I don't know how I missed hearing about Iron Butt Rally; 11,000 miles in 11 days, but somehow I did. I researched their web site http://www.ironbuttrally.com and in the years 2013, 2011 and 2009 only 2 Harleys ever finished out of about 250 entries. Aren't Harley's the most comfortable bike ever and people that ride them the toughest. Plus Harley must have more then 75% of the cruising bikes out there, but they are a no show. Why?

 

on a positive note a kind of ointment for you cutting remark Dave Barr went for a bit of a spin on his 1972 Harley Davidson between 1994 and 1996 he covered 830000 miles trough 40 country's crossing the sahara desert Siberia and Mongolia in winter time and all that with 2 prosthetic legs .


a couple from the USA have been to more country's that any other motorcyclists on their 1989 electra glide .


people were crossing north America on Harley Davidsons before BMW or any of the big 4 from japan ever built a motorcycle .




there are bikes better suited to long distance touring but they wont hit the spot and sooth your soul like only a Harley Davidson can .

 

No trailers allowed.

 

Actually it is 11 days and the mileage is unlimited. I believe the 14,000 mile barrier has been broken.
In 2007 Brett Donahue finished third on a sportster with about 11,300 miles.

Harleys are well represented in the record books for the 1,000 mile and 1,500 mile rides. After that they peter out pretty quickly.

I think the reason is once a rider gets more serious about endurance riding, they start looking for the absolute best platform for it. Comfort is just one factor.

After my last run I realized I wasn't willing to wring the guts out of my twincam for any run farther than what I had completed. Out west, speed limits hit 80 and 85 mph. Running 10 mph over that at 95mph for hours on end is really asking a lot for a bike that realistically has a top end of 115mph. Running an Yamaha FJR sport tourer at the same speeds doesn't make it work at all. The bike is electronically limited at 150mph and has a top end in the 180mph range. The FJR is only running about 50% of top end.

Engine longevity plays into it. John Ryan set the Dead Horse AK to Key West FL record (5,641 miles in 86 hrs 31 mins) on an FJR that had over 145,000 miles on the it. (And before everyone jumps my *** about Harley's engine life, anyone out there with over 100,000 miles on their Harley go make that run on it. Buehler?, Buehler? anyone?)

The bike as a working platform. I don't know about modern Harleys, mine is a 2005, but my electrical system can't handle the electrical loads for what I really need. Minimally, I need a lot more, and better lighting (I want enough lighting for 8 seconds travel at highway speeds, roughly 900 feet), enough ports to run GPS, fuzz buster, charge my phone.

The rally bikes are running several gps's, several fuzzbusters, enough lighting to light a stadium, ports for heated gear, heated grips, ports to charge computers and cell phone, radios, CB's etc all at one time.

I can only speak for myself, but those are the reasons I am looking for an additional bike to complete more challenging rides.

Nothing wrong with Harleys for touring, but it isn't always the right tool for the job.

 

There is truth in humor...

 

My buddy will be doing that rally on his 2005 Sporty. He already has 130k mile on it. He did a coast to coast to coast last year. Actually did 6k miles in around 5 1/2 days.

I might try doing the lower 48 this spring/summer. Not in 9 days of course. That’s just crazy! Over 4-6 weeks. If my finances allow it. It's not cheap to do. Especially since I'd be hotelling it and not camping.

 

This.

I love my SG for touring and it is very comfortable for long rides...at a more laid back pace...well, more laid back than the IBRally anyways.. my most recent long trip was a 9,200 mile trip in 15 days of riding and the bike performed flawlessly.

I've given thought to doing some more serious long-distance touring but would definitely want a different bike, with a more efficient and long-lasting engine, to do so.

Maybe one day.

 

I've done a 1000 mile day, and a 1500 mile day, both on (different) Suzukis.

The idea of stringing 11 such days together has no appeal for me.

Most of the 1500 mile day was spent in Western Nebraska, Wyoming and South Dakota. Cruised for hour on end at an indicated 100MPH. For the DL1000 I was on, that was nothing.

Jonesee is exactly right: HD's are great bikes and they do a lot of great things, but they don't do every thing, and there are some awesome bikes from other makers out there too.

 

BAKA,
Has your friend competed in smaller rallies to learn the sport or just jumping in?

I saw a stat that more people have left earth's gravity then have finished the Iron Butt Rally.

In 2013 1/3 of the field was DNF.
5 of the top 6 riders rode an FJR.

 

Comfort on a bike is subjective....but hard to argue a modern day water-cooled inline 4 engine is the gold-standard in terms delivering power and reliability. Plus, Japan has inline-4 engine design and manufacturing down to a science.

In addition, I think bikes from Japan and Germany are favored due to the shaft-drive over chain/belt drive system.

Regardless of the bike...what those guys do is pretty incredible. I've done a Butt-Burner, but to do it for 10-11 days straight....that's no joke stuff.