Spring Fling 2026 - Day 31+32: Macungie, PA

Sunday, May 31

Driving day.  Left at 7:42 AM and had arrived at the home of an Army buddy of mine whom I've known since 1981; at the ROTC Advanced Camp in Fort Bragg, NC.

Mike and his lovely wife Terry have been long time friends since then, I attended his wedding to Terry and I am his first daughter's godfather.

I'm lot docking in their driveway in the town of Macungie.  It's near Allentown (yes, of Billy Joel fame).

Monday, Jun 01

Good day today.  We went to the nearby town of Bethlehem and Mike and Terry showed me around the Steel Stacks.  Rusting remnants of the enormous furnaces and support infrastructure from back in the day when steel was produced there.

Steel that would be included in such projects as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Battleship Missouri of WWII fame.

The place is now an eye-catching backdrop for a small show pavilion, a media center, a future hospital and assorted entertainment venues.

Can you see the small bit of greenery?

Nittany Lion, mascot of Penn State

After the Steel Stacks, we drove into Bethlehem's historic center and had a great lunch at McCarthys Irish Pub:

We rested the rest of the day away.  Martha flies in tonight at nearby Allentown and I'll be of course picking her up.

Spring Fling 2026 - Day 30: More Riding and Meeting and a brief stop at the PA Military Museum

It was a bit brisk today as I rode Yagi, my TW200, towards Boalsburg to meet up with Steve W. of Scooterinthesticks.  Paul R. Met us there with his all black Harley-Davidson 48.

We then rode to the home of Dave B. And he was already astride his cool looking BMW K1000.  A K Bike or "flying brick" within the Beemer community, Dave's motorcycle reminded of Jack Riepe's K Bike.

Together we would then spend the morning riding lovely winding county roads through nearby forests.  Past farms, large and small we rode, under bright sunshine but cool temps.

We stopped at the Sunset West diner for a late breakfast.  Here they are afterwards as we prepped for a bit more riding.

We didn't ride too much longer but it was quite enjoyable!  The temperature remained coola and the winds appeared to be gaining strength times.

At the next stop, I said my goodbyes to Paul R. Who would be splitting off to catch a flea market event where he hoped to find interesting old cameras I think.

Steve W. then led Dave and I to a small country store near the highway exit which I had been using to get to my campsite.  I said my goodbyes to Dave B at this time.  

Before all the above happened, I had stopped at the Pennsylvania Military Museum.  I only had a few minutes but got these pics of outside displays:

Spring Fling 2026 - Days 28-29: Riding Scooterinthesticks' Rides

Thursday , May 27

A multiple moto experience day!

I spent several hours today riding with Steve W. of Scooterinthesticks fame and one of my inspirations for riding year-round.

Yagi, my TW200, had been giving me trouble lately and I had once again fixated on the starter circuit.  It turned out to be ( I hope) a bad battery.  Steve W. Guided me to a local battery outlet where I got a replacement for only $60!

Steve W. led the morning riding.  I was on his Honda Trail 125 with its unusual gear pattern and clutch-lever-less shifting operation.  I got the hang of it pretty quickly though and enjoyed the beautifully bucolic scenery of central Pennsylvania!

We stopped for a break and snack at the Meandering Mallard, a favorite of Steves's :

In the second half of the morning ride, Steve had me switch over to the Himalayan motorcycle. Made by Royal Enfield, it's quite larger than the Honda Trail 125 and my TW200 as well.  I liked it a lot, it had good ergonomics, good power but it would not allow me to slide back on the seat to ease my knees. Steve told me that he usually just stands up on the pegs. 

I return to the campsite after the morning rides and installed the new battery which had been charged up in Steve's garage while we were riding. Yagi is now consistently starting with no problems, I am really hoping it was just a simple matter of a failing battery and a bad diagnosis on my part.   Yagi, will be going out riding tomorrow with Steve and his friend Paul R.  Stay tuned.

I drove the CRV back to Steve's house and we went out to dinner at a place called Otto's. We rode Steve's two scooters, the silver Vespa and they cream and brown colored scooter. 

2005 Vespa GT4 149cc

The silver Vespa which has been Steve's longest companion in his scooterinthesticks blog:

2006 Vespa GTS 250

249cc

After dinner, I met Steve's lovely wife Kim at their home and had a nice chat.  I also met their two Belgian Sheepdogs:  Lillehamer (Lilly) and Aiden.  Both are beautiful and friendly dogs.

Here's a couple of Aiden:

Here's Lilly:

Photo courtesy of Steve W.

Friday, May 29

20 year Anniversary of when I first swung a leg over a motorcycle, as I started Day 1 of the MSF Basic Rider Course.  How'd I spend it?  Riding and meeting new friends.

Steve W. And his riding/photographer buddy Paul R. Showed up on their Honda trail 125s at my camp at 9AM as planned.

Steve W. led us at an easy pace to and through the Penn-Roosevelt State Park . It was about 4 miles from my campsite!   No RV camping though as I found out later.

We stopped near a picnic shelter by a creek for pics and chatting.

Photo courtesy of Paul R.

Photo courtesy of Steve W.

Paul R. And I

Photo courtesy of Steve W.

No, I haven't gained more weight, just wearing layers under the riding jacket.

More riding ensued through thickly forested roads along with some highways.  A planned destination was precluded due to a road closure so we instead rode to a late breakfast at a diner called the Naked Egg.

Good food and conversation was had.  Steve and I parted company with Paul after the meal.  We then headed to Steve's place to get his dogs fed.

Steve had noticed that the zipper had broken on the front of my riding jacket and he offered me his old riding jacket as a gift. It's in very good condition and it is the very first jacket he ever had years ago when he started riding himself!  He said he'd been trying to find a good home for it for a while now.

How could I refuse?  The old jacket lasted about 18 years, not bad.

Snazzy, right?

A short ride, this time with me on Steve's Kawasaki W650, a nice motorcycle to a introduce me to a Vietnam veteran friend of his and his wife.  Steve would take me via a brief Moto Tour of the Penn State campus.

Howard and his lovely wife Claudine happily greeted us and we sat to chat about several subjects.  The main purpose had been to answer questions from Howard about boondocking.

We finished the visit and left again for Steve's place.  Here's another pic of me with my new to me riding jacket with working zipper.

I returned to my campsite around 2:30 PM and relaxed the afternoon away.  A good day!