The Iron Butt Association is a loose-knit group of riders dedicated to safe long-distance motorcycling. Entry into the club is obtained by documenting long-distance riding challenges, such as 1,000 miles in less than 24 hours, or Coast to Coast in under 50 hours. Every two years the IBA hosts their premier event, the Iron Butt Rally. Billed as “11,000 miles in 11 days,” this rally tests the mettle of selected riders by sending them all across the US and Canada on a giant two-wheeled scavenger hunt. In fact, more people have gone into space than have completed an Iron Butt Rally.
Ken Meese has been riding ever since he snuck his parents’ 125cc bike out of the garage as a teenager. He has logged several hundred thousand miles on BMWs and has ridden in Asia, Europe, and North America. Ken has ridden numerous long distance rallies and Iron Butt certificate rides that have covered nearly every US state and most Canadian provinces.
2009 was his first Iron Butt Rally; he came in 9th. He was in the running to win the 2011 IBR when a coyote decided it had other plans for him…but his first thoughts on waking up in the hospital were how to recover and hit the 2013 rally firing on all cylinders.
In 2013, he unfortunately went down in Virginia in the rain, on a ground-down stretch of freeway that wasn’t clearly marked as a construction zone. He took 2015 off, and rode an amazing route in 2017, snagging 3rd place.
After beating cancer in 2018–2019, he’s back in 2021 to show the world what he can do.
The 2021 Iron Butt Rally runs June 21 through July 2, starting and ending in Provo UT. Ken’s wife Dayle will be chronicling his progress on this blog.