My new zuma 125 and other scooter madness!!

Your story reminds me of Neil Peart's story. If you don't know him, he is the drummer and lyricist of the legendary rock band RUSH. He lost his daughter and wife all in the same year. Turned his world upside down. He turned to riding to cope. Wrote a book called Ghost Rider. Might interest you.

Good for you for getting back in the saddle - and for all your good finds! I'd love to score a Helix. I had an Elite 250 (paid $600 for it, rode it for 5 years). Also found a low mileage Aero 80 ($400) and a mint Ruckus ($700). Loved them all, still have the Ruckus (and a C70 Passport).

Scooters have great therapeutic value.

Sorry about your mom. Glad your friend wasn't hurt too bad when she hit the deer.

Good thread revival. Keep the pics coming.

Thank you for the kind words. I'll look into that book, I'm always looking for a good read. I cannot recommend the helix enough. It's a great scooter. Have owned a Morphous I can say I like the helix better in almost every way, it's stronger off the line, handles better and is more comfortable. The morph did have the edge in looks and top speed. I would like to add a elite 250 to the stable next though.

Sorry to hear about your Mother's passing. There are a lot of twists and turns in our lives; sometimes you need to step away and re-evaluate. Glad to hear you are back riding again. Something about two wheels and great roads that is good for the soul.

Captain Jim

Wow, you sure went through a lot of scooters in a hurry. I used to do that with all bikes, but finally ran out of money to keep doing it. The count has stopped, for now anyway, at 43. I will probably have an '08 Vino 125 for sale soon, but I won't be replacing it for a while. I still have the Zuma 125 and a Genuine Stella.

Hillbilly, I am also sorry about the loss of your mother. I am glad the scooters have helped you cope through your hard time. I also used to trade around frequently with bikes (not scoots) but since getting my HD Electra Glide it has tied up all my money. For now just the Harley and the Zuma 125. Let us know when you find the perfect scoot but for now just keep trying them all as long as you can. I am still waiting to see the Forza in person and am also curious about the Burgman 200 if we (US) get it. But since I can only afford to buy used it might be a while before either of those show up in my stable. Lastly, I am glad you ditched the morphous . I am not sure I could handle all the attention.

I try to keep most of my scooter purchases under $1000 anymore. I may at one point put all my eggs in one basket and buy one scoot to rule them all but until then I'm just gonna whore my self out on the cheap ones.
I forgot to mention that last week I bought a 98 "prebug" Zuma for $120. The guy knew pretty much nothing about it other then it was is dad's and didn't run. I brought it home slapped a hot battery, new air filter and some good gas on it and she came to life!
It looks like it's been down on the left side at one time but nothing to bad. I'm thinking of making this my fireroad explode/beater. I'm gonna order a Leo Vince SP3 exhaust and maybe a new SL26 for the front to match the rear. Good cheap fun.......hopefully

Nice find.Can't beat that for $120!

It was a great looking day so I got the Vino out and bummed around a little before work. I try to enjoy the nice days through the week as much as I can because working 2nd shift in a factory REALLY puts a damper on my daytime adventures.
here I found a nice spot to look over the lake.

Aurora Is know for having the "Hot August blues fest" every year and this is just one of the many Blues inspired paintings.

If anyone watches the Discovery channel show "Moonshiners" you may remember a episode where the guys travel to Kentucky to check out a legal moonshine operation called the Silver trail Distillery. The owner spencer, used to own the local Yamaha dealer and sold my dad my Yamaha RT100 when we moved to KY 20 years ago. He is in the middle of making one of the old banks in Aurora into a small museum for his brand.
I snapped a pick next to the sign.

I really do enjoy riding the Vino125, like I said before even with the exhaust and sliders I don't feel it has the same punch as my zuma125 did but it's still pretty good. at my 250# I'm still able cruise between 50-55 on most roads, hills how ever get me down pretty quick.

Some pics I took a few days ago


Normally the lake is higher in this area.


The end of my road at dusk.


So I have a question for any fellow vino125 owners, how quick is your vino 0-30? A review on justgottascoot.com states he ran 0-30 in 6 sec with the vino(4 on a buddy 125). Now I know I'm heavier then the auther but I have a new belt, NCY exhaust, new Dr pulley sliders and a fresh oil change but it takes me 9ish!

