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KLR Iron Butt Ride

17K views 57 replies 25 participants last post by  banditcilik 
#1 ·
Has anyone on here completed a 1,000 miles in 24 hours Iron Butt ride on a KLR? I've done it on a BMW K1200. I know thats not what you buy a KLR for but just wondering if it had been done.
 
#5 ·
I've been a IBA member for a few years and have 10 or 12 SS1000 under my belt or ass as it were. Saying that I'm not sure I would/could every do one on the KLR. It just does not seam like the bike for that type of ass pounding ride. All my SS1000 rides have also been on my 2 BMW's a K1200LT and a K1600GTL. My best time is 15 hours 45 minutes and longest was almost 18 hours.

If you choose to try this on the lil Thumper plan your route very well because I think you'll need every bit of the 24 hours.
 
#8 ·
I've ridden my '87 -A1, 748 miles in about 14 hours of road time. With the stock seat! I was younger then. :)
So a SS1000 is readily doable, by some.

I believe I have read of a couple KLR's and also Ninja 250's which have officially completed an entire Iron Butt route.
Isn't that usually about 9000-10,000 miles in 9 days.
 
#9 ·
Right!

A guy spoke at an ADVMoto Rally a couple of years ago . . . he completed the BIG ONE, about a thousand miles a day for a week or so . . . on a URAL! Also, he suffered from (I think) MLS; he considered riding his medical therapy . . . had to fabricate one of more PUSH RODS roadside, while on the clock . . . he was asked how he got lubrication holes in the push rods; the answer was simple . . . Urals don't have no stinkin' lubrication holes in their push rods! He had the old ones in his saddle bags to show! :)
 
#10 ·
I don't think I would ever ride 1,000 miles in a day just to say I did it on either my Goldwing or my KLR. If I really needed to get someplace 1,000 miles away in a hurry without trying to enjoy the ride and the Goldwing and the truck were out of commission, I would get on the KLR and go.

One winter I had been visiting my son and his wife in Memphis for Christmas. On the way home to Houston I rode the TAT from Memphis to Bartlesville, OK. On New Years Day morning in Bartlesville it was 26 degrees f. I needed to get home for business the next morning. I put on my homemade heated vest and turned on the grip heaters and rode the 620 miles to Houston comfortably in about 10 hours. The only bike modifications were a homemade seat and a tall windshield.

I rode an old Triumph 650 from Miami Beach, FL 1,700 miles to Oklahoma City because I only had enough money left for gas and two hamburgers. I lost a couple hours in Florida waiting for a filling station to open to get a bolt to fix a broken clutch cable and I slept for a couple of hours on the highway shoulder south of Dallas, but there must have been an iron butt in there somewhere. That was one of those "Really Need to Get There" type rides.
 
#52 ·
I rode an old Triumph 650 from Miami Beach, FL 1,700 miles to Oklahoma City because I only had enough money left for gas and two hamburgers. I lost a couple hours in Florida waiting for a filling station to open to get a bolt to fix a broken clutch cable and I slept for a couple of hours on the highway shoulder south of Dallas, but there must have been an iron butt in there somewhere. That was one of those "Really Need to Get There" type rides.
Wow, I'm surprised the old Triumph made it 1,700 miles without some sort of problem, be it with the AMAL carburetors of the infamous Lucas rectifier!

Congratulations!

Jason
 
#11 · (Edited)
I've raised UNPOPULAR, and even CONTROVERSIAL, questions about long-distance motorcycle rides: WHAT ABOUT SAFETY?????????

Crew rest rules apply to piloting airlines, even to driving commercial trucks (as in, "Six Days On The Road," the line, "The ICC is checkin' on down the road").

Yet, somehow, the vigilance and competence of a motorcycle rider does not deteriorate at all over a long period of riding. Neither the rider, nor anyone else on the road, has his safety and competence compromised by fatigue.

How/why is this exception made for motorcycle riders? While medical surgeons may work long hours, they do not pull marathon shifts like Iron Butt riders--or, if they do, do you want a doctor operating on you after 23 hours and 59 minutes of cutting on the table?

