Vintage Motorcycles Here This Weekend
ONEONTA – The vintage motorcycle event, the ninth Moto Giro East, returns to Otsego and Delaware counties this weekend, based at Holiday Inn/Southside.
The Moto Giro, which is Italian for Motorcycle Tour, will again be headquartered at the Oneonta Holiday Inn on Southside. The vintage bikes, 1968 and older, 305cc and smaller will follow a route through Delaware County on Saturday, with Otsego County on the map for Sunday.
The vintage motorcycles will cover about 180 miles each day. Not a speed event, the route is laid out to be travelled at an average speed of 25 mph, and riders are penalized if they go over or under. The riders also must compete in slow speed agility tests consisting of maneuvering around cones at very slow speeds. The bikers must wear all protective gear, including biking gloves. If you don’t have any gloves to protect your hands if you get into an accident, you can look at All styles of Motorcycle Gloves here.
This year 144 motorcycles have pre-registered, the event selling out in only 1 week. There will be motorcycles from all over the world, with bikes from Aermacchi to Zundapp represented with everything in between. Motorcycle enthusiasts from up and down the country will be looking at purchasing some of the best and most vintage motorcycles that are on offer to them. This may even come after selling your old motorcycle with somewhere similar to American Motorcyle Trading Company who will be able to input all of its details so that it can be sold onto another owner for a reasonable price. What could be better than using that money for a vintage motorcycle of your own? If you’re someone who is obsessed with motorbikes, this is probably a dream for you! The idea of choosing a motorbike with so many around you may seem impossible, but as long as you take your time, you may be walking out with a vintage bike in no time. With this being said, not everyone attending may have the funds at the moment, which is why the idea of taking out a loan becomes appealing. Making sure you are financially stable before investing in something like this is important. There is no shame in asking for help if you need it.
All are registered and road legal. There are also classes for scooters and sidecar rigs. One always popular side car passenger is “Marty” the German Shepherd dog, complete with his “doggles”. Riders from all over the North East, South and Midwest travel to Oneonta to join the event.
“Every motorcycle I lusted for in 1968, when I was 13 years old, was at there” says co-director Jack Cole of Oneonta about the first Moto Giro he attended as a spectator. He, along with Co-director Ray Bennett , of Cooperstown, with the assistance of Eric Mazarak and Skeeter Todd, of Oneonta and Goodyear Lake respectively, have done the ground work, laying out the routes and organizing the lunch stops and checkpoints. The event is sponsored by the United States Classic Racing Association, a vintage motorcycle club, of New Hampshire and is affiliated with the American Motorcyclist Association. Why not join in on the action? Do you have bad credit? No worries, bad credit motorcycle loans from Superbike Loans are here to help and get you the motorcycle of your dreams!
Saturday’s route goes from Oneonta to East Meredith to Bloomville to Bovina, New Kingston, Margaretville and Arkville then continuing on to the Lunch stop at the Andes Fire House. After lunch the riders go around the reservoir to Corbett, then a time check stop at the Downsville Central School starting around 2 pm. After that the bikes will travel to Hamden, Delancy, and Treadwell before returning to Oneonta.
On Sunday the motorcyclists will go through Charlottesville, Worcester, Middlefield, Pleasant Brook and Westville, with lunch at the Cooperstown/Westville Airport. After lunch the route will take the riders across the hills and valleys between Milford and Oneonta, returning to the Holiday Inn for the awards presentations.
The best places to view the motorcycles and chat with the riders would be the Holiday Inn Friday evening as the participants arrive, Saturday and Sunday mornings while the bikes leave the Inn, one every 30 seconds, starting at 8 AM or upon their return beginning about 3 PM. Also at the lunch stops either day starting at 11:30 until 1, or the Downsville School Saturday PM check point, from around 2-3 pm, would be another ideal time.
For more information, contact Jack Cole at 607-432-5311
