Places to see ...

2011-06-29T13:28:00.000-06:00

The daylillies sing ~~~ reaching out to the warm sun ~~~~ from their high crevice

2011-06-28T13:24:00.003-06:00

Blindingly Orange,
Oversaturate the eyes,
Poppies yell, Hello!

2011-06-22T13:30:00.006-06:00

A Dead flat rabbit.
It's lone ear flaps in the breeze
From cars whirling by

2011-06-02T13:34:00.005-06:00

Lines of poetry ...
Created in the curves of summer ...
Only to float away in the wind.

Watch & Listen to the fire potential forecast

2010-09-09T15:36:00.000-06:00

Summary: dry air & windy... National Interagency Fire Center RMACC http://bit.ly/kwZvk #boulderfire

See that yellow - red zone? That is dry air that will continue to pour into Colorado for the next 3 days. We could use a tropical storm here right now, hold the lightning though .

Four Miles Canyon Fire resources

2010-09-08T06:21:00.000-06:00

Google Earth wi/ MODIS and AVHRR data

Over the past 2 days I've gathered quite a compendium of official and unofficial fire map sources, fire/air/police online scanners, discussion sites (which in some ways are more detailed than the Boulder OEM because folks are listening to the scanners and plotting the locations of fires and some structures - something the Boulder cty resources just haven't had time to do), and other streaming sources (such as the local Fox news - no politicizing there, the only place that I found that streams their news).

You can also get KMZ/KML's to pull into Google Earth and provide very good descriptors of what MODIS is detecting. Let's start there:

First, the current 'official' perimeter is available as a KML from http://www.geomac.gov/
(pulls from http://rmgsc.cr.usgs.gov file name: CO-BLX-FUL0 Four Mile Canyon 9-7-2010 0600.kml)
(full url http://www.geomac.gov/asp-bin/geomac_KML/kmlHelper.htm?http://rmgsc.cr.usgs.gov/outgoing/GeoMAC/2010_fire_data/KMLS/CO-BLX-FUL0%20Four%20Mile%20Canyon%209-7-2010%200600.kml)

Then download interior details for Sep 6 and 7 from the Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Center
http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/googleearth.php
This data pulls all of the current fires in one KML. I pulled the current Fire Detections (http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/data/kml/conus_latest_modis.kml) and historical and animations (http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/data/kml/conus_hist/) to see how the fire has moved according to MODIS. GOES and AVHRR (http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/data_avhrr/kml/conus_latest_avhrr.kml) are also available from the same site (GOES is very gross scale: http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/data_goes/kml/conus_latest_goes.kml). Selecting Large Incidents shows that this fire is currently requiring a Type 2 incident management team.

Then for a sobering realization of how many homes are in this area: http://www.bouldercounty.org/sheriff/emergency/map_options.htm select Option 2, complete hill shade map set: http://www.bouldercounty.org/sheriff/pdf/mapbook/map_set_hillshade.zip
And here's Denver Post's current map

Also clicking on Current Large Fires on the Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Center then clicking on the icon 10 for Four Mile, the current info is this:
Fire Information Report for Four Mile Canyon
Wildland Fire Incident
Report Date: 08-SEP-10
Burnt Area:   6,168 Acres (106% increase from yesterday)
Location:   Boulder County, CO (5 miles west of dowtown Boulder, CO)
Cause:   Under Investigation
Incident Team Type:   IMT Type 2
Team Leader:   Richardson
Containment Status:   0% contained)
Expected Containment:   Unknown
Fuels:   Heavy dead and down with bug mortality in the Douglas-fir High 1200000.00 201PRIM

Other sources of information:

Boulder office of emergency management
http://boulderoem.com/component/content/article/5
http://www.bouldercounty.org/newsroom/templates/bocodefault.aspx?articleid=2291&zoneid=1

Incident Information Systems (and maps)
http://www.inciweb.org/incident/2119/ -- many links from here too
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazard/wildfire.shtml
http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/activefiremaps.php http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/#
http://www.geomac.gov/
http://www.wfas.net/maps/
http://forestry.about.com/od/forestfire/tp/wildfire_maps.htm

Map of the perimeter (~ 10 mb)
http://www.bouldercounty.org/bocc/FourMileFireWebPerimeter.pdf

more maps:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&t=h&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=116450738350250475290.00048f9b63b159a7d3dcf&ll=40.049595,-105.405021&spn=0.026117,0.02399&z=15&iwloc=00048f9b6746f57de0f00

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=us&ptab=2&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=107456750744474099138.00048f9bf332e01bf3b40

ESRI map
http://www.esri.com/services/disaster-response/wildfire-map/index.html

maps (from inciweb)
http://www.terraunbound.com/Events/Four-Mile-Canyon-Fire/13676273_RNaQi#998866037_Sh6MF

radio scanners
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/audio/?action=cwp&ctid=247

info about the scanners
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/audio/?action=wp&feedId=591

Boulder County Fire
(((Stereo Feed))) LEFT Side = Red-3 Simplex *** Right Side = Red-6 Repeater

Boulder County Sheriff and Fire

Colorado State Patrol (Denver Dispatch)
~ Stereo Feed ~ LEFT Side = Troops 1A/C and 6A/B/D *** RIGHT Side = Troops 1D, 3A/B/C and 6C

Rocky Mountain National Park
This feed is temporarily being used to monitor the Boulder Fourmile Canyon fire Air Operations. See additional details page for feed details.

Boulder county wildfire info
http://www.bouldercounty.org/newsroom/templates/bocodefault.aspx?articleid=2291&zoneid=1

Fox news live streaming
http://www.kdvr.com/news/livestreaming/

time lapse of the fire Sept 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfXIqbfehxs&feature=player_embedded

Blogs w/ pictures and satellite images
http://www.cejournal.net/?p=3723
http://andrewhy.de/four-mile-canyon-fire-2010-boulderfire/
http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/goes/blog/archives/category/fire-detection

Pictures

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=45675

look for channel 9, 7, 4 - they have pics
http://www.wunderground.com/wximage/viewsingleimage.html?mode=singleimage&handle=bjcali&number=141&album_id=55&thumbstart=0&gallery=VIPPICT#slideanchor
http://www.wunderground.com/wximage/viewsingleimage.html?mode=singleimage&handle=emp33&number=0&album_id=0&thumbstart=0&gallery=VIPPICT#slideanchor

discussion
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&t=h&oe=UTF8&msa=19&msid=116450738350250475290.00048f9b63b159a7d3dcf
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=us&ptab=2&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=19&msid=107456750744474099138.00048f9bf332e01bf3b40
http://search.twitter.com/search?had_popular=true&q=%23boulderfire&result_type=recent

Planning for a rally ride

2010-05-19T20:26:00.000-06:00

This is a work in progress :) We're meeting up with about 20 of our closest riding friends that we've met over the past two years at the Potato Ranch Rally near Durango, Colorado. Its just 16 days away - and we're so 'cited! Its not a 'sanctioned' rally in the way of sponsors - nah, we do our own agenda and fun :)

Here's our route so far (link)

I've had my bike lowered, adjustable levers installed, throttle fixed, new knobbie tires installed (Mefo). The tires have been awesome on dirt and gravel. Wolfram is having a service done to the Dakar.

We might be inducting a friend to our BeginnerBiker circle - so we're very pysched about that.

Gotta remember to do a full T-CLOC , especially checking the coolant. The wild card is the weather - will it snow? How much cold and hot weather gear do we need to bring? Food? wa?

More to come!

A Grand View and Circles

2010-04-18T22:11:00.002-06:00

After multiple trips going north and south along the Peak-to-Peak highway, we're ready to find some new routes. Turns out that Bob has never ridden Lookout Road toward the west - so today that is where we headed. However, I didn't take any pics... something about hand holding a camera while also trying to keep control of a bike inhibits my picture taking.

Riding down Boulder Canyon we ended up behind a covey of touring bikes (no pic for that either), Goldwings and the like. Very impressive riding through the narrows - and we would have continued riding with them but they turned off at a gas station once we got to Boulder.

And there are butterflies flitting around - I still do my best to avoid them if I can.

We wound our way through Boulder traffic and off to the east we went.The trees here are starting to bud and flower (imagine white flowered trees) so riding was filled with sweet fragrances along Valmont and Isabelle roads. We had a short section of 287 and hardly any traffic - got to blow some carbon out of the engine for the few miles until Lookout. We ooh'd and ahhh'd as the front range and continental divide mountains rose into view as crested the hill - somewhere I have some pics of this, again, not today.

Since it was lunch time I took Bob to one of my local favorites, Ajuua Restaurant in Niwot. While the wait-staff watched the Rockies and Braves battle out game three of their away-stand, Bob and I munched on some great carnitas and shrimp and sipped on iced tea.

After waddling back to our bikes, I decided that now would be a good time for me to practice slow speed U-turns, so off we went to a local deserted business parking lot near where I work. It wasn't working for me, so I had Bob demonstrate one more time:

It still wasn't working for me - my circles were still the width of parking lot and 4 lanes wide. And then I had him stand in the middle of the 'ideal' circle so I could focus on him. Voila! Suddenly I could make smaller circles - half hour later they were almost acceptable. It wasn't so much that I hasn't turning my head, it was that I didn't know where to look!

By now our lunches had worked their way to where we really needed to -- so off to Celestial Seasonings we rode. In addition to the awesome tea shop is their tasting room where you can try any tea that they sell. My new acquisition was the Acai Mango Zinger, which provided a nice robust flavor - although I wonder if its a sustainable product.

Of course, what ride is complete without finishing with washing the bikes.

To my newly retired friend B0be

2010-01-10T20:41:00.001-07:00

I am retired.
I do whatever I want
wanna go skiing?

Ski Bums ski a lot
Retired folks ski much more
welcome to freedom

today I will ski
tomorrow I will ski more
because, I am freeeeee!!!!!

Skiing in the Dark

2009-12-16T11:09:00.002-07:00

My day started at 5:45 driving up to the lower Sour Dough, near the Mountain Research Station. Let's go skiing before work and so off we went in the pre-dawn. I get up this early anyway, now its just more focused and I get my exercise in. Our lead crazy skied off into the dark and I shuffled along for 45 minutes, slightly uphill the whole way. My skis are waxless so going uphill takes a zillion little baby steps - otherwise I slide backwards and have to use my poles to push myself up - my technique is pretty rudimentary.

I've been too cheap to buy a real head lamp, so I've got this flashlight thingy that goes on the brim of a hat. With the snow reflecting the light, I can see about 15 feet really well - but it is a bit nerve racking to be in the middle of the woods, by oneself, no dog as protector, hoping no mountain lion is hungry. So I sang Christmas carols - loudly.

The leads went about 2 - 3 miles in, I have no idea how far I went, maybe a little over a mile and turned around when they came back down the trail. By now it was light out so careening downhill and huffing uphill was a bit easier with being able to see the rocks and tree roots. Complete trip was about an hour.

If someone had told me a month ago that I would have the lungs to x-ctry ski for an hour I would have laughed. Now I'm wondering what I'm going to do for exercise while we're in North Carolina starting tomorrow... Thanks for reading!

Between the storms

2009-12-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

golden light glitters ~~ in the meadow snow devils spin ~~ welcome back dear sun

Coyotes howling ~~ yipping hello? in night's air ~~ we found each other!

5 degrees and falling

2009-12-07T09:14:00.000-07:00

flat shadowless world ~~ snowy fields fade into grey ~~ I can't see a thing

Motorcycling and Skiing

2009-12-05T15:00:00.001-07:00

They seem like opposites. In normal circumstances, the conditions that make for great motorcycling, mean there's no snow for skiing. And when there's awesome skiing, you'll probably not want to be on the road with a motorcycle, unless you have spikes or studs in the tires.

Yet, there I was yesterday cross-country skiing a very nice trail - the upper Sour Dough near Brainard Lake - sliding up and down hills contemplating how riding a motorcycle and xtry-skiing have similarities. What was it that felt familiar? Tiny baby step stomps to ascend small hills? The thrill of sliding downhill in my best knee-knocking snowplow?

And then it dawned on me. It is more than just the ability to balance, it is an awareness of how subtle changes in one's body position and limbs changes the balance one is in. The gee-whiz word for this is proprioception.

For example, when I felt the right side of body start to flail and lean outward, I knew to pull my arm back to my body which settled my imbalance right down. And re-learning to turn, which while different than learning to counter-steer a motorcycle, was similar in that the opposite of what you thought is what you do. To go right while skiing you lean on the inner edge of your left ski... to turn curve right on a motorcycle, you push on your right-hand handlebar).

So I guess riding all summer on dirt and jeep roads, learning to let my motorcycle squirrel beneath me has helped me learn to ski!

I lowered my standards...

2009-11-28T15:53:00.002-07:00

And had a great time! Skiing that is.

This fall we've been lucky enough to have a few really good snowfalls. However, each time it snowed I had been out of town and by the time I would get back, the snow would be 'old'. My snow efficiendo friends would say that today the snow really really was not worth skiing on; most of it had melted, what was left was stomped on, crusty, and icy, and at 50F it would be like thick mash potatoes and stick to the bottom of one's skis. Yep. I went anyway.

Its a forested area near where I live which is fairly flat and heavily wooded, so my thinking was I would ski deep in the trees on the north side of the slope. I get there are there's one couple leaving - awesome! I walk down the trail and realize the trails are mostly mud with a little snow. OK, off trail I go.

And it was fun! The 2 inches of base meant being watchful for tree roots and such so as I slowly made my way through the brush and over tree fall, I mentally calculated the impact that a ski has on the terrain below (about .6 kg/cm2). A few moments of gliding but mostly I was winding my way along and the trek became a game to find a continuous path snow-covered path through the trees.

A new rule also came into play - avoid open areas with lots of sun - because indeed the snow stuck to my skis with a vengeance. And the sudden stops and slow downs were just part of the challenge. Today slow was good as I was figuring out how to weight my edges and snowplow.

On the way home I popped into Mud Lake - the snow was just as bad - so I walked in and clicked my favorite sculpture and afternoon light on the pond.

And so I have happily lowered my standards about snow conditions and looking forward to more fun skiing this season! Now I just need to re-learn how to turn and to stop :)

Peace

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-26T09:37:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving is ... a day ... to share, to remember, to be with loved ones, to reconnect.

Thanksgiving Tweets: http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23iamthankfulfor

East Coast Wx

2009-11-08T08:17:00.000-07:00

early light dances :: sun rises above the haze :: red-brown leaves shimmer

vivid yellows

2009-10-01T15:18:00.000-06:00

the leaves smelling old ~
sharp winds rustle the edges ~
earth begins a long sleep.

Fall colors 2009

2009-09-20T18:52:00.000-06:00

Early Saturday morning. I should be asleep. But something gets me up - not the cat asking for food. I decide to get my Craig's list posting ready. I need a pic of my beloved Ariel. I get dressed, pull on a sweatshirt and go downstairs to uncover my girl.

The lighting is all wrong. Now that its not summer, the sun is lighting her hind end - not exactly the most flattering angle on any fem. I take a pic

and then start her up. mmm, the battery is a little low, guess we need to go for a ride.

And thus starts a photo shoot, lead peeping series of rides.

Careful, if you are sensitive, these scooter pics might be too much. I warned you :)

OK, which is your favorite?

Then I found a Forest Service road that led somewhere unknown...

I rush home. Everyone on the road is in a good mood and we wave. I roust my DH from bed - YOU MUST SEE THESE TREES - THEY ARE AMAZING!!! Half hour later we are on the road...

The traffic is getting thick

A lemonade stand! Along Peak to Peak!

