Performance Scooter Tuning

Hello All,
Long time reader, first time poster...

Planning an extended ADVish scooter / camping trip for 20 days in September. Just now starting to look at the route, which will start in downtown Chicago head north along the coast of Wisconsin, around the UP and down through the lower peninsula of Michigan back down around through Indiana and finally back home to Chicago.
Not wanting to plan the trip too exclusively, I have a few questions for the riders here:

*Has anybody crossed the Mackinaw Bridge on scoot before? If so, how bad was it?, do they allow smaller vehicles? I've read they have riders that will take your motorcycle across for you, I'm not that afraid, but I don't want to end up ala the Yugo in the 80's.

*In past 3 to 4 days trips I have always just cargo netted down my bags to my rear rack and went from there. I have put a JL pipe on my scoot and am looking for ways to pack the spare tire without getting a rack that holds it. I just don't like the look of them. Thoughts? What about hard panniers ala dual sport bikes? Or hard bag solutions for attaching to the seat/cowls? My problem with the current thing is that I typically always have to take everything off to refuel.

*Tire Recommendations. Currently running Zippy 3 3x10. These wear pretty well for on road, but I think I want to gear up for some more gravel road, mud and sandy type surfaces. Thoughts?

Thanks for reading. I will be doing a ADV type ride report, and would like to post here, but there does not seem to be that type of thread here. Suggestions?

Thanks!

Robb

I've never crossed the bridge on a scoot but I've done it plenty of times in my truck and I still get a little spooked sometimes. You really need to watch the weather. It can get pretty breezy up there. I've seen times that they wouldn't let vehicles with trailers across or just stopped traffic until the winds died down. Sounds like a great trip. Lots of realy nice little town and places to stay around the lake. Be sure to stop at Gustafsons for some smoked whitefish and jerkey in Brevort UP. The best!

when you get your route figured out and some dates and times let me know when you will be in the green bay area if ive got the time i would love to meet up and ride along the lakeshore for a while

Unfortunately my 20 days of Freedom that I had intended to do this got all booked up with more work, but when you work freelance, you've got to take it when it comes. I am still planning this ride next Spring when the weather gets nice. A pal of mine who was a tech on my last tour is out riding right now, enjoyable reading and inspires me to do the scooter version.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=427909

For now I sit in Chicago, dodging potholes and cagers.

About 3 posts in he meets some German guys crossing the states on P200e's
So amazing.