Hubbry Logo
search
logo

Motorcycle rally

logo
Community Hub0 Subscribers
Write something...
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
See all
Motorcycle rally

A motorcycle rally is a gathering of motorcycle enthusiasts. Rallies can be large or small, and one-time or recurring. Some rallies are ride-in events, whereas some like the Iron Butt Rally involve days of riding and an actual gathering only at the end of the ride.

Notable annual North American rallies include the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, Laconia Motorcycle Week, Black Bike Week and Daytona Beach Bike Week, with each having thousands in attendance. The Republic of Texas Biker Rally is held each June in Austin, Texas and attracts over 200,000 bikers to the state capitol. There are innumerable smaller, regional rallies around the United States, including the annual BMW MOA international rally, the Oyster Run in the Pacific Northwest, the Golden Aspen Rally (formerly Aspencade) in the Southwest, the Route 66 Bike Week in the West, Americade in the Northeast, and Motorcycles on Meridian in the Midwest. A popular rally in the East takes place in the mountains of Maryland called Apple's East Coast Motorcycle Rally (formerly East Coast Sturgis).

Rallies will often incorporate entertainment such as a burnout pit, motorcycle contests, bike washes, motorcycle stunt performances like wheelie acts and the wall of death, live bands, and dice or poker runs. The Indianapolis and Daytona Beach motorcycle rallies have championship motorcycle racing at nearby circuits. In some cases, rallies are held as benefits for organizations or groups such as the American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, American Legion, or VFW.

Large rallies are associated with an increase in fatal traffic collisions and a rise in organ donations in the area where the rally is hosted.

The oldest motorcycle rally in Europe is the Elefantentreffen (Elephant Rally) established in 1956 by former Wehrmacht motorcyclists and named in honour of the Zündapp motorcycle that was nicknamed the "green elephant". The growing reputation of the Elephant Rally led to the creation in 1962 of a British winter rally called the Dragon rally and is held each February in North Wales.

One of the largest motorcycle rallies in Europe is the Thundersprint, held annually in May in Northwich, Cheshire, England and usually has notable motorcycle champions or enthusiasts such as Giacomo Agostini and James May. Another large motorcycle rally is Glemseck 101. It takes place around the Glemseck at the Solitude Racetrack in Leonberg, Germany every first weekend in September. A special attraction are the 1/8 mile drag races, where customizers and motorcycle brands send their best bikes and bikers to the race (e.g. Triumph, BMW, Yamaha, Suzuki).

In the UK, the Iron Ore Rally is held annually in Egremont, Cumbria and the Rally of Discovery is held in Ireland. Rallies are held year round. Many motorcyclists (or bikers) prefer the winter rallies, such as the Mayflower MCCs Force Ten Rally or the Dean Vally MCCs Rallymans Rally. The usual order of the day is camping with a real ale tent and music. Rallies usually start on a Friday afternoon and finish at lunchtime on a Sunday. The point is to travel there by motorcycle, motorcycle and sidecar or trike (not cars or vans), meet friends from all over the country and sometimes further afield, claim a rally badge and enjoy the entertainment. Prizes are awarded for the furthest distance travelled, best bike, best rat bike, oldest person attending, youngest person attending, etc. There are usually planned ride-outs on the Saturday taking in good roads and sometimes historic sites, museums, etc.[citation needed]

In the UK, many people relate motorcycle rallies to the famous Bulldog Bash near Stratford-upon-Avon. This is a hugely popular event and attracts thousands of people including non-motorcyclists. There are many much smaller rallies that attract between 50 and 500 bikers to each event, organised and controlled by a host club. Rallies are still attended by motorcyclists that have been going to rallies for up to 40 or 50 years. In the UK motorcycle rallies began in earnest in the early 1960s as young, mainly working class men and women (usually on the pillion) gained freedom by motorcycle ownership and set off around the country camping. Some went in groups or clubs and thus the rally was born. Many were Ton-up boys, later Greasers and then Greebos.[citation needed]

See all
User Avatar
No comments yet.