Another transportation threshhold crossed....

In my life I’ve operated a wide variety of modes of transportation. I was a student pilot, and took that as far as my solo flight from Maine to Burlington, VT, to Keene, NH, and then back to Maine. Ran out of time & money, and had a dislike of the rotund instructor who replaced my original one. Cessna 172s are tight quarters. Was an engineer of the diesel locomotive of the narrow gauge railroad in Portland for a few years. As one of the trainees on the square rigged tall ship HMS Rose sailing from Antigua to Martinique I spent my share of time at the helm of the ship (as well as going aloft to deploy or take in sail).

The ship was later sold to a movie company for the movie Master and Commander, and is now at the San Diego Marine Museum. Had a power boat for a few years. And of course have ridden assorted bicycles and driven assorted trucks and cars over the years.

Until this week I had never operated a motorcycle. Now I own one, pictured below. I live about 8-1/2 miles from the office, so every round trip is 17 miles. I converted my truck to butane, which I can buy at a discount because we sell it in one of our businesses, but my monthly fuel cost is still approximately $400 BZD. Too much, considering my income and other expenses.

So I bought the pictured Honda at the local hardware store for $4400 BZD, or $2200 USD, which includes the 10% sales tax. At 125 CCs, it is a small bike, and I use it for my local commute, and the truck for longer trips. I suspect many readers of this blog, especially in North America, have never driven a motorcycle, and it takes some getting used to.

The throttle is operated with the right hand, but twists counterclockwise toward you, which is not intuitive. The lever for the front brake is on the handle bar like a bicycle lever. The rear brake is operated with the right foot. The lever on the left handle bar is actually the clutch. The transmission is operated with the left foot, pushing down with your toe to shift up, and down with your heel to shift down. I have not yet found the “sweet spot” on the clutch for smooth transitions between gears. And with all the speed bumps, there are lots of opportunities to shift. Going less than 5 MPH is tricky, especially when the speedometer is measured in kilometers.

Registering vehicles doesn’t seem to be an issue here, so next week I hope to get to Dangriga to get a plate. I’ll tell them my Maine driver’s license covers motorcycles. I can’t get a Belize drivers license until I’ve established residency, a process that takes time, and doesn’t start until I’ve been in-country for a year, which will be about a month from now. Also have to get to Belize City to get a helmet.

This particular bike is not sold in North America. When I looked it up on the internet using the product number all the sites were in Spanish, and using the platename “Storm” brought up South African sites. There are a lot of cheap Chinese bikes sold here, but I’ve had good experiences with Honda equipment in the past, and they have parts in Belize City.

I’ll end this post on another note- I had the pleasure this week of meeting a reader of the blog who hails from near Vancouver, and who started reading it when I first started it. He came to Belize via Cancun, and has spent time in several places in country near the coast so he could pursue his interest in diving. We had several meals together, and a good time. I encourage any readers who come to Placencia to get in touch – I work in the Century 21 office over Wendy’s Restaurant.

That’s it for now..