Day 1 - Greenville, SC to Columbia, MO
After a fitful night's sleep, I got up at 7 am to start packing the bike. Water and ice were available outside the hotel entrance for our hydration systems. Riders, rally staff and spectators were milling about. First item of importance was being at your bike a precisely 8 am for the final odometer reading capture. At that time, rally staff teams started heading out through the staging area to get the readings. Fortunately, I was near the starting group and provided my reading quick thus releasing me to continue departure tasks. Failure to be at your bike at the time the staff comes around is a big No-No that includes a small penalty and lots of embarrassment.
Announced at the previous evening's banquet, fellow rookie Cathy Davies would hold the honor of being the first rider released at the take-off. Seeing her bright yellow Goldwing parked a short distance away meant that I would also be one of the first bikes released. After years of watching youtube videos of the launch and dreaming of having Dale 'Warchild' Wilson point to me, it was finally going to happen! At precisely 10 am, Warchild pointed to Cathy and she was off. Three or four other riders headed out as he turned in my direction. There was one rider to the left of me that we both expected Warchild to point at so to our surprise he pointed directly at me. I nodded acknowledgement and waited for him to point out to the departure lane (that was our signal to go). The rider to the left of me started to move which got a quick stop from Warchild and then he pointed to me again. I nodded a second time and when he pointed down the lane I was outa there!! My dream had come true, I was riding the Iron Butt Rally.
The few riders ahead of me all seemed to have taken I-85 South so I was the lead bike heading North towards my first bonus at Mount Mitchell, NC. It was fairly close by and I had an itch to get my first IBR bonus on the list. Upon reaching the turn off for the Blue Ridge Parkway east of Asheville, NC I did a quick glance at the public Spotwalla page and noticed a few other riders heading in the same general direction. About 10 miles north on the BRP there was a silver flash that passed me and I recognized Peter Green on his silver Trophy making more haste up the road than myself. I just couldn't bring myself to tail him so he soon disappeared in the distance.
Arriving at the Mount Mitchell summit, a quick review of the rally book said to make a short hike to the observation tower and take a picture of the outline of North Carolina and the cardinal points of the compass. The bonus was an early indicator of how this rally was going to be as the hike up to the observation tower was long and steep (and from what I would experience would be one of the easier hikes I would take). I ran into Peter on his way down from the summit and a couple of other riders arrived during my ascent. Great! I have my first IBR bonus captured.
Next up in my plan turned out to be a really, really bad decision. I was concerned about the recent landslide and closure of I-40 west bound as it would result in a major traffic jam so my plan was to skirt through SW North Carolina and Tennessee so that I could catch I-65 N in Chattanooga. Along the way there was a minor bonus that I planned to capture. This turned out to be a major mistake made worse by another really bad decision. As I rolled up on the provided coordinates of the Whitewater bonus I saw the state park sign saying 10 miles south. Ugh, this is going to be a time suck but since I was already here I might as well capture it. So off down a back road to the Whitewater Falls State Park. Arriving at the park I located the park map that showed where the overlooks for the Falls were located. The directions weren't the most clear as to which overlook to take the picture from so I took it from the upper overlook and it was accepted.
 |  |
I briefly though about shooting for the group bonus photo at nearby Fontana Dam but decided against it. Departing the State Park I backtracked out to US-62 and turned west on my plan to head to Chattanooga. I don't know why but somehow I got the idea that I could cut north through familiar territory and make it up to I-40 before heading west. What a really, really bad decision that was. I got caught in tourist traffic on US441 into Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge that delayed me at least 2 hours. Ugh...
Upon reaching I-40 I turned west slicing through Knoxville at rush hour. The rest of the day was spent making haste as far as I could through Nashville and St. Louis until I started to run out of energy about Columbia, MO. After running through the drivethru of a 24 McDonalds and collecting a receipt for the "R" bonus for Columbia, I pulled next door to the empty parking lot of a Cracker Barrel and checked into the Iron Butt Hotel for an hour.
This was an absolutely terrible start to my rally. So much time was wasted trying to capture a few close-by bonus locations after the start when I should have been making westward tracks. Hopefully, I can do a bit better tomorrow.
 |
| Day 1 - Start to Columbia, MO |
Day 2 - Columbia, MO to Keystone, SD
One thing that is difficult to get a grasp of until you experience it is the sheer distances that are between bonus locations in the Iron Butt Rally as compared to the shorter 32-hr "sprint" rallies that I am more familiar with. In the sprint rallies, bonus locations may average about 40-60 miles apart whereas in this first leg of the Iron Butt Rally, distances are measured in hundreds if not thousands of miles. For example, my last bonus stop at Whitewater Falls in North Carolina would end up being 1,087 miles back from my next planned stop at Mushroom Rocks State Park in Kansas.
