This ride report will be posted on both the Iron Butt Association (IBA) and Adventure Rider forums. I ask my fellow riders to pardon the self-indulgence of a long account; but I wanted to provide as much detail regarding the experience in hopes it would inspire some to complete this ride as I have been inspired by the account of others. The report will be separated by category/day to facilitate reading in segments rather than a single sitting. The attempt officially began on Wednesday June 13, 2018. To explain the title - the term Leatherneck is slang for a member of the United States Marine Corps and was derived from a leather collar once a part of the uniform worn to prevent the Mohammedan cutlass from slashing the throat of U.S. Marines during the Barbary war. I proudly served next to my fellow Marines for eight years active duty. While I am no longer serving – every Marine will tell you that once a Marine, always a Marine. The ride, experiences and people met along the way are the story; I am merely the storyteller.
As is often the case; next year ride plans begin as soon as the current year riding season is coming to an end. For me – 2017 was a great riding year. It began with the purchase of a BMW R1200GS Adventure after many years and thousands of miles on an extremely reliable Kawasaki Concurs 1400. The desire/drive to ride further and take those long unpaved roads leading in the distance we pass on state and county highways led me to the conclusion I required a bike with more capabilities and range without extensive modifications. The idea of course came while I was completing an IBA Bun Burner Gold (1,500 miles in less than 24 hours) towards the end of the 2016 riding season. The first ride I planned on the BMW was an IBA 100CCC (coast-to-coast-to-coast in less than 100 hours). In my case – it meant a ride departing Ocean Beach, California for Jacksonville Beach, Florida and returning to Ocean Beach. I completed the ride from start to finish in just under 88 hours. The BMW performed flawlessly and I was convinced I had made the right decision and could tackle longer rides in the future. However, before I could begin planning 2018 rides; I needed to complete what was slated for 2017 which included – my first Long Distance Rally (competing as a 2-up team with my wife Michelle (Shelly) in the How the West Was Won 34 hour Rally where we rode a little over 1,500 miles in under 30 hours finishing 15th overall and 2nd of 2-up teams while qualifying the ride as an IBA – Bun Burner Silver (1,500 miles in less than 30 hours) and Shelly’s first IBA ride earning her an IBA member number. The rally was just the first part of a planned vacation for Shelly and me which took us all over the Southwest and Pacific Northwest of the United States over a two week period covering nearly 6,000 miles. The last certified ride for 2017 also completed 2-up in just over 16 hours was a themed Saddle Sore 1,000 (1,000 miles in less than 24 hours) Memorial Ride dedicated to Shelly’s cousin Joe who had passed away the previous year.
(above left – bonus picture Chapel of Transfiguration located inside Grand Tetons National Park during 2017 How the West Was Won Rally; right – 2017 IBA Memorial Ride)
With three IBA certified rides on the BMW and a few small modifications – I felt ready to add more challenging rides for 2018. As with most fellow IBA members – my future ride list grows more quickly than my time to complete. The list for 2018 consisted of a 48/10 (document riding/stopping in all lower 48 states in less than 10 days), Heaven to Hell Gold (from the top of Mt. Evans, Co or Pikes Peak (the highest points in the Continental United States) to Badwater, Ca (the lowest point in the United States) by way of Independence Pass and Ely, NV in less than 24 hours), Border-to-Border Gold Insanity (Mexico to Canada to Mexico in less than 48 hours), another rally; with a handful of standard Saddle Sore rides thrown in for good measure. Along the way I became fascinated with adding an “adventure” ride to the list and became obsessed with riding the Continental Divide Trail south to north (CDT – approximately 2,700 miles of unpaved roads/trails from Antelope Wells, NM to Banff, Alberta, Canada).
