2025 has been a year shaped by small roads, early starts, and the quiet satisfaction that only a Vespa ride can bring. Life with Phoenix — my orange Vespa GTS 300 — hasn’t been about chasing extremes or ticking boxes. It’s been about choosing to go, even when it would be easier not to.
There were rides for no reason other than the ride itself. Coffee stops that turned into conversations. Cold mornings that warmed up once the engine settled into its rhythm. And moments where slowing down revealed more than rushing ever could. Vespa life has a way of doing that — it strips things back and reminds you that freedom doesn’t have to be loud to be real.
Phoenix has been central to that rhythm. Reliable, characterful, and quietly capable, she’s carried me through the year with a sense of purpose that feels increasingly rare in modern life. Every mile added something — not just to the odometer, but to the story.
As 2026 begins, that story continues with something I’m genuinely looking forward to: the Vespa Club of Great Britain AGM at Weston-super-Mare. A ride-out to start the year, followed by a proper social evening, feels like exactly the right way to set the tone. It’s about community, shared enthusiasm, and the simple pleasure of being among people who understand why these machines matter.
There’s no grand resolution for the year ahead. Just more riding, more learning, and more moments worth remembering. If 2025 was about proving that a Vespa can still anchor a meaningful way of life, then 2026 is about leaning into that truth with confidence.
Phoenix is ready.
And so am I.
Hope isn’t what they promise you. It’s how you carry on when they don’t deliver. — Dave Carrera
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