Accidents (or, proof of safety gear)

[mrchilled85]

Dec 2, 2023 4:16:09 GMT -5 milly said:

See them pop up for sale couple times a year lower down from us across south Wales.

yep just my luck i would find one that just needs a bit of tlc but end up being 200-300 miles from me lol 

[bbadrians]

Hello, a newcomer here! Since the scooter thread in my country has changed ownership, and for some unknown reason it has been shutdown (for a year and a half now) i miss writing in forums and being a part of them, so i'll venture into new teritory and share my experiences!

So currently im 17 years old and had a fair share of crashes (most of which have been dumb mistakes or the scooters fault), of course, without any proper gear except a helmet and really thick gloves.

The first one was back in the beginning of winter in 2022, just as black ice showed in the streets. I was sitting at a stop sign, thinkin "hmmm roads slippery, a rolling burnout would be nice😅". So i did a burnout for some seconds, then let go of my front brakes. Rear tire went to the right side, somehow my handlebars turned to the left, and boom low sided on my face (i think it's called low sided, fell on the left side face down). Only bruised my knees, and made holes in my new jeans haha. Was barely going 10kmh so only the headlight fell out (was on a piaggio zip rst 1998).

Second time, and the worst of them all, was in 18th of july 2023. My Peugeot scooter didn't have working front forks (meaning they were stuck in place, hitting with a hammer didn't budge them even a bit) and with my friend on a Honda CR450F went on a cruise to the neighboring town on some packed down dirt roads. About half way, the road went from asphalt to poorly patched up gravel (i don't know the specific type of road it's called, i can later upload a youtube link to of the crash if some if you are interested). Was going about 65-67kmh (aprox. 41-42mph i think), hit a bump, bars started a speedwobble and went down face-first on exhaust side. Did 2 barrel rolls, got up from the middle of the road and laid down in the grass. Scooter slid all the way from the right driving side to the left. Transported one and a half hours to the hospital, rash and burns on my hands, fingers (right pinky almost to the bone), both elbows, knees and hips. No broken boned or concussions fortunately (was only wearing a motocross helmet, hoodie, shorts and crocs, basically a miracle i almost walked it off🤓). Scooter had a dented exhaust, whole right side fairing mounts broke off, looked like someone went over it with sandpaper. Looked and walked like a mummy for a month. Only scars are left, right hand pinky still can't move so freely without pain.

The last time was funny. I only use my scooter to stunt, but the problem with Peugeot scooters is the original drum brakes are so bad at the only job they are supposted to do, i've learned to wheelie only on balance point. So 2 weeks ago i was practicing going slowly on my balance point, about 20kph (12mph) and started going to 12'oclock. Pressed the brakes, nothing happened, and my reflex kicked in, so i jumped off, landed on my knees, scooter went on the left side. Started laughing because other people were going by haha. Got up, scooter still running, grabbed the front as it had broken off, and went home. Knees bruised, everything else okay. Scooter had broken more fairing clips, left side scuffed up, and license plate was folded in half since i have it side-mounted on my variator cover.

So, leason learned - never underestimate riding gear 😉

Thank you for reading! And also, if anyone has good/budget gear for riding (mainly knee and back protection), let me know!

[jackrides]

Welcome to 49cc Scoot! Glad you are enjoying your learning experiences and I hope you have learned the most important: NEVER ride without full face helmet and gloves. Live to ride, ride to live!