I've been thinking of doing an Iron Butt ride since I bought my second bike but then something new always came up. Excuses and more excuses were found to be had not to do it. Then one day, Adam from gtam posted whether there is any interest from other members in participating in an IB run in November. Cold as hell but I said why not...no more excuses.
Turns out we weren't the only ones that were mad enough to attempt to pull this off in mid-November Canadian weather! There were a total of 4 riders in the end. Others had previous engagements or were just not able to come on that particular weekend.
The four crazies were: Adam (Hayabusa - 1300cc), David (ZX14R - 1400cc), Jesse (CBRXX - 1100cc) and me, Wojtek (CBR - 250cc).
My ride started around 3:30am where the gas station attended asked the only logical question...why are you doing this? And I responded why not!? He smiled and signed my witness form. Told him I'll see him in less than 24hrs if all goes well. Off to NYC and back!
The four of us met up at the meeting spot at Erin Mills and QEW where the time started ticking. Each of us started at a different spot as after the ride we were sure to be tired and looping around had no appeal. The ride started off a little wet and cold. The rain was drizzling and it was a balmy 4c in the morning. We made our way west towards the border at Lewiston bridge. No issues at the border except the border patrol guard looking at me like I'm an idiot for such a long ride. We all made it thorough with no issues and made our way east towards Rochester. The bikes performed fantastically and the
road had little to no traffic the entire way. There was more dead deer than expected along the side of the road which made for an unnerving experience near wooded areas, this was their mating season...fun! We pressed forward and as we reached Rochester the sun started coming up and warming us up considerably. First fuel stop took a whole as we were all very relaxed and enjoying the ride. Hell some of us even forgot our receipts to track progress!
As the ride turned south, the interstate made for fantastic progress. Our average speed was maintained around 120kph with no need to speed as we had plenty of miles ahead. Jesse made his way around the group taking some pictures and videos and we alternated regularly to keep the monogamy at bay. The iPhone prevented even more boredom and the scala headsets provided by Jesse allowed for some banter along the route. With a few more stops for fuel you could see some were getting
tired (mainly me) but the experience was fantastic nonetheless. We made our way towards NYC along some nice sweeping curves, which really helped stave the boring interstate ride off and added some fun! As we made our way up towards Bear Mountain we saw a baby deer with his momma grazing along the side of the road. Cool sight! We made it atop the mountain and wow what a view! Bikes everywhere...and the mountains and valleys looked pretty cool too! It was about 15c and sunny which made for a perfect stop!
We took some pictures and unfortunately it was time to start heading home. We made our way down the mountain and it was more twists and turns along the route. On the way home Jesse suggested a bit of a different route to escape the monotony of the interstate and wow...what a great choice! The scenic route consisted of turn after turn and didn't stop for miles. Deer lined the highway, the sun was going down, and it was cooling off...but what fun! We saw a car come to a stop seconds after it hit a deer! That scared the **** out of me, don't know bout the others. We avoided the bumper and plastics and continued on our way home. The batteries on the headsets were dying at this point but the fun kept going. Once we returned back to the interstate it was time to clock some more miles along the highway. We made another stop for gas before the border and it was time to return to Canada. In hindsight it was not smart to joke with the border guard where the hell would I keep any weapons, booze, or cigarettes as I did have a large bag on the bike...lesson learned!
Once in Canada we got on the trusty 401 and headed west towards home. The crosswinds were horrible and my lil 250 was being tossed around left and right most of the way home. One last stop in Belleville and a straight shot home. The weather seemed to keep warming up the closer we got to Toronto and there was no need for the heated gear to be turned on. But once we hit the 401 near the zoo this all changed! The temp dropped considerably and wow it got cold fast! We rode over 1000 miles and the Toronto driver showed his ugly face. Tail gating, cutting off, and speeding around us on the DVP in order to save a few
minutes.
I got back to my start point around 12:30am, and my Start witness was there with wide eyes and a wave to say congrats. He signed my paperwork and I gassed up the bike for the last time that evening.
