Ride, phase two--Preparation

I've been promising to write about doing a 1500-mile-in-a-day motorcycle ride called a Bun Burner Gold, and I got started a couple posts ago. (Poetry is such a distraction to me...). But it's raining, so riding is a bit less attractive at the moment, and I need a break from job hunting, so I think I'll get back down to business. Anybody out there need a good tech writer, though, drop me a line.

I mentioned you need a support group, namely your spouse. That's the Permission phase. Next you need to Prepare. Preparation has three parts—you, your bike, and your logistics. Not necessarily in that order.

Logistics: The IBA BBG is called an extreme ride, so they're pretty careful about the documentation. That means you need to have someone, not you, say that you actually started on the ride, and actually finished. Doesn't have to be the same person on both ends of the ride, and doesn't have to be an IBA member, but they do have to sign the form and be willing to answer a phone call from the IBA about the ride. To get the form, go here (it's at the bottom of the page), and print it out.

Bike: (I'm assuming you're doing this on a BMW.  Do not attempt this ride on a crotch rocket.) Have Tom Cutter of the World Famous Rubber Chicken Racing Garage give your bike a thorough going-over. And have him do the repairs he suggests. Motorcycles, good as they are, are not as dependable as cars. Sorry, but them's the facts. You can pretty well count on most cars nowadays going 100K miles with nothing but an occasional oil change. Not so motorcycles, even BMWs. You're about to put a lot of stress on that bike, and nothing ruins a good ride like an unexpected breakdown. Except an accident, but that's different.

You: Wean yourself from coffee for a couple weeks. Get it thoroughly out of your system. That way, if you need that little caffeine boost, you won't be used to it, and it'll have the desired effect.

Logistics: Plan the ride, and include alternatives to your route. Print out maps. Memorize the route. Program the GPS. Print maps even if you have a GPS. Do not depend on the GPS.  Figure out the timing so you're not going through major metro areas during rush hour. A nice Baltimore to Key West by way of Atlanta is 1503 miles. Straight shot, nice destination, but you have to go through Baltimore, DC, Richmond, Atlanta, Jacksonville, and Miami to get there. Consider doing your BBG as a one-day break in a nice relaxing vacation out west. West edge of Omaha to east of Salt Lake City and back, maybe.

Bike: If you put on new tires, put a couple hundred miles on them before the ride. Gets the manufacturing oil off them. If Tom's checkup involves any new parts, ride a while to be sure everything's okay, and you're comfortable with the changes.Same thing with other farkles. You want to be sure that new tank bag doesn't have a tendency to slid left all the time.

You: Do a Saddlesore ride (only 1000 miles). For one thing, the IBA requires at least one other long ride before you do a BBG, but you really need to know how your bike feels to you (and how you feel) after a bunch of hours in the saddle. Decide if you can stand that slight angle of your handlebars that twists your wrist a little too much.

Bike: Ah, the issue of carrying extra gasoline. An auxiliary tank can reduce the number of stops. I get a almost 250 miles from a tankful of highway driving. If you average 75 mph, that's about three hours. Plenty long for me. I've never used an auxiliary tank. The break every three hours is worth it. 1500 divided by 250 is six stops. Doable.

Logistics: If something happens that prevents completion of the ride, you might still have a saddlesore in there. That's a decent consolation prize. Plan alternative start dates. You do not have to tell the IBA when you're going to do the ride. If you get unexpected bad weather, it's okay to start a day or week later.

You: Stage three.