FJRForum Official 2015 Iron Butt Rally Tracking/Analysis thread

[RenoJohn]

I'm planning to be there for the finish on Friday. Riding out from Wichita Thursday, and will include some nice mountain riding along the way in northern NM.
Any tips for when I'm there? What not to do? I don't want to get in the way, but do want to welcome in my friend Mr. Weston. And if the staff needs any last-minute volunteers to help out with something I'd be glad to do so.

It's hard not to demonstrate appreciation and make friends if you're carrying a couple of extra cigars. No different than anything else.

 

[jwhite518]

I've been doing this rally thing for 12 years. We don't need spectators, we need riders. I've seen my favorite events go from 30-40 riders to 10-20 riders. You can't put on a rally with 10 riders, it's just not feasible. There are many reasons why rallies wither and it's not worth going into here. But none of those rallies have spectators, other than the staff and concerned family. They were popular for years and years without spectators.

There's a general belief that the IBR has huge waiting lists, so much that there must be a lottery to get in. A full grid is 100 bikes; this year there were 87. Again, many reasons why that is so. Does the public Spotwalla page create more entries in the next IBR? Does this thread do that? I dunno. We had them in 11 and 13, and this year we have 87 bikes on the grid. I'm not trying to draw any conclusions about why there are 87 bikes this year, but I don't think that the audience has much correlation to the people out there grinding miles right now.

 

[doug5551]

All I can say is rally while you can, when you can. The events that taught me how to rally are the LowCal 250, Ira ' s Land of Enchantment rally and the Nevada 1099.

All gone, but not forgotten.

Justin has some new blood and will be hosting his rally in Albuquerque later this year. If you want to learn how to do the IBR, start at his rally...or the torters in Montana.

 

[discochris]

I've been doing this rally thing for 12 years. We don't need spectators, we need riders. I've seen my favorite events go from 30-40 riders to 10-20 riders. You can't put on a rally with 10 riders, it's just not feasible. There are many reasons why rallies wither and it's not worth going into here. But none of those rallies have spectators, other than the staff and concerned family. They were popular for years and years without spectators.
There's a general belief that the IBR has huge waiting lists, so much that there must be a lottery to get in. A full grid is 100 bikes; this year there were 87. Again, many reasons why that is so. Does the public Spotwalla page create more entries in the next IBR? Does this thread do that? I dunno. We had them in 11 and 13, and this year we have 87 bikes on the grid. I'm not trying to draw any conclusions about why there are 87 bikes this year, but I don't think that the audience has much correlation to the people out there grinding miles right now.

You're spot on with this.

 

[powderhound5]

As much as everyone says this rally is all about the riders, I totally get that. However, without spectators, many events eventually fall off the map. This is the first IBR event I've ever watched, and it's been pretty interesting. To hear of them going and then coming back, with no ability to get updates or whatever would limit the number of people that get drawn into doing it, and I sure as heck wouldn't care about it. Haha...

Actually, you don't "totally get it" at all. This is the Iron Butt Rally, no one riding in it cares if there is even one spectator watching them. Those riding in the Rally aren't in the event for fame , fortune , or to develop a fan base and they certainly aren't in it to please or entertain even one spectator.

The riders are in it because they want to be as a minimum an IBR finisher. Riding in the IBR may be the most selfish , self centered thing that many of the riders will ever do in their lives, The level of commitment required just to make it to the stating line is significant , and that is the easy part.

A group of us on here have the private spot tracks of many of the top riders. They are our friends and we know where our friends are going because they choose to share it with us, and it is a given that we won't talk about it, nor share their tracks with anyone else.

If I were riding I would not have my track made public because the IBR is an intensely personal event. I would however share it with some of my friends .

Spot has changed the rally by providing a significant safety net for the riders. The accidental byproduct is Spot TV

 

[Twigg]

Actually, you don't "totally get it" at all. This is the Iron Butt Rally, no one riding in it cares if there is even one spectator watching them. Those riding in the Rally aren't in the event for fame , fortune , or to develop a fan base and they certainly aren't in it to please or entertain even one spectator.
The riders are in it because they want to be as a minimum an IBR finisher. Riding in the IBR may be the most selfish , self centered thing that many of the riders will ever do in their lives, The level of commitment required just to make it to the stating line is significant , and that is the easy part.

A group of us on here have the private spot tracks of many of the top riders. They are our friends and we know where our friends are going because they choose to share it with us, and it is a given that we won't talk about it, nor share their tracks with anyone else.

