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For the past 10 years I have been organizing a gathering of Ironhead RIDERS in New Jersey called the "GBB" with my co-founders 16ouncePBR and Papa Magneto. The GBB brings together Ironhead enthusiasts to meet, talk, and RIDE together....it is a celebration of the greatest motorcycle ever produced.
Five years ago we were delighted to have two GBB attendees all the way from Ontario, Canada: Scott Fisher and Iron Mick. Scott went back to Ontario, preached the Ironhead gospel, and a new Ironhead gathering was born: The Ironhead Rendezvous! The Rendezvous is organized by Scott, Halfdead Dom, and Lloyd Gadd, and has been held for the last 4 years at Lloyd's business, "Mostly Ironheads Motorcycle Shop" in Elora, Ontario, Canada.
Ironhead Rendezvous Organizers:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKopM]
I have wanted to attend the Ironhead Rendezvous since it was founded 4 years ago, but life has always gotten in the way. The first year I had commitments at home, the second year the weather outlook was really bad during ride up there, and last year the US/Canadian border was closed due to Covid. I live in southeastern Pennsylvania, so it is not a short trip - close to 500 miles each way with an international border crossing thrown into the mix.
But at the end of July I heard that the US/Canadian border may be opening in August. As more details emerged, I read that the border was scheduled to open on August 9th for Americans wanting to travel to Canada - 5 days before the Rendezvous! I knew there was no guarantee it would happen, but I began planning.
I decided to go with my trusty 1969 XLCH for this trip. It is a great running bike with a solid motor, so I spent some time on maintenance to make sure it would be as ready as any 50+ year-old motorcycle can ever be. I also put a pair of factory hardbags on to carry all my gear. However, I don't have a large capacity "turtle tank" painted to match this bike anymore, so I would have to do it with the standard 2.2 gallon gas tank:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKze7]
The small gas tank just meant that I would need to do some careful planning of my route. I mapped out a different route each direction with minimal interstate (only about 25 highway miles at the beginning and end going each direction), mostly 2 lane rural, secondary roads, and planned gas stops every 65-75 miles.
I left home on Friday with a grim weather outlook, severe thunderstorms likely along most of my route during the afternoon. I hit the road early to get as far as I could before the rain, and surprisingly made it all the way to Niagra Falls with no more than a few minutes of sprinkling rain. There were plenty of ominous black clouds, but it seemed like every time I got close to one, the route would turn and keep me dry. The Ironhead gods were on my side!
Here are a few photos from the first leg of the trip:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhExXy]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKJ2n]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKHXz]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNegg]
The first day came in around 10 hours total with 5 short gas stops and one 20 minute stop to each lunch. I know we have some ironbutts on this forum, but for me that was a looong day on a 1969 XLCH. When I arrived at motel, I was glad to see a swimming pool to cool down! I cleaned up the bike, took a swim, ordered a pizza, and got my documents in order for the border crossing first thing in the morning.
My home away from home for the next two nights:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNjQN]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPGvF]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKPmR]
The Ironhead Rendezvous took place on Saturday morning. My hotel was only a few miles from the border, but I had a 2 hour ride into Ontario after crossing, and I was worried about how long it would take to get through the border due to all of the new requirements (passport, proof of vaccination, negative molecular covid test within 72 hours of entry, quarantine plan, etc), and I had seen updates entering Niagra Falls on Friday night that said the wait times were as high as 100 minutes to cross! So I decided to just wake up and go early on Saturday morning. I was surprised to see that there was no one in front of me when I got to the border and I was through in less than 5 minutes! There wasn't even anyone behind me and the border officer had time to ask a few questions about my bike!
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPL9T]
If you read this far, you are now in for a treat! After 2 hours of constant math conversions while I rode (Km to Miles, KPH to MPH, Liters to Gallons), I arrived at Mostly Ironheads Motorcycle Shop in Elora, Ontario. It was really cool to see all of the Ironheads in the parking lot as I turned onto the street.....kind of like arriving at a family reunion. Before I even parked my motorcycle I saw my friend Scott Fisher:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKUk3]
Although the Ironhead Rendezvous is only 4 years old, it is a fantastic event! I'm going to take a break from typing for a bit and just post photos of all the amazing Ironheads that were in attendance:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVgw]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNkw]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKJ4]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVik]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJD72]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJDpw]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNqLf]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKPz]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKTs]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVvp]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNHk]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVEN]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJDde]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNUN]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNXJ]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNZT]
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKL3]
It was really fun to have Lloyd Gadd, owner of "Mostly Ironheads" show me around his shop to see all of his projects, parts, etc. For an Ironhead lover like me, it is hands-down the best shop I have ever seen! How many motorcycle shops can you walk into and see a KHK, 1959 XLCH, and 1969 XLCH motors on the bench?!?! Lloyd had just about every gasket and maintenance part an Ironhead owner could ever need hanging on his wall. Plus he had all sorts or rare an NOS parts to show me. I wish I had a shop HALF as good as Mostly Ironheads within close range of my house. If you are anywhere within range of Elora, Ontario, you have to check out Mostly Ironheads and meet Lloyd. He is super knowledgable and friendly!
