Modern Vespa

Thank you for your kind words about the photograph and the things I post on Scooter in the Sticks. To say it's an labor of love is an understatement. The reality is the Vespa, and now a motorcycle as well, have become an essential part of my life. Riding has opened doorways to experience, expression, and a kind of enlightenment. The Three Es!

Wandering through the central Pennsylvania countryside on my way to breakfast at an Italian cafe and market. This old church has always intrigued me as I've watched it for four decades slowly decline. No more services held here. It's just waiting for a death or a rebirth. Not sure which.

You won't see the scooter in the pic. I'm standing beside it.

I left early so I could swing by the lake before work. The rowing crew from EGR was already out practicing.

I have begun to sense a subtle shift in the light that has me thinking of autumn. The summer has flown by and I've spent far too little time on the scooter. The intense heat is my excuse but I suspect a healthy dose of laziness is more responsible.

Whenever I see the round bales start to pile up in the pastures I think summer is over. Not sure why since they bale them almost year round.

Ah, yes. One of the fields where Kellogg grows their "Frosted Mega-Wheats".

It's important for people to know where things come from. No farms = no food.

This stuff is going straight into cows to make milk. Most of the crops in Pennsylvania go to animal feed. Some areas produce potatoes, tomatoes, and other human food crops but nothing to rival corn and soy beans.

I fear we'll see some drastic changes in farming and the availability of water intensive crops grow in the West over the next 20 years. Water will be king.

Growing up on a small farm, we always had either alfalfa or corn or soybeans growing in the field. Some of my earliest memories are sunny days out behind the tractor baling hay. The chaff would stick to your sweaty skin and itch like crazy. I can still taste the iced tea Mom used to make for us. We always baled the small rectangular bales. The farmer that worked our field, Donny, had a baler, but we had to stack them on wagons and then later in the hay loft.

One of my first jobs was turning the hay bales over so they could dry on all sides. When I was done, Donny gave me two quarters. I can still see them in the palm of my hand. His hand was so much bigger than mine, but I couldn't have been more than six.

Donny was my first hero. Tall, skinny, sandy haired and covered in freckles. He was built like a scarecrow. I remember one day being full of myself carrying those bales one at a time from the wagon to the barn. Then I saw him grab two in one hand and throw them over his shoulder into the hay loft. Farmers are made of different stuff.

I shared both of those stories with his daughter, Jennifer, a few years ago because I couldn't make it to the funeral. She shared them with everyone.

I have much respect for farmers and the work they do. It's hard, endless and unappreciated. I probably wouldn't do it again myself, but I have a great appreciation for the blood, sweat and tears that go into farming.

Think I need to listen to some Mellencamp.

I've spent some time throwing bales of hay onto a wagon, enough to know that I am glad someone finds satisfaction in such work.

Having spent almost 40 years working for the College of Agricultural Sciences at Penn State I have had endless opportunities to witness farming first hand -- from dairy farmers rising early on Christmas Day to milk cows to people sheering greenhouse grown edible flowers and lettuce for upscale restaurants. Every farming pursuit required a surrender to a rhythm of living that is challenging, unique, and definitiely not for everyone. I'm grateful that we have the food supply we do, have some trepidation of the future, and pray that our leaders come to understand the old proverb that only 7 meals stand between peace and revolution.

Autumn means the likelihood of fog increases. Riding on those days feels like magic.

Please stop teasing me, I've been struck in lockdown for 2 & 1/2 months and still some weeks to go 😭😭😭😭😭

Sorry for rubbing salt in your wound. I'll try and post more mundane pictures!

It was 34 degrees this morning. Heidenaus on the Stella and a trip along the river.

Those 34 degree mornings remind you that you're really riding! This is my favorite time of year to ride.

Those tires look nice. Almost like mild knobby tires.

A fine, foggy morning ride. On this particular morning the fog was too dense for me to feel comfortable riding on. So I turned back down the mountain to get below the fog bank.

