A life-long tinkerer and Honda motorcycle enthusiast, Colin Gorey founded Reliability Rally in 2017. Reliability Rally brought together friends for a weekend motorcycle ride with a unique twist, every bike ridden must be purchased for $1,000 or less. The low-budget bikes are fixed up and then pitted against each other in friendly competition. This concept proved to be great fun and served as a gateway to getting new riders into motorcycling and motorcycle repair.
Gorey, who will celebrate 15 years with Honda in January, has mostly purchased Honda motorcycles to fix up.
“I would say 80% of the motorcycles I’ve owned are Hondas,” he said. “They tend to be the best option. They hold up better, are well thought out for servicing, plus, you can still get parts because Honda is great at supporting customers long after something goes out of production. I have a 40-year-old motorcycle I can still get new parts for.”
This year, Gorey ran a 1998 Honda CBR600F3 that he purchased for $200. “Some assembly was required,” he said.
Gorey said most of the bikes entered into Reliability Rally are Hondas, too, because they are so reliable.
“I think it’s telling because half of all our entries over the past seven years have been Hondas,” he said. “It just speaks volumes to Honda in general. We were the kings back then with motorcycles and made great products. We still do.”
At Honda, Gorey is based at the Auto Development Center (ADC) in Raymond, Ohio, where he develops accessories. Gorey came to Honda from college and started in design engineering. The first part he designed was the roof rails and crossbars for the 2011 Odyssey.
“I really like what I do,” Gorey said. “In my current project management role, I have a lot of influence on the product, and it gives me a pride to know what we are doing will be in the lives of customers someday.”
Gorey has mostly focused on the development of exterior and electric work, and was Design Engineering Project Leader for accessories for the Acura NSX. He is most proud of his work on the NSX carbon fiber exterior parts, which eventually became a factory option.
“I really love the joy of creation,” he said. “I’ve always been wired that way. I enjoy who I work with, but for me, it really comes down to enjoying product development.”
A long-time Honda fan, Gorey was happy to find a job at Honda. Even in college, he tinkered with his vehicles, and in 2005, he swapped in a supercharged Acura Integra GSR engine into his Civic Hatchback for better performance.
Gorey then graduated to motorcycles, which brought Reliability Rally to life. It has grown beyond a gathering of friends into a circuit of events held several times each summer.
“I get a lot of enjoyment out of bringing people together and riding motorcycles, and this is a way to do it,” Gorey said. “It’s extremely accessible. We don’t care what you’re riding or where you come from. It’s all about going on a big ride and having your own adventure. It’s about making new friends and sharing a great experience. Reliability Rally has gotten a lot of people into motorcycling because it’s so cheap and fun.”
When he’s not working, planning Reliability Rally weekends or fixing up another vintage motorcycle, Gorey enjoys tennis, running and especially hiking – outside Ohio in search of mountains. The Appalachian ridges in rural Virginia is Colin’s favorite place to explore, offering spectacular scenery and endless winding mountain roads.
Thanks to the Reliability Rally and his work in accessories, Gorey has many opportunities to fulfill his love of Honda vehicles. “I’ve always been a Honda fan boy,” he said. “It has been part of what drives me at work.”
