Mandello Anniversary stuff..(then the trip)

[Huzo]

Looks like Huzo has a red haired admirer, look at that eye contact. 


good pix

Yep, sure does…
Except it’s not Huzo….

[Huzo]

Well yes..
As is widely reported, the thingo came and went fabulously. The band was an AC/DC tribute outfit and I can tell you they didn’t cut ANY corners. The lead singer was unintelligible and as such was an absolute copy of Brian Johnson.
Great stuff…
So it came to pass that I hooked up with Aussie Mick from the forum and we ended up staying in Lecco, although I did do Saturday night at the concert venue with the tent 50 metres from the back of the stage.
I was lulled of to a gentle sleep by such classics as..
“She’s got the Jack….”
“Hell’s bells…”
“Whole lotta’ Rosie…”
and a veritable gold mine of other gentle rock classics….  
But that’s not what you came for..

I did indeed depart from Lecco and darted off to Bormio at the foot of the Stelvio Pass and I note that the road has been improved dramatically on that side, as indeed it has on the descent side.
The surface is like a Moto GP track, I almost got my knee down…!
Speaking of which..
I was zooming down the Pass at a speed that made Jack Miller look like Pee Wee Herman..(fast that is..) and there was a guy behind on a BMW GS contraption, he was all over me like a cheap suit and seem to be able to pick the worst time to have a crack at passing.
Well…
I dived into a right hander on the old Norge and was having unbridalled fantasies about hanging the back end out like Marc Marquez, when an old geezer in something that looked like a Nissan Cedric with wooden panels, thought he’d take the line..
Here’s a much neater example of one.


Nice eh…?
Being the economist that I am I braked, stood the Norge up a bit to go around the outside Buffalo Boy style, and was greeted to the sound of expensive German metal, smearing itself over the hallowed surface of the Stelvio Pass.
Put simply, our intrepid BMW Pilot lost it, took the third of two possible options and went arse up into the ditch.
I tried my best to look crestfallen as I stopped to help but his mate arrived shortly after, so I left the scene of the carnage….
Funny as…
Here’s some random shots of stuff.
Our new member csteiner’s place in Switzerland.
He hosted me over night, it’s fantastic.














Oh yeah and this…
https://youtu.be/EZFVftGO6Tg

[Ncdan]

Just WOW, is all I can say!!

[PJPR01]

Great pics all around...what a wonderful time.  Weather looks like it cleared up for some nice riding!

[Huzo]

Great pics all around...what a wonderful time.  Weather looks like it cleared up for some nice riding!

Yeah it has.
Bormio was about 26 deg C and Stelvio Pass about 11 deg C.
They’ve done a nice job of that road..

[12SCraig]

You are a flipping legend Huzo, bloody jealous , good on ya! keep on doing good things good mate.

[Tkelly]

The redhead was checking out the 2 Irishmen on the bench.

[Huzo]

You are a flipping legend Huzo, bloody jealous , good on ya! keep on doing good things good mate.

Thanks Craig, but it needs to be said that Aussie Mick….Peacemealadventurer
Does every bit as much as me and more, but anyway it is good to be out and about.
And while you were away…..
I darted off over the Stelvio to a nice camping place on the other side and set up the tent and the stuff inside, except for one important piece of kit…
I have an American made ultra lite cot that I’ve used since 2014, it puts you 4” above the ground and is fantastically comfortable.
As I was assembling it which usually takes 5 minutes, I came to the bit where you get the 6’ x 2’6” Kevlar bit that goes over the top and fully intended to fit as I’ve done hundreds of times.
Seems while dealing with the ever present media pack.. I’d loaded the bike without packing it and took off.
So I had three options..
#1 Do the rest of the trip without it…
#2 Buy a whole new one…
#3 Ride back the 200 km to Lecco, with no guarantee that it would be there…

I got onto Aussie Mick and mercifully he had not left Lecco, he pulled himself out of bed…(so to speak) and confirmed that the sheet was indeed there and my trek back across the Pass would not be fruitless. So I did the trip back and will stay here again tonite.
I took some more shots for general amusement.




https://youtu.be/DEYd8QQrvQ8
https://youtu.be/YeN0GlKE4j4

[Jorg66]

Very ,very cool !!!
Thank you , ....'23 will be our first time over there, was actually planed for '20 but .... .

[Huzo]

Very ,very cool !!!
Thank you , ....'23 will be our first time over there, was actually planed for '20 but .... .

Actually I note that I am less than a tank away from 200,000 km so I’m thinking of riding around a bit and going to the factory for the turning of the milestone.
We’ll see.

[Tusayan]

For when V85TT saddlebags are just not enough…

[PJPR01]

Actually I note that I am less than a tank away from 200,000 km so I’m thinking of riding around a bit and going to the factory for the turning of the milestone.
We’ll see.

That's a must...The Red Norge in front of the Red Gate!  Can't be any other way Huzo!!

