"The Many (Mis) Adventures of DR N": CHANGE, IS GOOD!

There's and old saying... "You can't teach an old dog new tricks."

Well I disagree with that. Here's why... case in point.

I'm 64.

I'm an old dog.

Since trading in my much loved Suzuki DL 650 "V Strom" a couple of weeks ago, I have been learning new tricks.

That in itself should put the fallacy to bed. In my riding career, I have gone from a 90cc Honda to a 1200cc V Max and beyond. I've ridden most everything under the sun (and even some rain clouds) touring bikes, racing bikes, sports bikes (in my day they were "Cafe Racers") Dual purpose bikes, Trials bikes and everything in between.

The technique of riding a trials bike is much different than riding for example... a YZF or CBR... or is it?

Once again I find myself on the learning curve. Say what? My latest acquisitions include a small, light CBR 300R, which is not very unusual, but I also picked up a Piaggio MP 3.

Again... Say what?

Magic carpet scooter

I mean... even the name on the cowling emblem, well... it doesn't make much sense. Although Piaggio is one of the biggest sellers of two wheeled scooters in the world, best known for it's Vespa line. If you've spent any time touring Europe, you will see something quite unique that we here in N.A. rarely see. Honest, since picking up this MP 3, I have been deluged when stopped by stares, questions, comments etc by both pedestrians/road user's and riders.

I mean... it's got a full cowling like many sports bikes, sporty tires, storage like a sports touring bike, a dashboard that supply's info overload, decent acceleration (0-100 km in under 8 seconds solo) and fabulous fuel mileage... my first fill was 100.6 mpg. It's 250 cc engine will propel scooter and pilot to 80 mph.

Big trunk, could fit a midget in there, Mafia style!

And... it's got three wheels! Hence, the MP 3! It is so popular in Europe that even majors like Yamaha have a line of trikes.

Yes, hahaha back at you, I am riding a trike. Now being a refugee child, I can't recall having had a trike as a kid, but as a grand Dad, I have one now.

What set's the MP 3 apart from say a CanAm Spyder for example, the Spyder "leans" * away from you when cornering. Centrifugal force, (including your body) forces the mass to head opposite in the direction of the curve.

The Piaggio and it's derivatives, lean into the corner. My MP 3 puts three contact patches on the road surface and the fat little rear tire gives it good drive.

There's a lot of attention being given to the Ultimate Three wheeler right now, the Yamaha Niken.

Like(n) or not, testing of the triple cylinder Yamaha is proving that once you catch up on the learning curve and get you mind understanding the physics, you will be surprised. It and the little MP, "stick like glue."

So, is the Piaggio revolutionary???

I don't know.

What I do know is, with a left shoulder impingement (and we're not talking about riding on the wrong side of the road in Jolly Old...) and a right hip with worsening bursitis, just pushing a 500 lb MC around in the garage, or parking lot, is taking it's toll on me. Some time the pain is so pronounced, just turning the bike around in my garage does me in for the day, or at the least, a few hours!

In my riding career, at 5'4" I haven't often been forced to give up riding some bikes. I remember very well the Suzuki Dr Big. A big bore single if I ever saw one. That bike, like the current flock of over-sized ADV bikes, has opened up a market for smaller lighter bikes. Fully loaded with three pieces of luggage, a 650 cc motorcycle with a hundred pounds of bolt on's plus the missus, I was balancing on tip toes, about 900 pounds of steel and rubber!

I was an accident waiting to happen.

The Piaggio not only has a large contact patch to the pavement, but has a very unique feature that will blow your mind. Case in point.

I'm at a stop light in Metro Summerside, PEI... when a rather large work truck pulls up next to me.

Driver and passenger leaning over him, ask's me how I was able to balance the MP without putting my foot on the ground. I answered as the light turned green, "it's magic and next week I will be learning to levitate her!" They laughed but I could still see the gears turning.

So, in addition to having the Piaggio able to lean like a sports bike, using an internal brake, the pilot can "lock" the bike at the chosen lean angle when stopped. Not sure, but could make for interesting photos seeing my little MP 3 leaning over right or left, pushing the control button and dismount the bike and walk away from it (oh yeah, don't forget to lock the brake as well, because without that, if you're on a slope you'll be chasing your run away three wheeler!

Stay tuned...