Wednesday, 8 February 2017

Iron Butt Saddle Sore 1600K

When I think about all the crazy mile munching I have done on my motorcycle, the Saddle Sore 1000 takes the top spot hands down. Before I jump into the details of my successful completion, let me just briefly describe what this ride is all about; for completeness, even though all of this information is readily available everywhere.

Iron Butt Association or IBA as it is globally referred to as, is a group of motorcycling enthusiasts who promote safe and long distance riding. With the popular slogan “The world is our playground”, they also certify a host of long distance endurance rides across the globe. Unfortunately, since speed limits on national highways in India are restricted to 80 kmph for motorcycles, the only ride that is certified for Indian riders is the Saddle Sore 1000. The Saddle Sore 1000 is basically completing 1000 miles or 1610 km in less than 24 hours- 24 hours is the maximum time and not riding time, whether you do it in 1 hour or 24 hours is your headache!

There are five steps to earning a Saddle Sore certification:
 1. Choose a safe route
 2. Get a start witness
 3. Collect and track receipts
 4. Get an end witness
 5. Copy and submit your documentation

Since safety is the primary concern, no pre-registration of the ride is needed which gives the rider added flexibility to decide on any given day whether the combination of weather, motorcycle and most importantly, attitude, are ready for such a big ride.

In my case it was slightly different. I very well knew that my motorcycle was capable of achieving this but was I capable enough? From past riding experience, I knew that I could cover about 950-1000 km in a single day. The challenge was would I survive the next 600 odd kms because after a certain distance covered at a stretch, the fatigue sets in. Moreover, on my regular rides, I always have the option of halting for the night if I feel tired or sleepy. This was a completely different proposition. To put things into perspective, to complete this successfully, I knew I had to maintain an average speed of just 60 kmph. Seems pretty easy right! The flip side- doing that for 24 hours on the trot!

I started browsing the IBA website and articles of other riders who had successfully completed it in India. With the kind of certificate-hungry people in India, no doubt that a lot of them had faked their rides to acquire certificates which resulted in the IBA making guidelines for India extremely stringent. The downside of this was I came across with so many riders who have completed the Saddle Sore 3-4 times but are still waiting for their certificates to arrive. Many of them are frustrated, because they claim that IBA folks never ever respond to any of their emails. I decided I would personally get in touch with the association and sent out a mail to Michael Kneebone, the founder of IBA, and still the ultimate authority in the IBA! Going by what everyone had said, I never expected a reply to my email but I was pleasantly surprised when I got a response. I had clearly mentioned that because of super strict guidelines, honest riders are getting affected and this would in fact devalue the prestige of that certificate. I also mentioned to him that people are actually frustrated and angry with the way IBA is delaying processing the Saddle Sore rides. Michael was extremely supportive and told his side of the story as well. Certain Indian people (unfortunately cheats cannot be called motorcyclists!) tried to fool the IBA to such an extent that the motorcycle at the start and end of the ride were different. He explained that people out there in the IBA are accomplished riders themselves and not that foolish to not recognize when someone is faking their ride experience. He convinced me it’s not about the certificate but about the riding experience and to be honest I was quite happy I decided to directly communicate with him instead of relying on different stories on the internet. Michael even asked me to add him to my Facebook friend list so that he could personally track my ride. Another thing he asked me to do because he wouldn’t have the time to track me constantly because of the time zone differences – get in touch with another fellow rider who has been certified by the IBA to track my ride. This was hitting the jackpot because I already had a very accomplished rider in my riding group- Ashutosh Mahadik who had successfully completed the Saddle Sore on his Royal Enfield 6 years back in 2010. I did not hesitate to ask him for the favor and he readily obliged, even giving me a lot of sound advice and things to do and follow during the ride. 

After my interactions with these people, I decided that there was no better way to test my endurance, to test if my body and mind were up for it. As insane as it sounded, I decided to take a shot at it! Got my motorcycle thoroughly checked and was totally set on that front much before the ride. On the luggage front, I carried a tank bag which contained my motorcycle documents, chain clean, chain lube, electral packs, 2 litre hydration pack, helmet cleaner, hand towel, cotton tshirt, wireless charger, extra pair of gloves, hand sanitizer and a Hi-Viz reflective patch. Note that I did not carry a tyre inflator or a puncture kit because one- less luggage and two- this highway has provisions for all such emergencies throughout!

