Riders,
JT (John Thompson) and I are pleased to announce a new dual sport adventure rally for 2021 - the Gila Monster rally in Reserve, NM, Sunday, Aug 22 through Saturday, Aug 28. Please mark your calendars and schedule time off to attend the inaugural Gila Monster event.
What kind of rally is this? This event is a dual sport adventure rally, suitable to any street legal dual sport or adventure bike. There are a plethora of both paved and dirt roads in the area, and a bunch still needing to be scouted out by our group. We have proven tracks - dirt and pavement - and a bunch of roads we want to explore. So whether you are a newbie or a old grizzled veteran and whether you ride a lightweight dual sport or a full-sized adventure bike, there is great riding here for you.
Format:
- Sunday, Aug 22: check-in at ride headquarters, Hidden Springs Inn, Reserve, NM 6-8 pm (note that the Hidden Springs Inn is located about 7.5 miles outside of Reserve)
- Monday - Friday: ride where you want, when you want
- Friday, Aug 27, 6 pm, banquet
- Saturday, Aug 28, end of rally
What if I can't attend the entire week?
No problem. Register as if you will be there the entire week ($70) but show up whichever day you can. You will still receive all the rally benefits - attendance, banquet, t-shirt (if pre-registered), GPS tracks/routes. Room priority goes to those who will be staying the entire week so as to make maximum efficiency with that scarce resource. However, if a room is available for the days you will be there and you want it, then it's yours. Otherwise plan on camping.
Meals:
- The Adobe Cafe located at Hidden Springs will be providing a breakfast buffet each morning (or you can order from the menu) and dinner each evening (order from the menu). Or you can rustle up your own meals somewhere else (there are a couple of restaurants in Reserve, approximately 7.5 miles away). You are responsible for the cost of all your meals except the Friday night banquet.
Sleeping:
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Motels: There are two motels in the immediate area - the Hidden Springs Inn and the Frisco Lodge, both owned by the same person - with a total of 27 rooms available to us. Due to the shortage of rooms I am handling room assignments for now. First come, first served. Contact me (Rich Gibbens at 512-203-6143) to reserve a room. The goal is to fill all the beds. Rooms have more than one bed, so expect to share a room with others. That being the case, call your buddies, get them to commit to attending with you and then call me and reserve a room(s) with sufficient beds for everyone in your group. If you are all by yourself because all your buddies are lame, then I will randomly assign a bed to you (in other words, plan on sharing a room with another rider or riders). We are old and we snore so bring ear plugs. Or you can camp.
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Camping: Hidden Springs has about 40 acres available for camping. $10 per night per person. Camping includes the use of a shower, internet, and electricity to charge your stuff (phones, ipad, etc). Contact the Hidden Springs Inn to reserve your camping spot.
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Campers/RVs/Trailers: There are 4 full hook-ups at the Frisco Lodge in Reserve. First come, first served. There are no hook-ups at Hidden Springs but there is ample parking for campers/trailers/RVs. Camping fee required.
Registration: $70 per person
Your registration includes:
- rally attendance
- Friday night banquet
- GPS tracks & routes
- if you pre-register you will receive a free event t-shirt
- the fame, glory, and envy of your family and friends because you attended the inaugural Gila Monster rally
Registration dates:
Pre-registration: Today - Aug 1st - all riders who pre-register will receive a free event t-shirt
Late registration: Aug 2 - Aug 20 - all rally benefits except the free event t-shirt - you must pre-register to get the free t-shirt
On-site registration: available only if there are rooms or camping spots still available. The odds are the rooms will be full but camping spots are likely to be open. So if you are late to the party and wait to register at the rally, plan on camping.
Registration process:
To register
email your name, email address, phone number, and t-shirt size to me at
richgibbens1@gmail.com. Call me at 512-203-6143 to begin the process of reserving a motel room.
Send $70 payment to me via paypal, Venmo, check, cash, or money order.
- paypal: send payment to me at
richgibbens1@gmail.com
- Venmo: send payment to me
@Richard-Gibbens-1
- cash, check, or money order:
Richard Gibbens
12609 Red Bud Trail
Buda, TX 78610
Why Reserve NM?
Our first experience was riding through here on the
New Mexico Backcountry Discovery Ride in June 2020. I enjoyed that so much I went back
two more times in 2020 to further explore the area. Reserve, located in southwest New Mexico and very close to the Arizona border, is on the New Mexico BDR and surrounded by the Gila Wilderness, the Gila National Forest, and the Apache National Forest. It sits at an elevation of about 5700 feet, making it a cool place to visit in the summer. The area is beautiful and the surrounding national forests are full of dirt roads just begging to be explored. One of the best paved roads I've ever ridden is just across the border in Arizona. The owner (Jennifer) of the Hidden Springs Inn and Adobe Cafe and her family are wonderful people and are very excited about hosting an event for us. All of this combined makes this a likely spot to host a rally.
More information to follow