By Dustin J. Seibert
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Charles Turner works at a gas station, so he knows how much money he can save by not driving his car to work.

Charles Turner, 48, of Clifton rides to work on his GoPed scooter Tuesday afternoon, June 8, 2004. Charles works at the Marathon Station on Clifton Ave. and rides his GoPed to work each day. (Steven M. Herppich/ The Cincinnati Enquirer)

He opts for his Go-Ped Sport, a scooter resembling a skateboard with handlebars and an engine strapped to the back. It gets 100 miles to the gallon using a small gas-oil-fueled engine, which suits his wallet just fine during a summer of record-setting fuel prices.

"The way gas is, you should see a lot of people on them," he says.

Turner, 48, is one of many who are leaving their car keys at home and hopping aboard motorized scooters this summer, despite laws barring the gas- or electric-powered vehicles from some local roadways.

The scooters, ranging from $300-$800, and targeted mainly to children and teens, aren't necessarily giving bicycles a run for their money, but they have the "x-factor," an engine that does all the work.

"Every time you put a motor on something, kids are gonna want to ride it," says Lenny Vainberg, vice president of Orange County, Calif.-based scooter manufacturer eBladez.

Joshua McCord, 12, of Florence, says he gave away his bike a while ago and only rides his Go-Ped. "No one on a bicycle can keep up with my Go-Ped," says McCord. His dad, Lawrence, says that he bought his son a Go-Ped because he wished they were around when he was a tyke. "It starts with us parents," he says. "It's the kid coming out in us."

Despite the booming popularity of the noisy machines, Ohio is among states with laws that prohibit the use of certain motorized scooters on roadways. In order to be street legal in Ohio, scooters must fit motorcycle guidelines, which include operators 16 or older with a license, as well as all of the following elements: turn signals, seat, brake lights, rear-view mirrors and horn. While some of the new scooters have seats, most lack all the elements to be legally operated on city streets in Ohio.

In Kentucky, however, scooter engines falling under 50 cubic centimeters are subject to the same regulations as bicycles and can be operated in the streets. (Most "Go-Ped" style scooter engines are about 20 cubic centimeters.)

"We haven't had many problems with them," says Capt. Phil Liles, Newport Police Patrol Division commander.

While the scooters are not legal on Ohio's streets, neither state's laws address the use of motorized scooters on sidewalks, and it's unclear what will happen when their increased popularity results in a need for further regulation.

"If you have a 10-year-old riding down the sidewalk, what are you going to cite them for?" says Liles, adding that police will only ticket a rider if the rider is destroying property or causing injury. "It'll eventually have to be addressed."

Sgt. Rick Zwayer of the Ohio Highway Patrol says that first-time offenders cited for riding the scooters on streets can be fined a maximum of $100, but there is a learning curve for officers in deciding how to deal with the vehicles.

While there are dozens of models on the market, the original design for the modern wave of motorized scooters came from Steve Patmont in the San Francisco area in 1985, when he formed Patmont Motor Werks, the company that produces the Go-Ped brand.

Tim Patmont, company chairperson and Steve's son, notes that sales of the machines rose steadily until plateauing in 2000 when he says other brands, including Mosquito and eBladez tweaked his father's design and flooded department stores and the Internet.

Patmont says the privately held company has never advertised, choosing to remain "underground." He estimates it has sold more than a million Go-Peds through word-of-mouth.

No matter how police decide to deal with this form of two-wheeled transport, gas station attendant Turner isn't concerned with the cops disrupting his trip to work.

E-mail dseibert@enquirer.com

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