Back on August 13 I did my second ever IronButt Association Saddle Sore 1000. I did my first ever SS1000 last summer on my Bandit 600. While I was glad to complete the ride and achieve my goal, the Bandit just plain sucked after the 1000km mark and was the biggest factor in my buying my ST last September. This time around it was a much easier ride, thanks to the ST, but it did show me some weak points about my ST that I want to address. 1st is that I want bar risers and the second is that the stock seat has got to go! Pretty standard complaints about the ST as far as I can tell.
My first SS1000 was a straight ride on the Trans-Canada along the 401 into Quebec, hit the halfway point and turned around and headed home. I always felt like that was a bit of a cheat so this time I planned an all Ontario loop ride! My ride left Peterborough at 4am and went through Kaladar, Pembroke, North Bay, Timmins, Sudbury, Toronto and then back to Peterborugh. The ride from Pembroke to North Bay over Algonquin park was stunning and I will be doing that section again some day! After I left North Bay the rest of the day kind of sucked due to the 34c temps + the massive humidity. Apparently it "felt like" 40c. I will never plan another LD ride in those temps again. The small vents on my leather jacket were not up to the challenge and neither was my chilly-pad. The next time I do one of these rides it will either be in mid-late spring or mid-late September. Traffic was non-existent even for a Monday. There were times between leaving Pembroke and arriving in Sudbury that I wouldn't see a single vehicle for 10-15 min! I got horribly lost coming into Sudbury from the north. I genuinely dislike Sudbury and I'm fairly certain that Ray Charles was the city planner! It took me well over 30 min to figure out how to get through town once I got sucked into it!
I arrived home at my last gas stop (which is only 1.5km from my house) at 11:58pm, so I was able to do the ride in just under 20hrs same as last time. This time however I was not solely on 400 series highways and I had to roll through several small towns with low 50-60km/h speed limits with red lights and stop signs thrown in for good measure so I definitely managed my stopped time better on this trip. I had breakfast at home but on the road I only ended up eating 5 granola bars and drank 3L of water over the course of the day.
I'm thinking next year I will do the Lower Great Lakes Circle tour as my IBA ride for 2019. I'd love to do more of these rides, but with a 5yr old, a 2yr old and a job that makes me work every other weekend I'm amazed I get to ride as much as I do!
My first SS1000 was a straight ride on the Trans-Canada along the 401 into Quebec, hit the halfway point and turned around and headed home. I always felt like that was a bit of a cheat so this time I planned an all Ontario loop ride! My ride left Peterborough at 4am and went through Kaladar, Pembroke, North Bay, Timmins, Sudbury, Toronto and then back to Peterborugh. The ride from Pembroke to North Bay over Algonquin park was stunning and I will be doing that section again some day! After I left North Bay the rest of the day kind of sucked due to the 34c temps + the massive humidity. Apparently it "felt like" 40c. I will never plan another LD ride in those temps again. The small vents on my leather jacket were not up to the challenge and neither was my chilly-pad. The next time I do one of these rides it will either be in mid-late spring or mid-late September. Traffic was non-existent even for a Monday. There were times between leaving Pembroke and arriving in Sudbury that I wouldn't see a single vehicle for 10-15 min! I got horribly lost coming into Sudbury from the north. I genuinely dislike Sudbury and I'm fairly certain that Ray Charles was the city planner! It took me well over 30 min to figure out how to get through town once I got sucked into it!
I arrived home at my last gas stop (which is only 1.5km from my house) at 11:58pm, so I was able to do the ride in just under 20hrs same as last time. This time however I was not solely on 400 series highways and I had to roll through several small towns with low 50-60km/h speed limits with red lights and stop signs thrown in for good measure so I definitely managed my stopped time better on this trip. I had breakfast at home but on the road I only ended up eating 5 granola bars and drank 3L of water over the course of the day.
I'm thinking next year I will do the Lower Great Lakes Circle tour as my IBA ride for 2019. I'd love to do more of these rides, but with a 5yr old, a 2yr old and a job that makes me work every other weekend I'm amazed I get to ride as much as I do!
