Amerivespa 1997
5th Annual National Rally
June 18th - 20th
Knoxville, Tennessee
The VCOA moved its Amerivespa from the Rockies, where it held its third and fourth national rallies, to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Tennessee. Held at the World's Fair Grounds in Knoxville, Amerivespa attracted scooterists from Texas, Louisiana, Maryland. Wisconsin, New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Illinois, Colorado, Oklahoma, Virginia, California, Ohio, Georgia, Indiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and North Carolina. Additionally, Martin Bench (VCOA #647) from England showed up, and Darren Lenkorn (VCOA #799), a Canadian dealer who was in Europe. Nonetheless sent prizes for the raffle. With members and non-members from about half the states in the union and foreign guests, Amerivespa continues as one of the largest and certainly the most representative scooter events in the Americas. It is rapidly evolving into the "Eurovespa of North America."
Knoxville maintained the South's reputation for hospitality. From the city that provided the rally site--gratis--to Holiday Inn on the Park, Rally Headquarters, to nearby campgrounds for those tenting it, the accommodations could not have been better. Local media covered the event extensively in print and on television, attracting a large crowd of the curious and inquisitive.
Events began with what is rapidly becoming an Amerivespa tradition--the Early-Bird Party. Originated by Michael McWilliams and Gretchen Whitworth (VCOA #358), the tradition continued in Tennessee thanks to Dave Vickers (VCOA #1242) and his wife who hosted this year's fete poolside. Early birds feasted on hot dogs, burgers, coleslaw, potato salad with whole Greek olives, soft drinks, beer, and ambrosial scooter talk.
Spotted among the early birds were Jeff Lopard (VCOA #142), formerly from Pennsylvania but now living in Knoxville, and Creston and Teela Coates (VCOA #248) from Oklahoma City. Jeff was riding a beautiful black Series III Lambretta. Creston, you'll recall, was first-place winner in the gymkhana at the 4th Amerivespa in Colorado Springs. He and Teela, who helped man the registration tent again this year, didn't know about the party. They just happened past on their scooters and stopped to join the fun. Besides being an accomplished rider, Creston is a first-rate restorationist: his entry in this year took best of class and best of meet in the People's Choice concours de elegance. Currently, he is looking for a few Primaveras. He and friends are starting a Russian bear riding team. They will don bear suits to ride their Primaveras at fairs and other events.
Denny Arvidson was another early bird. A retired teacher from Michigan, Denny spends his summers scootering in the 'Water Wonderland" and his winters in St. Johns, the Virgin Islands.
When festivities began next day, Teela Coates, Jane Weiderman (VCOA #217), and Patty Reid (VCOA #213) staffed the registration tent. For the twenty-dollar registration fee, attendees got a rally T-shirt, embroidered event patch, and ballad for people's choice at the concours.
Attendees also got to see Italian maker Aprilia's new vehicles, including several scooters. The majority were 50cc 2-stroke machines capable of speeds in excess of 40 miles per hour. Most were modern Euro-style scooters. The Scarabeo, however, was a beautiful retro design.
Not to be outdone, Piaggio's new Vespa, the ET4, made its North American debut, courtesy of Scooterworks, USA. Jason Meshberg and Greg Gooch introduced American scooterists to two 'Timesurfers," a yellow and a green one. The bikes' fit and finish are superb.
Two members saw Aprilia's and Piaggio's new offerings from a command position. They stayed in their motor home on the rally site. The first men were nomads. So are Barb and Jerry Wilson (VCOA #851). They take their home with them wherever they go. And they spend a lot of time at rallies sponsored by RV clubs, where Jerry sells Brake Guard Safe Tow, a towing and brake product. To keep herself busy, Barb sells games and toys for women and children. "RVers love games," she explains. Before selling toys and towing equipment, the Wilsons were in real estate. While Bob appraised it, Barb sold it from her successful Century Twenty-One office.
On the way to rallies, they look for scenic places to stay, often for free. One night they stopped on a mountain. In the morning, they woke in a cloud. Everything left out was soaked. If you're bolting for great scootouring roads, they recommend Highway 70 from Reno to Chico, CA. And Highway 1 in California, the Coastal highway, is unparalleled.
The Wilsons have two scooters, a Cushman Eagle and a Vespa 150 Super. They bought the latter from the original owner, "a little old lady on a Vespa," a former dealer.
Unfortunately Knoxville itself was not a good place to scoot. It has too much traffic. Happily, however, World's Fair Park, was on the edge of town, a stone's throw from some of the finest scootering in North America. Particularly noteworthy is Highway 129, "the Dragon," with 322 turns in eleven miles. The Dragon's lair is at the end, in Deals Gap, North Carolina. At the terminus is a motel for cyclists and a general store/gas station. Those who successfully challenge the dragon qualify for T-shirts that say, "I Beat the Dragon." Those who wipeout can get shirts that read "I challenged the Dragon and the Dragon Won."
Julie Schneider (VCOA #531) challenged the Dragon on Saturday's big ride led by veteran cyclist Ron Bussey (VCOA #901). The Dragon won. Fortunately, she was unhurt, suffering only minor road rash.
Not so fortunate were a father-and-son team the Dragon eliminated early on the ride. Their bike hit a hill. The dad fractured a rib and was helicoptered to a local hospital. The son, fortunately, was unhurt. Later several VCOAers thoughtfully helped out at the campgrounds, packing up the Injured scooterist's gear.