I got to the house around 1am with all my gear dropped on the ground it was time for a hot shower and sleep....until 7am when it was time for work! I really enjoyed the ride and the friendships I was able to make
during this time. The CBR250 held up way better than I could've expected and it tears me to decide whether to let her stay, or replace her with a more 'suitable' touring bike...time will tell.
David - ZX14 - On a ZX14, I was surprised at how comfortable I was for the entire ride. With the help of a gel seat cushion, I didn't actually feel the "Saddle Sore" until we got back to Toronto. By that time, the end was in sight so it wasn't too bad. With no heated gear I managed to stay warm with proper touring gear and some layers. I counted 2 cold spots, one in the morning, just after the border and again coming into Toronto. But the day time temperatures couldn't have been better!
Adam - Hayabusa - Apparently the bigger bikes (some 1000cc+ bigger) come with bigger seats! My experience was more similar to David's on his ZX14 - no saddle sores. I did not have a seat cushion, but the 6 layers added probably an inch of cushy stuff between the already comfortable seat of the Busa and my butt. I am 185 cm and did not feel cramped at any point during the 20 hours. The only physical discomfort I have experienced during the journey was due to overdressing and overheating once the outdoor temperatures reached 20+ Celsius. I did not have any room to stow away the layers - hence my next purchase for touring is a set of hard cases (if anyone has any for sale rigged up for a Busa PM DrX).
Overall the mental experience changed as we ate up the miles. For the first 800 km I was high on adrenaline, excitement and coffee. Somewhere between 800-1200 km mark I felt emotional numbness, with a slight sleepiness towards the end of it. The last 400 km was back to the excitement, probably because it was dark and cold (low single digits) and all senses were more alert. And of course the truck, and the GTA car drivers added some excitement. I have 2 lessons I have learned and could pass on to anyone who want to do this. First, stay very cautious with that middle part of the journey, especially in deer territory! It really gets lonely in that helmet and you drift away in your own thoughts. Second, have more room for storage than you think. Other that that, I will echo EC2010's points about keeping the group small (there were a perfect 4), having a strategy to deal with emergencies, and having a well planned route with gas stations mapped (thanks Jesse).
Turns out we weren't the only ones that were mad enough to attempt to pull this off in mid-November Canadian weather! There were a total of 4 riders in the end. Others had previous engagements or were just not able to come on that particular weekend.
The four crazies were: Adam (Hayabusa - 1300cc), David (ZX14R - 1400cc), Jesse (CBRXX - 1100cc) and me, Wojtek (CBR - 250cc).
My ride started around 3:30am where the gas station attended asked the only logical question...why are you doing this? And I responded why not!? He smiled and signed my witness form. Told him I'll see him in less than 24hrs if all goes well. Off to NYC and back!
The four of us met up at the meeting spot at Erin Mills and QEW where the time started ticking. Each of us started at a different spot as after the ride we were sure to be tired and looping around had no appeal. The ride started off a little wet and cold. The rain was drizzling and it was a balmy 4c in the morning. We made our way west towards the border at Lewiston bridge. No issues at the border except the border patrol guard looking at me like I'm an idiot for such a long ride. We all made it thorough with no issues and made our way east towards Rochester. The bikes performed fantastically and the
road had little to no traffic the entire way. There was more dead deer than expected along the side of the road which made for an unnerving experience near wooded areas, this was their mating season...fun! We pressed forward and as we reached Rochester the sun started coming up and warming us up considerably. First fuel stop took a whole as we were all very relaxed and enjoying the ride. Hell some of us even forgot our receipts to track progress!
As the ride turned south, the interstate made for fantastic progress. Our average speed was maintained around 120kph with no need to speed as we had plenty of miles ahead. Jesse made his way around the group taking some pictures and videos and we alternated regularly to keep the monogamy at bay. The iPhone prevented even more boredom and the scala headsets provided by Jesse allowed for some banter along the route. With a few more stops for fuel you could see some were getting
tired (mainly me) but the experience was fantastic nonetheless. We made our way towards NYC along some nice sweeping curves, which really helped stave the boring interstate ride off and added some fun! As we made our way up towards Bear Mountain we saw a baby deer with his momma grazing along the side of the road. Cool sight! We made it atop the mountain and wow what a view! Bikes everywhere...and the mountains and valleys looked pretty cool too! It was about 15c and sunny which made for a perfect stop!
