"...it's about the journey, not the destination..."

   Last summer I was looking at motorcycles on E-Bay, just checking out values of different bikes. There was an auction for a 2004 Honda FCS600 Silverwing scooter. When I first saw it the bid was $1100. I had ridden a Silverwing scooter when they came out and I remembered being  impressed. We have a Honda Helix in the garage that belongs to my wife. It is a great machine. 250 cc's, 70 mpg, 75mph top speed. It rides and handles really well,  but when I went out on it I often found myself wanting more power for passing. The 600cc Silverwing scooter solved that. Just for fun I put in a bid of   $1500 and forgot about it. A few days later I was notified that I was no longer the high bidder. I had been attracted to it because it seemed a bargain to me, but I didn't want to pay too much. I had a number of other bikes to ride!

The Silverwing on the Blue Ridge Parkway last fall

      I put in a max bid of $2000 and once again put it out of my mind, not believing I would win it. I got the scooter for $1803!!! A week later I fired up my truck and drove out to Minneapolis to pick it up. It is now one of my favorite rides! Quick, comfortable, fast (over 110mph!), practical, it gets up to 55mpg, and has a large amount of storage under the seat.
     Last fall on my annual fall trip to the Blue Ridge with my college roommates I decided to take the FCS Silverwing without telling my college buddies I had purchased it. You should have seen the look on Curtis' face when I pulled up on that scooter! It was great!

On the Blue Ridge Parkway

     On the trip I had no trouble keeping up with their BMW RTs, and was often the lead bike. Towards the end of the trip we went to western North Caroling to ride the Tail of the Dragon (318 curves in 11 miles). At the end of the Dragon I even managed to educate some sport rides about the Silverwing scooter, showing them how quick, and fast, it is! Lots of laughs!
 

Sunset at Mile Marker 418 on the Blue Ridge Parkway