…
As for my Vespa, its a beater GS150 I do however try to keep it clean as much as possible.
I’m saving up for a new one soon, until then check out my site, i’ll be adding video & a blog soon- Vespas For Sale.
Thanks for the great blog.
I have my bike for go not for show so I don’t worry too much about cleaning it. I had rather ride than clean on her…….though I must admit that here lately I have felt a bit shameful for letting her git so dirty.
Ride Safe
Ronman
I don’t really encounter this “weather” stuff here in Arizona. My bike gets cleaned at one of two times:
1. When it rains
2. When I bring it in to the shop and they clean it for me.
I should probably clean it more, but you know how it is. There I am in the garage, with keys and a motorcycle and BOOM, I’m out riding.
orin: I was never traumatized by rust, not even as a kid working underneath my 1962 Ford Falcon with rust raining down into my eyes. Somewhere I embraced a general disdain or indifference to all things mechanical. I bet my father’s new car every two years mindset probably had me thinking machines were disposable.
I haven’t tried the self-serve wash places. That’s a good idea. No salt would be even better.
starr: I can relate to your thinking.
tinker: Grill paint does sound like the best bet. I’ll have to pick up a can.
conchscooter: It sounds like your Triumph is getting some serious attention. You are definitely a more attentive owner than I am. I need to rethink my ways.
t: I guess it’s just winter…. Looking at your site you must spend a lot of time at eBay looking for Vespa stuff! Nice to see it all in one place.
ronman: Go not show. I like that. Just what I need, more rationale for not tending to the Vespa….*grin*
lucky: You don’t count. things out in the desert last forever no matter what you or the weather do. You could park the scooter along the road and 1000 years from now you could walk up to it and it would go…… You’re lucky.
I wash Sophie when I can’t see through the windshield anymore. Or when my hands turn black from checking the air pressure. We’re too busy riding!
Looking at some of those pictures, I don’t think I’d even by riding. Don’t feel guilty.
I am one of the crazy people that wash and wax my scooter after every ride. I have been known on group rides when we go out far to clean her when stopped 🙂 Funny I am not sure I have washed my SUV or car in a year or so…
There used to be a BMW commercial, for the GS series, that showed a cruiser owner sitting in his driveway, polish and rag in hand. The voice over went like this, “Some guys spend all weekend polishing their bikes.” Cut to a shot of the GS splashing through a puddle/creek. “I wash mine.”
Even though I don’t ride a BMW, that commercial summed up my attitude towards riding. If the weather is nice enough to wash the bike, it’s nice enough to be riding. 🙂
Dave T
I hardly ever wash my scooters. I do keep them in the garage so they don’t get weatherbeaten. I got less worried about it when they came loose in my trailer and scratched each other up, so a little dust isn’t going to make a difference.