Scooter in the Sticks

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

Riding Through the Spring Thaw

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A day off work demanded a ride. Heavy rain from the previous night along with snow melt caused flooding throughout the valley. Had that moisture arrived tonight with sub-freezing temperatures we would be looking at 30 inches of snow.

I chose small mountain roads to explore and celebrate the thaw, the approach of spring, and warmer riding weather. Even with earplugs and helmet I could still hear the water roaring down the mountain.

The roads were wet and covered with gravel in places but it didn’t matter. I was happy to putt along and see the sights. No interest in carving curves and all that stuff.

I’ve convinced myself that winter is finished but in the back of my head I know that there have been winters that dropped three feet of snow in mid-March. Present in the picture above is another sign of spring — as I tromped through the brush to shoot it I was thinking about ticks and Lyme Disease — something that one doesn’t worry about in a real winter. Give me a rattlesnake any day.

Riding across the valley was a challenge because of the strong wind. I thought it would knock the scooter down before I could run out into the field to make the picture. The Vespa stayed upright despite shaking on its center stand.

The wind, cold, and dampness did drive me on — right into the Pump Station Cafe for hot tea and some grub. Any good ride ends this way for me. Sometimes it ends more than once.

The Black Sabbath Ride

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It rained on and off all day. From my office window I could see the sky change shades of gray. I find this kind of weather and light transforms what I see and how I feel. And it felt great to be riding without concern for snow or ice. As I rode home from work an old memory of a Black Sabbath album cover came to mind. I remember how fascinated I was with that picture.

I embrace the dim eeriness of the foggy dusk both as a rider and photographer. If I didn’t have things to do I would have stayed out longer. Instead another commute home from work.

Riding in a Winter Respite

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Stepping outside in the dark this morning to take the dog out got my tail wagging too. It was warm! A balmy 39° F. Who cares if it was dark and raining because after many days of ice and sleet and freezing rain the weather spirits opened their arms to the commuting rider.

It was a wet, damp ride but just felt good to be on the road.

Just Another Ride to Work

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In warm weather riding the Vespa to work is automatic. The only time I don’t is when I need to haul gear or people. In winter I make a quick assessment of road surface and mental state before making a decision. This past Thursday morning everything was aligned for scooter departure.

I chose a longer route to work to allow the battery to get a good charge. I don’t use a battery tender because so far my riding frequency seems to be sufficient. The recent addition of electric gloves has me wondering but so far so good. I suppose if the battery is going to die it will be 50 miles from home at 10º F.

Riding continues to create a hyper-awareness of my surroundings that is difficult to find while driving a car. I probably would not have seen the deer along the road while driving. I’m just cut off from the world by steel and glass. Looking at the deer I realized I don’t consciously watch for deer while riding. I watch for everything. Everything in front and back, left and right. Things come into focus in a continual processing of sensory information.

The ride to work was routine. The weather forecast called for snow showers late in the day but I assumed I would be home before they arrived. At 2:30 PM I saw the first snowflakes falling outside my office window. When I walked to the Vespa at 4:30 PM I found it covered in snow. The roads were still mostly wet with a bit of intermittent greasy slush.

Plans to travel across farm lanes when I realized that snow was accumulating too quickly to comfortably handle the steep grades in a few places. I wandered home on back roads and kept a careful eye on speed and road surface.

The local limestone quarry always looks good in the snow and I couldn’t resist stopping for a picture. The wet snow is surprisingly slick and I had to work a bit to get the scooter back onto the road even with all the gravel under the tires.

Various amounts of snow accumulated as can be seen in the curve in the above photograph. Easily negotiated but a potential disaster for a careless rider traveling too fast for conditions and assuming the road is merely wet.

I arrived home safely, brushed the snow and slush from the Vespa before parking it in the garage, and joined Kim for a cup of hot tea. Watching the snow out the front window warm and snug after just another ride home from work.

Wind and Weather

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“Nothing like a little wind to get the blood pumping and bring on the warm glow of “I’m alive!”.”

I posted that comment the other morning on Musings of an Intrepid Commuter before riding to work. At 5AM the wind was blowing hard while I wrote and I was worried more about one of our big spruce trees crashing through the window than I was about anything happening on the road. With gusts at 50 MPH that can push a Vespa around on the road.

By the time I pushed the scooter out of the garage prepared to brave the elements the sun had broken through the clouds and produced a wonderful double rainbow. And I could see both ends touching the horizon. The lens on my little point and shoot wasn’t wide enough though to capture the whole thing.

Half way to work the sky closed, wind started to blow hard and rain returned. I had to choose my lane position carefully depending on which direction the wind was coming from because it would knock me three feet without really trying. I didn’t want to be too close to somewhere I didn’t want to be when that happened. I just had to lean into the wind and bit to compensate and things were fine.

Almost as quickly as that happened the sky broke open again and the sun came out and the wind diminished a bit. In the sunshine it always seems less aggressive. I stopped to watch the clouds pass for a bit and then saw another ominous set of dark clouds approaching so I made a bee line to my office where I could watch the weather in comfort.

Just another day riding to work…