We go back out today for some backroad investigation

dang, the wind knocked down some leaves

The grasses have taken on a subtle shade of tan-brown

uh oh, clouds

staying hydrated in the wind

We ride to Rollinsville and Tolland Road. The leaves are not totally changed

but some are

More at: http://www.terraunbound.com/Scooters-scootering-scooter/But-they-are-THIS-YEARS-colors/

Stay tuned

Packing List for Road Trip

2009-09-14T09:03:00.003-06:00

Our packing list for a three day motorcycle trip in the summer for two people. We packed our bulky stuff into reusable grocery bags which fit very nicely into the side cases. Bob wore a backpack and I had a tank bag. I chose not to take the top box because it was going to be windy on the plains and I didn't want to fight the wind more than I needed to.

I wore:
boots
wool socks
mesh & armor overpants
bicycle shorts
t-shirt
riding jacket
earplugs (I wore them when we were getting onto the highway, in-town riding I need to be able to hear the traffic around me)
sunglasses
gauntlet leather gloves
helmet

In tank bag
good camera w/ 10-20mm wide angle lens
water
snack
microfiber cloth
baseball cap
maps (on top)
GPS (on top)

Ram mount w/ small camera w/ tether

Take with (side cases):
other maps
book
camera bag w/ 100-300mm lens, macro 50mm, camera goodies
camera (2) +cell chargers, plus batteries
toiletries + bug spray
sunglasses case w/ cleaner
rain jacket + waterproof pants liners
poly-pro sweater
1 extra t-shirt, undies, socks, etc
sandals

plus evening wear
jeans
nice shirt
jewelry

food / water
2 liters / person
gorp
kashi bars
apples
choc covered almonds

trash bags - 1 / side case
v. large ziplock for camera

tools etc
coolant
oil
tire gauge
6-way screwdriver w/ torx bits
adjustable wrench
zip ties
duct tape
velcro ties
bungee
cell phone

I brought too much stuff - too much clothing really. The torx driver was well worth having since we needed to check our coolant levels daily (and there are 6 screws to remove). And while we didn't need any extra tools, when riding on dirt roads in National Forests with limited cell coverage, being a bit prepared is a good thing to do.

Short rides on dirt

2009-09-07T18:28:00.000-06:00

OK then. We decided to a suite of dirt rides since it was Labor Day weekend and the last place we really wanted to be was on the main roads.

So, off we go for a quick jaunt up to the old Caribou town site. This 'ghost' town had been the home of some 5000 souls and the Caribou Silver Mine. Now, it has just a few ruins from the late 1800's.

A very nice ride up a fairly well maintained dirt road, with occasional stretches of bedrock peeking through is rewarded by spectacular views. We were surprised to find the trees changing color so early in September.

And then off to Sawmill Rd...

This one shows the real steepness of the road. With sharp drop offs. No pressure. Really.

Back to Apex...

It turns out that the cemetery (the Catholic one) has a number of interesting gravestones.

This one is Woodman of World.

A complete section of Italian graves. So many people died young in the mines...

And this structure we thought might be a tomb, but perhaps its for holding the lime?

Rest in peace yea brave miners and families of yester-year

Nevada City feels like it should be alive and yet there's one family house that I could see

Well - shoot! This is supposed to be pic #1, where are trips often begin.

Someone's skid lid...

Just 1.8 mil. A bargain.

Riding the Medicine Bow Mountains: Snowy Range, Day 3

2009-08-28T18:09:00.010-06:00

Well, I guess road trips must end. We toyed with different routes to take back to Nederland. The very scenic but very much longer route via RT230 and then Trail Ridge Road through Rocky Mtn Nat'l Park? Back the way we came and have to endure the gauntlet of Ft Collins? We decided on a third route:

Take the dirt road (Ryan Park) to the Snowy Range Nat'l Forest, head back across the Snowies to Laramie, south on 287, then head West, yes West, up the Poudre Canyon (Rt 14), to an un-named turn off that goes south, then head West some more (Rt 34) to Estes Park. Skip around the edges of town, head south eastward on RT 7, then south on Rt72 Peak-to-Peak Highway to home. It took an extra hour... According to Google, all of our other choices (taking rt230 south from Saratoga) would have put us 2 extra hours.

Proof of riding on dirt

more scenic shots (and nice view of my jacket patch ... need to get a bbo patch too!)

It was a much cooler ride through the Snowy Range this day and a bit windy, which made the scenery that much more beautiful.

we decide to hike over a glacial mound to get a picture of the lake ... and I notice that Wolfram is hiking with his helmet on! What a nerd (i say this lovingly):

And we pass a magnificently built ... outhouse - built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 30's

Climbing down was a little tricky in motorcycle boots, but well worth it

effluent stream behind me ... leading west and south - but I don't know if it goes to the Platte River, mmm...

This is the other stop at the pass, same mountains, different view.

Watch out for the loose gravel at the edge of the road. Just sayin.

east of Centennial, I saw prong horned antelope in the distance. If you have never seen them up close, they are really beautiful critters and look like they should be on the African savannah. These pics are from another trip where there were pull offs

We pulled back into the Gunslinger for gas and to top off the air on our tires for highway pressures. We had let a little air out for biking the dirt and gravel

yes! be nice to your fellow travelers

You just never know what you are going to see!

no! we are not going that way!

we're headed west. And there's a ton of traffic headed east - white water rafters, tubers, motorcyclists etc. The road was nice and empty in the westbound lane.

And very nicely paved too

now up RT 34 through Big Thompson Canyon to Estes Park

We get close to Rocky Mountain National Park, and have no desire to enter the park. Its getting late, our bumms are fatigued, my hands feel like they've been buzzed, and we want to get home.

We do stop for a quick break at Lily Lake which is marginally less crowded than Estes Park. And then we ... blast our way home. Its that horses know which way the barn is and nobody was going to get in our way. Fortunately traffic was very light, and somehow the cars that were in front of us knew that we meant business, so they pulled off at safe passing areas. We're looking forward to taking other routes to get to this section of Wyoming; it is one of the most beautiful areas I've seen.

Thanks for hanging in there!

Road trip to the Snowy Range, Medicine Bow National Forest, Wyoming

2009-08-28T18:00:00.005-06:00

Where to begin... our trek beings weeks, nay months ago; in the dead of winter. "I want to get out of town, and I want to do it on two wheels." became my winter whine. Wolfram rumbles. " Your scooter won't keep up and you don't have a motorcycle". "Yet...", I quip.

There's a really beautiful place just over the border in Wyoming, let's go there! Summer creeps upon us slowly,; I work diligently to gain the skills to ride a 200+ mile journey in one day. [echos of Rocky's theme with video clips of me doing crunches, one armed push-ups, learning to shift gears, carving the curves along Peak-to-Peak highway, Boulder Canyon, and Kingston Peak trail]... Finally by July after 1500 miles in 2 months, I feel prepared to branch out from our quaint mountain home.

We call to make reservations ... [sound of record scratching] ... what? No room until August? Well, that just gives us to more time to prep the bikes (and our wardrobe)! I smile... maybe we should get a map [packing list at end of post]

Fast forward: our bikes are in tip top shape, we're happy with our levels of ATGATT, the morning is crisp, we have our route picked out and decided where good spots are to rest, we're ready to go ... except there's one small bag left of tools. Wolfram is ranting that we have too much stuff, so I re-inspect the contents and manage to remove ... one zip-tie. So then I inspect all of our luggage and re-discover that Wolfram's side cases are wider at the bottom than the top, leaving a cylinder-shaped space that isn't being used. Quickly I split up the tools, distract Wolfram with "go check the cat" and slip the bags behind the clothes and we're finally ready.

OoOf, the bike feels a little stiff but on our dirt roads, it feels fine. We head out going north on the Peak to Peak. Its a beautiful Friday early-ish morning and no one is on the road but us. We carve our way to Route 7 and head down towards Lyons. The fresh morning smells are heady, the temperature is almost chilly in my mesh pants w/ only bicycling shorts underneath. I turn on my newly installed heated grips and go ahhh.

Then crap! This idjot from some other state looks at us approaching and pulls right in front of us, with trailer, on a curve. (@*&%#. We've been riding a half hour without meeting a soul and now we've got the taj mahal on wheels doing 25 mph and burning up his brakes every curve as we descend 3000 feet.

Finally, a 'passing zone' and Mr. Road Block is history. Reaching Lyons we're suddenly mixing with the Folk Fest crowd staggering their way to the festival grounds. They're cool, we're cool, Wolfram has me lead as I 'know' the route, so 'bye to Lyons and onto Rt 66 towards Longmont. Now I checked the state road conditions map, nothin' was listed, but here we are in a barrel-lined construction zone with wheel traps, tar worms squiggling, large and loud equipment throwing up dust, and very large trucks in front and behind us. We persevere for the 15 minute ride to Longmont and head north on US 287. It occurs to be that this will be the furthest from home I had ever been ...

"It's a dangerous business, going out of your door.
You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet,
there is no knowing where you might be swept off to." - J.R.R. Tolkien

All summer I have been daydreaming about cruising up 287 with throngs of Harley riders passing in either direction, wind in THEIR hair, smiles on our faces. Reality hits: its only 9am and no self-respecting HD rider is out this early (poetic liberties being taken - hey, its part of my daydream, OK?) and its rush hour to Ft. Collins, AND the road surface is gggg----rrrr---oooo---ooo---vvvv---eee---dddd. Oh goody, another first in a morning of firsts. We pukka-pukka our way up to the speed limit (another first) and get used to the zzzz-ing feeling, which isn't all that different from the normal riding buzziness of a F650GS beemah, just more constant.

We've seen very few riders so far this morning as we roll into Loveland with heavy morning traffic (everyone else probably knows another way around these towns.) Wolfram needs a friendly tree after all that jiggling and vibration; we find one, literally, behind a Taco Bell. I watch out for spectators and see a cluster of motorcycles, all shapes and sizes, ride by. Hi! Where are you going, I wonder?

We get back into traffic and make our way through the tensest riding I've done: close traffic, multiple lanes, gazillion lights. If I had kept a strict safety bubble around me, I would have been the hazard - Wolfram graciously rides point. I watch a Tastey-cake truck doing a zig-zag through traffic cutting cars off, cars careening across 2 lanes to make a turn, cell phone stuck to his ear - boy, those Ft. Collins folks must be in dire need of their treats! There's a 4-inch curb median to my left and I contemplate whether I can pop onto its lip if I get cut off...

After forever, we're headed into more open spaces, leaving the downtown behind. By now we've caught up with the gaggle of motorcycles and ride together until they head up Poudre canyon ... we continue north onto the plains.

[small text]Oh, and about all of these semi-blurry shaken photos? The ram-mount is awesome but I hadn't had time to test it before leaving and didn't realize that I need to some vibration-damper in the middle. The beemer is a buzzy bike. [/small text]

There's a wind advisory. For those of you who live in wooded areas, think of how wind picks up speed across a lake. The longer the fetch (the distance over which a wind blows without obstruction), the stronger the winds can be. Not only were there many miles of open land to our west, but the winds were picking up speed as the descended from the mountains.

Its my turn to ride point and it was exhilarating! Going 65+mph for miles and miles on a straight road (another first), lots of distance between vehicles, and I'm leaning into the wind like going through a curve but still going straight. Fortunately its just a steady 30mph wind from our port bow (front-left) with few gusts. No pic of me, but here's a similar shot - ha ha:

from http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/howto/122_0604_motorcycle_riding_tips_wind_gusts/index.html

This is what I saw:

US 287 is mostly two lane, so oncoming 18-wheelers pass closely and there wasn't a wind blast so much as a void from blocking the wind for a moment. And then the wind would suddenly be coming form the other side when leaving road cuts.

Beautiful rolling hills, buttes in the distance, cruising in the wind... We ride into Laramie and... our first interstate superslab! Yep, over 4k of riding and we get to wind out the beemers up to 75 (or so) mph... Wheeeee!

A few miles later, we exit to get fuel for the bikes and humans. The Gunslinger 66 gas station has thoroughly embraced the old west motif.

And we are not alone, another set of bikers are also fueling. They were denim jacketed with pin endowed vests and kind of scary looking; mothers locked their kids in the car as they walked our way, dads hurried inside, and ... they were the sweetest gents I'd ever met. "Goin to the rally?" (Sturgis) ...These guys were totaly psyched to get to Sturgis, buy their pins and then head back to Grand Junction, CO. After a few minutes of chatting, we parted ways with mutual smiles.

Finally. We're headed west to the Medicine Bow mountains. This time we're headed straight into the wind and while passing huge Winnebago with SUV in toe, throttle is turned to the max on my beemer; she's got no more umph but not to worry, we pass the movable homes with ease.

And now, suddenly we're through Centennial, past the last rolling road block, and we're in the mountains.

There's snow up there!

Wolfram has me take point since I have the cameras, just before the only switch-back of the ride. Up, up, up we go, stopping for scenic pics, and then we're at the pass! 10,800 feet, which is kinda low for the Rockies, but still quite brisk with the winds.

At the pass, all 10,800 feet of it, you can see krummolz clinging for dear life to this wind swept landscape.

Now we're gawking, cruising, and SEEing.

We point out dirt roads that go off into the woods ... maybe tomorrow!

I'm getting antsy to get to the Inn (Saratoga Resort & Inn) but we can't get into our rooms until 3:00 so we 'waste' some time and hang out watching the stream go by. Of course, I can't just sit still, so here are my Ansel Adams stream shots...

look at that reflection!

http://www.terraunbound.com/photos/626069418_bVRek-M-1.jpg

And we arrive at Saratoga Resort & Spa. It's a combination of rustic yester-year with more modern touches. I like it. Just as we arrived, a Shelby Cobra car club and a family of motorcycles were pulling in. Our room is cozy but easily fits our stuff.

After swapping out our hot, dusty clothes for cleaner, wrinkled ones, we headed to the bar and then to dinner. For some reason the family-group wasn't too interested in meeting other motorcyclists but we had a very nice time talking with a couple who had ridden up from Colorado on their Hogs; hey Chas! Dinner is very meat driven - while there was a vegetarian dish of some sort, the specialties leaned toward varieties of steak and ribs. We roll ourselves back to our room and then head back out to the mineral pool. Yes, they have a naturally heated pool and under the Teepees are smaller hot pools; different temperature at each one.

[images from last fall contributed by Wolfram - there was no snow in August!]

Eventually we are all wrinkly from soaking and its time to sleep. zzz.

[interlude]
chess anyone?

So, what did you look at first? that awesome Cobra? ... our motley bikes are in the background :)

Sir, you're ride has arrived ...
http://www.terraunbound.com/photos/626070576_aq8Qz-M.jpg
http://www.terraunbound.com/photos/626058561_TcB4x-M.jpg

Ah, the color combinations were so classic!

This family of bikes ... never moved!

I call it the dead room:

Day 2 arrives and we're moving slowly. After a hearty breakfast and pouring over maps, I head outside to performance some bike maintenance. My coolant seems to disappear quickly and the site-hole on the bike is worthless. So to really check the coolant level involves taking off the seat, taking off the left-hand blinker assembly, and then the side panel. Before we had left for the trip, I'd purchased a driver and TORQs... it made the job go about twice as fast. About the time I reach screw number 6 (of 7), the distinctive sound of Pukha-pukha approaches! I glance back and a very pretty 2005 F650GS rides up. Stan, a local Saratogan septuagenarian, just happened to be doing a warm up lap before heading out for the day. He asks me why I have my bike torn apart ... and then is surprised because in ~14,000 miles, he has never checked the coolant level. Lucky guy. We discuss routes, particularly the non-paved variety, and wish each other well.

