MTF  50CC/100CCC Iron Butt Association Ride May 16-20, 2002

50 CC Quest - Cross Country in Less than 50 Hours
100CCC Gold - Back to Back 50CC Quests

As of December 20, 2001, only 163 riders had completed the 50 CC Quest or the 50 CC Quest Gold and as of November 11, 2001, only 36 riders had completed the CCC Gold. 

Of the 14 participants in the ride, 11 were successful. 
Our group added 9 to the 50CC list and 2 to the 100CC Gold list.
Congratulations to all riders!

Left to Right: Randy Kirgiss, Kent Ailes, Howard Burcham, Tom "Yogi" Maiden, Greg Martin, Dave Hinks, Bo Griffen, Chad Baird
Kneeling: Alan Leduc, John Oravec.
Missing: Marty Hamilton, Al Carey, and Dave Sheally who did not make it in from SD and PirateJohn who made it right at 7:00 a.m. after bikes were on the road. 

This trip developed from a post on the Motorcycle Tourer's Forum regarding AL2000's plan to do a 50CC. Another member said they would be interested and then another and eventually it turned into a plan to do a "group" ride. There was no cost for the trip other than expenses. Each rider was responsible to submit documentation to the Iron Butt Association and pay certification fees if they wanted their your ride certified.

The Schedule

West to East -- San Diego to Jacksonville  -- May 16-18, 2002

West to East to West -- San Diego to Jacksonville  --  May 16-20, 2002

East to West -- Jacksonville to San Diego -- May 18-20, 2002

East to West to East-- Jacksonville to San Diego -- May 18-22, 2002

Trip Philosophy

A quote from an LDRider will be used as the philosophy for the Motorcycle Tourer's Forum 50CC/100CCC Iron Butt Association Ride: "Everyone gets tired at different times, or gets hungry or even has to pee at different times. It's YOUR ride and it really isn't much fun when you are sitting on the side of the road waiting for your riding partner who is taking a quick nap."

• We will be leaving in small groups of 3 or 4, 15 minutes apart. Riding in a pack would not be safe. We will celebrate together at the conclusion of the trip.  We ended up with 11 riders, because of the anticipation and excitement at the start it was rather informal and riders left as they got ready. Had the group been larger, we would have put more effort into trying to abide by this plan.

• Whether you continue to ride as a group once you are on the road is up to you. If you find that your habits are not compatible with the group, simply wave off. It is nothing personal. In addition to the problems mentioned above, the group may have different attitudes about driving speeds. If you are tough enough to do a 50CC, you should be tough enough not to yield to the pressure of the group to conform.  We had a couple of riders that planned to ride as a group and found that for this trip it was best that if they split. We had two other riders Randy Kirgiss and Greg Martin who found that they were compatible and did the complete ride together. It is interesting that Randy and Greg had not met before this ride.

• If you break down, or need an unscheduled stop, the group will go on without you. You may be able to solve your problem and move on given the allotment of time for problems and traffic. However, if another member of the group had a problem, the whole groups trip could be in jeopardy. This simply would not be fair. Randy and Greg worked through these problems and were successful. However, both would likely agree that this was an exception and not the rule.

Trip Memento

Each person participating in the MTF 50CC/100CCC Iron Butt Association Ride received a free memento of the ride from the Motorcycle Tourer's Forum. Riders were given their memento at the beginning of the ride so they collect sand and water from each coast. Riders doing the 100CC Gold received a memento with 3 vials and appropriate wording.