Last Sunday morning arrived cool and foggy, the kind of day I relish as photographer and rider. The falling leaves signal a change in days, a shortness of light and warmth and the arrival of the official Vespa riding season.
Just down the street I pull over to ponder the ride. The painted white arrows echo the conversation in my head, the uncertainty of which direction I should go. Eventually I decide to ride directly to my Sunday morning meeting with Gordon to talk photography and drink tea. But until I get there, I savor the ride, no matter how ordinary or short.
Scooter riders become familiar with the liberal interpretation of parking rules, especially when applied to spaces beyond the reach of the four-wheeled world. I’m not sure if it’s legal to park here but so far I’ve not attracted the interest of the local parking constabulary. It is after all, a moped.
Vespa riders are badasses. We sit in a dark corner of the room, back to the wall, and survey the world that’s ours to explore. With tea cup in one hand and my Canon G9 (I seem to have lost it somewhere) in the other, I record the view at Saint’s Cafe on a Sunday morning.
The ride home under a clear morning sky offers a different experience. After nearly dumping the Vespa on a steep drop from pavement to gravel caused by hasty decision to explore I stop to admire the landscape and admonish myself for being a careless rider. I suppose it’s always good to look in the mirror and remind yourself of those inner weaknesses.
Dear Mr. Williams:
Near drops never count. They are the “gotcha” moments by which we all savor the satisfaction of not ending up in the trench.
I noticed that you parked the 140-pound Vespa on a a slight incline. You’ll get out of that habit fast with a mighty BMW.
Never under-estimate the power of pie.
Fondest regards,
Jack/reep
Great pictures, I love the light on falls days, pale sunshine, vibrant colors in the trees. There is nothing more satisfying than a wonderful scooter ride or motorcycle ride on a crisp fall day.
I am still waiting here for the kind of fog you seem to get in your neck of the woods. I would want to try and capture the melancholy of the moment like you do ever so effortlessly.
All went well till the last sentence. Summer’s over and you have six months to pack your bags…the yearning is palpable. I think a visit to Riepe in his new digs wouldn’t be too awful to plan for. He’s the best person with whom to celebrate a milestone at the end of a long ride.
You have a nice shot, nice photos, well, anyway, this is a great blog, and I like the scooter. looks cool.
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Dear Mr. Riepe: Being able to part without regard to gravity or physics is just one of the outstanding features of my Vespa. Mighty quickly becomes annoying.
Dar: Thanks for the comments on the pictures. I keep dragging the camera along thinking one ride the Vespa will lose it’s visual attraction. So far not…
SonjaM: I’ve learned that fog is not uniformly distributed across the country. Even more reason to take advantage of it.
Conchscooter: A trip to Riepe’s new digs… I’m not worthy!