We took some pictures and unfortunately it was time to start heading home. We made our way down the mountain and it was more twists and turns along the route. On the way home Jesse suggested a bit of a different route to escape the monotony of the interstate and wow...what a great choice! The scenic route consisted of turn after turn and didn't stop for miles. Deer lined the highway, the sun was going down, and it was cooling off...but what fun! We saw a car come to a stop seconds after it hit a deer! That scared the **** out of me, don't know bout the others. We avoided the bumper and plastics and continued on our way home. The batteries on the headsets were dying at this point but the fun kept going. Once we returned back to the interstate it was time to clock some more miles along the highway. We made another stop for gas before the border and it was time to return to Canada. In hindsight it was not smart to joke with the border guard where the hell would I keep any weapons, booze, or cigarettes as I did have a large bag on the bike...lesson learned!
Once in Canada we got on the trusty 401 and headed west towards home. The crosswinds were horrible and my lil 250 was being tossed around left and right most of the way home. One last stop in Belleville and a straight shot home. The weather seemed to keep warming up the closer we got to Toronto and there was no need for the heated gear to be turned on. But once we hit the 401 near the zoo this all changed! The temp dropped considerably and wow it got cold fast! We rode over 1000 miles and the Toronto driver showed his ugly face. Tail gating, cutting off, and speeding around us on the DVP in order to save a few
minutes.
I got back to my start point around 12:30am, and my Start witness was there with wide eyes and a wave to say congrats. He signed my paperwork and I gassed up the bike for the last time that evening.
I got to the house around 1am with all my gear dropped on the ground it was time for a hot shower and sleep....until 7am when it was time for work! I really enjoyed the ride and the friendships I was able to make
during this time. The CBR250 held up way better than I could've expected and it tears me to decide whether to let her stay, or replace her with a more 'suitable' touring bike...time will tell.
David - ZX14 - On a ZX14, I was surprised at how comfortable I was for the entire ride. With the help of a gel seat cushion, I didn't actually feel the "Saddle Sore" until we got back to Toronto. By that time, the end was in sight so it wasn't too bad. With no heated gear I managed to stay warm with proper touring gear and some layers. I counted 2 cold spots, one in the morning, just after the border and again coming into Toronto. But the day time temperatures couldn't have been better!
Adam - Hayabusa - Apparently the bigger bikes (some 1000cc+ bigger) come with bigger seats! My experience was more similar to David's on his ZX14 - no saddle sores. I did not have a seat cushion, but the 6 layers added probably an inch of cushy stuff between the already comfortable seat of the Busa and my butt. I am 185 cm and did not feel cramped at any point during the 20 hours. The only physical discomfort I have experienced during the journey was due to overdressing and overheating once the outdoor temperatures reached 20+ Celsius. I did not have any room to stow away the layers - hence my next purchase for touring is a set of hard cases (if anyone has any for sale rigged up for a Busa PM DrX).
Overall the mental experience changed as we ate up the miles. For the first 800 km I was high on adrenaline, excitement and coffee. Somewhere between 800-1200 km mark I felt emotional numbness, with a slight sleepiness towards the end of it. The last 400 km was back to the excitement, probably because it was dark and cold (low single digits) and all senses were more alert. And of course the truck, and the GTA car drivers added some excitement. I have 2 lessons I have learned and could pass on to anyone who want to do this. First, stay very cautious with that middle part of the journey, especially in deer territory! It really gets lonely in that helmet and you drift away in your own thoughts. Second, have more room for storage than you think. Other that that, I will echo EC2010's points about keeping the group small (there were a perfect 4), having a strategy to deal with emergencies, and having a well planned route with gas stations mapped (thanks Jesse).
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