All of the other motorcycles, except the family [their bikes didn't move ALL weekend], cobras, and Bentleys head off to the west and Rt 230 - a nicely paved scenic road.

We go east onto Ryan Park Road, which starts off paved. We pass a country club (Old Baldy Club) and continue for a few miles until the road turns into a very well maintained rancher dirt road.

beautiful rolling landscape

lots of ranches

While the road is mostly well maintained, it is ranch land. So the occasional cow on the roadway is to be expected. I learn to cross the cattle guards in the middle of a solid section - do not, DO NOT, try to ride where two pieces of the cattle guard come together. That is a recipe for a wheel trap and ripped tire. In case you are wondering, this did not happen to me, nor Wolfram, but I thought about it.

where is this water coming from?

another open vista

After stopping at the National Forest sign for obligatory "we were here' pics:

And after stopping at the visitor's station again,:

We head back to the Snowy Range and choose another unpaved road, this time FS100. Yikes, this has been recently graded, turning it into a field of marbles. Slowly we gain more confidence and get up to 30mph, all the while hoping that a big critter doesn't jump out at us.

The swathes of dead trees was very sad to see

Thankfully we turn off onto a less-traveled FS261. If you like trees, then this is a nice route. There were some nice surprises, like cow #9084, who was chewing very contentedly on the wildflowers in the middle of the forest. No other cows, humans, or structures in sight, just cow #9084. And a few other sights.

[a bit processed pic, trying to get rid of the haze...]

After an hour or so of bopping along in the forest, not seeing a soul, we decide to head to open vistas. Yesterday I had spied a beautiful butte reflecting the afternoon sun, so we ride back to town on Ryan Park.

uh, cow on road ... what do I do? ... dang, this was NOT covered in the BRC! ... mooooo!

mooo!....ve

My favorite cow picture:

We head north out of Saratoga, and I watch the butte slide off toward the west .. the road is bending-the-wrong-way! But wait!

There's a turn to a public boat launch for the North Platte and of course, its dirt!

Rattle-rattle-rattle-rattle. This road is filled with washboards from side to side but I can see that we're getting closer to the butte. My plan had been to touch the butte - alas, this is the closest we can get:

By now its late afternoon and our plans to window shop are short circuited with the desire to get back into the mineral springs. We feel really lazy and don't even go to the other fine restaurant in town;

we just have a few drinks at the bar,
enjoying a dry one before dinner

the detritus of a good appetizer

eat dinner, read a little, then zzzz.

Just married and scootering into sunset ... Target style

2009-08-13T07:28:00.007-06:00

Two matching scooters (Vespa-esque, of course), empty cans, the curvy road, flowers lining the road, leading to the setting Target sun... Not much in the way of ATGATT but hey, its a bubble of love. Someone really thought this one through! I just had to get this gift card for my cousin's wedding.

Heading Out To Beauty

2009-08-07T06:36:00.008-06:00

Yep, we're going on a road trip! Pictures and narrative to come soon...
(And yes, I messed up the template - I'll fix it later )

butterscotch trees

2009-07-08T20:11:00.000-06:00

tilt the visor up,
catching heady scent of pine
sun warmed trees flash by

tall shadows reach out
caressing my flashing frame
summer continues

its a warm day!
ice has thawed from my bones
say pukka pukka

Sometimes you gotta eat

2009-06-18T19:27:00.005-06:00

And we've had this awesome looking bag of picholine olives sitting around since Christmas...

Loosely based on a Puttanesca sauce

1 medium onion - chopped
1 med carrot - chopped v. fine

4-6 cloves garlic
1 bag of olives - drained, rough chopped (and pitted if need be) (~1 c olives)

~1 tsp red pepper flakes
~1 tsp oregano
~3 tsp basil - fresh... chopped
black pepper - ground

~2 tsp - 1 TSP anchovy paste (some recipes call for simmering this first)
15 oz can diced/ crushed tomatoes
2 x 6 oz tomato paste

1. Saute onions and carrots until onions start turning translucent

2. Saute crush garlic cloves into mix, saute
3. Add olives, saute a little

4. Add herbs and anchovy paste - stir

5. Add tomatoes and tomato paste - stir

6. Add 1/4- 1/2 cup water so its smooth and thick : not too thick, not too thin
7. Let simmer for half hour or more (our simmered an hour+); add more anchovy paste to taste; keep adding a little water so the sauce stays smooth and doesn't stick.
8. Cook up your favorite pasta (we're using Farfalle) and smother with sauce.

Riding point vs wingman

2009-06-11T21:46:00.005-06:00

A pair of Harleys entered the canyon in front of me yesterday evening. I figured that would be the last I saw of them as I rode up the canyon. Well, it was the last I saw of the first rider... The second rider, however, was much more tentative on the curves, and therefore riding much more sedately. In the curves, she would start to lean, back off and straighten up, nad run a little wide in her lane... on the short straights she'd speed up to catch up with her riding partner. It was typical noob riding that I myself have exhibited on this road - there are lots curves and the ones at the beginning of the canyon are the tightest - so I hung way back to keep any traffic pressure off her. Curve after curve she was losing ground to her partner...

Her partner kept getting further and further away, never slowing down. Were they really together? Was he oblivious to her issues with the curves? Had they discussed the possibility that they would get separated during the ride?

Watching this play out and having experienced this same phenomena, has me pondering the importance of being the front rider. Often you see the more experienced rider in the front; they usually know the roads and/or how to read the road better than a lesser experienced rider, and sometimes they want & can to go faster. Also, it gives the less experienced rider someone to follow (but don't target fixate!) and guidance on entry speed into curves. If the second rider is much slower and constantly trying to 'keep up' by blasting through the straights (and thus having to brake even harder for curves), then the pace of the pack is too fast. Its good for the newer rider to learn how to lead - learning how to read the curves, to use hand signals as well as to keep an eye on your six.

The key is communication. Acknowledging one's skills and communicating with each other how you want to ride - before you start riding! Sometimes I'll ask my DH to lead and to keep a slower pace to I can watch his cornering technique; other times its a ride your own pace ride - and the nice thing is, he always waits for me at different points through out the ride (sometimes we set the stops up ahead of time when we know the route).

Back to the two Harley riders (and it could have been any type of bike) they were together because I had seen them enter the road together and the one point to the Boulder Falls out-of-order sign as they entered the canyon. And, based on the finger wagging and gestures at the Falls parking area where they stopped ... she was not very happy with him.

Riding together can be a lot of fun and being consciencious of each other's riding style can keep the riding experience fun.

Lots o' twisties - Golden Gate/Coal Creek Canyons, Colorado

2009-06-09T22:22:00.010-06:00

Let's go for a short ride between thunderstorms... we'll just go down Golden Gate Canyon and back up Coal Creek Canyon, says our friend the expert motorcyclist.

Sure, that'll be fun! (says the noob)

And thus we started out on our weekend adventure on Sunday afternoon. Saturday had been filled with removing the rear tire of Bob's bike, getting the flat repaired, and reinstalling the wheel (and adjusting the chain tension... about 4 times.) It was fun to turn wrenches again, but ... its not what I really want to do with my spare time.

[pre-ride check]
Sunday looked like a real wash out but finally around 2pm, the weather looked clear enough for a ride. We decided to go south because ... the weather looked better and we'd never ridden those roads before.

So off we go, and its cold. Like mid-50's. I'm cold before we even get 15 miles down the road for the turn off for Golden Gate Park. OK, I'll warm up as we go to lower elevations. I worry that Bob will be cold in his mesh jacket, but he's not complaining so I don't worry about it. Besides, there's some major riding to do.

[the route]

This is a wonderful road. The scenery, what I saw of it, is spectacular. And the glimpses of the plains were amazing. The road is moderately twisty with some real gotchas. [add g-map clip] Our friend Kevin is a wonderful front rider; he's extremely smooth and on his huge Harley, he made the gnarliest turns look like a piece of cake. At the same time, he carefully slowed to good entrance speeds which gave me (us) plenty of time to go even slower - the signs that say 15 mph and show a U-shape turn really mean it. OK, I'll admit that there were a few turns where I'm going at a snail's pace as I'm making a hard right turn AND going downhill (mentally screaming, SLOW - LOOK [sh*t! where the h*LL is this curve going,I keep turning my head further and further ] - NOW PRESS, PRESS, PRESS, thank you for engine braking - PRESS PRESS, ok, you're good). And then, mmm, how would I do that turn better next time?

As we descended towards Golden, I kept wondering when it would warm up. In fact, the cloud bottom kept lowering with us. At once point I could feel mashed bits of hail ping my helmet and jacket and could see flashes in the distance below us. It turns out that a few funnel clouds were spotted about the same time as our ride on the plains.

Someday I'll figure out how to mount a camera onto the bike. Just imagine being completely surrounded by walls of sandstone and then suddenly you are spit out onto a seemingly perfectly flat surface. Welcome to Golden. It suddenly occurs to me that I have to ride north on RT 93 - the connector route between Golden and Boulder - at some insane speed limit.

I tell our front runner to pull over so I can get more gear on. The clouds are barely above us at 6500 feet, the winds are starting to kick up, spits of rain are pinging us, and I have a mesh jacket on. I offer my rain jacket to Bob, thinking he's only got mesh on too and knowing he gets cold faster than I do. He, very intelligently, had installed his liner. Huh, fine, I pull on my rain gear under my main jacket and immediately feel warmer.

Off we go towards Boulder and Rt 72, Coal Creek Canyon. Did I mention that I've never ridden above 60mph and then only momentarily on the only paved straight-away on our local highway? And the speed limit here is ... 65 (ok, some areas are 45, but do think that's what folks are driving? ha! So... off we go towards Boulder. Its a blast. I feel really solid, no shimmying, no whining of engine, gusts are no problem.

We turn back to the west on RT 72 and can see virga and sheets of rain cloaking the mountains ahead of us. We're just waiting to be soaked and surprisingly most of the trip upward is clear.

Again, lots of smooth curves with a few special twisties thrown in; I can see why this is a favorite with many riders. Near the top we finally hit some weather - slight rain and really strong gusts, enough to slow us down by 5-10mph.

The ride back through Ned is like a triumph; I think we're the last bikes for the day, especially after the storm had come through. To celebrate, about a mile from our house, I stop at an intersection to let a zoomer go by, and tip over. [Thank you Erica for your help!] sigh. still much to learn about reverse sloped roads. I can't wait to lower the bike a little more. To prove to myself that all is OK, we do another lap and go through the same intersection - all is fine. All in all, yes, this is for me, the most challenging ride yet, and in many ways the most fun. We're looking forward to doing Trail Ridge Road across the Divide through Rocky Mountain National Park - just hoping that the road stays clear of snow and ice. It is mid-June after all!

Sunglasses and riding

2009-05-30T09:54:00.003-06:00

Even though I ride with a full face helmet, I like to wear sunglasses as well. Call it another layer of protection. Call it being ready for changing conditions - I can take the sunglasses off if it gets dark and cloudy. But usually its bright and sunny and I'm riding into the sun, so I need some serious shading. I've even added a dark shaded strip along the top edge of my face shield so when I'm going to work in the morning (going East) I can block out the sun.

Many many moons ago Consumer Reports did a test of sunglasses - bottom line, even the cheap sunglasses can be just as good as the expensive ones for blocking UV and providing polarized protection. However, the lenses in the cheapos are not as well made so the visual quality is less /distortion is often worse.

For me the key is using polarized lenses. It cuts the glare on the face shield, glare from other cars, etc. Water puddles often look really weird and its taking me a while to recognize ice from water as it polarizes differently - not an issue now that its warm. On the other hand, those oily repair patches on the road (sometimes called worms) really really stand out - so avoiding them is not hard because I can see them bizarrely glowing as I approach on the bike.

[note: I think there's a slight polarization in my face shield which when coupled with polarized sunglasses causes some of these interesting visual effects - its not distracting but did take some getting used to - especially when looking at objects that also polarize the light (water, asphalt highway, a snowy field, a car hood, or glass) - a topic for another post :) - three polarizations! Physics 101 here we go!!]

I had a pair of Bolle's polarized grey sunglasses and they were awesome but after 7 years the lenses were too scratched up for riding... SO I picked up a $20 pair of polarized amber sunglasses for fishing - they were/are awesome ... they do make the world look 'brighter' and they have the same UV blocking... there is a reason for this apparent brightness which I read online once - do a search! And they make the world look greeeeennnn, very intensely greeeeennnn.

Somehow they got bent (more like slightly melted - probably from leaving them in the car and our intense sunlight shrunk the plastic unevenly) and now the lenses are distorting my view slightly - which while in my car doesn't bother me, however while riding it is a big deal - I think it messes with my sense of depth of field when glancing out the edge of the lens and seeing a distorted image.

In the past 2 weeks I ended up buying one pair and then another ... because I forgot the first pair at work and I needed to ride my scooter home into the afternoon sun - so now I have a pair of Native (Sprints) and a pair of Bobsters, both come with interchangeable polarized lenses (although not interchangeable with each other!)

I like them both. The Bobsters have a slight cushion around the edge, making them goggles - which has been nice to keep debris out of the eyes when the face shield is up (like when its fogging up).

But I love the feel of the Natives Sprints the best. The nose-piece is adjustable and they're easy to slip on once I have my helmet on. Downside is they are pricey. But of course I bought them on sale (thanks Mom) coupled with my REI yearly dividend check so they weren't that bad...

m2c of advice: just get any 'ole polarized sunglasses at the grocery story to get you going and then take the time to do serious shopping for a pair that work with your helmet and viewing style.

How to tell if the sunglasses you want to buy have polarized lenses? well, there should be a sticker... but what if someone has played with the stickers? Take TWO pair off the rack. Place one pair on. Now look through the lenses of the other pair of sunglasses and rotate them back and forth- the lenses should change from light to dark and back to light if both pair have polarized lenses.

we need a title?

2009-05-25T22:24:00.002-06:00

Haiku is for you
and for all of us to share
stories in 3 lines

No riding today,
Its raining, foggy, hailing!
Eyes droop and worlds fade ...

Dreams of sunny fields
Mud flying, tires spinning,
NOT ON THE FLOWERS!

Dreams of green forest
Clean pine scents pervade my lungs
Ride in dappled light

KABOOM, POP, CRASH, SNAP!
Searing white replaces green
Wind, a tempest makes

Sheets of white pebbles
A cacophony of sounds
Or was that an elk?

No, a herd of elk!
Bounding into my story
Thundering past me

We head for turn one
Heart races, leaning over,
Cut the inside edge

Roll past cheering fans
Fading into swirling mists
the storm ebbs away

A hush fills the air
Dream, reality, who knows?
Ride to find out which.

Imagination.
Fills the spaces between words
Creating new worlds.

why ride?

2009-04-02T23:27:00.007-06:00

There's something about riding a scooter that is unique unto itself. You're part of a smaller, special group of riders who buck the norm of the 2-wheeled world. Going fast is not necessarily the goal; riding in style is; or maybe its just riding on a scooter that is. And although my fashion leans toward the practical: full face helmet (with butterflies), armored jacket, leather gloves, armored overpants, and tall boots, I feel different. Occasionally I like to have a long scarf to flap in the breeze *yes its a safety hazard to some extent* but hey, Snoopy is my hero.

What's so cool about meeting complete strangers who happen to ride a scooter? I don't know, but it is. Maybe its the single common thread of scooter ownership that allows me to overcome my shyness / lack of social skills / sphere of quiet that usually surrounds me and actually provides a way to say something witty, like 'nice scooter'. Wow. She speaks. But then the next sentence comes more easily... 'so, do you like you scooter?' 'where'd you get it' etc... and before you know it, you're talking to a complete stranger who happens to belong to the same brother & sister hood as you.

