We rented a 2008 BMW R 1200 GS Adventure from Twisted Road, and we spent several days riding Ohio’s Windy 9. (Photos by the author) Recently I had an opportunity to fly from California to Ohio to visit my 97-year-old great aunt and to ride Ohio’s Windy 9, a network of nine motorcycle routes that originate in Athens, Ohio. My plan was to fly into Columbus, rent a motorcycle, and ride an hour south to Athens. There aren’t any brick-and-mortar motorcycle rental locations in Columbus, so I hopped on the Twisted Road website. Twisted Road listing for the BMW I rented. Twisted Road is a nationwide peer-to-peer motorcycle rental network. Similar to vacation rentals through Airbnb or Vrbo, when you rent a bike through Twisted Road, you rent from an individual owner. Twisted Road vets motorcycle owners before allowing them to rent out their bikes on the site. Before someone can rent a bike, they must provide their driver’s license number and a credit card, and Twisted Road verifies that owners have valid motorcycle endorsements. All rentals are covered by up to $40,000 for damage and up to $1 million for liability. Related: Austin Rothbard, Twisted Road | Ep. 73 Rider Magazine Insider Podcast Since I would be riding lots of curvy roads for several days (the “windy” in Windy 9 refers to twisty, not gusty), I wanted a sport-touring or adventure-touring bike. When I searched for rentals, of the seven motorcycles available to rent near Columbus, four were cruisers, one was a trike, one was a little Honda Monkey, and one was a 2008 BMW R 1200 GS Adventure. The GSA was perfect – it was a bike I’d put many thousands of miles on, and it was equipped with a full set of aluminum luggage. During our ride on Ohio’s Windy 9, we stopped at Dirty Girl Coffee Roasters in Gloucester. Highly recommended! My plan was to pick up the BMW on a Sunday morning and return it the following Friday. The rental price was a reasonable $100 per day. I had never rented through Twisted Road before, so as with all first-time rentals, I was credited one free day, which reduced the total cost from $500 to $400. There are also multiday discounts, and with Twisted Road’s One, Two, Free program, renters earn one free day after completing two rides. I submitted my rental request, which was quickly approved by the owner, Eric. He was very responsive when I asked a few questions, and we exchanged messages through the Twisted Road website to confirm pickup and drop-off times. The BMW R 1200 GSA was clean, full of gas, and waiting for me when I arrived from the airport. After taking a red-eye flight from Los Angeles to Columbus, I took an Uber to Eric’s house, which is in a suburb north of the city. When I arrived, the bike was in the driveway, and it was clean and had a full tank of gas. We did a quick walk-around of the bike and snapped a photo of my driver’s license next to the odometer as well as photos of all sides of the bike to verify its condition. The bike handover took only a few minutes. After packing my gear, I was on the road. Scott’s BMW R 1200 RT, Greg’s rental BMW R 1200 GSA, and Eric’s BMW R 1200 GSA. For the next five days, I had a great time on the GSA. In Athens, I got to visit my great-aunt Jean, who has been in a nursing home for the past year. Even at 97, she’s still a lively, lovely lady! I also spent several days with Rider’s contributing editors, Eric Trow and Scott Williams, riding the Windy 9 routes. They were both on BMWs as well – Eric on a GSA, Scott on an RT – so my rental bike was in good company. On the day before I was to return the GSA, I texted the owner to confirm the drop-off time. He generously offered to drive me to the airport, which saved me some time as well as the expense of another 25-mile Uber ride. Downtown Nelsonville, Ohio, which is just north of Athens. Before returning the bike, I did my best to clean it up (we had ridden through some rain) and I filled the tank. The return process was simple, and Eric was friendly and easy to deal with. During our drive to the airport, I asked why he decided to rent out his motorcycle. He had rented a bike through Twisted Road during a multiday layover in Las Vegas (Eric is an airline pilot), and he enjoyed the experience so much that he wanted to provide that opportunity to other riders. Kiser’s BBQ in Athens, Ohio. Also highly recommended! If you’ve got a trip coming up – a family vacation, a business trip, etc. – and you can spare an extra day or two to do some riding, I suggest renting a bike through Twisted Road. Or like I did, you could plan a motorcycle vacation in a faraway place and save yourself the time and hassle of transporting a bike. Depending on your location, the selection may be limited, or you may need to travel a bit to pick up and drop off the bike. Larger cities or metropolitan areas will have more options, so that may be something to consider in your trip planning. For more information about renting a bike or listing your own bike for rent, visit the Twisted Road website. The post Renting a Motorcycle Through Twisted Road appeared first on Rider Magazine.