Now, my personal experience from BMRx 2016: it is truly fun, and that's no ****. My bonus photos are
here.
The routes got posted, I selected the GA-WV-AR-GA triangle, and estimated 2,100 miles along the base route. Entered those points into my Google Maps and prepared my bike and my mind. Started thinking about making those final route decisions an hour before starting, my competitive aspirations, and whether I wanted to really beat the **** out of myself adding lots of miles for additional points.
About two weeks ahead of time, Aunt Kelly (my bride-to-be) decided she wanted to "find out about this Long Distance Rally thing", so she elected to ride pillion. That changed everything.
I promised her that we would run the absolute minimum to be finishers, unless she suggested otherwise. We agreed that she couldn't make that call on the first day, but only after she found out what it meant to be in the saddle 12 hours.
RenoJohn extended her an invitation to compete, and I insisted she update her gear to withstand the potential cold and wet. We made a solemn vow that we would not quit unless absolutely forced to do so. Well, maybe it was more like ......... I extracted that solemn vow from her.
Found a nice hotel close to the starting corner, and secured cheap-as-I-could-find Super 8 motels for our two nights on the road. (Discussed this with Aunt Kelly, too: "You'll be too tired to notice anything other than the shower, the air conditioner, and the bed.") Went to bed early, with alarms set for a half-hour before start time.
Saddled up the next morning, and made it to Corner Bonus #1 about ten minutes after the start time. Submitted our photos and waited a few minutes to see them be accepted. "Wow!" she said, "That was pretty cool! Can we go get a coffee now?"
An hour later, after Starbucks and scones, we pulled out of Blue Ridge, GA. Thirteen hours later, we collected Corner Bonus #2 in Elkins, WV. (The local YMCA.) We also bought a small bottle of medicinal tequila, as Aunt Kelly was beginning to "find out about this Long Distance Rally thing". She'd ridden the last hour huddled against my back, tired and cold, and I spoke to her regularly to ensure she wasn't falling asleep ... and falling off the bike. To her credit, she said not one word of complaint, and the stop in Elkins got her reanimated.
Seventeen hours after starting, we pulled into the Super 8 Dunbar for Rest Bonus #1. (Photos of your odometer to start rest bonus and to end rest bonus, and therefore prove you didn't move.) One shot of tequila, shower, check the alarm, bed. She claims to have seen mole crickets in the hallway, but I am convinced she was hallucinating. Maybe.
Slept like babies, ate a little of the Super 8 breakfast, and saddled up again. We realized that today we would cross Kentucky, east to west, through it's longest possible dimension, and I wondered if that would affect our attitudes.
It did.
Three hours later, fatigued and quiet, we stopped for gas in Midway, KY. I noticed a sign for the Bourbon Trail and Woodford Reserve's distillery. Asked the attendant how far it was. "Just around the corner. Really." Since Kelly had been a wonderful pillion for the past 20 hours of riding, I figured "around the corner" would be a quick way to get our spirits raised.
Turned out to take an hour, but the detour was well worth it. Scenery like you see during the Kentucky Derby broadcasts, when they show you background on a few horses. We rode some narrow roads, between perfectly manicured pastures surrounded by split-rail fencing, with steepled horse barns dotting the landscape. Got our obligatory photo of Kelly, still sitting on the FJR, with the Woodford Reserve sign behind her. Also got a photo of me leaning against the entrance gate to a stud farm -- my dream life.
Back on the road, feeling fine, we zig-zagged first across the Ohio River, then the Mississippi, at Cairo, IL. (Those are separate crossings, and highly recommended, both with huge bridges, and within 5 miles of each other.) We spent at least 30 minutes looking for the Mountain Home, AR, bonus, arriving at our second Super 8 about 13.5 hours after starting. Felt a lot better than after Day 1, and enjoyed a take-out pizza Kelly had to balance on her lap for a few miles.
The last day dawned, and we were headed home! Today, we would ride through Tennessee, west to east, almost it's full length. About lunchtime, we crossed the Mississippi River again, this time on a fascinating bridge and a six-lane interstate, straight into the heart of Memphis.
That day, Aunt Kelly understood exactly what "this Long Distance Rally thing is all about". She took dozens of photos while the bike was rolling, chatted constantly about the ride and many other things, asked questions about routes and optional bonus points, and had learned how to stretch her back without tilting the bike.
The Tennessee day was hot. Really hot. I'd elected to go Interstate in order to chew up the miles quickly, but there's absolutely no shade on Interstate highways unless you go under the rare bridge. We were sweating hard as we rolled into Nashville ..... and traffic ground to a halt.
After fifteen minutes of frustration, we decide to stop for Mexican food and air conditioning. Good decision, since the Titans had a home game that day. I had known that, and calculated we'd roll through town while the game was in progress, but we were an hour late getting into town, traffic pushed that even later, and game traffic became a real factor. Of course, the game was on TV in the Mexican restaurant, so we enjoyed sweet tea, chimichangas, and football until 30 minutes after the game ended!
Nashville's only a four-hour ride from Blue Ridge, GA, our start/finish corner. We had full bellies and were cooled off from an hour of air conditioning. The sweet tea required at least two extra stops, but hey, we were doing well and had plenty of buffer before the clock ran out. Life was good!
Our last pee stop was at the Georgia Welcome Center just outside Chattanooga as dusk started coming on. I pulled all the way to the far end of the parking lot, and Aunt Kelly was shedding her ATGATT almost before the kickstand was down. While I found some bushes to irrigate, she sprawled like a snow angel on the cool grass and relaxed. We rested for 30 minutes, enjoying the sunset and the evening chill.
Ninety minutes later, we snapped Corner Bonus #3, and watched as we were declared finishers. Ninety more minutes and we were parked in our garage, laughing like drunks, and grinning at our accomplishment.
Aunt Kelly's bonus photos are
here.
Kelly will tell you she's never doing a BMRx again ("Oh
HELL no!") but she's quite proud of her story .... and she's ridden pillion with me for a few four-hour rides since then .... and I'm getting heated Laam seats .... and .... we'll see where the next BMRx triangles might take us.