This reality hit me as my stop at the Iron Butt Hotel in Columbia, MO was not as restful as I'd hoped. After 90 minutes I just couldn't get any more rest so I decided to be more useful and cover some miles. Departing about 4 am I made my way towards Kansas City and fortunately made it through before rush hour. Now the verrrryyy looonnng crossing of Kansas in the daytime. Oh, how I had dreaded this.
Fortunately, my Kansas K-tag electronic toll transponder functioned well and I made good time on the KS Turnpike westward. The Turnpike turned south as I continued west on I-70 to reach my first bonus of the day near Ellsworth, KS. The MUSHR bonus involved about 2 miles of gravel road riding. Fortunately, the road was dry on my way through but I had heard that other riders attempted to capture this bonus in the rain and the road was all but impassible.
After capturing the bonus, I popped back on I-70 westbound heading towards Denver. I had planned on picking up a couple of small bonus locations in western Kansas but looking ahead I faced a couple of issues: 1) if I stopped for the bonus locations, I would be caught in rush hour traffic in Denver, and 2) the building thunderstorms had to potential to cause me further delays. I hated to do it but made the call to drop the 2 smaller bonus locations (bye 450ish points) and make haste to Denver. I feel like it was a good decision as I was able to skirt each of the thunderstorms (just barely) and arrived in Denver around 1 pm. No matter what the time there is always a backup on I-70 going through Denver and today was no exception but I got to west side an hour later and started the trek into the mountains. It had been 40 years since the last time I had been on this highway as my family often made the trip from Texas up to Winter Park, CO for skiing.
Exiting at Idaho Springs I started the climb up Mt. Evans which culminates in the highest paved road in North America and big points for the Rally. It was a daylight only bonus and the missed opportunities in Kansas would be made up for by not missing this bonus. Fortunately, it looked like I would be blessed with sunny skies for my run up the mountain. Arriving at the guard house, the pleasant Ranger asked if I was part of the rally and I replied Yes. As I was digging for my National Park Pass she said that I didn't need to as she trusted that I had it and sent me on my way.
I truly wish that I would have had the wherewithal to stop along the climb and take some pictures. It was just amazing to take a glance at the surroundings but quickly remembering that you go where you look and that was a really bad idea at the moment. The lane was barely one and half cars wide with no guard rails and drops of hundreds of feet keep me laser focused on my path. Most of the way the pavement was amazingly in good shape but as I got closer to the summit the pavement became increasingly worse. Snow melt left large areas of the road under water hiding the massive undulations and potholes. Just as I reached the summit at 14,130 ft, a storm cloud rolled in and obscured the view. I took a quick snap of my bonus requirement (the burned out restaurant with my motorcycle in the picture) and hurried to start my descent. As I pulled out snow began to fall. This was worse going down than it was going up!! As I cleared the water covered section of the road, another IBR rider was making his way to the summit. I would later find out that he got caught in the snow storm at the summit and took hours to make his way back down only to find the gates locked at the base. He had to wait for a Ranger to come let him out.
Upon leaving Mt. Evans I needed to make my way back into Denver and head north. Luck was not on my side this time and I got caught in 5 o'clock traffic. It was a slow slog around downtown to finally reach I-25 and escape the horrendous traffic. Crossing into Wyoming the traffic cleared and I had the highway mostly to myself. It was beautiful watching the sun set over the mountains as I passed through Cheyenne. Garmin wanted me to jump off the interstate onto some US highways but I just couldn't see how that would be better so I stayed on I-25 and made good time up to Orin where I picked up US18 and made the backcountry ride through Custer and on into Keystone for a rest stop. I arrived just after 10 pm and tried to find a place to eat but the sidewalks had already been rolled up and I was out of luck. Since the rest bonus window was a couple of hours away I decided against spending any more time getting a receipt and went straight to the hotel for some rest. My plan was to be up before sunrise and head over to Mt Rushmore before the crowds arrived. Oh, the shower was wonderful and I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.
