Step 1 - Purchase Scooter (Finished)

So I got my new scooter today.

Terrible weather conditions for riding. Rode it for a total of about 75 seconds before I made up my mind. Might sound a little hasty, but I've been researching all about these scooters for about a week now. I kinda knew I wanted it before I even rode it. I mean, come on. This scooter sells for about $1,600 brand new. $400 and a cheap rifle AND free delivery...? Hell yeah I'm going to jump on that deal. This thing is virtually brand new. We're talking less than 300 miles (or maybe its kilometers...) on the odometer!

If you can't tell, I'm very happy about the deal.

But it's far from being ready. As much as I hate to fix something that isn't broken, there is no way I'm going to ride across the country on a stock scooter. Here's my plan.

1. First things first. This may sound like cheating, but I see it as being more than necessary. If I'm going up mountains, and if I'm going to be using my inverter to power my electronics, like this computer and my very necessary mp3 player, then I'm going to need the extra power. There are a few engine upgrades I'm looking at. This is going to be my first choice, as it is the largest power and speed increase for the dollar. $160 70cc cylinder and piston w/gaskets kit. That will give me about 8 hp, which is about double the 50cc's current horsepower. That should put me at about 50mph cruising speed.
2. Secondly, I will need to add a windshield. I'm doing my ride in the winter months. I don't care how south I go, there are going to be some cold nights and mornings out there. Windshield to block wind and rain. A must have.
3. Thirdly, depending on how well the scooter preforms after I install the piston and cylinder upgrade, I will be changing out the final gear ratio. This will put me at about 60mph cruising speed. (Not uphill, of course). That way, it won't take me a month to get there. I will also be able to squeeze out onto a highway or two; if I absolutely must. Not to mention the thrill of going faster than 35 mph. Yes, this will affect my MPG, bringing it down from the stock MPG of about 100-120 around to about 70-80 MPG. Might seem like a big difference, but I'm still doing loads better than my car. My car is actually good on gas, and I can only squeeze out maybe 35 mpg. So I'm not too worried about it.
4. Then it's just down to packing, getting physically and mentally ready, and selling the rest of my things. I think I'm ready. No way to really know until I test myself, which I feel I will be testing myself more than I've ever done, maybe. We'll see.