A way to TOTEM youth center is too long to keep Janek’s mouth closed. Too many beloved bikes and scooters around. So there’s no chance for Sandra to avoid a flow of words about them.
– So… I’ve checked the prices of Vespa scooters in Poland. They’re not that expensive as I was expected.
– Oh… – Sandra gasped slightly interested.
– Yeah, but it’s not that easy to find one in a good condition. It’s not like with a bread or shampoo- there’s no shop with old stuff, that you can just enter and pick the one Vespa in your favorite colour. Sometimes it takes a lot of time, a lot of patience…
“Patience”… that’s what I’m gonna need now as he talks and talks… thought Sandra. She likes bikes. She really does. But this guy can switch every possible topic to mechanics!
Luckily, one hundred steps later someone stopped a white Vespa next to them and Janek lost his “flow”, couldn’t decide to check the rider or the ride itself.
It was Colo. He waved to the group of three EVS volunteers and greeted them with smily “Ciao!”. Now Sandra could rest and speak about some casual topics instead of pistons, bearings, disc brakes etc. Janek was unable to talk more anyway, as all the details of shiny Vespa PX 125 catched his eyes like magnet. “Damn, I miss my ride… If I’d have it here…”
Sare haven’t seen anything interesting in that vehicle. Yeah, it’s nice, but not any better than the others around. Colo was roling his Vespride thinking to himself: “The last time I had to push it, happened when I forgot to fill the tank… And I’ve promised myself- never again! It’s totally not handy thing to push…”
Anyway, after a while all four wanderers arrived and Vespa stopped finally, supported by her two wide stand-legs. There was no rush, so Janek decided to ask Colo for a favor:
– Can I have a seat?
– Yes, of course!- Colo replied. But as there was something emotional in Janek’s face, some kind of deep untold yearning, he added- Or… maybe would you like to have a ride?
Now, dear readers, you need a bit of explanation here. There’s a special bond between the rider and the machine. Some of they say: my baby has a soul. I don’t know that for sure to be honest, but it’s nice for me to think that it might be true. Many times, when I revealed the fact of being a rider, people’s faces projected some kind of admiration. “Wow, you’re kind of brave… riding a machine without anything protecting you from that crazy traffic around. Nothing but a helmet.” And they’re right. It’s crazy out there, rolling your two-wheeler through the city is a bit like flying over the enemy’s territory. Danger everywhere and the second thing that keeps you safe out there is your machine. The first is your common sense.
Anyway- the rider and the machine become a team of two. And it’s not good to have a heartless mechanism as a partner, so it receives a name quite often. It receives a personality. And you just not “borrow” your partner. Ever.
Aware of all of that Janek took a second look on Colo, but he seemed to be serious. Starving rider’s soul didn’t needed more to be awaken. Briefly look at the controllers and everything become clear. Key switched. leg automatically followed the intuition to the kickstarter and after one firm kick the engine started it’s song. Now there was no retreat. Quick second check of gear selector and left hand surely engaged first gear. There was nothing around- just a machine and a rider. Vespa accelerated smoothly leaving behind only a trace of blue two-stroke smoke. “It’s quite fast, surprisingly dynamic.”- though Janek and went through the gears up to the third one. “And it handles well too!”. After coming back Vespa stopped and climbed on her two wide stand-legs, but that was not the end of the story. They say that car moves your body, but motorcycle move your soul. Janek’s rider-soul was spinned that day and probably keeps turning till now. But you probably don’t understand that… I wish you to do so. Get your rider-soul running, get one of that cool two-wheelers and hit the road. Move your soul as they say…
Janek
Vicolocortini 