Modern Vespa

Keep going man!

Fun thread!

Enjoy the ride. You'll meet wonderful people, see incredible sights, and have memories for a lifetime.

Thanks for sharing your adventure. Happy scooting.

I would love to do this kind of ride. Don't have the cojones though . This reminds me of Peter Egan's "Leanings" adventures. I often think of his writings while I'm out on one of my "tours" which might be 125 miles for the entire day. What you're doing is amazing. Keep the words and pictures coming! Maybe you should send this in to "Scoot" or "Rider" after you are through. This makes good reading and gives us something to strive for. Good luck and stay safe!

Bob

I've got them, it's the bad lower back, and now friggin neck issues from my rear end accident earlier this year that keeps me from doing any riding over 2 to 3 hours at a time. Any who, keep the updates and pics coming, it's great!

maybe you already have on but an exhaust donut for the GTS would be a good thing to pick up if you drive by a Vespa dealer, just in case, you will use it some day.

Wang.

When you reach LA.

Hit the silverlake area!

Epic adventure ! i am hooked

GREASY IS THE BEST IN LA, A TRUE VESPA MECHANIC, he works on and has knowledge of both Modern & shifty vespas. AND he stands by his work unlike some. I had him give my scoot his blessing before riding from LA to San Fran.

Ride Safe Wangsta, look forword to riding with ya again when you get here.

manny

This sounds like so much fun! I would love to do a long distance scooter tour. Maybe someday!

Have a great time and what a great job you are doing with the photos and daily log. Sorry about your camera though!

No word, almost 24 hours..... I feel like a mother waiting up for the teenager to come home from a date.....

Hope the Badlands and long straight roads are treating them right.
and that Wangta didn't jettison the computer as well....

How far is WALL DRUG?

+1

I was looking forward to see how they were doing in SD....

Hope they are OK....

Gianni

They might be out of their 3G Zone.... lol.... It might be hard getting all of those Verizon guys on the back of the PX.

Let's hook up in LA! I'm sure some local riders would love to take you out, feed you and show you a good time.

If you're still capable of riding at that point, we can take you out on some great routes.

This trip is truly awesome,especially on a scooter.You know some would laugh at the thought of crossing the Country on a 2-wheeler less it be a motorcycle.

Some news coverage sure would be something I think that would boost some important attention toward scooters in general.Maybe even get some sales out of it.

Lastly,how many of you would do a trip if you had to hurry thru it? That would be my only condition for myself,I would have to be able to go at a pace that allowed me to really see the US.Otherwise I don't see the point in it with the exception of doing a charity run.

Great idea! I second the notion. Hope your recent rally was good eric...

PCH, always a favorite.

Save travels...

Still no word from the daring adventurer?

Waiting semi patiently for more of this trip.

HMMM does the PX melt in the rain?

He did say he was going through the bad lands, I bet he doesnt have a signal yet. Ive ridden with Wangsta last year, hes a capable rider. Positive thoughts for the brotha.

Ride Safe
Manny

Hope your having fun and keep the stories coming. I think it has rained in the NE everyday for the past 2 months FLANMAN is doing a journey next month but the east coast only. He's bought a MC on the mainland and won't be doing it on his GT200 Ride safe.

sending out good vibes and positive energy to the Wangta gangstas on their Journey.

Road gremlins beware!

Well, it's prolly too late to get into camping now, as you'd have to buy a tent
and various sleeping gear and learn how to pack it.

Anyway, if you were coming thru NJ on a trip like this, we (me and the 'ol lady) would gladly
put you guys up for the night! -And feed you a decent breakfast in the morning too!
Just listening to your scoot-traveling tales would be a pleasure...

Perhaps some other MV'ers along your route who happen to have the time and the room..?

I know some scooterists did this for Alix B, when she took her
Buddy 125 around the country on her 9k miles 'peace ride'..

-Nuthin' like some good old fashioned hospitality!

Waiting for an update is like waiting for your favorite TV show's next episode! We want more updates! Wangta...what's going on?

Wangta, I am almost sorry I will be away and won't have much time to read this thread. I'll miss what you have been up to and where you have been ... so I wanted to wish you well on your journey and hope that all is well! Stay safe!!! Judy, please tell John hello from me and wish him a safe and fun trek as well! Hopefully he will post about his adventures and I can check it out when I get back!

I gone ... must sleep. Not looking forward to a 14 hour day of travel but am definitely looking forward to the rest of my trip!

Yo guys - really sorry for the delay. I'm doing well - trip has been a blast so far, but unfortunately I haven't had much time at the computer. I'm in western South Dakota right now, and will cross into Wyoming tomorrow.

Downloading pictures now and will try to fill in the missing log entries in a few hours.

Thanks for all of your support - I hope you are all enjoying the trip!

Wanger, whos riding the second scooter? We dying to know?

