My personal history of being Impractical

CAA plus is a necessity for me... and has bailed me out several times - that will cover many tow situations in north America. I'll be loading down the sidecar with many spares for the bike as well - extra tubes, full set of cables, some spare bulbs, some gas. I've cleaned P series carbs on the side of the road many times, have replaced cables on the side of the road many times (I had a P200 a while back that went through clutch cables like candy) We have a shipping company we have used before, and in a pinch they'll pick up from a storage place. (We have left bikes with a storage company... gave them a bit of money to store the bike for a week, and then the shipping company can pick it up from there.) Will likely also pick up a spare CDI/coil unit just in case.

In a *REAL* pinch, the value of the Vespas is not particular high. I wouldn't want to leave the sidecar rig if it had an engine failure.... but then again the engine from the other bike can be transplanted into it if I had to just get it running. Not too much of a challenge doing an engine swap on a P series.

Early this year we did a trip that was supposed to be up to Quebec.... our Kymco scooter failed entering Ottawa (oddly enough, those things are usually tanks... turned out to be a fluke bad voltage regulator frying the battery.) So we replanned the holiday to be in Ottawa until it was fixed. (Still was a good trip.. though the Ural was a bit crowded with three of us on it :)

Since we'll likely go into the US... will probably buy some travel insurance just to be absolutely covered as well.

So yep... plan for the failures... because if you don't Murphy will guarantee they will happen :)

Very true - your body tends to get used to it.

Actually the 21 hour day was pretty good up til hour 18 or so... when it turned cold, wet, foggy. That, combined with driving at night, on an underpowered moped, up hills and with lighting that was never quite adequate.... yep that got crappy really quick. Had to drag my wife into a coffee shop (she wanted to press on, she is a real trooper) and get warmed up.... we were getting a bit too close to the hypothermic line.

Our biggest trip (out west) never really got draining... best part of a sidecar rig is being able to swap out drivers (And just enjoy the scenery for a bit... and then enjoy the driving. Though I did notice it was "Your turn" as soon as the weather turned nasty and my wife wanted to be in the sidecar

Awesome trip, Ty for sharing. I hope to someday get my wife on a bike. She is slowly coming around to the idea.

I have a road service plan from Paragon Motor Club, which gives me 150 miles of free towing. It's by far the best I could find, most of them give you 25-35 miles. I've already used it once, when my '08 Yamaha broke down about 35 miles away.

I have found that by far the most common problem by far that will stop you on the spot is a flat tire. I don't depend on road service for those. No matter what kind of bike I'm riding, I have a way to fix flat tires. On a scooter that is not usually a problem. Newer scooters have tubeless tires that can be plugged, vintage Vespas have a spare tire, and all scooters have a centerstand, which gives you a way to get the wheel off. Many motorcycles have tube type tires and no centerstand, and no way to get the wheel off, which means you aren't going anywhere.

I find it amazing that so many members of this forum do not prepare for a flat tire, because "they've never had one" or it's "extremely unlikely" I have to wonder just how far and under what conditions these members have ridden. I've had dozens of flats over the past 4 decades. On a small scooter, which must often be ridden mostly on the shoulder in the U.S., where all the flat causing stuff is, a flat (or several) are practically guaranteed. With a sidecar, you just about double your chances of having a flat, because of the 2 rear wheels being some distance apart.

I got my wife on a scooter in 1985, and felt like a fool. She didn't have the temperament for it, would chase drivers down and chastise them for rudeness. I thought getting her in traffic was my worst idea to date, and was relieved when she lost interest after a few years. I like her being able to walk.

Check your CAA plan for reciprocity with AAA. I'm pretty sure the AAA Recreational Vehicle plan I have includes Canadian roadside as well as US. I know my car & motorcycle insurance includes coverage in both the US and Canada. I checked on that as part of the 2014 Scooter Cannonball planning since the only way to get to Hyder is through Stewart, Canada. I'd check on medical coverage on your insurance just in case as well.

Really I have to say as I Canadian I rather Do BC , Alberta , Skip Saskatchewan , Ontario by cutting down to the usa . Ride the usa till you hit New Brunswick . Then head to Quebec . Maybe I full of it but it seem to me that the USA detour offers far more to see then you get by riding Saskatchewan , Ontario .

