In warm weather riding the Vespa to work is automatic. The only time I don’t is when I need to haul gear or people. In winter I make a quick assessment of road surface and mental state before making a decision. This past Thursday morning everything was aligned for scooter departure.
I chose a longer route to work to allow the battery to get a good charge. I don’t use a battery tender because so far my riding frequency seems to be sufficient. The recent addition of electric gloves has me wondering but so far so good. I suppose if the battery is going to die it will be 50 miles from home at 10º F.
Riding continues to create a hyper-awareness of my surroundings that is difficult to find while driving a car. I probably would not have seen the deer along the road while driving. I’m just cut off from the world by steel and glass. Looking at the deer I realized I don’t consciously watch for deer while riding. I watch for everything. Everything in front and back, left and right. Things come into focus in a continual processing of sensory information.
The ride to work was routine. The weather forecast called for snow showers late in the day but I assumed I would be home before they arrived. At 2:30 PM I saw the first snowflakes falling outside my office window. When I walked to the Vespa at 4:30 PM I found it covered in snow. The roads were still mostly wet with a bit of intermittent greasy slush.
Plans to travel across farm lanes when I realized that snow was accumulating too quickly to comfortably handle the steep grades in a few places. I wandered home on back roads and kept a careful eye on speed and road surface.
The local limestone quarry always looks good in the snow and I couldn’t resist stopping for a picture. The wet snow is surprisingly slick and I had to work a bit to get the scooter back onto the road even with all the gravel under the tires.
Various amounts of snow accumulated as can be seen in the curve in the above photograph. Easily negotiated but a potential disaster for a careless rider traveling too fast for conditions and assuming the road is merely wet.
I arrived home safely, brushed the snow and slush from the Vespa before parking it in the garage, and joined Kim for a cup of hot tea. Watching the snow out the front window warm and snug after just another ride home from work.
I rode to meet my wife for lunch today just a couple of miles from work. 60 degrees, windy and gray and my bare hands were freezing. Drizzle on the way back to work and I felt like I was suffering heroically. In a way I was!
When you write about “just another ride to work” it is a great read. You may think of it as just another ride to work, but we are all living and loving every minuter of it thru your words and your images. Great writing and great photos. We can feel how good that cup of tea must have been after the ride. Thanks…and more..
You are the most hardcore scooter rider I’ve ever seen. Nice post!
conchscooter: At the end of the summer 60 degrees feels arctic even for me. It’s all relative I think and riding at that temperature in rain is heroic!
heinz & frenchie: I’m glad you enjoy the pictures and text I post. When I write it gives me a chance to relive it too!
atlasrider: I’m not sure how hardcore I am but I do enjoy the challenge of winter. Thanks for your kind words.
I bet you enjoyed the ride that much more while sipping hot tea looking out the window at the snowy view. I know I would have.
Have fun,
Bill
The other day, I thought I was going to have to ride through snow…
…It turned out that a truck had just lost most of a load of cotton on the road.
Whoooa Steve,
What an surprising ride to work and then how quickly the weather drops from Spring like condition morning to a Winter snow fall afternoon. As a life-long SoCal scooterist…I must go connect with those back East and appreciate the abrupt climatic changes that all other scooterist must endure. You and your Vespa are total champs in my book in the Vespa/Photographer Chronicles. Of course no great Vespa adventure without an adventurous rider. 🙂 ….If I had a scooter without a back up kick starter – I would carry a portable back up power supply for those long cold scooter excursions just in case my battery fails on a cold day out in the woods.
Thanks for the “Ride”.
bill: You’re right, it is always nice to be home, warm, and relaxed especially after riding in the cold.
lucky: Now that’s one thing I haven’t seen on the road around here. Corn, soybeans, manure, but no cotton.
pvino: I’ve got it in my head that one day the scooter will not start. Perhaps in the cold but if it is anything like my cars it is on a nice warm day. When it happens I have to rely on the kindness of strangers…
Steve, it’s Jan Normandale from RFF, Ijust came to your Blog thru your RFF link. I’m an urban guy and live in Toronto. About 4 years ago I decided that driving my P/U around the downtown where I live was not practical for photography. I purchased a Tomos Arrow moped. It was great but topped out at 45 – 50 kph. This fall I purchased a used Yamaha BW50 a retro ‘jetsons’ looking scooter which can hit 60kph.. I only use this in the city.
http://cmgonline.com/articles/CMG02/bikes/Yamaha/BWS50/index.html
I’m glad you showed up here, I’ll track your blog. Looks like fun. Cheers Jannx
jannx: A scooter is an almost perfect shooting platform for someone traveling light. It would be a pain if I was still using an 8×10 view camera but for the Leica or Mamiya 7 I can get where I need to go fast.
I think I am going to get a hard topcase for the back of the scooter though so I can store things a bit more securely, especially in bad weather.
Nice snow pics Steve. Have you been reading about the guy doing the trans-Canadian hwy? I was thinking there is another record out there just waiting for you. XC winter scootering!
Wonderful pics and commentar Steve. I just soak in your blog…
Hi Steve,
I just wanted to tell you that I totally, absolutely, completely 100% adore your stories. They make me want to hop on my Vespa NOW and start my own ride home from work. “I ride for heightended awareness” is a beautiful thought which I stole from you and which goes through my head often when I’m on the Vespa.
Oh, and the pictures you post… make me first question “Why am I in the Netherlands and not in widescreen America” and next realise that here also, there’s a lot of beautiful scenery, if only I take the time to enjoy it.
So in short: thanks.
Hi Steve,
Hope Santa treated you well. I’ve ridden year-round here in northern New England (NH/VT) the past three years. Old Yankee slogan: “If ya don’t like the weather in New England, wait 15 minutes, it’ll change!”
Just got a Genuine Buddy 50, and it’s challenged me a bit this winter-needs more warm up time than my old QuinJaing Primo Seville, but I’ve kept it perpendicular to the road surface-at least on paved roads. The dirt road in winter poses more challenge. Due to the economy, local city Public Works policy is now only to plow during regular work hours-as opposed to during storms-to minimize overtime. Have to use a bit more caution, but most paved road turns are banked in this part of the country. Happy New Year.
Bob: I’ve been lucky with Santa over the years. I hope he treated you well too.
Sounds as if your New England winter riding is a real challenge. I have started thinking a 50cc scooter, something like the Honda Ruckus, might be a workable solution in really bad weather. Perhaps more manageable. And then another alternative suggested by my aging bones is to just curl up and home and wait for spring….
Be careful out there!