On the way home yesterday I stopped at the military park near my home. It seemed a fitting time to pause and think about the election underway. At this place I am reminded of one of the paths that those we elect can take us. It’s easy to feel the process and decisions are beyond my influence being in this place helps me glimpse, if only for a moment, that I am part of the whole. Every decision I make has a subtle effect on the outcome of the decision making process of those men and women elected and in the fate of those people affected by those decisions. Like the flap of the butterfly wings that give birth to a hurricane.

It’s dark, raining and 46° F this morning. The Vespa is waiting patiently for me to gather myself together for the ride into work.

It’s that time of year when I face the daily challenge of leaving a warm bed. It’s not a reflection of my desire to ride but simply the hurdle I leap in a run away from comfort. When the alarm goes off at 5:30 AM and the house is cold I want to stay under the covers. It’s 25° F this morning. I’ll gear up shortly and ride to work and smiling while I’m doing it. But oh those transitions….

It happened last night after I got home from work. Sitting on the couch with Kim in a nice warm house and I have to gear up and ride run some errands and go to a meeting. It’s dark and it’s cold and I want to stay where I am. But I made the leap and rode off and was excited to be riding. The picture above was made when I stopped at the local library to pick up a few new books. It reminds me that I love riding and that the cold or night is just another landscape to manage and enjoy.

I came across a Web site for the Underground Terrorist Motorcycle Cult. They have a section of their site titled Snow Riding Bastards. These guys thumb their noses at snow and cold. I bet they don’t suffer the wussy transition reaction I do. Someday I’ll be stronger!

And as the cold settles in this winter the transition gets a bit easier but I probably won’t ever be able to say I look forward to riding out of a warm bed.

I don’t think I’m unique in looking forward to walking through the doors of any kind of establishment engaged in the commerce of motorcycles, scooters and related products. Part of the experience of riding and owning is being able to browse and dream about the machines and accessories that promise to make the riding life complete.

The dominant business model in this industry makes it relatively easy to avoid actually spending money so I should consider myself lucky that I have not encountered the perfect motorcycle dealership. I have visited a variety of large and small, old and new businesses and apart from cosmetic and spatial differences they seem to all conduct themselves in the same manner.

So what exactly is the perfect dealership? After some thought I think the perfect dealership would embrace:

Here are some of the things that the perfect dealership would embrace:

REALISTIC HOURS
I’m not talking about hours that will make the staff happy. I’m talking about hours that will make me happy. I work during the week so I don’t care a whole lot of about what the daytime Monday through Friday hours are. I want the place open when I am not at work and can actually visit the place. I don’t want to see the doors lock at 6PM on weekdays, 5PM on Saturday, and Closed on Sunday. Come on now. You need to be open until at least 10PM every day. Think about the L.L. Bean model in Freeport. Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The Perfect Dealership will be open when I am out riding and need to see what kind of CrampBusters they have in stock.

Now some will say that there is no reason for these hours because there is no traffic through the doors. That leads me to the next set of things. You need to make the place welcoming. Give me reasons to come and keep me coming back. Let’s visit the Barnes and Noble model for a moment.

OUR STUFF IS YOUR STUFF
When I go to Barnes and Noble I see people using it like a library. They are reading books and magazines for hours and then walk out the door without spending a cent. The Perfect Motorcycle Dealership won’t have those annoying signs the say “Please Don’t Touch” of “Don’t sit in the Motorcycles”. Instead the big sign on the wall will say “Feel Free to Sit on the Bikes, Start Them Up, Take them For a Ride.” I’ll be able to stop every Sunday afternoon and take something different for a ride and not feel like a pervert for even suggesting it.

RIDER COMFORTS
And lets not stop there. I’m a guest in this establishment and should be treated accordingly. That means a lot of big easy chairs to sit and stare at the bikes. To talk with other riders and just relax or get warm. And the place will have a small cafe to provide for the sustenance necessary to truly appreciate machines and accessories. And wireless Internet access for those riders who want to telecommute and work on projects in a warm and friendly environment. And the place will employ some people who were alive when Truman or Eisenhower was President.

INVENTORY
This perfect place will have an extensive inventory of new and used bikes and scooters, riding gear for all seasons, and well-researched accessories for every machine on the floor. Lots of downright useful gear. Just like L.L. Bean.

I really believe a place like this could make some money. But it will require a long-term vision for success, something sadly lacking in the American business mind. And it will require a cultural leap of faith to stop looking at new motorcycles as precious objects to be worships, polished, lined up, and protected from those who covet them.

