Slimey Crud Cafe Racer 2022 [Spring Edition]

The Slimey Crud Cafe Racer Run was and remains Wisconsin’s first unaffiliated, unsponsored, unaligned, dissociated and completely free motorcycle rally and rolling show. Maybe in the upper Midwest. Or the whole country, for that matter. It was founded ages ago by people who, for the purposes of this report, will remain anonymous, but who were committed members of the original Slimey Crud biker gang, for the purpose of establishing the first aforementioned event. . At first, it didn’t generate the swarm of runners it does today, even though the Gang did some real publicity.

Now, despite the lack of banners and posters co-emblazoned with light beer or energy drink, plastic cheese cups or any other promotional trinkets, the Crud Run attracts a large number of bikers, unique motorcycles and even classics of all descriptions, even in fairly gloomy weather. Performed on the first Sunday in May and October each year, the traditional actions involve riders gathering at the hamlet of Pine Bluff, west of Madison in Dane County, Wisc., for a meeting period of old ride buddies, meet new riding buddies and ogle the assortment of bikes that come along. From there, each cyclist is free to choose their own route to the village of Leland across the Wisconsin River in Sauk County. There is no attempt to designate an “official route” for runners, no route captains, no wristbands and no rules to follow. Only the general warning to ride safe, have fun and keep the shiny side up. Other than that you’re pretty much on your own, that’s where you should be. We are, after all, tough individualists, as all motorcyclists should be.

This is good because there are a number of city and county roads that offer scenic beauty, light traffic, and plenty of curves and hills to keep the cyclist entertained. My advice when racing: slow down, get out of the tank and enjoy the view. Save the high-speed stuff for your track days. Done right, you can spend most of the day doing the trip and never see the same route twice unless you manage to get lost, which is possible, unless you ruin it by using the GPS or a map. Despite the drizzle and occasional morning temperatures in the 40s, it got cooler as the day progressed, a good number of runners turned up. Admittedly, this was only about a third of the number typically seen at the event, but it was still a substantial representation.

It’s always fun to offer up images of some of the most interesting or “Best Of” random categories of bikes seen racing. Categories are sometimes appropriate, but not a requirement. The “Best Of” award is entirely arbitrary, based on how we feel at the time. Fairness and consistency are neither required nor considered. No trades, substitutions or protests are allowed, and all errors in judgment are fully expected. The next Slimey Crud Café Racer Run will be on the first Sunday in October. Be there or be, well, you know. Yes, we have more photos:

This isn’t the first time we’ve covered the Slimey Crud Motorcycle Gang Café Racer Run. Don’t miss our Spring 2021, Fall 2019, Spring 2019 and Spring 2018 coverage.