September 11th, 2008
The 2008 Scooter Cannonball Run started today, a 3000+ mile coast-to-coast endurance run for hardcore scooterists who want to test themselves and their machines.
The Cannonball Run is a 10-day timed rally and is open to all scooters up to 252cc.
The proverbial green flag dropped this morning in San Francisco, sending 23 scooter fanatics off on a wild ride of more than 300 miles a day as they head to Ocean City, Maryland with a planned ending date of September 20th.
As an avid scooter rider myself, I’m envious of the freewheeling spirit and adventurous attitude that Cannonball participants have to have to embark on such a monstorous and potentially perilous journey. But just the thought of riding more than 300 miles a day on a scooter makes my butt, back and legs ache.
The Cannonball is not only a test of vehicle endurance, but a test of a rider’s mental stability as well. Riding for more than 8 hours a day on a scooter for 10 straight days is not something to be entered into lightly. Of course there is the worry of having a mechanical breakdown, something that seems to happen with amazing regularity on some of the older Vespas and Lambrettas on the run. But there is also the concern of hitting checkpoints, finding lodging and food and calculating gas mileage — all while riding on 10-inch tires.
Back in 1996, a group of my club members from Secret Society Scooter Club and some other scooterist took a “Ride of a Lifetime” from San Francisco to Italy for the 50th Anniversary of the Vespa (clearly they had their bikes shipped over “the pond” and then continued to ride from there).
They rode more than 350 miles a day on classic Vespas, and while everything went OK for them, the hardship tales from the trip convinced me that it takes a special breed to ride that far in such a short time.
Send your good thought out to these hearty souls who have embarked on their own ride of a lifetime. Many of them have blogs to detail their adventure, along with pictures and even GPS real-time locators so you can “live the dream” along with them from the comfort of your office chair. Check the forums and who knows, maybe next year you will decide to Cannonball it yourself.
Motor On!!
http://www.somervillecustompublishing.com/Gasoline-Alley/scooter-cannonball-takes-off/68/
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