Scoot Commute 2006California to FloridaBy Scooter

FINAL NOTES - HAPPY EARTH DAY!

2006-04-22T10:44:00.000-05:00

TOTAL MILES TRAVELLED = 4411
MILES PER GALLON = 50 -65
TRIP ENDED 6:27PM APRIL 21

Though to many, this may seem like an incredible journey, I want to ensure I do not detract from the many scooter-adverturers that have accomplished trips much larger in scale and/or on machines less modern or smaller. In our instituting the yearly SCOOT COMMUTE our aim is to raise the awareness of scootering as transportation -- to show that a scooter can be a very viable vehicle for travel and economy. So we encourage you to promote this blog to your friends, neighbors and all others, that just maybe, would consider a better form of transport.

The nature of this SCOOT COMMUTE 2006 was quite different from last years ride. I was often asked if I were "concerned" about being out there all alone. Overall, I was not. I felt prepared -- the scooter was reliable, the route was mostly trouble-free, weather cooperated and the hospitality of friends and Scooter Rider Magazine subscribers along the way gave a feeling of support and family.

The SCOOT COMMUTE 2006 will be a 2-Part article in future issues of Scooter Rider Magazine. There will also be a review of the 2006 Suzuki Burgman 400, Aerostich Roadcrafter suit, and GIVI accessories as well as other products used on this adventure. Many more photos will be available too, so if you want to find out more about the trip make sure you are a subscriber to Scooter Rider Magazine.

THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE AND HOME

2006-04-22T09:51:00.000-05:00

The ride to Tallahassee was to be a reasonable 260 miles so I slept late and did much needed laundry. Heading out through Mobile around 10:30 central time I soon crossed into Florida and the eastern time zone. The interior of the Florida Panhandle is a part of of the state most people never see as they drive straight through to whatever tourist area they have planned. No cartoon mice live here and they don't film CSI shows either, but it is a very, very nice area.

I made my way once again alternating between Hwy 90 and I-10 as road conditions and situations changed. Hwy 90 around Pensacola still shows some of the damage from last year's early season hurricane. I arrived at 'All About Scooters' at around 5:30pm and chatted with the owners until the attendees for the reception arrived. We all had some great food and watched a slideshow of my trip photos while indulging in lots of scooter-talk.

Afterward, my hosts for the evening, the Komlyns, lead me through town to their beautiful house on the outskirts of town. Tallahasse is a picturesque town and does not much resemble what most think of as Florida. We stored the scooters and stayed up a bit too late talking and snacking on cake and ice cream. The next morning we rode out for breakfast and met with another couple of local scooter enthusiasts. After a great meal they lead me through some more of the great area scenery and pointed me homeward. I certainly appreciate the Komlyns great hospitality and helpfulness.

Today would be my second longest day mileage wise and the temperature and humidity would not be welcome. However, riding near the northwest coast of the state was a welcome treat. Small towns with friendly people and low traffic on smooth roads. Much of the area has natural springs and a small tourist industry has formed around this. The whole area has much of old Florida still with tiny roadside motels. restaurants and gas stations.

By the time I passed through Ocala the traffic increased greatly. This area is part of the greater Tampa-to-Orlando megapolis and can be very congested. I made my way southward and soon the roads were so familiar it was near automatic. Tired and hot, I pulled into Naples right on schedule at 6:30pm, shut off the Burgman and had a cold beer.
>>PHOTO 1, ESCAMBIA BAY - PENSACOLA<<
>>PHOTO 2, THE BREAKFAST CLUB - TALLAHASSEE EDITION<<

NEW ORLEANS!(NUH-AW-LINS)

2006-04-19T20:26:00.000-05:00

The ride to New Orleans was fairly uneventful. The hardest part was getting around Houston and this took a while longer than expected. I alternated between I-10 and Hwy 90 as they merged together on and off until 90 dropped south and east into New Orleans. At times hurricane damage became more apparent as I rode closer. I reached New Orleans and promptly got lost. After wandering around I retraced my route and found the way into the French Quarter and the Hotel Olivier. Unassuming outside from the tiny tight streets it was magnificent inside, a real taste of old New Orleans.

After check in I made my way around Bourbon St checking the sights and dropping in on a couple of live bands. Later Dennis Shenk, a local, showed me incredible hospitality as he took me around the more interesting parts of the French Quarter and we ended the evening by dropping in for coffee and bienets at the Cafe Du Monde.

The next day we rode to the Vespa shop which had just reopened post Katrina. This shop is one of the most prolific Vespa shops in the counry and popular in the local community. The owners and staff were very pleased to have me drop in and I very much enjoyed their spacious and well appointed store. We also dropped in and saw the New Orleans Police Dept's stable of Vespa, Piaggio and Honda patrol scooters and visited one of the above ground cemeteries.

After a nice lunch of red beans and rice Dennis lead me through some of the more devastated parts of the city. Then he pointed me eastward as he turned back to the city. I headed toward Waveland as I desired to get a firsthand view of the devastation wreacked by the wind and tidal surge of Katrina. It was truly heart-rending and feeling a bit bad for my voyeurism upon these areas, I moved on to Mobile Alabama for the night.

