Scooter in the Sticks

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

Evening Riding

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Vespa GTS scooter at sunset

Riding at Sun Down

Often, I feel a sudden burst of mortal awareness as the sun nears the horizon. The end of something. Or perhaps the beginning. Life with the lizard brain is never easy to predict or understand — just relentless in it’s march of survival and desire.

I look to the sky whenever I feel stifled or trapped by a mind refusing to disconnect from the trials of a day. The tapestry of clouds and light kindled a need for the camera and a desire to go for a ride. Even a short journey through familiar ground.

A short time on the road.  Evening riding.

Pausing on the approach to the expressway to make a photograph I wondered at the longing for rest as I looked at the open sky. Riding, the Vespa is my counselor, questioning and directing a conversation no one can hear. It’s why I ride.

Vespa along freeway with truck

Flying the Expressway

Odd choice to ride on the expressway. It was the fastest route to what big sky we have; glimpses of what the landscape is like in the flatlands. Open and looking at heaven.

And then a monster roars by. The modern era bear or Tyrannosaurus. It’s hard to dismiss the destructive power of a large truck hurtling just a feet away. A potential embrace too awful to imagine.

Yet I continue to ride.

And enjoy it.

The joy of evening riding.

Fading in the Rain

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Working with a laptop computer in a coffee shopWriting while fading in the rain

An afternoon apart from the office, a mistaken sense of freedom fueled by a dream of riding the Vespa.  Somewhere.  Anywhere.

Sitting in the Pump Station Cafe in Boalsburg, I can feel myself fading, eyes heavy and the desire to crawl in bed and disappear over powers and thought of riding.  Especially in the rain.

Like a sleeping potion, rain and gloom can reach inside and massage my soul into worldly submission.  Thought, movement, awareness — all adrift in a thick sea of sleepy pleasure.

Hot tea in paper cupAttention to detail

Next to me stands a cup of hot tea.  Wisps of steam dance wildly.  Tiny beads of moisture line the rim.  I can barely look let alone watch.  My fingers crawl across the keyboard in a slow march as my brain drains away onto the screen.

Soon I’ll take a sip of tea in hope it restores my soul and leads me into green pastures.  If I’m blessed, I may even find myself riding.

Somewhere.
Anywhere.

laptop computer and cookiesNo Vespa pictures

For a moment I wonder if I’m on a path to another heart attack.  Or just getting old.  Either way, my eye is on the two chocolate chip cookies to my left.  A personal failure to leave them uneaten for some reason.

There are no Vespa pictures and no adventures on the road.

The temperature is perfect as the hot tea strikes my tongue.  A simple pleasure; like a hot shower, rubbing a dog behind the ears, or riding a scooter or motorcycle along an empty road with only the echo of worldy concerns in my head.

The cookies are like a drug, straightening the spine and I reach for the camera. I wonder if climbing mountains or riding across continents can exceed the ecstasy of a good cookie?

The effects are wearing off; the arrival of more people and the attendant din of humanity can only agitate and cause a migration.

The Vespa is at home in the garage.  The rain has slowed to a drizzle.  Brand new tires may be slippery.  The evacuation of Penn State students at the end of the semester have the roads ugly with four-wheeled machines.

Rain clouds overheadRain clouds overhead

I have no idea where to go or what to do.  A familiar feeling, one I’ve come to appreciate for the unknown adventures in that place.

Nothing is happening.  Anything is possible.

Anything.  Even if I’m fading in the rain.

Time of Plans and Projects

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Vespa GTS and spring blossomsStarting Up

The world is a luxuriant tapestry of spring flowers, the fragrance of spice viburnum and honeysuckle fill the air and there is a sense of endless possibility after the long winter.  Riding becomes easy with many rewards to the spirit and body.  No wonder it gives rise to the time of plans and projects. Lots of things are starting up.

How did a lightness of feeling turn into one of organized action? I dream of being a kid when laying in the grass watching clouds was serious business — interrupted only by the arrival of the milk truck with it’s treasure of pint bottles of chocolate milk.

Parked in a field at the Pennsylvania Military Museum, it’s easy to see and smell the signs of spring. Great weather for riding but spring always seems to be my slowest riding season.

At least it feels that way.

Vespa GTS reflection in parking lot at workRide to Work

Most rides are to work — the six to eight mile jaunt, depending on route, that leaves the Vespa parked outside my office building.  In my head, my dreams, I’m not parked here but somewhere else — flying through the world.

My lizard brain is driving me to get things done — at work, at home — survival and responsibility. Rough calculations indicate I might need to wheel 20 cubic yards of river gravel into the garden soon as part of a modification driven by dogs.  Turf in shade is delicate and can’t withstand the pounding and skidding of dog paws.

I felt a twinge in my back when I thought about shoveling and hauling so much gravel in a wheelbarrow…

Vespa at a construction siteWhich Way to Go?

Construction lays bare the earth below.  Riding can do the same thing to mind and body.  Never know what you’ll find simmering below the surface.  So many choices — check that — so many demands calling right now.  Hard to know which way to go.  Especially in the time of plans and projects.

Don’t know which way I’ll go.  Perhaps it’s time to retreat to the darkroom again.  I have film to process.  The chemicals are ready.

Who knows what the day will bring.

That’s the best part of the adventure right?

 

Vespa Riding at Dawn

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Vespa GTS scooter at sunriseSunrise Vespa

With spring comes gently unfolding days. Vespa riding at dawn in not only pleasant but there is ample time for a few miles before work — a meandering route to take in the countryside and absorb a bit more sunlight before closeting myself indoors.

I made this photograph almost nine years ago.  The ride is etched in my brain along with many others — some long and involved and other short.

