RedRider Posted July 4, 2014 #1 Posted July 4, 2014 Tomorrow I take off for Minneapolis to begin the Butt Lite 7 Long Distance Motorcycle rally. Butt Lite rallies are run in opposite years from the biennial Iron Butt Rally. BL is similar to a mini-marathon relative to the Boston Marathon. It is a 6 day scavenger hunt type rally that will take the participants to the far reaches of the US and back to Minneapolis. While there are 68 bikes (2 are going 2-up with a passenger, total of 70 participants), most, if not all, of us will be riding alone on our own routes. There will be a checkpoint halfway through at a currently undisclosed location. The field contains many Iron Butt Rally finishers and several international participants (at least two have come in from Australia that I know of). I am the only one running a Venture. It begins Sunday, 7/6, at 8 am and continues until Saturday, 7/12, at 8 am. My expectation is to cover 7000-ish miles in that time span. The top 10 riders get a no-draw entry into the 2015 Iron Butt Rally. The winner get a PAID entry in the 2015 IBR. My goal is to finish above the middle of the pack. There is a blog being written about the event by one of the organizers. Generally, there will be at least one update per day. Some contributions have been added by a couple of participants discussing trials and travails of preparing for BL7. http://buttlite7.blogspot.com/. New tires, fresh fluid, new brake pads, ready to go. Wish me luck. RR
BlueSky Posted July 4, 2014 #3 Posted July 4, 2014 I wish you a safe and bike reliable trip! We will all be anxious for a full report when you finish the ride!
bill in mn Posted July 4, 2014 #5 Posted July 4, 2014 How fun and I do wish you fun and safe travels.
djh3 Posted July 4, 2014 #8 Posted July 4, 2014 Safe travels, good weather no breakdowns. Hopefully the only thing that may give you a little disadvantage will be the fuel range.
Stache Posted July 4, 2014 #9 Posted July 4, 2014 Safe travels, good weather no breakdowns. Hopefully the only thing that may give you a little disadvantage will be the fuel range. That's what Jerry Cans are for.
RedRider Posted July 4, 2014 Author #10 Posted July 4, 2014 Safe travels, good weather no breakdowns. Hopefully the only thing that may give you a little disadvantage will be the fuel range. I have a 5 gal auxiliary gas tank. Total range approx 350 miles. Fuel is not the limiting factor as to when I need to stop. Darn this being over 50 stuff. RR
RedRider Posted July 5, 2014 Author #11 Posted July 5, 2014 Just passed tech inspection. :dancefool: They confirm the registration, insurance, and the bike have the exact VIN listed and are all current. Insurance with sufficient coverage, MedJet subscription, DOT helmet, and under 11.5 total fuel capacity (I measured out at about 11.3, but they were overcalculating the aux tank using external dimensions. If it would have calculated out over the limit, then they would spend a little more time being exact in the measurements.) They also confirm a solid mounting structure for the aux tank, proper venting, and proper electrical grounding. Lots of spaceship dashes here. Multiple GPS's, SPOT, radios, and phone mounts. Clocks, timers, writing tablets, various clips and fasteners. Lots of 'been there' stickers on panniers. Mostly sport touring bikes (FJR, RT, GL/GT, ST). Also several GS's and a handful of HDs. We have a couple from Zambia (they are Aussies living in Zambia), a couple from Germany, several folks from CA, TX, OK, Philly. Many I haven't meet yet. Will try to get some pictures, but most bikes are covered until tomorrow morning's launch. Time to lounge about, nap, and get ready for 'multi-day rally rookie' orientation at 4:00. Then dinner, cocktails (will witness the LEAST amount of alcohol consumed at an open bar by a bunch of motorcycle riders), and passing out of the rally pack. Then run to the room, plan 3 days of routes, and get some sleep before taking off at 8:00 Sunday morning. I am getting a bit nervous. Lots of Big Dogs here (at least Big Dogs in the LD community - admittedly, a fairly small dog park) including several Iron Butt Rally finishers and a handful of IBR winners. RR
cowpuc Posted July 5, 2014 #12 Posted July 5, 2014 You iron butters are amazing folks!! Congrats on passing your inspection, have fun, ride safe and like already mentioned,, pic n ride report are mandatory around here! Let er buck redrider! Puc
RedRider Posted July 5, 2014 Author #13 Posted July 5, 2014 Last post before the bonus packs are distributed. Beginning miles - 115407 Next post will be Saturday, 7/12 RR out
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now