I completed my first SS1000 ride back on July 29, 2017!!! I wanted to get on here sooner and let everyone know but life gets busy quick!
I left my local Petro-Canada gas station in Peterborough, ON at 04:09 am and rode to St. Philippe-de-Neri, QC and back to my local Petro-Canada at 12:04 am! I am so thrilled to have finally done one of these rides! It has been on my bucket list for a long time. I knew that I am at my best early in the day, thus the early start time and I also know that after midnight I start to get tired so I wanted to get done in 20hrs and I managed to reach my goal with 5 min to spare! It was tougher than I had hoped but not as tough as I had feared. At no point did I feel fatigued or unsafe. I did however find the comfort on my Bandit lacking after the 1000 km mark and the final 300 km my left shoulder and neck were pretty sore. Also, I have to give props to my throttle doo-hicky. I don't know what it is called, but it looks like a finger that sticks up from the throttle. Once you are at your desired speed you push it down so it rests against the break lever and holds the throttle open for you. I've had it on my bike for at least 5 years and maybe used it twice before my SS1000 but it made the difference between finishing and not finishing! My throttle hand would have cramped up with out it and I don't think I would have finished without those little breaks.
It's been a long time since I felt this sense of accomplishment and I'm really liking it. My career has been established for a long time and there is no option for advancement and my personal life is right where I want it to be. I had been looking for a goal to challenge myself with and this did it. I will definitely attempt another IBA ride in the future (I am especially interested in the lower great lakes 1000) but I will be waiting until I get a more comfortable bike. The Bandit is just too sporty for me to try another one on it. I was very happy with the size of the bike so I am considering a WeeStrom.
I have gotten all of my paper work together today and am just waiting for my Wife to get home to watch our daughters so I can run to the bank and get my check made out and then off to the post office.
Cheers!
I left my local Petro-Canada gas station in Peterborough, ON at 04:09 am and rode to St. Philippe-de-Neri, QC and back to my local Petro-Canada at 12:04 am! I am so thrilled to have finally done one of these rides! It has been on my bucket list for a long time. I knew that I am at my best early in the day, thus the early start time and I also know that after midnight I start to get tired so I wanted to get done in 20hrs and I managed to reach my goal with 5 min to spare! It was tougher than I had hoped but not as tough as I had feared. At no point did I feel fatigued or unsafe. I did however find the comfort on my Bandit lacking after the 1000 km mark and the final 300 km my left shoulder and neck were pretty sore. Also, I have to give props to my throttle doo-hicky. I don't know what it is called, but it looks like a finger that sticks up from the throttle. Once you are at your desired speed you push it down so it rests against the break lever and holds the throttle open for you. I've had it on my bike for at least 5 years and maybe used it twice before my SS1000 but it made the difference between finishing and not finishing! My throttle hand would have cramped up with out it and I don't think I would have finished without those little breaks.
It's been a long time since I felt this sense of accomplishment and I'm really liking it. My career has been established for a long time and there is no option for advancement and my personal life is right where I want it to be. I had been looking for a goal to challenge myself with and this did it. I will definitely attempt another IBA ride in the future (I am especially interested in the lower great lakes 1000) but I will be waiting until I get a more comfortable bike. The Bandit is just too sporty for me to try another one on it. I was very happy with the size of the bike so I am considering a WeeStrom.
I have gotten all of my paper work together today and am just waiting for my Wife to get home to watch our daughters so I can run to the bank and get my check made out and then off to the post office.
Cheers!