[Huzo]

That's a must...The Red Norge in front of the Red Gate!  Can't be any other way Huzo!!

I perceive it to be thus also mate.

[vintagehoarder]

Love all the pics!

[Huzo]

Left Mandello/Lecco with 300 k or so still short.
It clicked over the 200 just outside of Verona. Sorry I did not get the shot at the gate, things just never seem to work out for me…
I could have slid this one in from Getty images


But that was from 2017 or 2019 and y’all would have noticed for sure.

I went through this very neat little town on the way to here in Venice


A local informed me that it came 3rd in the tidy towns competition.
When asked….
“How come it didn’t win…
It’s beautiful…”
The guy replied…
“It had some very stiff competition…”

[Huzo]

Here are a few shots from the bloke who shoots every man and his dog that comes and goes.
Dunno which one I’ll order.

[pebra]

Two photos taken on Friday 9th:

Joseph, Harold, Nick, Patrick, Chris and Judi (I made a blunder with two of the names, and have now edited)




Eric from Michigan, Chris, Judi, Patrick and Joseph  (I made a blunder with two of the names, and have now edited)




I also met with Norwegian guzzisti on Friday and Saturday.
Here are Arve (bearded), Dirk (in red shirt, he's German) me in Mr Nevada shirt, and Odd Arne on the right.




I returned home again on Sunday, and saw and met guzzisti along the way until I was home on Tuesday morning. Here are  Guzzis on the ferry from Kiel, Germany to Oslo.

[pehayes]

Home now.  Got to meet everyone I intended to.  A few more I didn't expect.  Alas there were even more I could have met but never knew they were in the crowd and only realized after I got home.  Crowd?  Local magazine estimated 70,000.  Official ceremonies ended at 3pm Sunday.  I left Piazza Garibaldi at 9pm and others were still downing the brew.  What a hoot of an event.  Non-stop at every corner.




photo upload site


I noted that there were a lot of older folks in attendance.  Somebody's end of the boat is sinking.  Have to say, apart from the many static displays, there must have been 500 active Guzzi singles riding all around town.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA

[leafman60]

Two photos taken on Friday 9th:

Joseph, Harold, Nick, Patrick, John and Anne




Eric from Michigan, John, Anne, Patrick and Joseph




I also met with Norwegian guzzisti on Friday and Saturday.
Here are Arve (bearded), Dirk (in red shirt, he's German) me in Mr Nevada shirt, and Odd Arne on the right.




I returned home again on Sunday, and saw and met guzzisti along the way until I was home on Tuesday morning. Here are  Guzzis on the ferry from Kiel, Germany to Oslo.

Pebra, I got a kick out of seeing a Mr. Nevada shirt at the Mandello Annivesary celebration. LOL  Few people probably know what that is.  As a restrained update on The Great One, let me say that Mr. Nevada lives!  Time is catching up with him and he has slowed down a bit. Trips to Krispy Kreme have tapered off along with varied health issues so he has lot a lot of weight.  I still talk to him every few days or so and on occasion he gets out of the house.  Deep down, Mr. N hasn't changed his stripes and his urges of a time gone by are still with him.

.   

[pebra]

Pebra, I got a kick out of seeing a Mr. Nevada shirt at the Mandello Annivesary celebration. LOL  Few people probably know what that is.  As a restrained update on The Great One, let me say that Mr. Nevada lives!  Time is catching up with him and he has slowed down a bit. Trips to Krispy Kreme have tapered off along with varied health issues so he has lot a lot of weight.  I still talk to him every few days or so and on occasion he gets out of the house.  Deep down, Mr. N hasn't changed his stripes and his urges of a time gone by are still with him.

Yes, I wore the Mr Nevada T-shirt in Mandello on Saturday, and was stopped on a couple of occasions by people who recognized it!   

The Mr Nevada thread was wonderful in its bizarre (and sad, really) way, it gave me great entertainment that I'm grateful to you for.
Thanks also for the update on him! I guess it's too much to hope for a new thread?

[Huzo]

Bugger all happened today, except what you see here..


I lost my ‘phone today and used the “find my phone “ app to locate it…..
Fantastic thing, I tracked it down to under a bench at a hotel….
Funny thing though.
I tried to get a hotel room in Slovenia and there were two left out of 200…Great..!
Until the poor girl behind the desk had to tell me that the rooms were €190 per night..!
Son of a mongoose…!
I asked her if she could explain why as the rooms became more scarce, the price increased exponentially. When the poor little soul looked nervous, I realised I was becoming the disgruntled old male western tourist and pulled my head in..
She was a dear little soul and someone’s lovely daughter..Bt Jeeesarse….!
Anyway, I found a good place here.


The young lady asked what I wanted for dinner and I said..”Just whatever you recommend…”
Then this arrived..


exclude duplicates

Off to Romania tomorrow….
Bugger me, no wonder I look fat in that jacket…!

