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Motorcycle Shipping Advice from Canadians


Sound Guy

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RE: Shipping your Canadian motorcycle back to Canada from US.

 

I am considering going on a late season trip this year to the US, and plan to be gone from Canada for about a month and a half. It will start in September and end in early November. I would like to ride back as well, but Ottawa and Northeastern US weather can be unpredictable that time of year and I don't want to have to worry about snow/ice.

 

Can anyone offer me advice on what is involved in commercially shipping your Canadian registered bike back to Canada from the US? Googling for this information returns a lot of information about "Importing" a US bike into Canada which is for purchasing from south of the border, but I cannot find anything about shipping one that you already own back.

 

If anyone has done this, could you please share what you had to do?

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Hmm... interesting question. I've imported things, but never done what you're asking. My advice would be that if you're going to cross the line before your trip in the fall (e.g. sometime this summer), to stop in and ask the border guys on both the US and Cdn sides what documentation they'd need to allow the bike through without hassle. Or maybe you could just call the local CBS office (?). You might be able get them to verify your ownership etc. in advance, and tell you what documentation the transporter should have... Sounds like an interesting idea! It'd be great to head south in late fall and not have to worry about being weather bound!

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Morning Sound Guy

 

I can't help you on the shipping back across the border (I have shipped plenty across the border into the US but never something that I have already owned & titled & never going the other way)

 

You might have other options though.

 

Once you have your route plotted out then you might use the MOA book, or this web site, or other BMW web sites to find BMW friendly people along your route that will offer you winter storage in advance.

 

This way you could leave your bike in the US until spring (if needed) then return & ride the remainder of the route home. OR maybe even rent a storage unit & leave your bike until spring then return & ride it home.

 

Even if you ship the bike-- to get a decent shipping rate you will probably have to leave the bike somewhere until the shipper gets a full load headed your way.

 

 

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szurszewski

We have done exactly what DR is suggesting you look for someone to do (been contacted via the MOA book by someone looking for storage) and were happy to be able to help on more than one occasion. If you aren't going to be able to ride the bike at home anyway, it's a good option. You could maybe even find someone on this site here if you were a little flexible in your storage location.

 

If you can't ride the bike once you get home anyway, why not keep it south and have another fun trip to look forward to?

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Two comments from someone who was born, and raised in Ottawa, and who's lived in the U.S. the last five years. As for weather concerns, I can't imagine there'd be much risk of snow/ice in early November (though it won't exactly be balmy). As for the question about shipping, I think what you would want to know is, if you did what you suggest you might want to do, would U.S. and Canadian authorities interpret this as you "exporting" your bike from the U.S. The reason I say this is that, just a few years ago, a new requirement was introduced by the U.S. government, with respect to exporting vehicles, whether that vehicle was originally bought in the U.S., or not. My wife, and I, moved to the U.S. in 2013, and brought both a car, and motorcycle, with us. There was absolutely no interest in our vehicles on the part of U.S. Customs when we drove them across the border (we stopped and asked). In 2015, however, I wanted to drive my car (a 2011) back to Ottawa to give to my son, and pick up a new car there that I drove back to the U.S.a few days later. Even though I had bought the 2011 in Ottawa, and had the paperwork to prove it, I was still subject to those new U.S. rules governing the export of vehicles from the U.S. I won't go into the details of what's involved, but just know that you must employ the services of a customs broker, as a private individual cannot do what's required. Suffice to say, this is a time-consuming affair, and not something that would be at all practical in your circumstances (you must provide required documentation to U.S. Customs days in advance of the bike's arrival etc., etc.). I was required to stop at U.S. Customs (and I don't mean the usual entry lane), and again at Canada Customs, as I had to present documents from U.S. authorities to Canada Customs, and also satisfy Canada Customs that I had bought the car in Canada. I would like to think that this would not apply to you in your circumstances, but you would be naive not to ask the question well in advance. I never thought it would apply to me either, in my situation.

Edited by marcopolo
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Thanks everyone for the suggestions and Marco... That is exactly what I was worrying about when I posted so thanks to you especially for clarifying. The route is set and I had planned to ship it back to Ottawa from Denver. I will have 4 days to make that trek if I ride, and that is a frantic pace even in good weather. I might have to look into storing it in Denver for the winter. I had not thought of that. I have asked for quotes from three transporters, one of which is definitely enrolled in Canada Border Services "FAST" program (I looked them up on the CBSA website). If they give me any good information that is not already here, I will post it.

 

What would you do? It's November Armistice Day weekend and you have to get from Denver to (think Northern New York State (Syracuse))...

