Girlie Motorcycle Blog

Catfish Results from Checkpoint 2

Catfish sounded less than excited about his ranking after scoring in yesterday. He’s currently in 85th place. I understand that maybe that isn’t where he’d like to be in the standings but you know he really is working hard. Everyone I know is still proud of him and the rally isn’t over yet. The key here is to finish and do it safely.  Win, lose or draw, everyone around these parts is still in awe.

Is second place always first loser?

Let me start by saying I don’t generally subscribe to the If you had fun you won mentality. I am totally down with being competitive. But the deeper I get in to reading what these competitors in the IBR go through; my point of view here may be altered a little.

Sure it’s great to ‘win’, to be number 1. Who wouldn’t love that? Those folks work really hard to earn that. But I also think that its important to remember that with the amount of hours on the road, each of these folks ups the odds for mishap or mechanical breakdown. Every person that makes it to the end of the rally picking up points along the way really needs to be applauded for their stamina alone. Yes, yes, yes, I understand there has to be some level of points here. I get it. Riding directly from one checkpoint to the next would absolutely not be sporting.

The guys and girls who have been at this game a few times are hardcore. But, everyone has to start as a rookie. I applaud anyone who thinks they’ve got the stones to do this. I mean, really do it – belly up to the bar and put their money where their mouth is. It’s really an impressive task.

Onward They Go

Catfish was last spotted around Vegas today. He said that it was only 110 degrees out and that it felt like winter compared to the previous day. I wonder if it’s cooler in say… Canada?

Checkpoint 3 – Rally Finish
Spokane Washington, 7am-9am PST
Scoring opens at 4am

Around the Web:

• Catfish’s zip tied brake – Its apparently not returning to its normal position. Its gunked up.
• Official Iron Butt Rally – Day 7 pdf

*Curtis* – Sorry, I didn’t capture your email address to respond to you~ Thanks for helping with the fuel cell! You’re a life saver

On August 27 the leg 2 bonus listing was distributed to the riders, dark and early at 4am. This 3 1/2 day leg puts riders to the task of accumulating 27,000 points to be considered a finisher. After the riders meeting, everyone was clear for takeoff. Unfortunately, for Catfish, he did not get an early start.

When I heard from him on Thursday morning it was short and sweet. ‘Bike is dead, swapping the battery.‘ My heart sank. I expected to hear that he was already underway with a couple hundred miles under his belt. Alas, it wasn’t to be. Thirty minutes later, I got the news. Not only was his battery dead, but if you can believe this cruel twist of fate, so was the replacement.

Day 4 was a tough one for Catfish.

I am unsure now if he got a jump on the second battery or if a 3rd battery was in play. But I do know that he didn’t get rolling until after lunch time. I didn’t hear from him again for the rest of the day. I can only imagine that every minute that ticked by must have felt like an eternity as he fiddled with his bike. Frustrating probably doesn’t begin to cover the way that morning played out.

It did my heart good to finally confirm that he was on the move. I know that on Thursday he was moving through Wisconsin, specifically around Spring Green. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin is there. This has to be a bonus location. It was the scene of a horrific crime that resulted in the death of his companion Mamah Borthwick Cheney and her 2 children amongst several others. Kenny and I passed through in 2005. Upon hearing the town name, what else but Frank Lloyd Wright and this crime can you think of? Well, except House on the Rock, which we visited that May. That too is a crime; against good taste.

You just never know what will happen from one day to the next. The Iron Butt Rally is like a soap opera for motorcycle riders. There is intrigue and adventure, excitement and plot twists. I can’t get enough!

Onward toward Santa Ana, California!

Checkpoint 2
Sunday, August 30, 9pm – 11pm Pacific Time
Santa Ana, California

• Iron But Rally – Day 4 pdf
• Leg 2 Bonus Snapshot

Checkpoint 1 has come and gone.

I got a chance to speak with Catfish on Wednesday night (August 26) after he checked in at St. Charles, Illinois and finished scoring. He arrived in the rain at about 4:30 central time. He was very chatty and sounded like he was in good spirits.He was looking forward to a shower and sleeping. The whole process sounds like it is a beautiful mix of terrible and wonderful all wrapped up into one. I’m certain that as time passes, the experience will provide him with long lasting memories.

