Smackdab Motorcycle Run Celebrates Fifth Year

From one geographic center to another, the Smackdab ride is 675 miles of fun.

What’s the longest, most unusual motorcycle ride you’ve ever been on? If you’re keen to plan ahead, the Smackdab motorcycle run should be on your plans for next year. This year’s event was covered in The Pierce County Tribune.

The annual event took place this year on June 22. The Smackdab run gets its name from the fact that it begins in Lebanon, Kansas, the geographic center of the 48 contiguous states. The route follows US Route 281 all the way to Rugby, North Dakota – the geographic center of North America.

The Pierce County Tribune cites the event’s website to explain how it came to be. Peter Zilliox, who lives in Kansas, discovered the route back in 2015. He was researching the difference between the two geographic points of interest. In the process, he found a compelling route for a ride.

The event has grown steadily since that first ride back in 2015. Now in its fifth year, the Smackdab run celebrates the beginning of summer. It takes place on the longest day of the year, in an attempt to avoid the sort of suicidal critters that come out after dark and tend to cross in front of motorcyclists.

You need all that daylight, as the 675 mile ride can take up to 16 hours to complete. Riders are given a map of the route, and can pace themselves, riding solo or with larger groups. At the end of the day, everyone meets up and celebrates their accomplishment.

The heavy rain in the upper Midwest this spring made the 2019 running of the Smackdab even more difficult. Bridges were washed out, roads were under construction, and diversions had to be made. Still, many folks finished the ride, road-weary but happy.

Event patches are available, with rockers for different accomplishments, including repeat finishers. One of those patches honors those brave souls who complete the expansive route on bikes with engines displacing less that 250cc. Completing the route on a full-dress Harley is impressive enough. We can hardly imagine riding the route on a bike like the one we took our safety course on!

Photos: smackdab281.org

Cameron Vanderhorst

Cam VanDerHorst has been a contributor to Internet Brands' Auto Group sites for over three years, with his byline appearing on Ford Truck Enthusiasts, Corvette Forum, JK Forum, and Harley-Davidson Forums, among others. In that time, he's also contributed to Autoweek, The Drive, and Scale Auto Magazine.

He bought his first car at age 14 -- a 1978 Ford Mustang II -- and since then he’s amassed an impressive and diverse collection of cars, trucks, and motorcycles, including a 1996 Ford Mustang SVT Mystic Cobra (#683) and a classic air-cooled Porsche 911.

In addition to writing about cars and wrenching on them in his spare time, he enjoys playing music (drums and ukulele), building model cars, and tending to his chickens.

You can follow Cam, his cars, his bikes, and his chickens at @camvanderhorst on Instagram.

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