As with most plans – they rarely survive first contact; or in the words of Mike Tyson “everyone has a plan until I hit them in the mouth”. Well, the right cross I took came in the form of my youngest daughter and son announcing separately around Christmas they were engaged. My son had not set a date with his fiancée; but my daughter and her fiance wanted their wedding in October 2018. Needless to say Shelly and I were happy for both. However, 10 months is not much time to plan a wedding as I was soon to find out. Obviously my availability and budget for the upcoming year was going to require some adjustments. Based on the targeted month; I immediately eliminated a repeat of the How the West Was Won Rally as it is typically scheduled for late August/early September time frame which would be too close to the wedding. With the rally off the docket, I decided Heaven to Hell would have to be postponed as it would have been done directly after the rally as an alternative route back home from Colorado. This left me with the option of completing a few short rides or one long ride. I opted for the latter dropping the Border-to-Border and any planned Saddle Sore. I was left with the 48/10 and CDT both of which I really wanted to attempt. I came up with a plan that if I changed the 48/10 to a 49/10 (adding Alaska to the required state stops - officially named 48 Plus) I could complete the ride in Hyder and then head to Banff, Alberta, Canada where I could ride the CDT north to south. The logistical challenges of combining these two very different types of rides became apparent rather quickly; but I thought it was still possible. The biggest obstacle was while I have experience riding dirt bikes in Ocotillo Wells. I had not yet taken the BMW Adventure off road. I know the bike is capable; but I was worried how well I could handle a bike that will tip the scales at over 600lbs in the dirt. I read every report and watched every video I could find on the CDT. I reviewed the route options available from GPS-Kevin. It looked doable. The next challenge would be the need for different tires. I again went back on the internet and determined I could handle a tire change roadside with some practice. I had options to either carry the extra set of tires or ship to Banff. However, the practical limiter I ran up against was time. For planning purposes I needed to set aside 10 days for the IBA which left me with 10 days for the CDT. If it was all tarmac – 2,700 miles in 10 days is a cakewalk. However, on dirt that can be a tall order especially for an individual riding alone on a large adventure category bike through unfamiliar terrain. When first planning the CDT as a standalone – I allotted 2 full weeks. Shortening the CDT portion by 4 days was going to require the daily ride miles to increase to a point where I would be riding dawn to dusk since my moving average would be significantly lower than riding paved roads. I was planning to finish the IBA ride in less than 9 days; but I could not count on salvaging extra time and applying it to the second half of trip. Rather than limiting the experience of two rides I wanted to complete; it seemed logical to focus on only one. I decided to stick with the 49/10 concept rather than the original 48/10 as the notion of a ride to Hyder really became more appealing. Now that I had firmly made up my mind – all I had to do was begin the real planning.
To be continued...
As is often the case; next year ride plans begin as soon as the current year riding season is coming to an end. For me – 2017 was a great riding year. It began with the purchase of a BMW R1200GS Adventure after many years and thousands of miles on an extremely reliable Kawasaki Concurs 1400. The desire/drive to ride further and take those long unpaved roads leading in the distance we pass on state and county highways led me to the conclusion I required a bike with more capabilities and range without extensive modifications. The idea of course came while I was completing an IBA Bun Burner Gold (1,500 miles in less than 24 hours) towards the end of the 2016 riding season. The first ride I planned on the BMW was an IBA 100CCC (coast-to-coast-to-coast in less than 100 hours). In my case – it meant a ride departing Ocean Beach, California for Jacksonville Beach, Florida and returning to Ocean Beach. I completed the ride from start to finish in just under 88 hours. The BMW performed flawlessly and I was convinced I had made the right decision and could tackle longer rides in the future. However, before I could begin planning 2018 rides; I needed to complete what was slated for 2017 which included – my first Long Distance Rally (competing as a 2-up team with my wife Michelle (Shelly) in the How the West Was Won 34 hour Rally where we rode a little over 1,500 miles in under 30 hours finishing 15th overall and 2nd of 2-up teams while qualifying the ride as an IBA – Bun Burner Silver (1,500 miles in less than 30 hours) and Shelly’s first IBA ride earning her an IBA member number. The rally was just the first part of a planned vacation for Shelly and me which took us all over the Southwest and Pacific Northwest of the United States over a two week period covering nearly 6,000 miles. The last certified ride for 2017 also completed 2-up in just over 16 hours was a themed Saddle Sore 1,000 (1,000 miles in less than 24 hours) Memorial Ride dedicated to Shelly’s cousin Joe who had passed away the previous year.
