Scooter in the Sticks

Exploring life on a Vespa Scooter and Royal Enfield Himalayan motorcycle.

Life with Scooters and Motorcycles

A Vespa Video Christmas Card

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A Holiday Tradition

I try to produce some visual riding expression of the holiday season and take a moment to thank everyone who reads, watches, and otherwise connects with the things I post. I was a bit worried this year because the lack of snow removes a helpful element to show the spirit of the season here in Central Pennsylvania.

An unexpected few hours of snow at 33F last week provided the window of opportunity to shoot some video for this year’s Vespa video Christmas greeting.

Thank you everyone for the support you give. I wish you and your families and friends the best for the holidays and the coming New Year.

steve williams

The Gift of Riding

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Two Honda Trail 125 motorcycles parked on a gravel lot by an old one-room school.
Paul Ruby and I at the start of a ride to breakfast.

Realizations of the Obvious

I can get lost inside myself. Preoccupied with meaningless or sometimes even harmful or pointless preoccupations that cut me off from the living world. From friends and family. From the things that give meaning to life.

Like going for a ride to breakfast with my friend Paul.

There are reminders everywhere of the certainty that it will all end. When I notice them life becomes suddenly richer. The quality of light in the morning. The look and feel of the Honda Trail bike I’m riding. The cool air on my face.

But how easily I forget.

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Chasing the Flurries: A Small Vespa Adventure

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A 2006 Vespa GTS 250 scooter parked in a field as it begins to snow.
The last stop for a photograph before returning home.

Wading Through Weather Decisions

Deciding to ride continuously throughout the year requires some honest looks in the mirror. It’s easy for me to equate what I was able to do 15 years ago with how I am today. And when today means I’m 70 years old I had best be rigorously honest about my riding abilities and limits. I’ve told myself that there will be no more riding in snow and probably no riding below the freezing mark. Seems a reasonable boundary to embrace. So how is it that I found myself riding through a series of snow squalls with the thermometer hovering at 32F? Was it a bad series of assessments based on the weather forecast or did I let my pride and ego get the better of me?

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Gratitude and Giving Thanks

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2006 Vespa GTS 250 scooter on a rural road.
Life along a familiar road.

Riding Through the Seasons of Life

Riding has changed my life. I still remember the joy felt when I began riding my first scooter. A sudden thrill, a soaring feeling that I was alive and free from whatever weight I carried as a responsible adult. The adventures began as daily commutes to work. Seven miles on the direct route. Fifty or more as a meandering ride through the central Pennsylvania countryside when I left before sunrise so I could still arrive at work at an acceptable time.

As I sit here writing I’m grateful that I made a decision to buy that scooter, to brave the attendant risks that collected in my head from a lifetime of motorcycle naysayers, and just forged ahead into the unknown.

Years and thousands of miles of riding adventures and daily commuting gave way to the next season of my riding life.

2006 Vespa GTS 250 on a rural road.
My Vespa in a perfect world.

Retirement Riding

Two days ago I was riding the Vespa through the valley. In part to drive the moisture from the oil and give the battery a charge as part of my “winterization” process, but also to recharge my own batteries. A ride still works its magic on me.

I thought I would ride more once I retired but it turns out daily commuting is a tough act to follow. Having a job and required to be there in person forced me out onto the road. And I loved it. Every day I rode, summer or winter, rain or shine, snow or sleet. And I am endlessly grateful for how that shaped my mind, body and spirit.

I have so much for which to be grateful from finding myself living in an area that cries out for me to explore on two wheels the the physical and financial ability to continue riding into old again.

On this national day of Thanksgiving I want to remember how grateful I am to be where I am, have the life that I do, and am able to walk (or ride) this earth.

Best wishes to each of you for a fine Thanksgiving holiday. I hope you find yourselves in a good place with a bright view of life.

Can I Love Winter Again?

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Two Belgian Sheepdogs sitting outdoors in a light snowfall.
Lily and Aiden in the first snow of the season.

Facing the Cold

The first snow has arrived.  Light, decorative, a dusting that beckons of winter to come. The past month has offered unseasonably warm weather.  Riding weather for even the cold-adverse riders.  Yet the roads are largely empty of scooters and motorcycles save for those souls committed to continued riding.  Some I suspect have something to prove (except Dan).  Others may be victims of economics that offer no alternative choice of vehicles.

I tell myself I’m done with cold weather riding.  The lure of a warm home and soft chair become a subtle yet powerful addiction.  I surely would find myself powerless if not for two dogs who demand adventure regardless of how I feel or the weather outside.  So slowly I’m becoming more acclimated to the cold.  Day by day, walk by walk I notice a growing strength of resistance to the lowering temperatures.  And from that comes a willingness to leave the warmth of home and venture out on a scooter or motorcycle.

Even in the snow.

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