The test...

I wanted to take the Vespa out for a trial run with the new top case... a good day for a test, maybe not so good for a carefree ride: the wind was blowing 20+ and gusty.  The best test for it would be to take it out on the highway and see how the wind affects it, from different directions.

Heading through town...

Then out on the highway...

We decided to run on a two lane highway, heading towards Indian Lake; rather than any kind of big lake, it is more a series of resacas.  For those not familiar with the term, a resaca is a former oxbow off the Rio Grande River, no longer connected.  More accurately, some are "the leftovers" when the river ran wild through this area, and some have been man-made to create a water feature.  Up north, they would be long skinny ponds.  Some have pumps and fountains to keep the water circulating; those that don't have some way of moving the water can get a bit stagnant.  It gives homes on the resaca a "water front."

Think the wind always blows around here?

Yeah, it does - check out that tree above.

A rarity around here...

Yes, an actual curve in the road.  And that's why we enjoy hauling the scoots to places with more interesting roads.

Once again, it doesn't look like I was along... but, I was... really... I was taking the photos.

When we got back home, a look at the Vespa from the front, with the top box...

So, was there a difference in the riding with the top case?  Yeah, a bit.  I noticed a slight "push" on the rear of the bike with a quartering tailwind.  Nothing scary.  No real difference with a headwind or even a cross-wind.

After 50 miles at mostly highway speeds, different road surfaces, and some wind, once home I took the top box off and checked all the nuts and bolts on the mounting brackets... I got a little bit of a turn on each.  I'll be checking those for a while.

During the ride, we stopped for a lunch break - nice to be able to leave my full-face modular helmet, gloves, and camera in the bike.  After lunch, I left the camera in the top box... what a difference to not have that hanging around my neck... there may not be much in the way of photos on future scooter outings.

:-)