So I’ll keep my eyes open for the Perfect Dealership. Maybe one already exists. If so I would love to hear about it. Until then I will have to fulfill a big part of this dream by riding to Barnes and Noble for a cup of tea, chocolate chip cookie, and Rider magazine….

I didn’t become the Vespa mechanic I had hoped to be. Instead I hung out with Kim during my last weekend of vacation before going back to work. When I did get on the scooter it was to buy a big chocolate chunk cookie to enjoy with my afternoon cup of Earl Grey tea and a magazine. The Vespa shop manual was nearby, but only physically. My mind was elsewhere.

But it’s not my fault, there was rain, it was cold, I didn’t have the right tools, my dog ate my torque wrench! I have to confess, all those hours lying under vehicles as a teenager still has left a bad taste in my mouth for all things mechanical. And the Vespa has not yet allowed me to embrace the joy of mechanical maintenance.

I did have all the parts to do the drive belt and variator weights change. And a new Michelin Pilot City front tire and sparkplug. I ordered everything from Motorsport Scooters in San Diego. There are several great scooter parts and accessory places but I have warmed up to them. If you need parts or want to dream about all the myriad of things you can buy for your scooter check them out and tell them Scooter in the Sticks sent you. Maybe they’ll give me a Vespa key chain or something!

I did get the front tire changed and had found the torque wrench so I could tighten things correctly.

I thought of actually changing the tire myself but even that was too much to consider so I took it to the fine folks at Kissell Motorsports for mounting and balancing. All I had to do was take it off and put it back on the scooter. And of course I had to do the really critical testing of the tire and make sure the slippery factory coating was worn off the tire. Entirely for safety reasons you understand. And get that cookie.

So far the Michelin tire seems pretty nice. Certainly a lot smoother ride than I was getting with my Pirelli front tire with 7500 miles on it. I will do a more thorough evaluation of the tire once the roads get wet and cold.

And I will change that belt this week. I told my dog not to be fiddling with the torque wrench.

Woke this morning with thoughts of riding north through Pine Creek Gorge. By the time I left the driveway I was on my way south with no particular destination in mind. The weather forecast promised sun and 50° Fahrenheit temperatures but all I saw was dark skies and my hands were cold before I went five miles. Those cold hands gave direction to the ride as I visualized a route that would take me past four motorcycle stores and the hopes of finding something warmer.

The Vespa ran smoothly all day. I have grown more comfortable with its ability to run flat out and perform regardless of conditions. Secondary roads with little traffic and travel speeds between 25 and 55 miles per hour are my first choice but I don’t hesitate to join more congested or faster environments if necessary.

The first couple hours I wandered through the township roads that crisscross the mountains and farmland common in central Pennsylvania. I stop often to look around and take pictures that I can’t imagine anyone wanting to ride with me unless they had a similar obsession with stopping. I joined the 65 MPH traffic on US Route 22 traveling west towards Hollidaysburg and Altoona. At the top of Short Mountain I stopped to take a picture for Kim of Louie’s Coral Lounge.

This place has been around since I first came to this area in 1972 and was once a fine dining establishment. Over the years it has declined into a hybrid roadhouse until I guess it could not make ends meet anymore. Riding down the mountain I stopped to take a photo of the leaves that are now past their flaming prime.

My first destination was Cernic’s Suzuki dealership in hopes of finding some good winter gloves or waterproof covers for mine. Before I got there I just had to stop at Donnelly’s Antiques in Duncansville to pose the Vespa in an environment more suited to its quiet sophistication.

No gloves at the Suzuki Dealer but on the way home I stopped at Steve Selzer’s new Honda Dealership. Nice place and they hand the Tourmaster Winter Elite gloves in stock though not in my size. One of the techs told me he has a pair and rides to work with them and found them warm at 70 MPH at 35 degrees. I’m sold. On payday I will order a pair from someone.

After a stop for gas I made the final run home by the fastest and most direct route. At least that was my plan until the sun came out and the world got brighter. I detoured a bit through some farmlands that I knew would have some of those lone trees I am so drawn too.

By the time I got home I had put another 120 miles on the Vespa and the odometer is turning close to the 7500 mile mark. A new front tire and variator weights are due for delivery tomorrow so I will begin my maintenance work of changing the drivebelt, weights, sparkplug, airfilter, and change the front tire. I will transform from rider to mechanic.