Doc Edkin
06-10-2008, 13:20
Robin and I just got home from riding 1077 miles in the Minute Man 1000 24 hour bonus hunt rally. We've done other Iron Butt Association rides two-up but this was the first rally together and we bagged 4th of 34 rally riders. Some of you may have done rides like this so the thing itself is not noteworthy. However, the reason to post this here focuses on the special nature of this year's rally, reading is FUNdamental, featuring bonus locations at bookstores, public libraries, and college campuses. Many learned that lesson the hard way including the note that 8oz of New England maple syrup is not a pint! Checking receipts is critical too. . .one rider lost a 5000 rest bonus because his rest finish receipt was :20sec short of the required two hours. 1:59:40, it seems, does not round up to two hours. Our 1077 miles is nice but better still, we made no bonus or scoring mistakes. . .an advantage of two former English teachers checking all bonuses and final paperwork. But best of all, and a really curious thing, is that our route that started and ended in Northampton, Mass took us to all eight Ivy League campuses for the 8000 point "Poison Ivy" Bonus. Anyone ever visit all eight Ivies before? In less than 24 hours? We ran Northampton to Dartmouth, to Harvard, to Brown, to Yale, to Columbia, to Princeton, to Penn to Cornell and then back to Northampton, the event HQ. Along the way we picked up a few other bonus locations as well. Most campuses had special events going on like graduation or an alumni event. Time got eaten up in ways you might not plan for so getting back within the 24 window was tough. . .we left on Saturday 0608 and returned to check-in at 0602 on Sunday. I95 from Boston to NYC was hot and busy. . .I'm thinking Dante had something like that route in mind when he was thinking of ring six! Best of the campus stories was Cornell where we had to find and take a picture of the statue of Ezra Cornell at 23:15 in the middle of one of the biggest and best campus alumni parties I've ever seen. The brick streets up through College Town in Ithaca are interesting in day light but night, in the middle of a campus-wide party made for a real test on the LT. One security officer really wanted us to leave but another turned out to be helpful. Imagine getting seven campuses and missing the last and most distant because security would not let you near the location necessary for the bonus. You forfeit not only that location but the extra bonus for getting all eight. And there was a trick as there are two statues and we nearly photographed the wrong one. The library at Dartmouth was a problem for those who got Dartmouth midday as graduation was held right there on the lawn in front of the library. Security nearly prevented those folks from getting the required picture but they parked down the street and walked to the library. Picture graduation taking place and some folks in full riding gear (an event requirement) in the background taking pictures of rally flags draped over the base of the library sign. Harvard had graduation going on and Yale was abuzz with drunk alumni wandering about. Rob Nye, event organizer and an officer in the national BMW group, MAX BMW (the main sponsor of the event) and the team from the Yankee Beemers deserve kudos for smooth operation, great digs and food, great T-shirts and prizes, and a set of rally bonuses that only twisted and creative minds could produce. Participants could select to ride either the rally or do an entry level 1000 mile IBA ride that did not require bonus collection. As an aside, Max and Ben Stratton of MAX BMW rode the SS1K event on new BMW RTs. Those newly rally tested bikes, I understand, will be listed for sale shortly as demos! The oldest bike to complete the SS1K was a '72 HD, I think a RoadKing sort of bike. About 37 rode the SS1K while 34 ran the rally. In the field were three other LTs and an assortment of Jap platforms, a Triumph or two, and a couple of sport bikes. KTM and BMW GS adventure bikes were pretty big too. Cramps and dehydration were our biggest foes but everyone got back without any real mishaps. What a weekend, especially since I had just returned from Colorado and a piece of the Spring Ride including WV and NC. Next week is a rally in Michigan up near Lake Superior. This retirement gig is demanding!