Bill Hagan

My math skills -- and high-school senior arrogance -- led to an empty tube when I marched to the strains of Pomp & Circumstance across the stage at graduation, followed by summer school. So, not sure which of us is the older, but here are the top hits of my vintage year: Bill

. "In the Moto Grappa 'as we speak' ..."

Lovely!

. The Mutton Run is a "go." Thought I'd posted about that here, but will soon if not. Thanks for the reminder. Bill

. Just made reservations for Friday and Saturday nights in our "usual" room, 301. Have a moto-spot reserved, too, but may be caging it with Kathi. I have hernia surgery -- my sixth! -- on 7 August. Yes, I am obviously defective. My first such surgery was after my first unplanned dismount ... an honorable "I laid 'er down" -- from a tricycle in San Antonio in 1949! All since have been from lifting things I should have known better to call for help, but, well, didn't. So, as for riding a day or two short of a month after procedure, not sure surgeon will "let" me (or that I'll care about that ), but it may be an issue of reality then, something I do care about. Even if I do ride, Kathi will cage it. I'll store the (selected!) Guzzi in Hiawassee and we'll head out on lengthy "Visit Old Friends in the South" tour. On the way back, I'll retrieve the Guzzi and we'll see how tall the grass is back here by our return. Be all of that as it may, we look forward to our reunion at SSR XXI. Bill

I, too, have a wonderful wife who indulges my Mandello Syndrome. Don't want to mess that up by using the word "lust" here, but that sure fits my (continuing) yearning for a Rosso Corsa. I happened to be in an Atlanta dealer c. 2004 looking at one in their showroom window. As I drooled, a truck pulled up. loaded it, and took it to https://www.barbermuseum.org where, at least, I and others can look longingly at it. About the only "cheesecake" in my Moto Grappa is this ... I do, however, disagree, Andy, with your assessment about Moto Guzzi "soul" vis a' vis the V85. Aside from having, as do you, a saintly wife, I, too, own an "Oreo Guard." My V11, a Ballabio ... ... left my Moto Grappa, actually, even earlier, the Moto Grappa's beloved Atlanta predecessor, the GarageMahalo ... It makes me smile to think of it. With those Mistral cans, it made riding along water courses on backroads, inside tight, palisaded valley walls an absolute aural, and near-spiritual delight. It's why we ride motorcycles and Moto Guzzis, in particular. But, ah, the Guardia. When I first saw a V85, I found its "beak" and other Jurassic Park looks off-putting. I still am not at complete peace with that. Yet, overall -- after owning seven new Guzzis and ridden at least a dozen more from several Loops, two Nuovo Falcones, lots of Tontis, a Centauro, my own and others' Spines, and (ditto) Carcs, including several Spine LeMans variants, I think the V85 has 100% Mandello DNA, and ever bit as much of that elusive "soul" -- but, as did the SCOTUS justice, Potter Stewart, with pornography, we know when we see it. It is -- again, IMO, i.e., YMMV -- quirky beyond its gawky looks. Power? No, not the raw grunt of my Griso, or visceral joy of my Ballabio. Still, way enough for me; youngsters in years and personality may disagree. Comfort for long multi-day rides? Best of any motorcycle I've ever ridden. Better than my Norge -- minus weather protection. OK, wait; I did ride a 2003 Goldwing for some miles once. It wins. Go anywhere, even off-pavement? Except with my spunky little "Let's go!" Stornello, I am rarely on gravel, and never (Intentionally) with my EV or V85, on dirt, dual-track, or worse, but I get there more often than I want by following my GPS instead of tempering that with common sense. Handling? I find the V85 composed, willing, and certainly more capable than I am to take on the tight stuff at speed. I rode two V85's -- a '22 & a '25 -- in Corsica and Sardinia last fall. The pace was way faster than I like to ride on technical and unforgiving roads, but the V85's just said "Hang on!" and I did. Overall, it's Best in (My) Show ... [For C&W connoisseurs, in the second pic, that's Patsy Cline's first home on Back Creek Road near Gore, Virginia. ] Enough, with apologies for droning on, but I needed to help Andy understand that he was wrong. Seriously, how blessed we all are to ride this remarkable marque. Whichever Guzzi I am riding at the moment is my favorite. That is a great reminder that I need to get the V85 off of the lift ... ...and road ready for a jaunt to see the grands and then house- (and dog, cat, & gerbil!) sit in N.C. next month, followed by the Mutton Run to Kentucky and Catfish Crawl in the Ozarks. Retirement: best job I've ever had. Ciao! Bill

