Riding in the Rain
There has been ample opportunity to ride my scooters and motorcycles in the rain this summer. In past years everything would be dry and brown in August from hot weather and too little rain. But rain this summer has kept everything lush and green.
I have to confess that my normal summer doldrums in regard to riding has eased because of the rain. Lower temperatures, less sunshine, and some mild rain has gotten me outside.
Both my Vespa scooters are well suited for jaunts in gentle rain. And the lightly traveled roads add to the gentle and relaxed riding I’ve come to expect from my Vespa scooters.
The Demands of Dogs
For good or bad a pattern has become cast in the concrete minds of our Belgian Sheepdogs. Each morning they now expect their two mile walk. Hot or cold, sunny or rainy, they expect me to drag myself from bed, brush my teeth, and take them for a walk.
I’ve tried to confuse them by tossing balls in the garden but they don’t accept it as a reasonable substitute for a walk. Instead it has become a secondary morning ritual. But I suppose my cardiologist is happy that I have regular exercise. I meet my 10 thousand steps a day goal and I’ve quit telling myself that riding scooters and motorcycles is exercise.
The Lure of a GTS
The Vespa GTS scooter can pretty much go anywhere and do anything. Except for deep water crossings. Even though I now have a Royal Enfield Himalayan for riding on the dirt and gravel roads in the Central Pennsylvania mountains, I still manage to find myself and the scooter in places far better suited to the Himalayan.
I’m still trying to sort out the right rotation to keep all my machines on the road. Even though I don’t give them names I know they have feelings.
The Universal Vespa GTS
You can ride the GTS with any motorcycle on the road if, IF, you are riding within the legal limits of speed and behavior. My friend Mike has a vintage BMW R of some flavor and it’s a fine riding companion to the GTS. I’ve ridden my scooter with big BMW K1300s, Harley Fatboys, and a host of other powerful machines.
Just as the GTS can ride anywhere, it can ride with anything within the boundaries of the law.
Thank You for Watching
I’ve been spending more time and energy for the past year producing videos for my Scooter in the Sticks YouTube channel instead of writing blog posts. I needed a change of the creative landscape.
It has been interesting to watch the analytics around the channel and individual videos. At the end of January 2022 I had 50 subscribers and it has now grown to just under 4100. Thank you all for your support.
But what is perhaps the strangest thing so far was to see a Short reach 1 million views. It’s 50 seconds from a longer video and shows me on the Himalayan arriving at a fallen tree across the road. And the comments all revolve around three trains of thought:
The fallen log is a trap and I’m about to be attacked.
I’m a lazy boy who should have removed the entire tree from the road.
I should have jumped over the log on the Himalayan.1
I would have never considered any of those things. No marauders here. The tree was much to big to move. And I’m not stupid enough to try and jump a big tree at my age.
Still, I am grateful for all the support my videos have produced. For those who have not seen the video short I’ll post it below.
Life is Good
The dogs remind me of the simplicity related to a good life. Riding scooters and motorcycles is part of what makes my life good. It almost seems magical how quickly the noise of the day can slip away as my mind focuses on the road. And through that focus the world expands around me leaving nothing but a serene sense of being.
My Vespa GTS has a full tank of gas. I’ve checked the tires and fluids, made sure the lights all work, and have loaded all the video gear in the top case. Seems reasonable that I’ll go for a ride tomorrow…
Steve I miss seeing your “Posts From The Sticks” and for some reason the brain hasn’t updated to follow the new format. I promise to do better, maybe even figure out how to sign up for release notices.
For some reason I’ve been having trouble writing the same sorts of essays I used to. I have a lot of photos but they get lost in a lack of ideas.
What I appreciate most about the blog posts are the photographs. Congratulations on the development of the YouTube channel as well. It’s really come a long way. I scan many other moto channels on YouTube, but your content is quite unique, and really speaks to me the most about why I ride. Thanks for sharing.
For a long time I was fascinated by making photographs of the Vespa. Often the blog posts were more a description of the photos than the photos were to illustrate a story. But a few years ago I found it increasingly difficult to write and the frequency of posting declined. The move to make videos was a grasping to do something creative. Now I find it difficult to decide when to make videos and when to shoot pictures and write posts.
Whatever I decide things remained focused on the experiences and thoughts I have while riding. I’ve surrendered any plans or schemes and just do whatever seems natural to do in the moment. I’m glad when someone reacts to the things I share.
I enjoy both of your endeavors Steve. The blog has well thought out prose and striking photos. The videos have rolling views of the Pennsylvania countryside and the sound of engines in the background. I mostly enjoy the byplay you and Paul. His attitudes and riding style are much like my own and contrast the different “Why We Ride” beliefs between the two of you.
Thanks for the supportive words Jim.
It’s fun to ride with Paul though I often find it hard to make time to go. But when we do the conversations are fun and the landscapes are beautiful to behold.
I find cleaning a scooter after a rain much easier than cleaning a motorcycle. Not so many nooks and crannies. Always nice to see what you’re up to.
One of my areas of guilt == not cleaning either the scooters or the motorcycles. I have good intentions but little follow through.
… about that “legal limits” and Vespas stuff… so the legal limit on Pennsylvania highways is 75 miles per hour, is it? Because that was my average highway speed on my GTS Vespas. I suspect you are attempting to cover up your Vespa crimes, Steve… just saying.
The only place I have seen speed limits of 75mph are on select sections of Interstate 80. Most of the places I ride on the Interstate the limits are either 65 or 70. Within those limits the GTS is fine. The other vehicles though are often speeding along at much higher rates of speed. But I can always find a car or truck traveling at the speed limit where I can follow in relative calm.
I really don’t like riding on the Interstate though. Such a bore.