Bachelor Party

Kyle Alexander’s bachelor party didn’t involve the usual debauchery. Instead, he and some buddies went on a low-buck adventure rally through the wilderness of Alberta and British Columbia. He called it the Trans Mountain to Tide Water Rally, an Ambitious but Rubbish Bachelor Party. Teams could spend no more than $1000 Canadian on their rides.

“I originally had my sights set on a 1980 Buick LeSabre Sport Coupe for $500,” he posted on our message board. “It would have been perfect. It had a cherry bomb exhaust and a 350ci V8. Sadly the owners decided not to sell it as I was driving over to their house with the cash in hand.”

So Kyle went with something else, a 1981 Mazda RX-7 GS that needed an engine. A second, much rustier RX-7 donated its heart, turning the first one into a runner.

Then Kyle outfitted the car with some sweet extras, including rust-hiding fender flares, a roof basket and a “Sorry, sir, is there a problem?” graphics package. Along with some fender-mounted mirrors, Kyle also added a Wink rearview: “Because fender mirrors are useless except for style. Which they excel at.”

He also spent $50 for some rear-window louvers. “I think we overpaid a little bit but the seller of the RX-7 found them for us so I couldn’t say no,” he posted. “Plus louvers are super rad.” Total budget to build the car was $960 Canadian.

Three teams set out on Kyle’s weeklong journey that, as promised, delivered plenty of adventures. “I would say the highlight for our team was almost dying on Highway 99 between Lillooet, B.C., and Pemberton, B.C.,” he wrote us. “Our steering centre link folded, causing 15 degrees toe-out on both front wheels going into a 45 km/h downhill decreasing-radius hairpin.”

Fortunately a street sign applied the brakes to Kyle’s wild ride, catching the RX-7 before it fell into a deep gully–and a creek. Photos from the odyssey can be found on the “Your Trips and Adventures” subforum at grassrootsmotorsports.com as well as on the event’s webpage, tm2twrally.com.