For anyone who rides a scooter or motorcycle there’s probably nothing here you don’t already know. So turn off the computer, get up, and go for a ride. But if you’re new to the riding life, or in that luscious world of dreams and fantasy filled with two-wheeled lies and adventure, then maybe you might want to read on.
Oh, baby, baby, it’s a wild world
Tucked and harnessed safely in an automobile, or warm and cozy at home on the couch with the television on, the world is absolutely under control, predictable and at my back and call. I am master of my universe.
And it’s all a lie. Slowly the rules creep in, those quiet expectations of shiny floors, freshly painted walls, lush green lawns and polite behavior. And one morning, quiet without a care in the world, you’ll realize you’re enslaved to things you never agreed to.
There are no absolutes in life save death. And this scene may blessedly never visit upon you. For me, as I learned to wake up and pay attention, things didn’t always make sense. The pressure to stay asleep is strong and I need help. A spouse light years ahead of me on this path is a gift. The camera helps me pay attention. A pen and journal demands thought. Writing on Scooter in the Sticks allows me to abandon silence and to give testimony that there are other paths.
Options. Choices.
What does this have to do with riding a Vespa?
Last weekend I was on the road to nowhere, standing along Interstate 99 wondering where I was going and feeling a bit anxious at the uncertainty. And then, alone for a moment with no rules or expectations I realized what a servant I am to the machinations of the world. What does this have to do with riding a Vespa? It provides a platform to escape, if only for a moment, and question everything you believe to be true.
At least for me. It’s the gift that matters when I think about riding — scooter or motorcycle. Fun, recreation, relaxation, friendship, adventure — they’re just minor side effects of a bigger experience.
I won’t forget this day.
How fast does that Vespa scooter go?
Seventy-five miles per hour. All day long if necessary. Fast enough for anywhere in America.
South on Interstate 99. I knew that much. My brain was scrambling for order. Go home. Ride to Virginia. Visit the in-laws in Altoona. The cacophony of ideas in my head was breathtaking. I stopped so I wouldn’t hurt myself from inattention to the road and not any desire to photograph the scooter along the freeway. It took five minutes of cerebral discord before I felt comfortable riding on.
This never happens in the car. I’m certain the military-industrial complex under direction of the Trilateral Commission has probably impregnated the cabins with chemicals to suppress thought and ensure a compliant world.
There is no such effect riding a scooter or motorcycle.
Memorial Day in Tyrone, Pennsylvania
Hunger brought me to Tyrone as I left home without breakfast. The local fire company was raising the red, white and blue in preparation of a parade. After a momentary pause I left town and the gathering crowd for something more quiet.
Unless you’re a daily commuter or use your scooter or motorcycle for chores, when you get on you will only take with you the demands you place on yourself. Riding offers choices.Spo
Spot of Shade
By 10am it was already hot and found me searching for shade more than destination. Any earlier anxiety regarding the ride was gone now as I fell in step with the rhythm of exploration, choosing the roads and paths that remain invisible from the task oriented automobile.
“I wonder where that goes?” my motto for the day, I believe I could ride forever.
Little Juniata River
I’ve always wanted to walk across this bridge and think about it every time I ride by. That thought never happened once in the car. All I think about passing through here is getting home. Point A to point B.
Maybe if I had a Ferrari it would be different. My friend Paul has a Ferrari. He seldom takes it out on the road so my guess is it would make no difference.
Main Line
Parked at a private crossing of the main railroad line between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and points west. It’s down to two tracks now, a sad testament to short-sighted vision of leaders in this country. I waited for awhile in hopes that a train would pass, thought of putting a penny on the track one last time, but after fifteen minutes the heat pushed me on my way.
Riding a Vespa has revealed an endless opportunity for experience — ones more in line with magical discoveries from childhood than those available to “adults”.
Have you ever put a penny on a railroad track?
Country roads take me home
There’s a spider network of country roads in central Pennsylvania that meander under the trees and along creeks that makes riding almost a guilty pleasure. It surprises me though how few motorcycles I ever see on these secondary to secondary roads. Could it be that riders prefer traveling at 55mph and above over the arcadian pleasures on these little roads?
While writing this post (at the Pump Station) a large cadre of motorcycles roared by. They had either been on PA 45 or US322, both a bore in my opinion for riding a motorcycle. But you can go fast. I suppose that counts for something.
The road goes on forever
I know it doesn’t go forever but what a fantasy. I have my fingers crossed for a lot more time wandering the world on two-wheels. The accumulated memories will fuel the days when the scooter no longer leaves the garage. Riding a Vespa scooter has taught me a lot about myself and life. But perhaps the most important lesson it it’s ability to generate meaningful memories. And with no need to engage a transcontinental trip to do it.
I’ll admit to a level of advantage due to location…
What’s a ride without a little gravel
Seems I’m never far from the unpaved road. I remember the first time I rode my Vespa LX150 in gravel — not the most comforting feeling, especially in the loose stuff. Over time, with experience, both comfort level and velocity increased. With so many unpaved roads in Pennsylvania it just seems a shame not to take advantage of their secrets.
