Morrissey
Well-known member
This past Saturday I crossed a big, long standing item off of my bucket list. I completed an IronButt Association SS1000 ride! For those of you who are unfamiliar with the IBA, they are motorcycle group committed to safe, long distance motorcycle touring. There are no membership dues etc. The only way to join is to complete one of their rides. The easiest of their rides is the Saddle Sore 1000. You have to ride a minimum of 1000 miles (1610km) in 24hrs or less. You can find all of the details at www.ironbutt.com , but basically you have to have a starting witness and a finishing witness and you must keep and log all of your dated business receipts (DBR) and log them and your mileage at each stop. When you are done you submit the paperwork along with a map outlining the basic route you took and the towns you stopped in to the IBA along with a check depending on the package you want to order. Their team of volunteers uses the information you send and their own tools to verify your ride. If it all checks out, they send you your membership number, certificate of completion, an IBA plate to mount behind your licence plate and any other swag you ordered related to your ride.
I got my first DBR (my official start time) at 4:09am at the Petro-Canada on the corner of Monaghan Rd and Lansdowne St in Peterborough. I rode south down Hwy 28 to Port Hope and then across the 401E and stopped at the OnRoute in Morrisburg ON. I then continued along the 401E to where it becomes the 20 in Quebec and took the 30 toll route around Montreal and eventually stopped for fuel in Drummondville QC. I then continued along the Trans-Canada to Saint Philippe-de-Nari QC where I filled up at the Petro-Canada station (pretty much the only business there!) at 2:01pm. I then reversed course with a pit-stop for a Subway sandwich in Montmagny QC and then fuel in Drummondville QC at the same Esso station, even used the same pump! I then stopped at the OnRoute Ingleside stop and then turned north up Hwy 28 in Port Hope and finally back to the Petro-Canada at Monaghan and Lansdowne in Peterborough at 12:04am!
In total, I did 1756km in 19hr and 55min. I planned my ride to leave so early as I am freshest early in the morning and pretty much turn into a pumpkin after midnight. I felt great mentally and physically all the way to Saint Philippe. On the return trip I started to get some monkey but and some neck and shoulder pain in my left shoulder. I still felt pretty good until about 10pm. It was there where it stopped being fun and really became work. I never felt drowsy, but the pain in my left shoulder and neck was pretty gnarly by the time I got home. I also experienced some cramping in my throttle hand on the second half of the journey. I have had this throttle holder that sort of looks like a finger sticking up on my Bandit or years and never had much use for it. It was invaluable on this trip! It was great to be able to use it and give my throttle hand a rest and stretch it out.
Even though it was physically pretty tough, I'm really glad that I did it. I've been wanting to do this for a LONG time. There are other IBA rides that I would like to attempt, such as the SS1000 around Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, but I have decided that I will not be attempting any further IBA rides as long as I have my Bandit. For me the riding position was great for the first 800km, but after that it got increasingly uncomfortable, especially in my neck and shoulders. I have had my eye on something a little more comfortable for a while now and this has only reaffirmed that feeling.
I will be mailing out all of the necessary documentation soon and will post again when I hear back from the IBA.
First pic is of my starting DBR in Peterborough. Second pic is my DBR from the halfway point in Saint Philippe. Third pic is my finishing DBR back in Peterborough.
http://imgur.com/x96Fp0M
http://imgur.com/5yhqc7O
http://imgur.com/r2n3toI
I got my first DBR (my official start time) at 4:09am at the Petro-Canada on the corner of Monaghan Rd and Lansdowne St in Peterborough. I rode south down Hwy 28 to Port Hope and then across the 401E and stopped at the OnRoute in Morrisburg ON. I then continued along the 401E to where it becomes the 20 in Quebec and took the 30 toll route around Montreal and eventually stopped for fuel in Drummondville QC. I then continued along the Trans-Canada to Saint Philippe-de-Nari QC where I filled up at the Petro-Canada station (pretty much the only business there!) at 2:01pm. I then reversed course with a pit-stop for a Subway sandwich in Montmagny QC and then fuel in Drummondville QC at the same Esso station, even used the same pump! I then stopped at the OnRoute Ingleside stop and then turned north up Hwy 28 in Port Hope and finally back to the Petro-Canada at Monaghan and Lansdowne in Peterborough at 12:04am!
In total, I did 1756km in 19hr and 55min. I planned my ride to leave so early as I am freshest early in the morning and pretty much turn into a pumpkin after midnight. I felt great mentally and physically all the way to Saint Philippe. On the return trip I started to get some monkey but and some neck and shoulder pain in my left shoulder. I still felt pretty good until about 10pm. It was there where it stopped being fun and really became work. I never felt drowsy, but the pain in my left shoulder and neck was pretty gnarly by the time I got home. I also experienced some cramping in my throttle hand on the second half of the journey. I have had this throttle holder that sort of looks like a finger sticking up on my Bandit or years and never had much use for it. It was invaluable on this trip! It was great to be able to use it and give my throttle hand a rest and stretch it out.
Even though it was physically pretty tough, I'm really glad that I did it. I've been wanting to do this for a LONG time. There are other IBA rides that I would like to attempt, such as the SS1000 around Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, but I have decided that I will not be attempting any further IBA rides as long as I have my Bandit. For me the riding position was great for the first 800km, but after that it got increasingly uncomfortable, especially in my neck and shoulders. I have had my eye on something a little more comfortable for a while now and this has only reaffirmed that feeling.
I will be mailing out all of the necessary documentation soon and will post again when I hear back from the IBA.
First pic is of my starting DBR in Peterborough. Second pic is my DBR from the halfway point in Saint Philippe. Third pic is my finishing DBR back in Peterborough.
http://imgur.com/x96Fp0M
http://imgur.com/5yhqc7O
http://imgur.com/r2n3toI
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