On a typical Saturday, Pat Donahoe is up around 8 a.m., and outside working on his house or his lawn by nine. After painting siding or mowing the grass, it is not uncommon to spot Pat putting down Lincoln Avenue on one of his three scooters. His 6-foot frame dwarfs his 1947 Doodle Bug, but that doesn't stop him from kick-starting the pride of his three-scooter fleet, which also includes 1979 and 2001 Vespas.
While growing up in Prestonsburg, Ky., Pat's parents Jim and Mable Donahoe owned a Western Auto dealership that sold scooters identical to Pat's Doodle Bug. Still, his parents didn't want him to have one so, of course, "the desire was greater (to get one)," he said.
By age 12 he and his brother had a scooter to share, but surprisingly, it wasn't until he reached his fifties that Pat really embraced scooters, starting with a 1978 Vespa purchased for his son. Now Pat owns the Doodle Bug, a bright red 2001 Vespa, and even a motorcycle, but it's his gray 1979 Vespa scooter that is the workhorse of his two-wheeled transportation options. It has logged 16,000 miles while serving as Pat's main transportation on his two-mile commute to work at the University of Kentucky Medical Center where he is part of the physical plant design team.
"They're just great fun," Pat said of his scooters.
Right after World War II, scooters were more readily available than cars. Nowadays, our society is very car-focused, but Pat points out some of the advantages scooters offer; they can get between 60 and 80 miles per gallon of gas, they maneuver and park easily, and according to Pat, you get a grew view of the scenery.
"We've just got such beautiful roads around here. Some people say you see more than on motorcycles," he said.
Although you can only ride one scooter at a time, it is not uncommon for scooter enthusiasts to own multiples. Nod Jennings owns Fayette Moped and Lawnmower Repair on Bolivar Avenue and figures he's come to know most scooters and scooter owners in Lexington.
"It's kind of like classic cars," he said. "Most collectors have more than one because you have different types. Myself, even though I have three Cushmans (a Cushman Eagle, Trailster, and Highlander), they look totally different and people like to collect."
Lucian Dearborn, who estimated he had as many as seven scooters at one point, said they seemed to find him. "It seemed like every time I would turn around I would find one sitting in a chicken coop or find one that needed to be salvaged. Luckily I was the guy with the garage."
Many of the scooters sought out by collectors were built between the 1940s and '60s. Vespa began production in 1947, and Cushmans were built in Nebraska from 1936-65. Lambrettas, the brand preferred by Lucian, were made in Italy from 1947-71. Scooters were used in cities, on military bases, and were much more fuel-efficient than cars at a time when gas was at a premium.
Both Nod and Lucian said the Internet has been a great help to scooter aficionados seeking parts for their classic rides. However, Lucian said it takes more than that. "For people interested in getting into the hobby, they require either a good mechanic or to be somewhat mechanically inclined because they tend to require a lot of tinkering."
Fortunately, Pat Donahoe fits both criteria. He is apt to do some work himself, but has also befriended Phil Farris, a collector of Cushmans, who did a lot of the heavy lifting in the restoration of Pat's Doodle Bug. When Pat found it at a swap meet in Indiana he described it as "a bucket of rust." With Farris' mechanical, painting, and restorative help, it now looks brand new, right down to the Western Auto emblem on the front.
Nod estimated there are 25-30 scooter collectors in Lexington but to his knowledge, only one Doodle Bug. "It's like a Cushman (in that) they haven't made them in years and you don't see many of them around here," he said. "They're unique."
So are scooter enthusiasts. These are folks who don't seem to take things too seriously. Lucian Dearborn recounted a holiday when he and some friends "got a bunch of [scooters] fired up and jumped in right behind the mayor's car in the St. Patrick's Day parade." The unscheduled entry exited quickly upon reaching the viewing stand.
Nod Jennings said scooters are just one indicator of man's second childhood. "Like the Bible says, 'once a man, twice a child.' Once we raise our children, we get toys. A man who has no toys, has no fun."
Pat Donahoe has both toys and fun. He reentered the scooter world when his son, Brennan, was in his early '20s. Now they often travel together to rallies or simply on short weekend road trips.
"There's hardly anything I enjoy more than to get together with my son (and sometimes his wife, Annette) and several friends on their scooters and go on rides on the beautiful roads in this area. We cross the ferry, ride along the river and streams and the horse farms. It's not unusual to do over 100 miles."