Almost every rider I’ve ever spoken to embraces the idea that the natural progression when it comes to scooters or motorcycles is from smaller to larger with the exception being old age forcing inferior machines on a person. But I’ve started to wonder if there’s more marketing than nature to that progression with evil forces preying on ego and anxiety to extract more cash.
Such were the thoughts going through my head as I rode my daughter’s Yamaha Vino 125 through the valley this morning through 26F air under a dazzling blue sky.
Riding the Vino is an exercise in simplicity with few technological distractions and seemingly demanding less skill to manage on the road. During the ride I kept turning this over in my head until I arrived at a conclusion — bigger is better is flawed along with bigger is more challenging.
I’ll agree that a big motorcycle or scooter takes more physical practice and skill to manage than a smaller machine. And a rider needs to make faster decisions when they’re traveling at high rates of speed. But relatively speaking, that’s easy stuff to do compared to the mental and emotional challenges of a little machine.
Generally, little scooters and motorcycles don’t have a lot in the way of creature comforts. No heated grips, seats, power windshields, etc. Just basic transport with exposure to the elements. This morning was the first cold day I’ve ridden without heated gloves or grips in years. The little Vino demanded I prepare myself meaning I had thick, expedition mittens on my hands and a recognition in my head that I would be needing to stop periodically to warm my hands. Just like the old days with my Vespa LX 150.
A smaller machine requires a rider to physically prepare for more direct contact with the elements. In winter it can be dramatic. Using heated gear almost feels like cheating.
Guess I’m a big cheater.
The biggest challenge though is mental. A little scooter requires you go slow, and for many in this culture, going slow is a lost art. So much so that it generates frustration and anger. Just query those waiting in traffic or in lines at stores or restaurants. Going slow is a symptom of failure right?
And symptoms aside, actually moving down the road at 35mph, or up a hill at 20, it can feel as if an eternity will pass before reaching a destination. I have to force myself to think differently about not burning up miles as if I were in an automobile. The inferior machines can drive you crazy.
And let’s not even talk about ego issues.
I have a lot of respect for people who embark on adventures on little scooters, mopeds or lawn tractors. Those are tough trips requiring patience, sturdy egos, and measures of humility just not entertained much anymore.
The little Vino scooter performed well on the 35 mile ride I did in the cold. I learned I’m neither as cold-hardy or patient as I used to be, and that even at slow speeds, a ride can be quite satisfying.
I took my 125cc Honda PCX from Kansas City, MO to Lake Geneva, WI for Amerivespa one year (about 1060 miles for the round trip). The small machine handled pretty good, but I can definitely see the draw for something bigger.
That being said, it was a fantastic journey and something I’ll never forget.
The draw to bigger is probably grounded in easier. Or maybe a recognition of the time constraints we can’t seem to escape. Or the thrill of speed.
That said, what a wonderful experience to have under your belt — over a thousand miles on a little Honda!
I would have thought a 125 Vino would have been the equal of my 150cc China scooter in most regards. I keep the 150 at 45 mph, indicated, more out of preservation than its failure to do more. It climbs most hills at the same speeds as my much heavier 250 Helix clone but is incapable of the 60 mph the 250 can cruise at.
I’m at the smaller is OK stage now. I did 15 years on a 1000cc Kawasaki, dropped back to a 650 and now am on a 250cc scooter. I don’t need 100+ mph capability anymore. My wife’s Honda Rebel goes fast enough for me.
Like a lot of new riders, I sought for the longest time the “one motorcycle” that could do it all….a continental-distance buster, cruiser, tamer of rough trails, hauler of big cargo, all-weather, and of course not too expensive.
As I know now, and as most riders realize soon enough, there’s no one machine to do it all when it comes to year-round riding. Oh the places I took my R1150RT, the foolishness of it all.
The right tool for the right job.
Seems the Vino was the right tool this time to get you out and about, if only briefly. As to its lack of creature comforts, those heated grips are nice on the Vespa aren’t they? 🙂
Five years ago I traded (up/down?) from the Vespa GTS 250 I’d ridden gleefully for five years to a BMW F800GS. I wanted to be able to go more places with more camping gear. With time, the F800 has enabled me to do just that. But it did take time: to overcome the intimidation of the taller/heavier/more powerful machine, to get familiar with it, and to get comfortable with it off-road and gear-loaded (something I continue to work on).
The thing is, I originally had my eyes (which apparently are bigger than my stomach) on the 1200 Adventure. Now with a bit of F800 perspective and realizing ITS limitations, I can’t imagine a real off-road market for the 1200GS. I certainly can’t imagine wanting to take such a large, heavy bike further than on a well-graded gravel road. Though some would disagree, with Youtube videos as evidence, I declare that the 1200GS was made for pavement and big imaginations only.
So, I agree with your implication, Steve… It seems that the really big motorbikes are made to be marketed to dreamers, which isn’t an indictment, but just my opinion. And, as for there not being a single, perfect bike for all applications?… Maybe that’s why there are stables.
Steve,
Having gone up the CC mountain and having descended to the GTS300 terrain and I’d agree there is ample enjoyment at this level (and maybe more.)
I like the adage my wife and I coined when watching 200 hp metal-flake “fishing” boats flying across the lake we live on v. the 5-15 hp fishing boat putting along at a leisurely pace across the same body of water, “The smaller the boat, the bigger the lake gets.” Doing a four corner ride of our home state on a small bike is just as adventuresome as a national ride on a big machine….IMHO.
Tom
P.S. Happy New Year Steve
Steve I look forward to your posts. I’ve had 5 Harley’s, a Vespa 150, a Piaggio BV 250 and now my baby a Genuine Hooligan 170i and I love it. I like this little scoot because I go everywhere on it and can ride it all year, I live in Florida. I’m very comfortable with my ego. Keep posting
Steve there is little a GTS can’t do.
