Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Day SIX

Hey ya-all, I decided to focus on posting some of the thousands of photos I have taken so far. Still soo many more to come...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scooterpics/sets/72157607296074036/

Day FIVE

We left Saledia around 8am with the temp being in the high 20’s. Thank God I had my scooter skirt cause it was frick’n cold! The temp stayed cool throughout the whole ride through Colorado. Gradually the terrain went from sculptured mountain range with wildlife and carving rivers to flat terrain that stretched out like a flat blanket corn.

I could feel and see the change it the environment and people. No more lush vastness, runners and bicyclists on the side of the road but rather the sound of big diesel trucks, the smell, many people smoking and the sights of economically strapped America.

The temp changes once I passed into Kansas. Much warmer and LOTS-O- BUGS. This is where there are lots of farms hence the insects. I stopped to walk in the path of the Santa Fe wagon trail ruts and was attacked by grasshoppers.

So tomorrow is a short riding day and its nothing but flat open riding…

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Day FOUR

Well my face feels like an old catchers glove. I should put on some sunscreen…
Anyhow we left the sublime beauty of Utah. Sob, sob, and head out for our next big adventure though the state of Colorado. I wasn’t too cold when we left Utah but as we ascended to the San Juan Skyway the temp dropped to 30 degrees and the wind chill did not help any.
Well the scenery trumped any aches and pains I had. Sublime beauty, which left me speechless. No words could explain how I felt!

So in a nutshell the ride was challenging, beautiful we had no major breakdowns, my SYM scooter ran flawlessly, I got to go head to head with Patrick fer a spell and now I go to sleep fer another amazing view into Americas ventana.

But wait Pete; where are the pics….
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scooterpics/sets/

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Day THREE

Ritch found that the variator rollers were soaked in oil so he’ll clean it and be good to go for the start of the race.

Man Utah "Life Elevated" is insanely beautiful! Cudos to Patrick for choosing this route. We experienced picturesque rides through the Colorado Plateau region. It was very hard to not stop and soak in the vast natural beauty.

We took off from fiery red hilled Cedar around 8 am and it was colder than a witch’s tit! So the first of many riders down today was Mark from New York slid his scoot into the embankment going too hot onto a lefthander. He salvaged some parts from joel’s scoot and continued on his way. At this point while all the top riders stopped to help. This was my opportunity to race the master! Patrick. And so it was head to head competition which only lasted a short stint do to some of the most beautiful terrain EVER!

To there were many mishaps on todays rides but I will keep you in suspense. Or if you cant wait then check out the other blogs…

Friday, September 12, 2008

Day TWO

Well my day started out with getting up before dawn to catch the sun rise over Mono Lake. I hiked a mile to the waters edge to capture the beauty of the Tufa formations. WOW!

When I returned everyone was taking off on today’s journey across Nevada to Utah. I was one of the last people to leave. About 10 miles out of Lee Vining I came across Joel Hamilton and his demolished GTS. Something happened when he was going around a fast left hander. Jess saw it happen and described it as a ginger breadman being thrown across the terrain. Joel escaped with a bruised back and sore hand but the bike is totaled.

So the trooper he is he took some advil, jumped on Bobo GTV and continued on with the journey. We stuck together along with he support truck and enjoyed the ride instead of racing the clock.

The ride through Nevada was long VERY STRAIT! I was still tired from the past few days and if it wasn’t fer the energy drinks well…The highlight was stopping at Area 51, the town of Rachel and getting some Alien swag.

Todays 420 miles was a challenge fer my tired body. When we reached Utah the terrain brightened up and so did my energy. As we neared Cedar City UT the hills looked like they were on fire! The red rock lit up by the sunset looked soo insane. We all congregated at the hotel and shared storied of the days mishaps from speeding tickets to Joels’ accident to asking “Where’s the manual scooters?” 9pm and K-dog rolled into town. The other two Vespas were still in Caliente Nevada at 9:30 about 1hr 45min away.

Ritch is doing OK but feels there is oil on his variator belt soo he'll replace it in the morning. Rolfie has a bad cold and is not stoked about it.

Tomorrow’s a shorter but more scenic and technical ride. I should post some pics from the past two days at the rides end. I am doing fine and the SYM scooter is performing well, I just need to get some sleeeeeeeep.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Day One

Welcome to the end of day one of Cannonball. Wow what a crazy day it has been also what a long strange trip it has been to get to this point!!!. Any things that can go wrong…will go wrong.
I have had my gremlins from non-working cameras to electrical problems on the scoot to a top case filled with gas! Yea is was soo bad it smelled up Jess’s room…man was he pissed ☹
At the moment we have three riders on the west side of Yosemite that at staying the night and will catch up inn the morning.
The journe began with a great reception at Ocean Beach. Many of the scooter girld were present along with others fron SF. We rode to Alice’s restaurant off highway 35, had some grub then participants left on their own accord. This is when my favorite camers decided to take a shit and the power to the GPS was non-existent.
So luckily I know how to get to Mount Hamilton and I read the paper directions. I got as far as highway 5 and was feeling the effects of a few hours of sleep from the past few days trying to get the scooter Cannonball ready. I was soo tiered!!! Just 40 winks…
At Patterson I got some gas, several energy drinks and decided to call my buddy VCLG Ritch because I knew he had had some issues with the Franken-scoot. Well I figured if he answered the phone then that would not be a good sign.

He answered!

Not good. He was across the road getting some food and trying to figure out what was wrong with his scoot. Oil leaks, unstable performance at high speeds and loss of confidence because if the gremlins that attacked him. Well he put his mindset and scoot in cruise control and focused on getting to the end so he could diagnose and work on it at end at Li Vineing

When we finally reach the end I had soo many crazy experiences with my scoot, crazy swiss people who locked their keys in their 70’s disco van, to robot loosing his spare tires and rain gear, to riding in natures finest scenery that I could seriously write a novel about today’s ride!

So the internet REALLY sucks here and I am sooooooooo tired. Stay tuned till the next episode of SCOOTER CANNONBALL 2008!

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Got the scoot

8 Days to go...Well I picked up the Sym HD200 that I'm riding across country. I test rode it last Sunday and was very impressed with the handling and ease of riding. I am heading to Curts' to put a GPS on the scoot. I will need to get a rear tire and variator belt belt, oil change and spark plug replaced before I leave in order to feel secure about the 3,356 mile journey...

Most of the riders participating in this event have been prepping their scooters for over a year and have had ample time to be ready for this Endurance Challenge! I have had only a couple of weeks but have had great support from my close circle of friends in the scooter community in order to make it safely. Maybe by not having months or years to plan will give me a clearer mind. Ya know "Just do it" attitude!?

This journey will be a test of endurance, scooter stamina, mental ability, judgment, and DESIRE! Mentaly I am ready. Mechanically I feel safe riding a modern "Twist and Go" scooter. I am sharing a room with Glasseye and Rolfie and have a gas card. Food and water, no worries. Health, getting rid of a small cold but overall am feeing good! No time for winers on this trip. I have to admit that I have never really had a desire to travel across the US. I have done countless trips across Western Europe but the US has never really had a strong appeal to me. But traveling across the US with 25 scooterists...now thats a story to tell the grandchildren huh!

My sponsors

Firstly SCOOT magazine for stepping up to the plate and letting me use their
SYM HD200 and a list of goodies
Saigon Trooper Scooter Club
Curt Fargo

Also worth mentioning
Patrick "Opps thunk klunk" for his hours of dedication to this event
Ritch "glasseye" for his Cannonball knowledge
Rolf for riding the support truck