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So I finally have the motorcycle…and a broken foot. Now what? Go for a ride of course! And I knew exactly where I wanted to go. The Saturday morning meet-up of the Moto Euro Breakfast Club (MEBC) in northern San Diego county. You see, I couldn’t go before. I had a Suzuki. The MEBC’s motto was simple: “No Hondas, No Harleys” in other words, my Japanese bike, despite it being a “classic” from 1973, was not allowed to attend.  

I had run into members of the group several times however, as they sometimes dropped by the “Secret Car Club” meet-up in Rancho Santa Fe after their Saturday breakfast. I often attended with my 1959 Chevrolet Impala Convertible, which I had restored over a decade before.

Happily, the next breakfast meeting for the MEBC was only about 8 miles from my home. And while I was still sporting a large brace which completely immobilized my right foot, "It wasn’t a big deal," I told myself.  "After all, who really uses the rear brake, anyway?" So Saturday morning dawned a beautiful bright and sunny spring day, and I excitedly set out for breakfast. The ride was lovely, it was cool at 8:00 in the morning, but not overly so. As I was riding along, the engine purring contentedly, I was loving riding that bike, despite my handicap. I just made sure to leave lots of space between me and the car in front of me.

When I arrived at Loïc Restaurant, there was already a large crowd of bikes. I shook hands, everybody made their introductions and sat down for breakfast. Did I mention I was the only woman there?

After breakfast, an Italian gentleman came up and introduced himself. He had a MV Agusta Brutale, and his name was Andrea. I've never forgotten his comment. He looked at me, then at the bike... and said (in a thick Italian accent): "Theeesa bika, she'sa too beegga for you!" I tried to hide my annoyance and just shrugged it off. I have heard the same comment from many other men since. And as it turned out, Andrea and I were to become good friends.

My Saturday morning rides to the MEBC became a rarely-missed weekly event. I made some great friends there, and we went on after-breakfast rides to Julian and to the East county of San Diego. It was a great beginning to my Guzzi experience. However, I soon found myself wanting to travel. To ride farther than to work or to breakfast. I wanted to go so far that I would need to spend the night. So- before summer arrived, I was doing exactly that....