Circle the USA? Stephanie Yue is about two-thirds done with that.
Johannesburgh to the Italian riviera? Michael Strauss wrapped that up in early December.
And what about smaller machines? Mike Saunders did Key West Florida to Prudhoe Bay Alaska in the Arctic Circle and then down to California, on a 50cc Honda Ruckus.
And those feats were all begun in May 2014 and completed by December.
Would a 650cc or 1200cc BMW GS been better suited for those trips?
Yes!
Would those riders have gotten more out of the experience on the bigger machines? I’d bet that if asked, you’d get a hearty chorus of ‘no’s from all three.
The right bike for the adventure is the one that gets you to do it.
Steve, this is a topic especially suited for a scooterist. I can’t tell you how many times folks, with mouths agape, reply with incredulity: “You and your wife took a two week vacation on that?!!!!” Meaning, of course, our 2010 Vespa GTS 300.
It’s a statement on our society which lives for comfort (we’re not uncomfortable on our scooter), luxury (I think our scooter is pretty darn luxurious) and size (our 300 is just the right size). I talk to folks on Honda Goldwings who have never ventured on even an over-nighter aboard their behemoth. Harley folks just don’t believe me but then, they probably can’t hear me anyway.
What confirms my decision to ride my sleek Italian steed, is the smiles I get while cruising down the street. While folks wince and roll up their windows as Harleys pull to a stop sign, kids wave, moms smile over at me and young girls turn and look and wave when I honk the ubiquitous squeeky horn. My scooter makes folks happy!
Shoppers do a double-take when I unload 5 bags of groceries onto my scooter: 2 in the topcase, one hanging from the hook and two in the front basket zip-tied to the front rack, no biggie. Sometimes they ask: “What kind of mileage do you get on that thing?” After swallowing my indignation at their bad choice of nouns, I answer with: “70 miles per gallon whether I’m going 70 on the freeway or 25 here in town.” I love the look on their faces when they hear that!
I too came up the ranks recently. I started with a Honda Metropolitan moved to a Vespa LX 150 and traded that for our 300. A year into owning the 300 I caught a bad case of Motorcycle Mania and purchased a BMW Dakar, my scooter sat in mothballs for several months as I fought off the effects of Mania. Finally, my ego appeased, I ditched the Dakar and returned to my faithful GTS. We’ve renewed our vows and are forever a couple again.
I can’t imagine life without her…
Hi, Steve,
Happy New Year!
I think there is a lot to be said regarding your feelings expressed about marketing and profits being an important part of the ” bigger is better” phenomenon. And I also agree with your thought about the perceived need to downsize with aging.
I started with a Honda Helix, then rapidly ran through the SilverWings, Burgman 400s and 650s, a T Max, MP3 500, and then, as though gaining some perspective, a Vespa 300 GTS and a Kymco 300 GTi, and then, as a last tribute to the aging scooterist, I found a beautiful Yamaha Morphous 250 that really seems to do everything I want easily. Back to the beginning!
Here’s to low & slow scootering! (Well, not too slow!)
Regards,
Karl Utrecht
The smaller scoots are made for adventures. Perfect for small and everyday adventures (and adventurers) but a fantastic mode of transport for those brave enough to leave district limits. The slower speeds can be annoying to other motorists on open roads but we choose roads less traveled and always have a better ride for it.
Totally recommend taking a ‘sightseer’s’ pace and make the intention of a trip the journey itself.
I started 40 or so years ago on a H-D (Americchi) 350cc Sprint. And what an un-enjoyable bike that was for me (for many reasons). I wish I had bought the Yamaha RD400 that the same dealer also sold, and tried to sell me in the place of that H-D. Oh well. I traded that H-D one year and 10,000 miles later on a Honda 500-4. That was one sweet ride at the time, and took me solo touring with all of my camping gear all over the New England and Mid-Atlantic states. Then I got married and had this hair-brained idea that I’d tour towing a trailer. So I traded that Honda in, also about 10,000 miles later, on a brand new 1976 BMW R90/6. I never did tow a trailer but I spent many years and many tens of thousands of miles hauling my wife on the back and all of our camping gear through 37 different states. I wish I had kept that bike, and I really wish I had bought the R75/6 – but oh well, I loved that bike anyway. High speed cruising really smoothed out once I switched out the stock wire wheels for a pair of Lester mag wheels. Then I got the scooter bug. One at a time, I bought and sold a variety of 250 cc Honda scooters. I ended up with a Helix and rode that for 11 years and many miles. And I loved every minute and every mile of it. I also bought and rode a couple of Kymcos. A big-wheeled one for around town. Snappy performance. And a Grand Vista 250cc, very high tech and very fast. If it had just fit me as well as a Helix (I’m 6’2″), I would probably still be riding it. Now I’ve got another Helix as well as a 1000cc BMW. But the Beamer just sits and the scooter gets ridden all the time. Sometimes I wish the Helix could go 100 mph like the BMW does easily – but not really. After riding for 40+ years (so far), for the moment I am perfectly content at 60 to 70 mph cruising. If I wasn’t so cheap, I’d consider buying a new Honda NM4. But I’ll never do that. Maybe a used one some years in the future (after their used price hopefully crashes.) And until something else new and interesting comes along, I’m perfectly content to scoot along anywhere in America that my travels and my available time take me.
So ride safe — and Happy New Year!
Steve, well said. I would add that very few small CC machines are made to fit tall people like I. Also, many of the small CC scooters have small wheels. I wouldn’t want to experience Toronto roads on 10″ wheels… Honda has a new 300F motorcycle.
I think that’s one of the best bikes available. If that would be available when I was looking for a bike, I’d be riding that instead of the GTS. Happy new year.