I happen to be able to go the speed limit except on long steep uphills, so when I pass other motorcyclists, there's usually the wave and then the startled look. (Hey, was that a scooter that we just passes?) I like that. Still, I'd like a scooter made to ride on dirt roads. Lately, I'm feeling guilty about taking my Ariel on our washboard infested roads - she's a real trooper but its not what she's made for. I need to stop railing about what it can't do AND focus on what it can do. What can my scooter do - ride beautifully, turn nimbly, glide through curves for starters. Riding back dirt/gravel roads is not a strength; nor is going the speed limit at 9000 feet ... so what to do?

Riding a scooter is also an attitude, expresses an attitude, shows an attitude. And since outward expression is usually subtle on my part, it fits me. I know its there. Like the marvelous taste of true vanilla ice cream. Or the intricate sewing on an all white wedding quilt. Its subtle and you have to pay attention to catch the surprise.

I wonder if scooter rallies and motorcycle rallies are similar. I wonder if the people are similar. Is there such thing as having a scooter soul? Or to be in love with the idea of scooter - meaning that it has a certain definition in my mind and the reality is slightly distorted to fit that definition? *damn the reality*. Of course, there are realities - such as putting on the gear morning and evening, watching vigilantly for other vehicles, bad bumps in the road, and elk and deer making spontaneous jumps, and staying warm. And the reality of more freedom than when riding in a car.

Being part of the motorcycle crowd seems different and not. For one thing, its a crowd. One of the many - which is still special since riding a motorcycle is a minor subset of motorized transportation. Is the attitude different? For some riders, its about the speed. And for many others, its about the ride and and riding. So it seems the worlds of scooter and motorcycle intersect... now, what is the essence of that intersection?

Scooting is not a competition, imho, and has some overlap with bicycling. You don't get anywhere very fast on a bicycle; although its easy to become fixated on light equipment and identifying who can ride faster (maybe its the predominance of international-grade cyclists in this area). And since just about everyone rides faster than I do, it seems like a game of ego. Or maybe its because I am the slowest one so my ego is hurt... nahhhh. Riding a bicycle gives me time to spend within the quiet surrounding me. So there's another intersection ...

Scooting, motorcycling, bicycling. Three worlds that on the surface only share the fact they are two wheeled. Many members of these communities, from my observation, view the other with varying degrees of dismissiveness (or worse) (there are exceptions) and yet they share common elements.

For me, riding brings much joy and peace and allows time to interact with the environment around me and feel the beauty and harmony from riding well. Air has pressure when you ride. Gravity is felt going around curves. A field of wet grass is pungent. That is the essence of riding.

The Holidays are Here! A random scooter gift guide.

2008-12-07T10:00:00.010-07:00

What to get your scooter obsessed friend (spouse) and not break the bank? There are lots of toys, ornaments, t-shirts, gadgets, and practical items to consider. Here's a sampling of what you can find if you keep your eyes dialed in.

Let's start with the fun stuff, like ornaments.

There's a fair trade store in Boulder called Sevya which has very cool scooters made from recycled pop cans. In their words "Sevya is dedicated to preserving the indigenous art forms of India by supporting the artisans who uphold these traditions."

They also have motorcycles, airplanes, jeeps, and three-masted ships for variety. For $7, your loved one will have a unique gift, hand crafted, and supports sustainable living for others around the world.

Other sources for ornaments abound. Check cafe press for some really interesting designs; prices vary around $10.

You'll be surprised by how many unusual places carry scooter items; I picked up this gem at Gumps last year in San Francisco while attending AGU.

And this year, the Gump website has this awesome looking motorcycle. Also check World Market, Hallmark, and other gift oriented shops, such as Scooter Swag and Deviant Art for ideas.

Oh, but you want to give her something practical? Its winter. your scooter babe/dude needs to stay warm... how about a versitile neck gaiter such as one by Buff Wear. I first bought this to use while riding, but now I wear them all the time. They're fun too as you can change how to wear it into a balaclava, hat, pirate's scarf, and more.

And it would be nice to ride without freezing one's hands off - there are lots of insulated hand guards that are generic fitting, such as these by Ducks Unlimited. (Maybe black would be a better color for the scooter). More outerwear ideas are nicely provided by Scooter Riding Style and other practical ideas through webBikeWorld (great reviews too!)

Other ideas: a battery tender, a scooter cover or enclosed structure, Stabil to keep the gas from varnishing, the list goes on... How about some retroreflective tape and stickers (let her pick the style)? And a gift certificate to her favorite scooter shop, such as New Enough will bring shreiks of joy :).

Getting back to the just-for-fun stuff, there are lots of die-cast models out there (Amazon.com and WalMart have a few) and for the futurue scooterist how about an electric mini scooter... Peg Perego Vespa GT Scooter

Its a REAL scooter for kids! "Picture the most stylish ride around, with your little one beaming in the driver's seat. The Peg Perego-licensed Vespa GT scooter has the power of a 12-volt rechargeable battery that propels it at 2-1/2 or 5 mph, and it stops quickly with its rear brake. " At least Amazon suggests buying a helmet with the scooter (in pink of course).

Amazon; other big box stores carry similar scooters.

Now that I'm looking, there are five or six different electric scooters and motorcycles for children to ride! Wow, boy are they lucky!

And the Razor Pocket Mod Miniature Electric Euro-Style Scooter and other Razor scooters even have a range of 10 miles, will carry 175lbs, and speeds up to 17 mph!

Ok, so this one is a bit overpriced, but if you just gotta have a Barbie on a scooter, there's Beach Glam Nikki and Vespa at Toys'R'S and Amazon; and of course, Beach Glam Barbie and Vespa, Surf's up Aa Barbie with a yellow Vespa, and Surf's up Barbie with Lilac Vespa. Did Toys'r'us really have to classify Nikki under the "Ethnic Dolls" category - come on! She's a Barbie! That's all one needs

And then my favorite, the BARBIE VESPA MOTOR SCOOTER without the Barbie :) (At this point, its a collectible, so look for deals!)

Now, you guys don't feel left out... there's the Rescue Heroes Mobile Force - Kenny Ride & Scooter. The list goes on and on...

Oh, and this is too cool! An out of print record album has been re-released called on CD: The Sound of Speed by Bob Thompson. And guess what,it comes with a track entitled: La Vespa (Motor Scooter). Listen to the beginning of it on Amazon. Its also available at Target.

You want pink?

Here's some pink for ya!

from: Hello Kitty Hell:

Now THAT is PINK

Wait there's more - now there's the Hello Kitty Helmet, in pink! Everybody needs a helmet, might as well be cool.

OK, I don't know about you but all of these scooter toys and stuff has me in scooter overload. I think I'll go take a nap now.

Oh, what about me? I got my present for Xmas and Birthday... see last post on my Fox Creek jacket

journey

What fun!

2008-12-03T16:05:00.002-07:00

A Vespa for the tree! Can you tell what kind of pop can this is?

scooter art!

2008-12-02T17:40:00.001-07:00

It is almost time for the holidays!

A Leather Jacket ... for me?

2008-11-27T08:32:00.005-07:00

Executive summary: Yippee! I bought a new motorcycle jacket!!!! I'm so excited to get back to Colorado and have this yummy jacket delivered to into my arms!!!!! Its a Fox Creek and the best leather I've ever come across.

Tip: Always feel how the jacket fits when sitting and when reaching.

now, the long story...

Not the I'm any aficionado of leather... but I've always appreciated the feel and the scent of leather.

I've been toying with the idea of getting a leather jacket for months and months (like since February) to supplement my mesh jacket and extend my riding into deeper cold. Early on I came across Fox Creek Leather and have been drooling over their jackets ever since- reading every review I could find, their testimonials, etc. The fact that their jackets are made here in the United States was appealing too. I google mapped the store and its in Independence, VA - southwestern corner of the state. Like I'd ever make it there... so I thought while sitting in Colorado.

The Vented Touring Jacket looked like just the right one - long enough to cover the hips a little and is under-stated so that I could wear it other settings.

Time passed.

Once I knew we were headed to North Carolina to visit family, I re-googled the store. huh. 2 hours from Greensboro. I started scheming (see recent post). So yesterday, we went to the mountains, crossing over the Eastern continental divide into Virginia to check out Fox Creek. As we're driving, the snow starts flying and then while we're in the store a furious snow squall hit! Nothing like pressure to choose the perfect jacket with the DH pacing, peering out the window, shaking his head... if we scratch his bro's car, I'm toast...

The saleslady was really nice and helpful. We were the only customers during the ~2 hours we were in the store. She made me feel comfortable to try on anything I wanted to. Yes, I could have gone custom. And I was in such a zone that I don't remember her name :oops: Let's call her Marcy.

I tried on four jackets:

Vented Touring Jacket

Women's Classic Motorcycle Jacket I

Fitted Classic Motorcycle Jacket

Vented Racing Jacket

Of course I went for the Vented Touring first.

Well, its on sale because they discontinuing it (and it being on sale appeals to that daughter of depression era mother gene). All they had were a few sizes. Rather apologetically Marcy said that the jacket runs rather small. Well, usually I'm an XL woman. My Olympia jacket is an XL and it fits perfectly. Marcy pulls the XXXL. With a slight gulp and vowing to get back on the program after being fed to the gills every day by my southern relatives, I tried on this jacket (with a thick wool sweater on).

It fit OK, a bit more tight in the chest than I'd prefer and moving my arms was a bit restricted. Without the sweater, it was fine. I'm slightly bummed.

I moved on. OK, if I can't 'hide' my motorcycleness then I'm going to blare it out to the world! Let me try on the Classic Motorcycle Jacket I!

Now this oozes biker. And did I mention that the jackets smell like leather and the texture is so smooooth and yet thicker than anything you find in a regular or HD store? But will it go with my blue butterfly helmet? Here it is:

Marcy helps me put on the jacket and steps back with a slight smile. I can feel my whole demeanor changing...I'm gonna look bad with this jacket on. Wait! Its squeezing me tight! I, I can't breath! Quickly Bob and Marcy let out the laces on the sides before I turn blue. It feels great (in xxl). I can breath and yet its not too loose in the front. The sleeves aren't too long. Getting the zipper started is easy.

But I'm thinking I should try on a longer jacket, so I try the Fitted Classic Motorcycle Jacket which is 2 inches longer than the Classic I or II

Its fit is slightly more snug than the Classic I, and I notice that while the extra length to 'cover the hips' looked great in the front, the leather flipped up in the back leaving a sizable gap where the jacket should have been flat on my body. Proudly being Member Number 5 in the Flying Fat A$$es Scooter Club, its like there's a ledge where my torso ends and my b*tt begins; plus my torso is short (otherwise known as short waisted). This jacket does not flatter my figure.

An Ah-ha moment occurs, maybe a jacket designed to be short - ending at the waist on most women will be just the right length on me!

So I try the shortest cut jacket, the Vented Racing Jacket, also on sale. Its cut a little shorter in front and longer in the back for sports bikers who are leaning over the gas tank to form the ultimate aerodynamic shape.

Yee gads! Did I mention that its also the most fitted jacket?

The word 'fitted' is a designer's code word. Fitted is what gives dresses that upside down triangle look - broad shoulders and narrow waist. For me with my slightly triangle more-like-a-rhomboidal shape it means 'uh uh, no way.' No amount of loosening the side laces would give my rib cage room to expand. I could feel my internal organs being rearranged (just joking) and a moment of sympathy to my 18th-19th century corset-encumbered relatives crossed my mind. While this jacket flattered my figure and if I were at my ideal weight of 140 lbs, this would be a great jacket; however, my requirement to breathe while riding overcame fashion and I put the jacket aside.

After another round of trying on all of the jackets without my sweater on... and with the sweater on... (and now Bob is trying on jackets for himself)... maybe in a bigger size for the Vented Racing...now walk around the store...did you guess it?

Yes! I chose the Classic Motorcycle Jacket I!!

On try number 3, I realize that this jacket stays snug around my waist and hips whether I'm standing or sitting. The leather doesn't flip up in the back. I can cross my arms, reach down, up, etc without the jacket pulling weirdly. And then Bob says, 'you know, lots of people around home wear their MC jackets all the time, even to fancy restaurants.' What a good guy.

And then the snow stopped, the heavens opened to blue sky, the Hallelujah chorus started playing on the radio (not quite), and I bought my first real biker babe leather jacket!

Thanks for reading. Mean it!

And if anyone is keeping track. The order of internal roominess (from most room to most tight) went as such for me

Women's Classic Motorcycle Jacket I ... Fitted Classic Motorcycle Jacket ... Vented Touring Jacket ... Vented Racing Jacket

.... . .... ... ..... ....

2008-10-18T16:43:00.003-06:00

ok, here's a summary of today's ride.

off road scootering
to see what's over this hill?
far from well paved roads.

explosive colors
quiet headstones of times past
snowy mountains soar

dirt bikes, atvs
they stare as i ride by them
a scooter out here?

Cross the stream gently
Dodge cobbles and jump sharp rocks
Yes! We can do this!

Oh no. Snow on road.
Slide across ice, whoops I go!
thank g-d for good gear.

scooter on her side
I slide into ditch unharmed
You 'K, ask Dirt Bikes?

Yes, I smile, [don't cry!]
Slowly continue through snow
DH high-5s me

Another two miles
creeping through mud, ice and snow
finally pavement!

We wave two fingers
Cruisers, rockets, scooters share
Camaraderie

Snow scooter is home.
Each scratch tells its own story
Can we go again?

2008-10-18T08:07:00.003-06:00

get up. feed the cats.
open laptop. write haiku.
wait for sun to rise.

Ariel is free
to scoot and jump and roll, past
elk and hummingbirds

she's purring softly
through dappled light and white snow
my scooter is me

is that my shadow
rolling with me through the curve?
tickled pink, I smile.

Ariel scooter
blasts through a set of long curves,
I yell and go Wheeeee!

silly barn swallows,
why do you dive right in front
of my tires at night?

be safe, wear helmet.
keep the rubber side down please.
slow, look, press, and roll

Ariel is my mine!
My scooter to ride, my own.
gravity rules all

My precious scooter
has a small white boo boo smudge
darn you icy steps

I get off the bus
and see my scooter, waiting,
ready to have fun

they slow, stop and stare
hey! she's riding a scooter
Yes we can.

we are women and
we can do anything* we
want to; just watch us!

[*nod to my friends' niece Julianne]

We can RIDE our own.
scooters and motorcycles
brings us freedom now

blogging by lamp light.
my kitties dream of plump mice
I dream of vroom vroom!

A late sun warms us
as we lean into the curves
scooting makes me free!

growl, hiss, fluff, and spit
Cat hates having his hair brushed
he's old, I love him.

here we go scooting
on another adventure
it is so freeing

luna curls up tight
betelgeuse curls up tighter
me in the middle

its chilly and dark
the day is new, full of life
zoom zoom here we go

scoot everywhere

2008-09-26T14:31:00.003-06:00

The internet down at work, and after working for most of the day and we still didn't have internet, I scooted to the coffee shop. As you can see, I'm still trying to get my head wrapped around Facebook.

Playing around root ...

2008-09-25T22:06:00.005-06:00

without ever landing on it.

Departing from his bluegrass roots, Chris Thile merges his virtuosic mandolin picking with Edgar Meyers amazing double bass classic background to create a musical meld of an avante-guard complexity.

