scooters

Kathy- I know you aren't one of the people we're complaining about. You can roll that scooter anywhere you like, so long as you miss my toes.

I do get very nervous when I see scooters on the street. Once you've seen one pop out into traffic without looking you'll never look at them the same. I get the same feeling about scooters as I had about kids when I lived across from the school. If I have to drive when the kids are on their way home from school I CRAWL because they forget the cars are going by a few feet away. At least once a year a child would walk out, or be pushed by teasing friends and land right in front of me. I'd feel like slime if I ever hit someone, including those scooter crazy seniors.

No, there are no competency tests or any kind of licensing. Not in my state, anyway. Round here, you get a DUI and lose your license? Get a scooter. Years ago I was working at McDonalds and a lady came through the drive thru on a riding lawn mower. You would see her driving that same lawn mower up the highway. She had lost her license so she drove her lawn mower. It was actually pretty comical.

Are they worth more points than nailing a pedestrian?

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Okay, people, the OP is talking about scooter like the little rascal, not mopeds.

For the few of you who are confused.

a big advantage of a scooter is how others perceive you. in my wheelchair, people talk to my husband almost exclusively or ask him something wonderful like, "would she like a balloon?":mad: or in an upscale

restaurant, "can she read enough to order from the children's menu?":devil: (yes, she can...)

in my scooter, people talk to me and not only treat me like a human being but like an adult!!

when strangers in walmart treat me as though i were either six or dd, that's when i'm tempted

to run into them...hard! i don't, but it is tempting!! and please don't deliberately ram me with your shopping cart as you tell me "to get the....out of your way.

kathy

shar pei mom:paw::paw:

i'm so with you - i've had people in stores assume i'm dd with the iq of a five-year-old because i'm walking on forearm crutches (the best one was when a sales associate asked the person shopping with me in a department store whether there was any chance my behavior could "become unsafe for other customers" like i was some sort of ticking time bomb. i suppose after that i was, given how infuriated i was by the remark!). i always figured the problem would be even worse while in a scooter.

safety is an issue for scooter-users and those around them, and i strongly believe we as a country are going to have to formalize competency regulations through legislation as the population ages. but kathy's perfectly right - no one should assume or make generalizations to the effect of those who ride scooters being fat and/or lazy jerks or oblivious, disaster-causing elderly folks. there are a lot of reasons one might need a scooter in a store or out in public areas and many of them aren't necessarily obvious. there are several people in my neighborhood who use scooters properly and it's sad to see them given a bad name by those who knowingly misuse scooters or are simply incapable of adhering to proper safety measures.

i can only walk about 200 feet before i get really really pooped. i use a cane in fall, spring and summer and a hemi walker in winter. around the house, i just walk and hold on prn. for long hauls, i have a wheelchair and an electric cart. it's very similar to the ones in walmarts, except it is bright red.

we went into a medical supply house, i tried several, picked a style and the color. we paid and they delivered it. the man gave my husband and me a quick refresher on how it worked and that was it. we had already had a heavy duty outlet installed and it lives outside year round,covered in bad weather.

it gives me back my freedom (to a degree) and makes travel easier. i just go out the back door, unplug it, and off i go! usually to the library. i ride on the sidewalk, as i was requested to do. i obey the very same traffic laws i did when i drove. if you don't think "people like me" should be driving anything, get the ^&*% outta my way, because i am as safe a scooter driver whether i'm in my fire engine red scooter or the generic walmart scooter.

kathy

shar pei mom:paw::paw:

i am sure they are a big help to a lot of people. i am glad you have yours. however, just think of some of the people you know that are very aged and have cognitive problems. would you really want to see them on the highway? my aunt almost claimed her first victim, me when i nearly had a heart attack when i saw her out there.