After reading evacuation stories I'm beginning to think a motorcycle

[merbex]

is the way to go

IF you don't have kids

It sounds as if people are leaving everything they have to achieve safety and if you are traveling lightly anyway leave the car and get on the bike (if you have one which- I don't)

Has anyone heard about anyone evacuating by motorcycle?

[daninthemoon]

1. The Great Escape

[spuddonna]

31. Just don't climb the barbed wire... n/t

[Tace]

2. Concept!

[prolesunited]

3. I could have done better on my bicycle

I would have packed my panniers and made it way more than 100 miles in 12 hours, even with heat and hills.

[ohio_liberal]

4. I haven't heard much about motorcycles....

Weaving through traffic might get you hurt with all the angry folks sitting in traffic. You sure couldn't carry much, but it beats being stranded.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

5. I've seen cyclists

weave in and out of a traffic jam. Only think you need to be careful of is traffic starting up and with people getting out of their cars. Bikes, motor or otherwise, are a good idea.

[hlthe2b]

6. perhaps with a trailer to haul extra gasoline....

But, somehow I don't see my 70 pound Aussie/Lab holding on to me on the back....

[merbex]

7. Maybe with a sidecar n/t

[ohio_liberal]

9. Hey, I've seen a black lab in a sidecar

Wearing goggles, he was. :D

[htuttle]

26. Black Lab? How about a Holstein?

Supposedly this picture is from Germany. I have no idea whether it's real or not, but it cracks me up everytime I look at it. It does indeed look like a cow-sized sidecar, but I have no idea how he gets the cow into it, or more importantly, WHY?

[ohio_liberal]

30. LOL

That is one funny picture. :D

[walldude]

33. LOL.. Got Milk? n/t

[hlthe2b]

13. Hee, hee....! I've always wanted a side car for my doggie!

Now that would be cool (except not on a 100 degree bumper-to-bumper highway, breathing everyone's exhaust, I imagine...

[karlrschneider]

27. I hear ya...got 3 largish doggies. Yikes.

:D
Oh, wait, they're HUGH!!!11!!!

[CornField]

32. I've rigged up a basket for Belle

Of course, she's only about 25 pounds. LOL! She loves riding in that basket tho... the diva!

[BlueEyedSon]

41. Good reason to own a dog that fits in a handbag.....

[AirmensMom]

8. Might be hard to get around all those people standing around their cars.

Also, some states forbid lane splitting ... but then you just collect as many tickets as it takes to get out of Dodge.

[merbex]

11. It sounds as if the police/state troopers in Texas were nowhere

to be found anyway in that traffic nightmare

[AirmensMom]

15. True ...

but it would still be hard to get around all those open car doors.

[Mutley]

10. Good idea, but you won't get too far without access to gas.

I don't know any exact specs but motorcycles can't hold much gas.

[Bravo411]

16. About 4 - 5 gal. give or take

You can also expect to get at least 40mpg. It's also a lot easy-er to go a bit further off the beaten track to a gas station that's not right off the highway.

[Mutley]

28. Okay. I didn't know they had such high gas mileage.

So they'd probably get you far enough to get away from a hurricane, even if you can't manage to refill along the way. But you're still screwed if anything bigger happens (of course people in cars are screwed even more).

[dcfirefighter]

18. Most M/C have a range of ~120 mi

but you can get aux tanks
http://www.ironbutt.com/about/about.cfm
http://www.sampson-sporttouring.com/fuel-cells.html

or just get a jerrycan and refill when the light comes on.

I'm still waiting for kawasaki to offer this one for sale to the public:

http://www.m1030.com/

96mpg, 400 miles/tank, all-terrain capable, road legal, runs on diesel, kerosene, jet fuel, or biodiesel. Must investigate.

[Mutley]

29. That does sound good.

My SO has been talking about getting a motorcycle for ages now, I'll show him that site. Thanks!

[Bravo411]

35. Yeah, I've heard of those ...

but hadn't really seen them till now. I saw on the History Channel a blip about their new bikes that run on diesel.

Shit, I'd love to have one of those. With that kind of millage I'd use it all the time.

[uncle ray]

36. and besides, you're more likely to be able to buy a gallon

here and there from other motorists, as opposed to several gallons for a car. if you paid $20 a gallon, a hundred bucks will still get you far away.

[Bravo411]

12. I saw a pict of a guy ....

who was on a scooter. He also had some pet carriers tied down and his cats inside of them.

I'm sure that the people who are solo and have motorcycles are using them.

