The Bumblebee and the Vespa 2014

I think it's time for me to redefine what this new blog is about. In the past I've posted individual blogs for motorcycle/motor scooter rides to places like Alaska, Nova Scotia, Key West, Mexico, Canada, New York, etc. That's all well and good but it seems nowadays I'm dividing my rides into shorter ones comprised of two or more weeks each on different bikes. The total time and mileage is about the same, it's just split into multiple rides with a break somewhere in the middle.

The summer of 2014 serves as a good example of that wherein I rode south to Tombstone, AZ on my '92 BMW R100GS Bumblebee/Ural sidecar rig, (phew!) then returned home for a few days and set out again on my '07 Vespa 250ie motor scooter to visit Canada. That summer has gone and the seasons have changed as will the reports, some will be about shorter rides, some will be about maintenance, and maybe on occasion I'll post a photo or two just for interest. I may even introduce other bikes, a few of which are lurking under cover in the barn...

Navigating this blog is easy, just scroll down the list of posts by date to whatever interests you, click on it and you're in. Photos can be viewed in larger format by clicking on them.

Finally, if you'd care to post comments please do so, I'd love to hear from you. CLICK ON "NO COMMENTS" TO ENTER YOUR REMARKS. That seems really silly but that's how it works. The entry window is located at the bottom of each screen. Thanks for visiting, I hope you enjoy your stay.

LL

Saturday, July 18, 2015

Jul 18 - Day 16 2015 Tour - Bandon, OR The Final Day

I awoke early today, tippy-toed into the kitchen where I made a breakfast of Sugar-coated Mini-wheats garnished with a banana. Coffee left over from last night was still good - I'm fairly resilient when it comes to coffee, hardly ever toss any out.

The hardier folks were already doing the morning jog as I loaded up my gear. It was crisp and sunny so I chose to wear the liner inside my jacket along with heavy gloves. Even the Knox Cold Killer axeman's hood was recalled to duty. I like being warm better than being chilled. Maybe that's why the BB has heated grips.

Before leaving I checked the oil level - as expected it was down a tad but not bad so I topped it off. That's when I noticed the small spot under the bike, same as I'd seen in the past whenever it's been run hard during hot weather. It didn't worry me but I'll call the dealer and ask about it when I get home.

Today's photo of interest - an oil spot
I'd gassed up shortly before arriving at the resort yesterday so my departure was quick and easy. The ride home took me south until I reached the turn off that skirts just north of Crater Lake, then it heads west down into Roseburg, around 100 miles away. Once there the remaining route home has been done so many times it was almost like running on auto pilot for the rest of the journey.

I paused long enough in Camas Valley to remove the jacket liner - it was heating up again - and to call Jerry Smith to see if he wanted to do lunch. We decided our old haunt The Broiler in Coquille would be easy for both of us and that's what we did.

Finally home, there was no one on hand to greet me, Linda will be in Sunriver for one more day and the doggies are incarcerated in the doggie hotel so they'll have to wait till tomorrow.

This was a fun tour, the weather where I chose to ride was great. I did get rained on a few times but not all that much so no complaints. My favorite parts were riding through the Indian reservations and I think Linda and I will retrace the same journey in our little RV. Even the dogs can go along.

So that's it, I'd post a picture of the bike's odometer but you'll recall it went south several days ago. The good part is the GPS odometer worked fine and recorded 4148 total miles, a daily average of 276.54 miles for 15 days - one day I didn't ride. Altogether not a bad run on a sidecar.


I have a feeling a replacement GPS may be in the near future, this guy has been zapped way too many times and of late has developed a habit of shutting down randomly. Not good but it's lasted several years so no complaints on my part. Maybe Linda will buy me a new one for my birthday. How about it Honey, sound good? Eh?

LL

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