Well, it's over and done with and we succeed in our first attempt at an Iron Butt Saddle Sore 1000 ride. I rode it with my buddy, Bill - we both have similar riding styles and personalities - important IMHO since you are spending that long together on a ride.

We were shooting to complete it in 20 hours and finished in 21 hours and 13 minutes not too bad all things considered. We learned a lot of lessons about time management that we can apply the next time around, but finishing too fast would have taken away from some of the "stopping to smell the roses" part of the trip. Also, this was not a speed SS1K ride like some take on all interstate highway. This one was about 60% back roads and 40% highway with at least 4 mountain passes that I recall.

We started out at 2 AM and finished at just after 11 pm that night and rode about 1039 miles. The organizers planned a beautiful route and took me to some places in WY and UT that I had not been before.

We made our 1st scheduled gas stop in Laramie, WY on time, but we felt the cold temps and knew we were in for more, so added the extra layers we had before heading back out and filled out our required gas log. Don't know how it happened, well I do, but still hard to believe we ended up about 15 minutes behind leaving the 1st stop after arriving a few minutes early.

Unfortunately, the Snowy Mountain range part of the ride in WY was still in the dark but from what I could see in the moonlight, I want to go back and check it out again. BTW – it was 35F at the top of the pass and we weren't really prepared for that! Burr. We lost another 15 minutes getting to the second stop Walden, CO driving unfamiliar twisty mountain roads, watching out for animals (only saw one deer), and trying to stay warm.

So we arrived at our breakfast stop in Walden, CO at around 6:30 AM, and it was planned for 30 minutes, but ended up being closer to 90 minutes between slow service and changing clothing layers and from clear to dark face shields on our helmets. We never regained that hour and a half lost on the first two stops. Actually, each gas stop was planned for 10 minutes and I bet they took closer to 15-20 at each one, but that was needed time out of the saddle and well worth it.

I won't bore you with all the other details, but I have to say and I think you'll see from the photos that this was a gorgeous route. The town of Vernal, UT had the streets line with beautiful flower baskets for at least 2 miles – a stunning scene in the middle of a semi-arid environment. The photos also show some of the twisty mountain roads and some of the long straight stretches.

Today as I sit here typing this, my butt feels surprisingly good, and I'd do it again without too many changes. For me, I'd rather this be about enjoying the ride than being the first one back. The guy who did it in the least amount of time did it in 14 hrs / 43 min, 70% of the time predicted by Mapquest, which means he must have been hauling ****, not eating, and probably had an external fuel tank for less stops too – what fun is that? It's not a race for prize money – it's an adventure!

Hope you enjoy the photos of the ride!


My buddy Bill (Nickname is Animal, but here he looks like Mr. Happy!)


A ranch near Hayden, CO


A closer shot of the ranch house.


A view from my seat.


Self photo.










Some of the twisty mtn roads we rode.


Another self photo - even got Bill in the frame!


More of the twisty mtn roads we rode.


Vernal, UT


A long stretch from Price to Green River, UT

 

Looks like a Beautiful day for a ride .. Agree with try to enjoy the ride as you do it not just to prove something ..

 

I have done three so far and they are loads of fun. The rout you chose was awsome.

r. Todd

 

Good report and pics too. Thanks
Kroozeabout

 

Congrats on a safe and enjoyable ride; and thanks for the pics.

As for the time it took, the patches and certificate are the same whether it takes 15 hours or 23 hours.

Carl

 

Now THAT looked like a kick! Great pic's and options for an IB run. Here in Texas we've got unending flatland for our IB rides. Thanks for sharing.

 

Nice pics and job well done. There are a few of these I want to do and yours just inspires me on. Gotta be able to smell the roses.

 

Thanks guys. A couple of things I forgot. The Anti-Monkey Butt powder, under armor compression shorts, Olympia Airglide 3 pants, and Harley Skull Switchback jacket worked great. I will however, take heated gear for the night if I go over a mtn pass after dark again. On the plus side, Bill said that the HD Switchback jacket lights up like a lighthouse at night. The ability to zip off the outer layer and have a mesh jacket during the day was awesome.

Also, here's a short video I took while riding. I was amazed I kept it all in frame. BTW - that is my stereo, not me singing. I sound more like a injured animal!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpPBFqd8eSw