Finishing the Iron Butt Rally is an experience unto itself. After over a year of planning, months of training, thousands of dollars spent and a little over 10 thousand miles of riding in 11 days it’s over. It is also a bit strange to see such a crowd hanging about. From the rider’s perspective it can be both welcoming and a bit jarring; who are all these people and why are they cheering?
When I finished my first Iron Butt Rally the parking lot was pretty quiet and I was just happy to be there after wrecking my bike in Utah. When I finished in 2005 I was completely spent, having made a slight routing error that forced me into riding 1500 miles in the last 24hrs. To say I was “meat on a stick” would be kind, I was all done. In 2007 I returned to the finish 14 hrs early completely defeated as I did not have enough points to be a finisher after loosing my rally to a mechanical issue in Edmonton. I was determined after all the heartache and drama of 2007 that this one would be different.
I have been through a lot of changes in the last six years; a divorce, death of a parent, re-marriage and the bankruptcy of my employer of 21 years forced many changes, some welcome and necessary, others not so much. I wanted to have fun, be safe and most of all drama free for my friends and family. As I approached the finish I felt I had achieved all my goals, except I didn’t think I would top my best finish.
My route on the last leg was conservative and enough fun that I’d do it again.
Unlike the riders focused on points I didn’t dip south after Vancouver. I had a great ride through British Columbia and Montana, so great that tomorrow (8.13) I’m packing up the truck with the bikes on the trailer to head back. My wife (she of the real job) is flying into Denver and we’re going on a 11 day tour.
There are many different motivators for riding the Iron Butt Rally. It really is the Mt. Everest of street riding; this time almost a third of the riders who attempted to finish the rally did not. To be a finisher of the Iron Butt Rally is to accomplish something that fewer people have done than have climbed the real Mt. Everest. For others it is the competitive aspect, which thanks in part to the Internet and the easy publicity it brings has been on the rise in recent years. While it is great to watch the riders in it to win it at work, it gives me pause when a first time rider takes this approach.
Then there are the folks such as myself who know full well we are likely never to stand on the podium yet we keep coming back for more. For us the Iron Butt Rally is one of the greatest games on two wheels. It is incredibly well managed, fair and so much fun that multiple riders with no chance at a prize enter time and time again. The friendships made and camaraderie shared through the common experience are enduring.
In my case it was to put away the sting of the DNF in 2007. I was in that rally to be on the podium and my approach was not unlike how I prepared sailboats for national championships. At the end of the day I was more prepared to win than to deal with mechanical issues and ultimately that’s why I did not finish. At most Iron Butt Association events there comes a time when they introduce folks that have finished the IBR. The speaker will start by inviting everyone who has finished the IBR to stand, then remain standing if you’ve finished two, then three until there is only one rider standing. Every time I attended such an event and had to sit at two it was like picking at an old wound. This year the man most often the last standing did not finish the rally due to a mechanical gremlin; I can imagine how he feels. The other painful memory of 07 was meeting Chace at the finish. She got to see me at my lowest and I know it wasn’t any fun yet she still married me. It was very important to me that the finish of 2013 would be a wonderful contrast.
This is what I thought about often during the rally; the finish and some happiness for both of us. When I starting getting too ambitious, or hard on the equipment I thought of how much it sucked for her to have to deal with such a wet blanket in 07. It is why I ran such a conservative rally, this was not the year to worry about points or beating “that guy” whoever it may be. This was the year to finish and get a big hug.
| Love and Happiness |
I was thinking about this hug previously as I rolled down the Pennsylvania Turnpike looking for 200 point receipts. I didn’t want to get to the hotel too early as I’d wake Chace up and I didn’t want to get there too late and be so tired that I’d sleep all day. As I tried to nap on a bench I couldn’t help but think that while one more receipt might move me up one place It would put the hug at risk. Now in reality one more receipt wouldn’t have prevented our happy reunion but after 11 days we tend to fixate on the improbable.
A rider I know, admire and respect beat me by 173 points to finish 30th, which means I finished 31st. He burned up one of the highest mileage tires known to man on the first leg, another on the second and yet one more on the third. He rode 2,711 miles more than me and if not for rather big mistake he would be have finished in the top 12. That’s the evil nature of the IBR often it comes down to not making mistakes. This year mistakes kept many favorites off the podium and into the DNF column. I got lucky with traffic, ferries, hotel rooms and weather all of which allowed me to ride a virtually mistake free if not very casual rally. I know I feel much better having used my experience and limited skills for the hug and a 31st than if I had gone for the win and ended up 30th. The difference between 10th and 30th can come down to one receipt.
I got scored with little stress. I didn’t pay too much attention to my final score other than I was pretty sure it was good enough to be a finisher. It wasn’t until they started reading the results that I got nervous. I figured my score would put me in the bottom third, so when they got to 35th I started to get concerned, then they finally called me at 31st!
One thing I’ve always said is once the banquet is over nobody cares how you did in the rally, only if you finished. Since the rally I’ve run into folks who have offered up congratulations to which I’ve replied “What did I do?” I think it shows how incredible the Iron Butt Rally seems to “normal” people and that only those of us who play the game can really appreciate the accomplishment of those who finished in the top ten or on the podium. While I know what it takes to win the IBR, I also I know I don’t have it and I salute the riders who do.