So, what say ye, fans of long-distance uninterrupted motorcycle riding? Is there no price to pay for fatigue? If fatigue might be a psycho-physiological issue, how to motorcyclist compensate for typical and normal effects of fatigue (e.g., limited vigilance, slower responses, less-acute perceptions, loss of strength and endurance, etc.)?

What does the Iron Butt Association say about the consequences of fatigue? The Motorcycle Safety Foundation? The AMA (that's, American Medical Association)? The National Transportation Safety Board? The American Automobile Associaton? Other?

Just askin'! :)

DISCLAIMER: I ain't preachin'; I'm only ASKIN'! If a motorcycle rider is NOT impaired at all by fatigue, I'll join you in joyous celebration. Please inform and educate me, how a rider's competence is in no way diminished by fatigue as a function of long-distance riding (in contrast to that of airplane pilots and long-haul truckers).
 
#12 ·
Damocles,
Most long time motorcyclist's that I know are a little more aggressive, a little more determined, a little more self-reliant, a little more sporting, a little more of most every trait that a newer motorcyclist might hope to emulate.

I had a new customer in the early '90s which purchased a new Kawasaki Voyager 1200 Full Dress touring bike. A psychologist at a local state institute.
2nd or 3rd year of riding, touring in the mid-west, he got up and had breakfast with several cups of coffee, hit the road and fell asleep about 30 miles out of town.
Luckily he hadn't yet put the bike on Cruise Control, so it wound up being a fairly slow tip over.

I guess what I am trying to say is that there are motorcycle riders and then there are Motorcyclist'! And we all can occasionally hit the dirt.

Gravity wins eventually. :)
 
#13 ·
Thanks, PDW!

Deprived of sleep, might even aggressive and determined riders experience some loss of vigilance, moreso than when they've had adequate crew rest?

I'd think the FAA, the DOT, the NHSTB and the ICC operate under such a premise.

The IBA? Maybe not so much! :)

Fatigue my not be a factor in motorcycle accidents, or fatigue may somehow be specifically eliminated from IBA runs.
 
#14 ·
I turned 50 this summer, this past Thursday and Friday (Sept 27 and 28) on a whim I went out completed the Iron Butt Saddle-Sore 1000 (riding 1000 miles in 24 hours) and the Bun-Burner 1500 (riding 1500 miles in 36 hours) on my 2012 KLR 650 with a factory seat running TKC80 tires. It was no big deal. Those who say KLRs are not long distance bikes are selling the bike short, or just simply want way more out of their bike than I do apparently. I would have completed the 1500 in 26 hours but I was getting pounded with rain for 12 hours straight so I got a room for 4 hours to catch some sleep and hope rain would end, it did.
 
#18 ·
Comment on fatigue......Every rider must asses their own alertness each time they get in the saddle. I have had fatigue mid day. When I just completed the Iron Butt I was amazingly alert the entire way, was probably just the adrenaline of the challenge. It could also be the extra toll doing it on a thumper takes on the body. It isn't the most luxurious ride but gets the job done.

A comment about a previous post of needing all of 24 hours to do it on a KLR....... If you're doing faster just from being on a bigger faster bike, then you are obscenely exceeding the speed limit. When conditions permit the KLR can go 80 for hours on end. Going faster on a bigger bike is just careless. I can cover 250 between gas stops. The IBA requires stopping for gas at least every 300 miles. So I really don't see why it would take longer on a KLR vs a bigger bike unless you are blatantly laughing at the law and blasting down the road at tripple digits.
 
#19 ·
I have never done an Iron Butt as that sort of thing just has no appeal to me. Fatigue is an interesting thing and I find I get tired much faster in a car than on the bike. Part of it is having less to occupy one’s mind. Sitting in a quiet, comfortably cocoon, particularly when driving west into the sun right after lunch, is a recipe for grogginess for me. I find that being on a bike, in the wind and weather, with more incentive to keep focused on traffic around and the road ahead searching for obstacles that could upset a motorcycle, keeps me much more alert much longer.

Although, I have often wondered how impaired an Iron Butt rider is after 1,000 miles in the saddle, I worry much more about the teen texting or the old codger with 20/60 vision in a huge motor home...
 
