Visiting the Scooter Cannonball

[Dennis Andress]

Once upon a time I broke a friend's leg. He bitched at me for a few years whenever it rained. These days @EEK rides small bikes, and scooters. His wife and him are currently riding the 2023 Scooter Cannonball - coast to coast in 8 days on 280cc or less. Getting the scooters to the start in El Segundo, and then picking them up in Hilton Head, SC for the trip home is, by itself, quite a chore. 181 scooters showed up for the start of this year's Cannonball. On Day 6 there are maybe 60 left. The Cannonball is held every two years. I'm down for the next one, ya'll are welcome to join us.

 

Both scooters fit in the back of the Skoolie. 

 

What would you do with 500 miles between fill ups?

 

I rode to Los Alamos to say Hi on their third night. Hotel reservations had gone awry, which screwed any chance of hanging out for the evening, oh well. I got to spend a couple of days in Utah and New Mexico while I waited on the scooters to show up.

This is about 90 miles from home in Globe, Arizona. The old Hill Street School is being converted to senior housing, finally.

 

US 60 between Globe and Show Low is a lot of fun. This is the Salt River canyon.

 

 

US 191 to my first night in Bluff, Utah was high, straight and fast, with a wicked crosswind. It was, however, not boring. Bluff has a few nice hotels and lodges, but the BBQ place served shoe leather for diner. 

 

 

Fry Canyon, Utah. The RS clicked over 25,000 miles somewhere nearby. Can you find the bridge in this picture?

 

 

The view from the Hite Marina Overlook. That is the Colorado River and the northern most part of Lake Powell. 

 

 

My second night was in Farmington, New Mexico. Farmington has good food, hotels, nice people and beautiful countryside.

 

I spent the night in Santa Fe. The next morning this happened about 20 miles down the road. The plug held just fine, but the truth was that the front tire was down to the wear bars (and felt like it when I got back on the road). The GPS told me Sandia BMW was 12 miles away, and located on the freeway frontage road. That last part overwhelmed my procrastination about waiting until I get home. Hours later, and 15 miles from home, my new tires artfully dodged the big-ass dear that jumped out in front of me.

 

 

Day 6 finds the Scooter Cannonballers leaving Miami, Oklahoma for Blytheville, Arkansas. Check them out on Facebook, if you do FB.

 

[Dennis Andress]

From The Scooter ‘Zine:
 

 

 

Riders are now riding their final leg of the Scooter Cannonball Run 2023. Todays is just shy of 400 miles ad finishes in Hilton Head, SC. Today's ride finished in Rome, GA, 415 miles from the start. Several riders I know, went almost 540 miles.
 I am posting the leaderboard. The screenshot was done this morning to try to make sure that all the points were tabulated, however, they have already started adding points from today's ride, so the standings may not be accurate. The biggest change is Staggart dropping 2 places and Jimh dropping 5, however, those may just be from them not getting as early of a start today and their points may come up. However, Jim did miss out on more than 100 points that yesterday that the others got.

There are a LOT of maintenance and repair going on in the (very nice) garage at the hotel last night. There was even a complete engine swap done as one rider donated his engine to keep another rider in the event.

I will try to post a final list of standings later today as riders complete this grueling ride.
 

[Rockosmith]

This explains the 3 traveling scooters I caught up to at a traffic light in Adairsville GA on Sunday morning.  They were headed east on 140 at a pretty good rate.  Safe travels to all.

[Twisties]

Nice!