Tomorrow I ride into Tallahassee FL as the local scooter shop 'All About Scooters' at 2312 Apalchee, is having a reception for my arrival.

>>PHOTO 1, CAT SLEEPING ON POLICE SCOOTERS<<
>>PHOTO 2, BOURBON ST SIGN<<

SPOILED IN LAS CRUCESAND IT'S A LONG WAY ACROSS TX

2006-04-17T21:25:00.003-05:00

Well I successfully arrived in Las Cruces at the home of Karl and Alberta Utrecht. They throughly spoiled me for 2 days -- we met with the local riding club for dinner, then on Saturday joined the club again for a breakfast ride. Yesterday a group of us pulled out for a ride into west Texas via Cloudcroft and Carlsbad and on through Pecos Texas to Ft Stockton for the night.

This morning we rode further east and at mid morning the group split off heading south in search of Blue Bonnets in bloom, whereas I had to head due east. Working my way along Hwy 290 I managed a quick stop in Luckenbach, Texas, the town from the famous Waylon Jennings - Wille Nelson song. Waylon passed on last year and it was in a way, me paying my respect.

I continued onward, eased through Austin and arrived late evening in Houston for the night. Today I managed over 500 miles and can certainly feel it. Texas is in a heat wave and temps hovered around 100 degrees so I doused myself with cold water at every fuel stop.
>>PHOTO 1, MISSION BUILT IN MID 1800'S OUTSIDE LAS CRUCES<<
>>PHOTO 2, BJ AND HIS PEEPS IN WEST TEXAS, A GREAT RIDE WITH GREAT PEOPLE<<

MORE BISBEE, ON TO LAS CRUCES NM

2006-04-15T21:08:00.000-05:00

My funky B/B turned out to be a bit 'too funky'. Not that the room was bad, it wasn't, but the owner seemed to be in the midst of a psychotic break and fired most of the employees. This she followed with a constant loud barrage of her complaining about herself. After overhearing this for a couple of hours in the evening while attempting to relax on the balcony, and then another hour at my breakfast, I was more than ready to hit the road.

Too bad as Bisbee was a great stopover, but I made my way onward and headed southeast to the border town of Douglas. From there I skirted near the Mexico border on backroads and crossed into New Mexico. Following a very deserted road. At one point I stopped at a roadside marker commemorating the spot where Geronimo surrendered.

By early evening I had made Las Cruces and my hosts for the next 2 days. We later met a group of local scooter riders for a nice mexican dinner and parking lot scooter talk. Thjis morning we took a 30 mile ride with club members through local farm country for breakfast and visited local old mexican architecture. Tomorrow I head out with the group along backroads into Texas and Ft Stockton for the night.

Hwy 9. Along this road I saw a Coyote cross the road just in front of me. A few miles later a Roadrunner ran along the shoulder then crossed as well. Then I spied 3 Border Patrol Officers with a group of illegals they had just caught.

>>PHOTO1, BISBEE DOWNTOWN<<
>>PHOTO 2, CROSSING THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE

PHOENIX AND BISBEE ARIZONA

2006-04-13T20:30:00.000-05:00

Leaving out of Las Vegas at about 9:30am allowed me to mix with lighter traffic heading south. I stayed with a couple of old friends in Henderson (LV surburb) and had a geat visit. I stopped off at the Hoover Dam and as I was on a scooter I guess they assumed I could not carry enough explosives to do much damage, and so they waved me through the security stop. In northern AZ I dropped in Cloride, a semi-ghost from mining days fargone.

The route south was under heavy construction and I had a good 45 minute wait and then slow traffic for another 20 miles. I also found another strong headwind all the way into Phoenix. Met up with Alan Jeffory, he had been very gracious to allow me to crash for the night. We poked at the Burgman a bit then left out and met 5 other scooter riders for a nice dinner and an evening of scooter talk.

Now I am sittng on the balcony of the funky-deco hotel /BB I choose for the night in Bisbee. The rider to Bisbee was pretty uneventful and temps were a bit warm - about 90 until I climbed in elevation to 500 feet. Bisbee is also an old mining town that has become a artist colony and tourist destination, a geat place. Tomorrow it is on to Las Cruces.
>>PHOTO 1, ALAN JEFFORY ON BORROWED VESPA WITH SIDECAR<<
>>PHOTO 2, SCOOTER IN FRONT OF FUNKY BISBEE BB<<

BUCK, I-15, DEATH VALLEY

2006-04-11T21:17:00.000-05:00

Somehow I managed to get in and out of California with the pouring rains. After leaving Sacrameto I made a straight shot to Bakersfield. Here I checked into a hotel next to the 'Buck Owens Crystal Palace'. Buck was one of my heroes and he died just a couple of weeks back, so I was glad to be able to pay my respects at the gate.

The next day it ws on to Baker and then to Tecopa on the edge of Death Valley. To get to Baker I had to make a run on I-15 which turned into a parking after a waste spill closed the road. As lane-spliting is legal in CA I was able to keep on the move and was only running a bit late. I had planned to stay at the hostel in Tecopa but the only building that could have been it were not marked and did not look like a place I wanted to be so I moved on to a nice funky mineral water resort a couple miles on. For $60 I got nice clean room and all the soaking in a private pool I desired. The soak was well needed to loosen my muscles and I had a great night sleep.