Ride Safe My brotha

Manny

WANGTA, WE KNOW WHERE YOU WERE.....

CHICAGO (AFP) - Greenpeace activists were arrested Wednesday for scaling Mount Rushmore and hanging a banner next to the carved face of Abraham Lincoln urging President Barack Obama to get tough on climate change.

A video posted on the environmental group's website showed the massive banner hanging on the South Dakota mountain face. and the odd sight of two red "vespa" motorscooters atop Lincoln's forehead, helping to anchor the banner. Eleven were arrested, the two Vespa desperados escaped.

Either his companion is camera shy or he's an egomaniac. Or maybe he's escorting someone in the Federal Witness Protection Program?

Come on, wangta, break the suspense!

Al

Al, My buddy has a Derby GP1 50cc for sale here in Cali. How much did you pay for yours?

Day 5 - Chicago, IL to Cedar Rapids, IA

Woke up to another sunny day. Nice to have no rain, but the morning is quite hot and I'm wondering if I prefer hot or cold weather for riding...Anyways, decided to hit up Chicago first thing in the morning. Stopped by Millennium Park on a gorgeous Sunday morning - lots of people were out enjoying the weather. After walking around the park for a few hours, got back on the scoots and headed out of Chicago, west toward Iowa. Pretty much rode on 30 for the majority of the trip. Illinois was pretty similar to Ohio - relatively flat with large fields (in the western part of the state).

Iowa - wow, corn and corn and corn. MILES of corn - corn as far as the eye can see! At one point, we were riding past one field of corn for over 15 minutes - at 55 mph!

At fill-ups, noticed that the gas started to contain Ethanol, which makes sense given Iowa's abundance of corn. I was curious if this had any impact on the performance of the scoots, and on 4 stroke vs. 2 stroke engines. I didn't notice a difference - the PX pretty much ran like usual with top end speed ranging from 55-60 mph. Had a conversation with a Harley Davidson rider, who said he had to get non-ethanol fuel because the ethanol ate up the rubber thing in his carburetor. I had no idea what he was talking about, but wondered if this had any impact on me - the new gas line I installed is a Goodyear rubber tube, will the ethanol chew through that too?

Rode by a bunch of ethanol plants. Have to admit, they are pretty ugly looking and killed what is/was a very picturesque countryside. But anything to lessen the dependence on oil is good, right?　I like the idea of ethanol, but I doubts if it will really "solve" any of the dependence on gas/oil. Increased demand for ethanol will surely increase the price of corn - is that good for the economy/people at large? Things to think about on a long ride....

Made it to Cedar Rapids at dusk - I try to get to the hotel before the sun goes down. Riding in the dark, toward the end of a long day in the saddle - not a good combination. Cedar Rapids is a nice town. Many hospitals and research centers, which surprised me. Like many cities, most things were closed by 9, so it was Taco Bell for dinner. Planning to cross most of Iowa tomorrow and spend the night in Sioux City.

Total miles - Day 5: 275 Miles

Chicago and Illinois

Quick stop in Brandon, Iowa

[img]http://lh5.ggpht.com/wzQlAztrLDQTziTMkkVhmMgSGkIQy2B9TA91FNvo-yGfioVNEEnVQpI7ro38RVifT7xtzRe6yh6CIXaN-g=w800-no-tmp.jpg[/img]

Day 6 - Cedar Rapids, Iowa to Sioux City, Iowa

Another sunny, hot day. By the time we hit the road (10 am), it was already 85 degrees! Was very glad to have my venting jacket and pants. They worked great in hot weather - feel the air flow through the jacket and feel pretty comfortable as long as I'm moving (standing at a traffic stop still sucks). The windshield has been very helpful - especially during the rain in New York. It cuts a lot of the wind that hits your body, which decreases fatigue, but it also cuts the wind that cools you down! Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with my combination of equipment (jacket and windshield height). I cruised comfortably through a hot Iowa summer day, and again passed more corn than there are people on this earth (at least that is what it felt like!).

Couple notes on gas - I tried experimenting with the different gas octane levels. I usually get lower octane gas, but I started getting premium and super premium to see if it had any impact on PX performance. Not sure if I am imagining things, but I think it does make a difference. Filled up with 94 octane gas and I felt faster - top speed was around 57-60 mph on relatively flat road. 87 octane gas, I can only muster about 55 mph. Perhaps it is the ethanol mixture in the gas?　Anybody have any thoughts on this?　Perhaps all the miles are making me imagine things!

Also ran out of gas for the first time, about 500 feet from the gas station. Sick feeling when the ol' PX runs out of gas and lurches unpredictably. Used one of my gas canisters (you can see it anchored on the bottom of the topcase rack) to get myself to the station. The gas stations are getting quite far apart and I'm wondering if I should buy another gas tank (a bigger one) just in case I find myself miles and miles away from humanity...

