Accentuate the positive

There is an old saying about you never get second  chance to make a first impression.  In some ways the Kymco has impressed me.  For example I like the sporty look of the scooter, it feels more like a sport bike in some ways.  Whereas my old Burgman felt like a Cruiser, or to quote some wit:  "A barcalounger on wheels

I like the clicking noise the turn signals make because I'm horrible at remembering to turn them off.  The little cricket buzzing in my ear is a nice reminder to do so.   I also like the corning in the Kymco, it seems to take a curve at a better angle then the Burgie ever did.  Of course, I might have just gotten better at cornering.

Two things really surprised me, one was the windshield.  While certainly on the replacement list, it seems to direct the air up and over me much better than the stock Burgie shield ever did and there is a definite reduction in buffeting because of it.  At higher speeds the Burgie's stock windshield seemed to "quake" a little.  No such issue with the Xciting's windscreen.

One of the other things that surprised me is how well it handles cross winds.  Maybe I've gotten better at driving in them, but the Xciting seems to cut through a cross wind easily.  I remember having to feel like I was practically leaning on one side of the Burgie to keep it upright one day during some punishing Easterly winds.  While I've not had the experience of taking the Xciting out during a day like that, I've been impressed with it's ability to handle the winds so far.

The fuel tank is the Silver Circle on the right.

The convenience of the fuel tank is nice as well.  I an pop the lid open, fill up the tank, replace the nozzle and put my wallet away all without having to dismount the bike.  The only issue I have with it is the very small tank, it only takes a little over 2 gallons to fill it completely.  Frankly I've not down the MPG calculations yet but a rough guess puts my MPG around 65?  Certainly not a shabby number.

Finally the seat is very comfortable, surprisingly so.  No matter what I did, including adding a beaded seat, to the Burgie I suffered from the dreaded "Monkey Butt."  Some days were better than others of course, but the seat on the Kymco is firmer I guess?  So far all I have done is commute on the bike, so this impression might change but for now I've no complaints.

I can't help but wonder if the performance I've experienced out of this bike is because I'm used to the much larger Burgman, where the Xciting seems "heavier" is some respects it's also a much more compact scooter.  The storage is horrid, I have room for a full face helmet and gloves under the seat and not much else.  Where in the Burgman I was unable to place my full face helmet, my jacket, gloves and a sweater under the seat when I was work.

Another positive is there is a hook to attach a grocery bag to in the pass through.  A thermos on a carabiner might work as well on those hot days.

Unless something changes drastically in the next year or two I think I'll be on the Kymco for at least three years.  Lots of time to let it grow on me I suppose.  Plenty of time to...oh go ahead and sing it you two:

Sometimes the simplest solution is the best - the Drink Holder .

Tropical Storm Debby has been just sitting in the gulf for some time, which means days and days of rain and wind...making riding dangerous if not down right impossible.  Their is an old saying about being ugly but not stupid and I'm not the latter.  I've been lucky enough to avoid most of the damage caused by the storm, being inland and "in the highlands" so to speak.  Some photo's of the damage can be seen here.  My heart certainly goes out to those affected.

I figured however that I should do some work on the bike that I felt comfortable with.  Mitch has some wonderful video blog entries about simple maintenance that I could do, thus I cleaned but did not replace the air filter.  I also decided that I would add a cup holder to my Burgie.  There were a couple of ideas that I came across.  Burgmanseats.com offers a simple cup holder for about $20 dollars.  A very simple cup holder could be crafted together by following these directions:  

There are also various cup holders that require a mounting bracket.  I had a lot of different options before me but I decided the take the path of least resistance.  After all it get hot here in Florida and if I planned on taking longer trips, then I needed a place for water.

If I followed the directions on the video then my cost would have about $26.82 (for the cup holder + shipping costs from Wally World since the local stores don't carry that type of cupholder) then an additional $10 for the velcro from JoAnn Fabrics.  Total cost  $36.82.  I thought there has got to be a cheaper way!  No that does not include the tile.

Kwick Tech offers a drink holder for under $7 but that requires a bag hook.  Motorcycle super store had a very nice kit for $8.95 + $6.94 shipping = $15.94. Then it hit me like a bolt of lighting!

An idea is born!

I didn't need to spend any more money than I already did. The Velcro strips would come in handy. You see, I already had the solution in hand.  Once upon a time before drink holders were standard in cars you had a plastic thing that attached to your window.  I realized I could take one of these old things and attach it to the bike.  A piece of Velcro could be cut and attached to the "crook" and to the arm to keep it in place.  I wanted to take the bike out in my hood to see if the holder would interfere with my driving, my leg and if it would hold a cup, a bottle of water and a can of soda.  If they did then I would cut and attach the Velcro and be good to go. My little ride proved my idea was sound.  It didn't interfere with the bikes operation at all.  So lets begin!

First I had to cut the Velcro to fit the cup holder.  This tends to be sticky and had to be trimmed to fit the dimensions of the cup.  

Then I had to place the other side of the Velcro onto the bike.  I had a spot in mind and it worked out rather nicely.  Again some trimming was required.  My main concern was in the "crook" area where the cup holder would hang.

TADA!!!  The final product.  Total cost was under $5 for the Velcro and about 5 to 10 minutes of time to put the whole damn thing together.  Now I don't have an excuse for a longer trip.