I love this picture, the way the road slowly disappears into the abyss. You can feel the cold stillness and the remote bleak isolation, yet the tyre tracks and the dead tree give the picture added depth and interest. I wish it was one of mine.

Here's a pic from mid last summer

https://www.instagram.com/p/CLL0hgghcBP/?utm_medium=copy_link

Sunday's ride was right around 40 degrees. This was on the way home as the sun was just beginning to warm things up.

50 miles on 50ccs is plenty in those temps.

Yesterday morning I went for an early morning ride. It was long before the sun was up, low 40s and raining. I rode about 60 miles round trip out to the Ionia State Park and back. It was glorious.

Your description of the ride is exactly the sort of experience I generally have when on my Vespa, particularly this time of year. A circuit of 60 miles is just right to jog me out of any sort of doldrum of spirit.

Thanks for sharing.

I've continued my tradition of riding on Christmas Day. The weather was unseasonably warm so that made the ride more pleasant and less of an adventure due to cold, snow, or ice.

A recent ride to restore a level of sanity took me and the Vespa through some of the local forest roads. I always find a great therapeutic effect.

A quiet moment during a ride through the mountains on the way to lunch.

06 LX150[/img]

Nice scoot!
I'm over in Clark county - where do you get your scooter serviced?

O.S.

Well, the place I used to go was in New Carlisle (Motorsports of Dayton), but they're out of business now. Theres a place near Cinci called metro Scooter Co that looks like the closest place. Good luck and keep me posted!

This 2002 Vespa ET4 belonged to my father-in-law. He died a year ago and he wanted me to have the scooter. I'll be bringing it home soon to add to my choices of scooters. I always thought it was a beautiful machine...

I am looking at a 2001 ET4 150.
Anything I shoul;d be concerned about?
Mile is 6,000 miles

Thank you,

leo

Really enjoy all the photos. Just found your YouTube channel and really digging that also. Love the Vespa content and following the Himalayan rides as well.
I like the KLR 650 for the reasons mentioned in your last Himalayan ride video..slow,underpowered, boring etc! However the seat height and weight ( gen 1 KLR around 430ish) are beginning to affect my riding. I have sat on a Himalayan and found it a bit more manageable. We'll see about longevity of the Royal Enfields ( I have nearly 50K on my KLR)
Dream garage is Vespa GTS and a smallish dual sport motorcycle.
Anywhoo, thanks for photos and videos!
Byron

I suppose anything older and with low miles the things to consider are what needs to be renewed -- oil, fluids, filters, etc. When the last belt change was done. Age of the tires. Battery probably. And a look at the rubber vacuum hoses to make sure there aren't leaks. And how long the fuel has been sitting in the tank.

Thanks Byron for your kind words about the videos and pictures. I've only recently gotten more "serious" about making videos. I've resisted because they are a lot more work and that grates against my sloth and laziness. But I'm finding them satisfying as a creative activity.

The Himalayan is definitely easier to manage than a KLR. At least as I remember it. It's been a few years since I've put many miles on one. The Himalayan is surprisingly easy to ride and maneuver. This old man made the right choice in adding it to his riding lineup.

Stone Mountain Ga. First ride thru a covered bridge. Wood floor was slick but doable.

If you like covered bridges there are still several in Kentucky. I think there are a couple of dozen of them. Several years ago I took a ride and found most of them. Some were still being used, others had been turned into roadside parks, and a couple of them were being resorted at that time.

I will definitely go look for them. Waiting on a new scooter is torture.

There's something magical about old covered bridges. He have many in Pennsylvania but they're slowly being closed to traffic as they age.

Lovely scooter you have.

Stella by the river. April 3.

Someplace in California…

Palace of Fine Arts San Francisco (not exactly the sticks)…

Amboy Washington

Did you have a little whoopsie in your most recent youtube vid? 🙃

I had a little whoopsie last week in the snow ❄️😀

No, that footage was all from earlier rides. The "whoopsie" was from a video of a late April ride where I dumped the Himalayan. A wonderful opportunity for personal growth!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_SFaZJjVtw&t=105s