3 December 2016 was the day I felt would be perfect to ride because it was a Saturday. I could be back from my ride and get a full day’s rest on Sunday and get back to work on Monday. The route that was decided was Pune to Bangalore via NH4 and head back as soon as the trip meter showed 805 km. I decided to start my ride at 3 am in the morning on this day because I had this belief that with efficient time management, I could be back in time for dinner! The previous day i.e. on Friday, I slept for a good 4-5 hours before my ride because I knew I wouldn’t be able to catch up with sleep probably for the next 24 hours. And this turned out to be the wisest decision I took because this sleep was so so critical that never during my entire saddle sore ride did I feel sleepy. Yes, I did feel bored during my return journey but that was because I was returning back on the same route.  A fellow Versys rider, Aakash Devthale, was there to flag me off at 2.30 am at the Shell Fuel Station in Warje, Pune. There were a set of formalities to be completed at the start point of the ride and to start my ride my ride at the intended time meant I had to be present early at the fuel station. It was 2:50 am when my tank was full, all start point formalities complete, trip meter set to zero and I was all set for the ride. We chatted for a while, clicked a few pictures and finally when the clock hit 3, I started off my ride.

Trip Meter set to 0. Tank Full. Formalities Done. All Set.

Photograph with the fuel station attendants before the start of my ride
With a fellow versys rider, Aakash who was there to flag me off!

Since I was conscious of the fact that I had to ride for about 4 hours in absolute darkness and my motorcycle could go 300-350 km non stop on a full tank, I decided that my first fuel halt would be the first fuel station I see open after covering 250+ kms. Mid way, I also stopped for a snap because this was the moment where I completed 20000 kms on my motorcycle. More about the ride details through photographs:-

Completion of 20000 kms enroute the Saddle Sore ride
On such kind of roads, just open the throttle! 

Finally, I reached Bangalore at 12.45 pm and completed the formalities required at the turn-around point. 

First Leg successfully completed- Lunch halt at Bangalore
With another V belonging to a rider friend- Pradosh, in Bangalore

I decided that since I had completed the first leg of my ride in less than 9 hours, I was way ahead time and halting for a good 1 hour wouldn’t do me any harm. I called a fellow Versys rider based in Bangalore and we met for lunch on the highway! Finally, when it was 2-2.15 pm, I decided that I had gotten enough rest and enough energy to start the return journey home.

Captured somehwere near Chitradurga during the return leg
These roads were such a bliss to ride on!
I expected hot weather, but it did drizzle for some time midway
One of the best road I have ridden on ever- Tumkur to Chitradurga
Finally, it was 10.45 pm when I reached my starting point again and what a feeling it was! 1610 km covered in under 20 hours, average speed of just over 80 kmph, zero fatigue, total excitement and joy all because of the insanely amazing motorcycle- the Versys! Nowhere enroute was there any issue with the bike, not even minor ones. I realized my fitness levels did indeed keep up with my motorcycle and honestly, I was quite surprised that I managed to do it so easily! 

Ride End Formalities

Pune Bangalore and back. 1610 kms in less than a day. Done. 

Saddle Sore Successfully Completed
Snapshot of the log sheet maintained during the ride

Screenshot of the app- Life360 I used to track my ride

The strategy I followed was ensuring that my fuel halts coincided with my 10 mins rest/snacks/chain clean-lube halts. This meant if I stopped once for fuel, I would hydrate myself, check my tyre pressure, check the condition of my chain and have biscuits/snacks if required all in that halt itself. Because of this, I used to take halts once every 250 odd kms and ensured I was always way ahead of time. Prior to my ride, I had anticipated fatigue kicking in during my return leg and hence decided that I would cover maximum distance when I was feeling fresh. However, the fatigue never kicked in probably because of the excitement and the sleep I managed to get before my ride.  

As obvious as it sounds, motorcycling inherently carries a lot of risk and riding for 1610 kms non-stop increases the risk factor substantially. Hence, it is imperative that anyone who attempts such a challenge understand the risks and minimize the possibility of an accident by practicing safe motorcycling habits. In a country such as ours where people have such amazing traffic and road sense, it’s better to be safe than sorry! And no one, not even the most experienced long distance rider can safely fight off fatigue beyond a certain point. If you feel tired, the only option is to stop and rest because ignoring these symptoms can be fatal. If you are tired, having a bad day, or facing other hurdles that are impacting your riding skills, please stop and rest so that you may live to enjoy motorcycling on another day!


2 comments:

  1. Great write once again Guru. You are getting to be an accomplished writer as well. Simply live the way you put forth the experience. Continue it Buddy

    ReplyDelete