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The whole tour
was certainly prepared with meticulous detail and this showed
through as each day we headed straight for the best roads. To
have all of the accommodations and catering sorted and planned in
advance and with each day carefully but flexibly organized meant
that the holiday was a real relaxing experience - with no money
worries.
Quite
simply, the roads covered on the Mountains Tour are like the very
best of Wales and Scotland with the Alps thrown in. Please let me
have next year's dates, routes and prices."
- Stuart
Knowles of Birmingham, England, Mountains Tour on a rented
BMW R850R, Gaspé tour on a rented
BMW R850R
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"Thanks
for going beyond the
necessary to make our trip superb.
Looking forward to the next one."- Lloyd and
Natalie Keirstead of Nashua, New Hampshire, Maine Maritime Tour
and Cabot Trail Tour on a Honda
Goldwing 1500
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"When you go out on tour with
Sean,
All doubts and fears will then soon be gone.
You'll
go first class, of that I am sure,
This year both we Keirsteads had our first tour.
We
had many doubts before we did start, With lots of our
money, we had to part.
But
riding on our bike we had a great treat, The inns and the
meals could never be beat.
A
vacation you want but you're not so sure, There's only
one choice, a Northeastern Motorcycle Tour.
We
can't wait for summer and we don't yet know when, But one
thing is sure, we're going again!"
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| "Where
should we begin? This vacation was far beyond our
expectations and one of the most enjoyable we've ever
had. The inns and food were superb; its obvious that you
want nothing but the best for your tour participants.
This was truly a great 'fun' vacation; you are terrific
guides. We got to see and do so many wonderful things. |
 |
Sean
is very knowledgeable about motorcycles and is a skilled, safe
rider. I (Joe) learned skills and techniques that I'll be sure to
use as I continue to ride back home. I appreciate the effort you
made to select some of the most scenic, safe and challenging
roads we have ever ridden. It was a pleasure to ride these scenic
routes with a group of fellow motorcyclists who have now become
new friends.
It
isn't always easy to find "like-minded" motorcyclists
to ride and travel with. This tour introduced us to a great bunch
of riding friends. We had a terrific time together. We're already
thinking about our next adventure with Northeastern Motorcycle
tours."
- Bonnie
and Joe Racho of Conyngham, Pennsylvania,
Maritime Tour on a
Harley-Davidson Electra-Glide,
Cabot Trail Tour
A letter from Joe Racho to Rider Magazine
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"If
you are considering a guided motorcycle tour anywhere in
New England or the Maritimes, consider joining a
Northeastern Motorcycle Tour. I did and it was terrific!
I
wanted to do the ride but I didn't want to do it alone. I
wanted blue roads, but I didn't know the best routes. I
wanted good inns and confirmed accommodations, but I
didn't have time to do the research. I wanted to dine
well, not just eat, but I did not know the good places or
want to trust to chance that I would find them. I wanted
a lot, and I didn't want to work to get it.
|
Thanks
to Sean Reid, the owner of Northeastern Motorcycle Tours, I got
all I wanted and a whole lot more. Sean operates the business
from headquarters in Brattleboro, Vermont. He is young, cycle
smart, touring savvy and acutely sensitive to the individual
needs of his guests. Furthermore, he is a fun and funny person to
be with and wonderfully companionable both on the road and at the
table. For a good ride and a great time, check out NMT."
- Mike
Baumrind of Westport, Connecticut: Maine Maritime Tour, Best of Vermont Tour,
Gaspé Maritime Tour on a BMW
R1100RS
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"First, I want
to thank you for such a well-coordinated and well-planned
trip and for being so attentive to our needs. You were
great hosts and the trip more than met my expectations
about the inns and meals and sights and people. I also
gained a lot of insight in the van that one day on just
how much you worked to make the journey both safe and
enjoyable for the riders. Some memories of the trip
include: |
- Encouraging words to a novice
passenger before the trip ever started. Your calm reassurance on the phone helped a lot...
- Mouth watering French
Toast (and sticky buns on the way back) at the Inn in
Vermont.
- The first beautiful,
sunny morning through Vermont, the cool air, the silent
camaraderie of all the riders as they sped along the
smooth, curvy roads. Peace and serenity inside my wind
bubble of a helmet as I soaked in the scenery and
sunshine.
- Laughing at dinners
with strangers who were becoming friends. I gained 3
pounds, I'll have you know.
- A breathtaking field of
sunflowers in Maine
- A cool little Inn in
Southwest Harbor, with view of the harbor and personable
rooms
- Tooling around Acadia
National Park, a stroll around Jordan Pond, a ride up to
the top of Cadillac Mountain where the views were
spectacular in all directions, a visit to Bar Harbor.
- A pie-eating frenzy
enroute to Canada.
- The aroma of
blueberries, and hills covered with their red, purple,
and blue hues.
- The hotel, regal and
beautiful, perched above the town of St. Andrews,
surrounded by groomed gardens and Celtic music.
- St. Andrews - the
friendliest town I've ever been to. A lovely, lazy rainy
day to hang around.
- The Maine coast, the
West Quoddy Light, the extraordinary fields of fireweed
on our way to Campobello.
- Laughing with delight
on the back of a BMW on Evans Notch road. I want to do
that again, please!
- The peaceful rumble of
a Harley Electra Glide.
- A full moon atop a New
Hampshire mountain.
- And an eye-popping,
heart-stopping, ear-numbing, early morning ride up to the top of Mt. Washington...
Why pay for a guided motorcycle tour? I wondered that myself when
Randy first told me about the trip. But what I failed to
comprehend were the many hours of planning that must go in to
finding enjoyable roads and routes to the eventual destinations.
