Sidecar

 

I came across some old photos the other day and found this one. Sometime around '78 or '79, I took the parts off the dragbike and made myself a sidecar rig. I never got it completely done. There was supposed  to be some more paint work and a couple of other little things but Surly and I did a trip to Eastern Kentucky with it just the same. The sheet metal work was a bit on the crude side - my aluminum forming skills were not much beyond the embryonic stage at this time. The seat was out of a Jeep and it folded forward to access the storage area. Additional cargo capacity provided with the luggage rack.

In addition to the traditional motorcycle shocks and swingarm on the chair, there was an air shock that could be used to adjust the ride height for the amount of load. Actually worked out rather well. If I were to do it over again, I'd be sure to add a 12 volt on-board air compressor. I'd also use some different front forks - probably leading links. The forks on the bike were the small diameter Cerianis and weren't really stout enough for the job. A good steering dampener would also be a definite. I took my hands off the bars at a toll booth to dig out some change and had a tank slapper. Fortunately, I wasn't going very fast but a little scary, just the same. I'd also put in a drain plug. We got caught in a hellacious storm on the way home and Surly ended up with his feet in a couple inches of water. 

The trip was quite the adventure. We stayed a few nights at the Jenny Wiley State Park on the border of Kentucky where Virginia and West Virginia come together. There was a family reunion going on in the campground by us. A lady had her set-up and people would drop in and visit over the course of a few days. She took pity on Surly and invited us over for breakfast a couple of days. You can make all the jokes you want about the "hillbillies" of Kentucky, but I've always found them to be some of the  friendliest and most generous people on God's green earth.

A guy wanted to buy my dragbike when we got home from the trip, so I put it back together and sold it. He campaigned it for a couple of years. I sold the sidecar to a student of mine - don't know whatever happened to it. It was a lot of work for basically just a one week trip, but it was a great adventure for Surly and I, plus I learned quite a bit about sidecars and sheetmetal fabrication. And we got to see quite a bit of the great Commonwealth of Kentucky. Glad I found the photo.