AMA Grand Tours Top 10 List
GET OUT AND RIDE!
AMA Designates April “Get Out And Ride! Month” Allow us to make it official. April is Get Out and Ride! Month. We know what you’re thinking. “Isn’t every month get out and ride month?” Yes, certainly. But sometimes, particularly for the parts of the country that have spent a long winter under snow and ice, it’s helpful to focus on just how much fun motorcycling is. That’s the idea behind the new designation for the fourth month of the year: To take a breath, reflect on all the cool stuff we can do on two wheels and then go out and do it. To make this all easier to take in, we’ll celebrate a different slice of the motorcycling lifestyle each week. One way to see this great country is from the seat of your own motorcycle. That’s why the first full week of April, April 4-10, will be “Get Out and Ride Your Way Week.” This week highlights everything from AMA Grand Tours (see right) to simply riding on your own (see “America’s Top 15 Motorcycling Roads” on page 30, or the AMA Trails Atlas at AmericanMotorcyclist.com). The next week, April 11-17, will be “Get Out and Ride Together Week.” This week, we’ll showcase both the country’s iconic large rallies as well as smaller, local events. We’ll highlight everything from dual-sport rides to AMA National Conventions to Gypsy Tours. April 18-24 will be “Get Out and Ride for a Cause Week.” This week, we’ll provide
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AmericanMotorcyclist.com
info on how you can use your love of riding to help others, such as participating in fund-raising rides or toy runs. Rider training will be the focus during April 25-30: “Get Out and Ride Smart Week.” We’ll share ideas about how you can improve your skills—and keep those skills sharp all riding season. Each week, we’ll invite AMA members to share their experiences with photos, stories and even video, and run contests for cool stuff. We’ll update you all month about how you can join the fight to protect our riding rights and promote the motorcycling lifestyle. So get that gear out, start checking your bike over, and look for more about AMA Get Out and Ride! Month at AmericanMotorcyclist.com and at Facebook.com/AmericanMotorcyclist.
Plan Ahead With AMA Great Roads/Trails Databases The AMA Great Roads database and the AMA Trails Atlas include listings of routes suggested by AMA members. To access the databases, go to AmericanMotorcyclist.com > Membership > AMA Great Roads, or Riding > Dirt > Events & Series > Trails Atlas. If you’re not logged in, you will be prompted for your password.
AMA Grand Tours allow you to ride at your own pace to locations that are tied to a common theme. For example, the AMA Right to Ride Grand Tour awards points for illustrating issues affecting motorcyclists’ rights. To highlight health insurance discrimination, you might submit a photo of you and your bike in front of a hospital. It runs April 1 through Nov. 30. Other Grand Tours include the Travel the USA with KOA Grand Tour and the Team Strange Smoke Chasing Grand Tour. (See full Grand Tours schedule on page 47.) Need more convincing? Here’s uber-tourer Jack Shoalmire’s top 10 reasons to do an AMA Grand Tour: 10. My significant other told me to go on an AMA Grand Tour and get out of her hair. 9. Another AMA Grand Tour pin for my collection. 8. To see new places. 7. To improve my knowledge of the United States. 6. To visit places I would never visit if not for the AMA Grand Tour. 5. To meet other people who share an interest in riding. 4. For the challenge of routing rides to capture tour locations. 3. Adding to my mirror full of memories. 2. I love the wind in my face. 1. I get to ride my way!
Photo Riding: Tom Bear
RIDING