Would you go ATGATT on a scooter?

[adouglas]

So lots of us here, myself included are ATGATT folks. Casual observation tells me that's rare... I NEVER see anyone around here who truly practices it.

But there's an interesting question. What if you got a small scooter? (vs. a maxiscooter, which is really more of a motorcycle with floorboards).

Scooter ads always show people with open-face helmets, wearing street clothes. Vespa even depicts models in dresses and Prada high heels.

It's still a vehicle, and road rash still sucks.

What's your view? What I'm most interested in hearing about is the thoughts of people who go ATGATT on a real motorcycle, but wouldn't on a scooter.

If that's the case, why? What's your rationale?

[Racer x]

I dress to be hit by a car or slide down the street at over 30 mph. Having raced bicycles and crashed enough to know it sucks. I am all gear all the time. Even on my scooter. But I don't do full leathers and spine protector all the time. Just helmet boots gloves and long clothing even in summer.
That is only for my 2 mile ride to work and back. If I was to go for a long ride. Full leather.

It does not matter how fast your going. Pealing the skin off the palms of your hands, both knees and elbows plus the chin will teach you a lot.

[Ralgha]

I'm full leather with back and chest protector (integrated in the jacket) all the time, and I'd be the same on a scooter. Doesn't matter what kind of two wheeler you're on, licking pavement at 50 is going to suck the same.

If I don't feel like dealing with all the gear, I take my car.

[cadd]

It depends I guess. It's not the vehicle that determines if I ATGATT. It's where I ride and what I'm doing that determines it. If I'm in Manhattan, and need to stop by Whole Foods that's 15 blocks away (0.75 miles) on a Vespa to pick up milk and a fruits, I'll just wear short cuff gloves and a helmet. Avg speed will probably be 20mph and I'll be expecting to stop every 300ft for red lights. It makes no difference to me because I could just as easily hop on my bicycle to run that errand with only fingerless gloves and a bicycle helmet while hitting the same speeds.

[spooph]

Agreed, it would definitely depend on where I'm riding. If it's a maxi scooter capable of high way riding, definitely my usual ATGATT. If it's inner city with many scooters and bicycles present where people are aware of slower type traffic, I might dial it down and leave the jacket on a hot summer day, but still wear boots, kevlar jeans, short gloves and a helmet...

[alex.s]

shorts and flipflops. the hawaiian shirt will protect me

[NevadaWolf]

Still exposed to other peoples stupidity. Scooter or bike makes no difference. **** happens so dress for it.


And now I'm sad, this reminded me of Ethio's scooter thread.

[adouglas]

Originally Posted by Racer x

I dress to be hit by a car or slide down the street at over 30 mph. Having raced bicycles and crashed enough to know it sucks. I am all gear all the time. Even on my scooter. But I don't do full leathers and spine protector all the time. Just helmet boots gloves and long clothing even in summer.
That is only for my 2 mile ride to work and back. If I was to go for a long ride. Full leather.

It does not matter how fast your going. Pealing the skin off the palms of your hands, both knees and elbows plus the chin will teach you a lot.

So you voted "dial it back," then, yes?

Define "long clothing," please. Does that mean a long-sleeved shirt, or a motorcycle jacket? Does it mean street pants, riding jeans, or real motorcycle pants?

Boots... motorcycle or work?

Personally, I find myself agreeing with Cadd for the most part and share the rationale. True stop-and-go urban environment - what Vespas are designed for - I wouldn't suit up as if for the track, which is what I do on my sportbike. The only exception is riding to the diner at lunch, at speeds that rarely exceed 30, and then the only concession is street pants. On a scooder I'd go with at least a mesh jacket, full-face helmet, touring-type gloves and work boots.

[adouglas]

Originally Posted by Ralgha

I'm full leather with back and chest protector (integrated in the jacket) all the time, and I'd be the same on a scooter. Doesn't matter what kind of two wheeler you're on, licking pavement at 50 is going to suck the same.

