2 Days, 600 miles, Old Friends and New - A Scooter Adventure

A small group from our club recently did a 2-day, 600 miles ride from Tucson to Cottonwood, AZ, taking some amazing back roads with lots of twists and turns. I posted Part I of our adventure on our website. Join us:
http://skyislandriders.com/?p=1635

Nice Post, waiting for part II.

a dream for me to be in Arizona with my Silver Wing.

un sogno, per me, essere in Arizona con il mio Silver Wing.

Congratulations, you live in a nice place.

Complimenti, abiti in un bel posto.

Arizona IS a nice place to ride a Silver Wing. You can ride most of the year, no parking your Wing until the snow leaves etc. It DOES get hot in the summer but just head out early and get back before it sizzles.

@Howardr:
it looks lovely out there!
(over here winter is coming... )

@pippobis2:
Monza is not bad either, I've been there a couple of times in the 1980's and 1990's, visiting the Park for MotoGP and Superbike races...

GHM-PM wrote:

Arizona IS a nice place to ride a Silver Wing. You can ride most of the year, no parking your Wing until the snow leaves etc. It DOES get hot in the summer but just head out early and get back before it sizzles.

Living there have you ever been "a standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona"?

I think I was born in the wrong country. I should have been born in the States! I envy you guys the weather and the scenery.

paul.delo451 wrote:

I think I was born in the wrong country. I should have been born in the States! I envy you guys the weather and the scenery.

Grass

Greener

Other side!!!!!!!!

Be grateful for what you have. The UK has some spectacular places of it's own! Simply have to open ones eyes!

Doug I don't disagree with the grass saying and I don't disagree with spectacular places of our own

But:

We don't really get the long expanses of wilderness in the UK and to get to anything remotely like it we have to travel miles up an M6 or similar just to start a decent journey

or we can cross over onto the continent with all of the strange extra laws, foreign languages, expensive Euro zone prices, that's if we can afford the fuel.

We don't get the same customer service, we haven't got the 'Can do' mentality and attitude. We spend 3 - 4 months freezing cold and then the remainder of the year warmer but soaking wet.

So yes I do look at our US cousins and feel a touch green at times. And also all of my best holidays have been in the States funnily enough.

Life is full of swings and roundabouts!!!! No pun intended.

Long expanses of wilderness. Loverly until you break down or run out of gas!!!!!

What I like about dear ole Blighty is you get off the beaten track and still be no more that a decent walk away from life!

I, like many ex servicemen/women have travelled the globe and always been mega happy to get home to the things we don't take for granted until they are not there. I dare say that applies to whoever and whatever nationality you are.

I loved visiting other places taking in the scenery and culture - but;

As Dorothy said. "There's no place like home".

And I'm envious of your culture and history. Also, the cottage industries and deep expertise within a small area are a boon to anyone wanting to develop something different and new. For example: If I want to gain special insight into brake pad materials, I may have to travel to the SE, about 5,000 KM away. You can probably find the same level of expertise within a one to five our drive for far less expense.
Deep knowledge of internal combustion engines, drive trains, etc. is available within a short distance.
Your Formula 1 teams far outnumber and perform all other countries and your very well represented in MotoGP and WSBK racing. We have nearly none of this and not much interest in having it either.

rodenbach wrote:

@Howardr:
it looks lovely out there!
(over here winter is coming... )

@pippobis2:
Monza is not bad either, I've been there a couple of times in the 1980's and 1990's, visiting the Park for MotoGP and Superbike races...

monza is nice, beautiful the park.

paul.delo451 wrote:

We don't really get the long expanses of wilderness in the UK and to get to anything remotely like it we have to travel miles up an M6 or similar just to start a decent journey

or we can cross over onto the continent with all of the strange extra laws, foreign languages, expensive Euro zone prices, that's if we can afford the fuel.

We don't get the same customer service, we haven't got the 'Can do' mentality and attitude. We spend 3 - 4 months freezing cold and then the remainder of the year warmer but soaking wet.

So yes I do look at our US cousins and feel a touch green at times. And also all of my best holidays have been in the States funnily enough.

It's all about where you live in the UK, In Cumbria there's plenty of wilderness just don't expect roads to ride your scooter on in some of the remoter areas. I can be on quiet empty roads in the South of Scotland, and Northumberland easily, or County Durham or North Yorkshire without resorting to motorways quite easily.

The expensive Euro zone, I'll bet a lot of our American friends would love to ride in France, Germany, Italy, or Switzerland, and none of those countries get shafted on fuel prices like we do. I've never tired of taking a bike or scooter over there and I started doing it long before the Euro came in.

As for customer service it is better but it comes at a price, everybody in the US expects a tip for that customer service. Weather, we've had a pretty **** year here and quite a lot of flooding, but we don't get hurricanes, tornadoes, and unlike California none of the UK is earthquake prone. We also get a pretty good deal from the NHS, I had a stroke last year and I've been on daily medication for over a year and it's free now I'm over 60, it would cost me £30 a month if I had to pay for it.

I've always wanted to ride a bike or scooter in the US but after driving in Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State a few years ago I changed my mind, I thought would I really like to be on all these twisty roads following a never ending convoy of RV's at 30mph.

The grass is greener and all that.

Meldrew:
Huge expanses of fantastic, dry and warm riding in California. If you choose the National Parks, it's not scoot' riding heaven.
Pippobis2:
I love Monza! Attended the F1 race in '86 during the turbo era.

SCTLVR wrote:

Pippobis2:
I love Monza! Attended the F1 race in '86 during the turbo era.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJI7vj6y-rw&feature=BFa&list=UUlz2XEk-O7XbOgV6R6Cy1sg

Envy! Front straight on way to first chicane. Please feed the sheep.
We have good things here as well... Sierra mountains, Sears Point, Laguna Seca, Napa wine region, great weather and very nice riding.

all the world is fantastic to the riding the motorcycle

SCTLVR wrote:

Envy! Front straight on way to first chicane.

second chicane, first Lesmo, second Lesmo, Ascari.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7ZkDmiomII&feature=share&list=UUlz2XEk-O7XbOgV6R6Cy1sg

Full chat would be even more enjoyable. I've walked Monza and the old course banking. It was a religious experience for this agnostic.

ditto SCTLVR

The old, partly overgrown Curva Alta Velocita made an everlasting impression on me. I recon, to a race-tifoso, it is similar to what Stonehenge means to an archaeologist...

I was in Monza on a couple of occasions (=races), the most memorable year being 1990, when I had a chat in the pits with (world championship leader) Raymond Roche, countryman Stéphane Mertens (before he crashed his bike in the race...) and American Jamie James, who was so happy to be able to speak English to somebody, that he coudn't stop babbling... I don't see that kind of nonchalance happening these days.

Meldrew wrote:

GHM-PM wrote:

Arizona IS a nice place to ride a Silver Wing. You can ride most of the year, no parking your Wing until the snow leaves etc. It DOES get hot in the summer but just head out early and get back before it sizzles.

Living there have you ever been "a standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona"?

Yes I have actually!

Excellent, It's on my things to do list for next year.