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Ride Report - Iron Butt Rally 2017

5K views 20 replies 13 participants last post by  RaYzerman 
#1 ·
#4 ·
I can't imagine your disappointment Steve. And in reading your full report it sure gave me a glimpse of what the IBR involves. I had no idea how it worked with all the check points, and points system, etc. 11 days of riding and planning in unknown territory is not for the meek. I know I'd have to learn to use a GPS of some sort, and lose my paper maps that I am accustomed to for starters. I guess I always thought the IBR was "you start at this starting point and end at this ending point, and the guy that does it the quickest wins". That how much I knew about the IBR before reading your report.


Good stuff. Thanks for sharing and I have a feeling that you'll be doing this again in the near future.
 
#13 · (Edited)
I guess I always thought the IBR was "you start at this starting point and end at this ending point, and the guy that does it the quickest wins". That how much I knew about the IBR before reading your report
Which is not unusual in spite of the IBA working hard to overcome the perception that it's a race on public roads.

A personal tip-of-the-hat to you for getting a ride report done. I tried more than a few times and could never do it. It was simply too hard for me to gather all the things that happen over 11 days into anything cohesive. It was 3 months before I could bring myself to go back and look at the bonus listings to see what I could have done better (or simply "while I was less than 30 miles away").
 
#5 ·
Respect! No matter what the outcome, I would not be surprised about moments of grieving. There is loss even in victory; loss of purpose once the goal is achieved. But, as Churchill said, "Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." And Confucius, "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." For whatever my opinion counts, I think your attitude toward your result is what got you to the starting line to begin with. Thanks for the nice write up. And I hope you get the opportunity, if it is your desire, to be challenged again.
 
#8 ·
Your ride report explains the intricacies of the mamoth challenge of the IBR. To have competed in such an event is an accomplishment in itself... To understand ones own limitations and not succumb to human emotion and ignore those limitations highlights the discipline and fortitude required for one to compete in an event of this caliber. Never stop setting goals and dreaming...
 
#9 ·
I hope when you run the next one (not assuming, just believing), the checkpoints are closer to my side of the country. For all us armchair commandos who rip off a 1,000 mile day with no sweat, in our subconscious, we think of the IBR as simply riding long, facing weather and technical adversity, and such. If that were the case, lots of folks could do it. The strategy, bonii, and whatever machiavellian "string" bullshit involved is crazy complex, and that's when you haven't been riding for 20 hours. Reading the temps and times in your story, I flashed back to times I've ridden too far too cold, and too far too hot (when 98 degrees started feeling cool, I knew I had a problem). Congrats on being tough enough to embark, and congrats on being smart enough to realize when it was time to recycle. I remain Team Twigg.
 
#10 ·
Steve, you have my utmost respect and admiration for this and as you read through the posts here I hope you realize that our little group here really supports you. Reading your report was incredible and I hope you can succeed in your goals.

One question I have is what seat do you have ? I believe I read somewhere that you have a russel d-long but not sure. I realize that the seat is only a small part of this and it's all about the training and prep,,,, anyway good luck in your future endeavors.
 
#11 ·
Great write-up Steve. As happy as I was when I rolled up to the finish, seeing you there also put it into perspective a little. I was aware of your leg 2 issues and what happened to you could have easily happened to any of us. You absolutely made the right call and will be back to finish things in 2019 I hope. On a lighter note, I had similar scare for about 30 seconds on leg 3. I had switched one of my GPS's to read in Kilometers when I crossed into Canada. Their speed limits are painfully low and I didn't want to get a ticket. I was playing around with my route and thought I was over 3000 miles from the finish.....I thought I screwed up bad....until I remembered that was Kilometers. Took some time for my heart to calm down.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Great write up......I did an SS1000 in late May..worked out to 1090 miles in 17.5 hrs......not bad at all really. But there is so much more to the IBR that people (like me) don't realize....like picking the bonuses that will net you the most points in the least amount of time...figuring out the patterns, etc. Once I figured out that the IBR was more than punching 11 destinations into the GPS (one for each day), I came to the realization that the folks riding it border on mathematical, navigational and time management geniuses.


My hats off to the folks that figure it out....sorry your rally didn't end successfully for you....but you made memories, learned for the next one, and shared those lessons with others.
 
#15 ·
Great write up......I did an SS1000 in late May..worked out to 1090 miles in 17.5 hrs......not bad at all really. But there is so much more to the IBR that people (like me) don't realize....like picking the bonuses that will net you the most points in the least amount of time...figuring out the patterns, etc. Once I figured out that the IBR was more than punching 11 destinations into the GPS (one for each day), I came to the realization that the folks riding it border on mathematical, navigational and time management geniuses.

My hats off to the folks that figure it out....sorry your rally didn't end successfully for you....but you made memories, learned for the next one, and shared those lessons with others.
Thank you.

I'll be back in 2019.
 
#17 ·
Man, that was a great write-up. Couldn't have got up to take a wee if I had needed to, would have peed on the sofa rather than stop reading. LOL

Thanks for being transparent, can't imagine how you resisted blaming and grousing. {my favorite reactions to dissapointment}.

The only bad part was that I had the sudden urge to start training for the IBF. It was only for a moment, but it will probably give me bad dreams for a month.

I am with Redfish about the crying part, except that since my quadruple bypass 8 weeks ago I have become a real weenie. I cried the first Sunday I went back to Church, I cried when I hugged my grandson, I cried today when I was doing my first Cardio Rehab and I realized that for the first time in 10 years I could walk fast for more than 2 minutes and not have to stop, and I cried when I read your wife cried for you. That was the best part of your story.
 
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#19 ·
Steve:

I tip my helmet to you. That's quite an undertaking.

I'm pretty optimistic I could make a thousand miles in one day, but I would need to do it in a car. On day two I would be a danger to myself and others. On day three I wouldn't get out of bed. Good for you to give it a go, and double points for doing it the right way with careful training and preparation.

Thanks for sharing this so armchair adventurers like me can go along for the ride.

Bob Stewart
 
#21 ·
Great story, Steve, congrats on your accomplishments! Onward and upward, and may 2019 be a success!!:ale:
 
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