Nostalgia : Transalp Rallye 1989

I was looking for something inside a cupboard when I found a long forgotten shoebox.
On the top was written "Rallye Transalp 89".
It was full of paper photographs from a time where digital cameras were science fiction.
I looked at these pictures and a lot of good memories came back to my mind.
Therefore I decided to put my scanner to good usage.

In 1989, I was the proud owner of a 1987 Honda Transalp which was my first "big" bike after a Yamaha 125 DTMX.
By mail, I had received the last Transalp ad leaflet :





Translation :

That sound promising, so I signed up the deal for my first motorbike real travel.



From Strasbourg, France to Barcelona, Spain via Lisbonne, Portugal.

I hope that other inmates have also participated in this rallye.
I would be very interested if they have also pictures that they can also share with all of us.

Next post : the scanned pictures...

July 2nd 1989 was the welcoming and technical checks.
The meeting was on a big square in Strasbourg.
We were 240 riders on 200 Transalp bikes from 14 different countries, all Europeans except one South African guy who shipped 2 bikes and a van.
There were trucks for our luggage and trucks for tires and spare parts and also cars for mechanics and medics.
Stickers of the official sponsors were applied on all bikes.












In the evening, there was an official welcome dinner with an Alsatian folk dance show.



People could choose pre-booked hotels or camping. Camping was of course much better to socialize.
First night in the Strasbourg campground before the real start.

First stop was at the Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Château_du_Haut-Kœnigsbourg








Then Le Lac Blanc (White Lake)

The "slightly" modified Transal of my Swedish riding buddies.



4.99 French Franc a liter in 1989 is 76 Euro cents per liter.
Nowadays, one liter is up to 1.62 Euro per liter. That is 2.1 more expensive in 22 years...


We rode some easy trails in the Vosges forests:





and visited the nice Alsatian village named Obernai.

Thanks for posting. Makes me want to go find my photos from our first Transalp rally in the U.S. Even makes me want to go dig out my Transalp and take it for a ride!

This is great! Don't stop now.

Refreshing stop at a village café.


The small town of Cluny, famous for its Benedictine abbey founded in 910.





Main street of Chauffailles.



The town council of Chauffailles invited us for a free picnic lunch in the municipal primary school.


So there were free Transalp tours for the school children.


In the evening we were invited at the castle of Chavaniac-Lafayette for an official dinner.
The famous Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette was born in this castle in 1757. This was of course a symbol on the 4rth of july.









And there was a big cake for dessert !

It seems that I have lost some pictures.

There's only one for July 5th:

The Gorges du Tarn.


July 6th 1989
Andorra




The parking lot.



The lunch party on the roof.

Between Soria and Salamanca




Segovia : The Roman Aqueduc


Avila fortified city


Segovia Alcazar

my cousin in Italy had one and when we would visit (from Canada) I couldn't stop sitting on it - too young to ride I would spend hours just sitting on it

Sierra de Estrella










Almeira : Entering Portugal


Photographs waiting for the falls !





At the end of the trail : the village of Sabogueiro





Figueiras with the fog of the sea shore.





Figueiras campground.

That Swedish Transalp is a work of art

Olirider,thanks for posting.
I neither owned a Transalp nor did the Transalp rally,looking at your photos I missed out.
Maybe I should build a time machine & go back to 1989!
Have you still got the Transalp?
Mark F

Nope. Sold in 1991 for a 850 TDM. Then a 1150GS and currently riding a Yam S10.

olirider, thanks so much+, my 89 alp is my daily ride and it's a treat to see so many en mass doing what it was designed for

Still nobody participating at the Rallye ? We were more than 240. Some must still ride and be members here !
I would be very happy to see other people's pictures of this same event.


Cabo Da Roca : the most western point of Europe.




Near the side of the cliff. Always the same sea haze.



The rallye was only about hard riding all day long...

always riding

always riding

still always riding


Always riding but some times riding an other kind of beast : Check the hairy handlebar !


Almost always riding...

Thanks for the pictures they are GREAT! I just sold my 1992 TDM 850 to buy a 1989 Trans alp, we must be on a comon path, moving in oposite directions