Scooter Rosa
bellied scooter rider into a braver soul, and while I still feel like every moving vehicle spells potential doom, I keep going and soon I’m riding over to the gas station— where I gasp in pleasure when $2 nearly fills up the tank. Oh, this is good.
A
nd then it happens. Scooter dreams begin to haunt my days and nights. Propelled by fantasies of a shiny red scooter, I start thinking about how I’ll need to take a safety training course to get truly legit. I enlist my friend Laura, a recent scooter convert who commutes from Santa Rosa to Freestone on her white Vespa, to take me on a ride around West County. Before we hit the road, Laura takes me to a long, almost empty parking lot where we practice the skills—like the counterintuitive push turns—that
will allow me to gracefully navigate curvy rural roads. And then, we’re doing it, riding up and down hills, winding around roads, past side-of-the-road pink ladies, vineyards, meadows and rustic farmhouses. We stop to take in the elegant views of the valley from a ridge on Burnside Road and fly by eucalyptus groves, slowing down to take the curves with a wild mobility that doesn’t happen in a car. It’s a freedom I haven’t experienced in a long while, like one of those dumb movies where the 30-something woman moves closer to a state of grace through unexpected romance—except that my state of grace comes from scooting at 50 mph down Highway 1, heading toward Valley Ford and the Sonoma Coast, buffeted by the wind on a fantastic little machine. To think that a week ago, I thought scooters were dorky. Now? I’m in love, and it’s deep.
Five Great Scooter Rides in the North Bay Chalk Hill Road Beginning
scooterists will enjoy the vineyard views, meadows, redwoods and farm animals along this semi-hilly ride between Windsor and Highway 28. Westside Road Take River
Road to Wohler Bridge and head north on Westside Road into Healdsburg. A classic wine country ride through some of West County’s most scenic climes, suitable for beginners. Enterprise Road Starting at
the southeast end of Santa Rosa, take Bennett Valley Road to Enterprise Road and bask in the oak woodlands, vineyards and sweeping pastureland. Make a stop at Matanzas Creek Winery on the way back to smell the sweet-scented lavender fields. Beginners can handle this one, too. Chileno Valley Road The cows still outnumber the people on this ride through the emerald valleys between Tomales Road and the outskirts of Petaluma. A bit more challenging, this ride is suitable for more experienced riders.
HOP ON Whether modern
or vintage, scooters get crazy gas mileage. 75mpg, anyone?
Sonoma County’s annual scooter shindig
Scooters take over the streets of Sonoma County during the third annual Scooter Rosa, a weekend celebrating a love for scooters of all stripes with rides, raffles, food, wine-spitting contests, scavenger hunts and music. No, music will not be provided by Zanger Rinus’ “Met Romana Op de Scooter” (Google it and weep) but, rather, Royal Bastard Dan Carls will take the stage with his band Days Like Nights to entertain the scooter-frenzied crowd. Sponsored by Revolution Moto, all proceeds from the weekend go to Worth Our Weight, a local nonprofit that provides culinary training for at-risk youth in the preparation and serving of sustainable food. Scooter Rosa kicks off on Saturday, July 24, at Revolution Moto. 518 College Ave., Santa Rosa. 9:30am. $30.707.523.2371.—L.C.
Napa Valley For the ultimate (and more challenging) Napa Valley ride, start at Brown’s Valley Market, Napa. Take Highway 29 up to St. Helena. From there, turn onto Deer Park Road and then Howell Mountain Road. Stop in Angwin for gas (you’ve got $3, right?) and then go toward Pope Valley. Take Chiles Pope Valley Road to Highway 128 east. Ride that down to Highway 121 and head back into Napa. A nice, long tour of the Napa Valley.—L.C.
19 N O RT H BAY B O H E M I A N | JU LY 2 0 -2 6, 2 0 1 1 | B O H E M I A N.COM
County chapter of the nationwide scooter club. The more the merrier, he says, when it comes to scooter riders. “We don’t care what you ride, as long as you ride,” says Carls, who sometimes commutes to carpentry jobs in San Francisco on his Piaggio BV500, a larger beast that almost rivals a motorcycle. “I try to use my scooter as much as possible,” he explains. “It’s cheaper, it’s more fun. It’s just a great way to get around. It saves so much time on commuting and getting from here to there.” After all this positive reinforcement, I approach my first solo ride on a borrowed Genuine Buddy 150cc with more trepidation than anticipation. I squeeze the helmet over my head only to spend 20 tear-inducing minutes trying to start the damn thing. Finally, with help from the scooter’s owner, I get the engine going, throttle up, and go. My first thought: Is this the day that I will die? Fear sits down right behind me. It appears I’ve stayed away from scooters all these years not just for the dork factor, but also from terror at driving a motorized vehicle that doesn’t offer two tons of steel protection. Quiet and virtually car-free streets in a residential neighborhood allow me to buzz around at slow speeds without breaking a bone. After about an hour of practice, my worry shrinks a little; with hopping endorphins, my confidence increases, and soon, busier roads call. I carefully turn and cross through a major intersection—heart pounding. Survival makes this yellow-