The 2006 Mason Dixon 2020 Rally
by Mike Langford (alter ego IB Pete)

MD 2020--well we've learned that MD stands for maximum downpour (but not this year thankfully) and now I know that the 2020 stands for the degree of hindsight. All I need to do is turn that into foresight.

My big mistake was in planning a Bluebird route. I didn't realize it was a bluebird route. With my newfound 2020 hindsight, along with Don Arthur's excellent Friday night session I realized that I should have been much more aggressive in the miles planned. I guess the problem is that I have run too many mini-rallies. I have this 45-50 mph average mentality that I need to break for the multi-day events.
So I ended up planning a route that had way too many stops and didn't allow for any error. By the time the realization set in, it was in my GPS, in my head, and I just didn't have the mental capacity to start all over at 9PM Friday night. Thursday night I'd been up late with work and route planning so I was going into Friday with a sleep deficit. More 2020 hindsight--I should have replanned because I think I only slept about 3 hours Friday night what with being wired and rethinking the route. I knew I'd have a bad performance but figured I needed the practice of "riding the plan".

We got a small jump on the clock Saturday AM but since I had planned my first stop at the BJ's (opening at 8) I wasn't too worried about being one of the last out of the parking lot. I rolled out about 0740, drove to BJ's, noticed the Walmart next door and grabbed up my JHCC gift bonus, all before 0800. The line to get a BJ's receipt was incredible! I felt sorry for the poor lady who got hit with the early morning rush. I tried to talk the manager into just ringing up bottles of water real fast since all we wanted was a receipt but she wasn't buying that. At 0815 or so I proceed to haul out of the parking lot when Scott Lashier hollers that my rear tire is low. [A big thank you to him] Since I thought I had a nice "between the sheetz" bonus planned, I rolled into the sheetz next door, grabbed a receipt and checked the rear tire. No punctures were obvious but it was low. I head down the main drag looking for a full service station to get some air, a better inspection of the tire, and a second opinion. Pep Boys was open and the young man that came out was very helpful. While we are giving the tire a close inspection for a puncture he says he can hear the leak and investigates the valve stem. Sure enough, it is leaking and he installs a new valve core. He says he can still hear it leaking but I am skeptical. We get the soap on it trying to see exactly where it is leaking when POP! the metal part of the valve stem separates from the rubber and completely blows out. Oh boy, it looks like my rally is over before it ever really started. Naturally, Pep Boys ain't even gonna touch a motorcycle tire. I call Rick Miller who knows exactly where I am. Rick says I can get the tire fixed at Laugerman's Harley-Davidson and dispatches Leon Begeman to tote me and the tire down the road about a mile. The folks at Laugerman's were great! I tell them I have a slight problem, show them the tire, explain I'm on a timed rally, and ask if they can squeeze me in. Yep, just as soon as their service guy comes back from a test ride. Since it looks like it will be a bit, Leon takes me back to the bike so I can get the PC and start replanning the route. About the time I get back to Laugeman's and get the PC booted up they have my tire ready. For what it's worth Pep Boys and Laugerman's both said they had NEVER seen a valve stem fail like that before. Leon totes me back to my bike. I was ready to call it quits, just ride around and grab some local bonuses in the hopes of offsetting a major mileage penalty.

Leon gives me lots of words of encouragement. He said, "You are only 2 hours behind, show them you can give them a 2 hour head start and still rack up the points". Without his encouragement I would have packed it in [another big thank you to Leon].

Well, the decision to go on meant that my very aggressive "all PA plus" route was out the window. There was no way it was doable with a 2+ hour delay. My second route "in the box" was an "all the 69s". Even though it was no where close to a big score it was an interesting route that took me along the eastern seaboard and points south after making a loop into Amish country in northeast Pennsylvania. The late start put me in Amish country around lunchtime on Saturday and once there I find myself amid horse drawn buggies and tons of tourists in cars, vans, and tour buses. The traffic was incredible--YECH!

As I head back to find Jim's gravestone in the National Cemetary I realize my average speed is well below what will be needed to meet the 1315 mile requirement for my rider class. Another route plan comes into play (see actual). I quickly determine that the only way I can finish the rally without incurring a massive mileage penalty is to head to Kentucky and pick up any bonuses along the way out and back.

Nothing much to say except the delays kept mounting, a traffic jam in Pittsburg while getting one of the Hooters bonuses, a missed turn off the interstate, poor fuel management that cost me a detour for a fuel stop. 15 minutes here, 15 minutes there and pretty soon you are so far behind you can't catch up.

I managed to finish the rally and meet my mileage requirement coming in right at the needed 1315 but I took some time penalty to meet the mileage requirement (10pts/min vs 25pts/mile--a no brainer).

The most interesting part of the rally was the bonus near Pavia, "The Lost Children of the Alleghenies Memorial". This was a 300 point bonus and it looked like I could grab it and not be late. I figured as long as I got the bonus in less than 30 minutes, that I'd have a net gain over the 10 points/minute late penalty. I seemed to be in good shape. Having learned the hard way that following directions was a critical skill I meticulously navigated the 2.2 miles out the monument road. Sure enough there was a turn out as indicated and a van was parked in this location. The directions said to follow a red blazed trail. So off I trek on a trail of red clay. There were several forks in the trail and at one point I thought I had lost the trail but in backtracking I saw lots of bootprints in the mud and followed that branch. I ended up hiking around in the forest for at least 15 minutes and never did find the monument. In fact, I began to worry that I would be one of the lost children myself. Discouraged I head back to the road, not only did this bonus cost me a time penalty I didn't get the points for the bonus. Just about the time I am getting ready to make a U-turn I glance down the road and see a big spotch of BLUE paint on a tree. I've hiked in the woods and all of a sudden the brain cells start functioning -- I'm on a "blue blazed trail" not RED!. I follow the road another 100 yards or so and there is the real turnout. Shoot there is even a sign pointing down the path that says "monument" and lots of red paint splotches on the trees. By the time it was all over and done I had lost points for this bonus. But I did get a good hike in the woods.

I guess my 17th place finish out of 35 contestants wasn't too bad considering the late start and 3 route plan changes during the rally but it sure wasn't the finish I had hoped to achieve.

A big thank you to Rick Miller and all the rally staffers at the Mason Dixon. Your selfless contribution of time and effort is what keeps this sport alive and provides the "fix" we long distance junkies need from time-to-time.

Getting home on Monday, I told my wife that I had serious misgivings about competing in further rallies. I had hit the proverbial hurdle in the middle of the night slogging down the interstate somewhere in Ohio. You know the hurdle, the good old Why am I here? What am I doing? Am I really having fun? I had already signed up for the seven day, seven thousand mile ButtLite IIII but wasn't looking forward to it.

Postscript: Little did I know at that time. As it turns out a "big dog" multiday rally is quite a bit different from the 24 and 48 hour formats. See my ButtliteIIII ride report.