Red Lodge / Beartooth Motorcycle Rally 2019 is almost here!

Ahhhh, yes. That magical time of year has come where our region (western region, to be more specific) gets to have warm weather, dry roads and all kinds of motorcycle fun. We’ve already ridden in a few motorcycle rodeos, or Iron Horse Rodeo’s as some folks like to call ‘em, and we’re headed in multiple directions this summer riding motorcycles and having fun throughout Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, Born Free Show with the homies in Silverado, California and yes, we joined our friends at Lords of Gastown to ride clear from Montana to Mazatlan, Mexico on the #Lust4DustRun… but today we’ve got a specific motorcycle rally in mind. Red Lodge Rally, or as we believe it to be officially named, Beartooth Rally.

Red Lodge / Beartooth Rally Information

Red Lodge Rally (or Beartooth Rally) is a motorcycle rally with it’s own brand. It's not Sturgis or Born Free... but the rally in Red Lodge has a special place in our hearts and we want to see it do really well.  It’s a smaller rally in Red Lodge, Montana hosting bikers, mma fights, stunt shows, the infamous Highway 212 Run and of course… the Iron Horse Rodeo well known by those who know the Beartooth Rally.
                              
Red Lodge Rally is one that a lot of our crew grew up attending as we were learning and growing in our motorcycle maturity. Red Lodge, MT and Sturgis, SD (known for one of the biggest motorcycle rallies in the world) are in relatively close proximity to each other, so often time if someone in the area would attend one, they’d attend the other. Our family would go up to Red Lodge almost as a “warmup” to Sturgis. Red Lodge Rally has always been a great one to ride to, meet people, enjoy motorcycle culture in a fun, yet relatively safe environment. Red Lodge Rally is a weekend event and we’d typically ride up Friday, usually only having to take a day or even a half day off work (we’re in Wyoming, about 200 miles south of Red Lodge).

Friday has always been the day to ride up, get settled in your camping spot, set up tents and kind of claim your spot and meet your neighbors. Camping at Red Lodge Rally is $18 per person per night,  and it’s always been first come first serve on spots available. Like I said we show up Friday and we always find a spot just fine. They do have bathrooms and showers available, just bring your own soap and towel.

The people in Red Lodge have always been kind, outgoing and usually ready for party when we show up to the rally. Friday we’d ride up, set up camp at the fairgrounds and meet some folks we’d be spending the weekend with. We’ve stayed at a loft apartment downtown, which is cool and you can host a private party, but it’s more our style to go camp now and kick it with the other rally go’ers. Friends and motorcycles, it’s what we’re about at Go Fast Don’t Die! We show up, we make friends, we ride hogs.  If you attend Red Lodge Rally, carry that on, be nice and people will be nice to you. It’s a good vibe. After we set up camp, we’d head downtown to check out the vendors, Bone Daddy’s Cycle Shop and of course the food options. Definitely get yourself signed up for the Highway 212 run at Bone Daddy’s, and know what time the run kicks off and how they’ll run it. It can change here and there from year to year.  Red Lodge has some incredible food, but they don’t stay open real late, even during the rally so hurry down. (If you’re reading this and you’re a restaurant in Red Lodge, stay open, we’re hungry!) Downtown has a lot to offer every kind of person. Bikes all along the Red Lodge main street, wild people you can expect at just about every motorcycle rally, snacks, a really cool candy shop and a few bars depending on what kind of fun you’re looking for. Don’t stay up too late Friday, Saturday morning is the legendary Highway 212 Run over Beartooth Pass. Guys, don’t miss this run. If you’ve never heard of the Beartooth Highway, here’s some info from our friends at www.BeartoothHighway.com.

“The Beartooth All-American Road passes through what is known today as the Beartooth Corridor. Surrounded by the Custer, Gallatin, and Shoshone National Forests, traveling parallel to the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, and abutting Yellowstone National Park, the Highway sits in a million-plus acre wilderness. Visitors have the rare opportunity to experience and explore pristine, untouched alpine and montane landscapes, lush forests, and alpine tundra in the space of a few miles. It is one of the highest and most rugged areas in the lower 48 states, with 20 peaks reaching over 12,000 feet in elevation. In the surrounding mountains, glaciers are found on the north flank of nearly every mountain peak over 11,500 feet high. The Road itself is the highest elevation highway in Wyoming (10,947 feet) and Montana (10,350 feet), and is the highest elevation highway in the Northern Rockies.”
 
-BeartoothHighway.com for more.

