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Michael Franzen of Aurora writes:

This is a letter to the Motor Scooter Club I saw in downtown Denver a few weeks ago.
As a seasoned motorcycle rider, I appreciate what you do and what you ride.
But, you are doing it wrong.
Wrong and dangerous, whilst a lot of people think when they see a motorcycle is that Lucifer himself is riding it, they think that scooters are cute and innocent, they are not.
The point is, that seeing scooter riders wearing tank tops, shorts, and flip flops while riding is not cool. In my eyes, there should be something with a helmet. Should you take a spill and slide on that hot asphalt dressed like that, if your not dead you are going to wish you were.
So Please, at least put on pants, a shirt, and shoes, it could spell the difference between being slightly shaken up, to having asphalt scrubbed out of your road rash.
Your Call.

This letter has not been edited.

READER COMMENTS

Also, how about getting those motor vehicles TAGGED if you're going to ride on the public streets. And obey the traffic laws. And if you're scooter won't go more than 30 miles per hour - STAY OFF MAJOR THOROUGHFARES during rush hour!

Mr. Franzen,

Great letter. While it is up to the individual to take responsibility for themselves, I sure would hate to see a national health care system implemented and now making me pay for the poor decisions of those in the Scooter club.

Its justme,

I could not agree with you more. If I have to have my motorcycle registered, and have insurance, so should these scooters. They are motor vehicles that are used on the public road way, and as such should be regulated as any other motor vehicle.

Great comments fellow posters!

Thanks for the advice guys. Next time I’ll go for a walk, I’ll do it in full kevlar armor, have a roll cage and 10 point seat belt installed in my car with a self activated floating device and fire extinguisher system with nozzles everywhere, and just to be sure, have a fully equipped ambulance to following me around. You can never be too careful. May be we can also tax those pesky bicyclists who never pay gasoline tax or get a tag / insurance and still use the road. This “if I have to do it, so should you” mentality belongs in a nanny state socialist country and not in Colorado.

good advice, do your homework before you comment. I have a scooter: 49cc, it's registered with the state and insured just doesn't require tags and is authorized for on road use

4:04 is absolutely correct.

Under Colorado Revised Statute, any scooter under 50cc's is considered a motorized bicycle and doesn't not require licensing (tags or license endorsement) with the state. Under the same statutes, they are allowed to be used on public roadways--just like a bicycle.

There is also no mandate for helmets or wearing long sleeved shirts and/or pants or shoes. The letter writer is correct, it is still the rider's choice. At least for now...

As they teach in the ABATE course, lets get ready to roll.

True, it is legal to ride scooters without licensing, registration or insurance, but that does not make them capible of being used the same way a motorcycle or car is. These 'bikes' need to respect the laws of the road as any bike does. That means no impeading traffic, no taking right of way and no illegal activities. I see underaged kids riding these scooters in school zones and weaving in and out of cars. I have seen them cut off cars along Speer Blvd, taking the right of way and flipping of the cars when honked at.

Never been to Italy, have you Mickey?

For someone like me who screwed up in the past and lost their license my scooter allows me to have the option to ride to work and not be shackled to RTD. I do obey laws, strive to take side roads so as not to impede traffic flow and always wear a helmet and gloves. My job (stagehand) often ends at 1:00 or 2:00 am when there's no buses running and now I don't have to beg off rides or blow my wages on taxis. Maybe all scooter riders will follow all laws on the same day that people stop tailgating at 65 mph on I-25!!

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