I'll tag along to the end of this (least for now) b/c I am another member looking into cycles (as well as large scooters).
My personal situation is that both my wife and i are in a position where two-wheel transport is increasingly appealing, and we've both decided that we want to persue it, her in the form of a highway rated scooter (ie suzuki bergman or similar) and me in either such a scooter or a cruiser/standard of less than 800cc (the Honda Shadow Aero being a good example of what felt comfortable when i sat down on it, and it's ~750cc engine size being the top of what i'm even willing to look at)
My concerns are that i have been having trouble finding decent info on modern scooters like we're interested in and i've gotten some conflicting info Re: the MSF course as offered in texas. anyone got a good link to forum that has a "comprehensive reader/member-ship"?? the one i used to read through has gone teh way of being dominated by sportbikes and NSFW girly pics
add to the above that i am for want of better desciptives a "big guy" 6' tall 54" waist and a big head, and i'm not even sure where to start looking for protective gear. as well as where to have SWMBO look for such gear for herself.
any help is greatly appreciated.