After experiencing a bumpy road on a Yamaha 650, I sure
appreciated your reconnaissance of the smoother roads! As the
trip grew longer in destination, my appreciation of your
knowledge of the roads grew. There were some wonderful, smooth,
curvy, extremely scenic roads. We started out thinking we'd break
off from the group often and do our own thing. We soon discovered
that riding with the group was a whole lot more fun and enjoyable
and safer, too, I think, than riding alone. Randy enjoyed
developing his skills as well, and claimed to have learned a lot
from the other riders. I definitely got a sense that the group of
riders enjoyed riding together.
Although the van was a god send on that rainy day, I definitely
enjoyed being a passenger on the back of a bike more! I guess
that's testimony in itself, huh?"
- Nealie J. Thompson and
Randy Hoes, Maine Maritime tour on a Yamaha XJ650, two Weekend in the Mountains tours on a Honda PC800
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"Sean is
clearly a man who loves his work. His enthusiasm and
commitment to his tours is marvelous. After settling in,
we went for a "taster" ride to show what
Vermont had to offer - a huge variety of roads from
straights to sweeping curves to tight downhill corners,
all accompanied by magnificent scenery. In the evening we
enjoyed an excellent meal. |
The rest of the
days continued in a similar vein - During the day, superb
riding on exciting and virtually traffic-free roads - from
straights to sweeping curves to tight downhill corners - all set
amid stunning scenery. In the evenings, excellent food and
lodgings accompanied by enthusiastic, knowledgeable and
entertaining company.
The
riding was always at a safe and comfortable pace but included
many technically demanding rides which together with Sean's
feedback on my riding techniques has helped me to greatly improve
my riding abilities. (I am a "born again biker" who
took up motorcycling last year after an absence of more than
twenty years.) At the end of the tour, I could make even the
Harley go around corners.
All in
all, five days riding in a truly beautiful part of the U.S.A.
Vermont is very much the picture postcard view of the States that
we foreigners come looking for. The guided tour allowed me to
relax and enjoy both the riding and the scenery. Well done, I am
sure to be back."
- Simon
Banks of London, England, Foliage Tour on a rented
Harley-Davidson Dyna Wide Glide
| "I was
originally going to just rent a bike in Boston but taking
a tour was much better. I saw many roads and places I
would not have found on my own. The roads were beautiful,
right through the Indian summer with vividly colored
foliage. They reminded me of my favorite roads in Austria
but with different scenery; even the European sport
riders would like them. |
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The lodging and
food are first class. Sean is from the region and is very
knowledgeable about the historic background of this very
interesting part of the United States. I would definitely
recommend this region for motorcycle touring and I also recommend
this company. Sean did a great job of laying out a short tour and
I am planning on coming back for a longer tour."
- Martin Reckmann
of Vienna, Austria, Foliage Tour on a rented Harley-Davidson Dyna
Wide Glide (Personal motorcycles in Austria: BMW R80ST/ KTM Duke)
"
I most enjoyed the roads - smooth, open S-curves through colorful
countryside, scenic and consistently amazing in quality, day
after day - they were phenomenal. I feel like I ride my K1100RS
now, not just drive it. Thanks and my compliments."
- Larry Hendrick,
Fall Foliage Tour on a BMW K11RS
| "Under
"credit where credit is due department"...my
wife and I just returned from a motorcycle tour through
the Vermont mountains with the Northeastern Motorcycle
Tour Co. of Brattleboro, Vermont. Sean Reid operates this
tour service and we could not ask for more than he
willingly provided. |
 |
Great hotel
accommodations in a 100 year old Inn, terrific food, super
winding roads through the mountains, terrific food, a chase
vehicle, terrific food.. we eventually got around to calling this
the Pastry Tour! Sean was even gracious enough to let us win at
tennis."
-
Harry and Sue Heck of Stuart, Florida,
Mountains Tour on a
Honda Valkrie
Joe
Racho (Maine Maritime '97, Cabot Trail '98) wrote to "Rider" magazine to
encourage increased coverage of domestic touring companies. We
think he makes some good points about the advantages of domestic
tours for American riders. His letter reads:
November
12, 1997
 |
"The
December issue of Rider filled my need as a resource
regarding touring companies in the US with the article
entitled "See America First". In August of this year my
wife and I booked a Maritime Tour with Northeastern
Motorcycle Tours located in Brattleboro, Vermont. The
quality of the trip was superb and a real value for our
dollar. |
Beyond the tour
itself, we developed new friendships with other riders who, like
us, look forward to riding on new tours in the US. We have
already booked a second tour with NMT in 1998 and look forward to
touring with other US touring companies.
In the same issue you published an article on a trip to Africa
with Edelweiss tours. I can recall other articles on Edelweiss
tours printed in Rider over the years. Although I can understand
the excitement of a tour in places such as Africa, I must say
that these foreign tours are generally beyond the budget of the
majority of your readers. Easily two US tours can be made for the
price of one foreign tour. On US tours you can use your own bike
which most riders desire; on foreign tours you must pay for
flights and then rent bikes that may not fit you.
As a subscriber to Rider I would like to see more articles
printed about domestic touring companies and their tours.
Although the occasional article about a foreign tour is
interesting, there is so much to see, experience, and appreciate
in the US for the average Rider subscriber."
Note: In 2001, Joe's request
was fulfilled when Rider magazine published a feature about our Fall 2000 Cabot
Trail tour by the noted moto-journalist Clement Salvadori.
Back to Next Letter after the Racho's
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