If I were riding I would not have my track made public because the IBR is an intensely personal event. I would however share it with some of my friends .

Spot has changed the rally by providing a significant safety net for the riders. The accidental byproduct is Spot TV

It's interesting how social networking is changing some things.

I have had Spot since my first rally. It was one of the conditions that I was "allowed out" if my family could have the peace of mind that a Spot track brings, whether that is in fact real or illusory. As it turned out, my wife was not the one who drove the viewing, it was the kids who kept my Spot track up on the TV in the living room, pretty much until I got home. They still do that although they now watch it on their smartphones too.

Those early tracks had very few views. For me, the rider, it made little difference. While I took some comfort from knowing the kids were keeping tabs, motorcycling is still a solitary experience, and it remains so to this day.

Recently I did a 48/10 and something surprising happened. I knew that I had publicised the event widely, not from a desire to attract followers or fans, but merely because I knew folk enjoyed these trips much as I had just enjoyed Jerry's successful trip. So I too made my Spot public for the duration. The ride was the ride, from my seat. It remained me, the bike and the road. This one was longer than average, and made even more solitary than usual because my phone failed and I was restricted to Facebook and text messages.

I didn't care who watched. I knew some friends were out there, and my family in the US, England and France were watching occasionally. What I wasn't prepared for was the "public" interest. When I did manage to call my wife on about day 8 she told me that the Spot page, which I hadn't looked at, had 11000 views !!!

When I finally arrived at the end of my ride, and the start of the IBR, the view count was up to 14000. This amount of interest was something I had never experienced before, and I was immensely grateful that so many people (even if the wife refreshed the page 5000 times) were interested in my little exploit. There were laptops open all over the public area of the Sheraton in Alb. and most of them seemed to be open on my Spot page. I didn't know whether to yell "I'm here", or slink out and hope no one noticed

The thing is, I bought the Spot as a safety device and for my family's peace of mind. I don't care if one thousand watch, or one hundred, or just one. It doesn't influence what I do, although I do seem to get pretty quick reminders when the Spot track appears to go the wrong way. When I am riding all the Spot does is report my position. Apart from pressing the "OK" at gas and bonus stops, and the "Custom" at longer breaks I rarely give it a thought as to who might be watching or what they might think of what I am doing. I do what I do and they are simply invited to observe.

There will come a day fairly soon when it will be possible to live-stream the entire event. If I can afford the bandwidth I'll do that too and my friends and family will be able to watch the entire ride in real time. That will not affect what I do or where I go either, although if the Cognoscenti Group are gonna send us to Nevada brothels I may have to learn how to pixilate the image because I'm not sure my Mom would approve.

 

[2DFlier]

Fascinating SPOT discussion from both sides of the aisle - users and viewers. Many thanks for the insights and forum to view all that is going on. Addictive. Gonna be even later for work today.

What I'm curious about is how/if the advent of electronics has changed how rally masters concieve or develop their plans. Have they had to step their game to ensure their puzzles stay ahead of the tools to solve them?

 

[BkerChuck]

I probably first heard about the Iron Butt Rally sometime back in the 90's from an article in Motorcyclist magazine. I knew relatively little about it beyond that and the handful of articles written about it back then.

I bought my FJR in August of 2012 and attended a RTE that same year in November in Bedford, PA where I met Hello Kitty for the first time and actually got to meet someone who had done it. The stories I heard over breakfast about the IBR, the Mason Dixon 20-20, and the Void Rally brought a smile to my face and tears to my eyes from laughing at the tales of adventure,travel, and general insanity. While I knew that I was unlikely to ever go all in and try the IBR, I went home and suggested to my wife that we may enjoy trying one of those smaller events that I never even knew existed before.

We've now participated in the Mason Dixon 20-20 for 3 straight years, the Void Rally twice and planning for this year to be our third, several 8 and 10 hour rallies that Hammy Tan runs in PA, and the 8 hour Team Lyle Garden State rally last year. We're middle of the pack finishers and I'm okay with that. We've been places we never would otherwise have gone and seen things that'll stay with us for the rest of our lives. Through these events, we've gotten to meet several of the folks who are out on the IBR right now and are honored and proud to call some of these folks our friends. Being give someone's private SPOT feed on this event is something I greatly appreciate. I don't want this to turn into a media circus. That would just ruin it for everyone.