A month later I'm a little surprised that I had covered over 1200 miles today even with some of the traffic delays and challenges of climbing a mountain.
Day 3 - Keystone, SD to Bonners Ferry, ID
Oh man! The alarm went off way too early!! I stumbled off to the shower to try and wake up some. After packing up my gear I headed to the bike as the sky was reaching that wonderful crystal blue that's only experienced at higher elevations. My objective this morning was to capture Mt Rushmore as quick as possible and make some good time across Montana.
Too bad it didn't start off that way. Still a little bit delirious, my mind was playing tricks on me. I swore that I had passed Mt Rushmore on the way into town last night and that I had made a right turn at the base of the hill. Leaving the hotel I had myself convinced that I needed to make a left turn to get back up to the monument so I ignored the street signs and all 3 gps units and turned south on the infamous US16A. Holy cow. I started up the road certain that it was the right way. At the first tunnel, I had to ask myself if I had passed through a tunnel last night. By the 2nd time I hit a circular bridge, I knew I was on the wrong path. I finally found a place to turn around and head back down. Deer were everywhere!! I'm so thankful that I didn't hit this road last night.
Back to the correct road, I made the turn to go to the Mt Rushmore monument. Turning into the parking area, it wasn't clear where I should go so I made a lap around the garage before finding the right ramp to the upper deck closest to the entrance. The requirement was to take the picture of the monument from the Grand Terrace. Only a few families were roaming around at this early hour. I sincerely wish that I had the time to stay and soak up the magnificence of the monument. Sadly, I had to make a quick walk back to the bike to document the bonus and get moving.
Leaving Mt Rushmore I headed north to Rapid City, SD where I could pick up Interstate 90 and head west into Montana. Thankfully the road into Rapid City took me by a Sonic Drive In where I was able to order up 3 breakfast burritos to stick in my pockets. The manager who brought my breakfast to me was kind enough to take my 1 gal water jug into the store and fill it with ice and water. Thank you, mam. You have no idea how nice that was.
Shortly after passing through Sturgis (really? that was it?), both Garmins insisted that I exit the interstate and take US 212 through southeast Montana. A quick look at my iPad to confirm that it wasn't a big mistake I followed the magenta lines. Gotta love those 80 mph speed limits!! While keeping an eye on distances between towns and my fuel level, it was a rapid crossing of the land towards Billings where I picked up the interstate again.
Little did I know that I would be back on US 212 again just after passing through Billings. US 212 is also known by its more popular name as the Beartooth Highway. This is a must for any motorcycle rider to experience.
When passing through Red Lodge, MT, I pulled to the side of the road and attempted my first Call In bonus. This is a regular feature only found in the IBR where riders have to call a phone bank during a specified time interval and leave a list of information in the correct order. It is one of the most screwed up bonus items everytime. I collected my thoughts and made the call: This is James Epley, Rider #82, currently in Red Lodge, MT. Last bonus claimed was Mt Rushmore and next bonus will be Beartooth Summit. That's it. It is truly amazing how easy it is to screw that up in so many different ways. It is always a topic of amusement at the finish banquet.
Having completed my Call In bonus I jumped back on the road for the climb to the bonus location which was the summit that happens to be a few miles back into Wyoming. The ride up the hill was spectacular including passing a ski area that was in operation.
Upon reaching the plateau of the pass, the wind was howling at least 50 mph making it quite the challenge to stay on the road and not be carried over the cliff. While not as high as Mt Evans, there was significantly more snow accumulation on top of the pass. In places it was easily 20 ft above the roadway. After capturing the bonus I had to turn around and battle the wind for a few more miles before descending back into Montana. What an awesome experience.
Now it was back to I-90 and making best of the 80 mph speed limits to get over close to Idaho for my last bonus of the day. I still needed to get a rest bonus and it had to start before midnight local time. As I was rolling towards my next bonus in northern Montana, I finally realized that northern Idaho was on Pacific time while Montana was on Mountain time. I had an extra hour to capture the bonus and then start my rest bonus. Little did I know how valuable that extra hour would become.
The next part is a testament to the diabolical nature of Route Masters (or brilliance depending on your point of view). Presented here is the text from the Rally Book. The gps coordinates provided in the electronic files are the ones identified by #1 in the picture. These coordinates land one in Libby, MT where the directions provided in #2 will get you to the final bonus location located in Yaak, MT. Simple. Right?