• Catfish after arriving in St. Charles

He’d mainly worked on picking up bonuses around Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and Tennessee. When he first answered my 10 questions about the rally about a year ago, he noted that he’s never really done any traveling. He echoed that sentiment again but peppered it with a clear interest in the traveling aspect of this undertaking.

Catfish had been plagued with a problem with his fuel cell right out of the gate at Spartanburg. The first two and a half days of the rally he’d been riding with his regular fuel tank only. With the weight he’s lugging around, he said he was turning about a 180 mile range or so. That makes for a few gas stops, huh? Luckily, he was able to fix is ailing fuel cell at the St. Charles. It turned out to be an issue with the filter. At the risk of sounding extra stupid I will leave my technical assessment at that.

At the close of night two before settling in for a few hours sleep in a Home Improvement store parking lot, he realized he’d left his rally flag about 4 miles back. So, in the wee hours, he had to pack himself back up, ride back to retrieve his flag and re-settle in for 40 winks.

Arm Chair Rally

With the first leg of the rally now a thing of the past, the Iron Butt Association has posted a listing of the leg 1 bonuses. Now you too can get a glimpse of what it is required to string a route together. Some other folks around the web have taken the time to put the bonus listings in to excel and csv files with you can find on the web to monkey around with. I particularly like this Google Maps version.

For your armchair rally-ing pleasure:

• Official IBR Leg 1 Bonus Listing PDF
• Leg 1 Bonuses in Google Earth
• Leg 1 Bonus Snapshot

While standing in the Bridgeport ferry line next to our motorcycles, Kenny and I had the good fortune of meeting an incredibly interesting soul. He quietly stepped off of a casino bus that was parked next to us, also waiting to board the ferry which was due to arrive in 20 minutes time.

‘Those are beautiful, but not for me!’ he said pointing to our parked motorcycles with a twinkle in his eye. Sometimes people just emit a vibe that draws you in. He was like that. I chuckled and said something tragically inane like ‘Oh no, why’s that?’ This man in a summer tan sport coat and slacks and a dark blue cap began to casually weave what I came to decide was just a mere thread in the tale of his life into a fine spun fabric.

He went on to tell us about being in battle in Germany during World War II. After the conclusion of one particular skirmish he and his fellow soldiers found a German motorcycle. As the dust settled each of the men took a turn trying to ride on the motorbike. Tony smirked as he told us that he ended up riding himself into a row of hedges, knocked himself off the bike and got a face full of scratches. His riding career started and ended within a 5 minute span.

As the conversation began to flow naturally, Tony who is now 88 years old was more than happy to tell us about being a young man in the war. He stood no taller than me, at 5’7” but carried himself like he was 6’1“. It was clear that he had a quiet confidence in himself that he came to a good understanding of during his nearly 9 decades. He wore a single diamond stud earring and a long gray pony tail bound by rubber bands down its length below a navy baseball style hat. The front of the hat proudly bore the words Silver Star Conspicuous Gallantry.

When his number was called, he was given a nickel to head in to New York City’s Grand Central Station to go and get his Army physical. He chuckled out loud when he told us about the hearing part of the test which consisted of one question.

This gentle man who stood in front of us with an inviting smile, was in Normandy. He was called in 2 days early from his leave to head to Bastogne. He left home a young man who did not swear or drink and he came home ‘rough,’ he said. He went on to say that it took a long time to acclimate to being home, away from the things that he saw, away from the memories of things like waiting in a foxhole after laying mines in a field.

Because I cannot pretend to understand the many changes that a war will put a person through I can only assume then that his warm and open demeanor must have been the result of the last 60 years of practice. He was a delightful walking time capsule full of stories to be treasured.

I cannot help but feel like if it were not for me riding a motorcycle, I would never have shared 20 minutes with such a person. Sometimes in this life you cross paths with people whom you feel blessed to meet. Tony was such a man.

How about you? Have you ever met someone who affected you deeply while out on the road?