Modern Vespa

I went out for a scooter ride last night, the daytime temps here in NY have been in the high 90's, with night temps in the mid 80's. An hour and a half of riding around, I realized I hadn't seen a single motorcycle or scooter. It's prime riding season and...nobody. A few years ago you would have seen and heard numerous screaming ricers, groups of H-D riders and many others. The roads here getting risky....with just about every car and truck speeding, tailgating and making all kinds of lane changes and turns. I wonder if people are giving up the sport as a result or a spike in ridership has run its course. We're not gonna take over the world like it's been going. What have you people seen in your neighborhoods? Any changes last few years?

howdy, we went on a ride monday around mount hood and the road is teaming with motorcycles. i would suggest your experience is not typical. i was over on the pacific coast highway yesterday and saw many, many motorcycles.

ken

Maybe they're all getting an early start to Sturgis. 8)

Been seeing plenty around these parts, especially on weekends.

I'm out in eastern Long Island and there are plenty of riders out most of the day.
Unfortunately most are the attention deprived loud pipe clowns.
I ride the scooter almost every day.

that you would not like the PM exhaust on my GTS.
Sometimes a loud pipe is just a loud pipe.

I'm not a fan of loud pipes on any vehicle. But to each his own I suppose.

I ride some most every day and down here I see very few two wheelers. Some days I will see one or two going the opposite direction from me. Scooters are extremely rare. Rarely do I find a two wheeler going the same direction I am. Unless I'm with a group it's pretty lonesome out there.

Maybe the heat?

I certainly see plenty of motorcycles around here. No indication their numbers are declining.

There's definitely a decline in riders. I think people finally figured out that tattoos and a Harley make you the same person you used to be, but with tattoos and a Harley, so they're on to the next big thing. And you can't get on a new R1 for $69 a month for three years anymore and go get a gixxer when it meets a guardrail, . And many people who don't ride think people who ride scooters are very, very strange, especially scooter riders who think it's perfectly reasonable to spend six hours explaining to them that it's not a moped. One day, only the people who really ride will be all that is left.

This is the time of year that many people are on vacation. I can tell you by observation that many flatlanders are up here in upstate New York. The trailers going by with ATVs pulled by expensive pickup trucks never ceases. Don't worry, The LIE and Sagtikos will be crawling again with Harleys in no time.

I don't see a decline in motorcyclists, though Im wondering if sales are down.
I doubt Harley's are selling quite as fast as they used to when credit was easier.

The scooter population is a trickier question.
I know that many people who have scooters, in Long Island and Florida, do not use them. The US in general is not a higher motorcycle country, and scooters even less. In the cities you may see more scooters due to easy parking and people not wanting a car.
But outside the cities, I see very few scooters. Im sure there are lots of reasons. Maybe if gas rose to $7 a gallon it would increase.
But I don't ride to save gas, or for easy parking. I would just rather ride a fun scooter than get in a car. It makes running errands enjoyable.
However, the parking is nice on crowded main streets.

There has been a definite increase in motorcycle ridership in my area, this season.
Unfortunately along with this, there has been an increase in the number of accidents and fatalities involving them.

If I remember correctly, it's around high 90's F (ambient temperature) that the wind stops cooling you off. It's been a few years since I got stuck out in that kind of heat, so my memory of it is a bit vague. (Yay for living in the mountains!)

This past week, when temperatures rose to hellish levels and traffic slowed to a crawl, I drove instead of rode. My car has AC and is far more comfortable when crawling at 1 or 2 MPH, bumper to bumper, in 90+ degree heat.

Perhaps others two-wheelers are doing the same thing.

Oh, and I checked: I do NOT live in LA, despite the similar traffic.

I never see another scooter - except for the <50cc mopeds.

Still see motorcycles out in threes and fours.

Roads here are wide, straight, flat, and empty. Ideal for scooters and motorcycles.

We do have our share of back rods and in the Western part of the state lots of lovely twisties. But that is a seven hour ride from me!

Since I do live in L.A., let me add that, luckily, I don't have to crawl in 90 degree heat (at least on the freeway) but can split lanes and keep moving. This is a tremendous advantage.

The other factor is humidity. The higher the humidity, the less your body will cool from evaporation. We usually have very low humidity here when it's hot. This is not the case in the Eastern parts of the country.

It seems to me though, that I see more riders on sunny hot days than on cloudy cool days. I find the latter to be much more comfortable.

But then I'm an all-the-gear type rider. On my freeway commute, so are most of other the riders I see. Otherwise it's full-face helmets, t-shirts, shorts, and sneakers.

I see riders virtually everyday. Over the last year or so, I've seen a lot more scooters and specifically Vespa around. Our nearest dealer is ~40 miles away so I'm surprised to see so many bikes, mostly 150 and GTS. Saw my first new Primavera a couple days ago.

Best
Miguel

I'm seeing more women riding MC'S. 8) We get a lot over here because we have some of the best weather on the planet. Also i'm seeing more moped riders wearing helmets (no helmet state) and gear. 8)