Friend needs help picking a scooter

[LabRat]

I have a friend who is looking to buy a scooter and I don't know a thing about them, so I ask the greater cess pool of knowledge here...

He is about 6 foot and 200 lbs.

He wants something that can go up to 50 mph or so.

Main purpose is for motorpacing cyclists on the road and track.


What can 'Get'R Dun'?

JD

[DoctorIt]

Unfortunately, for motorpacing, the cyclists will really appreciate a 4-stroke - and for a 200lb guy to pull 50mph, little baby scoots are out of the question. I say unfortunately cuz little 2-strokes are pretty quick and can be had uber cheap.

one of the chinese 125 or 150 4-strokes should do the trick at a low price point.

BKM/Vento are getting a pretty good name amongst that crowd. Check out this one:
http://www.qualityscooters4less.com/...n_Details.html

QualityScooters is a respectable place. Any minute now, photog will jump in here and probably echo this and probably add another good place. Most of them even include shipping.

[Photog]

Originally Posted by DoctorIt

Unfortunately, for motorpacing, the cyclists will really appreciate a 4-stroke - and for a 200lb guy to pull 50mph, little baby scoots are out of the question. I say unfortunately cuz little 2-strokes are pretty quick and can be had uber cheap.

one of the chinese 125 or 150 4-strokes should do the trick at a low price point.

BKM/Vento are getting a pretty good name amongst that crowd. Check out this one:
http://www.qualityscooters4less.com/...n_Details.html

QualityScooters is a respectable place. Any minute now, photog will jump in here and probably echo this and probably add another good place. Most of them even include shipping.

Great advice.

www.powersportsfactory.com

Another option might be the TnG Baja which is a 150cc 4-stroke.

The bare frame on the TnG Baja might not be a bad option. Plenty of room to strap on some luggage to carry first aid kits, water, radios.



A good low-cost option would be the 80's era Honda Helix (essentially same as the newer Helixes) since it has a relatively cavernous rear trunk for those sorts of supplies. It's a 250 and handles 65 easily.

[R1150GSA]

What about a Chetak?

[Srbenda]

No, he needs a Morpheus.

And be quick about it ok? I hear they are flying out of showrooms due to the demand.

[Double Moo]

test rode one of these last week - your friend and I are roughly the same size... 'cept I have 15 lbs on him... It moved around OK for a 125. I found them at our local Yamaha dealer for $1,495.00 - best deal I could locate.. You may want to look locally before ordering off the net.

His cyclist buddies are pretty good if he needs to pace them at 50mph - maybe they could help Team Disco with some training tips!

[ketchup57]

Yamaha Majesty - heck can even pull my 250lbs well over 90mph...

[dwestmodesto]

We have 3 chetaks in our family. One for me, one for my wife and one for my son. Mine hauls me at wide open throttle (about 55mph) for my commute. I weigh in at 300lbs. My son is much lighter than me. He weighs about 160lbs. He has done many 800+ mile weekends on his Chetak, and gets about 5 more miles/hour than I do due to the lower weight.
A Chetak could handle the jobs listed in this post with ease.
Hasta,
Dave

Originally Posted by R1150GSA

What about a Chetak?

[Plan B]

Originally Posted by LabRat

He wants something that can go up to 50 mph or so.

Main purpose is for motorpacing cyclists on the road and track.


What can 'Get'R Dun'?

JD

Motorpacing at 50!
I have friends pacing with a Zuma, they say it's perfect.
I just bought an Aprilia sr 50 factory and although I haven't paced anyone yet i'm sure it will be just fine when I do later this summer. (I'm getting lots of requests) It sits nice and tall and it's easy to regulate the speed. I can cruise on the flats at 49 (indicated).
Another friend is pacing with a Scarabeo with a monster windshield, says it works great.

[DoctorIt]

for those of you that think 50mph is fast for motorpacing, I'm wondering, have you ever done it?

I've been on both ends, several times. 50 is quite accurate, and the average rather than the high. On a flat road, it's about what it takes to get an elite cyclist into his high training level. Even on the north shore of Hawaii with a sweet offshore breeze pushing you all sorts of back and forth. Now that I think back, it was so windy there, we had to pace with a Honda CRV (going at least 50) to break a decent pocket in the air.

And then the swimming with giant sea turtles afterwards... what a dream of a training trip!

[DoctorIt]

Originally Posted by R1150GSA

What about a Chetak?

2-stroke, isn't it?

I refer yet again to my first comment - blue smoke may be fun for the scooterhead, but NOT for the cyclists behind you. Keep in mind, to get a decent pace, the cyclist is about 8-12 inches behind the scoot - and therefore, would be directly inhaling that noxious exhuast. 4-stroke is your only route here. (Unless you have some really twisted cyclists)

[Photog]

Chetak's a four-stroke, four-speed.

[Photog]

PS - holy bajeebus...50? Wow. Very cool.

I don't think I've seen over 37 on the flats and that was coming off a decent hill. (I try my best not to compare ANYTHING I do on a bike with pros or even decent amateurs. Those guys spin effortlessly all day what I do for a short period as flat-out max)

[DoctorIt]

Originally Posted by Photog

PS - holy bajeebus...50? Wow. Very cool.

I did a fair amount of motorpacing for a buddy of mine - elite cyclist and accomplished olympic-distance triathelete. 50 was pretty much his norm... and that was on New England roads with rolling hills.

Without a motor, all you need is a group of 3-4 guys to manage 55mph+ decents. Better be wearing your helmet.


* didn't know the chetak was a 4T. I thought those were basically the same as a Stella?

[Photog]

Originally Posted by DoctorIt

I did a fair amount of motorpacing for a buddy of mine - elite cyclist and accomplished olympic-distance triathelete. 50 was pretty much his norm... and that was on New England roads with rolling hills.

Without a motor, all you need is a group of 3-4 guys to manage 55mph+ decents. Better be wearing your helmet.

It never ceases to amaze me what accomplished cyclists can do. They are truly gifted. I can't imagine 50. I have, however, found myself in a good groove from time to time and it's magic to see the cyclometer hold a higher speed than before.

* didn't know the chetak was a 4T. I thought those were basically the same as a Stella?

Matter of fact, there's not a whole lot that's interchangeable between the modern Chetaks and the PX series. A few add-on bits here and there, but you can't throw the scooterworks catalog at it like you can the Stella. Bajaj really moved forward on the design to beef it up for daily driver use overseas. It's fairly well-known mod to swap the Chetak anti-dive onto a PX though it takes some work. The Chetak is a great scoot--built like a tank.