iron butt rally . . .

[Kevin Powers]

The fatigue article I mentioned is available here: http://ride4ever.org/news/fatigue.php I have never heard of riders using anything stronger than caffeine during a rally. I once had a rider offer me "a little something to get over the hump" which was hard candy. With enough sugar and caffeine I can dance around like a 6-year old on Halloween. Helos require 50 hours maintenance for every hour of flight?! That just reaffirms my belief that those things are not meant to fly. I thought about doing that Dusty Butt also. For about 10 minutes. I figured an hour for gas stops and four hours off the bike, which would put me at 19 hours to do 1,000 miles, which would require a 53 mph pace. Considering that my happy speed for gravel roads is 40 to 45 mph this would have been pushing my personal envelope too far. Kevin

On Wed, Sep 2, 2009 at 12:21 PM, revmaaatin wrote: > > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com , Kevin > Powers wrote: > > SNIP > > > The IBA > > has also had seminars on how the body and mind respond to lack of sleep - > > these are based on an article written by an LD riding former Naval > Surgeon > > based on research the military has done. They also coach the riders in > > dealing with the media to manage perception of the event. > > > > You raise a thorny issue. When does a challenge, of any type, become > unduly > > risky? > > > > Kevin > > Kevin > You ask some valid questions- > and I see that there are some built in rest periods; that is, the 11 days > is not 11 days continuous--at least not by what I have read. (I am only an > interested observer; not a participant.) > > IRT to the flight surgeon-- > And did the flight surgeon also disclose that certain USAF (and probably > USN missions as well) included/required amphetamines > (under Dr's supervision, cough) > to ensure the pilots did not go to sleep? > These missions also required a certain amount of 'down' time, IE days; and > Dr supervision after the mission ended. > > I did one 22hr mission--from alert to final touch down; a mission that was > JCS authorized/mandated. It was not supposed to be that long, and would not > have taken that long under normal circumstances but the helo did not > cooperate and had to abort after 1 hour and return for a faulty pressure > switch on a 3000psi hydraulic servo that controlled the rotor head. > Yeah, we will get that one fixed.... > In a 3-day period, the helo was airborne 35 hrs. > Why is that special? > It has a normal maintenance of 50+ man-hours maintenance for every hour > flown. When we limped home, it sat in the hanger for weeks catching up on > all the components we wore out/broke or flew to it highest limits of wear. > > The only drug we used for that flight was coffee/caffeine--and at one > point, I was tempted to pour it in my eyes. > > I set several squadron 'records' that month. > Most miles traveled. > Furthest distance between two points flown in one month: Most hours flown. and > The most espresso / caffeine drunk with wigging out. > > Back to the KLR content: > > On four occasions this summer I have tested the idea of riding a KLR on a > dusty butt--one held within 500 miles of here this summer. > My experimentation was not so much on gravel, but on secondary paved roads > over 4 different, 12-14 hour days. To see what it would be like to ride 1/2 > that distance and see how long it would take. > These were GPS monitored days, avg speed, moving speed, mileage, etc. > > What an eye opener. > All four occasions were Granted, I was not 'busting' my tail, riding the advertised speed limit, > and just seeing how it worked out. > You really have to hustle, even on pavement if you are going to make this > work where there are plenty of stop signs/towns to impede progress. > To be successful, It looks easy; like 41.66 mph/avg, but your indicated > 65mph+ indicated really drops a lot in the average when you stop to fuel, > pee, road construction, accidents, stretch and eat. > Of course, if you are running straight interstate, that would/could be an > entirely different game. > > Went out a couple of times at night: riding similar/identical gravel roads > that are offered for the W. NE/KS Dusty Butt and doing them at 55 gps/mph > brings a huge amount of risk after dark. > Did I mention huge? > 40 miles of that at 55mph satisfied my curiosity; which were roads that I > ride regularly, and pre-rode in the light to make sure there were no really > ugly spots. A luxury you do not have in the real world Dusty Butt. > > One final thought: related to the use of amphetamines-- > I would be curious as to the results of a mandatory drug screening for all > participants. > Beginning and end. > Now that would be an eye opener. > > The guy on the KLR is one tough cookie. > > revmaaatin. > Naval Aviator > > > -- Kevin Powers White Bear Lake, MN [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[dave.rogoski]

I am wondering what is the best luggage for the '07 KLR650? I need something that will be bulletproof and yet doesn't weigh too much. I don't think fabric will hold up in the long run. I have the Caribou Pelican bag system on my Vstrom and love it but it is pretty heavy - don't know how the Happy trails or other aluminum bags compare weight wise vs strength. Also the Pelicans do not leak under any circumstances. I have dropeed the bike on them too and they don't seem to mind. I have heard others have had trouble with the mounts breaking on the caribou but I have not had any trouble but am mostly on road 95%. Any ideas out there for bulletproof, not too heavy, bags?