Rally Train to Oregon next year?

[cjack]

Anybody doing this?

[SHERIDESABEEMER]

I was thinking of going by bike

[LONERIDER]

I intend to ride the mighty K1200RS horefully through
Glacier and Banff parks.

Enjoy the 4th

The Lonerider

[PGlaves]

Oh no - not again.

This has been the butt of jokes on the Long Distance Riders and Adventure Riders forums and lists for years!!!

[cjack]

Yeh...some have asked around here and are interested so as to go but they still work and have seen Nebraska a few times I guess.
They seem to have had a great time on the train last time...RUI maybe.

[Polarbear]

Why not train it, if you got the funds....It cannot be inexpensive with a bike, but go figure. My folks just did the train from coast to coast(WashD.C. to Reno) and had a wonderful trip last month. They got a real deal, with sleeper, (Great)food all included at 1400$ea., round trip, NO m/c...Randy

[RevWillie]

Anybody doing this?

We're working on it. If you know somebody in power with AMTRAK, send them my way!

Yes, we did have a good time on the '01 RallyTrain from DC and Chicago to Redmond and back!!

[Rob Nye]

Nothing wrong with using alternate transportation for you and your bike if it means you can enjoy the rally.

From Rhode Island at "Iron Butt" pace means 50 or so hours with one night's sleep, then camp on the ground? No thanks.

For Spokane a buddy and I put the bikes in a pick up truck and tandem drove non stop to Denver in 36 or so hours. This left us in a great place to enjoy a four day tour to the rally, enjoy the rally and a five day tour back to the truck. By doing this we were able to start with the Top of the Rockies, then the National and finally an ADV event in Ouray, CO while only use two weeks plus two days of vacation.

In the past the Yankee Beemers have organized an "airlift" where you and your bike fly west. We did this to Salt Lake City (Missoula) and Oakland (Redmond) and will be looking to do it again.

The majority of folks on LD rider are one time certificate riders and can go futher on their than their bike. The folks that climb up on the "I never trailer my bike" are only spotlighting their own shortcomings.

Sometimes the best use of time on distance involves being able to keep moving while you are sleeping. It's a vacation not a forced march.

Truck, trailer, train or ride it's all good for this party.

[BUBBAZANETTI]

Truck, trailer, train or ride it's all good for this party.

Well said.

anyone who's been riding a few years, has done some long marches, commuted, experienced what there is to be experienced on a bike shouldn't feel weird about trucking/trailering/training or flying. i'm pretty sure Johnson City would have been a much more miserable place if i'd forced the lady to do 2500 miles instead of 500 on that little, uncomfortable ST seat.


it's the people that have never actually rode their bikes and trailer i find a bit suspect.

[testinglogin]

Well said.

anyone who's been riding a few years, has done some long marches, commuted, experienced what there is to be experienced on a bike shouldn't feel weird about trucking/trailering/training or flying. i'm pretty sure Johnson City would have been a much more miserable place if i'd forced the lady to do 2500 miles instead of 500 on that little, uncomfortable ST seat.


it's the people that have never actually rode their bikes and trailer i find a bit suspect.

While I can never be sure what will be happening next year, unless I relocate closer or somehow end up with a lot of vacation time, it's more likely I would have to trailer/train/fly out to the rally, if attend at all. I could easily cover the distance, but I don't see much "fun" in riding there over 3 days (figure 700 mile days), and then going home over the same amount of time, all for 3 nights of rally. Tearing down the highway for hours on end isn't really exciting, that's for sure. I know, I've done it far too many times. It's also why I'm taking an extra day after the Catskills event and back-roading it over two days to get home, instead of riding 600 miles on the highway and being forced to leave at the crack of dawn with deer on the loose, and possibly heavy morning fog like last year. I'm actually challenging myself to make a 100% non-highway trip home. I have this mental problem where once I get within about 3-4 hours of home I decide to hop on the fastest road I can find and knock the rest out. I need to stop that.

[zoridog]

My riding buddy really doesn't want to ride the 2800 miles from NJ and back. At tonight's club meeting, I'll suggest the train for the return leg.

I think the ride out is the best chance for both of us to get our Iron Butt ride done. Taking the boring and fast route 80 through Iowa, Nebraska and Wyoming at 70-75mph would give us 1000 miles plus a full night's sleep.

[jimfastcar]

I love this idea, we could load, what 30 bikes per boxcar ?
Then I could spend the time I would have otherwise spent riding there from Ontario, by going far afield, like Moab....
Love the idea !!

[tlcoulter]

Anybody doing this?

I retired from Amtrak, and I ain't about to let those bums touch my RT!

[wezul]

I retired from Amtrak, and I ain't about to let those bums touch my RT!

That's not what I would call an endorsement.

[vectorprime27]

I've taken a quick look, and I can have my bike transported via truck (company specializes in moving motorcycles - bike is tied to a pallet, covered, and insured) from Florida to Oregon for $533 each way. If you consider that I'd spent about $200 on gas riding the 3,000 miles, that's only $333 each way. Of course, I'll need to fly out....but a 5 hour flight vs. six 500 mile days...well...you get the picture. I'm actually considering shipping to Denver (only $481) and riding the remainder. Got a little while to decide.