#21 ·
Interesting. I find the seat on my 2017 to be quite good for a bike in this class and price range. Much better than the seats on my former Kawasaki 100 G5 and KH400. Not as good as my Voyager XII or my current LT, but not far behind when riding solo so I can shift back a little. Riding two-up it isn’t as good as I am confined to the front part which is not nearly as flat and wide.

All in all, I am fairly impressed with the stock seat on my KLR.
 
#25 ·
Ss1000

This thread has gone from talking about doing an SS1000, to the crap seat on the KLR. And let's just skip over the stuff about the FAA et al; you're talking there about someone (or two [pilots]) managing other people's travel. You ride an Iron Butt - you're responsible for yourself. Assuming no passengers on board.

I've done 4 SS1000's; I've only bothered submitting two. Have a look at the IBA forums to get an idea of what you're getting into. My rides were on a Hayabusa, my K1200RS, and there was one where we swapped (press) bikes back and forth; a K12RS, a brand new FJR13 when it first came out, and a most crappy Triumph Trophy 1200. Temps hovered between 4C and 10C at best. Met up with Mike Kneebone in Chicago at the end of it. All experienced riders,
the 3 of us (sorry, had to relive that again for a moment!!!).

Of course fatigue is involved. You need to build up your endurance abilities, and of course, prep you bike properly. Being fit helps as well.

I WILL do an SS1000 on the KLR simply because it's a challenge. And, the range is just about right for seeing if I can knock it off in 4 tankfuls !!!

1620km total distance, 400km typical range !!! :grin2:

These rides are much easier using Interstate highways, hence riders knocking them off in less than 20 hours in some cases. Up here in Canada, we don't have as vast a network of highways. Yes, you can do 100km/h in many 80km/h zones, but that's only in the country.

It's not about speed anyway. You need to average 67.5 km/h. Sounds easy, but that's for each and every hour. Anyone in the GTA area, or shall we say Montreal to Windsor corridor, who is interested in a ride around the Summer Solstice of 2019, let me know !!
 

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#26 ·
This thread has gone from talking about doing an SS1000, to the crap seat on the KLR. And let's just skip over the stuff about the FAA et al; you're talking there about someone (or two [pilots]) managing other people's travel. You ride an Iron Butt - you're responsible for yourself. Assuming no passengers on board.
If you are riding on public roads, you are responsible also for those who you might run into or cause to crash while avoiding you after you dozed off and crossed into your lane. If you were only responsible for yourself, I’d say ride 5 days straight if that is what turns you on. However, unless you are on a race track, you aren’t just responsible for yourself. Many seem to forget that these days.
 
#30 ·
Adiroback46er commented: "When conditions permit the KLR can go 80 for hours on end. Going faster on a bigger bike is just careless. I can cover 250 between gas stops. The IBA requires stopping for gas at least every 300 miles."

The first time I ran my 2011 KLR 650 at 80 for a couple of hours straight (on the TLH) was when I discovered that causes it to consume a massive amount of oil. Beware!
Mine us now a 685 and its oil appetite is a fraction of what it used to be. Eagle Mike's 685 kit plus a ThermoBob seems to have put that engineered-in problem to rest.
I had fitted it with a 17 tooth countershaft sprocket for that ride and it will definitely do some miles on a full tank. It produced 260 miles before having to switch to reserve.
BTW, are you located in the Adirondacks as your moniker would suggest? I am; and in an hour will be setting forth on a ride up the Moose River Road with a friend on another KLR. At least, that's the plan.
 
#31 ·
From Australia

Thought I'd contribute to the chat. There has always been a lot of talk & BS about long distance riding. I've done 2 x 1000 milers on a KLR650 in under 24 hrs. ( not submitted to Iron Butt) One was planned & completed without any probs. The other just "happened" A Brisbane to Melbourne. Australia .1744km odometer . ( google : 1000miles 24hours KLR650 ..second time round)

I'm now 69 yrs old. these rides where done when 62 / 63yrs. It's NOT about speed. it's about time management. Experience, knowing your body & adjusting things when you know yr going down hill. On these rides I usually "fill in time" calculating / converting KPH to MPH, fuel consumption, arrival times, When I find that "TOO HARD" I know I'm getting tied. If my speed is creeping up, that's another sign to be aware off.

