2023 Big As Texas Event

[Lisa]

Texas is HOT. Dang HOT. Stupid HOT. I guess you all know what that means:

In just a few short weeks, it’ll be time for BIG AS TEXAS!!! WooHOOOOO!!

In an effort to keep it fresh, we’re gonna mix it up again this year. I wasn’t able to join the fun in Pittsburgh for the start and finish of the Iron Butt Rally but I sure heard about it!! And now that I have serious FOMO, we’re going to have tons of social time, time to get caught up, hear and share IBR and ride stories, latest farkling tips, etc. plus a super fun ride, the Rubber Chicken 1000 (on Thursday). You heard it here first!

Lots more details to come but we’re excited to share a few things with you now. We’ll gather in Allen, Texas Sept 21- 24 for lots of fun and frivolity. Sort of drawing from the International Meets (RIP), we’ll offer a couple of seminars and opportunities to Q&A some of the top IBR Finishers. Then of course, no BAT would be complete without lots of food and refreshment so you can sign up for some fun no host dinner get togethers, Happy Hours, and an awesome RTE lunch.

So if you just finished the IBR and need to decompress with your friends, if you’re new and don’t know anyone yet, if you’re thinking you might want to ride a rally but don’t know where to start, if you’re old and tired and need a fix with The Cool Kids, if you need to put a name to a face and Facebook isn’t helping, or if you just want to spend time in the air conditioning, do yourself a big favor and SIGN UP and we’ll do the rest.

You’ll get an email with all the hotel info and sign-up options.

We have great accommodations for $130 per night including breakfast, a parking structure to shelter your bike (or any other vehicle) from the crazy weather, and lots of friendly faces who can’t wait to see you.

We will see everyone here September 21st!

PREMIER registration is open now at ibaestore.com and after you sign into your account, click on Big As Texas on the left side.

Cliff, Lisa and Mike

 

[Lisa]

Big As Texas is just around the corner and it's exciting to see all the registrations coming through. We have added rooms to the block twice now, but there ARE currently rooms available so if you're on the fence, we encourage you to join the fun and register through the estore.

Below please find the Seminar Schedule with much more information about the content and speaker.

Rubber Chicken 1000 riders will head out Thursday morning. You may still register for that through the estore. Cliff has alerted the BBQ joint that the crazies will arrive around 10 for Saturday's RTQ. It's about an hour to get there using the scenic route but much faster to slab it back. You'll have lots of social time and still be able to attend a not-to-be-missed seminar at 2pm by some guy named Owen. Win/win.

That's it for now. Once you register, confirmation and hotel info will be sent to your estore email address within a couple of days. Thanks for your patience.
Thanks and hope to see you soon!
Cliff and Lisa

BAT Seminar Line Up
Friday, Sept 22
Jeff Earls What goes into construction of an Iron Butt Rally? This two-session seminar dives in on that question.
9 – 10:15am The first session will cover motivation, expectations, and the two-year development schedule.
10:45 – Noon The second session will cover details on how to successfully construct an 11-day rally that scales the challenge across the field from those looking to finish to those looking to win, while holding true to the ethos of the Iron Butt Association.
12:45 – 1:45pm
Lisa Landry Long Distance Event Planning - Scalable Tips and tools to navigate rally management.
2:15 – 4:15
Mike Brooke Route Planning Fundamentals – From rally packet to scoring, how to prepare, plan and execute your best ride.
Saturday, Sept 23
2:00pm
James Owen Rally Craft: Lessons Learned over the Years - How to prepare, how to plan, how to proceed, what to think about, and contingency planning.

 

[mkao1248]

Will there be ride in certificates done for BAT 23? Planning an Eggsanity Gold currently.

 

[Cliff Wall]

Will there be ride in certificates done for BAT 23? Planning an Eggsanity Gold currently.

The Premier team will get all of those worked out for those who want to receive a cert at the event. Expect some info posted soon.

 

[Lisa]

Hey everyone -
Just an update regarding the Big As Texas event just a month away. This Friday August 25th is the last day the hotel will guarantee the negotiated room rate of $130 including breakfast. Right now the rack rate is $171 but that will go up. The Plano Hot Air Balloon Festival is the same weekend and only 7 miles away.

So if you're on the fence, get off it and log into the estore.

