Modern Vespa

This summer, I've been invited to a 10-day tour with a group of friends and co-workers. Route covers Wyoming, Montana, into BC/Alberta (GNP), Idaho and back. About 3,000 miles, miles are all about 250-350 per day.

Lodging is all hotels so all I'll be carrying is clothes, food, water.

I've never done a tour this long. I'm getting a list of items I'll need to bring.

But the big decision is: Do I take the Vespa? All others will be on big Touring bikes. aka Harley, BMW, Yamaha. 1100 cc+.

The route is 99% 55-70mph highways. 1% is an interstate.

I figure the Vespa will struggle at high speeds and up some of the steep grades, like I've experienced riding around here in Utah.

I'll most likely have to just plan on meeting them at the rest stops and hotels, if/when I get left behind.

Another option is to rent a touring bike, which I am leaning towards.

Any tips/advice or confirmation of my current decision would be appreciated.

My Vespa is a 2017 GTS300. All stock except a windshield and racks. 3.5k miles on her right now. I'll probably change the tires and find the pesky coolant leak before leaving.

I don't particularly enjoy riding even my 460cc Scarabeo very many miles on the highway, although it is more than capable. A smaller-wheeled, smaller-displacement scooter would be even less fun. Unless you're doing an endurance challenge like the Cannonball where the misery is part of the fun, and there's a lot of company in the same boat, I'd suggest borrowing or renting a machine that is designed for sustained highway riding.

Take the Vespa.

I take my 2022 Primavera 150 on the highway every day, but to be honest, I wouldn't even consider it a highway as it's a rural Colorado road that's designated as such. I can't really speak on this topic, but if I were you, I would just rent a bigger bike as it will probably be more fun for you. On the other hand, taking the Vespa would be more legendary.

-Cooper

Ridden across the US on a 400cc and a 300cc scooter with no issues as many of us have.

Just take extra fuel.

Might want to change your drive belt also.

Consider fresh tires, fresh oil, etc beforehand

I'd do a comprehensive service, new tires and roll that vespa there and back without batting an eye.

I'm with Greasy, why not take the Vespa? When I go on a trip with someone or a group I discuss what speeds and style of riding we want to do and tailor the trip accordingly. If they want to ride a little faster at some points then like you said a little catch up would be no big deal. Sounds like you'll have a great time on the Vespa, that's why you have it.😉 Don't forget to take pics of the trip and post them for us to see.

I am not sure why you would think that riding a Vespa across the country would be so uncomfortable.

I, and many others have done it many times, most finding the Vespa to be a very comfortable machine for the ride.

I have found that even after 500+ mile days, I arrive feeling fine, ready to do it again the next day.

A GTS 300 is plenty fast for most of the trip.

Sure, it will slow down a little climbing hills and top out at speeds that put them in the right lane on most interstate highways, but that is part of the charm.

For the OP, I say get your scooter in top shape and go for it.

Bill

Take the Vespa. I rode on three charity rides with a bunch of Harleys and Buells in '08-'10. It was a blast. You will have trouble on hills, but the daily mileage is not much really. I was on a 2007 GTS.

The best part is the obligatory group photos, with my bright red shiny Vespa standing out like a sore thumb

Are you experienced at riding touring bikes? If I was in your shoes unless a friend was happy lending me a touring bike I'd not spend the money hiring one.

I'm riding two up next year to the French Alps on my Vespa whilst 3 or 4 mates are riding their BMW touring bikes, we will ride on our own and see them at the hotel every afternoon. Not a problem at all.

I have ridden my scooters with groups of mostly big bikes like Harleys and Goldwings many times. However these rides were mostly on country roads where I could easily go faster than they did. For a ride like you described I would need more information.

What does the route look like? If it's a lot of straight, high speed roads then you might have issues keeping up. If it is mostly straight, high speed roads then I wouldn't be that interested in going in the first place as I prefer winding, scenic back roads.

Have you ridden with this group before? If they like to just ride fast and stop every 150 miles then you would have issues with the gas.

Are you comfortable riding 250-350 miles a day on your Vespa?

Has this group ridden long trips together before? If not this could be a real disaster.

Since this ride is still a few months away my recomendation is to try to get the group together for a day ride of around 300 miles and see how that goes.
You may find you are compatible with the group on your Vespa....or not.

I personally would not consider riding a long tour like this with a group unless I have ridden with most of them before.

I was unclear. Of course a cross-country Vespa run could be a great adventure. My concern is riding 99% on-slab with a posse on equipment with 3-4x the displacement and much more sophisticated suspension. I personally don't find slab riding to be much fun, and the displacement difference mile after mile, day after day, would take some of the joy out of the "group" effort. But if you know what you're getting into, go for it.

Bc and Alberta can be very hilly. Just sayin. You'll get bonus points for having the lowest displacement 2 wheeler.