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Thanks everyone for the suggestions and Marco... That is exactly what I was worrying about when I posted so thanks to you especially for clarifying. The route is set and I had planned to ship it back to Ottawa from Denver. I will have 4 days to make that trek if I ride, and that is a frantic pace even in good weather. I might have to look into storing it in Denver for the winter. I had not thought of that. I have asked for quotes from three transporters, one of which is definitely enrolled in Canada Border Services "FAST" program (I looked them up on the CBSA website). If they give me any good information that is not already here, I will post it.

 

What would you do? It's November Armistice Day weekend and you have to get from Denver to (think Northern New York State (Syracuse))...

 

Evening

 

I show about 1750 miles from Denver to Ottawa so that is about 435 mile per day. That's a little over 7 hours at a 60 mph average so you could stay in mostly daylight if you leave early & hustle (assuming no stoppages or traffic problems). But you do lose some (usable) daylight per day as you head east.

 

Definitely doable as it is mostly freeway through the U.S. going through Detroit to get to Canada. You will have to slow down once you hit the Canadian border unless you stay south & go through Pennsylvania & New York (longer but faster riding in the U.S.

 

You might hit some snow showers but probably nothing sticking as you stay fairly south until you hit Michigan & even then it's southern Michigan.

 

To me the big problem is boredom, short days, & DEER (lots & lots of DEER) especially in the dark. By November it is getting into deer season & hunting season so the deer will be moving around.

 

The good side is usually not much road work to deal with that late in the year.

 

You can gear up for the cold but even with heated gear it is difficult to ride hours on end without breaks if you hit a cold November spell (can happen pretty easily as you head north)

 

What would (I) do?-- Probably change my travel time, or add some days, or leave Denver earlier.

 

Perfect weather then just a boring uneventful ride, but bad weather (good chance of cold rain in November as you head north & night travel on a motorcycle in November is stressful if you want to make time as you see glowing eyes EVERYWHERE.

 

I have done the U.P. of Michigan in late November a couple of times but only during daylight & not rushing. Some snow along the roads but roads were mostly open & safe.

 

If you decide to try it then you might make some pre-plans along the way to leave the bike (maybe Michigan area) then if you get bit you could always take a weekend at a later time & recover the bike with a trailer (you shouldn't have problems trailering your own bike back across the border).

 

 

 

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If I were to ride from Denver to Ottawa, as I have done probably fifteen times, at least, but never in November. In terms of a route, I would do this:

 

Hop on I-70 and high tail it eastward (on I-70 the whole way), as far as Columbus, Ohio. I would then head north head from Columbus, also on the interstate, to Cleveland, then head east on I-90 from Cleveland, under Lake Eire to Buffalo. Continue east from Buffalo on I-90, under Lake Ontario, until you hit the Syracuse area, at which point you would head north on I-81. By the way, I would cross the border at Ogdensburg/Prescott, then just take Hwy 416 into Ottawa (in my experience, this crossing is generally much less busy than any of the alternatives, including The Thousand Islands. That said, I'm not suggesting it'll be deserted, but there is a lot of Toronto-bound traffic that takes I-81 and the Thousand Islands Bridge). If you followed this route, you obviously would not take I-81 all the way to the border. Instead, you would exit the 81 onto NY-411 east, for a very, very short distance, then take NY-37 north (and eventually east) all the way to Ogdensburg. Just east of town, you'll make a hard left onto the road that leads to the bridge across the St. Lawrence into Canada. Google maps says this route is 1911 miles. That's about 478 miles/day. To me, that's very doable, but you'd better have heated gear. If you don't want to risk the weather, then you seem to know what to ask regarding shipping, unless you choose to leave the bike in Denver.

Edited by marcopolo
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Dave_in_TX

I currently live in Texas but grew up in Wisconsin and lived in Illinois for several years. I agree with DR that the probability of encountering ice or snow is small. You're probably more likely to encounter snow or ice in the higher elevations of the western mountains than you are going back to Ontario. As for deer, even if you avoid hunting season, November is usually when the rut starts so deer are going to be moving anyway. You'll definitely want warm clothing and maybe some electric gear but you're going to want that anyway if you're going to be in the Rockies that late in the year. If you're going to be gone for six weeks, why not leave a day earlier than planned so you have a buffer. And DR's suggestion of having somewhere to leave the bike along the way if it gets really bad is a good ides.

 

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I would just ride it back and have interesting overnight stops along the way. 435 miles per day for 4 days is a no brainer out west, even in november.

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  • 6 months later...

In case not knowing the outcome is eating away at you:

 

I wound up using a suggestion by @dirtrider: Find a friend to store it for you and go back in the spring. Winter came early in Eastern Canada!

 

Thanks again for all of the suggestions.

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