April 3, 2012
Last week the weather was quite inhospitable so the two wheelers stayed parked in the garage while the car became the chief commuting machine. Yesterday was different with only slightly chilly temperatures but no precipitation in the forecast. For those of you who relish the thought of taking money out of the oil companies pocket I used the scooter to go to work and saved another $6.00. I've used it seven times this year as my Not-So-Rapid Transit System saving a modest $42 in the process. It's quite satisfying to think of it in that manner and makes even the most uncomfortable trips feel like a personal crusade. Not only am I saving the money but I'm using a truly inexpensive vehicle from a Country not known for reliable transport to do it. Since I sold the Kawasaki the scooter is becoming the mileage king in my garage. It passed 6,450 miles on the odometer yesterday and is rapidly closing in on the oldest bike in the garage, the 1981 Yamaha, which has a humble 6,500.
As the season warms up the scooter will see even more miles. I'm hoping to do 100 commutes on it this year which would put it over 10,000 miles by season's end. That would put it in some lofty company among the Chinese scooter community. Joining the 10,000 mile club will, hopefully, not be the only amazing thing it does.
Posted by Jim Zeiser.
March 25, 2012
I was called into work yesterday and in keeping with the previous days I took the scooter in. That was the fourth time for the week and the sixth time this year, totaling 210 miles in commuting alone. Last winter's miserable weather kept me off the scooter until late April. Between that and breaking my hand I had a fairly short season. This year I'll be using up the China Special and I hope to pile on a bigger record of miles on it. Last year was a big year in spite of the conditions and I lo...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
March 18, 2012
Yesterday was a day for my archives of important events. The little Yamaha performed an errand into Town and I didn't have to push it home. I needed some repair materials from the local hardware store and didn't need much carrying capacity for the job. I made it to the hardware store with only one brief stall out but the bike re-fired immediately. After successfully reaching the hardware store I felt it was time for an even more mundane task. I filled it with gas and it started flawlessly. Am...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
March 13, 2012
I had the day off and decided this would be the perfect day to take care of paperwork. I took four registration renewals; two mopeds, the scooter and Honda Rebel, and added the registration for the little Yamaha to the mix. I was blessed with no other customers at DMV and was in and out in five minutes. It was no problem tossing the official documents into the scooter and then running off to complete the rest of my shopping in Town.
When I got home I hung my shiny, new license plate on the Ya... Continue reading...
Posted by Jim Zeiser.
March 12, 2012
Today was a fairly warm day and a good day for a ride. Sadly I didn't feel like burning gas joy riding and I had no reason to go anywhere. As a concession I started the Yamaha and listened to it roar from its barely muffled engine but left it where it was parked. Sometime this week I'll get it registered and then invent a reason to go into Town. I just ordered some parts to get it through inspection and to return the oil filtering system to some semblance of stock. Over the years parts have d...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
February 23, 2012
The weather lately has not been conducive to riding at all. Since I last wrote I haven't been near the riding stock to start or service them. If the day hasn't been too cold then it's been raining or flurrying. After Valentines Day I'd like to think that the likelihood of a blizzard or heavy snow is about done with. I haven't fired up the snow thrower in weeks but then again I haven't listened to the sounds of thunder from the Yamaha in a few weeks either. I have been given permission to buy ...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
February 7, 2012
I just had to do it. I took the scooter to work today after numerous times promising myself I'd do it. It wasn't the best weather for a ride but I've gone in worse. The trip there was chilly, but uneventful, and I had some of my best gear on for the ride. Since it has a front skirt my legs and feet were out of the wind but my hands were right out there. Of course when I got to work the "occasional flurries" began and continued most of the day. The flakes didn't accumulate but did dampen the r...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
January 29, 2012
The weather here the last few days has been milder than in years past. Yesterday we needed a few items from the grocery store and the short list of things was scooter friendly. I didn't even bundle up or use my leather jacket, just the ski style jacket from K Mart that I wear all the time. The scooter fired right up and was raring to go when I went to the garage to try it. I let it warm up as I put on my helmet and gloves and the engine picked up speed as it warmed. I've noticed that the engi...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
January 25, 2012
When it gets near the end of January I start to get ichy to ride again. The Yamaha is sitting in the garage slumbering with a float charger on its battery and the scooter is also waiting to be used again. I keep seeing the price of gasoline rise and it makes my throttle hand twitch. Last year at this time I was dreaming of trips on the Big Ruckus, now gone, and planning to fit it with a windshield. Now my head is swirling with ways to make the Exciter (model name of the Yamaha) more comfortab...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
January 15, 2012
It got up to 25 degrees at the beginning of the week and I had errands to run in Town. It enabled me to add another 16 miles to the scooter's odometer and get out for a January ride again. I had to renew my drivers license which would be an odd thing to do on a scooter if it didn't also include renewing my "M" (motorcycle license) designation also. I was still a sight stumbling into the DMV with helmet hair, paying the renewal fee and having my picture taken. The eye test was fun too as my ey...
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Posted by Jim Zeiser.
If you wish to comment my e-mail address is h1500e@hotmail.com. I'd like to hear anything-good or bad-that anyone would like to say. As they said in college, we're all lifelong learners.