That’s the sweet part of riding.  As Nike advised, “Just do it”.

Things You Should Know About Riding Scooters

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Vespa GTS scooter coming off the Allegheny frontScooters are great on the road

Aside from “How many miles per gallon do you get?” and “How fast will that thing go?”,  the most common discussion I have concerning the Vespa focuses on a belief that it’s great in town but you need something different for “the road”.  It’s not hard to imagine the origins of this belief, at least in the United States, since almost all the marketing and promotion of scooters focuses on it’s utility in the city and frugal consumption of fuel.  The marketing agencies probably recognize the equally well ensconced belief of American riders that you need a liter sized engine or larger if you plan to do any serious riding.  Like riding 50 whole miles to breakfast with like minded bikers.

The reality is you can ride a scooter practically anywhere other than through deep water.  The Vespa GTS 250 scooter I own will cruise all day at 70 – 75mph on the freeway (shoot me if I regularly choose that route).  And on all other roads it is just fine.  All day long.

So if you think a scooter is only good for running down the street to pick up groceries (which it is) think again — men and women criss-cross the continent on scooters.

I made the above photograph after descending off the Allegheny Front and heading home on a road crossing Bald Eagle Ridge.  The Vespa didn’t blink being away from town. It will rip along at any legal (and some illegal) speeds making it a fine companion for anything from a Ducati to a Harley.

Vespa GTS scooter under a cloud filled skyYou can see the world on a scooter

I’ve ridden my Vespa to a lot of places in Pennsylvania.  It’s a great sightseeing machine that will take me and my gear (including food and water) anywhere I want to be.  Even if it’s a muddy field that I need to traverse to photograph a tree.

Whenever I start to think about longer scooter rides I always think about two riders who have pushed the scooter envelope:

Mike Saunders and his transcontinental scooter expedition on a 50cc Honda Ruckus

Mike Hermens and his trip across America and back on a Vespa GTS 300

Both these fellows, and a lot of other riders, have done big rides on their scooters and saw the world in the process.

This picture was made near the village of Rock Spring.  Turning off PA Route 45 I was surprised how watersoaked the field was.  Luckily the turf was thick and I didn’t have to content with the mud below.

Vespa GTS scooter on an unimproved township road in a forestScooters are OK off the pavement

While my Vespa GTS scooter is not a dirt bike it’s fine for wandering along the thousands of miles of dirt and gravel roads in Pennsylvania.  Don’t plan to jump or ride over logs or expect a soft ride when the road surface gets rough — the suspension was designed for pavement and reminds of that fact when you hit a rock or pothole unexpectedly.  More aggressive tires adds more stability and feel, especially in loose gravel.  If you go this route keep one thing in mind — it’s hard on the cosmetic appearance of the scooter.  Lots of scooter riders, particularly Vespa riders, keep their machines glistening in every detail.  Riding off the pavement will challenge that goal.

I made this photo on a road I had missed for years.  I passed the turnoff many times but a new township road sign caught my eye.  I must have thought it a private road in the past.  The township should have added “Dead End” to the sign post.  After wandering for some miles through the woods and up the side of the mountain I came to the end of the road — a big dog standing in my path probably saying in a canine thought wave, “MY property starts here.”

Luckily for me he was friendly and was content to watch me turn around and head back down the mountain.

Vespa GTS scooter parked along a rural roadScooters support contemplation

There are moments and places that reveal themselves during a ride that cry out, “Stop, look and listen!”.  I’ve encountered them many times and have learned to heed that call.  The words are loudest when I’m alone and traveling slowly, the landscape more a still life than a movie, and there’s time to hear the voice and stop.  Had I been racing along at 60mph I would be cresting the hill before I understood what was happening and unlikely to make a decision to turn around to see what just happened.

In this case I found a hardwood remnant from an agricultural past — those lone trees left in a field to park a team of horses in the shade when the farmer had lunch.  With air conditioned cabs and working draft horses relegated mostly to Amish and Mennonite communities those trees are confusing icons to more modern visitors. One thing I hadn’t counted on when I turned off the road — the tree capturing my attention — is the field had been heavily dressed with cow manure and the recent rain had left an inch of semi-liquid manure covering the ground.  Once you’re in it though what can you do.  Riding up the road I let the bottoms of my boots drag along the pavement to scrape as much manure away as I could.  Maybe tomorrow I’ll wash the scooter…

Scooter parked underneath a railroad bridgeScooters can take you to creepy places

Some places have bad energy and unfortunately the scooter has no warning system that signals their approach. On a rare occasion I stumble into a place that feels haunted by something dark.  After wandering along a narrow path through the woods I found myself beneath a railroad bridge still used by Amtrak and whatever commercial traffic crisscrosses Pennsylvania.

But something wasn’t right here.  I could feel it in my bones and a little voice was telling me I don’t belong here.  I made a few quick pictures but could not stop looking over my shoulder wondering when something would appear from the woods.  I heard no banjo music.  The Vespa scooter started and I left this place behind.

Vespa GTS scooter at a cross road.Scooters give you choices

A scooter gets you off the wheel and onto the road, away from the chains of responsible living and to places where you can make choices based, for once, on what you want.  Seems a rare occurrence.  Never happens in the car but time and time again I find myself standing in the middle of the road wondering which way I’ll go.

I wandered this intersection for about five minutes before getting on the scooter and turning around and heading down the road to the right.  When I got to this point I was planning to head straight.  Mental calculations told me the right=hand route was longer and would provide more riding time.

Just a few of the things you should know about scooters — Vespa or otherwise.  They’re not just good for town.  They’re good for the soul…