Rally Pack

Rally dog Riley helping with final packing, Pittsburgh

Long-time rally watchers know that there is always time devoted to faithful rally pups. Our 15 year old chihuahua mix Riley is a pro. He has ridden some (shorter) miles with Kirsten in his own seat and was known to jump into his riding bag as soon as he saw her put on her gear. Riley flew with me to the IBR 2015 finish in Albuquerque and has been at many other rally Starts and Finishes. 

Sir Frederick Pepperbottom joined the pack in 2020 and took the IBR 2021 pre-rally prep in stride. He is a fast learner and appreciates the concept of the Iron Butt Hotel - if you have time to sit, you have time to lie down, if you have time to lie down, you have time to wrap yourself in a blanket, kick your legs in the air, and take a nap.   

This year, Jana joined the crew for her first rally road trip to Pittsburgh, announcing herself to all as she excitedly scoped out the goings-on in the parking lot of rally HQ. Bela sees a gathering of motorcycles and riders and her tail and ears go on high alert. She can pick Kirsten out of the gaggle in a second and was with Riley and I at the finish of IBR 2017.  

Jana practicing Iron Butt Hotel naps

Chris has two rally dogs cheering him on at home - Bella and Toby. In true rally dog style, they are alert and calm, keeping Chris’ wife Denise company over these long days of distance.  

Bella and Toby await Chris' return in Ireland

The rally pack enjoys visiting with other rally dogs - Blue (Connie and Randy Gabrick) and Jake (Lisa Erbes, RIP sweet Jake) were in residence at the 2021 Dog Daze Rally. If you can’t get enough of good riding, you should come to northern Michigan in August this year for the final running of the Dog Daze Rally. Hosted by skilled Rallymasters Connie and Randy, Dog Daze covers some beautiful country and provides an awesome place to gather with friends and pups to enjoy riding and an awesome view from the top of the mountain in Wakefield. 

Riley, Bela and Frederick at the Dog Daze Rally, 2021

But the clock is still ticking (loudly), and the rally pack and I are heading back to Pittsburgh. Penalty points accrue for riders one second after 8:00 a.m. on Friday morning. We’ll have fresh water and a treat waiting. 

Rally pack in transit

Dirt for Breakfast & Ride Alongs

Kirsten's cockpit 

The truth is, no IBR rider really rides alone. Every rider rides with thoughts of friends or family or other riders who have influenced them. Kirsten rides with the memorial cards of Curt Gran, Peter Behm, Tom Loftus, and Karol Patzer in her pocket. IBR memories are inextricable with these fine people. Big dogs with big hearts.

Many riders also bring along a little creature that supports them on the way. Rubber duckie from Kirsten’s first rally, the legendary Mason Dixon 20-20, has pride of place on the dash. Mr. Happy has been in her cockpit for thousands of miles and in 2021, Zoomie arrived (because the rally pack couldn’t travel to Provo for in-paw support).

Chris has a IBR veteran teddy bear named Lucky. Lucky was a prize from a fair for his son Conner when he was a wee baby. Lucky came with Chris to America for his first IBR, and has been on every IBR since (the stand-up fur tells the tale). There is a twin bear that stays at home while Chris and Lucky are riding. It is bad luck to leave Lucky at home, and he is riding along on IBR 2023.

IBR veteran Lucky

There are some days when all of that luck, well wishes, and karma from rally veterans rooting from above come into play. For Rider 9, it was heading to a bonus up 150 miles of switchbacks on a US Forest Service road, with the last 25 miles being gravel. At night. Two-up on a fully loaded rally bike with street tires. Team Talken McGaffin came upon a tree across the road almost immediately. If it had been any bigger, Chris wouldn’t have been able to move it the few inches it took to get around it. There was an elk. And deer. And a cat that kept running alongside the road (I’m choosing to believe it was a real cat and not a fatigue-induced animal come to spook the riders). There was fog. And hail. On the return, two more downed trees were negotiated. When they came out around 4 a.m. a few other riders were heading up and Kirsten thought, “have fun boys.” Personally, I was happy to see the karma circle back. In and out, safe and sound as it was about this time on another rally after another long night tracking her spot on another Forest Service dirt road. Business finished. On to breakfast.