Unlike at rallies, there will be lots of social time to get caught up with friends, meet some new ones, laugh about stupid stuff that shouldn't be posted on the interwebs. Best of all, there will be plenty of vets and old timers to share their stories with new riders, who are in desperate need of history lessons about people and places so integral to the sport.

I'll be watching the sign ups and get you the hotel letter so you can make your reservation by Friday.

 

[LadyRider]

If my husband and I sign up now, how much would we miss out on if we find another hotel to stay in? He's been interested in the rallies for awhile, but since we still work, it's hard to make the time commitment for them. We just don't know what to expect. We've always been loners.

 

[Cliff Wall]

If my husband and I sign up now, how much would we miss out on if we find another hotel to stay in? He's been interested in the rallies for awhile, but since we still work, it's hard to make the time commitment for them. We just don't know what to expect. We've always been loners.

Most of the interaction with the attendees takes place at the host hotel of course. But if there are no rooms left the next best thing would be to sign up and then come to the Marriott as much as you can during the event. Staying at the host hotel is not a requirement to attend.

That said, look me up when you show up. I would be happy to answer any questions you have and introduce you to folks who can help you out. You'll find it is a very rider friendly group. Hope to see you there.

 

[Lisa]

The hotel just extended the link for us until this Thursday. So if you want to join us at the host hotel, you'll be able to get a room. But do it NOW. If you prefer to stay elsewhere (why?!!) you may do that too!

For you Renee, I'm not sure what being a 'loner' means to you. If it means you prefer to ride your own ride, you've come to the right place. If it means you hate to hang out with other riders, laugh a lot, share knowledge and tall tales, laugh a lot, get great tips for rallying and long distance riding, eat BBQ, laugh a lot...well, we still welcome you but hope you enjoy the awesome company!!

 

[LadyRider]

We bought our tickets earlier today after Cliff Wall responded. It didn't take much to encourage us. LOL We are waiting on the information so we can reserve our room. Glad to know we can still get the discounted rate!

We're not loners in the since that we dislike groups. We are a part of a small local riders group, but only ride with them monthly with the occasional weekend trip. Otherwise we ride as a family. No experience with the big gatherings. We are looking forward to this experience though!

Thank you both!!

 

[TXBootScoot]

Is this ride open to non-premier riders yet? I’m local and don’t need a hotel necessarily, but would like to see what the SS1000 and BBG options are this fall.

 

[Lisa]

Is this ride open to non-premier riders yet? I’m local and don’t need a hotel necessarily, but would like to see what the SS1000 and BBG options are this fall.

Hi there -

Registration for BAT is now closed as we prepare for the event next week. For the future, when we post events on the forum, they are officially open to all IBA members. I'm sorry that wasn't clear.

 

[TXBootScoot]

Hi there -

Registration for BAT is now closed as we prepare for the event next week. For the future, when we post events on the forum, they are officially open to all IBA members. I'm sorry that wasn't clear.

Bummer, I’m disappointed to be missing this year. If anyone doing a SS or BBG drops out, hit me up and I’ll gladly take the slot. Enjoy y’all, see ya next year!

 

[rneal55555]

I am signed up for a couple of seminars which would bore my wife to death, so she has signed up for a 3 hour tour of Dallas that starts at 10 AM. If anybody else is in a similar situation and wants to tag along. We will have a rent a car to get there if needed. Reservations are required. If anybody is interested let me know and I'll get a link to the tour to you.

PS it looks like we are signing up for a nighttime electric bike/scooter tour on Sunday evening.

 

[Lisa]

I am signed up for a couple of seminars which would bore my wife to death, so she has signed up for a 3 hour tour of Dallas that starts at 10 AM. If anybody else is in a similar situation and wants to tag along. We will have a rent a car to get there if needed. Reservations are required. If anybody is interested let me know and I'll get a link to the tour to you.

PS it looks like we are signing up for a nighttime electric bike/scooter tour on Sunday evening.

Great ideas! There's a lot to see. The Sixth floor museum is awesome and transports you back to the 60s, Holocaust museum is deeply moving. Deep Ellum and the Farmers Market are great.

Sunday night there aren't a lot of restaurants open in downtown. But if you're wanting to eat there, we love Uchi. It's $$ but always worth it if you love Japanese. Also just tried Taverna and highly recommend for excellent Italian.. It's a couple miles north of downtown.

See you soon