MEMBER’S TAKE
A SADDLESORE ROOKIE NO MORE By Whitney Meza
R
iding 1,000 miles in 24 hours — which the Iron Butt Association (ironbutt.com) calls a “SaddleSore 1000” — is no-biggie for a lot of AMA members, I’m sure. But for me, a complete long-distance-riding rookie, doing the IBA’s Lake Michigan 1,000 was a serious challenge — though the promise of some two-wheeled adventure had me thinking, “why not?” Going in, I was pretty naïve about the whole thing, and had only my 2003 H-D 883 Sportster Custom, which goes maybe 125 miles on a tank of gas, to ride. Challenge number one, right there. I’d done 500 and 600 miles in a day before around the rustic roads of Wisconsin, which is where I call home. What was another 400 miles? It shouldn’t take me too long, I figured. Challenge number two. Yep, I was super naïve! Before taking off I went into full-scale nerd mode, watching every Iron Butt video I could, joining long-distance riding groups and forums, and searching the term “SaddleSore” to chat with people who’d done SaddleSore 1000s. I absorbed everything I could, then decided I’d do it in two weeks’ time. I planned my route, laid out fuel stops and made a list of gear. Looking back, I ended up way overpacked, but I was ready for anything. I had a tent, a sleeping bag, a heated vest — didn’t really need that in the middle of June — tool kit and precautionary
tire kit (and a whole lot more). While I wanted to set out at 5 am, dropping off my children at daycare had me starting the ride at a late 8 am. I had to do an entire circle loop around Lake Michigan, starting and ending in the same city. That late start cost me, making it take a lot longer than I’d anticipated.
By the time I hit my second gas stop I was feeling out of sorts. About a third of the way in I got into a rhythm, which was good since I ended up doing 16 gas stops in total. I wish I’d practiced my efficiency a bit more, cuz if you’re not moving, you’re wasting time. Once I hit my groove, with radio on and the sun shining, I was loving it…until about 11 pm. By planning ahead, I knew most of my gas stops were 24-hour stations, but there was one I had to stop at that
wasn’t. There were no other close stations, so this was my only option and I had to get there before closing time or I’d be in trouble. I planned my route to arrive an hour before closing, but as time got eaten up, I managed to ride in just three minutes before they closed, barely scraping by. At 1 am I was still going, exhausted, and I didn’t have enough gas to get to the next city. Thank goodness for the extra fuel canister I packed, though even with it I was nearly on fumes when I coasted into the next gas stop. This was the moment where I wondered, ‘why am I even doing this?’ At one point I got so tired I took a cat nap on a picnic table in Green Bay. I just had to close my eyes for a few minutes. Most people complete these SaddleSore 1000 challenges in 17-18 hours, but it ended up taking me 23, finishing with just an hour to spare. I was so pumped, but also so exhausted that I had to find a hotel, where I zonked out for five hours. But when I woke up I didn’t go home. Instead, I rode all the way up to northern Wisconsin that day, doing another 600-700 miles! I never figured I’d fall in love with distance riding, but suddenly I’m hooked, and currently planning to take on the Iron Butt 48-state challenge — 48 states in 10 days. Not everyone loves this sort of thing; the whole idea of iron butts and sore saddles isn’t overly appealing to most riders. But after my SaddleSore 1000 experience, I’d encourage you ladies (and you men, too!) to try it. You might hate it. But then again, you might catch the bug like I did. Whitney Meza (@whitmeza on IG) is an AMA member, military wife, mother and motovlogger who hails from Wisconsin.
May 2021
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