Sport-Touring.Net - 2nd Saddle Sore 1000

I attended the 2018 Vintage Yamaha Rally September 28th-30th at the Iron Horse Motorcycle Lodge in Stecoah, North Carolina. A great time was had. I met an actual member from the FJowners forum from Florida who attended. We also met Mario, another FJ owner who is not a member, but was given information that he needs to become one.

The accommodations were very nice and inexpensive. The 4 bed bunkhouse that I stayed in was $29.95 a night. It was actually better than your average KOA Kamper Cabin, as there were shelving units for each person to use for their riding gear. Breakfast and dinners were served on site with pricing being similar to a typical Applebee's restaurant. The Prime Rib Saturday night was very good.

I planned on doing an Official Iron Butt Association Saddle Sore 1000 ride to get to the Rally. Google Maps gave me a route that would cover 1056 miles. Wednesday morning, September 26th I left my house and gassed up with the required signature of my witness at 5:14am Central Daylight Savings Time. I made a quick stop 16 miles down the turnpike at the service center to get a bit of cash for the expected tolls for the Kansas Turnpike, Cimarron Turnpike and the Muskogee Turnpike.

Game on.... Stay in the saddle and keep the throttle in the 80-85mph range. Arrived in Tulsa, OK without much issues with morning rush hour traffic. Stopped in Broken Arrow, OK for gas and the required receipt from a direction change. Once back on the turnpike, I had 2 motorcycles behind me. I got caught behind some traffic and they got ahead of me. After a short while, some of the pesky, anti-motorcycle friendly wet stuff started falling from the sky. The 3 of us pulled up under an overpass to donn our rain gear. One bike was an old Yamaha (XS1100 Special) with Oklahoma tags and the other a new Harley with California tags. I asked where they were headed and they responded, "North Carolina". I commented back that I too was headed to North Carolina. They mentioned that they were headed to the Iron Horse Motorcycle Lodge. I told them "Wow, that is where I am staying". Then it clicked.... 1980 XS1100 Special being ridden to the Vintage Yamaha Rally. Back under way in our rubber suits, we made good time to I-40. Within a mile or so, I peeled off to get another change of direction receipt as they continued on. The rest of the way was pretty uneventful and I didn't encounter any more riding partners. I made it through Little Rock Arkansas and Memphis Tennessee easily with no traffic back ups. Coming up to Nashville, TN I took the I-840 bypass South East to Murfreesboro, TN and picked up I-26. I had to stop for another direction change. By this time, it is beginning to get dark. Rolled into Chattanooga, TN full on dark about 10:00PM. I stopped for my final traveling fuel stop and direction change receipt. A bit of excitement is creeping in as I am now a bit over 100 miles from my destination. Also, the fact that even though the rain had stopped way back in Oklahoma, I had chased rain showers all day long and was now riding on a single lane, wet road, through strange mountains at night and trying to maintain a reasonable amount of speed. The first 20 minutes or so was ok...... Then the FOG set in. I will ride in the rain and wind without complaining that much..... But I hate riding in the fog. I wear glasses, so riding with my face shield open doesn't work so well for me. My solution is to put my glasses in the tank bag, ride with the face shield open and slow down a bit because now the road is a bit blurry. Luckily, I don't encounter any critters along the way and make it into Robbinsville, North Carolina at 1:11AM Eastern Daylight Savings Time. The trip meter reads 1044 miles with a total time of 17 hours, 57 minutes. I fill the bike and get my final receipt. The girl at the counter is willing to be my destination witness and my Saddle Sore 1000 ride is complete. The fog is gone and I still have another 15 miles or so to the Bunk House.

Topic: 2nd Saddle Sore 1000 (Read 2181 times)