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2022 BMW Club Photo Rally : Ulster Section

February 15, 2022 by TomBoyNI

2022 BMW Club Photo Rally : The BMW Club (Ulster Section) have announced the points for the 2022 Photographic Rally.

If you are from ‘Up North’ and the thought of the entire Irish Photo Rally is a bit too daunting for you at the moment, or your are new to the idea of a Motorcycle Photo Rally then maybe the BMW Club’s Ulster Photo Rally is your perfect starting place?

I have been doing this rally for many years and every year it is a great motivator to get out and do a few extra road trips, for no reason other than to see somewhere and photograph something.

About the BMW Club Photo Rally : (Ulster Section) :

The Photographic Rally is all about getting the motorbike out and hopefully travelling new roads and visiting new locations, not forgetting to take your camera with you. This event is open to all riders, you do not have to be a club member to participate.

Some how we have found 9 more new places all across Ulster for you to ride along to and take your pictures. With some of our entries getting more and more artistic feel free to be as creative as you like. All that is required is for you to visit as many of the locations (hopefully all 9) and take a photograph of your bike and the subject at the location, if you have a pillion they are to be included also. This year our chosen charity is Macmillan Cancer Support (NI).

For Further Information and all links to the points, downloads and GPX files visit the BMW Club (Ulster Section) Photo Rally Web Site.

The Deadline for Submitting Your 2022 Entry is 31st October 2022.

The Locations :

Link to the Google Map : https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1jduY0Plt-AAOvS6p_DhueAOsR4RC2pFN&ll=54.60659224435034%2C-6.801808300000003&z=9

2022 Irish Photo Rally

February 15, 2022 by TomBoyNI

The 2022 Irish Photo Rally locations have been announced and the event Is now live.

Every year I normally take part in a the IBA Ireland Wolfhound Rally and the BMW Club Ulster Photo Rally, this year I plan to add to the Irish Photo Rally to my list.

About the Irish Photo Rally :

Irish Photo Rally is an annual motorcycling event that takes place all over Ireland. Participants take photographs of their motorcycle at a number of predetermined locations. Certificates are awarded by the judges for everything they deem worthy of praise or ridicule.

The basic aim of the Irish Photo Rally is to encourage people to get “out there” on their motorbike(s) and have some element of fun, travel and adventure. “Out there” will, ideally, be a bit off the beaten track and/or feature an unusual, historical or picturesque subject.

The event is run on a 32 county basis but the inland counties are lumped together – they can be dull compared to the coastal counties. Dublin and Louth are the exception, they are paired off because there are small counties and some numerical provincial balance is required. There are 24 locations and a close provincial balance – there are only 5 counties in Connaught so Leinster gets one extra anyway (7).

For full details, how to take part and to learn more about the event check out the Irish Photo Rally website.

The Locations :

Iron Butt Association Ireland 2019 Photo Rally : Going Underground

June 24, 2020 by TomBoyNI

Iron Butt Association Ireland 2019 Photo Rally :

You Still Have Time to Enter the 2020 Event :

I know the 2020 IBA Ireland Photo Rally is already, sort of, underway however with the current travel restrictions in place it is likely that most entrants and would be / will be participants haven’t got too far into the competition, yet.

However that is all about to change because as of 29th June 2020 Ireland will enter Phase 3 of it’s Coronavirus Recovery schedule and as such all travel restrictions within the island of Ireland will be lifted, enabling the 2020 IBA Ireland Photo Rally to get well and truly underway.

Entries are being accepted for the 2020 until 31st July 2020 – so you still have time : https://www.ibaireland.org/wolfhoundrally?fbclid=IwAR2zuxax_RrGMQZfALzd4WWd3Dqh3H-lUKxm_15izGIlEP9aF_NueqtSvA8

2020 Coronavirus Restrictions : Ireland & Northern Ireland :

You can check any restrictions currently in place in the Republic of Ireland here : https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/d06271-easing-the-covid-19-restrictions-on-29-june-phase-3/#transport-and-travel

Northern Ireland Restrictions can be found here : https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/coronavirus-covid-19-regulations-guidance-and-what-they-mean-you

I have previously posted the 2019 IBA Ireland Photo Rally Slideshow in the Motorcycling Section of the site but in case you missed it I am mentioning it again.

