Riding My Scooter for the First Time

If you live in a small beach town or an island, scooter or motorcycle is the most common mode of transportation. It's easier to get around the town or reach other beautiful beaches. So yesterday, I finally bought a scooter. I've never ridden one in my life and I've always been afraid of motorcycles even just as a passenger. I don't know, maybe it's the speed and all those horror stories. However, I don't have much choice at the moment. I really need to learn to ride a scooter at least because it will make my life easier. Although I still love my bicycle so much, it's just hard when I'm going uphill. And I couldn't ride it fast enough to come down to the town especially when I have to do some business-related stuff.

I had someone who was teaching me for a day as I'm not quite comfortable riding the highway yet. Unfortunately, there are no empty parking lots or good roads for practice anyway. My mentor was my passenger as I was riding the scooter the whole time. We went to really nice roads with stunning views of plains, farms, and ocean. I just failed to take photos as I was concentrating too much. I realized how easy it was to ride that I could have done it on my own. But, it was still nice to have someone who has years of riding experience to teach me properly or remind me of safety precautions and rules on the road. I will be living here for quite a while and it's my scooter anyway, I have to know how to ride safely for myself and for my scooter too. I know most travelers here don't really give a shit when they rent motorcycles because they are not theirs anyway. They just do whatever they want and ride even without that much experience.

At first, I was just going on 20 kph, then the next thing I knew, I was going on 60. I think for starters, that was already fast. The best thing about having your own transportation is that you can easily reach far places. I went through lots of curves, downhills, and uphills. It was such an exhilarating experience. What freedom!

It was so nice to see vast emptiness for a change, something I thought doesn't exist here. It was so refreshing to see empty roads. Next time I go this way, I will surely take photos. I think I had a pretty good mentor who was coaching me the whole time. It was also great that he brought me to the highway straight away to get rid of cold feet.

This morning, I was just staring at my scooter and admiring its presence. I was still anxious to ride it on my own to come down to the town. Then I got a phone call, I had to do some business transaction. I didn't have a choice this time. Rather than wait for the right time or until I feel comfortable, I just had to ride my scooter without thinking too much.

I think the best way to overcome fear is to just go through it. After riding my scooter yesterday for the first time on the highway, I rode it today on my own to the town which was a different story. There were passing trucks, cars, and speeding idiots. It was an unnerving experience. This time, I have to slow down a bit to be comfortable riding in traffic. And of course, I always have to take control of the break and throttle at all times. Riding my scooter will really improve my concentration and help me focus on the present moment. Overall, I am very happy with my riding progress!