The approach to the bonus would most likely take a rider north on WY56 to the start point shown in the map. The #1 coordinates would still be to the east in Libby and the rider's gps units would be screaming to go that way following the gray line. However, you will notice that the final bonus location is more easily approached by following the blue line in the map. Mr. Brilliant here followed the diabolical instructions of the Route Master and proceeded to Libby and follow the directions in the Rally Book. While I'm sure National Forest Roads 68 and 92 are beautiful routes in the day, it was downright terrifying at night!! To add insult, the Garmins insist that they are 55 mph roads. I probably averaged 25 at best. So 35 miles on NF roads in the middle of the night, dodging critters, not knowing about the drop offs on the road, I finally made it up to Yaak for the bonus photos. What should have taken about an hour ended up being closer to 3 hours.
Note in the photo that the date stamp says 6/20. The picture was taken at 12:58 Eastern Time so the local time was 10:58. I had an hour to start my rest bonus. Since the closest town with hotels on the way I need to go would be Bonners Ferry, ID, took advantage of the extra hour to make my way there to start my rest bonus. I was also getting really concerned about my fuel level. With 32 miles shown on the Distance to Empty display, I found a 24 hour pump near Bonners Ferry. Now I had less than 30 minutes to start my rest bonus. Pulling into town I saw a Best Western and pulled in to get a room. When they told me that their only room was $339 for the night, I just about fell down. Holy cow!! Apparently there was some event going on like a soccer tourney that had all the rooms booked up in town. Eyeing the ATM in the lobby I went ahead and got a receipt to start the clock on the rest bonus. Checking Hotels.com I found a local hotel that had a room for $139 that I had to settle for. Back on the bike I had to go a mile down the road and checked in. Ah, another good shower! A quick glance at the in-room hot tub was tempting but thinking better of it, I hit the sack for some much needed rest.
It looks like I covered just over 1,000 miles again today.
Day 4 - Bonners Ferry, ID to Kennewick, WA
Waking in the morning in Bonners Ferry, ID, I had a bad feeling that there was no way that I was going to be able to complete my planned route over into Seattle and make it back to the checkpoint in time. Dang, that's going to hurt. I was really counting on the 5566 points available at Hurricane Ridge but it just wasn't going to happen. So I pulled out my computer and looked to see what I could salvage. Ugh, not really much. The only bonus was the Elk River General Store for 767 points. Disappointed, I made ready to grab that bonus and head to the checkpoint in Kennewick, WA and get some much needed rest. Heading back to the Best Western to get another ATM receipt, I cut my rest bonus short by a half hour (and 120 points) and headed south.
It was a beautiful day without a cloud in the sky as I made way into Sandpoint, ID. I had never heard of the place but it was jaw-dropping. Situated on a fairly large lake, the downtown area had a nice extension of the lake that allowed for boat traffic right up to the prime social areas. If it were an option, that could be a retirement destination. It was really beautiful.
Crossing I-90 in Coeur d'Alene, I continued on backroads deeper into northern Idaho. The scenary was magnificent. Following the magenta line I was all alone on a wonderful 2 lane road going deeper and deeper into the woods. At the road's end was the small town of Elk River that was obviously a jumping off point for backwoods adventures in the area. The bonus was to take a picture of the General Store with your motorcycle in the picture.
Feeling rather disappointed in myself, I backtracked out of the woods back towards the checkpoint. Remembering that Pendleton, OR was one of the cities marked with the mysterious "R" bonus codes, I adjusted my route to swing a little south and grab a receipt in town. Doing so took me through the almost barren landscape of northeast Oregon which was beautiful in its own way. I was really missing my trees back home.
Arriving at the checkpoint about 6:40 in the evening, it seemed like a good number of other riders had already arrived. The check-in process was easy enough and I sat down to review my pictures and prepare for scoring. I really wasn't looking forward to it as I had left a lot of points out there. But, on the other hand, I was sticking to my objective of being fairly conservative and not expending all my energy on Leg 1.
At scoring I was assigned to Davide E.B. Smith who I knew from the Butt Lite rally the year prior. We went through my list and tallied up my score, 15,366. Ugh, that was below the target for reaching finisher status. I knew that I needed to step up the game for the next Leg and get back in front of the bubble. 70th place was a bit disheartening for someone as competitive as I am.
Grabbing the supplied dinner I made my way upstairs for much needed rest. Mileage total for Leg 1 was 3,813 over 3.5 days. I was good with that.
