This weekend we attended the NorthWest Sidecar Rally in Chelan Washington. Round trip including the putting around while at the event came out to be just under 900 miles. Other than some disturbing brake failures on the Rocket, the bike performed flawlessly.
Some of the stretches of freeway were posted at 70MPH and folks were doing between 80 and 90. Usually sporty little cars. Well, the Rocket and sidecar are perfectly happy at those speeds, and very stable. Going up big hills, all the cars would start to lose their speed, and the Rocket just pumped up the hill, in 5th gear, without even complaining. This is a great bike to pull a hack.
Here are some pictures of the trip. Over all it was a lot of fun, but 380 miles and 6.5 hours each way is too far to travel for a camping trip when you have kids and lack the time to take a leisurely pace.
When I got there, I discovered that about half of the folks TRAILERED their bikes and sidecars, and they didn't come nearly as far is me. Bastards! One lady did however drive her rig all the way up from California. Very impressive. I'm not sure how many days she took though.
View from the cockpit:
75mph on mountain roads and the bike doesn't seem to notice that I've got a sidecar and passengers in tow. The RPMs are at 3200 (a little high due my short tire that I need to remedy) and the throttle is maybe at 10-15 percent. Barely off the idle stop.
This was great. It was so damned hot that I stripped down to a T-shirt, sunglasses, jeans, boots, and a half helmet. We rode by this ski resort and through this pass it must have been 15 degrees cooler. It felt so nice. I normally ride with lots more gear, but I just had to take it off due to the heat.
Here's the story behind this pic. We just finished running the gauntlet of 3 different sidecar games/events. In the last one I was driving with a blindfold on, and my wife was navigating. Here, I'm being told that folks were moving their chairs and coolers back because I was all over the course. Apparently the Rocket doesn't turn nearly as sharp as some of the smaller rigs, even at full lock. Or maybe its the massively wide sidecar. But we didn't hit anything and I'm pretty sure that's the measure of success.
We won "BEST IN SHOW!" Go figure. (We came in nearly last on the sidecar games.)
Lots of sidecars lined up for the voting. About 30 in total, all but a couple from the NW region.
1969 Chinese Military Surplus rig!
Hey! You can't put a car tire on a motorcycle!
See ... I normally ride safe. I kept the jacket and full helmet on the entire way up.
Finally made it to camp.
Big motorcycle riders need big ass tents. Or maybe its the 5x kids.
If you don't recognize breakfast when you see it .
Looks like fun was had by all:o) Thanks for sharing. That is a beautiful rig you have there.
Wes
Beautiful outfit....love those Rocket 3s
What a beautiful rig you have.
It looks like Chelan is a "don't miss" rally for next year. Glad everybody had fun. I can't wait to here Gail's stories when she gets back to Southern California to prepare to head out again to the National Rally in Tahoe, she is a riding fool.
It was the strangest thing, watching the Chelan Webcam Sunday morning I saw Gail and Larry heading out of town at exactly 10:29AM. Too funny........
I hope to see your rig at next years rally up close. What sidecar do you have? It is nice and wide, great for the kids.
Ride Safe
Linda
Originally written by OlBroad on 5/20/2009 11:59 AM
What a beautiful rig you have.
It looks like Chelan is a "don't miss" rally for next year. Glad everybody had fun. I can't wait to here Gail's stories when she gets back to Southern California to prepare to head out again to the National Rally in Tahoe, she is a riding fool.It was the strangest thing, watching the Chelan Webcam Sunday morning I saw Gail and Larry heading out of town at exactly 10:29AM. Too funny........
I hope to see your rig at next years rally up close. What sidecar do you have? It is nice and wide, great for the kids.
Ride Safe
Linda
Hi Linda:
Gail actually won the "longest ride" contest, or whatever it was called for the person who drove the furthest. They gave her a big cast iron seat from a tractor with a nice engraved plaque on it. I thought my commute was horrendous with just the 380 miles I drove from Oregon!
It was certainly a fun time. I'll be strongly considering it in the future. As for Tahoe ... I'm disappointed to say that I will miss that event. I'm taking the Oregon state Bar examine in July and I don't think I can risk sneaking away 🙁
I hope to cross paths with you in the future.
Spencer
WOW, state bar, best of luck to you. I hear those tests are killer. Have all the kids quiz ya.....LOL hmmmm! maybe not.....LOL
Love that sidecar, what make is it? We are looking for one for my daughters bike, she wants a Daytona 2+12, but yours has really nice lines. Does it have a ragtop?
Yes, Gail is a riding fool, she'll put anybody to shame on her rig,she and SidecarSusie, I certainly can't keep up with either of them in the twisties..... ~.~
AGAIN, good luck with your testing
Linda
Originally written by OlBroad on 5/20/2009 10:36 AM
WOW, state bar, best of luck to you. I hear those tests are killer. Have all the kids quiz ya.....LOL hmmmm! maybe not.....LOLLove that sidecar, what make is it? Looking for one for my daughters bike, she wants a Daytona but yours has really nicel lines. Does it have a ragtop?Yes, Gail is a riding fool, she'll put anybody to shame on her rig,she had SidecarSusie, I certainly can't keep up with either of them in the twisties..... ~.~AGAIN, good luck with your testing Linda
The hack is a Hannigan Bandito double wide. Just google "hannigan sidecars" and you'll find their website.
