When I left Miguel this afternoon, he was trying to drill out the broken pin with an extractor. During this process, I see he has a completely sheltered back yard. In Florida this is important, as there are so many bylaws about what you can park or do behind your house. It is designed to stop people from parking motorhomes and renting them out. But he’s got a ten foot high fence and complete tree cover. And I need to park a small wagon.
I was impressed by the number of motorcycle campers (no, not trailers or wagons) I saw in the Colorado mountains last year. I was less impressed by the price tags, which often passed $2,000 for pretty Spartan rigs. Many of them looked nice, with paint jobs matching the bike. Examination shows they are basically nothing more than a mattress-lined 3’ x 6’3” sleeping compartment. Take a look on-line at some of the setup demos. Pretty hilarious, most of them. What is “easy” about a tent on wheels that takes ten minutes to set up? By then, you are soaked.
I’ve developed some extensive plans as to what I’d like as a motorcycle camper, the foremost of which are simplicity and ruggedness. I reject any design that involves setting up tent poles or folding walls. That defeats the idea of convenience and when set up, they attract attention for being camp trailers. I’ve noticed every existing unit extends up or back, but none take advantage of that large empty space above the trailer tongue when the unit is parked. (Some mount a cooler or storage box, but that’s not what I want.)
We know from experience that even budget motels double the cost of daily travel, not to mention the guesswork of finding a motel in strange towns. Booking ahead obligates one to drive to a schedule, which I dislike, and real budget places don’t advertise reliably enough. I’ve never stayed in a really bad motel, but I’ve heard the stories.
So I’ve planned a camper that sets up in 30 seconds with a sleeping area wider than an army cot. It will include LED lights which I’ve designed myself, a carrier for the electric bicycle, and small storage containers for 90% of the items needed to stay comfortable on the road. I don’t require a stereo or heat. As for food and liquids, I already carry what I need on the motorcycle itself, everything else I can buy on the road cheap enough.
I like the phrase that the Internet has made the world flat again. I’m reading about the battle for the Crimea (WWII, not to be confused with the Crimean War) and stumbled across Internet listings for Sebastopol, a city so remote they don’t even have Craigslist. But they have all the same crap as Miami. Cash for your car. Ukrainian girls need love. How to get rich. Goes to show you, water seeks its own level.
Trivia. Did you ever wonder why all (generalization) Russian women have the same names? Elana, Tatyana, Valentina, Svetlana. Boris at the shoe shop told me the process. Over there, you can name your child anything you want. But the authorities will only place proper Russian names on the birth certificate. There are also other strange first name rules. Read “The Brothers Karamazov” and try to figure out who is who, for instance. You’ll see what I mean.
Ha, did I get suckered into saying the wrong thing. Just like computer keys, over time the bingo balls get covered with one’s natural fingertip oils. I asked if the pub could clean them up, which got rapidly translated into would Lee-Anne, the evening barmaid “wash my balls”. I should have seen that one coming. You don’t know Lee-Anne. I can only pray she uses the gentle cycle.
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