Feeling a bit nostalgic....
Back in 2012, we were doing pretty well financially. My career was seemingly at its peak, and we felt like the good times could never end. No spooky foreshadowing there, of course - but I digress.
I remember feeling like I wanted some kind of a cheap scooter or something fun to ride around the southern California coast. I really just wanted to spend a couple of grand and get something basic to zip around on. So we decided to go to a local bike shop and look at a few things.
I started walking around the shop looking at some scooters and sat on a few. I actually liked one in particular. It had a kind of raw Mad Max vibe to it that I was digging. I said to @afturner, "Hey, what do you think of this one?"
She gave me a weird look and said something to the affect of "You are way too big for that." Apparently, I looked like an ogre on a kids toy from her perspective. She pointed across the room to the Can-Am Spyder that you see in the above image. I was a bit intimidated by it because I had never really ridden on such a thing. But about 45 minutes later, we had bought it and there we were sitting outside of the shop ready to drive it home. (Don't worry, I went and grabbed some shoes from the truck)
What a Blast!
I had no idea how much fun I was about to have on this thing. And even less of an idea of how far I'd be taking it. I was riding this thing everywhere and every chance that I could find. My favorite route was taking it from San Pedro all the way to Redondo beach through Palos Verdes around the coast. It is a gorgeous drive all the way with rocky cliff to one side and ocean on the other.
During this ride I'd always pull over and look out over the ocean for a bit before continuing my ride. I really enjoyed this time to myself. I do love my little one, but I certainly could not do this these days! It was definitely a different time for me.
This went on for about a year or so before we got the wild idea to buy a house in Florida, all the way across the country. As always, we had way too much crap so it was quite a rigmarole getting everything from Los Angeles to Florida. We managed to get the bike shipped in the back of the truck along with our stuff which honestly made me quite nervous.
A Not so smooth move
It took our stuff a little while to arrive to us in Florida but finally everything showed up in one piece for the most part. For the most part I say, but that is another story indeed. The bike showed up, but with 25 extra miles on it.
I was about to blow my top, but kept my cool. The delivery guy was literally breaking a sweat when he saw that I had a before photo of the mileage and showed it to him. He didn't know what to say, so he got his boss on the line. The boss, stumbling over his words, went on to claim that they had to drive the bike from one truck to another trailer which was across the parking lot.
Of course, this did not account for the 25 miles at all. Obviously they had a good old time riding my bike around for quite some time. I had washed it before shipping it, and it had mud on the tires and splatter marks all over it. I was starting to get pretty angry that he was lying to me, but just decided to let it go. I really had no idea what I would have done about it anyway.
I had some great rides around Florida, but it wasn't quite as fun as in California. The humidity and the random rain really kind of takes the fun out of it for me. I suppose I am spoiled from the great weather here in California. If only I could have this weather without the smog and ridiculous cost of living!
After a while in Florida, disaster struck over in the UK and my mother-in-law got really sick so @afturner had to go over and be with her. Ultimately, she did not survive so we ended up moving to the UK for a while. This was an incredibly difficult time for everyone involved!
Moving to England
We had to pack up our entire business and move over to England to help our my father-in-law during his time of need. We got a massive shipping container mostly to hold our computers, desks and office equipment as well as the Spyder. I had never driven in England before so this was going to be a new adventure.
I have ridden around England many times over the year with others driving and had gotten a bit used to the signage. However, it is not the same thing as driving for yourself. So I kind of just jumped into the deep end and took the bike around the small town of Newmarket in Suffolk to get the hang of things.
I practiced getting off and on the round-abouts which might seem funny to hear for the locals, but we really don't have them here in the US. The ones that we do have are not really like the ones over in England but a bit more dumbed down versions. I used to think they were weird, but now after having driven on them quite a lot I find them to be quite logical, as they keep the traffic moving quite nicely.
Not long after we got settled in, a guy who lived across the street from my father-in-law invited my to go on a ride across England with a group of local bikers for a Christmas charity event. I jumped on the opportunity and we had an absolutely amazing time! I went from riding in hot and humid to damp and freezing but it was loads of fun.
This was especially fun because I felt like I fit in and was treated like one of the locals with this great group of guys. Also my bike was kind of a weird novelty because at the time not many people had ever seen one over there.