I don't ride with GPS or other assistance. So I 'texta' towns, mileage, arrv times on ( duct tape) my fuel tank. Just check them when stopped to see if you are on time.

Lot of talk about KLR seats. if you sat watching TV for 24hrs in yr lounge room I guarantee yr arse would go to sleep as well.. Oil usage, 50 yrs ago, ALL motorcycles LEAKED more oil than a KLR uses. I hear you laugh, ( the old bastard wouldn't know sh.t) Well, your right . I don't give a sh.t at my age. I've done it twice without too much talk.

Unfortunately , the adventure side of M/cycling is being smothered by modern society. Everyday , I see big, expensive, beautifully made mcycles going for a "long ride" down to the local coffee shop. Done get me wrong I like coffee to.

I congratulate "pdwestman" & "Adirobdack46r" for there attitude & approach to life.

PS: cant find my first 1000 miler ( with details) on ADV Rider as I haven't posted for yrs. but should b there some where under "SlowRobo"

take care & keep those wheel turning. Ian Robinson.
 
#32 ·
Try, this:

https://advrider.com/f/threads/1000miles-24hrs-klr-that-is-the-plan.787417/

Assuming the 1000 miles in 24 hours (is that the mark?) challenge may be, as George Mallory famously said, "Because it's there!"

Regardless, does the marathon ride pose additional risk of accident? As mentioned, crew-rest standards apply to aviators and truck drivers. Do the authorities impose these limits just because they're ol' meanies and don't want anyone to have any fun? Or, do they think plumbing human endurance beyond nominal physical functional competence intervals increases risks to vehicle operators and others? (Understand they even swap drivers at the 12-hour automobile race at Le Mans.)

Even if extended hours riding a motorcycle poses additional risks, "Name your poison!" Mountain climbing, horse riding; even bicycling pose additional risks beyond alternatives; not to mention motor racing or attacking the World Land Speed Record. Climb Everest? Solo climb, up a cliffside at Yosemite? Sail, solo, around the world in an inner tube?

But, if 1000 miles in 24 hours is a worthy goal, why not 1000 miles in 12 hours? Or, 2000 miles in 48 hours? Reckon they beat that in the annual Iron Butt Rally, 1000 miles per day for ten days. Met a guy, once, who'd been there, done that (Iron Butt Rally). On a Ural! (I won't cite any anecdotal examples of Rally attempts ending badly as evidence of increased risk from the activity.)

So, do what you gotta (or, wanna) do, pilgrims! Feats of endurance on public roads (not, "closed course, professional rider") aren't for me; YMMV! :)

DISCLAIMER: Above post may contain flawed perceptions and questionable opinions.
 
#33 ·
To quote the iron butt website: The reason they don't do smaller distances in less time is to discourage racing and the breaking of speed limits.

Personally, I've done 400 miles in a day accidentally, so the 1000mi in 24hrs isn't unreasonable for a planned long-distance trip.
For the longer 1500mi/36hrs bun burner, I've done some back-of-the-napkin calculations, and:
Assuming ~60mph and major highways traveled (1500mi = 23 hours driving, conservatively):
150mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
300mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
450mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
600mi - 60min Meal/stretching
750mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
900mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
1050mi - 8 hour rest period + 1 hour meal/stretching
1200mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
1350mi - 5min gas stop/stretching
1500mi - Destination

=34hr, 30min everything included (again, at 60mph [which is lower than most highway speed limits] with plenty of stops). It's not an unrealistic or stupid goal, just a difficult one that can be overcome with planning. =)
 
#36 ·
Interesting thread. I respect those that do these high mileage trips but I have zero desire to do it myself......I bought a Harley touring bike a few years back and did about 3500 miles in a week traveling from Las Vegas to the coast, up to Napa and meandering back. I sold the bike shortly thereafter. What I discovered is that I find long distance riding boring as heck.....probably for a couple of reasons; my last 35 years on a motorcycle have been largly spent offroad and there is soooooo much more to focus your attention on once you leave the pavement....the other reason is that after those 35 years of offroad riding and racing, my body has numerous aches and pains which magnify over time and distance - some getting to "excruciating" within even a couple hours. Strangely enough, I can ride longer and more comfortably offroad than I can on the freeway, probably because you are constantly moving on the bike whilst trail riding.

