Long Distance Scooter Touring

I'm thinking about buying a scooter, going on a couple long distance rides, and blogging about it. Right now it's a dream. One day I might make it happen.

Long distance is relative. I have a wife, two kids, and a day job. So, I'll be doing weekend warrior type touring.

I've set a bit of an arbitrary budget of around $1,000. I've shopped around a bit and found that I can buy a Chinese manufactured bike “out the door” for around $1,100. I should be able to make that work. I'd probably prefer the reliability of a name brand, but at prices of around $3,200 they are well out of my budget range.

I am lucky enough to work for a popular news website. I discussed the idea with the online news director and he thought a gallery of my travels might work as a site feature. If so, maybe that opens even more possibilities. Maybe even a sponsor? If for nothing else, I might get some phone support if there's a problem.

Short Test Trips

I've never ridden a scooter before. I use to cruise around a dirt track on a Yamaha 80 when I was a kid. I've only taken a few rides on a Honda 90 since then. I need to go on a few local rides to get a feel for the scooters capabilities and build up my confidence a bit. Here are some trip ideas, in order.

Ogden Bay, West Warren, UT

Start Stop Miles Minutes Actual
Roy, UT West Warren, UT 13 25

Brigham City, UT

This would be a flat trip but on a larger highway that I'd be likely to encounter on a longer trip.

Start Stop Miles Minutes Actual
Roy, UT Brigham City, UT 26 43

Magpie Campground, Huntsville, UT

This would be a short camping trip. About the same distance as one part of my longer trips (around 50 miles). This trip would take me up a twisty, and fairly busy, but not very steep canyon that I'm very familiar with. I would plan to ride this in the evening and then spend a night to test my light weight overnight gear.

Start Stop Miles Minutes Actual
Roy, UT Magie Campground, Huntsville, UT 47 73

North Ogden Divide

This would be a short trip over a steep and twisty canyon. This is a canyon that's close to home and that I'm fairly familiar with.

Start Stop Miles Minutes Grade
Roy, UT Eden, UT 25 53 9.94%

Longer Trips

Once I've gone on a couple short trips, I should know a little more about the scooter.

  1. How it performs in a couple canyons
  2. How it performs on both small and large highways
  3. What my actual gas mileage looks like
  4. If I'm comfortable with my ultralight gear
  5. A multiplier for Google map time estimates

Now it's time to step it up a notch and see some sights.

Dutch John, Utah

My parents recently bought into a camp share. They can go to several locations free. One of those locations is Dutch John, UT. Here's what my trip might look like if I went there. I'd start out going the long way there, taking the two less direct routes, and seeing more of the country. On the way home I'd take the more direct route which would provide a shorter trip and different scenery for most of the ride.

Start Stop Miles Minutes Actual
Roy, UT Logan, UT 50 68
Logan, UT Garden City, UT 40 52
Garden City, UT Kemmerer, WY 55 60
Kemmerer, WY Fontenelle, WY 33 38
Fontenelle, WY Green River, WY 48 54
Green River, WY Manila, UT 47 54
Manila, UT Dutch John, UT 37 43

Boise, ID

I have a friend in Boise, ID. I haven't been out to his place since he moved there. This might be a good excuse to get out there.

442 Miles, 9.5 Hours

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long_distance_scootering.txt · Last modified: 2020/06/01 22:53 (external edit)