(continued below...)
Five years ago we were delighted to have two GBB attendees all the way from Ontario, Canada: Scott Fisher and Iron Mick. Scott went back to Ontario, preached the Ironhead gospel, and a new Ironhead gathering was born: The Ironhead Rendezvous! The Rendezvous is organized by Scott, Halfdead Dom, and Lloyd Gadd, and has been held for the last 4 years at Lloyd's business, "Mostly Ironheads Motorcycle Shop" in Elora, Ontario, Canada.
Ironhead Rendezvous Organizers:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKopM]I have wanted to attend the Ironhead Rendezvous since it was founded 4 years ago, but life has always gotten in the way. The first year I had commitments at home, the second year the weather outlook was really bad during ride up there, and last year the US/Canadian border was closed due to Covid. I live in southeastern Pennsylvania, so it is not a short trip - close to 500 miles each way with an international border crossing thrown into the mix.
But at the end of July I heard that the US/Canadian border may be opening in August. As more details emerged, I read that the border was scheduled to open on August 9th for Americans wanting to travel to Canada - 5 days before the Rendezvous! I knew there was no guarantee it would happen, but I began planning.
I decided to go with my trusty 1969 XLCH for this trip. It is a great running bike with a solid motor, so I spent some time on maintenance to make sure it would be as ready as any 50+ year-old motorcycle can ever be. I also put a pair of factory hardbags on to carry all my gear. However, I don't have a large capacity "turtle tank" painted to match this bike anymore, so I would have to do it with the standard 2.2 gallon gas tank:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKze7]The small gas tank just meant that I would need to do some careful planning of my route. I mapped out a different route each direction with minimal interstate (only about 25 highway miles at the beginning and end going each direction), mostly 2 lane rural, secondary roads, and planned gas stops every 65-75 miles.
I left home on Friday with a grim weather outlook, severe thunderstorms likely along most of my route during the afternoon. I hit the road early to get as far as I could before the rain, and surprisingly made it all the way to Niagra Falls with no more than a few minutes of sprinkling rain. There were plenty of ominous black clouds, but it seemed like every time I got close to one, the route would turn and keep me dry. The Ironhead gods were on my side!
Here are a few photos from the first leg of the trip:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhExXy][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKJ2n][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKHXz][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNegg]The first day came in around 10 hours total with 5 short gas stops and one 20 minute stop to each lunch. I know we have some ironbutts on this forum, but for me that was a looong day on a 1969 XLCH. When I arrived at motel, I was glad to see a swimming pool to cool down! I cleaned up the bike, took a swim, ordered a pizza, and got my documents in order for the border crossing first thing in the morning.
My home away from home for the next two nights:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNjQN][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPGvF][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKPmR]The Ironhead Rendezvous took place on Saturday morning. My hotel was only a few miles from the border, but I had a 2 hour ride into Ontario after crossing, and I was worried about how long it would take to get through the border due to all of the new requirements (passport, proof of vaccination, negative molecular covid test within 72 hours of entry, quarantine plan, etc), and I had seen updates entering Niagra Falls on Friday night that said the wait times were as high as 100 minutes to cross! So I decided to just wake up and go early on Saturday morning. I was surprised to see that there was no one in front of me when I got to the border and I was through in less than 5 minutes! There wasn't even anyone behind me and the border officer had time to ask a few questions about my bike!
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPL9T]If you read this far, you are now in for a treat! After 2 hours of constant math conversions while I rode (Km to Miles, KPH to MPH, Liters to Gallons), I arrived at Mostly Ironheads Motorcycle Shop in Elora, Ontario. It was really cool to see all of the Ironheads in the parking lot as I turned onto the street.....kind of like arriving at a family reunion. Before I even parked my motorcycle I saw my friend Scott Fisher:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKUk3]Although the Ironhead Rendezvous is only 4 years old, it is a fantastic event! I'm going to take a break from typing for a bit and just post photos of all the amazing Ironheads that were in attendance:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVgw][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNkw][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKJ4][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVik][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJD72][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJDpw][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhNqLf][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKPz][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKTs][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVvp][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNHk][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhKVEN][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhJDde][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNUN][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNXJ][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhPNZT][url=https://flic.kr/p/2mhEKL3]It was really fun to have Lloyd Gadd, owner of "Mostly Ironheads" show me around his shop to see all of his projects, parts, etc. For an Ironhead lover like me, it is hands-down the best shop I have ever seen! How many motorcycle shops can you walk into and see a KHK, 1959 XLCH, and 1969 XLCH motors on the bench?!?! Lloyd had just about every gasket and maintenance part an Ironhead owner could ever need hanging on his wall. Plus he had all sorts or rare an NOS parts to show me. I wish I had a shop HALF as good as Mostly Ironheads within close range of my house. If you are anywhere within range of Elora, Ontario, you have to check out Mostly Ironheads and meet Lloyd. He is super knowledgable and friendly!
(continued below...)
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