Your intrepid reporter, KustomKartKid reporting live from the Windber Minibike Reunion....ummmm well ok not really, I'm back at home on the couch :sad:...but what an absolute BLAST we had there today. :smile:
For those that couldn't make it or have never been I'll set the scene...first thing you notice when you roll into Windber is it looks like Mayberry...no fake facades or yuppy antique shops to make it look old ...IT IS OLD!!. Many of the stores still have their old signage, gold leaf window lettering, globe sign on the gas station pole...any minute you're expecting Barney Fife or Floyd the barber to show up....
To get to the campgrounds, you turn off the main road and head up a steep hill...maybe a mile or two of road that climbs quickly, then levels off, then climbs again like a roller coaster...(more on this later).
Once you reach the Reunion site you pull into a parking area, register and receive your T-shirt, parking permit and riding badge.Then....as you enter the campgrounds... you have reached mini-bike heaven!! :bowdown::bowdown:
Picture Woodstock except with mini-bikes. Campers, tents, and pick-up trucks dot the acres of well groomed land that is ideal for riding. Tables full of used and nos mini bike parts :drool: :drool: and get this, like a THOUSAND mini bikes of all shapes, sizes and manufacture....running bikes, show bikes, rollers, partial rollers, trikes, trailers full of bikes and piles of bikes that look like a mini-bike salvage yard !!! There's mini-bikes buzzing all around you, up and down the aisles, out in the fields....looking for a part?....minibike...need a cold drink?.....minibike...gotta use the bathroom?....minibike.... gotta talk to the guy who's standing 20 feet away?......take the minibike !! walking is prohibited... :laugh:....AWESOME!!!
The excitement starts to build as 10 am nears and the riders get their bikes ready...then start to gather in formation. Imagine if you will, 200+ bikes all running at the same time....despite the fact that the carbon monoxide levels are off the charts, everyone is smiling ear to ear...hell I'm 51 years old and I'm feeling an adrenaline rush. A police escort shows up and led by a genuine 1970 (Allied?) Dune Buggy we head down the hill towards town....yep the roller coaster hill !! :scared:...All the traffic is blocked so we have the whole street to ourselves....good thing because without touching the throttle you can hit 35 mph just rolling..what a rush being in this pack of bikes charging down the hill like swarm of bees..people are out on the front porch of their houses with their kids hooting, hollering and smiling..once into town the cop has us all cut the engines on a side street while we wait our turn to join the parade. The minis bring up the rear after all the dignitaries, bands, fire engines, classic cars etc....and the townsfolk love it!! A mile or so through town waving to the adoring public and then we head back up the hill via a different route which switchbacks under old bridges, over train tracks and through a forest of tress. At this point the pace picks up into a little mini-race to the top :devil2: and your having so much fun you don't want it to end....
Back at camp, there's a permanent structure adorned with vintage signs that acts as a snack bar/picnic table area...ride until the night curfew and then settle down to some music, campfires and minibike related bench racing and stories.
A bit of advice....put this event on your calendar and plan to be there next year. I had no idea what to expect but we really had an unbeliveable time and can't stop talking about it. Many thanks to Jeff for putting together this awesome event.
Plan to stay all 3 days if you can to get the most out of it :thumbsup:
For those that couldn't make it or have never been I'll set the scene...first thing you notice when you roll into Windber is it looks like Mayberry...no fake facades or yuppy antique shops to make it look old ...IT IS OLD!!. Many of the stores still have their old signage, gold leaf window lettering, globe sign on the gas station pole...any minute you're expecting Barney Fife or Floyd the barber to show up....
To get to the campgrounds, you turn off the main road and head up a steep hill...maybe a mile or two of road that climbs quickly, then levels off, then climbs again like a roller coaster...(more on this later).
Once you reach the Reunion site you pull into a parking area, register and receive your T-shirt, parking permit and riding badge.Then....as you enter the campgrounds... you have reached mini-bike heaven!! :bowdown::bowdown:
Picture Woodstock except with mini-bikes. Campers, tents, and pick-up trucks dot the acres of well groomed land that is ideal for riding. Tables full of used and nos mini bike parts :drool: :drool: and get this, like a THOUSAND mini bikes of all shapes, sizes and manufacture....running bikes, show bikes, rollers, partial rollers, trikes, trailers full of bikes and piles of bikes that look like a mini-bike salvage yard !!! There's mini-bikes buzzing all around you, up and down the aisles, out in the fields....looking for a part?....minibike...need a cold drink?.....minibike...gotta use the bathroom?....minibike.... gotta talk to the guy who's standing 20 feet away?......take the minibike !! walking is prohibited... :laugh:....AWESOME!!!
The excitement starts to build as 10 am nears and the riders get their bikes ready...then start to gather in formation. Imagine if you will, 200+ bikes all running at the same time....despite the fact that the carbon monoxide levels are off the charts, everyone is smiling ear to ear...hell I'm 51 years old and I'm feeling an adrenaline rush. A police escort shows up and led by a genuine 1970 (Allied?) Dune Buggy we head down the hill towards town....yep the roller coaster hill !! :scared:...All the traffic is blocked so we have the whole street to ourselves....good thing because without touching the throttle you can hit 35 mph just rolling..what a rush being in this pack of bikes charging down the hill like swarm of bees..people are out on the front porch of their houses with their kids hooting, hollering and smiling..once into town the cop has us all cut the engines on a side street while we wait our turn to join the parade. The minis bring up the rear after all the dignitaries, bands, fire engines, classic cars etc....and the townsfolk love it!! A mile or so through town waving to the adoring public and then we head back up the hill via a different route which switchbacks under old bridges, over train tracks and through a forest of tress. At this point the pace picks up into a little mini-race to the top :devil2: and your having so much fun you don't want it to end....
Back at camp, there's a permanent structure adorned with vintage signs that acts as a snack bar/picnic table area...ride until the night curfew and then settle down to some music, campfires and minibike related bench racing and stories.
A bit of advice....put this event on your calendar and plan to be there next year. I had no idea what to expect but we really had an unbeliveable time and can't stop talking about it. Many thanks to Jeff for putting together this awesome event.
Plan to stay all 3 days if you can to get the most out of it :thumbsup:
Last edited:
...there were other folks taking video though, I'm sure some will get posted. 