Brunch with a Vespa scooter
Hunger finally got the best of me and I stopped to eat the sandwich I’d picked up earlier in the day. Nothing like eating in the shade of hemlocks to the rippling sounds of a creek. As I write this I continue to wonder at the hundreds of thousands of miles I’ve clocked in an automobile and have no memory of ever doing this.
Have I wasted my life in the cage?
Experienced riders know the answer. If you’re new or dreaming, you’ll have to work out the answer yourself. No one can answer for you.
It’s all part of the ride — questioning, experience, memories and more.
Don’t wait.
Your best Scooter in the Stick ever. You’re the Vespa Buddha.
The Zen of Vespa, “Ven”.
Thanks for the kind words but I’m hardly a Vespa Buddha. I know of many more exceptional Vespa riders than myself. I’m just writing about my little piece of the riding world. I’m glad though that some of the stuff I post resonates a bit. I’ll keep working at it!
“machinations” “cacophony” : I love what you offer to the world. Rock on. A relatively young person adopted a quizzical visage when I used “machinations” to illustrate the integration of dollars invested to the responsibility of the board of directors in a conversation. The world is always making me smile. And shake my head, and lift a pint.
One advantage (if you engage it) of growing older is you’re exposed to more words. Some may even show up from time to time in a conversation. I’ve always loved the sound of “machinations” but it’s not a word I trot out very often. Same with cacophony. They’re only for dress up events!
Thanks for commenting and the kind words of support.
best,
steve
It is possible to do the reverse as you hinted: to ride as though driving a car. I see that a lot as the riders put their feet up on “highway pegs” put cupholders on the handlebars and headphones in their helmets. And ride like plonkers. I ride faster than you but not with any less appreciation for exploration, and I ride involved. However I also tend to drive a car when I have to drive, like I ride a motorcycle…You are only limited by your subservience to expectations!
Yes, you’re absolutely right. And while I don’t listen to music, haul coffee or put my feet up I have been guilty a time or two of being off in the netherworld while riding. Like you, I try to always ride involved. And I probably manage that 99.97 percent of the time. But it’s those last percent points that a rider need look out for.
I’m not real successful in the car at being more involved. I pay attention to the world but I have a huge amount of inertia to overcome to get the car off the road and explore. And for me, it’s not so much expectation as laziness.
Steve;
I have enjoyed following your blog for many years, and I must say “ditto” to Pizza Dude’s comment: “Your best Scooter in the Stick ever”.
Steel
Thanks Steel for the support. I’m going to have to look at this post again. I write them one time through and generally don’t go back to edit or anything. Just write and post so I’m not always aware what I wrote. Probably not the best way to write a blog but time constraints and all…
Steve,what got you started on writing such prose . Thanks for another great read.Safe riding.
That’s a good question. I’ve had a number of influences that have affected how I write. That may be fodder for another post. Or maybe a workshop!
Ride well.
Lovely countryside where you live. Thanks for the reminder of the joy of riding. I stayed home and read your blog instead of going riding. We have just gotten over a category 1 storm and a boat would be more appropriate.
I felt bad for an instant about keeping you at home until I read about the storm. Glad I could fill in for a ride.
I definitely am lucky to have so much beautiful riding sort of at my finger tips. Unlike some living in more urban metro areas that have to ride an hour to not see a traffic light I can be lost in a forest in 5 minutes.
Hope you get some clear weather and on the road a bit as winter approaches for you.
And it’s hard to get by, just upon a smile.
That’s how I’ve long felt in the passenger seat of a car. Since my accident of decades ago, I’ve never felt comfortable behind the wheel (a case of PTSD?), and it took me a long time before I got it back together to ride shotgun. But I took to motorcycles like the proverbial duck to water. Go figure?
As I think I wrote here some time back (or at least intimated), the faster one goes, the fewer senses are engaged. Sense of smell is essentially squashed; vision is truncated, concentrating on patterns and odd movements ahead; touch is limited to control and hanging on for dear life. Taste? I guess the joke here is that there’s no accounting for it.
I love moving swiftly, as opposed to blindingly fast, but swiftness is hardly essential for enjoyment – on an especially nice day, it can sometimes be a hindrance. The go-fast guys shun the slower, sleepier twisties? Splendid…all the better for you and me to ride them without being hurried from the rear. The road less traveled is the one that opens the senses, and therefore the mind, just that much wider.
I wondered if anyone would pick up on the Cat Stevens reference. I swear though, it wasn’t a test.
It does seem odd that you have anxiety in an automobile but take to a motorcycle like a duck to water but hey, the human brain is a marvelous machine capable of wonderful contradictions.
You’re right about senses being truncated at speed. Never really thought about it like that but it’s like my dog wolfing down a piece of steak without chewing or tasting. He’s happy but did he even know what just happened?
I’m with you about swiftness. I can be swift at any speed. Depends what I’m doing. And like you say, opening the senses and mind — what’s better than that???
Fabulous. Just back from a bimble in SE Ireland on a C90. And you have captured what I felt, perfectly.
