Q: Neat scooter. Is it for everyday use or just for fun?

A: I go around close to home. If it’s running really well and I have some confidence in it, I actually go clear across town, clear over to the Federal and Alameda area. I’ve taken it down to DTC, but that’s when it started to really run bad and it was a bad experience for me. Downtown is great because nobody drives too fast. That’s the thing I stay away from, fast traffic.

Q: So you really wouldn’t ride out onto the open highway with it?

A: <laughs> I don’t go on the freeway with it, no.

Q: Where did you get it?

A: I bought it down here at 15th Street. I think it’s called Pacific Pawn. They were actually selling them brand new for $800, so it wasn’t real expensive. I actually originally bought it for my oldest son to get around. He lost his license promptly and so I gladly accepted it back.

Q: Were you reluctant to give it to your son in the first place?

A: Not really. He got in trouble a lot with some speeding with cars and it’s kind of tough to speed with this.

Q: Do you think $800 is a good value for what you’ve gotten out of it?

A: I think it was, oh yeah, for what I’ve gotten out of it. It saves me money constantly because it gets awesome gas mileage.

Q: What kind of mileage do you get?

A: Generally around 60 or 70 miles per gallon, depending on how good it’s running. Once it’s running real good, it has better pick up, I don’t have to use as much gas to get it going. As long as I keep the tires well inflated, that helps, really not only with the power, but its efficiency.

Q: How often do you fill it up?

A: Every week and a half, or two weeks, I usually put about $2 in it. I usually can’t put a whole gallon in it at a time. I put in $2 to $2.50 in it at a time. That’s probably my favorite thing about this, that fact that I can go anywhere and it almost costs nothing to get there.

Q: OK, now for our quirky question: If your scooter had a human emotion, what would it be?

A: I think a little bit mischievous. I kind of had this feeling that people get a little impatient because it’s not as fast as cars can go. Even when I’m going the speed limit, people race around me and they’re probably going 10 miles an hour over the speed limit, as they do.

Q: Finally, I have to ask, how do you manage to keep yourself visible in the sea of SUVs, school buses and city buses driving around Denver?

A: I just stay really aware and try to get eye contact with people if I’m at a stop sign. I avoid getting in a hurry with it. I’ve got to just get there when I get there. It’s really a dangerous vehicle to be in a hurry because a lot of times you don’t think as much about safety when you’re trying to get somewhere fast. That’s probably good advice for anybody, even in a car.