Sunday Ride to Eat and even more Scooter Farkles

It was a busy and somewhat expensive weekend but included not much riding. Friday afternoon I scootered to Urban Wasp. Last weekend we had brought in the red Vespa to get the back light replaced which broke during our Washington trip. It turned out to be a warranty issue, and got fixed at no cost for us. Also, Bella got a brand-new rear tire mounted, as the other was compromised due to the flat tire experienced during the same travels. So, I picked up the red one, and left the plum (some would say eggplant) one at the dealership as it needed a long overdue service, and a change of the worn out rear tire as well.

Saturday we picked up parts at our warehouse south of the border which we had ordered at Scooterwest. On the way back we stopped at Holeshot Motorsports, and got sucked into their sales event. We acquired new motorcycle boots (Shift Kicker) and gloves (Shift Hybrid X) for the husband, and boots (Icon Tarmac) for myself.  By the time we finished shopping, the Vespa dealership called to inform that Paolo was ready for pick-up, and we headed downtown to take him home.

With both scooters back in the parkade further farkelization ensued. Beautiful Bella got a Vespa top case in red, and a power plug in black, while Paolo is now sporting a front rack, a side stand and a power plug (colour: sand), too.

Today we weren't in the mood for a longer trip, and aimed for a ride to eat at Shake'n'Shingle in Maple Ridge, a rustic log cabin offering typical but tasty pub grub. While Mr M. chose a burger, I decided for a crab sandwich with hand-cut fries. It was fresh and good.

The additional weight of the front rack seems to take its toll on the riding stability. Steering feels awkward, and I am still getting used to the different feel of the bike. I am not yet sure if I like it, but I will give it another try.

The shiny red box on Bella is a real eye catcher, and the husband is more than pleased with the scooter's improved appearance.

The power plugs on both vehicles will not only enable us to 'feed' the GPS, but also operate the Stop'n'Go mini air compressor much easier in case of emergency.

I opted for the sand coloured version as it goes well with the seat and roll bag. It was a simple plug and play installation, as the bike had already a prepared harness inside just waiting for hook-up.

One very convenient farkle is the scooter side stand which is much less cumbersome to operate than the center stand, especially for quick photo ops. I adopted the idea from Sergei's blog (Brilliant pictures by the way, please look for yourselves.), who had hurt his foot during his epic Canada-to-Mexico trip on a Vespa, and couldn't operate his center stand very well. Since my knee is acting up every so often, the side stand is exactly what I need.

Now the Vespa's are even better prepared for our next adventures.