Modern Vespa

About a month ago, the nice folks at Scooter Speed (LA) got my Rally 200 running. I ride it here and there, everything was peachy (cept the stupid kill switch key doesn't work) and life moved on. Couple of weeks ago, I started having elbow pain, and finally saw the GP yesterday. She diagnosed with simple tendonitis, but couldn't pinpoint any causes -- I don't play tennis -- except possibly riding the shifty. It's been bad enough that I can't really ride anymore (squeezing the clutch freaking hurts) and am thinking about selling the scoot. I know correlation does not equate causation, but man.. Could riding this thing actually have caused the inflamation? Anyone else have experienced this at all? I ride my BV350 just fine...

Yeah, the grip/twist motion can aggravate carpal and cubital tunnel inflammation.

I sold my shifty when I couldn't ride for more than 20 minutes without my fingers going numb.

My orthopedist says I need surgery on both arms now.

A stock 200 Cosa clutch is the answer. The clutch lever stiffness is so light, it's hard to believe it's connected.
https://www.sip-scootershop.com/en/product/clutch-piaggio-cosa-2-standard-23-teeth-for-primary-65-teeth-4335485-4335486-for-vespa-px200e-lusso-95-98-my-cosa-2-200_93042000

Hope it helps. I've only had stock clutches. Tendinitis can be stubborn.

Ahhh, with age comes wisdom, and a lot of other stuff I'd rather not have, like sore joints, etc ..

Maybe strengthening your grip might help? I don't know much about it. Hang in there!

Had a prothesis; an inverted one, this spring for the left shoulder. Was riding the P200E within a month after. No problem shifting.
Mind that I am 1.85 so the angle is not ideal for my size.

Maybe some grip the bars too tight?
Even though the smaller size wheels are less stable than most single track vehicles, the scoot does go straight on itself. Or not sit balancing the scoot so it goes straight?

Change the seat perhaps, thus change the angle of the arms? I fitted the solo ´floating´ seat with pillion cushion so I ´sit pretty´, sit upright. It takes all the weight from my arms and for mé improves the angle a lot.
Obviously, if I take the right hand off the grip, the throttle closes and the scoot slows down but from about 2 months after the operation, it was no problem for my operated shoulder to cope with it; it is all weight balance.

Being a single track vehicle the steering is more ´cone´; balancing gravity and centrifugal force rather than the front wheel (thus your arms) pushing it sideways.
The small sized wheels make this móre so. As such it should require véry little force, basically all weight transfer.

Bottom line is that it should not be much of a load on the muscles/ligaments/nerves/blood vessels.
Ergo perhaps try the seating position, way of holding the bars?

Hope you guys find ways to reduce the strain.

I was thinking that too…body mechanics. Seating position, arm length, angles, etc.

I used to have a long commute by car and sometimes would have issues with my legs. Driving standard didn't help. Adjusting seating positions helped a lot. At 26, I ended up with tendinitis in my knee that took a long time to go away. I was doing a lot of running at the time, but I think the actual cause was all the driving.

Vespas can be hard on the body with the combination of vibration, seating position and a clutch/shifting system that can be hard on the hands and wrist.

my god, i'm so sorry to hear that. I'm afraid I'm going down the same path, but I was actually joshing when I posted, thinking it couldn't be? When the PC asked if I wanted to see an orthopedist, I said "no", as it was just tennis elbow, but now, I think I should've gotten a referral... putting that on the to do. That was a really helpful response. oh MAN, I wish I'd known when the scoot was in the shop for a month getting repairs! They could've easily installed this and I wouldn't have had gotten the tendonitis at all!!@!#$@!#$ Now it's too late and I probably have to sell the Rally. Haha! 90% of the issues in my life these can be simply attributed to: "cause old". I have OT assigned, will work on the grip strength. Surely it must help. Thank you!

Modern Problems are caused by modern diet. Drs aren't trained for dietary medicine, nutritional consultants are, problem being is they are required by the state to follow orders and traditions.
From the 1950's.
Take for example blood work, blood parameters are measured from a young athlete to compare to everyone else. Then they use advice to become an athlete, until finally when the issue is bad enough they put you on pills.

The body actually scavenges nutrition from any available source, food, body tissues to build good blood. When nutrition isn't 94 octane, we can see the results everywhere.
The Chinese have been mixing and prescribing the same exact formulas for about 7,000 years.
I recently discovered a cure for neuropathy in Chinese medicine, it took all of a couple of days to stop it in its tracks. When I consulted Americans about it, they had no idea what the formula was for. They told me to translate pages of Chinese to investigate it. YRMV

Cable tight/sticking in outer means you need to pull harder to move lever
Crap clutch, there are options that take far less pressure to disengage
Gear cables need adjustment so in correct place for you

Get another Vespa rider to ride it & check.
Ride another Vespa to see if theirs feels different.

Don't give up yet

Good advice! Don't give up!!

I too deal with similar issues with my hands and wrists. Us older riders have more to deal with, and a well tuned and dialed in machine makes a huge difference in comfort level.

Assuming it's the shifting, I second this, plus Jack's suggestion of a possible upgrade to a COSA clutch.

On one of Ginchi & my prior rides, at about day 8or9 I woke up & couldn't straighten arms or hands!
Couldn't operate clutch or front brake!
That was an annoying day riding!

It's been a month and I got back on the saddle! Downshifts still hurt quite a bit, but upshifts are much more tolerable. Merry Christmas / happy Hanukkah everyone!

Igualmente tonyc

Good to read you are halfway on the up.

Sweet colour btw.

I'm 79 and still able to ride
I changed the seats on both the Allstate and smallframe from the stock sprung single saddle to NISA Sport 2020 seats. https://nisasrl.it/en/catalogue/seats-seatcove-en/vespa-en/sport-2020-large-black/
The difference was amazing. I sit both lower and further back which is far more comfortable.
I also used the same seat on the P200 I had.
Even at 5'7" tall with 33" arms it made a significant difference.

thanks for sharing the illustrations @exmajor

Secondly hats off for Vespa scooting at 79

I like the clean lines of the seat with the rear of the P200.

Being 6 2 I have put a floating single seat on mine so I sit a bit higher and have space for my legs. My ti hips demanded that. Yes, this makes the clutch a bit awkward and having received an inverted shoulder prothesis early spring has not made it any easier but it is like the front drum ´brake´: Part of the vintage Vespa experience
If you want something comfortable you´d go for an ... euhmmm... well, a car really; an automatic

We're definitely brothers from another cyborg mother. Still need to do the inverted shoulder on my right side, had the left done a while ago. So it goes eh?