Hamilton Journal-News

A caravan of four scooters was traveling north on Far Hills Avenue early on Saturday morning, June 16. Leading the way was a burgundy Vespa, ridden by "scooter guru" Jim Stoffregen with his son, Trevor, in the sidecar.

I caught up to the Stoffregen family, and about 25 other scooters enthusiasts later at the Second Street Public Market in Dayton during the Gem City Rollers Scooter Show on Saturday. The Stoffregens had ridden from Lytle to Dayton.

"I've been riding these things off and on for about 45 years," the 53-year-old Stoffregen said, "and for the past eight years, I've been making a living restoring, repairing and selling them. I'm really caught up in the vintage scooters; they are just so much fun."

Most of the others at the show had the same passion for the little two-wheelers, and they gather on the third Saturday of every month for a ride, organized by the local scooter club, the Gem City Rollers.

"We just go out for a ride in the country,

50 miles or so, and then get something to eat," said club member Ann Armstrong.

A longtime "back-seat rider" on her husband's Triumph motorcycle, Armstrong bought a Vespa in 2002 and has been in the saddle ever since.

"I ride with the Rollers on the weekend, I ride my scooter from Enon to Dayton to work, and I've ridden 300 miles with a Triumph club on one of their day trips. That was a long one," she noted.

The Gem City Rollers has members from throughout southwestern Ohio and even Indiana and Kentucky.

"Our oldest member is 82 years old, and he occasionally rides from Walton, Ky., to Dayton for a gathering. We give him the Iron Ass Award for that," said member Don Morter.

The club was founded in 2000 to promote the heritage of the famous Vespa, but the group welcomes every make and model of scooter and even motorcycles.

"We don't have any pretensions — if it has less than four wheels, come on and ride with us," Morter said.

Armstrong said the group will occasionally cruise to a motorcycle cruise-in.

"We go to the bike nights, and the motorcycle people sort of look down their nose at us. But I've left a few of them at the light before, and then that Harley doesn't seem so cool when my little Vespa is out in front for a minute," she chuckled.

For more about the Gem City Rollers, go online to www.gemcityrollers.com.

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Dayton Daily News, 1611 S. Main St., Dayton OH 45409 or via e-mail at arollins@coxohio.com.

Include your name, daytime telephone number and a photo of your vehicle.

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