Then this morning it was on to Death Valley where I made the loop tour and toured the lowest point in North America. Sights were incredible! I literally had my breath taken away.

Tomorrow it is on to meet up with some riders for dinner in Phoenix. More later.
>>PHOTO, ENTERING DEATH VALLEY<<

THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS AND CENTAL VALLEY TO SACRAMENTO

2006-04-08T11:13:00.000-05:00

So now I am in Sacramento visiting with family and making the final adjustments and arrangements. Technically, this is really where the trip starts as I considered the run from LA a shakedown. Tomorrow morning I hit the road and head due south to Bakersfield for the night, then on to Death Valley.

As I posted prior, the mountain ride on Hwy 33 was awesome. I had the good fortune to be lead through the pass by motorcycle icon and writer extraordinaire, Bill Stermer and his friend B.I. Bill knew this route intimately and his expert guidance was much appreciated. Except for a bit of conflict between the centerstand and tight left hand twisties, the Burgman 400 performed exceptionally. We had nice lunch at the New Cuyama Buckhorn Grill and then split up with me heading north.

>>PHOTO 1 - BURGMANN LOADED<<
>>PHOTO 2 - BJ AND BILL STERMER<<

DAY 1 AND 2 - SETUP AND SHAKEDOWN

2006-04-06T22:03:00.000-05:00

Well, so far it seems to be going almost too smoothly... which tends to make me nervous. Flights went fine, baggage made it, picked up the Burgman and hit the road to Camarillo CA. I did make a couple of wrong turns but arrived in good order. The wind was incredible. Gusts of 15 to 30 mph and after 100 miles I noticed I had only seen to other riders out braving the weather. Spent the night and prepped the scoot with the Givi stuff and then headed out this morning for an awesome ride with some pros on their favorite local mountain roads. I will have some photos and more detail on this posted over the weekend. For now I am about 100 miles from Sacramento for the night and will head in in the morn.
>>PHOTO, RIDING HWY 33 THROUGH MOUNTAINS<<

WHAT IS THE SCOOT COMMUTE 2006

2006-04-02T12:07:00.000-05:00

SCOOT COMMUTE 2006, concieved by SCOOTER RIDER MAGAZINE, will take place from April 8 - 21. Our editor, BJ Strass, will cover a transcontinental route, starting in California and ending in Florida. The southerly route will keep a leisurely pace and utilize a minimum of interstates, focusing on scenic backroads and out-of-the-way points of interest. During the event no support vehicles are utilized; all necessary gear will be packed on the scooter. Mr Strass will also be meeting with Scooter Rider Magazine subscribers and interested media at stopovers.

CHECK BACK HERE FOR TRIP PROGRESS

The planned nightly stopovers are:
Sacramento, CA....................4/8
Bakersfield, CA.....................4/9
Tecopa, CA (Death Valley).....4/10
Henderson, NV......................4/11
Phoenix, AZ..........................4/12
Bisbee, AZ.............................4/13
Las Cruces, NM.....................4/14-15
Ft Stockton, TX......................4/16
Undetermined E. Texas Stop...4/17
New Orleans, LA....................4/18-19
Tallahassee, FL......................4/20
Naples, FL.............................4/21

PRODUCTS CHOSEN FOR THE SCOOT COMMUTE

We would like to sincerely thank the companies that have taken interest in the Scoot Commute 2006. These companies have sponsored us by supplying their excellent products and services and we encourage you to consider their wares for your future needs.

PRIMARY SPONSOR
SUZUKI CYCLES have enthusiastically stepped up to supply our rider with a prepped Burgman 400 scooter for this year event. This scooter offers excellent capacity for packing travel gear, all day comfort, interstate capable speed and great economy. www.SuzukiCycles.com

OTHER PRODUCT SPONSORS
AEROSTICH makes protective riders clothing of legendary proportions. They are supplying our rider with their one-piece Roadcrafter suit, a textile garment which offers great protection, visibility and comfort in a variety of conditions. www.Aerostich.com

GIVI USA is a market leader in scooter and motorcycle accessories producing stylish luggage and touring windshields. GIVI will be setting up the scooter with an E470 Monolock Topcase, Touring Windshield and Scooter Tunnel Bag. www.GiviUSA.com

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Why promote scooter travel? Our society has come to embrace large, expensive, and less fuel efficient vehicles. Consequently, scooters have become one of the last motor vehicles still easily affordable to purchase and supply with fuel. Through this event, we hope to inspire others to consider scooters as fun and practical transportation.

Scooter Rider Magazine, now in the fourth year of production, offers broad coverage in a positive and fun format providing information relative to scooter enthusiasts, riders and the scooter industry. Within the pages of Scooter Rider Magazine are scooter reviews, product reviews, scooter travel adventures, club features, technical tips, accessory add-ons, performance articles, selected advertising and additional aspects that make scooters so popular. Scooter Rider Magazine produces five print issues each year. www.ScooterRiderMagazine.com