Yes, some dreams never die. So ... there is the Moto Grappa, home of my Guzzi moto-harem. Fewer now than in this pic four years ago, parading on the occasion of Moto Guzzi's 100th. I mentioned my (quite possibly loony) plan over on Griso Ghetto, and "Street" worked up this mockup. Yee ha! Looking into options to execute now, e.g., @p6x's mural approach. Obviously, if this happens, there will be a party. Last time I had such an event -- in Atlanta, for the christening of the GarageMahalo 20 years ago (gasp) -- the local Peroni distributor helped wet down the festivities. If the "Moto-Duomo Doors" happens, count on a similar event at the top of Virginia. This post constitutes your invitation. Bill

Guzzisti provided the tees. Beth made the quilt. Eric delivered it. Chet loved it. blob:https://www.v11lemans.com/463c4903-6991-4a2d-91e2-c832cbb677be Bill

Doesn't matter. However attached, it will fall off soon. B(ill)TDT

Well, doh. Thank you for slapping me into clarity. She is looking for Moto Guzzi tees, i.e., brand specific. Guzzi rallies or related are fine, too, but Guzzi is the theme. Apologies for my brain cramp in not making that clear from the start. I'm now going to other places and correcting my posts there. Bill

Many of you reading this know or know of Chet … an avid West Virginia Guzzista and “Chethro” on ADVRider. Regrettably, Chet was in a very serious motorcycle accident involving a deer strike in early November. See more here: https://advrider.com/f/threads/chethros-wv-nearby-travels.1468688/page-134#post-51683267 Chet was hospitalized for weeks, in rehab for a lengthy period, and is finally at home with a long recovery period ahead. Chet's good friend, Eric, was following Chet when the day turned Chet’s world upside-down, and has posted updates of Chet’s condition. Eric’s wife is a skilled quilter, and had the idea to make Chet a quilt as a small blanket or throw that he might enjoy during his continued rehab. The quilt squares are made from the front and/or back of a T-shirt. The quilt requires minimum of 12 tees, with 16 preferred, of Moto Guzzi content; subject matter front and rear would count as two. The size and condition is not overly important since she will be cutting them down to 12x12 squares. That said, as we all probably know from our own collections, “some tees are better than others,” i.e., so more to choose from is a good thing. With Guzzisti, I am compelled to add “washed and clean” tees. 😄 I suspect we all have tees that could be of service in this great cause. Given the sad realities of privacy and security in 2025, PM, email me <wrhagan AT earthlink DOT net>, or text me at FourZeroFour.8Zero8.84EightSix as to where to mail your tees. Thanks. Bill

We are even … you got me with the “up & over hill!” Bill

I think you missed my teasing point: "Did you walk uphill both ways as I always told my kids that I did? " Seriously, I think few young folks in any era really know about, much less appreciate, what their forebears did to make life easier for posterity. Bill

Did you walk uphill both ways as I always told my kids that I did? Seriously, we have MANY miles of gravel roads in Frederick County here at the top of Virginia that school buses have to travel, thus the school closures on days that would, for most urban schools, be ho-hum business as usual. I do see -- in great weather -- all the parents sitting in their cars at the end of a street or driveway to take their kids the few hundred feet to their homes! I think much of that stems from fears of security. It's none of my business -- which never stops me from judging and pontificating -- but it still bothers me. I detest snow, but need to stop whining about the weather and just go down to the Moto Grappa and putz around, pretending that I am doing something useful. Bill

As for first year of the new century and, in this instance, millennium, I pleaded guilty to pedantry. and am awaiting findings and sentencing. WRT to vehicle tags, there's a long thread on the issue here: https://advrider.com/f/threads/why-do-people-cover-their-license-plates.1516730/ Quibblingly yours, Bill