Moped Madness

One of the most exciting days I had in college, was the day my new moped was delivered to me from Germany. I was set to tear up the streets of San Luis Obispo with 50cc's of raw power!

Let me tell you, 50cc's is a hell of a lot of power considering I spent my first two years of college using my bicycle to go everywhere. Going to school was 3 miles of uphill riding everyday, so I always had to bring a change of clothes with me because I'd be a sweaty mess by the time I got there. No more! I'd now be cruising to school in style! (well...sort of)

The second day I had my moped, I was so excited to show it off to my friends. After class I cruised over to my friends Tara, Becca, and Jess's to show off my new toy and let them ride it around. Little did I know, I was about to learn of the true power of the 'ped.

So we go to this Church parking lot, and after they ride it around I'm demonstrating how to kick start the moped. The thing with mopeds is, there is no neutral, so when you start the engine and give it gas, the rear tire spins. Consequently, the moped has a special kick stand that holds the back tire up off the ground so the moped doesn't take off when you start it.

Apparently, this kick stand is a brilliant invention.

As I was demonstrating, I grew tired of repeatedly putting the moped back on the stand to start it. Big mistake. I kick back on the pedal, give a little gas and the moped bolts out from between my legs! The moped rears up on the back tire as I'm hanging onto the handlebars for dear life!

Now here's the problem with holding on. As the moped is rearing up and I'm clutching the bars, the throttle is naturally being twisted back even more thus giving more juice and throwing me around even more. By the time I let go, me and moped are on the ground. I look up and I see the of them just staring at me with their hands covering their mouths in disbelief. Suffice to say, the demonstration was over.

Not my smoothest moment.

Aside from that one incident, riding the moped for two years was a blast! Sure I looked a little awkward as a 6'2" 200 lb guy on a little motorized bike but I would routinely get hollers of approval riding that thing around the city.

There were however some issues with having a moped as my only means of transportation. I was screwed when it rained. This thing was like a death machine in water, but I had no choice but to ride it.

Imagine hydroplaning at 35 mph on the shoulder of a busy street. The disk breaks stop being effective in the rain and as cars pass by, you get a nice refreshing blast of street water. To top it off, you can hardly see because the rain is pelting your face and eyes. By the time I'd get to work, I'd be completely soaked through every layer of clothing.

In fact once, I got a flat tire in the rain. Super. And the problem with anything malfunctioning on the moped is that there is ONE shop in SLO that knows how to fix mopeds, so anytime anything went wrong, it became a project to get it repaired.

The helmet was also not most stylish thing ever. If you've ever seen the movie "Space Balls," the helmet is pretty much the same thing Vader's troops had on there heads.

I will say that it was a riot to ride though. If you took speed bumps at just the right angle, you could get some air! Also, I couldn't argue with getting 100 miles per gallon. I even attached a couple of collapsible baskets on the sides so I could get grocery!

So for those of you who want a cheap, ultra fun, and really but not really stylish way of cruising around town, get the 'ped!