How did you get started scootering?

Weirdly, I woke up one morning and just thought it was time to get back on two wheels. My dad raced superbikes back when I was knee high to a grasshopper. He bought me a little 50cc dirtbike when I was too young to appreciate such a thing, age 5 or so. I learned to ride and then crashed into the house trying to avoid a tree. That was pretty much the end of me and motorcycles until winter 2000. And then, like I said, I woke up, decided I wanted a scooter, looked around on the internet to learn some things, and then came to Darren at OTR Scooters in Richmond. He originally sold me a little Vespa 90. That bike never got finished so he ended up selling me the Serveta listed above.

What is the best part of scootering for you?

It's just so awesome to be free of the shell that a car provided. I always clutter up my cars and there really isn't much room to clutter up a scooter. I love how people always want ot talk to you about your scooter. I've made hundreds of acquaintances that way. It's really been great becoming as much of a gearhead as I am now. I feel like I'm using parts of my brain that have been sleeping since high school. And the really best thing is simply that when I am riding regularly, I get fewer migraines. Where doctors have failed for 20 years, Italian technology has suceeded.

What do you dislike about scootering?

Well, I suppose I don't like some of newer models' looks, but anything that gets people on 2 wheels and out of their cars is good, really. I also hate breaking cables in a bad part of town.

What is the best ride route you've ridden?

 Definitely the group rides at King's Classic in San Francisco last summer. We rode everywhere, thru incredible hilly residential areas to downtown to everywhere. I hadn't really gotten around much in SF previously so it was an incredible intro to a fantastic city. After the group rides were over, we took the 49 miles scenic route around the city too. Incredible place to ride.

Any scooter-related goals for 2003?

Oh, tons. You see, when you own a scooter business and ride too, you end up with the majority of your goals being scooter related. I am going to get the cutdown running properly. I am going to get the Jet 200 back on the road as it suffered major front end damage in an accident I had in 2001. I am going to get my website redesigned and ready for e-commerce. I am going to always have the parts you need right here on the shelf. I am going to ride to as many rallies as I possibly can. I am going to go to as many rallies as I possibly can. Last year I did 11 and I'm hoping to beat that.

Give us a quick run-down on Scooters O Mail Order...

Well, we are a mail order only business for parts for both Lambrettas and Vespas. I try to be the only person answering the phone so my customers can get one-on-one contact with someone who knows what they need. It's great to be able to remember all these details about customers and be able to keep them taken care in a very personal fashion. Everybody is a person with a scooter, not just another dime in the bucket. It's so great being able to feel like you are really helping people out with a passion.

What is your dream bike?

I really am not a huge fan of riding gorgeous bikes with fancy paintjobs or model idolotry. Therefore you will find no fully restored GSs, SSs, SXs, etc. I prefer something fast, ratty, and reliable. Therefore, my dream bikes are having the cutdown running properly with drop bars and a TS1 and Project J Range, which will ultimately be a solution for stuffing large displacement motors into that ugly ass little frame. I am planning on putting in some telescoping forks from a automatic scooter, possibly a trapezoidal vespa headlight unit, and at least a 215 engine. Kegra is going to do a one off pipe for it. I am going to get all the wacky accessories from the J50 rechromed and replasticed and it's going to be an ugly little beastie. I can't wait to get started on it. :)

What is your favorite rally?

I *love* Summit Point. It was my first rally that I arrived at at a decent hour. It is relatively close to me. Also, I have comandeered the organization of it so now it really is mych rally. It's free and people tend to always set a bike on fire and set off crazy illegal fireworks and stuff. It's truly a West Virginian Bacchanale. That said, I had incredible times at so many rallies last year. Philly's July 4th rally, New Orleans halloween rally, The Checkered Demons' Narrowsburg rally, the Flying Monkeys'(of Seattle) Orcas Island run, Atlanta's Imperials' Deliverance, the list goes on and on. This year I'll be attending a ton of rallies fo rhte first time so I'm sure next year's list will include Mile High Mayhem, Vegas, Niagara, Amerivespa, who knows what else...

What does being a scooter gal mean to you?

It means that I'm generally one of the few single chicks at any rally and therefore I get plenty of attention. It means that when I fix stuff people are amazed and when I don't feel like fixing it that I can easily talk somebody else into it. It also means that occasionally people doubt that I actually know anything and so I have to prove that I'm not just the phone jockey here at the shop. It also means that I don't have many pairs of heels since they're aren't such a good idea for riding.

Any advice for novice scootergals?

Well, when I began looking for the right scooter for me, I decided that I could get a project bike and learn how to work on them. I'm sure many other people think this as well. Not a good idea, however. Get a bike that runs and runs properly first. Become good at riding, go to some rallies, meet the people. The experience with the scene and a passion for riding are far easier to finish than the building of a basket case. You will end up spending so much in proper tools and hours of your life that few people come out of the basketcase with their great vision of scootering in tact. That said, after you get a running bike and are comfortable and excited to go riding everyday, then start getting manuals and tools and learn how to do the little things yourself. It feels so good to be able to complete these tasks yourself that you will be happier scootering than ever before. Also, get the proper protective clothing and gear. Without that stuff I certainly would have been dead of majorly screwed up when I got in a bad accident a year+ ago. Your teeth will never look the same without a fullface helmet and scars on your body b/c you didn't wear a good leather coat or pants are a total drag.