Take airhead to Europe?

[Ridercam]

Saint Matthew of Parkhouse has been writing about prepping a couple R60/5s for he and his wife to ship to Europe for a long tour there.

I'd do it myself if I had (as ridercam does) another bike at home and easy storage over there and the opportunity to visit the bike at least every year.

I'm done with aircraft, but a quick search shows steerage passage can be had for $500-$600 for Miami to Yurp each way.

Cheap steerage has other hidden fees and headaches which make it worth going through a skilled transporter or broker for that extra 200 dollars. If you are sweating the 200 - this wouldn't be the right time for you anyway. But in the scheme of things - a drop in the bucket if you add up all the other stuff.

As we know - being an airhead does indicate some hardheadedness. I don't want perfect as Matthew may. I like the patina and small nicks. I want to be able to park on a large city street and not fret about someone knocking it over. As for parts - you can get them as easily there as here. There are plenty of people who can help and need be pay for a repair. If I had to pay for short term storage while I skip back home - that wouldn't be the end of the world.

I hope you make Europe. Sure would love to ride with other airheads who share the airhead Cannons.

[Ridercam]

Well you're still young and have some time to ride. It would be nice to move to Europe. After touring NZ I did some research on living there, but they don't make it easy. Maybe we can meet in Europe and go for a ride!

I hope we do. I tend to ride slower and take photos. I love a good meal at both spectrums.

Maybe Stelvio pass? It would be a sad day not to share that joy with like minded folks.

[ME 109]

Come to Aus, we've got Stelvio passes everywhere, without the straight bits.

[Ridercam]

Come to Aus, we've got Stelvio passes everywhere, without the straight bits.

Oh man - would I love that. It's not the price of shipping that gets ya in in Australia but the level of quarantine cleaning to be done. 1800 for shipping and fees, having a special crate built (not included) plus 3 days of scrubbing. No wonder you ride Chinese scooters there.

[Zombie Master]

Rode through the Stelvio in 2011on an F800R . A joy! And you would be so close!

2011-06-16_1111-1365600427-O copy 4.jpg (60.53 KiB) Viewed 2659 times

[Ridercam]

Rode through the Stelvio in 2011on an F800R . A joy! And you would be so close!

2011-06-16_1111-1365600427-O copy 4.jpg

Thanks for sharing that fuel to this fire.

[Ridercam]

I am working to go minimalist. Choosing the right bags... I have some beat up Hepcos or I could go with a old rack and nice Krausers.

Hepcos have better latches. I have the keys for locks on the Krausers. Both would take the strap.

[Rob]

Once I tasted BMW's Touring bag, there was no going back.
After a while, they even made them with real locks that could be keyed to match the ignition.

[Wobbly]

• I have a close friend who rented 2 new BMWs for himself and wife to ride all over Spain. They loved it. The downside to this (as I understand it) is that rented bikes are not allowed to cross borders. So it works in the larger countries like Spain or France, but maybe not for Belgium. A European tour may be out of the question.

• The downside to shipping your bike is that you'll need the help of a third party. Nations are very sensitive these days to insect pests being brought in via wooden pallets, therefore very special certified wood must be used. So this is not something a friendly neighbor or brother-in-law can build in his shop.

• I shipped a bike one time in the USA using a company called Forward Air. They have a special, fully enclosed, motorcycle container. It works just like a bike trailer with a wheel rail and tie down points, except the bike is fully enclosed inside the container. The container has locking doors at both ends, used for entrance and exit. Because it's a sealed container you can also put boxes of spare parts, tools, riding gear, helmets, whatever you'll want to arrive at the same location. You might see if these, or something like them, go international.

[Zombie Master]

WOB:•

I have a close friend who rented 2 new BMWs for himself and wife to ride all over Spain. They loved it. The downside to this (as I understand it) is that rented bikes are not allowed to cross borders. So it works in the larger countries like Spain or France, but maybe not for Belgium. A European tour is totally out of the question.

Incorrect: I have rented in Europe and have been able to travel to any country I wanted fully insured.