Vespa Cross Country: Cross Country Day 4 - Cleveland, OH

Woke up to a nice sunny morning, which was a nice surprise. Given the past couple days of rain and overcast skies, I figured more of the same. Got off to an early start and headed out of the Cleveland area around 8:30 AM. I really enjoyed seeing/visiting Cleveland. It is a very clean city (I used to live in NYC!), and the people there are quite friendly. Houses and buildings are very pretty and well put together - overall, I was very impressed. I am not that familiar with Cleveland - is it a relatively "rich" city?

Anyways, spent most of the day riding along route 6 and 20. Two observations. First, the land here is pretty darn flat. No more mountains, and the roads are very flat and very straight. Nice because you don't have to very speed (yes, you can zip right along) that much to maneuver curves, but can be a bit tiring. Second, the towns are far apart! This differs drastically from the east coast/new england area, where towns are relatively close together and frequent. And not every "town" has a gas station - almost had to use the reserve gas canisters on two occasions! Lesson here – fill up when you have less than a quarter tank left.

Much of Ohio and Indiana consisted of corn and wheat fields. I’ve never seen such huge crop fields before – some of them went on farther than the eye could see. Imagine 2 mile long fields of corn (in every direction). Crazy. It was pretty spectacular and I really enjoyed the ride.

I really cranked on the PX today and held her steady at 55-60 MPH (GPS verified), which means that I was pretty much at full blast all day. PX ran without issues, with the exception of a slight shifting cable adjustment mid-day (I love the fourth hand tool – made it quite easy). 60 MPH is pretty much the top speed I can get out of her on flat terrain, downhill with a tailwind, maybe faster? I was pretty pleased with her performance and the new tires feel great.

In terms of gas mileage, the PX is averaging a consistent 45-50 miles/gallon and the GTS is getting 75-80 miles/gallon. Not too shabby. I’m amazed at the GTS – 80 miles/gallon, and all that power! What was I thinking driving the “slower” scoot ;)

Toward the end of the day, we encountered – yes, you guessed it, RAIN. You can’t outrun it! Last two hours were spent in Frogg Toggs riding through mist, sprinkles and occasional downpours. Thank god for Frogg Toggs.

Was going to end the day in Chicago, but decided to stay in the suburb area and explore the city tomorrow morning before heading off toward South Dakota and the badlands. Anyone have any suggestions on places to see/things to do in Chicago? And if anyone is around, would love to meet up for a quick bite or drink, etc.

Total miles - Day 4: 330 Miles!!!

Open roads