Scooter in the Sticks

Exploring life on a Vespa Scooter and Royal Enfield Himalayan motorcycle.

A Few Words About Safety

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It’s snowing outside again. Not hard but enough to influence a decision to stay off the road. I had my riding pants on before deciding to keep the Vespa in the garage. The roads are wet, mostly free of snow, and with temperatures in the high 20’s a ride is not out of the question.

I received a note from a fellow rider this week that described my riding and writing as revealing “the beauty that dwells in the middle”. He went on to explain this as a marked contrast to the media culture that pushes extremes. I smiled when I saw an advertisement on the online version of the New York Times announcing the coming episodes of National Geographic’s Planet Carnivore. I don’t live there.

Before moving on to safety I confess to a wonderful comfort in the middle. I am not an adventurer, warrior, or adrenaline seeker. I look at and think about the world in front of me and wherever I find myself it is enough. There are more discoveries still waiting for me in my backyard. As a photographer I find connection and direction in the work of Czech photographer Josef Sudek and his ability to find beauty right in front of him.

As a rider I am still learning. I don’t expect to stop until time or circumstance prevents me from continuing. Living in the middle as a rider means thinking about safety and carefully considering what that means to me and what risks I am willing to take. I don’t confuse living safely with managing riding risk. If I wanted to live safely I would not ride. It’s here that things can get sticky for some would be riders that want to live safely, carefully, and want to believe that accidents will never happen if they follow steps a, b, c….

The notion that accidents should not happen if everyone follows the rules may be how someone justifies a legal action for an accident. Unmet expectations on the road might lead to anger and rage when others don’t perform as they should. This angry energy gives rise to more and more unsafe drivers and highways. And it leaves me with more difficult questions related to managing risk. What can I do?

Safety breaks down into four areas for me:

1. State of mind
2. My physical condition
3. Mechanical readiness of the scooter
4. My skill and experience in making and executing decisions

Each of these can respond to work and energy that I put into them. None fall into the Act-of-God area. All benefit from practice and attention and will make my ride safer. And I know they make me a better man. When I look at this short list and ask myself if I applied it to driving before I became a rider the answer is no. Riding safely, managing risk, and riding “in the middle” works together like magic to sweep away the curtain that make it difficult to appreciate the quiet places and moments in front of me.

The snow has continued to fall while I have typed this post. The house is quiet save for Kim turning pages in a magazine and I am living in the middle. I’m grateful that riding has made it much easier to accept and appreciate the life I have.


Don’t forget to let the motorcycle industry know how you feel about things in the 2007 Riders Choice Awards sponsored by Motorcycle Bloggers International. Dream bikes, dream rides, the good and the bad, and off course if you are so inclined Scooter in the Sticks is in the running for best blog! Click the image to get to the ballot.

Road Rage, 7 degrees , and the Vespa GTS

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I’m getting frustrated. We have had consistent snow and cold. The Vespa GTS is too shiny and new for me to take out in the mess not to mention I do not feel comfortable enough yet to brave the snow with only 60 miles under my belt on the new scooter.

In my non-riding frustration I came across this road rage device. Maybe one for two-wheeled vehicles will be available soon.

Click HERE to view the great road rage tool! You’ll need the QuickTime movie plugin to view it.

For more Trunk Monkey enjoyment check out the other Trunk Monkey videos HERE

Looking for Risk

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As I do every morning I look out the front door to see what the day has in store for me in terms of riding. I may walk outside to test the road surface and I’ll always look at the weather forecast. I’m looking for risk. I don’t mean I am seeking out ways to put myself at risk. I just want to know what risk I’ll be facing. Physical and performance differences between my new Vespa GTS and the LX150 I used to ride force me to make different choices. Because I am still unfamiliar with the handling characteristics of the GTS I’ll conservative in my decision-making.

Dry snow on the road, temperature hovering at 15° F, an occasional snow shower predicted, windy with 40 MPH gusts, I would take the LX150 to run errands. I’m comfortable handling it in these conditions and readily accept the risks presented by the road surface and weather not to mention the other drivers. I won’t accept the risk with the GTS though because there are too many unknowns right now simply because I don’t have enough experience on this scooter.