HPE is capable. As stated above, full service before you leave.

When the trip is over each day, you'll be the one with the biggest smile and best memories.

They will be the ones wishing they were having as much fun.

And you are going to learn about what you really need and not need for touring.

Carry some extra fuel.

Take photos and do a little diary at night.

Different riders have different priorities. For me water and some cool briefs make everything else bearable.

If the majority of time is to be spent at 55-70 mph, the GTS should be able to keep up, except on long steep inclines. That will be where you'll struggle to maintain speeds > 65 mph.

As others have stated, you'll want to have freshly serviced everything (Belt Rollers, variator, Oil, coolant, Brakes, and Tires). Be sure to carry a spare belt and rollers, along with the tools to make that change. Also have a spare spark plug and tire repair kit. A small tool kit to tighten mirrors and other fasteners would be a good idea as well.

One thing to consider...upsize the rear tire to 140/70-12. This will give you slightly taller gearing (~5%) to relax high speed RPMs and improve gas mileage; you might also get a few MPH more of top end speed. The other benefit is a slightly larger contact patch on the rear for a bit more traction.

Carry a fair amount of water and extra fuel. Your range will likely be ~120 miles with all your gear at those higher speeds.

He said maybe 1% interstate so very little slab. However, many 2 lanes roads in the west have 55-65MPH speed limits and of course many riders will go well over the speed limit. On the other had if the roads are twisty many riders end up riding well below the speed limit. There are too many things we don't know about this ride to make meaningful suggestions. What kind of bikes and riders are in the group? A bunch of fast riders on FJR1300s and Concours 1400's will probably be riding too fast. A bunch of slow riders on heavy cruiser type touring bikes are likely to be much slower and shouldn't be a problem to keep up with on a GTS. If it is a mixed group will the group ride at the pace of the slowest rider or will they split up into smaller groups?

Hoch needs to look into some things before he can make a good decision on this. This ride could certainly be done on a GTS but depending on the group and how they ride it may or may not be a good idea.

If all the nightly stops on the tour are pre planned then if you don't like the pace you could always ride on your own or maybe one or two other riders and meet up with the group every night. I personally don't like riding in a "parade" and would ride on my own if I didn't like the speeds the group was riding at.

If you have never done a tour this long you might want to do a practice trip beforehand. Are you up to doing 350 mile days? Are you up to 10 straight 300 mile days?

One thing you should do is take a look at the average highs and lows of the places you will be riding. My last trip out west was a 13 day loop. I figured I could see temperatures ranging from 40 to 100 degrees and that's what I actually experienced. Make sure you are prepared for a wide range of temperatures as well as rain.

If a Vespa 300cc isn't fast enough for your friends, you just need some new friends

A 3000 mile tour on a Vespa 300 is a bit of a challenge, and a lot of adventure.

And the 'cred' for doing it is priceless. You will be legend among your motorcycle riding friends forever after.

Take the Vespa. A few years ago, I did a 4,000-mile tour from Annapolis, MD, to Woodland Park, CO (8500' elev.), and back on a kitted, carbureted, 2007 LX. Averaged 300 miles/day. Zero problems. Had a blast.

On a 300, it should be a breeze.

^^ These are the most important questions.

If all good for these, then the rest is just practicalities

Spending several hours on the seat per day, through thick and thin, repeatedly, can be fun - or then not.

If you'll go, whatever bike you chose, ride your own ride, your own pace, enjoy.
If you're trying to 'keep up' for 3000 miles, that spells for trouble for a non-experienced long distance tourer.

Add me to the take the Vespa group. 250-350 mile days on state highways are pleasant and enjoyable. I've done 700+ miles on a GTS then over 400 the next day. Not my preferred way of travel but it wasn't as originally planned or much of a choice on that trip.

If you aren't used to riding a big touring bike it will take away some of the pleasure for at least te first few days you ride it as shifting and weight will take some getting used to. I've moved back and forth between the midsize touring bike and Vespa but I did it on a regular basis so was used to it but even then there was adjustment every time I changed.

You may well lose speed on long grades compared to the bigger bikes but as long as you are all on the same page whether slowing down, waiting at a viewpoint or just meeting back at the hotel it will be fine. Just like different riding style compromises can be.

I vote Vespa.
Ride off 10 minutes before they do.
They'll catch you in no time and when they stop,
you'll be 10 minutes less behind them.

Enjoy!

Maybe, Maybe not. When I ride with a local group that mostly rides big touring bikes I ride one of my scooters because if I rode my Versys 650 I'd be bored at the pace they run. Keeping up on the Vespa is a non issue.

It really depends on the riders in the group. I don't know the size of this group but I wouldn't be surprised if they split into 2 or more smaller groups riding at different speeds.