As someone above me has already stated we need to bring new participants into the sport if we want it to continue. I've heard of several rallies that just don't exist anymore. For all of the armchair observers watching along here, if you've never done a rally, try one! Find a shorter 8 hour or 32 hour event if you're up to the challenge! Don't just sit there and ride your desk chair get out and play. It's actually a lot of fun and even educational. You may just find a new use for your vacation time. When my wife and I finished our very first rally, the Mason DIxon 20-20 in May of 2013 we met Jon Good and Andi Bergemann after the finishers banquet and after talking to them for a bit Jon said to us, "It's like the zombie apocalypse, you've already been bitten you just don't know you're dead yet." He was right. We're hooked and will continue to do this until age or health stop us.

 

[stevec677]

I feel bad for rider #104 (that's the number for now), riding in Fairfield County Connecticut at this time of day. Lots of crazy / fast drivers trying to get to NYC this time of day. Does anyone know if he or she is heading toward NYC or away (possibly Boston or Hyde Park, NY)?

 

[yooperbikemike]

Just spotted an obvious IBR rider on a silver/grey GS in a red 'stich on US41/M-28 in Ishpeming MI about a mile south of my place.

Spotted two more riders this morning on the way to work -- A dark FJR (Black or dark gray); rider was wearing a hi-viz helmet and a silver wing, rider had on a grey (silver?)/hi-viz 'stich. Both west-bound, probably headed to Keweenaw Historical Park.

 

[Go Far]

I sent some of this in an email a bit ago.

The primary users of SPOT is the Rider and family.

A close 2nd are Rally staff.

As I learned in the 2011 IBR, SPOT is a good thing.

It soothes anxiety on the homefront, can ease the need to call home when on the clock and takes care of relaying your location so that you can focus on what's next-

-your riding,

-that receipt,

-miles to the next gas stop,

-how many minutes to put on the alarm for the nap I'm going to take at the next rest area,

-CheckpointBonusTimingAmISmellingOilCanIdoaBBGafterIateThatBurritoWasthatadeerWhatdidIneedtodoatthenextgasWhen'sSunset?

 

[hppants]

I'll echo what Tyler is screaming. I liken this to a marathon runner (and I'm not one of those either). For your first few events, the ENTIRE goal is to finish at any cost. Runners write about the "wall" they hit - usually somewhere between mile 16 and 21. It's where physical pain meets mental pain. At that point, the runner gets to decide if he/she has the guts to finish what they started. I'm told the feeling of success and accomplishment that occurs when a runner gets through the wall and completes the marathon is incredible. Some describe the euphoria as rivaling any high or drunk that could possibly exist.

Perhaps this is where many of the IBR riders are now?

 

[Uncle Hud]

stevec677 posted: Does anyone know if he or she is heading toward NYC or away (possibly Boston or Hyde Park, NY)?

[nankoweap: please correct any erroneous information below ...]

If you click on the rider's marker, a window opens with the travel direction: bearing. I suspect/guess/speculate that it's instantaneous, meaning if you're on a cloverleaf ramp, the marker would say NNE when you're only headed NNE for a few milliseconds.

Spotwalla has several items that can be displayed it that window -- settings available to the user or Spotwalla admin. For example, I activate "speed" on my markers so family can see if I'm rolling along or stopped.

(I'm not an attorney, but if the Alamance County, NC, district attorney wants to write me up for speeding on I-85 using only my Spotwalla track as evidence ... well, I'd think they need to find a new job.)

 

[user 213]

Let's remember a few things. Yes, there really are more entrants than spots in the IBR. The level of preparation required means that when a rider drops out two weeks before the event, they don't just draw another name to fill that spot. There is no "waiting list" for the IBR.(I asked once)

Spectators... Well now, that is not being ignored, is it?

I see some form of pay per view in the future. After all, the IBA is a business, after all. And the demand is there. Just a matter of time before the demand meets the technology, (which already exists), and someone or some organization steps forward that can put it out there in a package that appeals to the IBA.

As for privacy of the riders, they already sigh waivers.

Just imho.

 

[SFCJCA]

I ran across the IBR forum topic during the 2013 rally. I never thought I'd ever want to try an Iron Butt ride until I started reading the posts here and following the daily reports. Two years later, I've got 12 certified rides under my belt and I'm hooked. A few weeks ago, I'd never thought I'd want to try a rally. Now I'm considering it. The only hurdle now is the cost and vacation days. I'm slowly acquiring the equipment necessary to try a rally (SPOT, GPS, extra lights, laptop computer, etc). If it wasn't for the information available to the public about the IBR, I'd still be limiting myself to 300 mile days. So, I big thank you to the IBA and to this forum for sparking the insanity.