Dan Bateman over at Musings of an Intrepid Commuter is a master at assessing risk and offers us an opportunity to learn how to manage safely while riding. I thought it would be a good idea to point out one of his posts titled “Why am I Here?” This thoughtful piece provides riders and commuters with something that makes you think about where you are on the road and how the decisions made set you up for success or disaster. It is definitely worth reading and thinking about. If I have learned one thing from Dan over the past year it’s that the longer I ride the more I realize I don’t know. His writing makes it easy to put my pride aside and make myself a better rider.

The wind is blowing hard now and my dog is antsy for a walk. The GTS is going to have to chill in the garage a bit longer today. The extended weather forecast is calling for similar weather for the next five days so I am going to have to be patient…

Christmas Spirit vs. Riding Safety

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Two days until Christmas. Everywhere I see bright faces and smiles, people shopping, families with children looking at decorations. Consumed by the magic of the season. Maybe the commercial part but I’m sure there are some more spiritual experiences too. Either way people are rushing, working, laughing, planning, buying, wrapping, talking, singing, and driving. Yes driving. After riding into town today I have to believe the heightened Christmas spirit and driving don’t mix too well with riding safety. Or maybe I am merely experiencing what is normal everyday life for those of you in more urban settings.

I left the house around 9AM this morning. The temperature was about 40° F and it was raining. Not hard but enough to keep the roads wet, generate a small bit of fog and mist to paint the world from a grey template. A fine day for a ride and an excellent chance to test the waterproof characteristics of the rain cover for the MotoFIZZ bag I now have on the rear rack. Riding down the road from my house I see a car coming down a side street to my left that ends at a stop sign. I have the right-of-way, I see the driver looking at me but the car is not slowing down. I ease off the throttle and cover the brakes as he rolls through the stop sign at 15 MPH and onto the road in front of me. I follow him down to the traffic light where he pulls up behind a truck waiting to turn left. I glide by him on the right and make a right turn onto the highway going towards town. I see in my rear view mirrors that the car turns right instead of left. I’m riding on a four-lane road with many connecting roads, lanes, and driveways and I always pay careful attention to everything on this stretch. Two miles down the road the car catches up to me as traffic slows for a series of lights. He is in the left lane and I in the right. Another half mile up the road he decides he wants to be in the right lane so he can make a right turn. I am presented with my first spiritual decision of the day. I can continue on the course I am on and effectively block his attempt to turn right. None of the cars are inclined to let him in. Or I can slow almost to a stop to let him in. I can tell you that in the past, in the pre-scooter days, I would not have let him in. Especially after the stunt he pulled earlier. I slow and let him in, he turns right and I follow him along up the hill. We continue on for about two more miles until he signals that he is going to make a right turn into an office complex. I have to go to the same place. I’m thinking he is worried now that some big mean scooter rider is going to pummel him in the parking lot. I smile to myself and go about my business without any further interaction or notice of the offending car.


Later as I am riding in town I feel as if I am dodging people and vehicles constantly. Everyone is talking and laughing and not paying a whole lot of attention to the road. I see a young driver in a white Ford Explorer chattering away on a cell phone as they pull across my path from an alley. They really looked happy, eyes all aglow, full of the Christmas spirit. Near disaster later as I am leaving town and a Jeep Grand Cherokee runs a stop sign at 35 MPH on a really busy street and me only 20 yards from the intersection. It was a surprise seeing that Jeep rush past in front of me, driver’s left hand holding the phone to their ear talking I’m sure about whether to buy the heating pad for Uncle Owen or just get him a pound of fudge. I’d take the fudge.

The real news here is not that drivers, pedestrians, and dare I suggest riders don’t always pay attention to the road. The more important news is that I don’t get angry anymore about these things. And not so long ago I could really generate some grudge and rage fuel from these sorts of things. While riding I have become more accepting of the inconsistencies on the road, and that generally it’s not personal. I have some expectations of drivers and riders but if they aren’t met, well, that’s OK. And I accept what those shortcomings could mean to my own wellbeing. I don’t really know if all those people are full of the Christmas spirit or not. But I know that I’m feeling it and it makes it pretty easy to be generous on the road.

The waterproof rain cover kept everything dry. I had a bit of difficulty at first figuring out the best way to cinch it over the pack. I left it sloppy in the back but by the end of the day I figured out how to have it nice and snug. I did worry a bit about leaving the scooter parked in the parking garage wondering if some enterprising thief would grab it for a present for some rider thief. After a few moment of consideration I decided that it’s only a bag and if it is going to be useful I will have to leave it on the scooter. When I returned it was still there. It was a good day.