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21st Annual IMOC Rally After 21 years of revving up the annual Italian Motorcycle Owners Club (IMOC) Rally, yours truly (and co-Chairman Bob Andren) thought we'd seen it all... until 2004. And while we've certainly worked hard to continually boost attendance (since taking the reins, two or three years ago), this time we received an uninvited guest that we thought we most certainly would have preferred to turn away. His name was Charley. Hurricane Charley, that is. Invited or not, Charley was going to do his thing, and decided to race right up the East Coast to ensure he didn't miss the festivities. He must have mulled it over with Mother Nature (who in years past has had a bunch of up close and personal experiences), read last year's report, and obviously knew that it was going to be a good time! So instead, we zigged when he zagged... and broke with tradition - thanks to the cooperation of our host venue (the Hamilton Rod & Gun Club). While Charley the party pooper was trying to poop on our party, we simply got out of harm's way and rescheduled the Sturbridge, Massachusetts extravaganza from August 15 to September 12. Ha, ha, you missed us! But... judging by the results, we should - in fact - really thank old Charley! You see, the extra month of preparation and promotion turned the event into the biggest and best ever - and by a wide margin, at that... to the tune of an additional 100 Italian-made motorcycles! The weather was a little cooler and crisper, the bikes ran better and being post-Labor Day, inevitable scheduling conflicts were even less of an issue. As always, all the Italians were incredibly well represented... and the IMOC Rally draws enough off-beat stuff as well, so you never know what you're going to see. So... for those of you who didn't make it, or those who did (but never got around to see everything because there was so much on the field), here's what was on hand, (with quantities of more than one indicated in parentheses):
With 353 Italian-made machines in Sturbridge, this was obviously a new record! Some 600-700 people were easily on the ground, and the food service folks had to run out twice for reinforcements. MV Agusta was this year's featured marque, and the owners did not disappoint. Three wonderful singles were present, and the depth and breadth of the brand was displayed by both the early and late examples of the four cylinder varieties. The award winners were as follows:
And then, of course, there was the Chopper?! Yes... only at the IMOC Rally. An old style... old school... Chopper, built by Steve Bolvari. It started life as a 1975 Moto Guzzi T and ended up... winning the coveted People's Choice Award, beating out the other 352 machines on hand, including all the Ducatis, Laverdas, MV Agustas, Bimotas... et al! Maybe that's why Charley tried so hard to be there... it could have been his ride! So even in the end, Hurricane Charley couldn't blow us off course. The cognoscenti keeps convening at the Hamilton Rod & Gun Club, and we expect even more of the same on Sunday, September 11, 2005 for the 22nd annual IMOC Rally. Yes, it's already booked. Aermacchi (including Harley Sprint, etc.) will be the featured marque, and it is anticipated that the 2005 Moto Giro will be tied into the event as well. And one more quickie... In 2004 some alcoholic beverages were "imported" on to the Hamilton Rod & Gun Club field. Please be aware that this is a serious no-no, and if we are going to continue with what is now a Sturbridge tradition, please avoid bringing anything alcoholic to the show. Only the Club has a license to serve, and they very much want to keep it! The 21st annual IMOC Rally was held on Sunday, September 12th, 2004 at the Hamilton Rod & Gun Club in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. For more information about IMOC, the annual rally or to receive MOTOCICLISTA, IMOC's monthly newsletter, please contact: Bob Andren - 401.397.4253 |
bobkandren@verizon.net |
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