Red Lodge Rally Schedule  

Saturday

So you’ve arrived, you’ve set up your camp at Red Lodge Rally and you’ve officially survived the first night, congratulations! Now you’re up bright and early, hopefully didn’t party too much the night before and it’s time for the Highway 212 run over Beartooth Pass. Prepare thyself for a friggin blast. Here’s some more of what you’ll experience when you head out of Red Lodge with the other attendees of Red Lodge Rally, again from our friends at www.BeartoothHighway.com.

“The Beartooth Highway is a 68 mile stretch of US Highway 212 that, from its western most terminus at the Northeast entrance to Yellowstone National Park, runs east to Red Lodge, Montana. While the Highway begins and ends in Montana, a large portion lies within the northwest corner of the State of Wyoming. Because the Beartooth Highway lies within National Forest and National Wilderness boundaries services along the route are limited to rest areas and interpretive sites, with the exception of one commercial property – Top of the World Store – located close to Island Lake Campground. Three communities, the Road’s “gateway communities”, provide access to the Highway, as well as full visitor services. This is important to note as these communities will be used as “home base” for travelers wanting to explore the Highway and surrounding Yellowstone Country.”

That weekend, in the case of 2019, July 18, 19, 20 and 21… your “home base” should absolutely be Red Lodge Rally! After your return from the run (tag us in your photos, @GoFastDontDie and #GoFastDontDie) you’ll come back to a town ready to throw it down. And by throw it down I mean they’ve got a live freestyle motorcycle stunt show by out homies at Octane Addictions COMBINED with live MMA Fights put on by more homies at Fusion Fight League. If motorcycles, sleds and four-wheeler’s back flipping through the air over a cage and then trained athletes getting in a cage and throwing down for your entertainment doesn’t sound like your idea of a good time… well this show probably isn’t for you, and you should also send us an email about what you like to do for fun, because we’re fascinated. The show is called Backflips and Beatdowns and it’s a very popular event in the area. Gotta see it to believe it, talk about adrenaline. ;) After Backflips and Beatdowns you’ll either head back to downtown Red Lodge or kick it there at the fairgrounds with friends old and new at the camp. We suggest a little mixture of both, head downtown, hang out, meet people, see things, eat something and then head back up to camp to kick it with friends, family and fools alike. Just please, don’t mix up bottles and throttles downtown. Head back to the camp and/or snag a ride if you’re planning on indulging in grandfather old cough medicine. Have fun, make memories, exchange contact info for future rides… Saturday night’s the last night of the Red Lodge Rally, but it’s far from over.
 
Sunday

Here's a little taste of what Sunday looks like at the Red Lodge Rally:

Ooooooooooo, Sunday, Sunday, SUNDAY! Sunday is the day where brave and stupid meet up with wild and crazy and they have a party of motorcycles. The Red Lodge Rally hosts the Iron Horse Rodeo on Sunday at the Red Lodge Fairgrounds. This is not your typical rodeo, you might have guessed, because rather than horses, they ride motorcycles. You can sleep in a little Sunday, but don’t miss the Iron Horse Rodeo. What time does the Iron Horse Rodeo start?

Sign-ups start at 10:30AM until noon, and the Iron Horse Rodeo starts with a bang  at 1:00. Choose to participate or just be a spectator, but be ready to finish the weekend with a shot of adrenaline and keep your camera’s out! (Again, tag us! @GoFastDontDie and #GoFastDontDie.
Choose to do ‘em all or just one, here are your events for Red Lodge Rally’s Iron Horse Rodeo 2019:
 

• Keg Roll
• Slow Race
• Beer Chug
• Barrel Race
• Obstacle Course
• Potato Race
• Weiner Bite (yup, you read that right. Remember, people have camera’s. Don’t say we didn’t warn you)

 
After the Iron Horse Rodeo, the Red Lodge Rally is considered officially over and it’s time to pack ‘er up and enjoy a beautiful ride back to wherever you came from. If you’re lucky enough to be headed back over Beartooth Pass, consider yourself lucky enough! Otherwise, ride safe home and we hope we got to meet you. Our family plans on being there every year, and continuing to support motorcycles and motorcycle culture in the western region. We believe there some magic in those 2 wheels, and we intend to take advantage it of every opportunity we get. Red Lodge Rally, Beartooth Pass, the Iron Horse Rodeo in Red Lodge… they’re all sparks that will continue to light fires under young people and future riders to engage and participate in growing motorcycle culture and celebrating freedom the best way we know how to do it… riding motorcycles with good friends. See you all at Red Lodge Rally 2019.
 
-GoFastDontDie Crew