2011 IBR - The Inside View

[Warchild]

Cool little vid of the Start yesterday morning....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxWkuS-JFtc

 

[BwanaDik]

I don't know who "cdg" is, but they are going to have to kick it into high gear.

Almost 800 miles between the front runners and the back markers. Pretty big gap for such a "short" time on the road

 

[magnum1b]

Also on tap are the usual Sleep Bonuses, but this year, you actually obtain more points by sleeping *longer*.... one point per minute of sleep: minimum of 240 points (2 hr sleep) up to a maximum of 480 points (4 hour sleep).

Is the sleep bonus available each day, or each leg?

 

[SkooterG]

The riders who went to Alaska I hope are back in the states. They will have some serious miles to chew on to make New York. Hope they all make it.

I don't see how they could be back in the states yet. It's 1000 miles from Seattle to Hyder and it's only been 29 hours since the start.

And no 'easy' way to get back to Idaho, which I assume they will need to do. Wouldn't want to leave these northwestern states for the 3rd leg.

 

[Warchild]

Is the sleep bonus available each day, or each leg?

The latter.

 

[Warchild]

And no 'easy' way to get back to Idaho, which I assume they will need to do. Wouldn't want to leave these northwestern states for the 3rd leg.

Yeah, I think it prolly was an error doing Hyder.... these guys will surly be smoked at the end of Leg One, and who knows what awaits them in New York...

 

[phroenips]

And no 'easy' way to get back to Idaho, which I assume they will need to do. Wouldn't want to leave these northwestern states for the 3rd leg.

Yeah, I think it prolly was an error doing Hyder.... these guys will surly be smoked at the end of Leg One, and who knows what awaits them in New York...

um, probably you

 

[rickcorwn]

And no 'easy' way to get back to Idaho, which I assume they will need to do. Wouldn't want to leave these northwestern states for the 3rd leg.

Yeah, I think it prolly was an error doing Hyder.... these guys will surly be smoked at the end of Leg One, and who knows what awaits them in New York...

Leaving at 10AM from Seattle ridding a bbg pace to Hyder will take 16 hours that means an arrival time of about 1 or 2 AM. Where are you going to get a receipt in Hyder at that time of day :huh: For their sake I hope a picture will be good enough.

 

[IronMaiden]

Wow! Interesting format. Damn, damn, damn! I SO wish I was there in the thick of things. Hard being on the sidelines as JAFO.

No fuel log? WTF?!?! This is the Iron Butt Rally! The World's Toughest Motorcycle Competitioin. Not the kinder/gentler rally. Guess I rode in the last REAL IBR. :lol:

Good on the IBR staff for getting creative. Can't wait to see how this all plays out. Hope somebody got some good photos of those FJRs and their farklization. I could use some good tips before the next time around.

Woo-hoo! Let the games begin! Thanks for the update Dale!

Not so sure this is going to be kinder or gentler...oh well, maybe no fuel log fits that category, but to distinguish yourself from the crowd, they're going to have to put on some pretty impressive mileage to grab those capital buildings, along with a 4 corners and a Hyder 48+.

 

[SkooterG]

Leaving at 10AM from Seattle ridding a bbg pace to Hyder will take 16 hours that means an arrival time of about 1 or 2 AM. Where are you going to get a receipt in Hyder at that time of day :huh: For their sake I hope a picture will be good enough.

And I am assuming they all stopped in Blaine, WA, for the 4-corners points. Not sure how long that would have delayed them. The only other unknown factor that could or could not be big deal is border crossing delays. And of course the BIG unknown to all of us - how many points are the capitals worth and specifically how many points are these three giving up by going to Hyder. Telling for me is the none of the other Big Dogs chose this route. And I know form first hand experience you do NOT want to be completely worn out after the first leg. I have to believe the points for Capitals will get exponentially bigger on the following legs, and/or other tricks being thrown in. I don't think there has ever been and Iron Butt Rally that was won on the first leg. But many a rider have done their best to screw the pooch on a first leg.

