The Wave ...Obsolete ??

[PCX150Rider]

Potato potato potato. . .got to admit it is fun to listen too. . .. However. . ..

At the end of the day higher gas mileage, lower insurance, less huff and puff moving in and out of a garage, lower initial cost, lower maintenance cost (if you DIY), ease of use, utility value, reliability, and a more congenial presence to the general public are something to consider.

Primal roar or primal scream. . .take your pick. I'm thinkin the potato thing is kind of a roar and the flat out WOT of a 49cc two stroke scooter is a scream. For that matter so is a flat out Fireblade. I digress.

Need to put some muscle into the wave though at scream pace on a Fireblade

With all due respect. . ..

[kramnala58]

What's a settee?
Gil

A couch : D

UK: settee
US: couch or sofa
Canada: couch, sofa or chesterfield

[Mel46]

Back woods: log

[pendulum]

I am a 'return' waver in the US. If they wave at me, I wave back, be don't initiate it.

Same. Up here in rural WA I'll never get a wave from a Harley or a crotch rocket.

Adventure bike riders seem to have the highest wave-to-scooters quotient. And other scooters of course, but it's so rare I see another scoot I have to pinch myself to make sure it wasn't a hallucination.

[easyrider]

Not too many scooters on the open roads , and in this neck of the woods mostly Harley riders who do not accept scooters as a motorcycle hence no wave. Sometimes they get fooled by oncoming headlight and when they see its a scooter the hand goes down. However you will get the wave from most other riders . Some of the most stuck up folks and they wear such asinine leather wear.. Embarrassing to me be seen in their garb.. so perhaps its a good idea of them not to wave..

[WI_Hedgehog]

Number Six:

[grndslm]

Around here, crotch rockets mostly wave by pointing to the ground. Harley riders mostly wave with a fist in the air. Scooter riders..... really don't have a wave.

The problem is that there's so many people who ride bikes to/from my work that we've stopped waving for the most part. We'd have to take our hand off the handlebars every 5 or 10 seconds just to wave. I will usually wave if I'm, say, more than 30 min. away from my work.

And when I wave, I throw up the backhand peace sign. I save the backhand "one love" gang sign (like peace, but open thumb and close middle finger) for other scooters.

Scooter riders tend to look more anti-social around here, tho... as they're still on the pre-PCX style scooters that I wouldn't have riden myself, either. I walked into AutoZone after first buying my used PCX, and the employees immediately asked me, "Is that a motorcycle or a scooter?" Soon there will be no distinction between motorcycle and scooter whatsoever. There will be more plastic and less chrome. There will be more people on 2 wheels and less on 4. We will all ride like those in Thailand and the American bike wave will die a necessary death. Praise Yahweh!

[easyrider]

I would suggest anything over 49 cc not be called a scooter anymore.Its a motorcycle by any standard .The major difference that it's an automatic shift and your jewels do not rest on the gas tank.I have had my Forza next to some so called motorcycles and my Forza was actually bigger in size.Somehow the term scooter didn't fit.A scooter is something kids roll downhill on..

[WI_Hedgehog]

Motorcycle ownership is declining. The hipsters don't typically want long-term commitments, and buying a $4,000 machine you have to have a license & insurance for plus maintain is counter to the culture--not saying they're all that way, just Uber/Lyft are typically more their style when they can't walk/bike/bum/public transit it.

In Wisconsin, in the U.S., 50cc and under, and able to sustain a maximum speed of 30MPH under ideal conditions, is a scooter/moped and requires a Class D driver's license (including motorized bicycles). Anything more and it's a motorcycle and requires a Class M driver's license. Technically, the PCX125/150 and the Forza are motorcycles.

[Mel46]

I know that we have kind of beat this subject up but I wanted to mention that around here they call the 49cc scooters 'drunk cycles' because you don't need a drivers license, insurance, or even a license plate on them to ride them on the street. So, they have become a primary mode of transportation for those drunks who have had their drivers license taken away.

Another problem with those 49cc scooters is that there are a lot of high school students who are buying them, and crashing them. Many of those kids do not know anything about the rules of the road, or much of anything about the dangers associated with riding.
I see them out on the road with bicycle helmets on, shorts and tee shirts, and sometime riding two up in heavy traffic. The scooter bogs down going up a hill but they don't have enough experience to be able to keep the bike over far enough on the side of the road to allow cars to pass them safely. Many end up getting hit or falling off during traffic hours. In one case it had rained and a kid on one of those tried to turn into his subdivision but lost control and ended up under a truck.

[PCX150Rider]

I know that we have kind of beat this subject up but I wanted to mention that around here they call the 49cc scooters 'drunk cycles' because you don't need a drivers license, insurance, or even a license plate on them to ride them on the street. So, they have become a primary mode of transportation for those drunks who have had their drivers license taken away.

Another problem with those 49cc scooters is that there are a lot of high school students who are buying them, and crashing them. Many of those kids do not know anything about the rules of the road, or much of anything about the dangers associated with riding.
I see them out on the road with bicycle helmets on, shorts and tee shirts, and sometime riding two up in heavy traffic. The scooter bogs down going up a hill but they don't have enough experience to be able to keep the bike over far enough on the side of the road to allow cars to pass them safely. Many end up getting hit or falling off during traffic hours. In one case it had rained and a kid on one of those tried to turn into his subdivision but lost control and ended up under a truck.

In all my years of driving/riding I've never seen the roads so dangerous. Congestion, distracted drivers, drivers under whatever influence, driving too fast, and road debris are my biggest concerns.

When I do wave to another rider I have to make sure some other driver won't misunderstand me thinking that I'm making a turn, waving them on to go around me, or something else beyond reason. Hence, I always check the mirrors and side streets (or other lanes) first before giving the wave.

The 49cc scoots are OK. . .but I do agree that they are easily accessible by riders who may not really be qualified or of sound mind to ride them. For those who appreciate their value however and don't misuse them they can be nice to have. . .not to mention a lot of fun under the right circumstances.