Several scooterists rode long distances to get the meet. There was Darrin Lopez from Richmond, Virginia, for example. He started going to rallies In England in 1981. His first was Scarborough, attended by six thousand scooterists. A native of Ipewich, Darren got an invitation from Barry Gwin to work in a scootershop in San Francisco. In "Baghdad-by-the-Bay" he met a gal. They went to England to live. When they returned to the States for a wedding, immigration confiscated Darren's passport and greencard. After he finally got them back, he couldn't afford a ticket home. So he opened On the Road Scooter Shop, where he'll do what it takes to keep your scoot alive and well. He doesn't do hundred-point restorations for those who only want a fine bike to show. He works to keep bikes "on the road, where they belong." Thirty-two years old, he has never owned a car. He has a Lambretta instead. He would like to start a scooter chopper club in America. Riding from Richmond, he took Highway 81 with his friend Ken McGee.
Ken is a student of dentistry. Although his favorite bike is a Lambretta 175 Series II, he rode his '70 Vespa P200. He first rode a scoot at age two with his dad. Later his brother Dan, an anthropologist, bought a scooter from a retired postman who delivered mail on a Lambretta. Ken helped work on Dan's engine and got hooked. In 1991 Ken bought his first scooter, an '81 Indian Lambretta GP. He belongs to the Chain of Fools Scooter Club in Richmond. A dozen strong, the club meets every other Tuesday.
Several Baltimore Bombers also rode to the meet. One was Mike Hanyi, who rode 860 miles on a scooter he built from two parts bikes. The front half came from a Vespa l8OSS he bought for $100. He welded it to the rear of a Vespa 125. Originally a Volvo mechanic, Mike went to Colorado with Mark Jurus (VCOA #76), who owns Baltimore Vespa and Lambretta, to pick up a scooter. While they were rebuilding it, Mark asked, "When are you going to buy a Vespa?" "When you get me a l8OSS for $100" Mike replied.
A week later Mark found a trashed-out Super Sport that needed a different back end. Purchased from the original owner, it had thirty thousand miles on it. It still has the original piston. After rebuilding the bike from the two scooters. Mike rode it to Knoxville with Earl Erickson and Jerry Sedlak. They did two 250 mile days and three hundred the last day, taking the Blue Ridge Parkway all the way.
Not to be out done by the younger crowd. John Gerber (VCOA #5) rode his COSA from North Quincy, Massachusetts. But John is used to the long haul. He once rode a Rally 200 from India to Europe. On another adventure, he went from Tierra del Fuego, near Antarctica, at the bottom of the world, where all roads begin across glaciers, through Central America, and up the coast of North America.
Only John Stafford (VCOA #63) of Alexandria, winning the trophy for "Farthest Traveled on a Scooter." Others winning trophies are listed below.
From wherever they came, scooterists enjoyed the club raffle. Hats, T-shirts, tires, scooter models, and various memorabilia came from Vespa Motorsport and Vespa Super Shop in San Diego, Performance Scooters in Canada, Scooterworks USA in Chicago, Baltimore Vespa/Lambretta, and from Scott Hersey of Chicago. Thank you, supporters, for your contributions. And thank you for advertising in American Scooterist throughout the year. Without your continued participation, the hobby wouldn't be nearly as much fun. Special thanks also goes out to the young crew who held a beer party Friday night and used their unspent beer money to buy prizes for the raffle. But before fun there was business, the annual membership meeting. Called to order by rally organizer Bill Reid (VCOA #213), the meeting transact two major items of business. The first was to establish a site for next year's Amerivespa, the club's sixth. Because Amerivespas take so much time to organize, and because the call for a site and rally organizers would go out to most members in Autumn's American Scooterist, Knoxville was the expedient choice for '98. The club is now looking for organizers and sponsors, either individuals or clubs, to host Amerivespa '99. To date we have one nomination. It comes from Eric "Scooterman" Dutra (VCOA #16), who has offered to host the nationals in San Diego, California (See Summer American Scooterist, 1997). Every nomination must be accompanied with the names of those who agree to do the work to make the event happen. The second item of business was the election of officers. Readers of American Scooterist will remember for the last two years President Garner (VCOA #1) was looking to step down. He did this year. Bill Reid nominated Mike McWilliam's (VCOA #358). When Reid opened the nominations to the membership, John Stafford nominated himself. Members chose McWilliams. Other officers elected were Bill Reid for vice president and Julie Schneider for treasurer. The club is still looking for a secretary.
Additionally, the club voted to honor its founder and first president. Randolph Garner, with a lifetime membership. Without Randolph and his background in running scooter (he was president of the Cushman Club of America and founded both the Mustang Club and the Cushman Club of Texas); his organizational skills; and his refined and highly developed "people sense," honed by years of dealing with the public as superintendent of schools in Cleburne, Texas, it is safe to say we American Vespisti be without a national organization. Through his tireless efforts and self-sacrifice the VCOA has become, in only five years, one of the largest national Vespa clubs on the International scooter scene, eclipsing not only the Vespa Club of Great Britain, but other European club except a few--a number small enough to count on the fingers of one hand. Thank you, Randolph, for giving us our start. Thank you for putting us in the right trajectory and for guiding us through our crucial formative years. We couldn't done it without you.