While we went to the concert at Mackey Auditorium with the expectation of hearing a bluegrass jam, what we heard were pieces on the edges of melodies, diatonic scales merging w/ lightening riffs, keeping us on musical edge. In many ways it was uncomfortable - I haven't heard this music since I played Paul Hindemith's oboe concertos (sonatas?). Because this is outside of my norm, it makes me listen to ever note being played.

OK, back to scooting!

Rode my scooter up the Canyon!

2008-09-25T17:19:00.007-06:00

Rode my scooter up the Boulder Canyon, 100+ curves and all!

Its a beautiful ride however it has a reputation for being too busy and too fast - car and motorcycle accidents are not uncommon.

As a fairly newbie rider (OK, really newbie rider), I avoided riding its length all summer long. I wanted to be sure I had the riding skills up to the task.

And today the stars were in alignment ... in the form of a slow beat up Subaru to lead the pack at a pace I felt good with and so up, up, up we went!

This is part of the route from below the falls through the narrows.

I really thought I'd be wiped out from all those left -right-left turns etc. and I wasn't! I also thought Ariel would have a hard time climbing the mountains - and there were a few slow downs but I kept up with traffic.

While the sight lines are not long, the road is fairly smooth and wide. The curves are fairly wide beyond Boulder Falls. In fact, the ride was not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be! Although I've run this route and feel confident I can do it again safely, my desire is to only take this road during the lower traffic times of day.

10% chance of rain... It's

2008-09-18T16:52:00.002-06:00

10% chance of rain... It's been raining up in Ned for the last hour. Ariel is getting wet! I'm gonna be soaked ... the rain gear is of course at home.

[Later] Yep. I got wet. Ariel ended up really really muddy. Time for a bath!

I just can't help it ...

2008-09-18T12:15:00.002-06:00

I like taking pictures of scooters!! Most recent scooter pic

So how about posting via...

2008-09-18T09:50:00.001-06:00

cell phone? I've taken quite a few scooter pics and it will be cool to post them online :)

Ariel

2008-08-21T21:45:00.000-06:00

Ariel was on vacation the month of August...

Except for our very nice trip up to Rainbow Lakes. A 10 mile trek, mostly on dirt roads.

Riding with the big boys

2008-07-13T15:34:00.009-06:00

Finally! We're around when the Denver Maxi-scooters are doing a ride and its through our neck of the woods. We left a little early for our rendezvous point at Rt72 & Rt119, just south of Nederland. There's a nice pull off on RT72 just before the intersection.

Bob & I parked our bikes and stripped off the gear, it was not even 10am and it was getting hot up here! About a dozen groups of motorcycles rode by us. Lots of cruisers and sport bikes; most even waved to us. I pity the home owner at this corner cause every hog and crotch rocket revs up or down for this turn. It sounded like swarms of fat bumble bees intermixed with thunder rolling by. A few minutes before ten, we saw a group of cycles coming up the hill. 'think its them?' 'well, we don't hear them so its gotta be them!' (scooters run quiet) and it was!

Up drove Tom, Gina, Jay, Whit, Joe with big smiles on their faces. A great run up Coal Creek Canyon. We introduced ourselves and figured out where a decent pit stop could be and since I described the route so well, they wanted me to lead. me? Off to Nederland to the Visitor's Center (and pit stop). On this ride were, two Suzuki Burgman 650s, a Piaggio BV250, a Honda Big Ruckus 250cc, one SYM HD200, a BMW F650 Dakar, and a Honda Silverwing.

Ya know, that steep corner is aweful to accelerate from. I just wanted to give it a running start and then jump back on the scooter - instead I just leaned over forward and yee-hawwed Ariel up the hill. Next thing I knew, I checked my mirror and no.... one..... is..... there.... I see lights far behind me. Great. What a leader. I dial back the adrenalin and up the hill come the Burgies et al.

We cruise into Nederland in formation, MSF would be proud. Spent a few minutes there and then drove on up towards Ward. The first hills outside of Ned going North are fairly steep and a challenge to keep up one's speed. The sky was awesomely blue with little wind. The yellow wildflowers were magnificent along the road.

Since the group got fragmented, I pulled off just before the Mountain Research Station and we dribbed and drabbed in, regrouped, and headed on to Ward. And then we decided to pull over where we saw a small cluster of other cycles. Two other groups had pulled over for a breather, so we breathed with them, chatted, compared cycle stories. Bob was most interested in the BMW R1200; this fellow is taking a cruise vacation from Kansas.

Gina led the section down through Ward to Left Hand Canyon. She's got a beautiful white Burgman 650 - these roads are like butter for that scooter -it was a joy to watch her take the curves. Ward was typical Ward - cars strewn around, bicyclists grabbing some java, bicyclists pedaling uphill, and tucking for the downhill run. And they're going fast, at least... the speed limit, some places 40+. So we tried to give them the room they needed and popped around each cluster, single, etc. I have no idea how many bicycles we passed - 50, 100? The road is such a beauty to ride; its no wonder everyone wants to ride it!

We pulled into Buckingham Park, had a nice lunch near the creek, and swapped stories about riding and life. This is a great group of people. Bob and I headed north to Lyons so I could see what my scooters max speed really is. I kept up with the traffic ahead of me without a problem :) all the way to Lyons and then up Rt 7 towards Estes Park. What a beautiful road that is too! Full of nice sweepers. We turned off onto RT72 and followed traffic until they pulled off. Another great ride!

The Denver Maxi-Scooter route
Our route
More photos

Scooters swarm around Boulder

2008-07-05T22:15:00.007-06:00

(more photos)

A simple flier sat on the counter at Sportique when I picked up my scooter after having a trunk installed last week. 1st annual Boulder Burn-out, sounds like fun!

Bob and I made the trek down from Nederland and arrived around 11am; there was one other scooterist sitting across the street trying to figure out whether to stay or go. Then we saw a few more 'lining up' next to Sportique's building - ah, let's pull over there!

Over the next hour, 40+ scooters had gathered. Ready to go were a few of the venerable names in scooters: Heinkel, Lambretta, Italjet, Malaguti , quite a few from Buddy, Kymco, Stella, an MP3, SYM, Baja Chetak, and even a few Yamaha C3s (Giggles). And of course there were Vespas, modern, antique, indeterminate ages. Apologies for any scooter brands I've missed. And surprises of surprises, their riders all weren't twenty-somethings... many age groups were represented! Enough of the first chapter stuff... let's get on to the ride!

Finally it was time to roll! Oh what fun it is to ride with a group! The high pitched Reeee and 2-stroke smoke made our passing hard to miss. It was almost a parade in some sections as people just stopped and looked at us pass. Cars had to wait their turn. Other motorcyclists waved and honked.

Our route:

We rode to NCAR the long way around - Folsom to Jay to 75th to S. Boulder Road. For a few minutes it rained... hard! Which was rather nice as the temperatures were hovering around 90 degrees. While it had been tempting to forego the armored jacket (ATGATT girl) and join the rest in a t-shirt and helmet, I found myself slipping on the black swelter suit - now in the rain it was a welcomed burden. Off through the country-side we rolled. Horses placidly chomped on tall grasses as we passed by.

And even though we weren't making any land speed records in speed, it didn't matter since we rode as a group. Up at NCAR we took a break, drank some water, swapped scooter stories, and regrouped. Many riders have more than one scooter and for others this was their first month of scooter ownership. One couple had given each other Vespa GT250s for their 20th wedding anniversary! How cute is that!

The final segment wended us through downtown Boulder, and included going down Pearl Street. Typical Saturday chaos already was reining in the center of town, so riding was more about defensive maneuvering than 'being seen'.

Thanks to Sportique and Kristi for putting together this ride and hosting the bbq!

New experience: Riding with someone else!

2008-06-21T19:31:00.003-06:00

Our first ride together today!

Bob has a BMW F650 GS Dakar

I have a SYM HD200 named Ariel. Obviously our top speed capabilities are different, as are our skill levels with me being the newer rider.

So, I went first and set the pace. We headed north on the Peak-to-Peak highway from Nederland and went beyond Ward to an awesome view of Long's Peak.

Bob's summary: A cloudless, beautiful day, the road is rough, lots of bicyclists, lots of great sweeper curves, fun heeling the bike over.

Shelley's view: Wow! Weeeeee! My most constitant and fastest ride yet. Really concentrated on being smooth and taking the curves correctly. For some reason my scooter is 10mph SLOWER than before its first service - maybe they readjusted for 5400' (rather than 8300' where I live and ride). The air smelled beautifully - sweet flowers, pine, cut grass, etc. Waved to dozens and dozens of other motorcycles out for a ride.

Just before our joint ride I had gone over to the lake across from Kelly Dahl to photograph the great blue herons.

Finally, I've passed another scooter! We didn't just wave, WE WAVED! and SMILED! Kindred

spirit!

After our ride we ate at Katmandu Restaurant in Nederland. Yumm. Bob led our way home - I was mostly just trying to keep him in sight; a 170 cc road scooter is just no match for a dual sport and 650cc engine on dirt roads. Fun was had by all.

We did 'exchange' our rides. OK, I tried to reach the ground while sitting on the bike. Uh ah. not going to happen. I practiced teetering from one tippy toe to another, pushing the bike by one foot, practice balancing some more, and got over balanced and slowly dropped the bike to its side. Its been on its side many times in its life, so I don't feel guilty. Until we lower the suspension, this bike is off limits to me.

I went back to Ariel - she feels right sized - and we puttered off down our dirt road toward home after a happy day of riding.

Consumer Reports and scooters

2008-06-21T15:00:00.002-06:00

I just saw a blog posting by Consumer Reports that they are looking into scooters. I have read many, many newspaper articles which glibly and shallowly report about scooters as a means of transportation and their articles are puff pieces either pro or con. Recent posts in Harrisburg's Patriot News and Boulder's Daily Camera come to mind.

In CR 's discussion area, they are appealing for more information about scooters and riding - and I think we should share our knowledge and love of scooters.

Consumer Reports is EXTREMELY influential; a very positive means lots of sales and a negative reports can mean the demise of a model (Suzuki Samurai). Many people look to their reviews to help them choose cars, toasters, insurance, etc.

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/cars/2008/06/motor-scooters.html

And for those looking to buy, they are planning to do actual scooter reviews so look for that in the next few months.

I am not affiliated with this organization in any way - this post is to help share our grass-roots savvy with a much larger audience.

my posting to Consumer Reports:
Thank you Consumer Reports for taking a serious look at scooters and motorcycles. Perhaps the analysis is also about 'riding a scooter in today's traffic' since your blog entry wasn't about consumer advice in how to choose through the myriad of characteristics of different scooters. Although, it would be nice to have CR's in-depth scrutiny of the many brands and their qualities and sizes to point the consumer toward high quality brands and make them aware of the slew of unacceptable/fly-by-night scooter brands which ARE dangerous because they are low quality and often break during use.

"We approach these products with grave concern for rider safety and caution readers against a hasty decision to move to two-wheeled transportation without proper training and safety gear."

"Let's not be hasty." Case in point, I began my research last summer for a scooter and took the time to analyze what my riding needs were and could be. My alternatives to riding a scooter were to consider bicycling the 6 miles to town to catch a bus to a larger town, to car pool (which I already do with 2 others, mostly in the winter), to walk, and to continue driving my car. Much of my research was in safety aspects (gear, skills, attitude) and with safety statistics. After 6 months of research, taking the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Basic Rider course, and passing it, I purchased a scooter that fit my needs (a 170cc scooter with 16-inch tires to accommodate mountain living and riding). I estimate that I can safely ride 9 months a year while achieving ~82 mpg.

Scooters, motorcycles, and bicyclers share many common characteristics, which although obvious, I hope these are remembered when Consumer Reports starts analyzing the safety of these vehicles. And, at least around here, many bicyclists can achieve speeds of 40mph+ while going downhill (and the riders are wearing a helmet usually and a fraction of the gear considered necessary to safely ride a scooter & motorcycle at a similar speed). So the 'inherent instability and dangers' are similar and magnified - are these dangers explained during CR's bicycle reviews?

Really, the safety is incumbent on the rider; and for that, I point this organization to the Motorcycle Safety Foundation who offer basic riding courses and whose materials are often used as the basis for state driver tests and handbooks.

There are dozens of online user forums focused on scooters (and motorcycles), their safe use, their quality, and characteristics, etc. Perhaps as people replace their behemoth SUVs with smaller vehicles that also hold families of 5 just fine and the number of scooters/motorcycles and bicycles increases, the visibility and acceptance of these alternative forms of transportation will also increase. Think Europe and theFar East.

I have been reading Consumer Reports for decades and appreciate the thoroughness and thoughtfulness of its reports. Current newspaper articles seem to have taken a very shallow approach either pro or con; I look forward to the balance that CR is known for.

Soon to be two!

2008-06-16T22:20:00.003-06:00

My husband threw a fit after I suggested buying a milk crate and zip tying it to the cargo rack on Ariel.

“Why don’t you just put a crate of chickens on the back while you’re at it.”

Of course, he’s about to get his own motorcycle tomorrow। In anticipation of this momentous occasion, he wore his motorcycle helmet this evening while surfing his political blogs and emitted ‘vroom vroom’ noises

now and then.

रैली!

2008-06-08T18:12:00.001-06:00

If you are in the market for a scooter, the best place to see a lot of varieties and talk to real riders is at a rally.

I went to the Colorado Chaos rally today and even though I didn't show up with a scooter, everyone was really nice. There were mostly Vespas at this rally (the sponsor sells Vespas) and a smattering of other brands. Its maybe a smaller rally with ~75 scooters when I came by.

It was so much fun just to be there! People were very willing to tell me about their scooter, from the vintage Allstate (Vespa sold through Sears at one point) to a one week old Aprilia 50 cc.

Gosh darn, I forgot my camera! My DH thumped me on the head - "you always take your camera!!!" doh!

They had a 'gymkhana' which is designed to test one's slow speed skills. I'm sure if I'd had begged to the right person, I could have joined in as the passenger - that's how nice folks were.

So if you are in the market, get over the shyness, get over the 'they'll think I'm an idiot' and just show up. Just walking through the scooters was an education and lots of fun!

A conversation

2008-05-23T20:56:00.001-06:00

about Page and Plant...

After all, they did Stairway to Heaven.

"They did?"

Baby steps forward...

2008-05-23T10:35:00.003-06:00

Had one of those "oh SH*T" moments this morning...

I was headed on a many mile downhill section with some pretty tight curves. Its steep. In the few seconds between leaning left and then right and then left (that's how close the curves were) I would brake to get my speed back down ...in the middle of this downhill section I went into a skid!

I was braking through the curve (major oops!) - and immediately let go of the brake which stopped the skid - but I was really shaken, heart pounding, and dang it, there was the car that made me pass her 4 miles back was now on my tail!

Was I going too fast - had I really needed to brake? (yes) Was I too confident? Did I hit a small wet patch of dew? Was I trying too hard to stay in front of the car behind me?

So I continued ... carefully, took some big breaths, went through the curves at a slower speed, finally had a straight spot to let the car by me safely, and kept my mantra going... "slow, look, push/lean!, roll" . And 'it's ok, you made a mistake, it's ok, you didn't have an accident, you did the right thing ..." plus when I got to the intersection with the faster road (45 mph and more curves but wider road), I pulled over onto the pull off and did a quick meditation on being confident, etc.

Visual Fixation and Hummocky Roads

2008-05-10T05:30:00.000-06:00

Boulder Canyon is an amazing road with over 90 serious curves. Being a neophyte rider, I joined into the experience on the last 6 miles of the lower section where Sugarloaf road intersects the main road. This is a road I've known for four years + via my car and by bus. Some drivers want to go fast, some go 35 mph. You never know but the basic mantra is, there's only one way from here to there, so just deal with who ever is in front of you because that's the speed you are going to go.

