Exploring life on a Vespa, Royal Enfield Himalayan, Honda Trail 125, and a Kawasaki W650
Just a mile or so to the right in this photograph is a road I’ve ridden or driven a hundred times or more. Somehow I never realized another world existed just over the hill. Sitting in my living room the previous evening with my good friend Google Maps I discovered some roads I didn’t know existed. It’s a little unsettling to discover new places just 35 miles from home. A fine day to do a little exploring on the Himalayan.
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In my brief and seldom views into the social and marketing realms of the Moto-world I’m always shocked at how overwhelming the size, weight, power, and tech can be. It feels a lot like going into a hotel and turning on the TV and feeling it’s all commercials and pitches with very little content.
A 150cc Vespa scooter seems a lost and forgotten machine amidst the din of macho claims and excitement of real motorcycles. Scooters are dismissed for a variety of reasons. “Real” riders dismiss them for lack of everything. Some find them embarrassing, common I think in a world of giant SUVs and trucks where size reinforces myriad weaknesses in self image. And probably the most egregious view of scooters is their inability to deliver on the road. Simply put, they’re toys for the beach and not much more.
Taking my ET4 for a ride always reminds me of how capable it is, and how grateful I am to ride one. For a week our hot water heater was dead and awaiting replacement. That first hot shower, something easily taken for granted, was suddenly an amazing experience. How grateful I am to have a hot shower. It’s the same with my 150cc Vespa scooter.
Out on a backroad on my way to breakfast and taking in the beautiful central Pennsylvania landscape in which I get to ride. I’m a lucky man.
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After several years of thinking about the wisdom of having a reliable way to reach out in case of emergency I made a purchase. The question turned over in my head for a couple years is do I really need a Garmin InReach Mini 2? While I don’t normally ride alone in places without cell coverage it happens often enough that I kept thinking about the risk I was taking should something bad happen. A crash that left me unable to ride, another heart attack, running off the road and down an embankment where it might be a long time before anyone found me.
There are plenty of reasons why I should have one. Those reasons are piled against the cost of the unit and the ongoing monthly subscription expense. Not long ago I talked with my motorcycle riding cardiologist about the risks and he felt it was a good idea. Not so much for heart attacks but for an unfortunate incident that would take me off the trail and into a place no one would find me.
Still, the cost seemed excessive. And some lingering butch attitude made me seem weak if I bought one. After some honest reflection I determined two things. First, the cost isn’t something that I have to factor into my decision. All I had to think about is whether I wished I had one if I found myself somewhere without cell coverage, alone, injured, or with the bike broken down.
The answer was yes.
Immediately after making the purchase and subscribing to the $8 a month ENABLE plan it felt right.
Now on to the next safety item — a Helite Turtle 2 Airbag…
At the last Pennsylvania Safety Inspection for my 2022 Royal Enfield Himalayan motorcycle the mechanic pointed out cracks in the rubber and let me know that next year they wouldn’t pass. Two trains of thought immediately ignited. The first, driven by a sometimes irrational frugality, urged me to keep riding and wear them out despite already recognizing the rear tire no longer had the bite it once did. Especially on muddy roads.
The second train of thought led immediately to searching for the perfect replacement tires. An exercise that can easily become obsessive as I race from site to site, review to review, in the mistaken belief that there is a perfect tire. The whole time blind to the fact that my barely amateur wanderings on the bike mean that pretty much any tire with suffice. But the belief that there is a singular best choice can really dog my thinking.
Eventually two Dunlop Trailmax Mission tires arrived at my door.
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Over and over I’m reminded that there’s little profit in holding too tightly to my plans. It was demonstrated again as I prepared for a long ride with my friend Paul and proceeded to rip the tire valve from a rear tire of my W650 before even leaving the driveway. Hugely frustrating because I had planned so carefully, visualized the map, and imagined how it would feel to be on the road with a friend on a leisurely ride to breakfast.
The frustration was strong and dominating my thoughts which in turn robs me of some of the riding experience as I replay events in my head, continually kicking myself for the stupid mistakes I made leading up to having to replace the W650 with my Himalayan. Gratitude was nowhere to be found despite the gift of having an alternative machine to ride.
Frustration was ruling the moment and blinding me to anything good or positive. A sad way to leave on a ride.
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