I like riding with a group for the camaraderie at the end of the day and the support if something goes wrong, but actually riding down the road all day with more than one other rider is not my favorite thing. If it were me, I'd like the scooter for the built-in excuse to say, "You go on ahead, I'll see you at the hotel."

Back in the UK, I used to ride with The London Bikers on my Fuoco (MP3 500) - they rode fast and furious on sports and fast touring bikes. When we did trips to Wales I'd be able to keep up just fine. As long as the group uses the marker system (AKA second-man drop-off) no-one gets lost or left behind anyway.

I even led a couple of rides - one of the best was "Lunch in Le Touquet" - start in south London, take the Chunnel to France, have fun around the Pas du Calais, and back off home.

The GTS300 can keep up just as well. I'd leap at the chance.

Just my opinion... I've done thousands of miles on big Harley and BMW touring bikes. I'm not quite sure I would want to do those same trips on my GTS.

It would definitely be a whole different experience and I would want to be with other riders of like mind for that.

Unless you are sure the coolant leak is fixed, do not take the Vespa. Other than that, you should be fine.

I had a GTS300. It is hwy capable but also depends on what hwy. Jump on interstate I-10 and you are the slowest there and you will pass no one. 65 MPH-70MPH HWYas all day long but 75mph hwy where people go 80-85 no.

You can do 65-70 gps all day long. My GTS 300 was electronically limited to 88mph(speedometer) but that was 77 mph (GPS)

I don't believe physics supports this specific assertion. Contact patch size is not related to tire size, assuming similar tire pressure.

Thanks everyone.
To get to some more details.
I don't know the exact layout of the terrain, but I suspect it'll be pretty hilly. We're heading up through west Wyoming (Jackson), which has a few steep passes. Then up through Montana, to Flathead, then up to Canada.

I haven't ridden with this group before. I know the guys but never ridden with them. Not will I get a chance to before the trip.

On the trip, we'll be stopping every hour or so, to sight see, bathroom break, etc. So tank range won't be an issue, since if I take the Vespa, I'll take a gas can.

My thought right now is:
Due to the variables of unfamiliar roads, unknown group pace/riding style, etc, I'll rent a big bike this time around. Then next time, decide if I take the Vespa.

Thanks again for all the inputs.

I think the Vespa 300 is capable of this trip. I am not a big fan of balls to the walls of long distance riding. It would be like circling my city for hours on the freeway. What fun is that. Each to his own.

I do use my foot forward riding position (more comfortable) on my Kymco AD550 for longer rides. I do think the 300 Vespa is capable of touring - just at your own pace. I would not do it.

Bob Copeland

I can't do the foot forward position of the maxi scooter. I had a backache after 370 miles on our Burgman 400 but did over 700 on my GTS. I had to put floorboards on my Honda CTX 750 as the mid Godard position of the pegs wasn't comfortable for longer touring days. Putting the mid length Kurikan floorboards allowed me to do 500 mile days without issues but my GTSs or Aprilia Scarabeo did longer days better.

The 140mm tire is 10mm wider than the 130. If you use same tire pressures and construction of the tire is the same (same make & model), the weight of the bike would have a similar deflection rate on a slightly taller sidewall (70% of 140 > 70% of 130). You would end up with a marginally larger contact patch on the pavement.

It's not much, but there would be a difference. Similar to going from a 205/50-18 to a 215/50-18 on a car.

Perhaps this is a discussion for another thread but it isn't clear to me why tire size would affect contact patch size. Placing 200 pounds on a tire inflated to 25psi suggests an 8 square inch contact patch. This is undoubtedly an oversimplification, but what about tire diameter would change it?

Tire size can certainly affect the *shape* of this patch, but pounds / (pounds per square inch) seems immutable.

Or are there rolling effects that change the contact patch size?

Since you are leaning towards renting a bike, have you researched motorcycle rentals? I would go to the rental company and sit on the bikes they have available. Once you choose a model maybe consider renting it for a day and see if it is something that would be comfortable for you.

Also keep in mind that you may not get the bike you want. You may get what they have available on the day you want it. I have read some horror stories about motorcycle rentals and I also know people who had good experiences. Do some research.

What you don't want is to depart on a 10 day 3000 mile trip on the "wrong" bike.

I also can't do the foot forward position. This is a challenge since I ride an old H-D chopper. For almost 20 years I've ridden with my right foot on top of the brake pedal and my left foot on top of the primary drive cover. Over the winter I finally fabricated mid-pegs so I can ride with my feet on a proper foot peg without having my legs out in front of me like I'm riding some ridiculous rolling lounge chair. 😂

Yes, for sure. I'll most likely be on an FJR. Should be pretty comfy for the trip but I'll rent it beforehand.
I rode motos for around 10 years before a few years of hiatus then returning on the Vespa I currently ride. So not a veteran rider but not a beginner, either. Just never done 3k miles. Thanks for the help.