Miscellany

I was reading the comments over at Commuter Steve's MotorScooter Diary. A number of other scooterists report having a hard time with the driving part of the motorcycle exam. I admit was tough, but I hadn't practiced much and managed to pass. I wonder if the cone layout was different? The cones were spaced amazingly close together, true. Wow, I've had my M1 license now for almost a year. What is interesting is that even though I've been riding pretty much every weekday since June '04, I still felt an improvement in my skills since my commute got longer. More riding = more practice = better skills.

One of the things new riders should really practice is countersteering. It's really hard to explain. It's almost like a dance move - you know you've got it when you've got it. I also believe strongly in the importance of continually scanning ahead a few blocks to anticipate traffic hairballs. The Vespa is so fantastic because you sit upright and even someone who is on the short side can easily see above the average car or through the windshield of many SUVs. Posture, people!

On 11/10 I sent in my response to an sort of "interview" with the Vespa corporate blog, Vespaquest. As of today I have not received a response. Updates as they come in.

Update 11/30: the thing I wrote is now up. I hope it is not too lame! Thanks, Justene at Vespaquest!