And for those watching the rally page, a new feature has appeared. There is now a count-down clock to the finish. Now we can all hear the ticking clock and ride along as they point their noses towards Pittsburgh.

Rally ride alongs from the parking lot at the Start in Pittsburgh

#OneJob - The Pillion Post

Your rally blog scribe (Jennifer) and Kirsten in Ireland, 2017

Kirsten and I have been riding two-up for many years, including through central Mexico and all through Ireland. The Ireland trip was organized rally style by none other than Chris! The riders, most IBR veterans, enjoyed a fantastic week in 2017 making a loop of the Irish Isle. This week, I’ve been hearing from some of our favorite two-up teams and IBR vets interested to see the set-up of this 2023 team. Every pillion can tell you about comfortable rides, issues with trunk hinges jamming them in the back, helmet knocks when they doze off for a second, and riding long miles with the up-close view of the back of the pilot’s helmet.   

Every pillion has their own method for getting on the bike, and it’s a topic of conversation. I spoke with Greg and Pat Blewett in Pittsburgh and Pat’s method has evolved over the years and many successful IBRs. When we were riding in Ireland, Jon Goode (2023 IBR rally staff) and Ande Bergmann had an amazing system where Ande grabs Jon’s arm and he sort of flings her onto the back of the bike. Apparently they were watching a video of SEAL teams hauling people into a life raft and inspiration hit!

Jennifer and the GSA

The BMW GSA pillion seat is roughly level with my elbow, so it’s a climb. Kirsten stabilizes the bike and I step left foot on the peg and launch up, swinging the right leg over the side. One big difference Kirsten has reported on this ride, Chris is much taller than me, his shoulders almost at her head. A plus for him - he can see nearly over the top of her head. Down side- the center of gravity is much higher on the bike. It’s been a lot of work keeping the bike stable as there is no neutral movement that he can make. There’s been no bike dropping though; their refrain is Irish for “knock on wood” - touch wood. Unlike many other experienced two-up teams who have been riding together for years, Kirsten and Chris are mainly solo riders riding together for the first time on this rally. It has been an adjustment for them both.

There is something that all pillions know: The pillion must feed the driver.  #onejob 

Lynda Lahman, part of the two-time, two-up IBR veteran team with Terry has found proteins & carbs that work in an easy-to-pass-to-the-front-of-the-helmet-without-getting-blown-away form. Ande, in addition to routing and completing rally paperwork, takes tourist photos and generally keeps connected, all from the pillion seat. (Jon is forbidden from touching rally paperwork.) Kirsten and Chris had a few conversations about what to eat on a rally. Despite the fact that this rally is taking them to food places, rally riders don’t spend a lot of time off the bike eating. Kirsten said that sometimes the hand comes around with a handful of Planter’s peanuts. Yesterday, there was part of a PayDay bar. They are filling up the two-person hydration system at every fuel stop. But other than that, here on Day 7, they are drinking out of the same can of Coke.   

Where there is sheep, there is...

...a pillion dismount hazard.

After joining several other riders on Leg 2 on the combine driving simulator bonus, which also offered the opportunity for a "real" breakfast at their cafe, Kirsten/ Chris rode through some very chilly temps on the way to the Denver checkpoint. (Kirsten needed heated gear, Chris was nicely chilled.) Once again, they accomplished all the points they were aiming for on Leg 2 and made progress on their BINGO card. They are currently the 2nd two-up team. It looks like James and Bobbie Jackson are having a heck of a rally, currently sitting in 15th position on their 2021 Honda GL 1800. 

Rally packs were distributed for Leg 3 at 4 a.m. Denver time this morning. The public SPOT page showed the starburst of riders leaving the barn for the longest and highest point-getting leg of the rally. This is the time to keep the wheels rolling and the snacks coming!

The pillion's view, Ireland.