Greetings!
I'm pleased to report that this past weekend (Saturday, July 2, 2022), I embarked and completed my first IBA ride and just this morning submitted an electronic application for certification consideration. While patiently awaiting its review, I wanted to briefly describe the ride in hopes that you don't mind learning more about it.
Living in the far NW corner of Wisconsin, it seemed to me that an All-Wisconsin Saddle Sore 1000 would be just the ticket and as a big fan of Wisconsin-owned Kwik Trip convenience stores, I wanted to included them in any and all of my fueling and food replenishment stops. As a result, I'd plotted the course to begin and end at a Kwik Trip store near my home in Superior and carefully-selected nine other Kwik Trip stores throughout and affectionately named it the "Kwik Trip 1000. Full disclosure: a BP station in Pembine was included in the planned route simply to anchor a 'corner' per IBA rules. For what it's worth, and in keeping with this ride's All-Wisconsin ties, I suppose I should also report that I'd ridden it in a Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special
As expected, the route provided a beautiful tour of this wonderful state and even included a bonus sighting of a black bear that chose to stand up on it's hind legs in order to get itself a better view of me as I passed, no less. The ride intentionally included hundreds of miles of 2-lane roads (my favorites) and took just over 18 hours to complete. It most certainly wasn't a race by any stretch of the imagination and with only a few exceptions, was one that I loved every minute of. The only exception that comes to mind likely being the approximately 10 miles or so of southbound I-43 just outside Milwaukee that proved to quite possibly be the the roughest stretch of interstate I can ever recall traveling. To the point where I'd recommend avoiding it if at all possible. Otherwise, the temperatures were near perfect and ranged from a low of 50 degrees Fahrenheit to highs in the upper 80s. Rain? Although facing dozens of miles black clouds rapidly descending upon me from the west between Madison and Stevens Point, I was met with only a few miles of pretty substantial downpour and otherwise 'out-raced' the approaching storm clouds. I'll likely never forget the hour or so spent wondering, "Do I find a place to stop and quickly don my rain suit and then most-certainly get drenched? Or do I keep pushing at 75+ mph with a strong chance of reaching the blue skies that are inevitably just beyond the horizon?" Atypically, my decision to keep rolling instead of adding the rainsuit paid off whereas in the past, similar 'risky' weather calls paid off poorly; left me looking like a drowned rat; with regrets for not following better judgement; but those are other stories for another time.
Please know that I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have about the ride itself and in the meantime, can report that completing it has prepared me well for any future IBA adventures and can't end this post without being sure to thank the countless (and nameless) IBA forum members from who's posts provided hours of entertainment and tremendously-important words of advice. I'm left with the hope that one day my upcoming experiences will do the same for others also getting into the wonderful sport of long-distance motorcycle riding.
Thank you so very much for having read this far and also for allowing me into your very interesting world.
Robert
I'm pleased to report that this past weekend (Saturday, July 2, 2022), I embarked and completed my first IBA ride and just this morning submitted an electronic application for certification consideration. While patiently awaiting its review, I wanted to briefly describe the ride in hopes that you don't mind learning more about it.
Living in the far NW corner of Wisconsin, it seemed to me that an All-Wisconsin Saddle Sore 1000 would be just the ticket and as a big fan of Wisconsin-owned Kwik Trip convenience stores, I wanted to included them in any and all of my fueling and food replenishment stops. As a result, I'd plotted the course to begin and end at a Kwik Trip store near my home in Superior and carefully-selected nine other Kwik Trip stores throughout and affectionately named it the "Kwik Trip 1000. Full disclosure: a BP station in Pembine was included in the planned route simply to anchor a 'corner' per IBA rules. For what it's worth, and in keeping with this ride's All-Wisconsin ties, I suppose I should also report that I'd ridden it in a Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special
As expected, the route provided a beautiful tour of this wonderful state and even included a bonus sighting of a black bear that chose to stand up on it's hind legs in order to get itself a better view of me as I passed, no less. The ride intentionally included hundreds of miles of 2-lane roads (my favorites) and took just over 18 hours to complete. It most certainly wasn't a race by any stretch of the imagination and with only a few exceptions, was one that I loved every minute of. The only exception that comes to mind likely being the approximately 10 miles or so of southbound I-43 just outside Milwaukee that proved to quite possibly be the the roughest stretch of interstate I can ever recall traveling. To the point where I'd recommend avoiding it if at all possible. Otherwise, the temperatures were near perfect and ranged from a low of 50 degrees Fahrenheit to highs in the upper 80s. Rain? Although facing dozens of miles black clouds rapidly descending upon me from the west between Madison and Stevens Point, I was met with only a few miles of pretty substantial downpour and otherwise 'out-raced' the approaching storm clouds. I'll likely never forget the hour or so spent wondering, "Do I find a place to stop and quickly don my rain suit and then most-certainly get drenched? Or do I keep pushing at 75+ mph with a strong chance of reaching the blue skies that are inevitably just beyond the horizon?" Atypically, my decision to keep rolling instead of adding the rainsuit paid off whereas in the past, similar 'risky' weather calls paid off poorly; left me looking like a drowned rat; with regrets for not following better judgement; but those are other stories for another time.
Please know that I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have about the ride itself and in the meantime, can report that completing it has prepared me well for any future IBA adventures and can't end this post without being sure to thank the countless (and nameless) IBA forum members from who's posts provided hours of entertainment and tremendously-important words of advice. I'm left with the hope that one day my upcoming experiences will do the same for others also getting into the wonderful sport of long-distance motorcycle riding.
Thank you so very much for having read this far and also for allowing me into your very interesting world.
Robert
