2013 Iron Butt Rally - The Inside View

[Mike Aldea]

He's at the conch train. OMFG, he's not reading Leg 1 pages, is he????!!?!?
Would they put that in there twice???

Highly unlikely. KW was worth, I believe, 3K points on leg 1. There's no way 3K would be worth that effort on leg 3. I heard parking lot scuttlebutt that KW was in this leg again. I didn't report it because I wasn't sure it was true. There could be a combo (similar to the PE on leg 2) or maybe Cape Canaveral or other locations down that way - or in between there and the barn.

The thing about KW (from my perspective) is that it's not so much a 'sucker bonus' as usually not worth the effort to get. When I'm looking at a bonus pack, one of things I consider is the number of stops. Less stops = mo betta. Less dealing with 'stuff' and chances to screw up. Also makes one screw up more painful, but just don't screw up and that's not a problem. tee hee

So, KW is usually worth a nice point value as a single bonus, but typically, it's also not worth the effort to get. Brett Donahue went there in 07 and placed 3rd at rally's end. Heck, Peter Behm WON the rally in 11 and KW was part of his plan. It was a location in 09, but I don't recall who went or what their final outcome was, I was kinda wrapped up in my own locations at that time.

Just my thoughts on it. I sure hope our KW rider made a good plan and is rewarded for the effort!

I can't see Spotwalla at work, so I sure appreciate all the updating y'all are doing here. Thanks!

Could they possibly have made this a combo bonus with picking it up on Leg 1? It could certainly make for an interesting way to possibly shake up the final standings. But might be too cruel for the riders that have planned their routes well from the beginning.

Still this scenario could be interesting. You have a rider that has not been in contention due to not getting a very good Leg 1 points total because they chose to go to Key West. Now they are told if they go back to Key West and pick up the same bonus a second time on Leg 3 the points awarded will make up for having chosen to go to Key West on the first leg. If picking up Key West a 2nd time was going to require an extremely difficult, epic, ride to avoid being time barred at the finish, it would be a challenge in keeping with the IBR. But doing Key West on Leg 3 does not seem to be the case for this rally.

 

[Tyler]

So the rider in FL is on their way to Havana?!?

EDIT: Nvm... I zoomed in closer and saw s/he is at Key West... lol

Here ya go- this image is too good to miss.

 

[Twigg]

Could they possibly have made this a combo bonus with picking it up on Leg 1? It could certainly make for an interesting way to possibly shake up the final standings. But might be too cruel for the riders that have planned their routes well from the beginning.

Still this scenario could be interesting. You have a rider that has not been in contention due to not getting a very good Leg 1 points total because they chose to go to Key West. Now they are told if they go back to Key West and pick up the same bonus a second time on Leg 3 the points awarded will make up for having chosen to go to Key West on the first leg. If picking up Key West a 2nd time was going to require an extremely difficult, epic, ride to avoid being time barred at the finish. it would be a challenge in keeping with the IBR. But doing Key West on Leg 3 does not seem to be the case for this rally.

I like the "out-of-the-box" thinking, but I'm not sure it could work like that.

The result could be that a Rider who showed poor planning skills at the start of the Rally, got lucky, and rose in the standings above others who had actually been planning better all along. They would have a legitimate concern if the organisors treated them like that. While the Rally has often had tricky elements to it, requiring good planning, and great riding, it is not known for being a crapshoot ... They don't play tricks on the riders.

What might be possible is that the Rally Pack for the first leg could include the first part of a combo bonus, the rest to be revealed later, they would have given a "heads-up".

 

[Warchild]

Still this scenario could be interesting. You have a rider that has not been in contention due to not getting a very good Leg 1 points total because they chose to go to Key West. Now they are told if they go back to Key West and pick up the same bonus a second time on Leg 3 the points awarded will make up for having chosen to go to Key West on the first leg. If picking up Key West a 2nd time was going to require an extremely difficult, epic, ride to avoid being time barred at the finish, it would be a challenge in keeping with the IBR. But doing Key West on Leg 3 does not seem to be the case for this rally.

