Didn't mean to sound judgemental in any way, I think the more the merrier at rallies as long as they a like minded folk - they can arrive on a bus.  My post was more about the number of miles not what your you've done the miles on.    Let and let live is my moto - just relax and put your yucky day away.

lol @ BOBKAT.. not getting at you or anyone else..just voicing my opinion..                                                                                                                                                                                 

I think one problem with all this is that "bike rally" seems to mean different things to different people. For example are the Rock & Blues or Bulldog really rallies? I believe the R&B describes itself as a Custom Show, and the Bulldog as a Festival. So is it at all fair to lump them in with the smaller rallies (that some people prefer)?Our camping trip to Barmouth, at the moment I don't think anybody would call that a rally. But what if we arranged for a beer tent? Or if I take my guitar along and we have a sing along? What defines it as a rally rather than a festival, show, or just camping weekend?I just thought I'd throw that idea out there...                                                                                                                                                                              

The original thread of this was about the commercialisation of bike rallys and the cost of in particular food and alcohol...not a slur on anyone or any individual rallys......as usual with healthy debate it some what morfed into different subjects and rants lol......who is a biker and who is not.....and trust me if I had a way in the pissing rain of getting a ride up in a van I'd do it LOL......any comments made I might add were as devils advocate to other opinions made, personally I don't really give a monkeys who goes as long as they are decent people and respect others and have an interest in bikes.........   So if anyone has got there nose out of joint or feels hard done by get over it, it is not directed at anyone or any particular Rally........ ....its all just a healthy debate of opinions ...no-one is right and no one is wrong, everyone is entitled to there own opinion or rant lol........   Smile be happy..... live long and prosper....na nooo na noo and all that crap... god next well be sorting out immagration DOH don't go there....                                                                                                                                                                             

lmao @ tb      Well said                                                                                                                                                                              

Pretty much totally agree with you johnnytb.

I've never quite understood where the whole idea of 'proper' and 'pretend' bikers came from anyway. It's not one I've ever seriously subscribed to - one mans 'hardcore'/'proper' biker may well be considered a 'lightweight'/'pretend' biker by someone else. IMO it seems kind of pointless caring about it too much one way or the other and getting bent out of shape over it :)

As I said, my personal preference, and that is all it is a preference, is to attend bike rallies where bikes, trikes and outfits are actively encouraged, and cars (excepting the disabled) aren't.

I certainly have no desire to exclude anyone from anything - I'll leave it up to rally organisers to decide what sort of rally they want to run - I'll then choose to patronise their functions, or not - excluding only myself - accordingly...

...and, to bring this back somewhat onto the original topic, I can't help but suspect that in some cases the decision to allow cars, kids etc. into rallies is commercially motivated.

"What defines it as a rally rather than a festival, show, or just camping weekend?" (GBeldon)

Good question. Just my personal opinion, what defines a BIKE rally to me is simply that the vast majority of attendees are people who actually own and/or ride bikes etc. and are attending on them. Seems fairly straightforward to me, but then as I think I said earlier, I'm a pretty literal guy.

"So me taking my car but NOT actually into the rallies, but parked up before i get there and then getting a pillion ride in ..is ok???" (Karey)

Why wouldn't it be? - and who am I to criticise anyone else doing that anyway? As I thought said earlier, how far you actually rode on a bike/trike/outfit to get to a rally (and whether you were the operator or a passenger, and even if you're a kid) is irrelevant to me. If you arrived on a bike etc, that's just great as far as I'm concerned. :)

"so those that pilly in aren't proper rally goers either?? "

Lol... who said that? Certainly not me, nor anyone else in this discussion I think!

Seems to me that anyone who actually attends a rally is unarguably a rally goer, QED - so by extension I'd imagine that the only people who aren't 'proper' rally goers are people who claim to have gone to rallies but have never actually done so.

Again, maybe I didn't make myself 100% clear in my earlier posts (for which, apologies) but if you're looking for my approval (can't imagine why - nobody appointed me the arbiter of what's right or wrongl) attending a rally on a bike, trike or outfit, whether rider or passenger, is all it takes. :)

"*sorry..sh*t day at work..needed a rant*"

Hardly a rant IMO, so nothing to apoligise for... I'd say that you have fairly robust opinions and leave it at that. :)
                                                                                                                                                                             

I know this has probably been discussed before somewhere but if 3 wheels are welcomed at rallies why not 4? It seems it's okay to ride in on a 20 foot long 3 wheeler with trailer in tow and still be regarded as a biker. (i'm not referring to disabled bikers here).

What's your thoughts on this?                                                                                                                                                                              

RK, I think the difference is the cage that the car driver has around them.Consider a Reliant Robin, it's got 3 wheels and you can drive it on a bike licence. You wouldn't call it a 3-wheel bike though, you'd call it a 3-wheel car. It isn't just the number of wheels that makes it a trike, it's having handlebars and being exposed to the elements. IMHO of course.
Note, I'm not picking on Reliant Robin drivers, I was one before I passed my car test.                                                                                                                                                                              

Think you're right there. A trike can be car or bike based, but uses bike controls and the rider's out in the open.   Anything with a steering wheel is  no-no                                                                                                                                                                             

Ah so we're saying a soft top car with handlebars would make someone a 'biker'                                                                                                                                                                              

If they took all the bodywork off I'd give them the benefit of the doubt. I don't know if there are any strict rules in this country, but you can generally look at a trike and decide if it's a 3-wheel bike or a 3-wheel car.Apparently in the US anything with 3 wheels is a motorcycle, whether it has handlebars or steering wheel, is enclosed or open. So a Reliant Robin is classed as a bike.                                                                                                                                                                             

I suspect trying to steer a car, with handlebars, might be 'interesting'   Most steering wheels rotate a good bit more than 90'                                                                                                                                                                             

I just saw a couple of "quad bikes" on my way home from work. 4 wheels and handlebars, and the riders/drivers were wearing crash helmets. So did those guys count as bikers? Are they cars or bikes? Should they be allowed into bike only rallies? I'm on the fence on that one, but leaning towards bikes.
                                                                                                                                                                             

Two or three wheels good.   Four wheels bad! (unless they have handlebars)   Gets confusing doesn't it?                                                                                                                                                                             

Careful of splinters when 'fence sitting' lol.......                                                                                                                                                                             

All i've got to do is buy an old cabriolet, swap the wheel for bars and hey ho i'm a bike!                                                                                                                                                                              

I suspect this thread will run & run for no other reason than opinions differ, wether thats healthy for this site or biking in general i'm yet to decide so i intend to keep my opinions to myself on this one, maybe some of you should consider doing the same before the thread becomes 'heated'                                                                                                                                                                               

"Anything with a steering wheel is  no-no"

At 3B's rally last year there was a disabled guy on a 'regular' V-8 engined trike - but with a steering wheel type arrangement (with hydraulics/servos and some kind of knob on the wheel) to make it possible for him to steer effectively with just one arm.

Just sayin'...

"All i've got to do is buy an old cabriolet, swap the wheel for bars and hey ho i'm a bike! "

Let me know how that works out for you...