Iron Butt routes

The key with the 401 is timing.

Actually, the key with any IBA ride is timing (to the best extent possible) when it comes to any city you need to pass through at any point during the ride honestly.

The reason I went counterclockwise was multiple fold, first that put me through Toronto and out the other side before traffic even began building - it was completely wide open all the way to Windsor, and I was at the border before traffic began building there either - I was across the Ambasador bridge and through customs in 5 minutes flat, before the day trippers were on the road. Then I shot south out of Detroit, mostly clear sailing with moderate traffic. Toledo was outskirts only. I missed the morning rush in Cleveland. Outskirts only through buffalo on the I90, and Syracuse wasn’t too big of a concern, I hit only light traffic there.

My biggest concern honestly was the border coming back across at Ganonoque, but it was only a 5 minute wait.

Another reason I opted to go west to start was the critter concern, definitely less chance of experiencing anything (IMHO) during the first 4ish hours in the dark going west vs east - I’d have vern headed down the 81 towards Syracuse still in the dark, and that’s a bad stretch for wildlife given the way that highway is with the huge forested centre medians. That’s also one of the reasons I prefer the slab for an IBA ride honestly to begin with however - still far less chance of any unwanted wildlife interactions, or if there is going to be any, you’ve got more chance of avoidance versus something popping out of the bush 10 feet off the road.
 
This was my route. I did it in July and planned it so that I was on the 400 series highways before sunrise and after sunset. I kept a small sheet of paper with all my stops and the ETA so that I know if I'm ahead or falling behind. I felt like 24hrs is more than enough time. I took quick 5 min breaks every 1hr to 1.5hr.
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i-WERKS said:
This was my route. I did it in July and planned it so that I was on the 400 series highways before sunrise and after sunset. I kept a small sheet of paper with all my stops and the ETA so that I know if I'm ahead or falling behind. I felt like 24hrs is more than enough time. I took quick 5 min breaks every 1hr to 1.5hr.
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How many hours was it start to finish? My first IBA we did something like 1800km but it was almost 22 hours because of the route, but the route was prescribed by a particular destination, long story. Things were wearing thin by the end.
 
NuggyBuggy said:
Fair enough. I just cannot imagine having to ride the 401.. even late at night it always seems to be a long, hot mess. I used to sometimes keep my bike in the city and ride to work. That's no fun and now it never sees the city. With a clock on me and the spectre of fatigue? That could be extra infuriating.

What times of day did your route take you through Toronto?
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I was on the 401 heading east well before sunrise, so there was zero traffic all the way from Mississauga to the 35/115.

Coming home it was on a holiday Monday, so I did get a bit of late night long weekend cottage traffic on the 400 south, but it was around 10pm, so mostly moving at the speed limit.

It was a piece of cake, but I was spent the next day, because the twisty roads really demand a high degree of focus.
 
PrivatePilot said:
How many hours was it start to finish? My first IBA we did something like 1800km but it was almost 22 hours because of the route, but the route was prescribed by a particular destination, long story. Things were wearing thin by the end.
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I finished in 19 hours (4am to 11pm) but that included a 1hr break near the end of the run. Don't get me wrong, I was also wearing thin by the end but when I think back, it was still a good time.
 
NuggyBuggy said:
Fair enough. I just cannot imagine having to ride the 401.. even late at night it always seems to be a long, hot mess. I used to sometimes keep my bike in the city and ride to work. That's no fun and now it never sees the city. With a clock on me and the spectre of fatigue? That could be extra infuriating.

What times of day did your route take you through Toronto?
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I personally try and aim for a 6am start from Mississauga. Closer to 5:30 if possible.

I’m in Peterborough typically by 7:30-8am and then the rest of the day is enjoying the roads.
 
Interesting thread. I enjoyed reading your encounters and long hours spent on the bike.

1 particular ride that I won’t forget because not only was it the longest I have ridden in one attempt, but was also the most tiring - Was my ride back in 2011 from Delhi to Leh, which was, at the time, only around 1050 kms, but because of the bad roads and high altitude, it took me 33 hours.
 
kurtrules said:
Interesting thread. I enjoyed reading your encounters and long hours spent on the bike.

1 particular ride that I won’t forget because not only was it the longest I have ridden in one attempt, but was also the most tiring - Was my ride back in 2011 from Delhi to Leh, which was, at the time, only around 1050 kms, but because of the bad roads and high altitude, it took me 33 hours.
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You rode 33 hours in one go ? In India? Wow !!
 
PrivatePilot said:
It's a lot easier with Spotwalla now. I still get receipts at any major turn just because Spotwalla only updates every 10 minutes and can "short" you some miles, which ultimately still only matters if you are running very close to the minimum like I did today, but still, it's cheap insurance, and you have to buy gas anyways, so do it strategically.

As for the whole thing, I only certified my first ever one years ago and have done plenty of eligible rides since but saw no need to spend $50USD to get duplicates of a SS1000 certificate with just different dates and locations. The only reason I certified this one today is because the certificate I will have earned is a special memorial one for my friend who lost his life last year on one of his own IBA rides. That certificate is one I want on my wall, so todays ride was in his honour, and I had some of his ashes along with me and spread them as part of the ride. RIP Kevin.
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So I renewed my membership and played with SW, using SWTracker on my iPhone. I was in Barrie doing some errands and am just now looking at my track in BaseCamp.