But this rider was not hurting for points... at all.

In fact, this rider was among the Top 10 in the standings after Leg 2.

It is a curious route, but then, none of us know what is in the Leg 3 Bonus Listing that compelled this rider to have made these decisions.

 

[jwhite518]

This combo idea - a KW combo that is only announced on Leg 3 - is inherently unfair. It makes the Leg3 KW worth points only to people who went in Leg 1. All bonuses should be available to all riders. Anything otherwise is called the Utah 1088.

 

[wfooshee]

What might be possible is that the Rally Pack for the first leg could include the first part of a combo bonus, the rest to be revealed later, they would have given a "heads-up".

That came up earlier when I spoke of the Big Boy locomotives. One on the 1st leg for 298 points, 3 on the second leg for a combined 306 points, and 4 remaining. Some superbonus for getting them all? Geographically not feasible, though, as the remaining four were Pomona, Denver, Dallas, and Green Bay. Two north, two south. And with no notice of combining them, which would be beyond unfair without a "this will go with something later."

 

[qkslver]

Just ran a mileage check on the rider in Golden, BC. From there to rally hotel is 2200 miles by 10:00 am on Fri. I think he/she is toast?

 

[LindaT]

Do the riders know what the required points are for being a finisher?

LindaT.

 

[Warchild]

Do the riders know what the required points are for being a finisher?
LindaT.

Yes, they do.

Sidebar: Honey, I gotta send you my tankbag ASAP so's you can fix up a complete destroyed zipper! It wasn't one of your tankbags, doll; which was the obvious problem, in hindsight..

 

[BwanaDik]

Just ran a mileage check on the rider in Golden, BC. From there to rally hotel is 2200 miles by 10:00 am on Fri. I think he/she is toast?

A little more than 55 MPH for the rest of the rally. Sort of like an extended BB1500. Probably can be done with a short rest break and a lot of stamina

 

[Jaugie]

After having an epic ride and squashing a coyote in Nevada on the final leg in 2011, and as Dale said the rider is in the top 10 I wonder if it is Ken Meese? sounds like something he might try from what I am told. Could be within striking distance.

 

[Dan S]

So you don't know or you aren't telling if the Fort Meyers ferry is worth a million points?

 

[Twigg]

Just ran a mileage check on the rider in Golden, BC. From there to rally hotel is 2200 miles by 10:00 am on Fri. I think he/she is toast?

If we call that 40 hours .... It would be 55 mph average overall.

Take away six hours for sleep, and another two for stops it becomes 68 mph, or BBG pace.

These guys can do this.

 

[skyking96w]

Update on deer-Strike rider Steve McCaa from Ray King on the LDRiders list... looks like Steve is gonna tough it out after all!

After many, many phone calls and text messages and gnashing of teeth andlamentations, he is accepting a loaner bike, a Kawasaki Vulcan 500 with afuel cell, from Bill Norris in Lubbock. Seems it's the same bike thatWallace French used to finish in 2011...if I understood correctly.Thanks to Paul Glaves and James Geist and Bill Norris, and to Robert Krullof Lone Star BMW in Austin, who would have stayed open late, but did nothave the necessary parts.Most of the waiting time was for the tow truck, but we needed most of itfor all the phone calls....Ray King

Awesome.... GO, Bambi-Killer!!!!

Hmmmm -- actually -- that referred to Rony, whose bike puked it's drive shaft near Lubbock.

Ray King

 

[flars]

"So you don't know or you aren't telling if the Fort Meyers ferry is worth a million points?"
Two items: (a)I don't think the ferry is running any more, and (

the ferry is passengers only. So, unless you are Kevin Lechner...

 

[Warchild]

So you don't know or you aren't telling if the Fort Meyers ferry is worth a million points?