Sadly I had to come back to the states which kind of sucked because I really liked being over there. My visa only lasts 6 months at a time, then I have to come home. I ended up going back for another 6 months about a year later and got to ride some more, but it wasn't really cost effective to ship it back to the states again.
So that pretty much brings us to today and the sad fact that I'm finally having to sell my old Spyder. It's hard to believe that I've had it for more than 10 years at this point. It has sat in a garage for more than half of that time, being that I'm mostly in America.
I really did have a lot of fun on my Can-Am Spyder, and I hope that it will bring joy to the new owner. Hopefully one day I will be in a position to get something just as fun. Well, maybe when @little-ricky is a bit older!
I would really appreciate your support!
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The scooter looks safe to ride compared to ordinary scooter, at least you have a great experience
Well, originally I was going to just get a small scooter but ended up spending way more on a trike, I guess you would call it. It definitely felt a lot safer! This thing doesn't lean to the side at all!
Thanks to afturner for choosing a durable bike that stuck with you for 10 years, it's hard to part with some items we own, I think I know how this feels.
At least the memory lives on. Hehe
Yes, it is hard to let go for sure. Maybe one day when Ricky is a bit older I can get something similar again!
Yeah true.
That's pretty cool. I have seen these around from time to time, but even over here they are still a bit of a novelty I think. I've never been on a bike before. I think it might be fun, but I'm probably a bit too much of a chicken. Especially these days when people drive so crazy and don't pay attention to what they are doing!
I have ridden scooters around before but I have never owned a full on 2 wheeled motorcycle. They kind of freak me out a little. But this 3 wheeled one felt more like a car hybrid. It felt much safer on the road even though you are still pretty vulnerable.
Here in California people on bikes do the lane splitting thing which I don't understand how it is legal. It always makes me feel uneasy when driving a car to have a motorcycle next to me in between lanes.
I remember seeing that lane splitting thing when we were out in California for work. We were on the expressway heading out to Tracy and people were flying by between cars. I rode a moped on my aunt and uncle's farm a long time ago, but that was pretty slow!
They do the lane splitting pretty consistently out here. I especially hate it when you get a large group of bikers passing you on both sides. You grip the steering wheel with both hands and hope for the best.
I never had a moped but I did have a Honda Spree for a while. It topped out at 30-35 mph from what I remember. That was fun riding around the country roads in Kentucky.
See, that's the one thing I hate about motorcycles, they drive so reckless a lot of times but then we are constantly being hammered about how we need to watch out for them on the roads. I get it is easy to miss them, but they drive like idiots a lot of times and you know if something were to happen you'd be the one to get in trouble because nobody watches out for the poor bikers. No offense to any of my friends who are bikers, but unfortunately the many bad ones ruin it for the good ones. Sorry for the rant too.
#hive #posh
Ohhh dear you had a blast with this bike of yours, I can’t imagine being separated from something that holds so much memory but not to worry you’ll get something 100 times fun😃
It feels weird owning something that is sitting in a garage on the other side of the world! That is the real reason why I have to let it go. I will miss it though!
Yeah and I pray you get over it pretty soon😃
Well you've loads of cool memories of the Spyder from Cali to Florida to UK and back.
Man I can't believe those cheeky bastards put up 25 miles on the clock and denied it. The cheek of them, I'd have gone to town on them, more for the lying part than anything.
Ah Palos Verdes man, that brings me back... we had friends who lived in a mansion in a gated community when we were in California back in the day. We had a few brilliant nights up there man. What a beautiful part of the world 🌍
Oh yeah I was pretty ticked off. I was on the phone with him for about 20 minutes listening to him squirm. He was obviously guilty because he wouldn't stop rambling about their process, and how everyone at the storage loved the bike. I bet they loved it, they were riding around on it for quite a while.
Oh yea, all the rich bastards live over there. A lot of people think Hollywood Hills and up in that area is the place to live, but honestly I'd buy a house in PV if I could afford it. It is so much nicer with all nature intact. I love driving down 25th street all the way to Palos Verdes Drive until I get to Hawthorne Blvd. It is the really roundabout way to get to Torrance, but I prefer going through nature along the coast if not in a hurry. It is especially fun on a bike!