(above left – bonus picture Chapel of Transfiguration located inside Grand Tetons National Park during 2017 How the West Was Won Rally; right – 2017 IBA Memorial Ride)
With three IBA certified rides on the BMW and a few small modifications – I felt ready to add more challenging rides for 2018. As with most fellow IBA members – my future ride list grows more quickly than my time to complete. The list for 2018 consisted of a 48/10 (document riding/stopping in all lower 48 states in less than 10 days), Heaven to Hell Gold (from the top of Mt. Evans, Co or Pikes Peak (the highest points in the Continental United States) to Badwater, Ca (the lowest point in the United States) by way of Independence Pass and Ely, NV in less than 24 hours), Border-to-Border Gold Insanity (Mexico to Canada to Mexico in less than 48 hours), another rally; with a handful of standard Saddle Sore rides thrown in for good measure. Along the way I became fascinated with adding an “adventure” ride to the list and became obsessed with riding the Continental Divide Trail south to north (CDT – approximately 2,700 miles of unpaved roads/trails from Antelope Wells, NM to Banff, Alberta, Canada).
As with most plans – they rarely survive first contact; or in the words of Mike Tyson “everyone has a plan until I hit them in the mouth”. Well, the right cross I took came in the form of my youngest daughter and son announcing separately around Christmas they were engaged. My son had not set a date with his fiancée; but my daughter and her fiance wanted their wedding in October 2018. Needless to say Shelly and I were happy for both. However, 10 months is not much time to plan a wedding as I was soon to find out. Obviously my availability and budget for the upcoming year was going to require some adjustments. Based on the targeted month; I immediately eliminated a repeat of the How the West Was Won Rally as it is typically scheduled for late August/early September time frame which would be too close to the wedding. With the rally off the docket, I decided Heaven to Hell would have to be postponed as it would have been done directly after the rally as an alternative route back home from Colorado. This left me with the option of completing a few short rides or one long ride. I opted for the latter dropping the Border-to-Border and any planned Saddle Sore. I was left with the 48/10 and CDT both of which I really wanted to attempt. I came up with a plan that if I changed the 48/10 to a 49/10 (adding Alaska to the required state stops - officially named 48 Plus) I could complete the ride in Hyder and then head to Banff, Alberta, Canada where I could ride the CDT north to south. The logistical challenges of combining these two very different types of rides became apparent rather quickly; but I thought it was still possible. The biggest obstacle was while I have experience riding dirt bikes in Ocotillo Wells. I had not yet taken the BMW Adventure off road. I know the bike is capable; but I was worried how well I could handle a bike that will tip the scales at over 600lbs in the dirt. I read every report and watched every video I could find on the CDT. I reviewed the route options available from GPS-Kevin. It looked doable. The next challenge would be the need for different tires. I again went back on the internet and determined I could handle a tire change roadside with some practice. I had options to either carry the extra set of tires or ship to Banff. However, the practical limiter I ran up against was time. For planning purposes I needed to set aside 10 days for the IBA which left me with 10 days for the CDT. If it was all tarmac – 2,700 miles in 10 days is a cakewalk. However, on dirt that can be a tall order especially for an individual riding alone on a large adventure category bike through unfamiliar terrain. When first planning the CDT as a standalone – I allotted 2 full weeks. Shortening the CDT portion by 4 days was going to require the daily ride miles to increase to a point where I would be riding dawn to dusk since my moving average would be significantly lower than riding paved roads. I was planning to finish the IBA ride in less than 9 days; but I could not count on salvaging extra time and applying it to the second half of trip. Rather than limiting the experience of two rides I wanted to complete; it seemed logical to focus on only one. I decided to stick with the 49/10 concept rather than the original 48/10 as the notion of a ride to Hyder really became more appealing. Now that I had firmly made up my mind – all I had to do was begin the real planning.
To be continued...