I don't know.

If I did know, I would not give out that particular info.

I can only provide "Insider" info to a certain degree.... for example, I can tell you if a rider is in a certain region (example: the Pacific Northwest, Texas, the Southwest, etc), but I can not tell you things like "Looks like Iggy is boarding the Port Townsend Ferry", because Iggy's competitors don't need to know he scored that particular bonus.

I can tell you a lot, but there is much more that I simply can not tell you or discuss in any way....

 

[RossKean]

Just ran a mileage check on the rider in Golden, BC. From there to rally hotel is 2200 miles by 10:00 am on Fri. I think he/she is toast?

The Spot in Golden is identified as "droid cell phone". I assume this is doing the tracking via cellular rather than satellite? If that is the case, it wouldn't update if out of cell range - entirely possible outside of major towns in that part of the country. Hope that's the case since it hasn't moved in a little while.

 

[powderhound5]

IGGY Update:
He was in Canada......... and then a seriously distracting city of Vancouver (where every 23 year old woman is a hottie in that town...or has he just been rallying for 9 days?)

Bill and Susan Watt greeted him at the bonus in Vancouver...with a homemade brownie and bottle of water! Bill was the mastermind of the Canadian portion of this rally I believe.

I was talking to IGGY and he just stopped talking and looked away... I thought 1,000 mile stare....nope Vancouver is the birthplace of Lulu-lemon and IGGY was checking out, OK Mesmerized, by a crop topped , short shorted , deeply tanned Vancouverite of the female persuasion who was walking by. This bonus was directly in Hottie Central. Only Kits or Wreck Beach would have been a better location.

Susan did bonus watching duty with the brownies and water as bait for most of the day and met quite a few riders. I got down to see IGGY. On Day 9 having your pals at a bonus is a great boost, we could see the smile under his helmet.

I leave for PA in the morning and will be bringing along Susan's baking for the Rally Staff - it is sort of a tradition over the past few Rallies. I am flying this time not driving. I remember when I used to ride around checkpoint to checkpoint as did the rest of the Rally Staff.

 

[Mike Aldea]

Still this scenario could be interesting. You have a rider that has not been in contention due to not getting a very good Leg 1 points total because they chose to go to Key West. Now they are told if they go back to Key West and pick up the same bonus a second time on Leg 3 the points awarded will make up for having chosen to go to Key West on the first leg. If picking up Key West a 2nd time was going to require an extremely difficult, epic, ride to avoid being time barred at the finish, it would be a challenge in keeping with the IBR. But doing Key West on Leg 3 does not seem to be the case for this rally.

But this rider was not hurting for points... at all.

In fact, this rider was among the Top 10 in the standings after Leg 2.

It is a curious route, but then, none of us know what is in the Leg 3 Bonus Listing that compelled this rider to have made these decisions.

So this rider did not go to Key West on Leg 1 according to Sally's rally reports. Thus the scenario I suggested would not apply because this would not be their 2nd trip to Key West during this rally.

 

[08FJR4ME]

Still this scenario could be interesting. You have a rider that has not been in contention due to not getting a very good Leg 1 points total because they chose to go to Key West. Now they are told if they go back to Key West and pick up the same bonus a second time on Leg 3 the points awarded will make up for having chosen to go to Key West on the first leg. If picking up Key West a 2nd time was going to require an extremely difficult, epic, ride to avoid being time barred at the finish, it would be a challenge in keeping with the IBR. But doing Key West on Leg 3 does not seem to be the case for this rally.

But this rider was not hurting for points... at all.

In fact, this rider was among the Top 10 in the standings after Leg 2.

It is a curious route, but then, none of us know what is in the Leg 3 Bonus Listing that compelled this rider to have made these decisions.

Another tidbit of information to dwell on. The suspense builds folks. Tomorrow will be useless at work and i have so much crap on my plate write now.

Dave