How cool is it that several ST1300s finished the IBR and one was a top finisher? For a bike not manufactured since 2012, STs really rock.
2012 ST1300 top finisher in IBR
- Thread starter Trussellcma
- Start date
scootac
Will Ride for Food
Not the arrow.....but the Indian.
IMO its way more about the rider than the bike - like Scootac is saying. And new-ish bikes, especially once they're rally-readied are a lot the same.
Older bikes must add to the challenge. I'm more impressed by the people who choose them and then do well, like the 10th place finisher on a 38 year old 650. Now that's a rider!
But enough can't be said about this years winner - she was 1st by a huge amount on a 2005 FJR. Now that's a monster rider! 2nd place wasn't close to her. IIRC all other finishers were bunched with less than 1,000 points more than the the rider below them. The winner was something like 11,000 points above 2nd.
A 2012 bike is actually pretty current, although I guess you're right - the technology is 10 years or more older. I think STs have actually done much better in other years, but it comes and goes.
My observations - YYMV
Older bikes must add to the challenge. I'm more impressed by the people who choose them and then do well, like the 10th place finisher on a 38 year old 650. Now that's a rider!
But enough can't be said about this years winner - she was 1st by a huge amount on a 2005 FJR. Now that's a monster rider! 2nd place wasn't close to her. IIRC all other finishers were bunched with less than 1,000 points more than the the rider below them. The winner was something like 11,000 points above 2nd.
A 2012 bike is actually pretty current, although I guess you're right - the technology is 10 years or more older. I think STs have actually done much better in other years, but it comes and goes.
My observations - YYMV
With regard to Wendy's margin of victory, it sounds like a lot, but in fact the last two bonuses she collected accounted for the difference between her and second. Had she not managed her time as well as she did, or had the mountain in NH been bad weather .... Tremendous victory of course, but closer than it may have looked.
Well, like you said, she managed her time well and got the "tremendous" victory. Why trivialize it?
Not meant to trivialize. I'm a big fan of Wendy and she very thoroughly beat me. Giving a bit of context as to how difficult the IBR is. Two more or less bonuses over the course of 11 days and 13000 miles was the margin. Of course no one else in the rally was in a position to nab those bonuses.
OP
OP
Yes, but some arrows are better than others.