If I don't feel like dealing with all the gear, I take my car.

Does "full leather" mean armored leather pants, too? Because that's my definition of ALL THE GEAR.

[cbinker]

naked.

[Racer x]

Long clothing as in enough layers to slide. In summer just a jacket and pants for a short trip. But always a full
Face helmet. Dial it back to me is shorts and tennis shoes

[LittleRedNinjette]

I'm one that would still wear my gear same as on my motorcycle.

The pavement doesn't care what you had been riding when you hit it at speed. It will treat your body the same.

Not saying i'm a true ATGATT rider as i don't wear riding pants or true riding boots. But i still would want the same protection i'm used to and comfortable with.

[akima]

If I was on a little 50CC I'd just wear gloves, helmet and full boots (that cover my ankles). My rationale is it's a slow bike for slow traffic and I don't think I'd be in much more danger than being on my bicycle (where all I wear for protection is gloves... and I ride pretty fast).

On anything bigger than 50CC (that goes over 30mph) I'd go ATGATT (as I do now with my 250).

[Ghostt]

Absolutely

[Proteus]

My wife rides her Vespa to work every day in downtown Chicago and wears moto boots, mesh jacket w/ armor and integrated back protector, gloves, and full-face helmet. I used to wear the same when I commuted on the Elite.

She's the only person I've ever seen here wearing that much gear on a scooter, most here just hop on in their street clothes (shorts and t-shirts, dresses, etc.) without even a helmet. Another chunk wear a half or 3/4 helmet and nothing else, and I've seen maybe 10 other people in the last few years in a full-face, but not with everything else.

[MrAtom]

I'd wear nothing but my elephant thing.

[Ralgha]

Originally Posted by adouglas

Does "full leather" mean armored leather pants, too? Because that's my definition of ALL THE GEAR.

Yep, even hip armor.

[Racer x]

I guess I am not really all gear all the time. I'm a dial it back guy.

I ride bicycles and I ride a lot in traffic. On a bicycle you are basicly in your undies and have a beer cooler on your head. Almost no protection. I have hit speeds in excess of fifty MPH often. So to me all the gear is a full face helmet, boots ,gloves and covered skin. Padding is good and a spine and chest pads are great . A neck restraint system even better. (But not for the street) But I consider anything past bicycle naked gear.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by Racer x

On a bicycle you are basicly in your undies and have a beer cooler on your head. Almost no protection. I have hit speeds in excess of fifty MPH often.

Yeah! How come no one has a cow about lack of protection for bicycle riders?

Bicycling on the street is more dangerous per mile traveled than motorcycling.

[capt_bugaloo]

IMHO gloves and boots are easily as important (if not more so) as a jacket. If you fall and get bad road rash or bruising on your shoulder or back, it hurts. If you get the same with your feet or hands, you can't walk or work.

[xXecuterXx2]

Originally Posted by alex.s

shorts and flipflops. the hawaiian shirt will protect me

[akima]

Originally Posted by dcj13

Bicycling on the street is more dangerous per mile traveled than motorcycling.

Agreed! I feel safer on the road on my motorcycle than on my bicycles. I have so much more road presence on my ninja, I have a ton of gear to protect me and I can accelerate away from danger much quicker.

There's 2 reasons why I think ATGATT on motorcycles is more important than wearing ATGATT on bicycles:
1. You can easily hit speeds on motorcycles that produce horrendous road rash. I've got road rash on my bicycle on many occasions, and it always sucks, but it's never that bad.
2. The Downsides vs Upsides ratio of ATGATT is stacked way towards upsides on a motorcycle but way towards downsides on a bicycle. It's not practical at all to wear a ton of gear on a bicycle: the weight of it, the restriction of movement, the sweat. It would suck. None of those things are as much of a problem on a motorcycle and the reward you get in return is huge: potentially it will save your health and your life... which is a better reward than winning a lottery jackpot. The majority of bikers seem to crash, so the odds of winning this ATGATT reward are very high too.