And with this knowledge I'm joining, as I said, as a fairly neophyte rider. I've taken the MSF course. I've been practicing on the Peak-to-Peak. I can do 45 mph and curves.

Well. I discover that the lower Boulder Canyon road is very rutted with the years of traffic - the road is not smooth. So the classic 'start on the outside of the curve and cut the corner and back out to the outside' creates an ever changing lean angle that is most disconcerting! I have not encountered this before. And being courteous, after a few curves of this hummocky ride, I pull onto the wide berm and let a small set of 4 cars by.

I re-evaluate the road and decide that keeping a stable line through the curve is probably safer... changing lean angle as one traverses across little humps in the road does not seem to make sense. So after the last set of vehicles goes by, I join back in... and follow the curve in one of the 'grooves' - this feels so much better!

Fast forward 8 hours after work. I'm a little freaked out by my morning ride, and want to take those curves better. I'm headed up hill now through Boulder Canyon. My eyes are dissecting the grooves in the road and I'm doing horribly! What is going on?

Then I realize, I'm fixating on the details of the road! Relax... see the whole curve... see through the curve and suddenly I'm taking the curves more smoothly at the speed of the traffic ahead of me.

So THAT is target fixation! I go through the tunnel and honk my horn. What fun!

Fogged Mirrors and Delicious Scents

2008-05-09T21:14:00.005-06:00

My first trip to Boulder via Sugar Loaf Road. There had been a heavy rainfall the night before... the kind where you wake up and hear the rain rattling on the roof. What a cornucopia of scents were in the morning! My goal was to deliver my scooter to Sportique for its first oil change and service.

Little did I know that I would be treated to the heady smells of pine, water, dirt, and a few flowers! The first few miles along the road are dirt - so I took it slowly. I'm very tenuous about going around dirt road curves... the feel of loose gravel mixed with slightly slippery clay makes me feel uncomfortable. Ah to be 10 years old and impervious to such worries!

A few miles in, the road dipped into a hollow and not only did my visor fog up but my mirrors fogged.. first time for that. At the convergence of dirt to asphalt, I pulled over to turn on a blinky light; the theory being that drivers will notice movement and changes... as I'm grappling with my backpack, a guy drives by, gives me thumbs up and then stops and asks if I'm OK. I'm awesome! Positive signals all around and he cruises on. I get my light blinking and notice this most awesome curvy uphill. Wow. I'm going to ride that. And I do.

The cool thing is... the speed limit is 30 mph. Yeah, a lot of folk exceed that, but there are a lot that obey the limit so there's this feeling of "ok, cool, you're doing the speed limit, I won't run you over". Except there are these curvy downhill sections that I'm still not used to, so I pull over to let even the laid back folks by. I mean there is a limit to being laid back after all.

Sunday Ride

2008-04-09T08:52:00.003-06:00

I took a short/long trip on Sunday so I mapped it out in Google Maps.

It was so cold - temps around 30 degrees and while it had snowed a wee
bit the previous evening I was bound and determined to ride to my craft
group (where I'm knitting a hat). It mapped out as 30 miles, by the time I was done, it was 50+ miles! Not bad for my first long trip.

From Google Maps, you can get the route working in Google Earth; I suggest just
looking at the route rather than running the 'play' button as Google
Earth doesn't do nap of the earth and you end up spinning around
corners like you're in an airplane rather than on a scooter.

Also discovered that those google folks have been driving around the
mountains, so I'm including a few pictures from their Street View
option in google maps. Here goes. First, I'll show you what the area really looked like on Sunday .

And how could I not show Ariel... after 40 miles into my ride

Here we are at the beginning of the trip looking west.

a few miles later, still on dirt...

looking left, then right, then entering the Peak to Peak highway going
north!

First challenge is a series of broad S turns and a 3+ mile uphill.
There was a very strong headwind (in addition to being really cold) and
I could only get up to 45mph for the first mile.

One of my favorite overlooks:

Off we turn from the highway onto a dirt road town Gold Hill. Its a
short cut... so to speak. What I didn't realize is I go much slower on
dirt roads than in a car.

This is hard to see, but this road was really steep! And that's a long
drop off (about 200 feet) on the right -with no guard rail!

a very sweet set of curves. And in spite of the strip of sand running
down the middle of my lane, very fun to take. Speed limit here is
around 40mph...

By now it was getting a bit warmer. It felt really nice to thaw out.

and then, I got lost on the dirt roads on the plains... and saw many
horses along the way... so getting lost was not so bad!

here's the route that displays in Google Maps
click on Street View to see the images.

Now, to see this in Google Earth , follow this link to get the kml file. If you have Google Earth installed, this route will open automatically.

Its spring and its snowing

2008-03-02T14:09:00.005-07:00

Yesterday .........................................and today

They waved at me!

2008-03-02T08:15:00.005-07:00

Just had to share with you all what a beautiful day it was on Saturday! The sun was shining, our dirt road was clear enough to ride down, and I saw a fox at the side of the road.

I put-putted on our flat road and intended to turn around at the paved road/highway and take the long way around on dirt roads to go to the post office and mail off a gremlin bell. Once I got to the end of the dirt road, the highway was clear with almost no traffic.

It looked so inviting and empty, my inner voice said, "what the hey, I'll go into town this direction". Getting my courage up, I pulled over, removed the ice-chains from my shoes, and rode my scooter into town.

The main road to town for me is the Peak-to-Peak highway which parallels to the continental divide at ~8000 feet.

My heart pounding, I pulled out and started accelerating my SYM up a mile long hill. Would I get up to 45 mph? The answer was yes! and without a problem. Next time I'll tape my GPS on board so I can check it, but the acceleration seemed at least as good as our truck and certainly better than our neighbor's Subaru.

After stopping by the post office I puttered around town - hey, look, there's a scooter! (its a small town).

On the way back, after practicing small circles at the elementary school parking lot, I was feeling really confident and the road was still very clear of traffic so I continued on past my turn off and zoomed on northward toward Ward. And I see my first motorcycle coming towards me, so I waved... and they waved back! A couple of miles later a few more motorcycles come by, and we all wave to each other. I'm so pysched!

The SYM climbed the hills without a problem. I was keeping my speed to 40 - 45mph (indicated) and eventually a truck started to gain on me while we were climbing up a long hill. Well, I didn't want to be in his way so I turned the throttle up and ended up accelerating to 60mph while still climbing the hill! GULP. I slowed down. The truck was nowhere to be seen.

I had been wondering about high altitude tuning on the SYM because it had seemed like I had to rev it up higher than I expected. The SYM does fine at altitude and yes it can get up to speed and keep going at speed. It even handled well and was stable when getting pounded with 30mph crosswise gusts (me, I was quietly freaking out and had to keep telling myself to relax and trust the bike). The little windshield does a decent job, especially when I leaned slightly forward, the wind just flowed right over my head.

Oh, here’s my gremlin bell hanging from the lowest part of my scooter. It needed a little coaxing to start ringing – the clapper was twisted inside the bell – and now it gives a beautiful little ring as I maneuver her out of her parking spot.

And this is what a Yak-trak looks like.

Caution if you choose to wear them – they’d be a hazard on a scooter with a clutch as they can snag on the brake and shifter. And they could get hung up on the side-stand…

Its feeling like spring!!

I missed my bus to Nederland on Friday and so took a walk around downtown. The sun was pouring through the canyon gap, lighting up the Pearl Street mall with a late afternoon glow.

Being a good Boulderite, I bought some coffee and strolled down the mall. After making my way through juvenile zone, I entered children zone and sat on a bench near the old courthouse.

After a moment I realized I was right next to the children’s fountain. This fountain is special. It kind of looks like a hop-scotch and in the summer time, it spurts up water from a bunch of holes in the ground so kids can play and splash around .

Right now there’s no water flowing but you wouldn’t know it! Little kids kept walking, running, skipping over to look at the fountain. They looked into the holes, ran around and giggled, hopped from one square to the next, and made little squealing and fountain-like noises.

Their parents, thinking they were be reassuring, were sayings things like, “there’s no water right now because its still winter” (but its warm out now!) “you’ll be able to play in it soon” (really?)… Fuddy-duddy parents, don’t they get it? (many did after they stopped talking and just watched).

These children were completely re-living last summer and were in-the-moment now, seeing the water soar over their heads, jumping from spot to spot to catch the next stream... what do you need water for when your imagination fills in the missing pieces?

With a smile on my face, I walked back to the bus stop dreaming of riding my scooter tomorrow.

Layout test

2008-03-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

Centered - Large

Left - medium

Right - small

TOOK MY FIRST RIDE TODAY!

2008-02-24T14:16:00.013-07:00

And I found myself swaggering just a little bit afterwards.

And why not? I bought my scooter Ariel (A SYM HD200) a whole month ago, had to baby her through horrendous winds (~70mph gusts) hoping she wasn't blown over, a few snowfalls, and some very cold temperatures (5 F) testing the anti-freeze. My previous post from two weeks ago was about our attempt to load her up on the truck. The weather and ice would not cooperate. It February in the mountains, what do I expect?

I have just returned from San Francisco with its near perfect scooting weather year round, watching other scooterists zipping through the neighborhoods, even in the rain. It was cold there (40's) and still there were scooters. I wanted to ride!

It turns out the weather here was mild all week with highs in the 40's [ah the irony], resulting in significant melting of the snow on the road.

This morning I walked the top section of our road to see if there were enough clear patches strung together for a short ride - and there were! I'm bouncing up and down with anticipation. So, while my DH sipped coffee on his recliner, I prepped Ariel for her maiden voyage. Bob helped me quite a bit with getting Ariel in and out of her nest behind the stairs - thanks sweetie!

The first challenge was getting down the driveway. Its completely snow covered and this morning it was icy. My solution: YakTraks - chains for your feet.

And then I went back and forth on the clear stretch of road, slowing going through ice zones, turning around on melting compacted snow. We got up to 30 mph!!! I'm having a blast.

The cul-de-sac is covered in snow and old ice. The whole time I'm turning around I'm imagining the scooter zipping out to the side while I've got her leaned over. And yes I put my foot down on those turns and even did a 3 point turn once. I'm not here to prove that I can do perfect counter-weighted u-turns on a patch of ice.

My nerve worked up, I started through the first switchback down the hill. S*#t - completely snow covered but nowhere to turn around. Fortunately there was a clear section after the curve. Ahead lay an expanse of snow and ice down the second straightway. I rode back to the house so we could finish reconnoitering of the road.

Riding up the driveway was a trip! I veered a little off the driveway and got the scooter stuck in 4 inches of snow - oh my what a rooster tail.

Our rece trip showed that there were too many icy patches on too many switchbacks, so off I went on my one-mile circuit. again, again, and again! My last trek up the driveway was a gas. I took a running start and got as far as the truck - and then saw that our mirrors were going to hit. So I backed down through the snow about 50 feet to the clear run. Took another run and this time did some major fishtailing. So, I walked next to the scooter, gently providing power. I could feel the back tire spinning and tail was leaning against my leg, trying to zip over. I still got stuck, but at least this time I near the top of the driveway. After much wrestling I maneuvered Ariel back into her home - she (and I) are covered in mud. I'm happy :)

Denied! no riding for scootergrrl today.

2008-02-09T16:48:00.003-07:00

I'm a bit frustrated ...with myself and the weather. Our driveway has turned into an ice skating rink due to the roaring winds and successive snow falls and compaction. Plus, I just could not come up with a safe way to push the scooter up a steep ramp onto the truck bed.

First I spent a half hour with a hair dryer warming up and scraping out the ice covered junk in the holes with the tie-downs (Dodge has since redesigned these tie-down points). I know I had cleaned them out in January so my guess is the local chipmunks are storing bark and twigs in these perfectly sized holes as an emergency food cache. I digress.

Then I backed up the truck up the driveway, trying to find the optimal angle to create the optimal height (tailgate is as low as possible) which is still bloody high. When the scooter is on the truck bed the handlebars are way over my head which means at some point I have to climb up onto the truck bed... how? A parallel ramp to walk up? I saw a one advertisement of a motorcycle ramp where they used a step stool to help load the cycle and thought I could do that.

Now, if I were really motivated, I would shovel a path through 4 vertical feet of snow from the house through our snow drift and create a flat ramp to roll the scooter onto the truck bed. This has not happened but it might after this experience… read on.

I unlock the scooter, start her up just to make sure everything is ok and then my husband and I start pushing... and quickly I realize I'm banging into the wall of the house, tripping over the *#!*% downspout...and rocks to hold down the downspout, the deck struts and finally we've got the scooter completely on the ramp. The handlebars are over my shoulders...

and I'm stepping onto a step-stool which is sitting on a quarter inch of dirt that we’ve sprinkled onto the 2 inches of ice... with my foot literally in mid-air and the scooter heeling over at a strong angle, finally my cautious side overcomes my desire to load the scooter. A vision flashes through my head – physics 101 scenarios of the angle of force from my stepping onto the step-stool, coupled with the frictional resistance of four tiny one-inch feet of the foot stool, minus the coefficient of friction of ice once the smear factor of dirt has been overcome – and I’m envisioning the stool sliding under the truck, me flipping onto my back with the scooter landing onto my belly. oUCH.

At this point, I pitch a verbal fit about the unfairness of this all, Bob pitches fit about how he's mentioned that we have 6 months of winter (like I had forgotten) ... and we carefully roll the scooter off the ramp and back to her protected parking spot. Upon further analysis, our loading process is flawed. My next method will be to bribe friends with a trailer to haul my bike down to Boulder so I can go riding in March or maybe I’ll dig that trench after all. It’s good exercise.

Taking the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Basic Rider course

2008-02-03T20:57:00.000-07:00

It was cold and dark when I got up on Saturday morning but it didn’t matter, I was finally taking my motorcycle safety class! I had been registered for a class two weeks previously right after I bought my scooter, but they had canceled the class because the weather was supposed to be cold. Ha. That weekend ended being warm!

Still at 5:30AM as I left, it was 10F at the house so I was a little nervous that all we’d be able to do was the indoor lecture portion today. It was supposed to be 45F and sunny and in Colorado, if it is sunny even when its cold, you warm up (higher elevation + lower humidity = more intense sunlight).

As I drove along the Peak-to-Peak highway I dreamed ahead to this coming summer and hearing the drone of Harleys riding through “po-taa-to, po-taa-to”… and that I might be able to join them on my scooter “ringggg-dinggg-dingg-dinnggg” And then I saw some elk on the slope and really started paying attention to the road. It was clear. The canyon road was clear, so was Highway 36 and I-70.

An hour and a half into my drive and a mere 3 miles from the Aurora Town Center where the class was to be taken there was a thick rind of snow on the road. I watched as a truck wildly fish tailed almost into the wall and the traffic start to slow down – it was slippery and I was going to be late!

The parking lot was covered in snow. I saw one fellow walking to the mall entrance with his helmet, so I knew I was in the right place. There ended up being five of us and our instructor, Curt. Curt has years of riding and racing motorcross experience, and while I think he’d prefer everyone to ride motorcycles, he was cool with the two of us who wanted to take the course on scooters.

Our class was quite a mix: an attorney who plans to ride dual sports with his wife and teenage son, a young man who graduated early and moved to Colorado for school, a former college-football star about my age, a young woman who is also in college, and me, a middle-aged computer and education geek doing her part to help save the environment by using less gas.

