skutergruven: 2009

I did it. I sold off ALL my other scooters and bought another brand new one! I sold the '02 Bajaj, the '02 Kymco and the '86 Helix Pirate Ship. Then I went out and bought a brand new, '09 Genuine Rattler 110. Oh yeah!

"So what," you might ask. "What's so special about a Rattler?" Well, let me tell you...

First off, a Rattler sports a 106 cc two-stroke engine. Way fun! Then, it has a "European-styled-scooter-mated-with-a-dirt-bike" sort of look to it. Different. And I like different. Also, a new Genuine dealer just opened up in Sedona....a place named Scooter and Auto Source (www.scooterandautosource.com), run by a cat named Mark Tetreau. Nice guy. Made me a deal I couldn't refuse. And to top it off, Genuine offers a 2-year, unlimited mileage warranty on parts and labor PLUS 2 years free roadside assistance. I'm thinkin' I'm probably going to test the limits of their "unlimited mileage".

This scooter is probably the most fun I've ever had on two wheels. It may not handle the corners as well as some. May not be as fast as some. May not be as 'attractive' as some and probably not as comfortable as some. But this scooter isn't about matching up with somebody else's idea of what a scooter should be. It is simply a hard-chargin' two-stroke engine slapped into the smallest, lightest package they could find and topped off with nice, wide tires and some funky plastic bodywork. 203 pounds packed into a 46" wheelbase equals good times!

Top speed averages around 62 miles per hour...I've had it up to 68 downhill. Mileage is averaging 80 to 85 mpg, even with my twisted wrist! It cruises nicely at 57 or 58 mph. In other words...quite adequate. The entertainment is how it gets there. First, you're sitting at a stoplight. You rap the engine a little and get the giggles listening to the "ring-ding-ding" of the little two-cycle. The light changes and the drivers of the cars around you wonder what happened to the weenie little scooter that was right there, only to discover you left them sitting!
Pure fun! You slide the rear tire a little, getting a bit sideways around the corner into your driveway and laugh out loud. Then you think to yourself, "Didn't I see a little dirt road on the way home from work last night?" And you're gone again! Yes, those wide tires work just fine on hard-packed dirt roads. And the scooter slides very nicely and controllably in the soft stuff!

Why did I wait so long to get one???

But, me being me, I couldn't leave well enough alone. Rattlers come with a cute little grab-rail in the back, behind the seat that is great for manhandling the scooter. Only thing is, it gets in the way of using the gas cap. So it went away. Then I determined the handlebars were too wide for my taste, so I grabbed a hacksaw and took 2 1/2 inches off of each side. There...that's better! I took the badges off the sides and replaced them with "TEAM 918". 918 is our radio code at the jail for "mentally disturbed". It fits, I think. Then, after riding it at night and finding out that the bright blue light from the dash is VERY annoying, I moved it from the front of the handlebar clamps to the back. A little better. I also blacked out the unused portions of the screen, which helped a bit more. Okay, a good start. Now to do something about those huge, honkin' blinkers. I bought a set of real small, LED lights at Encore Performance and put them on the front. They looked like a ridiculous set of baby antennae, so I put them in back instead. Now THAT worked! In front, I simply removed the blinker mounts from the handlebars, then took the lights off of the mounts, drilled a couple small holes in the plastic body and mounted the lights on either side of the front cowling. They look okay. I'm still in the market for some smaller ones, though...

Now we're getting somewhere. Someplace along the line, I pulled the footpads off and painted them flat-black. Surprised? I'm not. Now then...what am I to do about those HUGE, moderately ugly mirrors? They're as big as the bike itself! Well, I tried a couple of different smaller ones. None really fit the bill. I took one of the mirrors I'd removed from the Pirate Ship and mounted it on the side of the glovebox. That was kinda okay, but it vibrated badly. What to do...what to do? Finally, yesterday I found the answer (I hope)! I mounted both Helix mirrors to the footpad mounts! Well, I'll be darned if it didn't work!! Very little vibration, good views and it got them off of the handlebars!

Well, folks...there you have it. My new scooter and some of the stuff I've done to it already. Now then, have I found time to ride it? I bought it on April 9th, took it on a rally on the 16th, it is now the 10th of May and I have 1774 miles on it as of this morning. Not bad for a month, eh?

The pics that follow are (I hope) in chronological order from purchase time to current looks.

C-ya, ride on!
--Keys

I did it again. I just up and paid my money and rode in a "Harley Run". It was the 14th annual "Frosty Balls and Frozen Boobs Poker Run" held each January 1st in Arizona's Verde Valley. I believe there were over a hundred bikes that left K & A Cycles in Cottonwood this last Thursday...and one motorscooter. I rode the Bajaj that I recently picked up and customized. It ran great! The run went from K & A through Cottonwood west on 89A to Clarkdale, then through Clarkdale and into Oldtown Cottonwood on main street. We rolled the dice first at the Chaparral Bar then it was on to Sedona, some 20 miles away. Knowing I'd be the slowest on the highway, I smoked outa the Chaparral in front of the pack. I only got passed by maybe 10 bikes before I reached the second destination; the Sundowner Bar. Are you seeing a trend here? Yep...all the sites were at bars.

Left the Sundowner, heading north on 89A until we reached Hwy 179 south toward the Village of Oak Creek. It's a nice twisty-turny road for about 8 miles to V.O.C. and the Full Moon Saloon. On a road of that nature, the Bajaj was more than a match for the Harleys. At the Full Moon, I had one guy tell me that every time he looked in his rear view, there I was! He couldn't f#*king believe it! Another fellow came up to me and told me he had been a New York City cop for years and had begun his motor career riding a Vespa for NYPD. (an aside note here; Scoot! Magazine just had a big article on the NYPD scooter corps...VERY interesting that I'd meet one of the guys in the Village of Oak Creek, AZ.!). Got lotsa scooter love!

Blasted out of the Full Moon heading south again on 179 until I reached Beaverhead Flats Road. Hooked a right onto that and sailed southwest through some beautiful sweeping corners and fast pavement. What a GREAT ride!! Then I reached Cornville Road and took a right again, heading west into, yes, you guessed it...CORNVILLE! A stop to toss the dice at the Old Corral Bar and I was on my way again. Cornville Road ends at 89A north and south and I turned left (south) and back into Cottonwood. A last stop at the Rockin' B Bar for a final dice toss, an acknowledgement that I will NEVER win a poker run and a plateful of food. There was a raffle (at which I also failed to win) and a lot of good comraderie. The guys are all getting used to having a nutjob on a scooter there and I never catch any grief from anyone anymore! It's kinda cool.

The picture I have here is how the scooter looked for the poker run. I've plugged all the holes in the legshield and painted the plugs and afixed various badges to the scooter to make it look factory. Whataya think?

Anyway, that was Thursday. On Friday I took all three scooters out for rides...the Helix hasn't been ridden in a few weeks, so it was due and the Kymco is just too much of a "rational ride" to take on my fun forays. It's more of a 'grocery getter' or 'errand runner' scooter. It's still a kick in the pants to ride, but I guess I'll always prefer the small wheels of a vintage-style...

C-ya...ride on!

--Keys