Scooter in the Sticks

Exploring life on a Vespa, Royal Enfield Himalayan, Honda Trail 125, and a Kawasaki W650

Remembering to Live

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An email arrived today with a link to a video that’s a powerful reminder of how unfortunate circumstance can insidiously rob a person of joy and experience.  It might whisper a frightening refrain about safety, or a smug conversation about acting your age, perhaps a response to illness or age that seems too much to bear.  Whatever thief steals through the night of existence, it’s important to at least have our eyes open to the possibility that we can make different choices — some large, some small.

I’ve posted this video several times before.  Each time I watch it my throat tightens, part in anger towards a world that often devalues a person as they wear on in years, and part because I feel the exhilaration of saying “Hell no, I will not go quietly into the night!”.  So for anyone needing a reminder of the power inherent in each of us I share this video.

I hope I’m able to ride at 80, to have the good fortune to be physically and mentally able to embrace a last ride.

Ride safe.

Clearing the Mind: A Scooter Video

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This scooter video reflects how a quick ride may be all that’s needed to clear a noisy mind.

Meditation, exercise, journaling or walking just won’t do the trick but a flight around the block just might.  Reduced a recent short ride to a minute of video.  See if you notice the passing Vespa scooter or think I ride too fast into the garage.

This ride lasted about thirty minutes from the time I left the driveway until riding into the garage.  During that time I experienced a transformation from nervous agitation resulting from a hectic day to relaxed rider happy to accept whatever came my way.  Lot’s of riders I know consider rides as events — something to be planned for, managed, and lasting hours or days.  Those rides are great but circumstance doesn’t always allow those to occur with the kind of frequency one might like.  So a little ride might be in order.

As the kid on the Life cereal commercial says, “Try it, you’ll like it!”.

There are many reasons to ride and clearing out the noise and chaos of the day is just one of them.  Speaking with riders I’ve found so many descriptions of the benefits derived from being on the road that it would be impossible to list them.  I suppose, at the end of the day, the only important thing is to understand why we (I) ride.

Why do you ride?

Vespa Ice Racing and the Power of Studded Tires

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With a lot of discussion lately focused on snow and riding I took a look around YouTube and found a short film that explores some of the possibilities of riding on snow and ice.  The first look at a winter equipped Vespa takes place at 2:09. Take a look at some of the scooters racing around the track in Germany — Those aggressive studs make it possible to really lean into a turn!

The video was produced by the S.I.P. Scooter Shop in Germany.

The Vespa 946 — the new Vespa Experience

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I have to admit that this new Vespa 946 is a marvel of design if not utility. And with a price tag in the United States of nearly $11K I have to wonder who will buy them. Still, Piaggio does a fine job of building the Vespa mystique with this ad…

Institutional Risk

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I saw this video for Central Institute in Australia this morning. Recruiting students is serious business at educational institutions and the approach and manner in which this is done varies wildly. Central commissioned two former students to make a video that would speak to potential students. Time magazine calls it “perhaps the best technical school recruiting video ever.”.

It’s definitely different than anything I’ve seen in the recruiting world and I can’t imagine the conversations with school officials that must have transpired to get it approved. Vomit, curse words, beer and death are topics not usually associated with schools trying to attract new students.

Risk. Is it part of success?