The morning passed quickly; we covered the homework questions and watched videos that helped show important concepts, then we took the written test. If you read the MSF book, you’ll pass the test. We all did. Then we took a lunch hour and met at the riding range – it’s a section of the mall parking lot that has been blocked off by cones. Curt had us walk the lot to prove to ourselves that there was no ice.

It had warmed up to 35F and they had plowed the lot, so there really was no ice, just wet areas. Fine, we’re good to go! And we started off with baby steps by duck walking our bikes getting used to the throttle and clutch from one cone to another. The hardest part was pushing our bikes in a tiny s to turn around. The second hardest part was learning to shift (for the motorcycles). I really think that if there weren't so much machismo attached to motorcycles, that starting to learn on scooters without shifting would be (is) better, and then once the handling skills are down, then teach the shifting part. Look at driver's ed for cars... I was riding a Kymco Bet & Win 250 cc – it weighs 350lbs! The other scooter was a Vento Phantom 150 and two Suzuki dual sport 200’s and a Suzuki cruiser ~250cc. 350 pounds is a lot of weight to push on a slight incline.

It was great once we were allowed to use power to help turn ourselves around. We practiced riding straight and then gentle curves and even gentle swerves. I won’t describe all of the exercises, I will say that MSF has really thought through their training program and be a training developer myself, it is SO nice to take classes that are well thought out... and theirs is meticulous in preparing you.

My body and head stayed warm the whole time; I had on a polar-max undershirt and long underwear, a lightweight poly and wind resistant vest, a neck gaitor, and an Olympia Air-glide jacket plus jeans. I had on hiking boots and wool socks – my feet were toasty. My hands stayed warm for most of the afternoon and then suddenly they got cold and I couldn’t do anything to get them warm. My cold went from slightly annoying to turn-on-the-faucet and I went through a whole pack of tissues. Oddly my nose only ran when we stopped riding.

With our weather delay we only made it through 6 and a half exercises our first day and by the time we left it was getting very overcast, dark, and cold. Still I was thrilled to have ridden at all! Even the long commute back home was OK – I crashed early that night, my hips and wrists a little sore.

Day2, Sunday. We didn’t start until a little later to give the sun time to re-melt any ice. We had 10 ½ exercises to get through and all of us were chomping at the bit to practice our quick stops, swerving around dump trucks (in reality little green cones), and counterweight our way through that little box. My ears wouldn’t equalize (my drive took me from 8200’ to 5400’) and I was a little worried that my balance would be off. We started off the day at ~33F.

And off we went! All of the exercises went smoothly; the swerves came more easily today than yesterday. Except for one exercise that stumped me – a little rectangular box where you have to do 2 U-turns (a complete S) – the second try I almost did it and then it went downhill from there. I need to turn my head more and keep it turned. Counterweight more, especially the right-hand curve. Finesse the brake with the throttle partly on. I felt like a failure.

The temperature climbed to 38F for most of the day with a spike of 46F when the clouds opened for an hour, and was just going below freezing when we were taking our test. The wind kicked up to a constant +10mph for an hour or so. It was not dangerous and gave us some practice with dealing with gusts. My ears equalized by lunchtime.

Later in the day we practiced the box one more time. The other scooterist did yet another big box without touching down. I asked her about her approach and she was like ‘f**k the box, I’ll do what I can”. Wow. Its refreshing to get an alternate perspective so I tried that approach and I decided that if I did a bigger box I was OK.

My body ached all over, my back, my hands and wrists, my hips; the temperatures and wind sapped my body of energy and I was stiff by the test, so as I did the S-shaped U-turns for the box, I did my best and yes, I went outside of the lines. Twice! Lightning didn’t strike; a horde of shrieking Valkyries didn’t descend from the heavens to smote me; I didn’t turn into a slime-mold; and I still passed the final riding test… which in Colorado means I get my motorcycle endorsement!

One person had a perfect 0 – our instructor still warned him to keep practicing… our rides had all been below 15mph so there’s a lot more to learn. He gave each of us specific areas that we needed to work on. Me, I need to work on riding slowly in tight circles with my weight counter-balancing the lean of the bike. I felt this proper balance once or twice during the day… something to keep working on.

As I drove home I was elated to have come so far - we had ridden about 15 hours in two days, most of it on Sunday – I had gone from feeling like I didn’t know what I was doing to feeling good that I have some specific techniques I can use while riding to keep myself safe.... I’ve heard the term “ride safe” and wondered “well, of course, I going to ride safely”; now, Ride Safe really means something and it is more than a cerebral understanding. My body knows what it means too.

Now if it would just stop snowing so I could go to a parking lot and ride…

Quick photo

2008-01-22T00:19:00.000-07:00

OK, its been a week since I picked up my scooter. And its been really cold hovering in single and lower double digits. I've been taking off the cover, starting her up to let her idle for 10-15 minutes, sitting on the seat making vroom vroom noises, and putting the cover back on. So I had to get a battery tender. This involved removing the base-plate where one's feet go - 5 philips head screws later and after getting beyond the nervousness of electrocuting myself, I got the alligator clips on the battery and Ariel is well again.

Sunday the temperature soared to 25F and the wind was a whisper. I decided to install the permanent hook ups. I carefully loosen the screws from the battery and pull the battery cables up and OH! there goes a screw into the compartment.

I carefully reach for the screw and IT SLIPS THROUGH THE LITTLE HOLE where the cables come out!!! Rats! i can't reach or see the screw in yet another sealed compartment between the battery compartment and the ground... off to the workbench for 10mm ratchet and wrenches.

Time passes, I retrieve the screw and get the battery tender hook ups hooked up. Replace the bottom plate under the scooter. Replace the foot plate for the foot bed, connect the battery tender, watch the light go green, replace the cover, job done. As a reward, I take some more pics :)

Please Welcome ... Ariel

2008-01-15T20:27:00.000-07:00

After many months of researching, trying on different scooters, reading forum posts and test driving... I finally chose the SYM HD200 scooter!And yes I named her. Ariel is mid-night blue, peppy and ready to roll!

That is, once I take the MSF class ~~next~~ some weekend soon and bring her down the mountain to where the roads are clear, then I can creep slowly around some suburban neighborhood - I knew they had a purpose. The photo to the right shows me with helmet and armored jacket - the edging really does shine!

By the time we got back from Sportique in Denver, unloaded her from the truck (another story) and found the safest, most secure spot with the least wind to park, it was getting dark. Unloading the scooter is going to take some getting used to.

And since its winter, no sunshine hits this side of the house; all of this is to explain why the photos I've posted online are not the best. Can you tell its blue?It's been incredibly difficult to get a good photo of the color.

And the helmet matches! See more photos. I will be adding more as time goes on.

We had hoped to park the scooter indoors, however the handlebars are too wide, so under the steps she went, with her cover... facing into the wind in case we have any 50 mph blasts of wind, which we are having right now! Poor baby! I have a Battery Tender keeping her battery fresh so hopefully she'll be fine.

The final choice came between the People 150 and the SYM. As I stood there looking at them, I have to admit I had to say goodbye to the P150 with a touch of sadness, "Sorry grrl, its just not going to work". The deciding factor came down to seat! Of all things... The seat holds both Bob and I at the same time and being able to transport both of us is really important to me. Oh, and I'm sure I will enjoy the extra power on these Colorado hills (mona lisa smile).

I am soooo excited and can not wait until I can take her for rides around Boulder! and Nederland this spring! Thanks everyone for answering my myriad of questions and journeying with me while I agonized through all of the details.

Scoot on!
Shelley

Test driving a scooter - a newbie's experience

2008-01-06T16:12:00.001-07:00

I am a newbie to riding a motorized two-wheeler although I've biked for years.

So far I have taken one other set of test spins on a Buddy 50 and the People 50.

Another post goes (will go) into what and why... I thought I would share what its like for a newbie rider to go out on a test ride and to provide my [limited] impressions on SYM HD-200 and Kymco People 150. If you are looking for thorough reviews of these scooters, there are plenty on the web:
SYM HD 200
http://www.justgottascoot.com/symhd200.htm#ScooterStationSYMHD200
http://www.symscooters.co.uk/edit_5.php
https://www.insuremyride.com.au/comments/article.asp?number=33

People 150
http://www.powersportsnetwork.com/motorcyclereviewdetail/rv=23261/veh=6396/review23261.htm
http://www.powersportsnetwork.com/enthusiasts/review_detail.asp?rv=54638&veh=10023
http://www.powersportsnetwork.com/enthusiasts/review_detail.asp?rv=50752&veh=10023

My impressions on test scooting the SYM HD-200 and Kymco People 150:
Ok, its not a retro look one bit; however, the HD-200 does have 16-inch wheels and has the power range I'm looking for. I straddled it and found it balanced well. I can almost flat foot while sitting on the seat (forward a bit) while wearing hiking boots. There was plenty of space between my body and the handle bars while getting on. Sitting on the scooter my arms felt good, the handlebars are at just the right distance from me, I don't feel either cramped or over extended. The grips are a little smaller and not quite as nicely cushioned as the Buddy; this probably can be altered.

I started off doing laps in a parking lot across from the dealer. First lap it was a battle between thrill and terror that I was really doing this. I crawled along looking for gravel and just remembering the mechanics of riding. Then I realized I still had the jaw guard of the modular helmet up -- dork alert. Second lap was much quicker and I felt pretty good. I found that holding on to the brake slightly kept it from rolling backwards when starting up. The first couple times of starting up felt like I had to turn the throttle 'far-ish' to get started - I'm a newbie remember.

Then Val said why don't I take a spin around the block? You mean on a road? Adrenalin enriched terror courses through me for a moment... then I hear myself saying 'Sure!'. I'm riding a scooter! On a road! By myself!! Yippie!

And then I had to turn left and go up a steep hill. I had a momentary user-induced fear moment by not turning the handle bars enough and keeping my hand too hard on the throttle. I didn't quite run into the curb, and it was right in front of the salesperson (yikes!) - I had to tell my right hand to LET GO OF THE THROTTLE and all was well, up the hill I went. Something to practice.
Fortunately Sportique-Denver is on the edge of a very quiet neighborhood.

So as I accelerated up the steep-ish hill, there was plenty of power without feeling like it would accelerate from under me. It felt good. Turned right and a car was behind me - and if I took a relaxed moment to turn right at the next stop sign, it didn't seem to bother the car driver (who went left).

Then going downhill, I went over two washed out road cut-ditches - meanwhile I'm thinking to myself... Val said to have fun... am I having fun?... yes!... now coast over these ditches carefully, hand off throttle, slight braking - it felt fine. The roads were slightly wet from the snow melt and still felt good with the braking. I came back into the shop lot with a smile.

Once I got back, Val had a Rattler ready for me to try. Its a 2-stroke which for environmental reasons I want to avoid. It felt a bit small, so I went right to the Kymco People 150 to test drive.

Now for the past 3 months I've focused most of my research on the People 150 and 250 with some attention to the SYM and occasionally the Piaggio 150 . I've been looking at Craig's list for the Kymco for 3 months and have watched how the prices vary throughout the U.S. My laptop wallpaper has a modified People 150 image. And now I got to try one on.

As I swing my leg through, my first thoughts were ... 'gee its kind of cramped but I can easily straddle the floorboard, sit and get my heel on the ground'. Val gave me the pep-talk and reminded me to have fun and that I would do fine. I went through all of the toggles on the handlebar to buy a little psych-up time and then off I went. And this time I believed her... I'll have fun!

It felt smooth going up the steep hill - not quite as peppy as the SYM, but with good verve nonetheless. Stopping and starting on the hill was fine - going left and through wet streets with slush spots was fine. In fact it felt a little more nimble. The brakes felt a little less immediate than the SYM, again still quite good. The final flat straight away I accelerated moderately and could feel the acceleration.

Now that my nerves had settled down I decided to test the HD-200 again and pay attention to how the scooter felt rather than focusing on all of the mechanics of riding (left-turn signal on, then brake, stop... put feet down!, etc).

This time I ended up going down an alley so I could get to the flat road... and went over some slush-spots. I felt the rear end twitch, so instinctively counter steered the front end slightly (like riding on sand on a bicycle) and it was fine. I'm sure as I learn more, I'll have a better way to deal with these small issues. Looking further down the alley I saw lots of slush/ ice covering the whole road so I turned into a parking lot and went back to the main road.

I returned to the same flat and straight road so I could compare acceleration with the People 150. I got up to 50! Then I remembered that the outer ring of numbers on the speed are kph so I really was doing 31 mph. I felt like I was flying :)

The final test was getting both Bob and I on the scooter seats. Bob is 6' 3" with long legs. Both of us are ... not twigs. We barely fit on the People 150 together (me driving of course) while there was plenty of room for both of us on the SYM.

I know these were not huge test drives and I'm so new at scooting that my ability to do a deep evaluation is limited. You've got to start somewhere.
So here's my summary:
SYM HD 200:
Better pick up and go
Braking seemed more solid
Fits the two of us better

Kymco People 150
more nimbleness
Cute! Adorable!
Very comfortable - could place more of my foot on the ground.

Both look solid, feel solid, handle well, have 2 year warranties, fun to drive

For me, I am leaning toward the SYM HD200. I'm a little bummed that I like the SYM better, but for me it seems like the more appropriate scooter. And its not ugly by any means, just... you wouldn't call it cute like the Peopl 150. Time to think. I'll keep you posted!

The Journey to a Scooter Named Ariel

2008-01-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

This rather long entry provides the back story of my journey to purchasing my first scooter. Its written in chronological order... hopefully that won't be too confusing. And I don't really expect anyone to ever read this, but perhaps it will help someone out who is in the throes of searching for their first scooter. Here goes.

Mon Sep 10, 2007
The scooter bug first bit me when there was a Vespa shop right on my bus route... such graceful scooters; I saw those beauties every day. Then a neighbor down the hill showed up with a Silver Wing - handsome - out of my class. I've had a few colleagues at work who are also avid scooter fans. Now I'm seeing them everywhere around town and everyone I know with a scooter just oozes excitement at having one and the fun they have!

I've probably visited/ bookmarked 30 scooter sites so far; all these names are making my head spin! I even found a 2006 Vespa LX150 close by - at least I can drool over it though I'll probably end up with something more rugged - People 150? Rattler? or if a really inexpensive used 50 cc scooter falls in my lap, I might be totally irresponsible and just go for it.

I'm not looking to go fast, my goal is to have a scooter to reduce my car usage so it would get me (and my DH [dear husband]) to the park'n'ride bus stop and to go into town for errands. OK, and go play some along the peak to peak and back roads.

The setting:
The challenge is that I live in the mountains in Nederland, Colorado at 8200 feet; just west of Boulder and live down (up) a dirt road about 6 miles from town (and the bus stop). Over half of the trip is on dirt roads. We're in the middle of granite country, so our roads are hard pack... with some gravel to make life exciting. And yes, we've had to change the air filter on our car/truck every 5k... and then there are the washboards to make things rattly.

This is low speed driving - probably 15 - 25 mph - I don't even go much over this in a car on these roads. The road I live on is steep and dirt... 20 mph speed limit. The flat dirt road has a 25 mph speed limit. Sometimes we don't see a car for a half hour and then a few will roll through. We can walk down the middle of the road quite safely. There is the road the connects us to the town with a speed limit of 45mph. And surprisingly enough, most folk go close to the speed limit.

I don't have an interest in riding to Boulder - to me that's equivalent to a black diamond ski slope and I'm only ready for the green dot bunny slope. Besides, I've got an eco-pass to get me down there.