I would aggree with needing a something like CAA but in BC at least they re off the wall for pricing at 145 bucks. Best deal I found is ether Good Sam club at 80 bucks us. One RV and up to 2 other cars or bikes. Doesn't seem to much chose with canada based plans. With out a plan towing my scooter cost 140 bucks 2 years ago for 30 Miles.

Actually in my experience, it's more often than not going to be the pusher tire that will get the flat. (More weight, stress on it) At least the only flats have had on the Ural were both on the rear.

Fortunately the Vespas have a spare tire each... and it isn't hard to carry a couple extra tubes. Not to mention the split rims make it really easy to change tubes (no need for tire spoons, can pull rim off without taking hub off... etc etc) So tire changes will not be an issue. Good thing too, have no idea right now how fast this sidecar PX will go through rear tires (way faster than normal is certain... just just how fast is hard to judge.) In a pinch can rotate with the sidecar and spare to maximize wear.

Actually I liked the prairies and Saskatchewan while doing the cross country trip on the Ural.... but we avoided the Trans Canada and went through the southern lesser highways. Better scenery by far.... found the town of Ogema which is a neat place (tourist train operation... museum.... friendliest people around. Stopped for a few minutes and next thing you know we had the Mayor of the place saying hi.) http://www.ogema.ca/

CAA does have AAA reciprocity.... though it may be a case of getting reimbursed with motorcycles in some areas due to differences in coverage (at least according to the CAA FAQ.) Motorcycle insurance will be fine in the US. Medical coverage I actually have through benefits from work.. but might pick up some extra if I plan to spend several days in the US. Will see.

.

Well I am on PEI. If you don't want to ride a scoot home, leave them with me and fly!

If I get as far as PEI I suspect will be going all the way, but thanks :)

I'll put together a live blog site for the trip - easy enough to throw one up

Think I might be redoing the shocks do I'll redo the buffers as well. As you said, good to replace those on a sidecar rig!

If you go to P.E.I., enjoy the nice, smooth roads. But make sure you go to Nova Scotia because that's where the best riding is.

I think casually mentioning to the wife might be wearing her down on the idea.... will see over the winter if I can bring her around to the idea of this trip :)

(Instead of a Ural trip that is)

Also have to ponder if we will do mostly camping (save some cash) or half and half hotel/camping, or mostly hotels. Since I think we'd do the US route for half the trip... probably would lean towards hotels since you'd get WIFI (data roaming isn't cheap) for that stretch.

Hmm... might have to consider powering electronics for that matter... have a camera to keep charged and cellphone. (Gotta take the trip pics... and I might do a blog of the trip as well... nice for the family to see what you are up to when you are away on something like this.) On the Ural that isn't an issue... accessory plug makes charging things a snap. The 12v Vespa system doesn't exactly have a lot of extra capability.

And we'd have our intercom headsets (scala G4 set), digital camera, two cellphones to keep charged up. Hmm. If I add a rechargeable battery pack... and do hotels every few days that likely should do it.

Lots to ponder. Of course I have months of non scooter friendly weather to do it.

Here's what I did to keep my batteries in order.

McDonald's and Timmies are great places to charge your stuff while you have breakfast/lunch/dinner.

I use a smartphone so you only need to have a USB socket to charge it. I bought a cigarette outlet with a USB adaptor which attaches onto the scooter's battery using alligator cables that I'd clip onto my battery overnight to charge my phone.

For my camera, I bought a second battery pack. I never used it, but I was diligent in keeping the batteries charged.

True... thought of something like that, if we charged one device at a time should work (don't want to drain the battery too much, as am not entirely sure of how much extra wattage these machines have. Of course a smartphone doesn't take much to charge from USB either.)

Might even be an idea to rig up a USB charger in the sidecar trunk. Have to do some wiring for the sidecar lights anyways, might as well tuck something in there with a switch on it so I can just plug in a phone and charge away. While the machine is running should be fine (especially since I've replaced the rear running light with an LED bulb already.)

I keep 1 of these with me when schlepping about the state.

External battery packs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...=external battery pack&name=5&Order=BESTMATCH

2 of these or so should be plenty to keep the ipad/phone internet tether going for netflicks or whatever.

I just use a little inverter plugged into a cig lighter outlet attached to the battery. It charges my laptop, phone, etc., while I ride.