Report written by WIMA Estonia.
Estonia’s first WIMA international rally hosted 196 participants from 14 countries. Of the guests, 75 were registered for the pre- rally which took place between the 14th and 16th of July.
The pre-rally, organized mainly by Kaija and Maris, was an important part of the Estonian rally and it took participants to Pärnu and on to Kihnu island. The participants used motorcycles, their own and borrowed, bus and rental cars to get to the island. The ferry between the port of Munalaiu on the mainland and Kihnu island was too small to accommodate all the motorcycles, so a bus was rented as well.
On the island, participants had a sightseeing tour on the back of two open lorries, which in itself was quite exotic. Add to this, the sight of Kihnu women in their national dress – which they still wear every day – riding motorcycles which, instead of a sidecar, have a wooden box for freshly caught fish!
The next day, guests returned to Pärnu for a city tour and dinner and on the third day everyone was off to Jäneda, the official location of the Estonian rally.
The rally in Jäneda was officially opened the following day and lasted for a week. These were seven days packed with all kinds of activities – a tour to Järva-Jaani Old Equipment Shelter, a bus tour to Tallinn Old Town, a treasure hunt in picturesque northern coast villages and manors, BMW motorcycle try-outs as well as off-road and track training. The parade went to the beautiful Rakvere Castle.
Evenings were spent together, and different activities were scheduled for each night. The most memorable of them being the opening dinner with folk dancing and a performance by Svjata Vatra (we still vividly remember the soloist playing trombone while standing on the table) and the performances of national teams (including WIMA Estonia’s own ballet suite ‘Limping Swans’).
Also important for us was the seminar held together with Estonian female riders, organised as part of WIMA Estonia’s annual ‘Women’s Day’ events. We spoke about road safety and experiences regarding travelling on roads in various countries and different national presidents shared information about their countries.
In a nutshell – a wonderful week spent together with wonderful women….and it hardly rained, which is rare for the Estonian climate.
The Estonian rally got quite a lot of media coverage and glimpses of the parade were also shown on national television.
2017 WIMA Estonia International Rally – Promotion Video