 

[tnjallen]

Latest video of screen captures of the Spotwalla page for leg 3 progress through 6am (PDT) this morning. Kind of jerky at the beginning until the map zooms out. I wish I could figure out how to hold the zoom consistent to make the video smoother, but my tech limits prevent further improvements.



I am a fairly new LD rider with only one timed rally and a few other "fun" rallies (BMR, Dam Tour, Oregon Airport Tour) under my belt. This thread is feeding a seemingly insatiable appetite for me. I won't post much here but thoroughly enjoy the added commentary from veteran riders.

Thanks!

 

[BMWBarb]

Updated animations...
The entire 2015 IBR as of July 7 at 8P Central...

https://spotwalla.com/animator.php?id=283&idt=L

2015 IBR - Leg One

https://spotwalla.com/animator.php?id=283&idt=1

2015 IBR - Leg two

https://spotwalla.com/animator.php?id=283&idt=2

So darned cool, Jason!! Fun to watch the little Minion-like pins diverge and converge!

 

[salex]

I ran across the IBR forum topic during the 2013 rally. I never thought I'd ever want to try an Iron Butt ride until I started reading the posts here and following the daily reports. Two years later, I've got 12 certified rides under my belt and I'm hooked. A few weeks ago, I'd never thought I'd want to try a rally. Now I'm considering it. The only hurdle now is the cost and vacation days. I'm slowly acquiring the equipment necessary to try a rally (SPOT, GPS, extra lights, laptop computer, etc). If it wasn't for the information available to the public about the IBR, I'd still be limiting myself to 300 mile days. So, I big thank you to the IBA and to this forum for sparking the insanity.

You might consider doing a short rally. I've done the Team Lyle Garden State and one of Hammy's rallies. I've got a SPOT and a GPS, but that's it for extra equipment. I had a bunch of fun each time. Work has been getting in the way, but I'm hoping to do this year's TLGS and at least one more Hammy rally this summer also without any additional equipment. (Of course, I do keep eyeing an aux tank, but that's not in the budget right now.

 

[ericboutin]

As much as everyone says this rally is all about the riders, I totally get that. However, without spectators, many events eventually fall off the map. This is the first IBR event I've ever watched, and it's been pretty interesting. To hear of them going and then coming back, with no ability to get updates or whatever would limit the number of people that get drawn into doing it, and I sure as heck wouldn't care about it. Haha...

Actually, you don't "totally get it" at all. This is the Iron Butt Rally, no one riding in it cares if there is even one spectator watching them. Those riding in the Rally aren't in the event for fame , fortune , or to develop a fan base and they certainly aren't in it to please or entertain even one spectator.

I for one like a lot of others get addicted to this thing for two weeks every other year and I love living vicariously through these riders! I have enjoyed immensely the wide view we have been given and hope it doesn't change!

I have no idea what it is like to ride in one of these and probably never will but I do know that I was at checkpoint 2. There were a lot more people lined up waiting to greet the riders than I ever imagined there would be! Heck there were even fans with pom pom's cheering! Anyway one of the very first riders rode in, checked in with the staff and parked his ride. He wearily (as I can only imagine) came walking up to the hotel entrance....the whole crowd erupted in cheers and clapping....the rider was flabbergasted! He shook his head and pointing to everyone in the crowd said "YOU GUYS ROCK!!!". Immediately someone responded that he rocked! LOL. Anyway I say all that to say I'm pretty sure that guy appreciated everyone's support and I'm surely glad I went and would definitely go again if the checkpoint is remotely close even though I didn't have any personal friends or family competing. It was a blast meeting a bunch of great folks from staff, riders and fans! Don't change a thing!!

 

[GearHeadGrrrl]

One of the benefits of Spot is that it allows us to responsibly cheer on the riders and be ready to offer assistance if needed. Yesterday I and another rider greeted an IBR rider at Pipestone National Monument... He was doing great but probably enjoyed the support anyway. I live along MN 23 on the way to Pipestone, and I'm going to try to at least get out along the highway and cheer on every Iron Butt rider as they come through. Without the public Spot, I wouldn't be able to do that.