Saddle Sore 1000

July 2, 2006
Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows that motorcycles have been a life long passion. I am crazy about anything and everything to do with motorcylces. I like to look at them. I like to talk about them. But mostly, I like to RIDE them.

Anyone who has known Jenny for any length of time knows that SHE loves adventure racing. 3 Eco-Challenges, other expedition length races, and lots of 1, 2, and 3 day races. And about a year ago, Jenny discovered motorcycling. See where this is headed?

She read about an event called the Saddle Sore 1000. The rules are pretty simple. You pick a 1000 mile route, get someone to witness your start, get receipts from your gas stops, and get someone to witness your finish. Oh, and you have to ride the 1000 miles in less than 24 hours.

All this explains how it was that at 4:00 AM on July 1 a waiter at Nookies was signing a witness form and Jenny and I - each riding our own BMW R1150R - were headed out to ride around Lake Michigan. And ride we did. For the next 21 hours we were rolling: hammering up I-75, sifting our way through traffic on Route 2 in the U.P. and dodging thunderstorms and tornados in Wisconsin.

And we made it. We might have gotten in under 20 hours if we hadn't had to hide under a bridge for an hour. But finishing was more than enough. In nearly 40 years of motorcycling, this was the single biggest day of riding - EVER. And it was fantastic.

John

ORN: July 1, 2: 0