I did it again. | GTAMotorcycle.com

I did it again.

Morrissey

Well-known member
My second IronButt Association Saddle Sore 1000 is in the bag!

Back on August 13 I pulled into my local Petro-Can station, filled up and left shortly after 4am. My ride took me on a loop to Kaladar, Pembroke, North Bay, Timmins, Sudbury, Toronto and then back to Peterborough! Once again I finished in just under 20hrs which was my target time. Total mileage for the official ride was 1,684km. I survived on a breakfast of toast with PB+J before I left, 5 granola bars spread out at various fuel stops and 3L of water.

The ride was a mixed bag of really nice and really boring. I was very concerned about deer and other critters on my first leg to Kaladar. I didn't see any live ones but there were more than a few freshly squished ones on the side reminding me to watch my speed and stay alert. The sun finally came up about a half hour passed Kaladar. The ride to Pembroke was really nice. The ride from Pembroke to North Bay over Algonquin Park was beautiful and I will be riding that again for sure. By the time I got to North Bay it was hot. The ride from North Bay to Timmins was also very scenic but it was getting even hotter. My Joe Rocket's arm and chest vents weren't providing much relief in as the temps (not including humidity) hit 34c! My chili-pad wasn't helping either. All this coupled with the ST blowing it's engine heat on my legs and it made for a very hot, very sweaty day! Timmins was a low point for the day. The roads are absolutely awful in town. The ride down to Sudbury was a little better. Where 101 meets 141 there is a sign that reads "no gas for 120km" and they mean it! I didn't even see a side road or driveway for those 120km! I got horribly lost coming into Sudbury (I hate Sudbury). I swear Ray Charles was the city planner! It took me a lot of zig-zagging to finally find the gas station I was looking for and get the heck out of there! The ride south to Toronto was b-o-r-i-n-g and although I didn't see any smoke, the French River area smelled like bbq. A quick fuel stop in Toronto on Keele St and I was back on the 401 headed home. Nothing really to report there either. I pulled in to the same gas station I left from just before midnight to get my final DBR and then headed home for a shower and headed to bed. I didn't wake up until 11:30am Tuesday morning, which if you know me is really unusual! I never sleep passed 8am no matter how late I was up the day before.

I was really glad to get this second SS1000 ride done. I felt like my first ride was a bit of a cheat as it was a straight line run to the halfway point, turn around and retrace my ride home. This one was a full "loop" styled ride complete with sections that weren't 400 series highways and I was still able to do it in under 20hrs. I managed my stopped time a lot better on this ride. I only had 2 non-fuel stops. One on the 141 to stand in the shade, dump a little water on my head/shirt and cool off and on stop at an ONroute just south of Barrie for a bum-break. Otherwise it was all riding with short fuel/snack stops. I only stopped the bike 8 times between the start and finish stops. This ride qualifies for an "all Ontario" ride, which really just means a different picture in the lower right corner of the certificate and I can order the corresponding pin and sticker if I wish.

There were a few take aways from this ride. First, my ST is WAY more comfortable to do one of these rides vs my Bandit, but it still has a few kinks to work out to maximize it's comfort. A set of bar risers are a must and a new seat is probably going to happen. The other big lesson learned this time around is that I will NEVER do another ride like this in temps over 27c if there is significant humidity attached to that. My first SS1000 ride last year the temps stayed under 25c and that was great. Next year's ride will be either in Spring or late September, early October.

I have been waiting to submit the paper work until this week as the "all Ontario" stickers and pins weren't going to be ready until September anyway. I will post a picture of the certificate when/if my ride is approved!

Here are a few pics:

https://imgur.com/CaNTyGe

https://imgur.com/oBLZ7Z7

https://imgur.com/7GSLxVp
 
Nice work Robert. congrats again.
 
Congrats on completing the ride.

When I looped Superior, a few hours of the ride was at 30+ degrees and 100% humidity. My riding buddy was on an ST1300, I think he qualified for a Darwin Award.
 
Congratulations. That stock seat is a killer and a literal PITA after a few hours. Most LD ST owners change it out for an aftermarket one.
 
Thats crazy, even with an air-hawk I need a butt break every hour or 2 depending on how much I'm moving in the saddle. Good job, maybe I'll attempt it one day. I do 400k a day for work sometimes haha.
 
Wow congrats, all the way to Timmins and back in a day very awesome!
 
I won't be doing another one this year. Sometime next year I will tackle the Lower Great Lakes circle tour. Thinking in either late May or early June or late September.
 

Back
Top Bottom