Sal Burgess. (Photos courtesy Burgess)
A Fan moped shop has closed but plans to come back soon with more horsepower.
RVA Mopeds closed last month at 1529 W. Cary St. in the Fan, as owner Sal Burgess rides off to the Sunshine State to study for about a year at the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Orlando, Florida. He said he’ll then return to his native Richmond to reopen RVA Mopeds, and add motorcycles sales and service to the shop’s offerings.
Burgess opened the shop about two years ago, specializing in repairing and selling vintage mopeds mostly from the 1970s and ’80s.
RVA Mopeds closed last month at 1529 W. Cary St. Unit. 12. (Mike Platania)
He first got into the moped scene in 2010. He was living with his uncle in Roanoke and attending New River Community College, and was frustrated with the city’s bus line as a way to get around.
“(My uncle) was like, ‘Why don’t you get a moped?’ and I was like, ‘I don’t like the way those scooters’ look and sound. I’ll look like a dork,’” Burgess said, laughing.
He came around on the idea and bought a used Tomos Sprint, riding it until it died at 14,000 miles — a long life for a moped. Burgess moved back to Richmond in 2011 and dove into the local moped scene.
“I eventually linked up with some guys that took me under their wing and dealt with my annoying questions. They helped me rebuild (the Tomos) completely,” he said.
For the next few years, he worked on his friends’ mopeds as a side gig, while also adding to his personal moped fleet, which at one point totaled 17. Eventually, Burgess wanted to lease a garage to work on them all, but part of the lease agreement was that he needed to open an LLC. His business was born.
One of the mopeds Burgess built.
“It was just me. I’d buy, sell, build and service them. It wasn’t a storefront, it was a shop. You’d roll into a gravel driveway and there’s a bay door wide open and me with a wrench,” Burgess said.
“I think a lot of people don’t understand the feeling you get when you take something that’s 30 years old and only meant to go 25 miles per hour, and you almost double that speed. …They’re fun and easy to work on, parking is a breeze and they’re pretty cheap to make go fast. It keeps you smiling.”
He said RVA Mopeds’ main clients were people with driver’s license issues and VCU students. Most of the mopeds he sold went for about $1,000 or less.
Training to boost revenue
His wish to get trained on motorcycles is driven by a desire to drum up more revenue in the wintry, nonriding months, when moped work slows down at the shop.
His Florida training will make Burgess a certified Honda and BMW motorcycle mechanic.
Burgess working on a moped.
“I also want to have showroom floors with not only my builds but also brand new bikes from Honda,” Burgess said of his plans for his eventual return to Richmond. “I’d like to look into taking out a business loan and franchise out a dealership.”
Once back, he said he’ll “absolutely” keep the RVA Moped name.
His personal fleet of mopeds is down to three, but he said he’ll always love the old bikes.
“I’ll always be a moped person,” he said. “A lot of people are like, ‘Well, why don’t you get a real bike?’ I’m like, ‘These are real bikes.’”
Sal Burgess. (Photos courtesy Burgess)
A Fan moped shop has closed but plans to come back soon with more horsepower.
RVA Mopeds closed last month at 1529 W. Cary St. in the Fan, as owner Sal Burgess rides off to the Sunshine State to study for about a year at the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Orlando, Florida. He said he’ll then return to his native Richmond to reopen RVA Mopeds, and add motorcycles sales and service to the shop’s offerings.
Burgess opened the shop about two years ago, specializing in repairing and selling vintage mopeds mostly from the 1970s and ’80s.
RVA Mopeds closed last month at 1529 W. Cary St. Unit. 12. (Mike Platania)
He first got into the moped scene in 2010. He was living with his uncle in Roanoke and attending New River Community College, and was frustrated with the city’s bus line as a way to get around.
“(My uncle) was like, ‘Why don’t you get a moped?’ and I was like, ‘I don’t like the way those scooters’ look and sound. I’ll look like a dork,’” Burgess said, laughing.
He came around on the idea and bought a used Tomos Sprint, riding it until it died at 14,000 miles — a long life for a moped. Burgess moved back to Richmond in 2011 and dove into the local moped scene.
“I eventually linked up with some guys that took me under their wing and dealt with my annoying questions. They helped me rebuild (the Tomos) completely,” he said.
For the next few years, he worked on his friends’ mopeds as a side gig, while also adding to his personal moped fleet, which at one point totaled 17. Eventually, Burgess wanted to lease a garage to work on them all, but part of the lease agreement was that he needed to open an LLC. His business was born.
One of the mopeds Burgess built.
“It was just me. I’d buy, sell, build and service them. It wasn’t a storefront, it was a shop. You’d roll into a gravel driveway and there’s a bay door wide open and me with a wrench,” Burgess said.
“I think a lot of people don’t understand the feeling you get when you take something that’s 30 years old and only meant to go 25 miles per hour, and you almost double that speed. …They’re fun and easy to work on, parking is a breeze and they’re pretty cheap to make go fast. It keeps you smiling.”
He said RVA Mopeds’ main clients were people with driver’s license issues and VCU students. Most of the mopeds he sold went for about $1,000 or less.
Training to boost revenue
His wish to get trained on motorcycles is driven by a desire to drum up more revenue in the wintry, nonriding months, when moped work slows down at the shop.
His Florida training will make Burgess a certified Honda and BMW motorcycle mechanic.
Burgess working on a moped.
“I also want to have showroom floors with not only my builds but also brand new bikes from Honda,” Burgess said of his plans for his eventual return to Richmond. “I’d like to look into taking out a business loan and franchise out a dealership.”
Once back, he said he’ll “absolutely” keep the RVA Moped name.
His personal fleet of mopeds is down to three, but he said he’ll always love the old bikes.
“I’ll always be a moped person,” he said. “A lot of people are like, ‘Well, why don’t you get a real bike?’ I’m like, ‘These are real bikes.’”