I’m a 140 Pound Italian!

When I first started riding, like most of us, I had a 50cc Scooter. Also like most I souped it up with all kinds of modifications and kits. My Scooter mechanic at the time said to me “You know these things were made for 140 Pound Italians”. He then added… ” if you want to go any faster you are going to have get a bigger bike or loose weight”. At the time I was around 200 pounds and I was pushing that darn Scooter to 60mph. I also rebuilt the motor 3 times and blew it up twice. That was in 1995. I lost a lot of weight since then due to Diabetes, Heart Attacks & Starvation. I have been about 180lbs for the past 20 years.

Fast forward to 2023. This year’s major health crisis (Double Bypass & a Diabetes Crash) had me loose even more weight. I came out of the Hospital a 140 pound Italian! I could not wait to get back on my Scooter! I should also mention that I also have a bigger 150cc Scooter now. Wow, what a performance upgrade that was! I could have saved lots of money on engines & parts. My Vespa really leaps out of my hands now, off the line. I also set a new top speed record this weekend. 68 MPH as verified by GPS. I could have hit 70 but I ran out of room. My previous record was 64 MPH at full throttle.

The sudden weight loss was a sign of the bigger health issue that I am dealing with now. A major diet & lifestyle change is going on. I am also on many medications to deal with the Diabetes and Heart issues. It is working. The operation took a lot out of me. Even though a lot of Scary things have been going on their is always something positive to find. If going faster on my Scooter is a side affect of my health issues, I for one am not going to complain.

Scoot On… Marbles Mahoney

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