Never timed it. I don't ride mine much - I keep the V125 around for my wife, as it is too slow for my desires. That said, when we ride together, with me on my Buddy 125 the relative speeds are comparable. That's because my 40# weight advantage makes a lot of difference.

Comparing the two, with me riding, the Buddy is way quicker and faster, and it gets better mileage. The Buddy is stock - the V125 has 11gm rollers and 1500 springs - which improved its acceleration. I'm pretty sure it takes less than 9 seconds to reach 30 mph, though! I think Harrington has 25# on me - If you weigh more than him that could explain it.

I'm thinking my torque spring is getting weak because it seems to surge a little under wot till after 40mph. The thing that gets me most about the vino is under perfect conditions its pretty good, add wind or a hill and its game over. I can sit up on a flat road and get about 52. A tuck will get me 55 a small hill will get me down to 40. I'm not complaining mind you I love the little v but its about 10mph from perfect for me.

You hit the nail on the head with that statement. The V125 is simply underpowered. Too bad it is not able to be reliably hotrodded. If I was king of Yamaha I would make them in 200c with a larger gas tank. Then you would have a great retro styled scoot

I agree. Makes me glad my scooter buddy's all ride 50s. I plan on keeping the vino for awhile even with its lack of getty up because it's so darn dependable and looks great. I've never had a chance to see a buddy up close but the idea of the 170i is appealing. That thing must be a hot rod........if any scooter could be a hot rod.

Well spring has sprung here in good old KY and I'm lovin it! It's been a long winter! I took a trip to L.B.L on the Vino last weekend hoping to get a few miles in before the "Honey-do" list got to long

I stopped on top of English hill trail head to check out the new map. my 7yr old son and I came back the next day to hike the 2.1 miles to the visitor center. Great new trail!

seeing all the great fire roads I had to give it a shot on the vino and to my surprise it handled them very well (as long as I took it slow and easy of course). I didn't have a map so I just to it until I came to a split and turned around. I plan on going back this weekend with a map and a buddy to be a little safer.




I stopped by the gift shop and grabbed a 15hp L.B.L sticker for my Helix. I think a ADV sticker is in order as well.



And now for something different. It's not really a scooter but it's not much of a motorcycle either lol.

It's a 2006 Kawasaki eliminator 125. I took it on trade for a atv I had and it's pretty much a new bike with only 2600 miles on the clock. I've only had the chance to ride it around the backroads by my house but it seems to be a very nice little bike. I was able to get 60mph without much drama and it seems to cruise 50 just fine. I pretty sure I'm just going to sell it but it's got me thinking I may need a SYM wolf or Symba in my future since the they both seem to be on par with the eliminators power but look better IMO.
I have some good rides planed this spring so I'll be sure to share some more pics soon.

I sold my bought new Vino 125 recently with 26,000 miles on it. I still have my white 2012 Zuma 125. with 6000 miles on it. I'm either going to sell it, or swap out the body panels for a different color (orange or matte black) and put an aftermarket exhaust on it to give it a little character.

Don't sell that Eliminator 125. I had one just like it, same year and color. Of all the bikes I've had, it's one of the few I really regret selling. As small as it is, it fit me better than many larger bikes, especially the Rebel 250. And that wide tank gave it a nice feel for a small bike. It also felt very substantial for it's size. I have sat on the Wolf, and it felt more like a moped to me.

I have to agree with you Jerry, the eliminator is a fine little bike. I got to put a few good miles on it and was very impressed with the whole bike. It's darn near perfect for backroad excursions. I first thought it was very under powered but I realized you just have to give it a good twist and she picks up just fine. I may have to hang on to her a little longer then planed........lol

Those bikes were very common at MSF training courses. I keep hoping Kawasaki will make another batch of them, like a one year only thing, and I'll grab another one if they do.

Zuma 125 wise, I just realized that the 2009 model came in bright yellow. I plan to get rid of my windshield and top box, get the bright yellow panels, put Yamaha racing stripes on them, and a full Yosh exhaust. That should wake it up quite a bit, and still be only a fraction of the cost of a new scooter.

Notice the Zuma 125 on this page http://www.zumasrus.com/zdox/zprod15.html

That is what I'm after. Should be considerably less boring than the old mans commuter I have now.