Owner Spotlight: Tracy Getty

Meet Tracy Getty, a Ural rider from Washington State who lives life to the fullest with her sidecar. As we lead up to International Ural Ride Day, we wanted to share how Tracy goes about giving hundreds of sidecar rides and what this special effort means to her. Read on and learn how to #sharethechair for September 8th!  Lead photo by Live-N-Loud Photography

What year and model of sidecar do you ride?
It's a 2009 LE Sahara Gear Up. It’s called…WARCAT!

About how many people have you given rides to in your sidecar? Do you have a single-day record?
The very first ride I gave in WARCAT was on November 13th, 2009. Since then I have given 926 rides (as of this article). I document each ride with a photo and a caption to describe our outing. After the adventure I give my riders a button that says 'WARCAT HACK MONKEY' and I print their Hack Monkey Number on the back. People think that is pretty special. My single day record for single rides is 34.

People seem to be afraid of strangers these days and the sidecar helps to break the ice.

How do you go about inviting people to go for a ride?
I just flat out ask them if they want to go for a ride. Most people are floored that I’d even ask.

Have you ever given rides to complete strangers? Any memorable instances?
Most of my riders are complete strangers. I am a WWII Living Historian, so on occasions I will suit up like a Russian Soldier. I help out with events such as fly-ins, museum static displays, and military vehicle set-ups. I enjoy giving people rides around the grounds. Other times my sidecar has been used as rescue missions. One evening I gave a gentleman a ride to the gas station and back because he ran out of fuel. Another time I gave an elderly man with a fractured hip a ride home from the hospital because he was walking! I’ve even given a very special last ride a local motorcycle enthusiast who had a terminal disease. That was heartbreaking but I was proud to be there for him and his family. I didn’t know them beforehand but word got out that I give sidecar rides and the rest fell into place. We’ve done fun stuff, too. WARCAT was even the getaway vehicle for a wedding! During the reception I gave rides to wedding guests.

My sidecar and I have done a lot together but the best part is all the different people I get to meet along the way.

What reaction do you normally get from guest passengers?
Everybody is just ecstatic. Kids are all like, “BEST DAY EVER!” and they don’t want to get out.  Even the older generation light up like rockets when we go tooling around together.

I love it when people do “roller coaster arms” because they realize just how freeing it is to be a sidecar passenger.   

What inspired your effort to share your sidecar with the masses?
Not only are Urals the go-anywhere, do-anything rig, they are just FUN! They bring a smile to people’s faces. The Ural lifestyle is the silver lining in any gray day, and here in the Pacific Northwest we need all the sunshine and smiles we can get. Afterall, EVERYDAY is a #sharethechair kind of day for WARCAT & me!

Photo by Jason Bledsoe

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Help us set a record by giving rides to as many people as we can on September 8th!

Kids Love Sidecars

We hear it all the time: “My kids love it!” After taking a scroll through Instagram and seeing pics that people send us, it’s clear that youngsters approve of the sidecar life. Here are just a few posts that put a smile on our face.

Above: Instagrammer @timberwolftony and his daughter are logging many happy memories with their Ural. The beautiful photo with the dog was taken by photographer @rubensmodelli.

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Li'l Anatole will be the coolest kid at daycare when his dad, Gwen, drops him off. This is the family, @the.life.motonomadic, who ventured across Australia in a recent blog post (click to see the article).

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Some families know how to get the most out of their Ural.

Mihail Kichaykin is raising his kids with adventurous spirit. Getting outside, playing, exploring...a lifestyle that's a perfect match for sidecar riding. 

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Urals rock!

5-year old Kristian approves and, being quite the skateboarder, he knows a thing or too about rolling in style.

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"Getting lost is our favorite place to be."

One of our favorite Ural families, the Coldicotts, make their Ural a big part of enjoying life. Dustin (@dustincoldicott) chauffeurs his kids around on gravel roads and out into nature; teaching them the importance of stopping to smell the roses.

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"Can we take the Ural?"

Ural motorcycles are a part of everyday life for the Wilkinson kids seen here and at the apple orchard above. The Wilkinson bros have raised their kids around these vehicles making the question, "can we take the Ural?" a very frequent request in both households!

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Are you someone who wants to enter the realm of sidecar life with your family? Feel free to ask us any questions or peruse our website to learn more about the many accessories and equipment that would match your family's sense of adventure. 

Remember to be safe, wear a helmet and enjoy the ride! Watch our video on best practices when riding with passengers. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out our “How to Ride a Sidecar Motorcycle” video here.

Saying I Do with Sidecars

We love seeing wedding photos that feature Urals! This Tennessee couple, Thomas and Stevie had given up a long search for a sidecar to use during the wedding when they spotted Ben Voiles' Ural in a driveway. After a conversation with the soon-to-be groom, Ben graciously lent them his rig for their special day! The beautiful photo was taken byJaime Smialek of Our Ampersand Photography. 

"My wife Stevie, and our dog Mister Shug, could not have dreamed of a better way to show up to our wedding.”

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Above: Denver photog, Adam Parth, shot this beautiful scene. “It was a lot of fun photographing this couple with this motorcycle at their destination wedding in Colorado. The bride arrived to the ceremony in the sidecar, with her father driving.”

Ryan and Katie on a Ural Yamal, photographed in BC, Canada by Rhonda Dent Photography.