[Racer x]

Originally Posted by dcj13

Yeah! How come no one has a cow about lack of protection for bicycle riders?

Bicycling on the street is more dangerous per mile traveled than motorcycling.

No one cares about bicyclist. That is rule one when riding.

[adouglas]

Originally Posted by MrAtom

I'd wear nothing but my elephant thing.

You're a strange, strange person.

[crazymadbastard]

Helmet gloves boots and long jeans(no daisy dukes for me) long sleeves.

[Aufitt]

Depends how hot the scooter chick is that imma chasin,

If she likes my Yellow Astars Atem onesie... that's what Imma wearin.

[MrAtom]

Originally Posted by Aufitt

Depends how hot the scooter chick is that imma chasin,

If she likes my Yellow Astars Atem onesie... that's what Imma wearin.

In my experience, scootards love ninjas.

[kdogg2077]

On a scooter I'd still wear a helmet, gloves, some kind of boots and a motorcycle jacket, with or without armor. Of course long pants.

On the bike I guess I'm mtgatt. I always have a helmet, gloves and an amored jacket but sometimes I wear kevlar jeans and work boots.

[Hero Danny]

I'm guilty of wearing a T-shirt and half helmet in St.Kitts on a scooter. But that's only because they didn't have any gear for me to wear and I wasn't going to try and pack a full face helmet onto the plane lol..

That being said, ATGATT if you can, regardless if it's a scooter or not.

[snot]

all gear, I would ride the same speeds on the same streets I ride my bike.
I might even add an orange flag on the back.

[akima]

Why orange?!

[asdfman]

Depends on how fast that scooter can go. If it can only go as fast I can on bicycle, probably would skip the gear except helmet, gloves, and maybe boots.

[MrAtom]

I saw one scootergirl wearing gear once. She had a cute leather jacket on and boots and gloves and aww. She was adorable.

[reggae5]

Now they just wouldn't look right with a helmet and leathers

[Ralgha]

Monks are exempt from gear requirements. They have harnessed the power of zen levitation.

[choneofakind]

Originally Posted by dcj13

Yeah! How come no one has a cow about lack of protection for bicycle riders?

Bicycling on the street is more dangerous per mile traveled than motorcycling.

I usually worry about my gear and riding style on the road bike...


...after I've done something that was stupid and fun, like rip down a hill with curves intentionally not using brakes and topping 45-50 mph and I ride a good bit. I've actually been hurt pretty often on my MTB as well.

[dcj13]

Originally Posted by reggae5

Now they just wouldn't look right with a helmet and leathers.

Originally Posted by Ralgha

Monks are exempt from gear requirements. They have harnessed the power of zen levitation.

Great pic! I think you’re both correct.

[akima]

Originally Posted by choneofakind

I've actually been hurt pretty often on my MTB as well.

Me too, but it's never that bad.

I know tons of people who have ridden mountain bikes or other types of bicycles. None of them have had really serious injuries (despite probably all of them crashing... many times). Motorcycles... I know a bunch of people (first hand) who have been killed or maimed on them.

I think our bodies evolved to deal with the typical impact/abrasion forces at play when you crash a bicycle. I think evolution didn't plan on us building machines that put the power of 30 horses between our legs - when we crash things go very bad. Pretty much the only reason I allow myself to ride is because I think I can counter-balance the risk through wearing ATGATT, being focused on the bike, practising and acquiring knowledge on how to and how not to ride.

[psych0hans]

Originally Posted by NevadaWolf

And now I'm sad, this reminded me of Ethio's scooter thread.

That's the first thing that came to my mind when I saw this thread, tho it made me smile, can't forget his dance before he started riding

[choneofakind]

Originally Posted by akima

Me too, but it's never that bad.

Let's see here: I've dislocated a shoulder, bruised a couple ribs, and partially collapsed my right lung. All on a bicycle.

On the motorcycle I've gotten a few cuts and scrapes while working on it and I've set the kickstand down on my foot. Based on my track record, I'm safer on the motorcycle :P