It comes with a tanneau cover, but I had a new one made. Same with the seats. They do paint matching, but I just ordered it in black "gel coat" which is basically right out of the mold, and then I had a local guy do all the painting. My wife and I personally applied the lines on both the bike and the sidecar with the painter. Something I wouldn't have been able to do through Hannigan.
Here are some pics of the sidecar's cover and seat that I had made and some of the rig itself:
Here it is with all the paint prep work done, sanding, smoothing, repairing fiberglass defects, seams, high/low spots, etc., and then primer, wetsanding, and its white base coat. This is just after we finished dropping the lines and is about 80% done in terms of effort.
Here it is just delivered:
You two did a beautiful job on it. I guess I'm use to seeing the single wide Hannigan's. That double wide is hot. I'd have a low streamline ragtop made for it, we live in miserable heat & cold so a little coverage helps... Thanks for sharing the pictures. I need to show my daughter, it is really hot looking.
Thanks
L
PS. The glare on the DVD player would make the grand daughters cranky...LOL
.....................I'm taking the Oregon state Bar examine in July and I don't think I can risk sneaking away 🙁
Spencer
Thats' a nice rig you have there.
Good luck on the bar exam. I passed the California State Bar in 1987 and practiced until last year and then went inactive to take a rest. Don't eat much the night before the exam, if you catch my drift. LOL
Good luck on the bar exam. I passed the California State Bar in 1987 and practiced until last year and then went inactive to take a rest. Don't eat much the night before the exam, if you catch my drift. LOL
Thanks! I think I know what you mean. It should be ok so long as I put in the time to study.
...taking the Oregon state Bar examine in July and I don't think I can risk sneaking away 🙁
Been there, done that: Summer of 1993 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I wouldn't wish it on anyone. However, congratulations on finishing school. I admire you ability to do such with children. I was single back then and the stress started me going bald -- at least that's what I blame it on. You aleady know the stuff, just focus.
Lee
MB5+TW200+CRF250L+GTV300+INT650
XL883R w/Texas Ranger Sidecar
Zuma 50F + Burgman w/Texas Sidecar<Mrs. SwampFox
Originally written by SwampFox on 5/21/2009 10:16 PM
...taking the Oregon state Bar examine in July and I don't think I can risk sneaking away 🙁
Been there, done that: Summer of 1993 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I wouldn't wish it on anyone. However, congratulations on finishing school. I admire you ability to do such with children. I was single back then and the stress started me going bald -- at least that's what I blame it on. You aleady know the stuff, just focus.
Thanks swamp fox. It's been a long time coming. This will be a second career for me. I worked for over a decade as a software engineer. What I was thinking going back to school I cannot say for sure. But I'm glad its finally over.
Just one more test and I get my life back 🙂
Hi Spencer:
I believe this is your daughter "flying" http://groups.yahoo.com/group/USCAWest/
You have a great family. It was a pleasure to see you all at the rally.
I am posting this link to the WEST site, as everyone deserves a peek at your beautiful rig, and great pics of the rally. Thanks for posting.
Good luck with the Bar!
Gail
Originally written by geek_law on 5/18/2009 1:20 PM
When I got there, I discovered that about half of the folks TRAILERED their bikes and sidecars, and they didn't come nearly as far is me. Bastards!
We won "BEST IN SHOW!"
QUOTE]
Congratulations on your "Best in show" win. I'm one of the "bastards" who trailered. But I think you saw the amount of stuff I brought to set up at the HQ. Three large folding tables, five stack chairs, one large coffee pot, the awning that covered the whole shebang, tickets, cans, Archie's bed, my own camp gear and clothes and gear for the week. No excuse required but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it... Good luck on the bar exam and we'll see ya in Chelan next year!
Originally written by Reardan Tom on 5/25/2009 3:31 PM
Originally written by geek_law on 5/18/2009 1:20 PM
When I got there, I discovered that about half of the folks TRAILERED their bikes and sidecars, and they didn't come nearly as far is me. Bastards!
We won "BEST IN SHOW!"
QUOTE]
Congratulations on your "Best in show" win. I'm one of the "bastards" who trailered. But I think you saw the amount of stuff I brought to set up at the HQ. Three large folding tables, five stack chairs, one large coffee pot, the awning that covered the whole shebang, tickets, cans, Archie's bed, my own camp gear and clothes and gear for the week. No excuse required but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it... Good luck on the bar exam and we'll see ya in Chelan next year!Ok, "Bastards" was a bit strong. I should have said "cheaters" 🙂
Anyway ... truth be told, I cheated too. We had the minivan in tow (well, it was behind me and my wife was driving) and it was packed chuck full of gear. Someday it would be fun to actually go camping with JUST the rig. I'm sure we could easily do it with just my wife and I. Someday ... when all the kids are finally grown and moved out. Someday ... someday ;^{
