Alpharetta to Destin
Sites
Alright so last week I took a vacation. For the first time ever, I decided to take my scooter along on a vacation, so I would have some flexibility if work cropped up and the family could stay. Turns out, I didn't need that flexibility but it was fun to have the scooter. We have close friends in Destin, FL (they own a great little toy store in the Destin Commons), so we went there to visit them and some of the best beaches in the world.
Leaving early on Monday, I rode the BV500 with my wife in the car with the kids trailing along. We left about 6am, and the weather was just perfect for a ride. I could have easily made it in just 3 stops, but we had a couple of extras in there for kids potty breaks. The first leg, from Alpharetta to breakfast at Chic-Fil-A in Columbus was almost entirely super slab. The BV handled that marvelously, cruising at an indicated 80mph most of the way, which worked out to 73mph on the GPS (in the car). Filled the tank (58mpg), and prepped for the second leg, Columbus to the south side of Dothan, AL for a gas and potty stop. This stretch is mostly 4 lane roads, with sections, particularly from Phenix City to Eufala of 2 lane. Speed limits are 45-60, so it is still a fast stretch of road. Again the BV handled great, but at the end of this leg I was running into a problem. The pants & seat had seams that where working against each other to try and chafe, so I pulled a towel I carry from under the seat to add a layer. This seemed to solve the issue. Next up was the final leg. From I-10 down to US 98 is one of those dangerous roads where the speed limit jumps around alot, and in some cases will go from 60 to 55 to 45 to 35 in the space of a mile as you go through one of the old little towns, so it is a slower ride, but that's alright because it is also quite scenic. We arrived safe and sound in Destin at about 1:30.
The rest of the week was all playtime, with a little bit of beach laziness, a little bit of snorkeling, a bit of shopping, some more beach bumming, some putt putt and go-karts, a few fun little rides around Destin and out to Sea Side and over to Pensacola to try and find the meetup of the P'cola riders before heading home on Sunday.
We did manage to catch Wall-E on Friday, great movie, good fun, even the 2 year old loved it.
Sunday was the ride home, and it was WET. The day started at 10AM and it was drizzling in Destin, and while it never really came down too hard on me early, the stretch from Eufala to Columbus was about as wet as it could have been. The BV handled it gracefully, but in the future, I will stop and put the rain gear on BEFORE it starts raining. By the time we got north of Columbus though, the rain had cleared off, and by Newnan, it was time to remove the rain gear. From there, it was on home, and the only real problem of the trip. At the tail end of the ride, the BV started to sputter and lose power when starting from idle. I suspect bad gas or a plug is at fault, so I will be working on the this week, but it seemed to run fine last night, so perhaps it was just vapor lock or moisture in the fuel system. I'll talk to Floyd about it Saturday.
Anyways, it's good to be home, but the ride was wonderful. I think I'll be taking the scooter on many vacations to come.