So what do I need?
I see our neighbors with dirt bikes doing OK and there's even a Harley that majestically rolls slowly through now and then. I've talked to motorcyclists and its their opinion that a dual sport would be good. My DH thinks that scooters are over priced and perhaps I've gone bonkers; my bus friends think its impractical because its so cold in the winter, not to mention snow. And I say 1) there are good scooters that keep their value 2) good clothing negates those 20 degree mornings (heated vest anyone?) 3) Scooters are fun - who cares about these practical aspects!

I took a look at the Ruckus BB... looks durable, now about those tires... I saw a Rattler on the road this evening and then I saw a beautiful Vespa... [slightly whiny sound] and I really want a pretty scoooter [end whine]; slightly girlie and independent.

Wed Sep 12, 2007
My visit to the Boulder Sportique was lots of fun - they let me try out a Buddy 50 (in pink) and a People 50 (in white, color yawn) ... riding around the building I immediately like the People because it felt more stable (it has 16-inch wheels)

Their advise was to aim for taller wheels since they handle gravel and washboards better. And to consider a slightly bigger engine to climb the hills (speed limit is 45) and to combat the altitude. By tire/wheel size, probably in the range of 13" - 16" diameter with maybe slightly gnarly tires?

Oh, there is a bike rack at the bus stop (park'n'ride) or maybe a sign post would work to secure the scooter to something unmovable. There are a few dead cars I could probably attach to too in a pinch. Smile.

Thur Sep 13, 2007
About Wheel Size and Width
Did a little more research and talked with a pro-dirt bike rider, a dirt bike riding neighbor, and Sportique staff. I modified my discussion slightly so I didn't get the dirt bikers distracted with the concept of a scooter. I asked them the same question: which will handle better, a bike/scooter with 16-inch wheels or with 10-inch wheels, both with knobby tires? And uniformly it was the 16-inch wheels provide better handling for 2 reasons. 1) the relative size difference between gravel and a 10 inch wheel means it has to 'climb' over that gravel more than on a 16-inch. 2) a 16-inch wheel has more surface area in contact with the ground than a 10-inch wheel. I wish I could do an empirical test to verify.

Then there's fat vs skinny, smooth vs knobby. and as everyone has noted, fat and knobby tires are better. Except in snow where skinny tires are preferred (why? dunno. just watch a rally car race in Norway and they all have skinny tires on.)

With this in mind, it really does narrow my choices quite a bit! (But then why is the Ruckus so popular?) After sharing the information I've gathered to date, my DH thinks that I should really think about a 250cc bike - that 150 cc is probably too small!! I'm willing to consider a bigger than 50cc and it must be 4-stroke to be more environmentally friendly. How about I get a 50 cc to learn on and then upgrade next year is my thought.

Fri, Sep 14, 2007
Transporting a scooter in the bed of a truck. I see lots of dirt bikes tied into the back of trucks this way:
http://www.bigpeoplescooters.com/learn12.php

Had a good talk with a local Kymco scooterist. We talked riding philosophy, technique, weather, visibility, safety, and more. While he has a 50cc People 50, he thought for up here a larger cc scooter would pull the hills better. As we discussed transporting one’s scooter to Boulder and how to tie a scooter down in a truck bed, lo and behold, a truck pulled onto our main street with a scooter in its bed. So he proceeded to show me all of the mistakes they had made loading it (the owners were shopping).
1) do not place on center stand or kick stand... you want to put a downward load on the front suspension.
2) Place a large block between the front of the scooter and the truck bed - save your bodywork.
3) Hook one end of the tie down at the front of the truck. Make a loop over the handlebar grip AND the brake on the same side of the truck. Cinch it tight - but not too tight yet... now get the other side started. .. and cinch down both sides until the front suspension is pulled down most of the way.
(By this point I'm thinking, how am I ever going to do this by myself?)
4) You don't have to tie down the back of the scooter - unless you are paranoid, which I am and I will.

Bigfoot, your wisdom has been stellar!

Mon Sep 17, 2007
Helmet shopping: So far I've tried on 4 brands, Shoei, HJC, Nolan, and ??? (I forget) I had a really good talk with Andy at Boulder Powersports - he's an ok guy; still gently pushes for me to consider a dual-sport dirt bike - but was very helpful with trying helmets. Then I called 3 other dealers - is everyone closed on Mondays? And went to Mikes... and ended up liking the same RF1000. Anyway, all of the helmets that fit (key word) were close to or more than $300. I'll pay it if need be... I'm just wondering if Boulder stores only carry the most expensive stuff. That pink VOX is pretty - but I can not find one professional review about it, which makes me wonder who really makes it.

P.S. Remove earrings before donning the helmet!

Tue Sep 18, 2007
I went by Sportique today to look at "my" scooter - a 150 cc Kymco People in pale green. Even took a picture. In Colorado you must get your motorcycle endorsement - no permit (from what I can tell)... so I'm looking at the motorcycle class...

Plus had a informative talk with their mechanic about the Piaggio... and how replacement parts will be expensive and hope you don't need them in August (when all good Italians go on holiday). On the other hand, there are state-side vendors with most parts...

Sun Sep 30, 2007
Just got back from the Outer Banks, North Carolina (OBX) ... specifically Waves. I was in such scooter envy... yes, they were there to be rented... some Chinese make that probably costs $700 which they are renting for $250 per week. Not interested at that price. So I just lusted after the very wide variety that I saw on the road.

Now on Ocracoke they had really cute 50cc Vino's and saw some 250cc somethings keeping up with traffic along the highway. On the one day that it did rain, some very courageous woman motorized her scooter through the rain, on the shoulder from Rodanthe to Avon; my hat off to her...
BTW, the water was AWESOME!!!

Fri Oct 05, 2007
On staying warm (around the neck)
Having lived in Nederland for a while and through many high-wind sub-zero winter days... my thoughts about polar fleece are 1)sometimes its just too bulky 2) not wind proof at all 3) makes hair stand out at weird angles in the winter. I have many wool hats and scarves but they get itchy. So I started to look around for a head/neck cover to go under a hat and covers that gap from hat (helmet) to jacket collar and could be pulled over the mouth. Its interesting that these desires overlap the motorcycle world so closely! Silk scarves do work well, but then I came across these tube like neck warmers/head wraps that are made out of some other material. Which has lead to more searches, here's what I found so far.

Zub - wide variety of colors and patterns. I'm ordering a couple to test out in our next wind storm - its a stretchy micro-fiber
http://www.zubwear.com

Rukka neck warmer - looks very wind proof however stops at bottom of helmet, see review for the whole kit: Bikers Comfort in Action - Motorcycle Windproof Underwear; now the underwear might be worth the investment!
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/bc/

Frank Thomas Antifreeze Neck Guard
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r3/neck-warmer/wind-block-neck-warmer.htm

EDZ neck warmer
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r3/neck-warmer/

Wed Nov 14, 2007
Which to do first, get the scooter then go to class... go to class and then buy the scooter... I really want to take the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Course. One thought is to take the class now and take a refresher in a few months. Do I even have the time to take a class before Christmas time?

Wed Nov 28, 2007
Dear Santa,
I have been a good girl this year. I've been very nice to my husband and cats; I cook nutritious and fun meals; I even let my kitties cuddle up on my feet so they can stay warm. For Christmas, I would like a sea-green People 150 with a plum colored helmet... Yours truly, Shelley

Fri Dec 14, 2007
I've been in San Francisco this past week at the AGU meeting. There's lots of scooters here and not all on the road! Found an awesome scooter ornament at GUMPS and then saw one in the Macy's window, along with some kitties for adoption.

Fri Jan 04, 2008 AM
OK, now that I have the funds... I can go for a People 150 (new/almost new) or I found two Kymco People 250's that are 2007 slightly used for the price of a new 150 or I can wait to see what new 2008 Kymco EFI's come out this spring or should I take a look at the SYM? The choices are killing me! This is my first scooter so I don't want to over purchase, however I don't want to be exchanging within 6 months either. I'm a little concerned about the weight difference between the two People scooters.

Fri Jan 04, 2008 late PM
Tomorrow is helmet and sit/test ride scooter day! I'm sooooooo excited. We had dinner with some friends who have been motorcycle riders in the past and that's all we talked about was cycles and scooters (why a scooter and not a dual sport), gear, etc; plus some becareful stories. The equivalent of 'you'll shoot your eye out kid!' advice along with the try-everything-they'll-let-you-try.

So far I've test ridden a buddy 50 and a kymco people 50 and liked the kymco. I've sat on the P150 and the Aprillia Mojito 150 plus a few others. I'd really like to see the Sym as well. With the weather so iffy, nows a great time to go kick the tires - and maybe get a great deal... we'll see!

Sun Jan 06, 2008
It was so much fun! The sun was shining, it was warm out, no wind either! I rode in a flannel shirt, jeans, helmet (of course), and hiking boots and never was cold.

We drove down to the Sportique in Denver and worked with Russel and then with Val to figure out my/our needs and to show me their scooters. And they let me test drive a SYM HD 200 and the Kymco People 150! Val was really patient answering all of my questions and was very encouraging as I took the test drives. While I haven't quite plunked down the money... its going to be soon! [see post: http://terraunbound.blogspot.com/2008/01/test-driving-scooter-newbies-experience.html]

Mon, Jan 7, 2008
I'm seriously considering an HD200 or the People 150. I am a little concerned that there's not much presence for SYM yet in this country. I've looked online and the reviews have all been really great... have found a handful of SYM scooter owners ... but no forum/blog to sink my
teeth into. The other scooter I'm just as ready to buy is the P150... only issue there is that my DH and I barely fit on the seat two up (he'd be pillion)

Also I found out that I can have my choice of red, silver, and midnight blue in the SYM; all available in the crate at the shop waiting to be assembled and haven't been ridden by anyone yet.

Tue Jan 8, 2008
Difficult choice:
Sometimes it takes time to emotionally accept the practical answer; I've been emotionally attached the idea of the People 150 that it a little hard to let that go even though the SYM is a better fit. I'm trying to gauge my husband's desire to be pillion and whether that should be a real consideration to factor in. If not, then there's a really cute green or black P150 waiting. I did try on the P250 for size and had to tippy toe even in my hiking boots... now if I had some serious platform boots maybe the 250 or the 500 would work.

Wed Jan 9, 2008
Agonizing-over-the-details
Its like waking up from a daze of details. Being detailed-oriented, I go through this process where I analyze every shred of evidence I can find in print, on the internet, at the shop, [I even read the owner's manual and asked the salesperson for clarification on some details]. And sometimes drives people nuts... I think I spent less time deciding on which house to buy (except for the year of checking postings first)! So sometimes I need a nudge to step back from the details and ask what my gut says is right.

I'm kind of glad that I've happily mulled over the prospect of scooterhood for months as my requirements have become more clear with time. I thank everyone for their support and putting up with me as I have pulled you through this process too.

One nagging thought that emerged over the past two months was, how do I and my DH get to the bus? or to Rainbow Lakes? or other local places? He's not going to have his own scooter/cycle for a while.I've been the passenger many a time on a cycle and so has my hub - and he's had his own cycles for many years, many moons ago. He's willing to be the passenger, once I can handle the extra weight and his height; I've got a lot to learn. He's also getting that glint in his eye that he might be interested in his own ride (Harley?) First to learn the mechanics of riding, then add in the pillion factor.

The other nagging thought has been 'is 150cc going to be enough for our high-altitude roads'? So I want to re-check this out. If the weather holds and the wind settles down just a little, I'm off to do a last round of test rides and hopefully make a decision. (Can you tell I'm an INTP?) I've read read read everything, everywhere I can so now its time to see what my gut tells me.

Even more semi-useful urls, shameless promotion

2006-08-20T04:17:00.000-06:00

Other places w/ test blogs, rss's, subscriptions, what ever.
http://www.travelpod.com/members/terraunbound
http://www.bloglines.com/blog/earthgazer

Photos - I've stashed them in a variety of places.
http://terraunbound.smugmug.com/
http://www.pbase.com/terraunbound
http://www.flickr.com/photos/terraunbound/
http://www.imageevent.com/terraunbound

Photography forums and reviews - and there are so many worth viewing - these are just my current top list
http://www.dpreview.com/forums/
http://www.network54.com/Forum/151930/
http://www.dgrin.com/
http://www.photo.net/community/forums
http://www.dyxum.com/
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/forum/
http://www.fredmiranda.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/

nice compilation of infrared sites (although old)
http://www.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1009&message=2921413

Food and travel
http://boulder.citysearch.com/ - I always check this site out for good eats while traveling.
http://chefmoz.org/
http://www.tripadvisor.com/

Weather
Nederland weather - personal weather stations+data shown ona google map http://www.wunderground.com/stationmaps/gmap.asp?zip=80466&wmo=99999
NOAA Ned weather - http://www.crh.noaa.gov/forecast/MapClick.php?CityName=Nederland&state=CO&site=BOU
Niwot ridge weather - http://culter.colorado.edu/NWT/
http://www.met.utah.edu/cgi-bin/droman/mesomap.cgi?state=CO&rawsflag=1
Boulder precip/monthly - http://www.cdc.noaa.gov/Boulder/Boulder.mm.precip.html
http://pangea.stanford.edu/courses/gp104//waterscape/viewscaperk.php?entry=39
Road Conditions in Colorado - http://www.cotrip.org/
Avalanche Conditions - http://geosurvey.state.co.us/avalanche/Default.aspx?tabid=293
aviation weather - http://www.colorado-aeronautics.org/awosphonefreq.htm
Satellite and radar -http://www.rap.ucar.edu/weather/

Stream gages

BOCMIDCO -- MIDDLE BOULDER CREEK AT NEDERLAND

BOCOROCO -- BOULDER CREEK NEAR ORODELL

BOCOBOCO -- BOULDER CREEK AT BOULDER, CO

USGS 06730200 BOULDER CR AT NORTH 75TH ST NR BOULDER

table of stream gages - http://www.dwr.state.co.us/Hydrology/flow_list_current.asp?CTY=7
http://bcn.boulder.co.us/basin/

Local and favorite web cams
Tundra cam!
Front range cam
Eldora cam
Boulder cams
Ned cam overlooking Barker Reservoir and Nederland, Colorado
Ned cam II and weather

Maps:
Boulder County GIS maps - http://map.co.boulder.co.us/basemap/disclaimer.htm
CO - well permit (with some logs) GIS - http://165.127.23.116/website/lttools/

Plants and wildflowers
http://herbarium.biology.colostate.edu/photo.htm
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/Pubs/Garden/07233.html
http://www.denverplants.com/wflwr/nav/b_p.htm

Educational
DLESE Teaching Boxes http://www.teachingboxes.org/
DLESE - The Digital Library for Earth System Education

other
http://www.nednet.net/company.html
http://www.backcountry.com/ - hiking gear
http://forum.delorme.com/

URLs to have on hand

2005-09-20T22:24:00.000-06:00

http://terraunbound.smugmug.com/ - current photo site
http://www.imageevent.com/terraunbound - my photo site (old)
http://www.pbase.com/terraunbound - even older photo site

http://www.nimbus.it/italiameteo/previtoscana.htm - weather in Tuscany

http://www.comune.roccastrada.gr.it/inglese/inglese_trekking.htm - hiking trails near roccastrada

Pulling it all together

2005-09-20T22:17:00.000-06:00

We're leaving for Italy in two days! Yippee! I've got all my gear ready, now its time to see if I can fit any clothes. Just kidding. Not really.

And I thought it might be nice to share my photos and our experiences while we're in Tuscany - if we're near any wireless that is. If not, oh well; I can upload later.

The past week I've been gathering info on terme (spas), topo maps, hikes, market days, cool photo spots, and anything Etruscan... if it becomes useful I might post some of it later. First though I want to pull into this site some important URLs to have on hand while traveling... and sipping capuccino, etc. -seo