I ride one myself and it doesn't bother me when traffic backs up because I can always ride split-lane. You just have to be really careful when you do it. In a situation like that I'm sure you'd get some frustrated asshole that opens his door on you because he's stuck and you're not.

Posted by Bravo411
http://bravo411.blogspot.com

[htuttle]

23. Where there's a will (and a cycle), there's a way

(this isn't from the evacuation, but rather a regular day in India).

[MadHound]

40. And that is exactly the scooter you want to have!

That is a Bajaj scooter, the Chetak model. Goes fifty-five mph, gets 100-110mpg. I just picked up the last one in a six state area a couple of weeks ago, and let me tell you, the it is a dream of a bike. Nice control, great pick-up from a dead stop(even with a big guy like me), great gas mileage, and cranks up to fifty-five mph. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to lower their gas bill.

The old model year is over, and due to high demand many stores have sold out. But the new models come out in Dec, and even sooner in some states. You can find out more here<http://www.bajajusa.com>

If you want a great bike with great gas mileage, get yourself a Bajaj.

[Mist]

14. I'm keeping my station wagon (no resale value anyway) but

will be getting a Vespa quite soon.

[ForrestGump]

17. Some slimeballs will try to block you or open doors on you

out of spite. But, after you stop to kill or severely maim them, you should be able to slowly wend your way forward and out of the danger zone. And f*** those who believe that if they can't make forward progress in a traffic jam then you shouldn't be able to, either -- this twisted take on egalitarianism is a view actually held by at least one person I know.

I sure wouldn't be too concerned about local lane-sharing legislation at that point, anyway. As long as I'm not being a dangerous idiot (other than dispatching f***wits in self-defense), any peace officer who tries to run me down for splitting lanes should have his or her badge taken away for failing to attend to more important safety concerns affecting the welfare of temporary residents of the asphalt ghetto.

Even with the least optimistic fuel consumption, the stop-and-go kind, I know my bike would probably get me about 200 miles out of town before running out of gas. That's a pretty good start, and even if price gouging is in full swing at the 195-mile mark the fill's only going to cost a total of $24 at $4 per gallon.

Can't carry too much, though, but that's not necessarily the point to such an exercise.

[merbex]

19. Thanks for all that information regarding mileage

the point here does seem to be achieving SAFETY;bring your important documents, some credit cards,you can always buy a few items of clothing when you achieve safety.

Big decision is whether to leave or not.

[ForrestGump]

38. My bike's a high-displacement sport bike, and you'd get even better

gas mileage from a smaller bike, like 250cc or smaller...and a trail or enduro-type bike would be even more handy in terms of handling marginal surfaces. Problem with the smaller bikes is that their gas tanks are usually much smaller, so you may have even lower range than with something like mine.

Actually, if I had the money and lived someplace prone to annual evacuation -- and had no need to carry goods or people/pets beyond what I can put behind me on the bike -- I might consider getting a little street-legal trail bike as an emergency way out of town. The way things are going, though, with potential fuel prices and supply, I soon won't be the only one on my block whose only form of motorized transport has two wheels.

Of course, I agree that a bicycle could be even better, but you're unlikely to get as far as quickly unless things are REALLY bad in traffic...and if they're that bad, they're not likely to be especially bicycle-friendly, either.

Rocket packs would be good...

[girl gone mad]

20. Even a bicycle....

would have worked better than a car.

[merbex]

21. They won't let bicycles onto interstates -although as I wrote

previously,very little evidence of police or Texas state troopers to stop you

[Wcross]

22. I was thinking a cessna or piper aircraft.

You can pick one up for 15-25k and fly out of town. Seats 4 people- you could be three states away in a couple of hours.

[merbex]

24. You still have to get to the airport first

but at least you'd be guaranteed a seat

[Wcross]

37. Or you could live at the airport.

There are plenty of fly-in communities around the country. You would have to have a boatload of money though.

[Cleita]

25. A bicycle would be even bettter. You don't need gas.

I used to think of getting a motorcycle every now and then when I lived in L. A., stuck in freeway traffic. Those guys on motorcycles would just zoom right past you.

[Bravo411]

34. Only if the cars aren't running ...

after 20 miles of huffing exhust fumes you'll probably fall off your bike dead, or at least be taking a little nap.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

39. Actually there are motorized bicycles, my dad has one. You could

alternate pedaling and turning on the ? (I don't know what is runs on), when you get tired.

[Freedomfried]

42. A duel-sport, or street legal dirt bike would be the ultimate....