About 5 years ago, I started getting into motorcycles. Noticing them on the roads, checking them out at dealerships, and dreaming about having one of my own. A couple years later, I started dating a man who drives a 2006 Harley Davisdon Road King Custom. We're engaged to be married in October of this year, and the last 2 years we have spent pretty much every sunny afternoon riding up and down the rural roads of Maine - him in the driver's seat, and me on the back. Though riding with him is lots of fun, I promised myself that before I turned 30, I would learn how to ride and get one of my own.
Well, 30 came at the end of June, and for my birthday my wonderful guy promised to send me to a class to learn to ride a motorcycle. But I'd been thinking lately that before I invested a zillion dollars in a license and a big machine, it would be smarter for me to start small - get a little something to zip around town, and learn the basics of riding and balancing on a pint sized machine I could handle and maneuver with ease. My other half agreed, and the hunt for a scooter was on!
Finding a scooter in Maine was no easy task, either. Maine doesn't have a lot of places that sell scooters, and even fewer that sell Honda Metropolitans, the one I really wanted! After unsuccessful trips to 2 dealerships in the Portland area (with waiting lists over 75 people long!), I decided to call up a place in Lewiston about 30 minutes away and try my luck. They had 8 scooters due in next week, but of course they were already sold. Fortunately, someone had just traded in a 2004 Honda Metropolitan II in orange and cream for a newer model. It was my lucky day!
I had to giggle when the sales guy asked if the color would be a problem. He didn't realize he was talking to a girl who had specifically ordered a bright yellow car just a few years earlier. About an hour and a bunch of paperwork later, I was the proud owner of this baby, which we immediately nicknamed "the Creamsicle."
We loaded it up into the back of the truck and took it home to practice on our dead end street. I thought my honey's heart was going to leap out of his throat the first time I took it to the max speed of 30, but after a few figure 8s at the end of the road and a bunch of practice starting and stopping, he agreed that I was ready for a big ride the next day.
Side by side, Honda and Harley, we rode a wandering route from west Portland to South Portland to hit up our favorite ice cream spot, then took a drive over the draw bridge (scary on a scooter!) and meandered through the Old Port shopping and arts district. I think people were amused to see such a huge beast of a bike next to my little zippy. Tell you the truth, it was really cute.
Today I'm off to meet a friend for lunch in the Old Port, and will be making my first big ride alone. Up and back, I'll be doing about 15 miles today and only burning about 60 cents in gas. It'll cost me more than that just to park downtown!
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