I’ve recieved a number of letters asking me where I’ve been lately. I’ve been in Vermont, spending the week after the Last Mile Ride helping Dwayne fix his mom’s house. Besides being put to work swinging a hammer, no one around there has high-speed internet, so I try not to be too intrusive by using their phone lines. I probably needed a bit of a break from the computer anyway.

Now that I’m back, I’m just posting a few of my favorite pics taken by the three of us. I know Susan has plans to post here with more photos and her experience soon. I think all three of us need some time to process and reflect. I know I still need some time to.

Here’s Susan and Pascal at the Vermont Welcome Center, route 4 in Vermont. I’m so glad that they continued on the third day to Vermont even though I couldn’t. This was the part of the route that I had ridden over and over in my head ever since we first decided to do it - riding over the border into Vermont, riding over Killington mountain, riding along the curvy riverside roads. It’s the part of the ride I know and have been on a hundred times on my cross country trips, or most recently coming home to visit family from Maryland. I was looking forward to pointing out cool stuff to Susan and Pascal and to show them sights that I’ve known since I was a kid. I guess it was meant to be that they experience it with their own eyes rather than through mine.

A couple of friends Susan and Pascal met in Castleton:

Pascal and Susan in front of Maple Cake Farm in Randolph, VT. Thank you to Ashley and Sam for their wonderful hospitality! Sam used to ride in the truck with Shod when he was a kid and Shod was working on a road near his house.

Dwayne and Pascal at the brook near Maple Cake Farm:

Dwayne, his mom Sally, and me at the Last Mile Ride, waiting for the Last Mile riders to return:

This gentleman asked Sally if she wanted to jump on when he was coming into the Gifford parking lot - so she did! I didn’t have time to lecture her about wearing a helmet: They rode about 100 feet - right up to the sheriff, who helped her get off the motorcycle.

You may also like to see photos taken by the staff at Gifford here. It’s a PDF document, here.

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About my poor Vespa: Dwayne and I got back to Maryland last night, scooter in tow. In the pic to the left, you can see the ht coil I replaced (thanks, Troy!). Since the scooter still doesn’t start, I ordered a CDI from Scooterville in Minneapolis (thanks, Bob!) which should be here this week. Wellesley at Vespa Washington suggested that I don’t try the CDI install myself, since my keys have to be programmed and if I mess that up, I guess I’m kind of screwed. More on that when it gets here!Again, thank you, thank you, thank you for your support. I did a sale over at scooterseatcovers to help raise funds for my CDI and repairs, and it’s been a great success. I extended the sale until today, so today’s the last day to order with free shipping and $5 going to Gifford, so get in your order before midnight!