Joining the IBA

[TheNightOwl]

Hello everyone,

I’m looking to join the IBA and completed the Saddlesore 1000 ride 20 weeks ago. I submitted my documentation electronically but I’ve been patiently waiting in the queue ever since. It was a tough ride for me (I took some time off work to recover as well) but I didn’t realize that waiting to be certified would be the hardest part (I really want that chrome back plate lol !!)

I spoke to one of the admins about 8 weeks ago and he said it typically takes around 12-16 weeks. They get a lot of volume in their emails it seems and I’ve learned that they’re all volunteers which is really nice of them to be doing. I’m over the 16 week mark but I figure with the holidays there's some delays to be expected so I should be hearing back any time soon hopefully.

In my e-mail submission I’m looking to purchase around $200 worth of merchandise ranging from pins to t-shirts to the coveted back plates so I was also hoping to put some of the goodies under the X-mas tree but alas hopefully soon anyhow.

Still have my hopes up the end is near, or perhaps this is just beginning of many more rides to come… But definitely will be paying the $40 for the premier membership in the summer if I decide to do another ride

With all that said, for those of you that are regular members I’m just wondering how long it took to have your Saddlesore 1000 ride certified?

And for the premier members, how long does it take you guys to have a Saddlesore 1000/ similar ride certified? Seems like it would be worth it as the suspense is killing me lol

Also just want to say hello, and Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

All the best,

Cheers
TNO

 

[EricV]

Welcome to the forum. There isn't a set time frame for certificates to be processed. The average time has been stated to be running about 16 weeks, but honestly some take months longer. Because they get so many, it's not as simple as it sounds to check up on one submission. Paying ahead of time doesn't speed things up, and in fact is not recommended. Premier members do have a different email address to submit rides to, but that doesn't guarantee any greater speed in processing the submission. It's all about back log and volume.

What motorcycle did you ride for your Saddlesore 1000 ride?

 

[TheNightOwl]

That's good info thank you!

And I rode my one and only (for now) Honda CBR500R

 

[EricV]

I can see why you needed some time off from work to recover! The CBR500R is a fun bike, but not optimal for long distance rides.

 

[kerrizor]

Hello and welcome to this weird little club!

With all that said, for those of you that are regular members I’m just wondering how long it took to have your Saddlesore 1000 ride certified?

And for the premier members, how long does it take you guys to have a Saddlesore 1000/ similar ride certified? Seems like it would be worth it as the suspense is killing me lol

For _me_, my first took ~12 weeks (3 months) - but it was a National Parks Tour in 2018, which might be a bit easier, since its "just" a matter of comparing a photo to an entry in the spreadsheet I sent along (I get a little obsessive trying to make it easy for the volunteers).

For premier rides, the turn around is 1-3 weeks _in general_ -- I think I had one come back in 8-9 weeks, but I don't really hassle about it, I just submit them and they're done when they're done. Neatness and organization make things go MUCH smoother. I don't submit anything hand written; I label every thing obsessively; I send the clearest, largest version of photos that is practical for email; I put photos in a Google Photos album and send a link along _in addition_.. just try to make things easy so they don't spend an hour squinting at my chicken-scratches and have to use a microscope to find my odometer readings in photos, sitting up to stretch at the end, realizing the sun has gone down, their coffee is cold, the room silent, and they've spent another day indoors looking at the gas receipts of maniacs.. and that cold gnaw of doubt creeps into their bones. They could've been with family celebrating Suzy's birthday, or working on the garden plans for next year, or finally fixing that squeaky step on the front porch... or even out riding themselves, instead of trying to determine if Kerri actually did stupid, masochistic thing on a motorcycle or didn't she...

Premier is worth it to me not just because of the special queue, but also because I get to support the rest of the goings-on.. and if you're going to do more rides, it's totally worth it (heck, the more rides you do, the CHEAPER it gets! ) You can still do rides while you're waiting on your first ride to be certified, but hold off on submitting them until you have the premier option available to you. (I know at least one person who has rides in the queue from > a year ago, and is _very patiently_ waiting to the point that they're just laughing about the delay at this point, and has a half-dozen other rides, including some really big multi-day "capstone" rides that they're holding off on until that gets sorted.)

 

[Brian Thorn]

I'm a Premier member and I submitted for my Mile Eater cert on May 16th. I received the notice this morning that it had been approved but that it may be another two weeks or so until I actually receive the paperwork.

Such is life. Sometimes you luck out and get a really fast return and sometimes it just takes a while.

 

[cacomly]

I'm a Premier member and I submitted for my Mile Eater cert on May 16th. I received the notice this morning that it had been approved but that it may be another two weeks or so until I actually receive the paperwork.

Such is life. Sometimes you luck out and get a really fast return and sometimes it just takes a while.

My guess is they saw it was yours and kept putting it at the bottom of the pile

 

[cacomly]

Hello everyone,

I’m looking to join the IBA and completed the Saddlesore 1000 ride 20 weeks ago. I submitted my documentation electronically but I’ve been patiently waiting in the queue ever since. It was a tough ride for me (I took some time off work to recover as well) but I didn’t realize that waiting to be certified would be the hardest part (I really want that chrome back plate lol !!)

I spoke to one of the admins about 8 weeks ago and he said it typically takes around 12-16 weeks. They get a lot of volume in their emails it seems and I’ve learned that they’re all volunteers which is really nice of them to be doing. I’m over the 16 week mark but I figure with the holidays there's some delays to be expected so I should be hearing back any time soon hopefully.

In my e-mail submission I’m looking to purchase around $200 worth of merchandise ranging from pins to t-shirts to the coveted back plates so I was also hoping to put some of the goodies under the X-mas tree but alas hopefully soon anyhow.

Still have my hopes up the end is near, or perhaps this is just beginning of many more rides to come… But definitely will be paying the $40 for the premier membership in the summer if I decide to do another ride

With all that said, for those of you that are regular members I’m just wondering how long it took to have your Saddlesore 1000 ride certified?

And for the premier members, how long does it take you guys to have a Saddlesore 1000/ similar ride certified? Seems like it would be worth it as the suspense is killing me lol

Also just want to say hello, and Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

All the best,

Cheers
TNO

Congrats on the ride!

Keep in mind with the holidays volunteers like to take time off as well. It will come in due time. If they review the documentation and have an issue with it they will contact you. All of us have gone through this and it used to be much longer of a wait.

 

[Brian Thorn]

My guess is they saw it was yours and kept putting it at the bottom of the pile

Heh... that *is* a possibility.

 

[TheNightOwl]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! Yes I'm hoping to support this "weird little club" (lol) and did my best to make things as easy as possible with the pictures and receipts.

Next year I'm hoping to do a couple of the Great Lakes 1000 series rides, assuming covid matters settle down in the summer so will definitely purchase the premier membership if it speeds things up and helps the team.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Cheers

 

[Brian Thorn]

will definitely purchase the premier membership if it speeds things up

Getting priority standing with cert reviews is just one small part of the Premier membership; it's well worth it.

 

[NightShifter]

Hello,

New member here. I hope you get your cert back soon. I just got my first one back and now have my official IBA number. It took almost 5 months. It was a test of patience but oh so worth it. It can be hard to wait for something like this not knowing if all your hard work, planning and waiting will pay off but when it comes back. Man I can't tell you how cool it was. Validation of your achievement feels great. Thank you IBA Volunteers.