Ride Norway

Norway – Our last article was about the touring platform Motorcycle Diaries  where riders can discover the best European motorcycling roads which enables riders to share and discover riding gems. We continue the touring theme and have a look at Ride Norway where you will – “Be amazed – Norway is truly motorcycle heaven!”

Ride Norway is an online blog with an accompanying Facebook page which lets you find everything you need to know about how to ride Norway on a budget, where to go and what to see. You will read other riders’ experiences, learn who to contact if you have a bike breakdown, and even get advice on how to ride in Norway during the coldest depths of winter, if you are of the really adventurous type.

Ride Norway explains:

You have seen all the classic images of Norway, o the Geiranger fjord, the Atlantic Road, the Lofoten Islands and the North Cape with its midnight sun.

You may wonder: “What if I took my bike there? What if I let myself see all this in the best way possible, which of course is from a motorcycle?”

Then you may start worrying about everything from weather to costs, and in the end you could dismiss the whole idea, even though you would regret that you didn’t follow your dreams.

Ride Norway is managed by our friend from ten years ago – Hans Petter Strifeldt, as you might have guessed, he is Norwegian.

Hans Petter gives some background about himself, “Since I started riding bikes around 1990, I have always been a great fan of riding in my home country.

Sure, it is great fun to have a blast through Germany, enjoy a prosecco with motorcycle friends in Italy, get muddy and happy at the Dragon Rally in Wales, ride with an angle in the strong winds of the Shetlands, get amazed by the beauty of Scotland, find calmness in Sicily, and flatness in Denmark.

But beyond the fact that I have not been everywhere on this planet, Norway is still on top of my list of places I like to ride.

Its diversity in nature and weather, paired with great motorcycle roads, makes it in my view close to a motorcycle heaven.

With more than 2500 kms from south to north, more than 100000 kms of coast line (2nd only to Canada in length, actually), and still many unexplored roads to find, I have plenty of places to go and things to see even if I live my day-to-day life here.”

Ride Norway has several recommended routes and yes it does include Vikings – there are top 5 Viking destination to turn your ride in Norway into a theme trip. Ride Norway explains, “While mostly being portrayed as raving savages who looted, plundered and burnt down the villages they attacked, the Vikings were a far more sophisticated culture than the popular culture may have portrayed them as.

Besides: Isn’t there a small link between the Vikings’ wanderlust in their long ships, and your own lust for adventure on your bike?”

There are also recommendations if you want a break from the breath-taking scenery to experience the odd, the strange, and sometimes the downright bizarre things in Norway: from the world’s longest indoor wooden staircase to the Gardnos Meteorite Crater to visit Hell a small village in Trøndelag county.

If like us you have never experienced riding in Norway here are some of the useful tips to experience Norway by bike:

When is the best time to visit? – May through September is the best period for biking. Some high mountain passes might not be open by May, so if you’re here early, keep ahead with the weather and driving condition reports.

What is the weather like? – Sometimes it’s really sunny and very warm. Sometimes it pisses down. You never know, so be prepared for everything. But if secured bikini weather is on top of your wish list, Norway is perhaps not the place you’d visit anyway.

I speak English only – will that be a problem? – Not at all. Nearly all Norwegians speaks English, and quite a few speaks German, Spanish and/or French too.

Any particular animal hazards? Polar bears and stuff? – Elk/moose and – particularly in the north – reindeer might pose a risk to riders when they stray out on the roads.

In the mountains, you may encounter sheep and sometimes goats on the road. Just keep your vigilant eye out, and slow down if you encounter animals along the road. Mosquitoes, midges and – to a lesser extent – ticks may be annoying so bring a proper repellent, especially if you venture all the way north.

We do not have any really poisonous animals or insects to be afraid of, and polar bears are found only at the Spitsbergen islands close to the North Pole, where you wouldn’t bring your bike anyway.

We have a small band of wolves in the forests in the South-East close to the border to Sweden, but I have never encountered any of them on any of my tours there. I guess they run off before you can even sense them.

Getting online – 3G and 4G mobile broadband – and soon even 5G – is spread practically all over Norway. Check your local operator for rates while in Norway. Free WIFI may be found at many petrol stations, in or near public buildings, at campsites and in hotels/hostels. Norway is pretty well equipped with WIFI and mobile networks, so you should be fine with regard to that no matter where in the country you are.

Motorcycle heaven, maybe – but not exactly speed heaven? – Norway has in general low speed limits, true. But you don’t want to hasten through, as the roads and views calls for a slower speed anyway. Take your time and enjoy your trip!

Ride Norway has a peculiar facts page about the country including that, “In 2017, Norway was ranked as the World’s Happiest Nation by the UN. We’ve been competing with the Danes for several years, but this time we surpassed them.”

As one might guess Norway can get a trifle chilly and a tad snowy or as Ride Norway says, “Norway enjoys proper snowy winters, the ordinary bike season is restricted to the summer.”

Unless you enjoy your winter riding, there are several months to miss out in visiting Norway, however many Norwegian bikers do, but you need to be prepared and Ride Norway offer a guide to winter riding.  One tip is, “You might want to take the bike battery into the tent at night to keep it warm. Batteries lose a lot of effect in the cold, so make sure you keep it in tip-top shape. The last few kms before pitching your tent you can turn off all lights on your bike to let our battery charge more. I use a car battery in my sidecar Guzzi.”

There are several winter rallies in Norway from October throughout March, which are featured on the site and as you can imagine are not for the faint hearted.

With the ordinary bike season restricted to the summer we think if we ever make Norway it will be as “ordinary” riders and Ride Norway eases you into experiencing Norway by bike and maybe better than you imagined!

As Hans Petter says, “Who knows – maybe we’ll see each other on the road somewhere?”

Information

Website – ridenorway.com

Facebook – RideNorwayDotCom