Saw an update today on the LD Rider list. He also has a blog somewhere but I puked reading it.
I don't write the blog, and having one wasn't my idea. I sure as hell didn't name it "Ryanbutt", either.
However, I'm grateful for those willing to put in the time and effort to back me, whether it's the blog, working on the bike, or sponsorship in the form of expenses, tires, et cetera. I don't have the means for this endeavor, and these people make it possible.
What I do have is the easy part, riding the bike. We all love to do that. For people to show this kind of faith and put it behind me is truly incredible.
I was getting 16K out of a set of MEZ6s in day to day use, but it was stupid to think that I'd get 5-6 days out of them at BBG pace.
A ride like this does not allow any room for mistakes, and I made several, primarily the tire choice. I'm trading in my Z6s for Marathons.
The timing of the ride made no difference in the result, but was another mistake nonetheless. The opportunity arose in the last few weeks, and not being drawn for the Iron Butt Rally provided additional motivation. However, to use these things as a way to "stick it" to the rally, the IBA, and the people who make its decisions was simply wrong. I love the club and its people, and this shot at them was clearly misplaced.
Narcisstic? That's a bit of a stretch, and I would have preferred to have Dale tell me that when we spoke in St. Louis, but will take it for what it's worth. There is no shortage of huge egos in the IBA, and I like to think that both of us will admit there may be none bigger than ours.
We had our first substantial conversations in St. Louis. Dale is a fine gentleman and great rider. If you'd like to consider us rivals, enjoy yourself, but the truth is that we have much more in common as riders than the desire to string together more BBGs than anyone else.
Dale certainly has many fans and supporters here, and deservedly so. I congratulated him on his great ride when we spoke, and was the first to tell him that his record still stands after I shredded another tire and struck a deer at the end of the fourth BBG. We laughed about my mistakes, the tires I should have been using, and the apparent lack of reason for rides like these.
However, when someone states that the record "will never be broken", they have a great deal to learn about extreme long distance riding, and me. After all, I'm using a much better motorcycle than Dale did.... ;^)
I certainly have a great deal to learn about extreme long distance riding, and myself, as well. It's a continual process that will never be complete, and should never be. It is the most important motivation for such an undertaking.
I've addressed all of the criticism and questions to the best of my ability. I welcome more of it, whether it's via the forum or PM. I thank you for it, and will use it constructively.
Having said that, I'll offer a brief synopsis of my ride, hopefully without the nausea induced by the blog.
The first two days, I took a route from St. Louis to Portland, Maine that provided 1530 miles. At the end of the second day, I swerved to avoid a deer, ended up in the median, and went airborne over an erosion barrier. I expected bent wheels, blown fork seals, and all kinds of irreversible damage, but the only problem was the windscreen. The leverage of the custom Rifle (10" over stock) screen, combined with the impact of the landing, broke the mechanism that moves the screen and holds its position.
I returned to St. Louis, where IBA/BMW legend Paul Glaves and I agreed that the tire looked good for at least one more day. I decided to do a quick out-and-back route, to Summit, South Dakota, and change tires on my return. About 1200 miles later, the tire could no longer hold air. End of first attempt, 3059 miles, <48 hours. This failure did allow me to be in St. Louis for the IBR checkpoint, where I could check on friends' progress, and offer minor help to a rider or two.
I started the second attempt Sunday at about 0500. Portland and back, once again. I felt much more confident about the tires, since I was now running the maximum recommended pressure of 42/50 psi, front/rear. I had thought that max pressure for the Z6s was the standard 36/42 I had been running for the last twenty years, but this changed with the latest generation. I blamed the "premature" wear on my ignorance.
After returning to St. Louis, I headed for Seattle, via Fargo. Four miles from the hotel in Columbus, Montana, and the end of the fourth day/night, I crested a hill to greet a large doe in the middle of the road. I swerved left, behind it, but it turned to meet me, with my right leg and saddlebag taking most of the impact. The bike wobbled a bit, but stayed upright, a testament to a fine design based on mass centralization. On a BMW GS, for example, things might have been different....
I went back to see if anything could be salvaged from the saddlebag, but there were no pieces larger than a dollar bill. I looked for the latch/lock cylinder, hoping that I could put that in a new bag without the delay of waiting for a factory match, but it was nowhere in sight. The deer lay in the road, still alive, but not for long. I cursed at it a bit, limped back to the bike, got an ending receipt, and headed for the hotel.
I awoke after a short nap, and filled up, getting a receipt for the start of the fifth day. I looked at my rear tire, and began to wonder if it would make it back to St. Louis. It wouldn't. My leg might get me through another day or two, but to attempt seven more without having a doctor check it was beginning to look like another dumb mistake, and one much more serious than tires or timing.
End of second attempt. 6092 miles, <96 hours, one deer killed, fully documented. Nice ride, perhaps, but not good enough for me, or Dale.
I was able to drag myself down the road to replace the tire, which was showing 360 degrees of steel belt by the time I arrived in Sioux Falls. I arrived in St. Louis just in time to see the IBR finishers Gold medals awarded. Congratulations to Greg Marbach (is he Skooter G here?), the top top rookie finisher, in 7th place. Great ride, Greg!
As I've said, I welcome your questions, comments, and criticism. The negative stuff is that from which I will learn most, so bring it!
Thanks,
John Ryan