Had to look up “bimble”. What a great word for a leisurely ride in Ireland. And on a C90 no less. Lot’s of bimbling and adventuring on those. Nice to know the riding experience is more universal than not.
Probably one of your best postings to date. I know the area you dwell upon and ride therein. However it has been forty years or more since being there. Then the Pennsylvania mainline was four tracks, control towers abounded and the operation of railways was very much a manual exercise. And with the head shops of the Pennsy in nearby Altoona (now the head shops of Norfolk Southern) all those tracks were required, as well as all those meandering railways into the foothills, ie Bellefonte Central which once operated into State College. One of your photos under a former? railway bridge to escape from the very unusual heat and humidity of that weekend is surreal in its existence.
These days those branchlines up into the hills are gone, efficiences of operation allow two tracks to do as much if not more than four tracks did before; the towers are gone, the personal contact is gone; it goes on and on. I had taken photographs of the orignal massive Tyrone PAstation at the top of the Main street one year to return a year and bit later to see no station, rather a small bus shelter.
BTW given our stupid society and new rules, placing coinage on the tracks is consider a felony.
As to comment about being boxed, look at where you work Steve; go for more frequent lunch time rides, or sit in the back garden talking to the plants your wife or the dogs.
Not sure exactly why my writing has changed. Perhaps I’m just thinking about different things now.
The devolution of our railroads is a sad, sad testament to the lack of strategic thinking on the part of the nation. The political vision is measured in election cycles so long term planning just doesn’t happen much. We have a missing link in a four lane highway here. On a map you can see where the two ends are and thirty years ago you could have drawn a straight line making the connection. The state could have announced the eventual route and kept people from developing that corridor. Now they want to finish it and have to condemn and purchase right of way that is going to be extremely expensive. All because there’s no political will to plan.
Same with railroads, especially surrendering all those right of ways to private landowners. Now they can only dream of having those back to build commuter lines and such.
I remember the Tyrone Station. A big train derailment took the whole place out. The bus shelter was the replacement. Oh well.
Have been on vacation all week from work. Just hanging out and doing a lot of nothing. Sitting in the garden with the dogs now making this comment.
Fantastic. Your entry is why I got the same 2 wheeled machine in the first place. I’ve already been to Canada with it – fantastic routes through the NYC -MTL corridor – not to mention the Adirondacks and he Green Mts – contemplating the many same things you’ve mentioned.
I actually put a nickel on the rail – no candy for me, only a flattened silverish mass, being a naïve 10 year old (railfan)…
I live in NYC – funny how I eat a sandwich on my parked scooter on random city streets (seat being the table) and people seem to give a quick, “?” glance…
Always enjoy the entries. Thanks.
Two wheeled travel is delightful. Hope you find yourself riding in those New York wild areas soon. Great places for riding.
I’ve not tried a nickel on the tracks. Always liked the big round wafers from pennies. Sometimes it’s really hard to find them after the train passes though.
Thanks for reading my stuff here. I hope you share some of your riding experiences when you make it to the Adirondacks!
I got the Cat Stevens reference right off. Funny how one sings the lyrics to oneself rather than just read them.
I agree with others that this is one of your better efforts — and I enjoy all of them. Particularly enjoyed the pics of the rail lines and artifacts.
Thanks for your kind words. I appreciate them.
Seems like I need to do something focused on trains and railroads. Certainly a lot of raw material around here for that kind of post. Hmmmm….
“It surprises me though how few motorcycles I ever see on these secondary to secondary roads. Could it be that riders prefer traveling at 55mph and above over the arcadian pleasures on these little roads?”
I’m even guiltier. I had to go to Danbury, CT. last week and while there are numerous scenic roads that run in that direction I opted for Rt. 17 and I 84 on the scooter. While the roads are fairly straight the scenery is quite attractive especially crosisng the Hudson on the Newburgh-Beacon bridge. Three hundred miles there and back and the Chinese 250cc gave me 79 mpg.
I do the same things sometime when I just want to get home or to some destination. With the exception of I80, most of our expressways are reasonably light in terms of traffic compared to I84 in Danbury. It is nice that the 250cc scooters are perfectly capable of that kind of travel when necessary. Though for me, and for you I suspect, that’s the exception rather than the rule.
Yep, all time in the cages is time gone and lost, sorry but that’s how it is….only remedy for your soul is of course to ride more.
I should make a poster of your comment and post on the wall in my office and the garage at home.
I had to grin while reading this…someone else “gets it”?
But of course and yet so few know of our “secret” way of being in the world from the saddle of a wandering scooter.
Such little things, really, seen along the way but totally hidden to cagers and rip-roarin’ motto maniacs.
I will return and linger in this post as it feeds my soul during this empty, “scooter-less” phase of my life. Soon…
Very nice!
I think a lot of people, riders included, underestimate the capability of a small scooter. They’re reliable, durable and can take on a lot more adventure that one would think.
I don’t like to think of a “scooter-less” phase in life. Glad my words and pictures can help.
Thanks for you kind words of support.