A new Yamaha Vino 125 joined our fleet of two scooters yesterday. It stands outside Track ‘N”Trail Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania, the local Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki dealer. My daughter Hannah waits patiently for me to make my picture so we can move on home. With traffic heavy at the end of the day I wasn’t too worried about getting anywhere quickly.
Last night in State College, among some of the evening riders in the free parking motorcycle spaces. Some of you might be wondering how years of Vespa obsession gave way to the Vino. Here’s the story.
My youngest daughter Aleta moved back to State College from New York City. With public transportation abundant she had no need to drive a car or ride a scooter. Faced with the need to get around here a scooter seemed to her the more desirable option and I didn’t disagree.
We began the search at Kissell Motorsports and she was attracted to a fine silver Vespa LX150 and a gleaming blue Vespa GTS250ie. Had we stopped there it’s likely we would have ridden away with the GTS.
But fate often intervenes. At the first discussion of riding the scooter of note was the Honda Ruckus, a small, cool looking 49cc machine. A visit to the Honda dealer (and subsequent calls to dealers throughout the region) revealed an absence of these little scooters anywhere. Track ‘N” Trail had a number of Yamaha Zuma scooters that looked pretty nice and one lone, raspberry colored Vino. Aleta walked towards it grinning and the word, “Shiny” passed her lips. It was the one.
It definitely has a lot of chrome compared to the Vespa scooters and it is shiny. A quick deal on the scooter and I’ll soon begin trying my hand as a scooter riding instructor.
I had to run into town last night and decided to take the Vino. I was pleasantly surprised by it’s handling and pep for a scooter with an engine half the size of my GTS. Aleta will have no problem dealing with traffic in and around town and I’m certain I could ride this thing almost anywhere other than on the expressway. And if I rode it long enough I would try it there as well.
The Vino starts as if by magic. Press the starter button and the engine instantly runs — almost as if it was already running and you just turned on the sound. And it has a nice engine sound as well.
Did I say it was shiny? I understand Yamaha is no longer importing these into the United States and instead it placing their hopes in the Zuma basket. So we got a great deal on this little guy.
Aside from the obvious acceleration differences between the Vino and GTS the scooter runs through the sticks without complaint, cruising comfortably at 45mph. On a flat straight section of road it could haul my 210 pound body at about 55mph. Aleta should see better performance.
We’ll start the instructor-student relationship next week and see how long it takes before Aleta suggests she doesn’t need my help.
I find it interesting that at the same time your daughter has acquired a scooter, Doonesbury is passing the torch from father to daughter. Coincidence? You decide..
__Orin
Scootin’ Old Skool
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Really nice color and it is very shiny. I like the Yamaha scooters and was looking at them a lot last year. Nice addition…
Steve:
I nearly sucumbed to a Vino125 last year as my winter ride and only insure my Vstrom for the summers. I like them better than the Zuma. They are solid and reliable.
bob
Riding the Wet Coast
My Flickr // My YouTube
Orin: I’m not ready to drop the torch but maybe Aleta will want to contribute a story from time to time. Never thought about it. Thanks for the idea!
Hi, Steve
Interesting that you’re getting into scootering with your daughter…we just made a trip to Denver trailering the Kymco People 200S for our daughter, who’s also getting into scooters. She’s doing her MSF class tomorrow and Sunday. It’s too bad I’m not closer to her so I could help her…not! I’m sure she’ll do much better without me there. Good luck with your daughter and the roadworthy lessons. Scooters are great little friends when you need them…which is almost daily!
karl utrecht
Steve
I love that scooter! I still have my sapphire blue 50cc, but was enviously looking at 125 raspberry scoot. I almost bought it, but it required a motorcycle licence we got the little Yammy instead. My hubby is completely impressed by the little machine. Good choice. Now she needs to join ScooterDiva.com. There is one gal Scootalong who makes lovely seatcovers just to add more spice.
RichardM: It is a rich, deep raspberry red and quite striking. I have to run into town shortly and I can’t decide between the Vespa and the Vino. Never had choices before.
bobskoot: The Vino would definitely be a great winter ride — easy to handle in bad weather. I’ll have to look and see what kind of winter tires are available.
karlu: Best wishes to your daughter on a successful riding course. I hope she has as much fun with it as I have. I should probably register for a refresher course.
Not sure how things will go between Aleta and I in the instruction mode. I just want to take things slow. Time will tell.
Dar: I’ll definitely tell her about ScooterDiva.com. Always nice to have a place to bounce ideas off of.
And a flashy seatcover might be a nice gift to go with the scooter!
Thanks for this post. I say I’m not looking, but…I still keep an eye open for a new scooter idea. I had dismissed the Vino before. I see several on sale here.
The Vino 125 is high up the list. Its a perfect first scooter. No risk in that choice. Of course Jesus would have chosen the LX150 because of its Italian/Roman Chistian underpinnings. Jesus was Jewish I know but there are no good jewish scooter manufacturers. Aleta will appreciate its pep in short order. I’m glad you didn’t get the Ruckus 50.
Martha Tenney: I watched Aleta ride this evening in the school parking lot and I realized how great it is as a first ride. Good size, adequate power, nothing to overwhelm a new rider.
Paul: Aleta really likes the scooter. It hasn’t failed to put a smile on her face yet.
Not only is the vino easy to handle, I also love the huge under seat storage space it provides.