I can imagine the squirming alright!!! Knowing that he was full of shit, I guess what can ya do, eh... You'd think they would have had the cop on to clean it down after though. Good job they didn't crash it.. That trip on the bike would be unreal. My friend in LA had a little volkswagon convertible so made similar trips back then and I can still remember it and knew that I'd think back on those times with great happiness, some of the best days of my life to be honest
Maybe you were hesitant to buy at first, but I think that in the end, what you experienced was really worth it! Honestly, if it were me, I would play at least one round with it. I hope you are not too angry with them. I think if you could get it into little @little-ricky's 🥰 hands he would be so happy to experience the same things with you!
Haha, the idea of Ricky getting on a bike freaks me out for sure. It is hard to think about your kids growing up and experiencing new and sometimes dangerous things. I guess as a parent you have to learn to let go over time.
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Oh, goodness. This is really sweet. And thanks to Afturner for suggesting such beauty that made life feel better wherever you find yourself.
I laughed when I saw it... Hehe, it nice to know you had all these emotions. And, it is sad that you are letting Spyder go... Have a good day.
Haha, yeah I didn't get my Mad Max scooter but the "batmobile" Spyder was probably even more cool. I will miss it but there will be new adventures to have!
Yeah, there'll be a cool one to have. Hehe, have a good day.
Riding in the midst of fun guy's is something nice, they make you feel at home with nice treat, the old Spyder was a good bike, it has lasted you for up to ten years, and I believed, it would still be awesome to his new owner.
I think the new owner will be pretty happy. It has very low miles for its age and still has a lot of life in it!
When I worked on the railroad in Canada as a traininspector we were riding 500cc ATV quads. We had a box on the back with brakeshoes so we could change them on the freight cars if needed, while inspecting for defects.
Those quads were tempting to fool around with, particularly in winter, "testing" how well they handled big snow drifts.
Also popping wheelies or cornering on two wheels used to get us into troubles with supervisors if caught.
That reminds me of when I was about 21 and working at a grocery store in Texas. When the store closed at night, the whole night stocking crew would go to the back and unload the truck with motorized pallet jacks. Somebody did something to them that made the speed restrictor stop working and they would go twice as fast. We'd race them up and down the aisles the back of the store outside. I am surprised that we never broke anything. That was so dangerous in hindsight, but we were kids and there was no manager there.
Much earlier in my life, I worked for a transport company as a apprentice. Exactly the same - well, almost, but the palette jacks were not motorized. We raced them on the loading dock ramps, one false move and it could be rather serious dropping off the edge of the ramp. Yes, kids ..... I was about 15 or 16. Back in those days school was done after 8 grades and one started a apprenticeship, with 2 half days in trade school per week.
We had the non-motorized pallet jacks as well. You could stand on the forks and hold the handle while kicking off like a skateboard. They were heavy but you could get them moving fast! I bit harder to stop. You could turn the handle sideways fast to sort of make it skid. haha.
I actually think this might be better. This way you can focus closely on the subject that you want to work in.
So sad to hear this.
Ups and downs are part of life. I wish you good times ahead bro.
Me too, but it is all the way over in England and I just can't justify having it shipped back. Maybe I'll get another one some day.
bonito vehículo, luce increíble es muy original 😃.
Si, lo voy extrañar despues de venderlo.
y lo vas a vender...si viviera en tu país lo compraría..
I'm glad that you were able to be there for your father-in-law during his time of need. It sounds like you made some great friends in England and had some wonderful experiences riding your Spyder.
I understand that it must be hard to sell your Spyder, but I know you'll find something just as fun someday. Maybe when little Ricky is older, you can take him on some adventures of your own.
I am hoping that as he gets a bit bigger I will be able to do a lot of stuff that I can't really do right now. It pretty much takes all my time up watching him right now! It was hard to sell for sure, but I suppose I have to be practical for now.
That looks like a neat way to get around. I'm not sure I've seen one in the UK, but we saw a few over in Canada on our trip this year. I used to ride motorbikes, but haven't been on one in a few years.
UK roundabouts are not so bad really, but there are a couple like this that can confuse people.