This Australian couple chose the Sahara.

Above: Oregon couple Bryce and Tayler leaving in what we think is the best kind of getaway vehicle for a wedding. The photo, captured by Native Rose Photography, is a special and fun memory for them. If you’re reading this post and you want a wedding photo like this to look back on in years to come, start planning to secure a sidecar!

Of course, if you’re already hitched, it makes for a great anniversary date-night vehicle, too. ;)

Above: Showing up in style, this California bride, Chenin, was escorted to her groom by a Ural-riding chauffeur; captured by Jonathan Roberts of Bluephoto Wedding Photography.

Congrats to these newlyweds, Angelo and Sara Schifilliti! If there's one sure-fire way to impress the guests, it'd be by making your big entrance upon an orange Patrol dressed to the nines and carrying the bouquet. The sidecar was provided by the bride's proud father, Jim Carpenter.

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If your wedding includes a Ural sidecar, post a pic and tag #uralmotorcycles. We'd love to see photos of your special day!

Ural at Vintage Motorcycle Days

Vintage Motorcycle Days is a massive event put on by the American Motorcyclist Association, drawing well over 20,000 motorcycle enthusiasts to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The Wilkinson brothers of Good Spark Garage tell us how they use their Urals as the ideal moto-event transportation.

Above: The Wilkinson bros brought their sons: Corey's two are on the left, Casey's is on the right.

"Most people get around on mini-bikes or golf carts. We use our Urals."

The Mid-Ohio grounds cover a lot of area and there are things happening all over. "We can tote our kids and haul our swap-meet finds and camera equipment with ease. Of course, the look of these air-cooled rigs fit right into the scene and turn a lot of heads," says Corey Wilkinson.

With all of the racks and storage, the Ural is like a 750cc shopping cart. 

Above: We ran into Greg and Kristin on their Ural Ambassador Gear Up. They've been attending VMD for a long time and know to come prepared for staying cool and hydrated.

Above: Casey Wilkinson of Good Spark Garage (middle) talks with fellow Ural riders from Ohio, Kevin and Sally Craig, who rode in on their olive drab M70. 

The Ural Gear Up raffle bike is going to make someone really happy!

Also present at this year's event was the Ural Gear Up provided by Ural Motorcycles and outfitted by the Wilkinson brothers. This special set-up will be raffled off on December 7th to benefit the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum. Officials will draw the winning name during the 2018 AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony weekend (see rules).

Donate for a chance to win this Gear Up: Click here! 

Flashback from last year's event: AMA President Rob Dingman and his daughter pose with the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum Raffle Bike.

"Our sons will look back on these days and remember the fun they had with family and motorcycles."

Where would you take a Ural and who would you take with you? Like the Wilkinson brothers, you can turn an event into an adventure by taking a sidecar which will create an unforgettable experience for your family.

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Watch our video on best practices when riding with passengers:

Australian Family Adventure

When this Perth Australia family of three decided to take a road trip, they bought a Ural and planned an epic journey across Australia from East to West. The Velge family (Gwenael, Cielito, and their son Anatole) prepared their Ural cT then set out to log miles and memories. (Photos provided by the Velge family)

"I liked the rig, its ability to go off-road, its look, its history. I like that it is a little off-beat."

–Gwenael, on why he chose a Ural cT sidecar

"Here was a machine that, instead of taking me away, would allow us to go on adventures as a family, together."

Cielito was a little reluctant about Gwenael having a motorcycle, but with time and some basic ground rules of the sidecar, she eventually saw the benefits. Gwenael had originally considered riding across the country with a friend, but "if Cielito was up for it, I’d much rather do it as a family. In fact, I think it is the adventurous trip that made Cielito see the whole sidecar thing in another light."

Their trip will cover over 6000kms including 2500kms of dirt roads.

From mountaintops to botanical gardens, they're making the most of this trip. Anatole, the son, often falls asleep, "the sidecar is that comfortable." Part of their route includes the parts of the outback, "where there are no more towns, just blue skies."

The family stopped to help this BMW rider who suffered a flat tire from a bent rim.

The Velges credit Jon Taylor from Ural of Oz as an invaluable advisor and mentor. "I had no idea about sidecars and had never done any long trip on à motorcycle...Jon helped us make decisions about the necessary accessories and put them on for us." 

They are carrying two 10L Jerry cans of fuel on the inner side of the sidecar and an extra 20L on the main rack for the most remote leg of the trip. They've also added the spare wheel and rack. Gwenael had Ural Australia add the fairing and hand guards to combat the cold temperatures.

The family relies on their duffel bags to carry the essentials and have mailed home several items to pare down the load. On the long stretches, Anatole draws pictures in the dust on the windshield or plays hand puppet games. For the rough roads, Gwenael tries to get the third wheel in the smoothest spot to make it comfortable for his passengers. 

"The third wheel is a bonus in the bulldust, we have been flying on it!" 

It is a genuine adventure!

"We meet many people on the road and our mode of transport certainly seems to inspire people to want to do the same. We would certainly encourage families to pack their stuff on a rig and get out there! It is amazing."

Follow along on their journey via their Instagram feed at @the.life.motonomadic. You can also read about other Ural riders and the adventures their sidecars take them on by clicking the link below:

See how other Ural owners explore worldwide.