So if you are undecided and in order to wet your appetite have a look at where the 2019 Iron Butt Association Ireland Photo Rally would have taken you…

Iron Butt Association Ireland : 2020 Irish Photo Rally

March 7, 2020 by TomBoyNI

The 2020 Irish Photo Rally has now been announced by the Iron Butt Association Ireland. So if you are looking for something fun to do on the island of Ireland this year then this may be the calling you are looking for.

This year the theme is ‘The End of the Line’ and features railways all throughout Ireland, past and present.

There are 15 locations to visit across Ireland between now and the end of September 2020 so plenty of time to get all over the island, as the map shows you will be everywhere.

Not only that, from April to September the IBA Ireland releases one other spot that is only valid for that month – ‘The Brief’ which will be another point of interest somewhere in Ireland. This year they have been kind enough to give some hints as to where ‘The Brief’ will be located so you can plan your trips to take in a few of the 2020 Irish Photo Rally points as well.

The entry is a very fair 10 Euros and I guarantee you will see places you had no idea even existed.

Full details are available on the Official Iron Butt Association Ireland Website.

You can keep up to date with news and announcements on the Official Iron Butt Association Ireland Facebook Page.

Finishing the Iron Butt Association Ireland 2020 Irish Photo Rally and the monthly ‘Briefs’ will probably put a couple of thousand miles on your bike, but every one of them will have a purpose of a very rewarding completion of the rally.

Enjoy.

Oh and in case you were wondering you don’t have to be an IBA Member to complete in this rally, although if you enjoy this you really should considering having a look at the qualifying rides that will make you a member, one specific to Ireland is a full lap of the island within 24 hours – that is an epic day out! (I have done it twice so if you would like to read a little more about those trips you can do so right here.)

If you would like an idea of where previous rallies took you then please read on…

Iron Butt Association Ireland : 2018 Photo Rally : A Bridge Too Far

December 5, 2018November 9, 2018 by TomBoyNI

Iron Butt Association:

Have you ever thought that you fancy trying something other than the usual Sunday run out on the bike, along the same route, with your head down and bum up?

If so have you ever considered long distance motorcycling?

That is what the Iron Butt Association is all about. Safe, enjoyable long distance motorcycle riding that gets you out and about to places you probably haven’t seen before, or take routes or challenges that you probably had never even thought of before.

“The 60,000+ members of the Iron Butt Association are dedicated to safe, long-distance motorcycle riding. Although based in the United States, we have thousands of enthusiastic members throughout the globe! One of our more popular slogans is, “The World Is Our Playground.”

Check out out the IBA Website here : http://ironbutt.com

Check out the IBA Ireland Website here : https://www.ibaireland.org

Check out the IBA UK Website here : https://www.ironbutt.co.uk

A Bridge Too Far :

Having been a member of the Iron Butt Association for a few years now I thought I would give their 2018 Photo Rally a go.

The info on their site sums it up pretty well :

Iron Butt Association Ireland Photo Rally 2018

The locations are spread all over the island of Ireland and the route between them amounts to many thousands of miles.

I’m sure you could plan a route and tackle every location across a few days (reducing the mileage), but personally I used my free time over the summer months and probably took about 5 or 6 individual day trips to gather up all the checkpoints.

Some of those days trips were very long. For example my final trip took in the far west and south west of Ireland coming from Northern Ireland that specific trip, which took in 4 bridges started at 7.00am and finished at 1.30am and consumed about 780 miles.

But long mileage is all part of the Iron Butt Challenge, so if you enjoy full days in the saddle, seeing parts of the country (world even) that you probably didn’t even know about Photo Rallies are a good way to go about it and there are plenty of them about. Most motorcycle clubs, and the bigger Internet forums all offer Photo Rallies, so now that winter is here have a good look about and see what may take your fancy for the next year.

The BMW Club United Kingdom & Ireland – Ulster Section : 2016 Photo Rally.

November 3, 2016 by TomBoyNI

Well now that the photo rally is over for another year, having met its deadline on 31st October 2016, I will post up my entries for each county. Just so you can see where I was at, and maybe add a few locations to your list of places to visit should you ever find yourself in Northern Ireland & the Republic of Ireland…

The bear that keeps featuring is the mascot of the charity that the Club were supporting this year : https://www.shinecharity.org.uk

Photo Rally Entry Gallery :

About the BMW Club Photo Rally : (Ulster Section) :

The Locations :

About the Irish Photo Rally :

The Locations :

You Still Have Time to Enter the 2020 Event :

2020 Coronavirus Restrictions : Ireland & Northern Ireland :

Iron Butt Association:

A Bridge Too Far :

Disclosure :