Go For the Glory!

When Chris and Kirsten had a phone call to discuss the pros and cons of riding two-up last year, there were lists on both sides. At the end of the conversation, Chris, in his lovely Irish, said, “Let’s go for the glory!” That sealed it. Everything else would be worked out. 

Rally prep in Virginia

Working everything else out long distance meant Chris fabricated some of his own pillion gear and brought it over. Which meant the final bike set up was two days before heading to Pittsburgh. The pillion pegs wouldn’t budge (hence the need for George’s hacksaw and grinder), but once removed, the lowered passenger pegs were installed. A new hydration system with “his” and “hers” “no blowback!” water tubes with quick disconnect rests on the right saddlebag. And Chris fabricated a nifty “thigh pod” mount for his phone and GPS to route from the pillion seat. They rode together for the first time on Wednesday. The longest two-up ride they did together was to the rally start.

Custom phone & GPS "thigh pod," being inspected by rally dog Jana.

Some things they have already discovered - with the highway pegs extended, they can both shift legs forward for a stretch underway- Kirsten on the highway pegs and Chris on the pilot’s pegs. Chris can plug in the charging cable (from the new pillion USB) to Kirsten’s Sena to charge the comms. He can also tap her Sena to turn her com back on so they can talk… I can already see what this will be like on Day 8 when Kirsten is “saving the battery” and Chris is not done talking. tap tap tap.

We learned at the Start Banquet that there are 10 (10!) two-up teams in this IBR. You can find the full list of riders on the 2023 IBR Riders page. Kirsten and Chris will be the first two-up team with a female pilot and male pillion. Sadly, the other two-up team attempting the same piece of history was Raven and JD, but they were sidelined due to a nasty faceplant. She is healing, and JD is riding solo. This rally also has the first mother-daughter two-up team of IBR veteran Lisa Rufo and her daughter Molly Hecker. I asked Molly how she was feeling yesterday morning before launch and she was excited and good to go. In reading the rally reports today, we learned that a deer jumped onto this two-up team early this morning, totaling the bike. Lisa and Molly are “ok,” and we’re all staying tuned. There is a father-daughter two-up team of Jon Kerr and Kaleigh Kerr. I remember Jon showing up to an IBR finish with one leg in a cast. When I asked him how he rode like that, he said, “the last 1,000 miles were very hard.” Yesterday, he and Kaleigh showed off their purple toenails that will be bringing them luck in their boots. 

There is a lot of experience in this group of riders. It is always amazing to watch the roll-out at the start - completed this year in 6 minutes. Proficient motorcyclists, focused and ready to go. This is Kirsten’s 5th Iron Butt Rally and Chris’ 4th IBR. Every rally is different, so that’s 7 IBRs worth of experience riding on the R1200RT. Chris started riding in 1992 and Kirsten in 1996 - 58 years of motorcycling experience combined. They had a plan, and they are riding their plan here as Day 2 turns to night. East, west? North, south? On that road to glory, sometimes you just have to decide and then hang on!