Hoka Hey A Hoax?
Friday, April 2nd, 2010In episode 18 I mentioned the Hoka Hey Challenge, an endurance ride from Key West, FL to Homer, AK that must be completed on an American V-Twin (read HD). The ride is said to cover over 7,000 miles and the first rider in has the chance at the grand prize of $500,000. All sounds good doesn’t it? Well, I am writing this to let all of you know that this may be a hoax.
I was in the chat room the other night for the live taping of the latest episode of Sidestand Up from our friend Tom Lowdermilk. I happened to bring this event up and the long distance riders in the chat immediately began to let me know that this is something to stay away from. I have not done deep research but want to let you know what I was told and you can use the information how you want. I do not claim this as being either a hoax or not a hoax, I am merely passing along third party information that I was told.
In the chat room I was told that an award winning long distance rider had checked into this ride and that the bank account did not exist. There are also questions involving the ability of the organizers to pull out of the event at any time, for many reasons, without having to provide refunds to riders. In a separate conversation outside of the chat I was also told that it was thought that many sponsors had dropped out of the challenge. A quick trip to the website shows only one sponsor, Black Hills Harley Davidson. So, these are legitimate questions to ask should you desire to ride in this event. I sincerely hope that none of this is true and that the event goes off without a hitch and one lucky, and bada$$ rider, takes home the big prize.
Check out the Hoka Hey Challenge site for yourself and contact the organizers to get more detailed info if you feel the need.