This is SO much fun! It's just so damn easy to sit here and pontificate without having all the important information - rather than have to do the actual planning on the clock, and then ride the miles. Hell, I ain't ever running another one again! This is too easy! :lol:

 

[SkooterG]

Not so sure this is going to be kinder or gentler...oh well, maybe no fuel log fits that category, but to distinguish yourself from the crowd, they're going to have to put on some pretty impressive mileage to grab those capital buildings, along with a 4 corners and a Hyder 48+.

Uhhh, that was a joke you humorless dolt (Toby) or silly girl (Lisa)



Big miles for sure.

 

[rickcorwn]

Leaving at 10AM from Seattle ridding a bbg pace to Hyder will take 16 hours that means an arrival time of about 1 or 2 AM. Where are you going to get a receipt in Hyder at that time of day :huh: For their sake I hope a picture will be good enough.

And I am assuming they all stopped in Blaine, WA, for the 4-corners points. Not sure how long that would have delayed them. The only other unknown factor that could or could not be big deal is border crossing delays. And of course the BIG unknown to all of us - how many points are the capitals worth and specifically how many points are these three giving up by going to Hyder. Telling for me is the none of the other Big Dogs chose this route. And I know form first hand experience you do NOT want to be completely worn out after the first leg. I have to believe the points for Capitals will get exponentially bigger on the following legs, and/or other tricks being thrown in. I don't think there has ever been and Iron Butt Rally that was won on the first leg. But many a rider have done their best to screw the pooch on a first leg.

This is SO much fun! It's just so damn easy to sit here and pontificate without having all the important information - rather than have to do the actual planning on the clock, and then ride the miles. Hell, I ain't ever running another one again! This is too easy! :lol:

Hey, I'm just sittn' here drinkin' a beer and hittin' the refresh button talkin' smart :lol:

 

[7xray]

This is a hoot!

I'm wondering if some smart programmer could do a screen shot of the spotwalla, say every hour or so, and then make a movie of it? Probably wouldn't want to show it until after the event that it would be a pretty cool vid. Probably look like that game of life thing with all the little protozoae swarming all over the place.

7x

 

[Warchild]

Leaving at 10AM from Seattle ridding a bbg pace to Hyder will take 16 hours that means an arrival time of about 1 or 2 AM. Where are you going to get a receipt in Hyder at that time of day :huh: For their sake I hope a picture will be good enough.

No, it will not be good enough.

The only time a picture will count towards claiming a state is if you're taking the photograph of that state's capital for bonus point purposes. Grabbing the state capitol automatically garners you credit for that state.

And I am pretty damn sure none of these three went to Juneau....

So... Rick has nailed it: getting to Hyder early garners you nothing... they had to wait till some business opened this morning. And there ain't a whole lot of businesses in Hyder.

 

[Jeff Earls]

And no 'easy' way to get back to Idaho, which I assume they will need to do. Wouldn't want to leave these northwestern states for the 3rd leg.

Yeah, I think it prolly was an error doing Hyder.... these guys will surly be smoked at the end of Leg One, and who knows what awaits them in New York...

Here's a little analysis I did on this for another list.

The riders that went to Hyder should have gotten there in the wee

hours of this morning. It is 1000 miles from Sea-Tac to Hyder, on

roads that are good but not conducive to BBG pace. So if nothing went

wrong, they might have gotten there by 0300 or 0400 today. But

here's the thing, there is no longer gas in Meziadin Junction and my

sources tell me that the station in Kitwanga is no longer open 24

hours. This means that the riders would have had to gas up in

Smithers (probably) as last 24-hour gas, if they had the foresight to

do so. Once arriving in Hyder/Stewart they are stuck there until the

station in Stewart opens in the morning. While it is possible that

the ATM at the Sealaska Inn is working for a 24-hour receipt, they'll

be cooling their heels a while for gas.

Now factor in the need to get all 48 contiguous states. The gotcha

here for the Hyder riders is, believe it or not, a receipt from

Oregon. (Wisconsin poses a problem too, but I'll save that for later)

I planned a prototype route to Hyder Sunday night that started by

running down to Salem first. That adds six hours and 400 miles, if

traffic is moving, before starting the 1000 mile slog up to Hyder.

