Can A Scoot Be a Workout?

As I was getting dressed for a Sunday morning scoot for coffee with friend Barbara, Earl asked casually, "How many layers of clothes do you put on when it's cold?"  I didn't have an immediate answer, mostly because it varies based on body geography and preparation order.  How do I get my Nanook of the North look?  Well, certainly pee first, allow 30 minutes, then start.

Geography: Upper body, 4 layers 
Sports top for warmth, comfort, and to hold my boobs off my waist.  Old ski turtleneck for warmth and comfort.  Zipper jacket for warmth and comfort, but it's a light layer and doesn't add much to my increasing bulk.  I have to leave the final layer for last, because it gets hard to bend over to put on the other layers.

Geography: Lower body, 2 layers 
Old running tights for warmth and comfort. Padded snow pants have to go on before...

Geography: Feet, 2 layers 
Socks and UGG boots on as simultaneously as possible to prevent slipping on the floor.  I have to remember to put on the snow pants first or they won't fit over the big UGG boots.
Now I can go back to the upper body, adding my final indoor layer–an old waterproof, lined shell with a front marsupial-like pouch (critical to hold my big glasses and IPhone)
I'm ready to move outside, but have an urge to say, "Fee, fi, fo, fum"... as I move through the house.  The snow pants make their own swishy sound.  Suffice it to say, between the UGG boots and snow pants, you can hear me coming.

Preparation Order is even more important in the garage where I start my mental checklist.
Unplug the scooter-first from wall, then the battery, to avoid an alarm from the scooter and an electrical shock.  Sit down, transfer wallet, ID, and money to scooter bag, but don't zip it closed (holds the garage door opener), face forward, don't rotate the seat to avoid dislodging the safety flag, power on.

Geography: Head, 2 layers
Balaclava for warmth and comfort.  It covers my ears, head, neck, chin.  I can pull it up over my mouth, but if it creeps up to my nose, it'll fog up my glasses, so positioning is important.  If I cover my mouth, speech (not a strong suit) becomes near impossible.  I can pull it down over my forehead, but if it slides, I'm blind (not a good thing for navigation).

While I still have bare hands and passable manual dexterity, I turn on the helmet flasher, put on the helmet, leave the garage by navigating between two cars with side view mirrors, and close the garage door behind me (providing I haven't scratched paint or taken anything out).
Once outside, put on the glasses (not before), turn on the IPhone music, adjust the volume, put it back in the front pouch, close the velcro before proceeding to the final layers.

Good thing acceleration is easy 

Stop by letting go

Geography: Hands, 2 layers 
I bought some hi-tech Touch gloves (they snag on any velcro) so I can answer my phone without taking all hand covering off in the cold.  Turn the scooter speed from turtle(slowest) to rabbit(fastest), check that all my lights are on, the safety flag isn't dragging on the driveway, close the garage door and now zip the scooter bag closed.  Finally, put on the old ski gloves that barely fit in the steering mechanism.  It's starting to feel like a moonshot.  And if it's really cold, I add handwarmers.

Oh geez!  Good look.

So, given the time and effort, is it worth it?  First, and this may come as a shock–time is not a problem.  Second, Yes–yes it is.

Into the sunset...

Now, if I maintain all my mental marbles, I can keep the order straight.  As with any task at this age, scooting is not high level functioning; repetition, repetition, repetition is what really works.  If it rains unexpectedly?  I wouldn't even feel it, except maybe on the end of my nose, the only thing that shows.