Before we set off on our January club rideout, Richard said: “Who wants to go to Queenstown?” Well, I did, and so did Keith, Peter and Doug. Together we’re part of the Hobart Scooter Club, based in Tasmania’s state capital, a small but as dedicated a band of scooterists as you’ll find anywhere. By the time we’d had our lunch stop and eaten, we had dates for later in January and Richard had rung up and booked us all single rooms at the Empire Hotel in Queenstown, 260km away on Tasmania’s rugged West Coast.
Summer is the best time of year to visit the West Coast. I’d never ridden there, and it had been on my riding bucket list for a while. The roads can be challenging with lots of bends and mountain passes and as I wanted to do it with other riders as backup, this was a perfect opportunity.
Varied ‘Vespas’
At the last minute Doug decided against coming. So, it was a Piaggio quartet of Keith (2018 Medley 150), Peter (2019 Beverly 350), Richard (2002 PX200) and me (well-worn 2002 PX200, once around the