Six hours after a 10am start? Where does that put them heading back

through Seattle/Tacoma? Yes, 4pm on a Monday. I can hear you

laughing already. That route is foo'ked before they even get out of

the USA. So what is it about Oregon that causes a problem? A short

route from Hyder to Buffalo, NY crosses Canada through Edmonton and

Saskatoon but there is that pesky 48-state requirement. So how does

one route to get back down and pick up Oregon? Well, either return

to the USA via Sumas, Osoyoos, or Bonners Ferry (gotta get Idaho too).

Cross at Osoyoos and bomb down to Hermiston before doubling back on

I-90? Sketchy. Continue south to I-84 through Boise? That puts

Montana in jeopardy. Neither is a good choice when already 2+ days

into the leg and still on the west side of the continental divide.

Blow off Oregon entirely on this leg with the hope of getting it on

Leg 3? I'll talk later about why that is a very questionable choice.

So, you might be getting the impression that I think Hyder is a poor

choice. You are correct.

 

[SkooterG]

Ok so here is Leg 1 route including Hyder that I threw together VERY quickly.

Clicky.

It goes through several capitals (Helena, Bismarck, Pierre, St. Paul, Madison, and Lansing) and at 5000 miles in 103 hours is doable buy hard core guys. 1165 miles per day. Easy-peasy, right?

Perhaps this wasn't such a bad idea afterall? We just don't know yet what the capitals are worth points-wise. And skipping states like Oregon and Nebraska could be disasterous on leg 3.

One of my big strategy questions however, is - Do you want to get the 2nd of the 4 corners, Madawaska, ME before, or after Checkpoint 1? It would be a gamble, but getting that before arriving at checkpoint 1 and you could really leave yourself some additional time to scarf capitals on the successive higher point legs. In fact, by getting corner 2 on leg 1, you leave yourself time to get corner 3 on leg 2. I mean, it's a big 1000 mile ride from Jacksonville (Ckpt 3) to Key West (Corner 3) and back. You do that on leg 2, and now you have TONS of time to go capital hunting on leg 3 when points should be the worth the most. Again, a bit of a gamble, but one I would very seriously consider - without having all info of course!

Did I mention how much fun and how easy this is? :lol:

 

[Auburn]

Leaving at 10AM from Seattle ridding a bbg pace to Hyder will take 16 hours that means an arrival time of about 1 or 2 AM. Where are you going to get a receipt in Hyder at that time of day :huh: For their sake I hope a picture will be good enough.

No, it will not be good enough.

The only time a picture will count towards claiming a state is if you're taking the photograph of that state's capital for bonus point purposes. Grabbing the state capitol automatically garners you credit for that state.

And I am pretty damn sure none of these three went to Juneau....

So... Rick has nailed it: getting to Hyder early garners you nothing... they had to wait till some business opened this morning. And there ain't a whole lot of businesses in Hyder.

Speaking form experience, BeamerReamer and I were in Hyder about 3 weeks ago. The only gas station is in Stewart and it opens at 7:30 AM. The first place open in hyder is the Glacier Inn for breakfast at 7 AM. Most everything closes about 9 PM in town including the bars, although they say they stay open until the customers leave. Being a weeknight, I would guess that is pretty early.

 

[SkooterG]

Excellent analysis Jeff! Yes, while easily doable miles-wise skipping Oregon and Nebraska, that would most-likely be a terrible decision. I'm afraid these boys may have dug themselves in a hole that will be very hard to get out of.

So what do you think of my 'getting corners 2 and 3 early' strategy? Fire away! I've got a thick skin.

 

[Warchild]

So, you might be getting the impression that I think Hyder is a poor choice. You are correct.

Awesome analysis, Jeff! Obviously, great minds think alike...

I might have done Blaine just to have the 4-Corner option later if it proved reasonable, but I would not have done Hyder.

 

[Wolfhound]

The best year ever for us following the event ! What a blast so far. Doug Barret is riding the FJR I sold Him so I hope to see a good finish. He is very well prepared and determined. O.K., a car tire might seem a bit of a stretch . . . Awesome Dale & all involved !!