Anyhow, I tip my hat but I won't be joining any of you; see you in the bush maybe!....or I'll give you a thumbs up when I pass you on the highway in my 'vert :)

Dave
 
#37 ·
Ohh, I forgot to add; the most fun I've had riding these last couple years has been a weekend dual sport "geocaching" sort of event. You ride for two 8 hour days in a row but because of the nature of the event, I found it manageable (lots of stopping to search/record markers, etc.) I was tired at the end of the weekend but had a blast. I know they did one in Arizona this year too; HUMM (Horizons Unlimited Mountain Madness) Information | Horizons Unlimited

If you get the chance to attend one, come on out and show all the BMW and KTM riders that KLR's can hold their own!


Cheers,
Dave
 
#38 ·
If you get the chance to attend one, come on out and show all the BMW and KTM riders that KLR's can hold their own!
Agree!

Been there, done that! Two Mountain Madnesses ago (Appalachian)!

Kinda pricey, but . . . WELL organized; WELL run.

True confession: I rode my KTM690! (The KLR650 would have been most adequate, as well. Heck, even the KLR250!)
 
#39 ·
PDW...

Tks for yr comments on Adv Rider. ( I've changed Email address & can't get back in to update) Weather here ( Kingscliff, Northern NSW. Aus. ) at the moment is Very HOT & dry.. around 30c = about 88F. We are lucky we live right on the coast & get a nice cool South Easterly off the water at this time of yr. but still hot.

I don't have the KLR any longer. I now spend my time modifying & updating an Aprilia RS125 for Land Speed Racing ( Lake Gairdner SA) run it in MPS/G class.( Modified Partly Streamline / Gas. ) Unfortunately the once a year round trip is 4800km, just short of 3000 miles. So, for an old guy like me its a long way to go to ride a m/cycle in a straight line. But development will never stop.

Last week I also started on the restoration of a Kawasaki G31M ,100cc flat track bike . Greg Hansford ( ex works Kawasaki rider) rode this bike for my father back in '71 /72. so it has a little history.

I gather you spent some time in the M/cycle industry. Me too . 15yrs with the Qld Importers of Yamaha , then Kawasaki. GREAT YEARS. probably would have done it for no pay .. ahhh, the memories.
 
#42 ·
Bill10

Congrats on taking the opportunity, just got to do it sometimes. I had to get the Atlas (google) out to locate the towns. Closest I've got to there is Atlanta. On the way to Allentown .PA. 6 mths ago.


I am impressed with what I've seen of the H/ways in the US. Bit more user friendly than Australia. & I understand about being on a "high" during the ride. Good stuff.

Hope to get over there again one day .. I MUST see the Barber M/cycle Museum in Alabama.
 
#44 ·
Bill10 *snip*
Hope to get over there again one day .. I MUST see the Barber M/cycle Museum in Alabama.
If you can arrange your trip for October, they have the most amazing vintage festival at Barber each year and, of course, the museum is right in the middle of the whole thing. They have so many motorcycles in the museum that first they built an addition a couple years ago and then they still have to rotate them so it's almost like if you went twice a year you'd see like almost a whole different museum. They have one the original Brittons there. That stays out all the time.

https://www.barbermuseum.org/events/barber-vintage-festival/

There's another very popular and very large vintage motorcycle museum in Maggie Valley North Carolina (a day ride from Barber) called Wheels Thru Time. It's equally amazing relative to Barber but it's a total opposite philosophy. Everything at Barber is perfectly restored and in pristine condition and displayed as such. The place is spotless. The idea behind Wheels is to just get their display bikes running and then literally run them (right inside the museum) for the patrons. As many if not more motorcycles than Barber, piles of all kinds of stuff, smokey, stinky, pans under bikes to collect leaks. It's great. They have a one of a kind motorcycle there (1920s'ish) that was found in the wall of a building in Chicago and nobody really knows who built it. :serious:
 
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