And that’s what its all about. I’m talking about riding, of course. But this wasn’t any ride, this was a Bastard ride. And a pretty good one at that, I’m told.

Every month, the Sacramento chapter of The Royal Bastard Scooter Club (www.royalbastardsscooterclub.com) organizes a group ride, usually on the second Sunday of the month. Since April’s second Sunday was Easter, this month’s ride was yesterday. This was my first monthly ride with The Bastards. I was excited to say the least.

 I woke up that morning, probably a bit earlier than I really needed to. I wanted to have enough time to swing by the shop for a few things and to top off with gas. I was not about to show up and be “that guy” that comes with no fuel in the tank. During my pit stop at the shop I picked up the camera, checked the tires (aired them up a bit) and busted out the Plexus for that showroom shine. I wanted the HD to sparkle for this ride.

I arrived at the meet up at Tupelo Coffee House on Elvas, two minutes past the designated meetup time. Rats. Not to worry, though. After chit chatting and looking at each other’s scoots, including a Can-Am, and the arrival of a couple more Bastards, we got the word to mount up. As it turns out, some one else was “that guy” and our first stop would be at a nearby gas station before heading up to the main meetup in Loomis.

The ride up to Loomis was quick. We all got a kick out of seeing a young teen on his three wheel bicycle to which he had fitted what looked like a lawn mower engine. I think he went up on two wheels for a second as he made a sharp right turn. At the top of the off ramp in Loomis, as we were waiting to turn right, I was thrilled to see four scoots go whizzing by from left to right. Presumably they were on their way to the meetup as well. (I mean, what were the odds that they weren’t).

Indeed they were going to the meetup. When I rolled into the parking lot of the meetup coffee shop, I found more scoots than I had imagined would be on the ride. Probably 25 scoots soon decorated the landscape of this quaint little java spot. What a great turnout. And the weather looked to be amazing, as well.

After a thorough safety brief and ride orientation, presented primarily by one Cool Bastard, we fired up our engines and prepared for take off. Apparently our rollout was nothing short of breathtaking; causing one Bastard to note, “We almost looked like we knew what we were doing.” The route, provided and led by Bodacious Bastard was a perfect blend of hilly country roads, historic old town streets, single lane tree-lined by-ways and majestic winding ravines. Several members of the club acted as blockers to ensure that the large group passed safely through every intersection without getting separated. Even the place we stopped for lunch was well thought out. Not only was it delicious, but we had the whole back patio all to ourselves. Kudos, Bodacious.

I can’t wait to see what The Bastards come up with next month. Each month, a different club member plans the ride. Next month’s ride will be led by Sic Bastard. I know he’s been working hard on this one so I’m very excited to see what he’s got cooked up. Usually at least a 150cc is prefered for these rides, however a Vino 125 putted along with us yesterday and kept up quite nicely. To any scooterist, new or old, that loves to ride, I would highly recommend coming along on one of these rides.

Get scootin’.