New England Roads Are an Amusment Park for Motorcyclists and Scooterists

Usually, I ride in the company of scooterists scooting around Southern New England at a social pace. In July, a new plan for fun emerged. Some people with large motorbikes travel long distances in short periods of time. These endurance runs can have names like the Saddle Sore 1000 (1000 miles in 24 hours) or the Iron Butt Rally (11000 miles in 11 days). Imagining the sense of freedom, riding the open road, camaraderie of man and machine, male bonding or just bonding if women come along, and Robert Persig and his son in "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance," I invited a few friends on my quest for freedom. When the day arrived, two men joined the party. Jay and Mark are motorbike enthusiasts who will ride anything with a motor. They both own Stella classic style scooters and large BMW motorcycles. For such a long ride, they choose the larger bikes.

Mark has been riding for about 28 years, since the age of 12. Before that, he was commonly seen riding on the back of his dad's bike. Mark is a responsible engineering type who likes to get out for a taste of freedom on two wheels. Mark is quiet, friendly and jovial.

Jay is an engineer for a major corporation. He delights not only in the aesthetics of riding, but he appreciates every technical aspect of riding, bikes and gear. He understands and will explain how to rejet a carburetor, the inner workings of a GPS, and the physics of understeer. Has Jay read "Zen..."? I don't know, but he could write most of it.

Mark and Jay enjoy all types of riding - mountain biking on single tracks in state parks, riding scooters along the Massachusetts coast, long stretches of highway, and fast rides on the winding back roads of New England. Today's ride will be the latter. Jay planned the ride to travel over two lane 50 mph roads throughout Vermont and New Hampshire. We planned to take all day. This ride will know no limits in time or location.