Howdy to all!
I've been very interested in doing a side car for quite a while now. My 12 year old son and I have made plans to participate in the 2010 Alcan 5000 Rally. I've done the rally before on a highly modified BMW R1150GS and had an absolute blast. I figured my son and I would have even more fun.
Moving on, I want to build a side car rig that is safe, comfortable, and capable at highway speeds. The bike I will choose is still under consideration but I'm definitely leaning towards something that can take a beating and is very reliable. I was on the fence about getting a BMW R1100 RTP but I think the amount of plastic on the bike will be a detriment over the long haul. I don't want to have to worry about busted up plastic fairings up in the Yukon. Perhaps a BMW R1150 R ? Who knows at this point...
This will be a slow build and I will take my time to get the right and safe package together. My goal is to have something done at least 6 months prior to the rally so that we can test, drive, and get comfortable with the feel and quirks of driving a sidecar rig.
So, I'm looking for advice, recommendations, tips, tricks, etc to help me get this rig together.
I'll start first with contacting Dauntless Motors for some discussions about said proposed rig.
Thanks to all in advance for your comments and advice.
-Andrew
2010 Alcan 5000 "Hacked" !!
BTW, any side car people in NJ that could let me do a parking lot test ride?
I've got almost 30 years of riding experience on the road and started riding when I was 6 so I'm an experienced rider that knows how to respect others property and engine power 😉
thanks!
Andrew
We have done quite a few dual sport type rigs. Right now we are working on one total custom V Strom 100O and another V Strom 1000 that will have a new Hannigan sidecar on it. My own rig is based on an R100R that is slowly being converted to nore of a GS.
Location is central Pa.
Contact info is in the link below.
Hi Andrew,
Most 2-wheel riders have to be concerned about busting plastic fairings but not so with hackers. Reason being you seldom drop a hack... 🙂 Given that you'll be off-road you still shouldn't have any issues unless you crash into a solid object, ie, tree stump, cliff face, other participant, etc.
Most problems I experienced on a recent ride to Deadhorse were electrical bits getting shook to death or chain/sprockets compacted with mud/rocks. No problems with the Dauntless subframe although there were the expected loose & missing hardware items, nuts & bolts. Next time out I'll do some additional safety wiring along with aircraft hardware which should prevent a lot of the vibration issues.
If I were building another rig I think I'd look very hard at a shaft drive tug, probably BMW as you've mentioned.
Just my 2c worth, you guys will have a lot of fun.
LL