[ccoli]

Judi and I have returned the loaner Harley to it's garage in Karlsruhe. Managed to miss most of the rains. Got into 1 pretty good soaker but pulled off into a gas station with an awesome canopy where we waited 30 minutes for the storm to blow by.
The HD reminds me of an old polka song...I don't want her, you can have her,  she's too fat for me!
Attending a big Rock show tonight in Stuttgart (Helloween), then we fly out Sunday. 
Had a great time and met a few new friends!

[steven c]

https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-news/moto-guzzi-100th-birthday-celebration-2022/

[Huzo]

It had to happen eventually..


https://youtu.be/ECPX7LWIJxk
Parked up in Budapest. The rain stopped about an hour out and so I took off the waterproofs and got some air in the jacket.
I really should do a tour tomorrow, but well……..You know what’s likely to happen…. 

[blackcat]

The HD reminds me of an old polka song...I don't want her, you can have her,  she's too fat for me!

Arthur Godfrey’s version:
https://youtu.be/3cn-iPEEzfA

I use to live in a predominantly Polish/Ukrainian neighborhood in NYC and every Saturday afternoon the elderly(probably my current age) guy who lived next door to us played a Polka song that sort of went like this:  “She types letters, and letters, and she types them with a polka beat”  and I have no idea who the band or singer was and I’ve look on the internet with no results.  We lived next door to that guy for years, he was not friendly so I couldn’t ask him about the song.

[Huzo]

I darted through Budapest today before I got started.
The real excitement started though, before I got out of the underground car park.

I left my room on the 3rd floor and carried most of the hardware down to the bike and after loading that, went back up to the room to get my helmet, coat, i pad and phone etc….
While loading the first lot of stuff, I noticed a guy pull up near a sensor and the door opened up for him, so armed with that incalculably valuable piece of information, I felt that nothing could go wrong from here on…
Well, almost…
Upon checking out at the front desk, I left my key and borrowed ‘phone  adapter, planning to make good my exit. After putting on ALL of my wet weather gear, I thumbed the starter and after about 3 “shikook…shikook…shikooks…) the bike rumbled into life and I headed towards the steel door.
It looked like one of the type on the “Get Smart” opening credits.
So I stopped near the sensor and no amount of jumping up and own would make it register my presence, so I sweatily climbed off and trudged backup the stairs to the desk…
Everyone there was immaculately dressed and I looked like Catweasel….
I breathlessly asked the poke faced girl if some instructions on how to get the door open would be forthcoming after she stopped checking her socials on her phone book sized mobile.
.”Dare is ‘phone on vall of garage, you must ring udder reception and dey vill open for you…”
Well alllrighttyyy then.
Off back down to the bike, by now I’m sweating like a whore in a church and in no mood. Also bear in mind that the underground garage in terms of dimensional analysis, closely resembles that of the one at Heathrow’s terminal 3…
Big that is..!
So after looking around for ages on “vall of garage” and not seeing a ‘phone, I deduced that the little box with the button, surely must be what Miss Botox had meant all along right ?
WRONG…!
I pressed the button after lifting the plastic hinged lid, and all the alarms in the place went off and the lights in the garage went out..!
A small security light remained on up in the corner. I was able to make my way back to the access stairs, just as a herd of security personnel came hurtling towards the door..
“Are you ok Sir..?”
 Asked the nice head of security lady in the six inch heels..(obviously de rigeur for duties such as tackling security breaches..)
“Hell yeah, I just pushed the little button” (and they reckon men can’t find it.. )

Well by now the entire security staff were mingling in the near darkness of the underground car park, doors locked shut, alarms screaming and Sodium light security beams activated.
All I wanted was to get out, I was on the bike ready to go.
They had to ring someone on the outside to activate the door to release us….Talk about buggerising around…!
Eventually a detail arrived and got the door up and I burst out into the Budapestian morning gloom.
“You will be leaving now Sir ?”
Said the nice lady with a look of expectant hope on her face.
I replied..
“I just have to go back in to get some Wi Fi to make a call..”
But on second thoughts there appeared to be an angry mob forming amid the alarm, sirens and locked doors.
So I thought I’d make a dignified exit..(Didn’t want to draw any unwanted attention…)

[Muzz]

You tell a good yarn Peter!

[Huzo]

You tell a good yarn Peter!

Hmmm…
Yeah, I think I put the “pest” in Budapest…..

[leafman60]

I spoke with a dealer who spent a week over there during the big shindig. 

A question asked by many is where would that new engine be manufactured.  The dealer was specifically told that the new motor would be in production very soon.  Also, everything will be made at the old Guzzi facilities in Mandello del Lario.


.

[leafman60]

By the way, that dealer who went to Mandello DL said he is 6'1" and he sat on the new V100 (no rides offered for anyone other than movie stars) and the dealer liked the new bike.  He said it was larger than a V7 but smaller than the V85. At home he rides a full-sized Stelvio NTX.

.