AMA Gypsy Tours Schedule for 2017

Since the 1910s, the AMA (and its predecessors) have held organized rides called Gypsy Tours. Originally, a Gypsy Tour was an overnight event with organized road rides and other activities of interest to motorcycle enthusiasts, where groups of riders would converge on a single destination. Gypsy Tours were staged in different parts of the country and typically occurred on the same weekend every year. The “National” Gypsy Tour referred to the whole series of these events.

Many of the most well-known rallies held in the U.S. today are descendants of the original Gypsy Tours. Per the AMA’s website, “[Rallies and] events that most closely mirror the traditional Gypsy Tour format are each invited to participate in the AMA’s Premier Touring Series as a National Gypsy Tour.” One such event is Laconia Motorcycle Week, an AMA Gypsy Tour Heritage Event that dates to 1916 and is the longest-running AMA Gypsy Tour. The original Laconia event was a social gathering of about 150 riders organized by the Bay State Motorcycle Club riders and New Hampshire Motorcyclists at Weir Beach on Lake Winnipesaukee, near Laconia, New Hampshire. Over the years, the event grew to attract as many as 430,000 motorcyclists.

For the 2017 AMA Gypsy Tour series, there will be 17 road rides between March and November in all sections of the country. The schedule includes:

  • March 10-19: AMA Gypsy Tour at Bike Week, Daytona Beach, Fla.
  • April 5-9: Arizona Bike Week, Phoenix, Ariz.
  • April 26-29: Laughlin River Run, Laughlin, Nev.
  • May 3-7: Thunder Beach Spring Rally, Panama City, Fla.
  • May 12-21: Myrtle Beach Bike Week Spring Rally, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
  • June 5-10: Americade, Lake George, N.Y.
  • June 10-18: Laconia Motorcycle Week, Laconia, N.H.
    AMA National Gypsy Tour Heritage Event
  • June 22-25: Thunder in the Valley, Johnstown, Pa.
    AMA National Road Rally
  • July 7-9: AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, New Lexington, Ohio
    AMA National Gypsy Tour
    AMA National Road Rally
  • July 12-16: Roar on the Shore, Erie, Pa.
  • Aug. 2-6: National Biker’s Roundup, Kansas City, Kan.
  • Aug. 23-27: Rally in the Gorge, Hood River, Ore.
  • Sept. 13-17: Golden Aspen Motorcycle Rally, Mescalero, N.M.
    AMA National Road Rally
  • Sept. 22-24: Ray Price Capital City Bikefest, Raleigh, N.C.
  • Oct. 5-8: Las Vegas Bikefest, Las Vegas, Nev.
  • Oct. 25-29: Thunder Beach Fall Rally, Panama City, Fla.
  • Nov. 3-6: Lone Star Rally, Galveston, Texas

A full schedule of AMA National Road Riding events can be found at www.americanmotorcyclist.com/Riding/National-Road-Riding-Events.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here