Arrived in Sioux City, which is on the border of Iowa and Nebraska, at around 7 pm. Hope I don't offend anyone here, but I found the city to be quite run down. I wasn't expecting Rome, but the city had many factories that appeared to be deserted. People were nice enough - was able to find some good Chinese food before knocking out for the night. Tomorrow, will cross over the border into Nebraska and head north toward South Dakota.

Total miles - Day 6: 300 Miles

Quick stop in Brandon, Iowa






Bugs!




First Run-Out-of-Gas Stop!




Vespas and Corn












Cruised on this road for a LOooooong Time

Day 7 - Sioux City, IA to Murdo, SD

Crossed the border to Nebraska first thing in the morning (almost got killed taking the "Welcome to Nebraska" photos - enjoy guys) and was pleasantly surprised to see a change in scenery. Obviously was happy to see anything other than corn.

Nebraska had open fields too, but more hay and other crops (no idea what they were), with some occasional corn fields. Near northern Nebraska, the terrain switched to more plain/grassland - flat fields with grasses and other shorter shrubs. Honestly, a couple fields looked like the Serengeti plain in Africa (as seen on the National Geographic Channel!). Cruised on route 20 West (again) for the majority of the time crossing Nebraska, and took 83 North at Valentine, Nebraska, toward South Dakota.

I was surprised at the change in scenery in South Dakota - as soon as we passed the border, all we drove by was grassland. It was like Iowa, but without any trees or corn. True prairie, with wide open fields. After crossing the border, 83 north led us to White River, South Dakota which required us to climb to around 2,000 feet (I found out later, this area is known as the high plains - makes sense). It was getting dark during this part of the trip, but climbing mountains and hills of grassland was spectacular. We passed White River and stayed the night in Murdo, a nice town which is our launching point to Western South Dakota. Tomorrow, we head off to the Badlands. Expect to see many pictures!

Total miles - Day 7: 330 Miles

Tough to read, but "Welcome to Nebraska" sign in the distance


Nebraska Plains/Grasslands













































South Dakota

Nice photos wangsta!!!

Wangta-

All the literature says that ethanol is not a problem in post 1980 motor vehicles and post-1991 marine engines. The rubber and elastomer formulations in engine and fuel systems built after those years were compounded with ethanol blended fuel in mind.

Al

Great thread! Really enjoying reading through this, sounds very much like something id like to do one day.

What is Mifi? is it like internet that is totaly wireless, so you dont need a modem plugged into your phone line, you can just go anywhere and still have internet on your laptop.

Keep safe, and best wishes to you both

Google FFS:
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=mifi&meta=

"The final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol's affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-absorbing "dry gas" products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that's half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol's water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don't run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.

E10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives."

Concerns of the AMA

The American Motorcyclist Association has expressed concern over some proposals by the state of Minnesota to allow gas stations to increase the levels of ethanol in the fuel they sell.

Even though the current proposal comes from Minnesota, the AMA says that an EPA waiver would open the door to the sale of 20 percent ethanol blends across the coutry, while not requiring evaluation of the long-term effects.

"The AMA supports the use of cleaner-burning fuels, but we are concerned about premature engine damage or failure while a bike is being ridden on a highway if the allowable level of ethanol is raised to 20 percent," said Imre Szauter, AMA legislative affairs specialist.

It's worth keeping an eye on. Szauter said that "Until studies show that a 20 percent ethanol blend won't damage motorcycle or ATV engines, and won't make motorcycles emit more nitrogen oxides than are allowed by the EPA, the AMA can't support the Minnesota proposal."

For more information about ethanol motorcycle fuel, visit which has also released a report that studied the impacts of ethanol blends in various types of engines.

also see http://www.allsafe-fuel.org/TechPaper.pdf

Great pictures. 8)

I plan to ride the plains someday myself. There is something you see there you don't see around my area...a horizon.

Is it easy to stay awake on those long straight roads?

Beautiful! Best part of your ride is ahead.

I did this on a southern route 3 years ago and am with you in spirit.

Make SURE not to let the GTS run out of gas. Very bad for the fuel injector, they say.

Glad you are back giving us updates on your trip as we haven't heard from you for a bit. Great pics too.

Sorry guys - I'm still a couple days behind but will try to make it up in the next couple days. I have kept a log of the days - it's the pictures that take awhile to edit, upload, etc.

One issue I'm having and wanted to get everyone's advice - the GTS back tire is really starting to wear. Take a look at the picture - how many more miles can I ride? There are no Vespa dealerships near me - the nearest is in Salt Lake City, Utah (I called them and have an appointment later in the week - I asked if they have Hidenau but they only carry Michelins). These are stock Savas - they burn through a little fast, no? Should I rotate the front to the back, and if so, can I do that myself? Or do I need to buy 2 new tires all together (the front doesn't have much wear relatively speaking).