THUNDER BAY -- Chicago's Bill Gade has clocked enough kilometres riding motorcycles to circle the Earth eight times. When it comes to seeing untapped potential in the motorcycle tourism market, his word goes the distance.
And he sees that potential on Lake Superior's North Shore.
Gade rode the route between Sault Ste. Marie and Thunder Bay last week to test the waters for tours he hopes to lead through his company, Tour on Two. His favourite route remains the stretch through Utah but the Lake Superior experience comes close.
"I'm so impressed by just the beauty of the North Shore," he said when he arrived in Thunder Bay.
"I've been here before as a child but I didn't remember how great it was. One lake is more beautiful than the next. I told my girlfriend, 'let's turn around and do the whole thing back to the Soo.' You've got a great resource here."
The best routes, he explained, have remote landscapes and beautiful scenery but the key is the low traffic that makes riders feel like they're in a world of their own. Despite having an undivided highway along the North Shore, Gade found perfect spacing between the passing lanes for 10 or 12 riders to pass or be passed safely and comfortably.
The attitude toward motorcycle tours is changing across North America but in Northwestern Ontario, the culture is largely accepting.
"A lot of people look at us big, bad bikers and say, 'we don't want you here' or they're not happy we're here," Gade said.
"These are 50-something, professional people. They're doctors and occupational therapists, accountants and lawyers. They put on a costume. It's like Wild Hogs. There's a segment of the popultation who are now empty nesters. They had a motorcycle when they first got married -- or before they got married -- and they want to get back into it."
Those who are into it are already bringing between eight and 10 million dollars to Northwestern Ontario's economy every summer, according to the Regional Tourism Organization's 2014 study.
The study claims one in five American motorcycle tourists with Canadian destinations are riding through Northwestern Ontario and estimates that potential could increase from 106,000 to 844,000 with proper outreach and marketing.
"We've just scratched the surface," said Thunder Bay tourism manager Paul Pepe. "I still think there's a lot of room for movement upward."
Pepe has been instrumental in launching www.ridelakesuperior.com and has been attending motorcycle tourism conferences in Minneapolis and Chicago with attendance rates above 50,000 people.
Regional tourism offices from Wawa to Duluth have been pushing the story that riding around Lake Superior ought to be on any rider's bucket list as it invests in training for local businesses on how to appeal to the niche needs of motorcycle tourists.
Pepe received a call from a Wisconsin motorcycle outlet 700 kilometres away whose owners heard of the route branding through word-of-mouth. They were looking to get on board with the local effort that is putting Lake Superior on the two-wheel map.
"To get this bike shop dealer from Marquette yesterday say, how can I get more involved in this thing means it has a lot of legs left in it before it becomes saturated so we're consatnly moving it forward."
