Scooting background

Note that this post has been back-dated.

How did Vespa Rich become so? I shall lay it all down here.

Shortly after moving to Sacramento I decided that I didn't like paying California gas prices for my V8 gas guzzler SUV, as I look at drivers of otherwise empty SUVs on the road with disgust. Thus I purchased a used scooter, an '02 Bajaj Legend (an Indian Vespa clone).


I soon went on my first rally ride with the local scooter club, and spilled in the twisties in Napa Valley, breaking my clavicle (collar bone). This incident was confirmation of what I was later told in Motorcycle Saftey Training course, and that is that an accident is a combination of a number of factors, not just one. I was inexperienced, untrained, excited, over-zealous, the Bajaj has drum brakes instead of disc brakes, the brakes were not adjusted properly, and it was not really in the best condition. All of this resulted in too much speed into a corner and no way out, sand under the tires while attempting to corner and the bike went down in a flash.

Took me out for the rest of the riding season but did not deter my new found love for scootering. Once healed enough to ride again we hopped on the Bajaj one Sunday to go to see a movie and when I let the clutch out the bike didn't move. It turned out that the axle is likely stripped, worst case, or the wheel is stripped, which would be nice but is unlikely. The only way to fix this would be to replace the axle, requiring a complete engine tear down and rebuild; great engineering. This would cost nearly as much as the bike is worth, and was not at all appealing given the resulting condition of the bike. The Legend ended up stashed at my buddy Ron's place and hasn't moved since. :( One day it will get fixed and up and running again, and now I have new tires for it! (see Hedonism) ;)

I decided instead to invest the cost of repairs in a down payment on a new scooter. Thus in '06, with the purchase of a brand new '07 Vespa GTS 250 i.e., was born Vespa Rich.