I wanted to share some thoughts on this years IBR.
First off:
A BIG congrats to Derek for attaining the ultimate accomplishment in the sport! Derek is a friend and a class act.
Josh - You are a monster when it comes to riding BIG miles. IMO you will be the rider in the future that has everyone scratching their heads
wondering how the heck you did it.
Wendy - Everyone speaks of what a great rider Wendy is (And that she is) But I will always remember her for her concern for other riders. We were
headed to Colorado from check point 1, I was really struggling and a rider rode up beside me to check out if I was OK. Wendy was that rider,
I will never forget that. I watched her throughout the rally riding to Bonus locations that I was too lazy to snag - she rode HARD! Her spirited ride
leading the way up Pikes Peak ... I could go on and on. Big CONGRATS Wendy!
Matt - It was great seeing you again. Your advice has helped me much over the years. 3 IBRs ... now that I experienced 1, the fact you have competed in
3 just blows me away.
Tim - Thanks again ! You see I went into an IBR not knowing how to route. I had a terrible time just loading the bonus locations into the GPS. We are standing
in the parking lot just minutes before the start, I had gotten maybe an hour of sleep the night before - and still had no route or idea where I was headed.
Tim's says to me that his first rally he rode bonus to bonus with no route planned. Well thats what I did for the next 11 days - Thanks Tim !!!
Greg - Thanks for trying to teach a MAC user new tricks. You set up my tech stuff for me. Congrats on your top 10 finish!
As for my ride... I learned some things:
I could route on the fly
I made a tough decision about 30 hours from the finish to play it safe. North Carolina waited with its huge points while I had a combination of bad luck (Accident in Houston
which shut down the interstate) and stupid mistakes (Riding to the south end in New Orleans and having to ride north, then south again) It put me in a position to give up part
of my rest bonus and make tracks to NC AND hope I arrived before sunset, or get 8 hours sleep and roll into Cranberry fresh. I took the easy path. I wanted the 3 digit and that
was my prime objective. I will have to live with that "What if" feeling for some time now. This was going to be my one and only IBR ... but thanks to some great riders, I am not so
sure now.
Thanks to everyone!!!
I forgot to mention SkooterG - Some key advice in the months leading up to this event! (But dog-gone... I should've done Key West)
First off:
A BIG congrats to Derek for attaining the ultimate accomplishment in the sport! Derek is a friend and a class act.
Josh - You are a monster when it comes to riding BIG miles. IMO you will be the rider in the future that has everyone scratching their heads
wondering how the heck you did it.
Wendy - Everyone speaks of what a great rider Wendy is (And that she is) But I will always remember her for her concern for other riders. We were
headed to Colorado from check point 1, I was really struggling and a rider rode up beside me to check out if I was OK. Wendy was that rider,
I will never forget that. I watched her throughout the rally riding to Bonus locations that I was too lazy to snag - she rode HARD! Her spirited ride
leading the way up Pikes Peak ... I could go on and on. Big CONGRATS Wendy!
Matt - It was great seeing you again. Your advice has helped me much over the years. 3 IBRs ... now that I experienced 1, the fact you have competed in
3 just blows me away.
Tim - Thanks again ! You see I went into an IBR not knowing how to route. I had a terrible time just loading the bonus locations into the GPS. We are standing
in the parking lot just minutes before the start, I had gotten maybe an hour of sleep the night before - and still had no route or idea where I was headed.
Tim's says to me that his first rally he rode bonus to bonus with no route planned. Well thats what I did for the next 11 days - Thanks Tim !!!
Greg - Thanks for trying to teach a MAC user new tricks. You set up my tech stuff for me. Congrats on your top 10 finish!
As for my ride... I learned some things:
I could route on the fly
I made a tough decision about 30 hours from the finish to play it safe. North Carolina waited with its huge points while I had a combination of bad luck (Accident in Houston
which shut down the interstate) and stupid mistakes (Riding to the south end in New Orleans and having to ride north, then south again) It put me in a position to give up part
of my rest bonus and make tracks to NC AND hope I arrived before sunset, or get 8 hours sleep and roll into Cranberry fresh. I took the easy path. I wanted the 3 digit and that
was my prime objective. I will have to live with that "What if" feeling for some time now. This was going to be my one and only IBR ... but thanks to some great riders, I am not so
sure now.
Thanks to everyone!!!
I forgot to mention SkooterG - Some key advice in the months leading up to this event! (But dog-gone... I should've done Key West)
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