I have SWTracker set to report back at the shortest possible interval. This means that in BaseCamp, it draws my path as being straight lines between the spots at those intervals. As you say, this can short you distance - and in fact, always HAS to short you distance (since the shortest distance between two points you travel has to be a straight line).

So I wonder how IBA deals with this? If intervals are taken only every 5 minutes (I think that's what I have SWTracker set at), how are they going to know what your actual traveled distance is? If you're doing it on super twisty roads like @shanekingsley, your distance is going to be vastly understated. Now, that's obviously a problem too when all you have are DBRs, but still.

I assume this must mean that even SW someone has to be looking at the track and seeing if it makes sense.

Speaking of Spotwalla - are there devices or apps that can send data back at even shorter intervals?
 
They still plot your actual track. Even if Spotwalla tracks "as the crow flies" due to a 10 minute reporting interval, if the road twists 20 times in that stretch, they take into consideration that you cannot physically just drive through forest and water etc.

It's not perfect, but it adds a level of legitimacy to all rides and does reduce the need for some receipt stops. However, at any major turn they still recommend DBR/Dated Business Receipts, which is why I stopped for fuel in Toledo and and Syracuse (right on the corners) for fuel yesterday even though I didn't really *need* fuel at either location.

I think the shortest interval possible with an app based solution for Spotwalla is 5 minutes, although I have seen 2 minutes mentioned for people using a SPOT device, but a plan that includes that level of fast breadcrumbs isn't cheap last I looked.
 
NuggyBuggy said:
I've had doing an IB on my bucket list for a long time. I have the week off, kids are in the city with Mom, and the weather is nice, so I thought about doing one. I know that fall is less ideal because of the shorter days, but no time like the present.

I'm in the Orillia area. I'm assuming the best way to do this would be to get on the 401 so I could max out time and distance spent with traffic at 120+. I have never used the 407 but it looks like it would be a great time saver as opposed to going through the 401 during - well, anytime.

I thought about going south,heading west to Windsor area, then U-turn, head east where I can to Ottawa, then back to start, using 407 where I can.


This puts me at just over 1600km which is tight.
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Thoughts or suggestions (routes, times, etc)? I thought maybe going back along 401/407 on the back leg from Ottawa then North might allow me to pad my average speed?

I only picked these end points based on my limited knowledge of highways outside the GTA and am willing to change anything here.
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I've done two IBA SS1000 rides in Ontario. The route I did was Peterborough, Pembroke, North Bay, Timmins, Sudbury, Toronto and back to Peterborough with fuel stops for receipts in those places. It took 20hrs to complete and that was with a solid 30 min break around 4pm for my only real meal on the road. You could easily do that same route starting in Orillia. I purposely did mine with Toronto last so I would hit it late (after dark in August) with the hopes of missing the worst of the traffic and so I would have the most street lights for riding in the dark at the part where I was most tired. It worked pretty good.

I have plenty of tips I've learned from doing these rides if your interested but the biggest one I can give you is make sure you understand the rules inside and out and have your paperwork in order. If they can find a reason to disqualify your ride, they will. They take the documentation seriously.

Good luck!
 
GreyGhost said:
In the night. Less traffic. Less crashes.

Alternatively, if you want to make things more interesting, Make it a back-to-back and aim for the east coast. Orillia to Halifax is 1900 km.
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Doing back to back rides is listed as an SS2000 but IIRC the IBA won't certify "advanced rides" until you've completed one of the two "entry level" rides, either the SS1000 or the BB1500. I wouldn't recommend doing back to back rides toanyone doing these rides for the first time. A lot of people feel pretty good until they get to the 1000km mark and realize they still have another 600km to go. If you wake up exhausted the next morning and have a massive ride to get home, it may or may not be doable. If you have to be at work on Monday but find you just can't knock out thr miles, that would suck.
 
Morrissey said:
A lot of people feel pretty good until they get to the 1000km mark and realize they still have another 600km to go.
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Haha, it's like a marathon. People say the half-way point is really mile 20 of 26.

For me, I was about 300 kms from Toronto, the sun had already set hours ago. Everything on the side of the highway in the dark looked like a deer. Is it possible to be hyper-focused yet super-tired at the same time? Those last 300 kms felt more tense and trying than the first 1300 kms.
 
Morrissey said:
A lot of people feel pretty good until they get to the 1000km mark and realize they still have another 600km to go
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This is the nice part about using the "around both lakes" route - when you get to Buffalo you're basically at the 1000km mark, and if you're not feeling it, you can bail at that point, cross at Niagara Falls, and head home. If you're feeling good, you continue on to Syracuse, up, and around.

It's a great route for first-timers because of that "out" if you're not feeling it.

All nice fast slab too, and if you time it right the borders are fast. Probably super fast now given the US travel stuff.
 
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