GST
23/06/2004, 11:28
A US motorcyclist has made the 9,011 kilometre trek from the northern-most road in Alaska to the southern-most tip of Florida in 100 hours, setting a transcontinental record certified by the "Iron Butt Association" of bike enthusiasts.
"I'm a little tired... a little bit bruised," biker Gary Eagan said.
Mr Eagan and his Ducati Multistrada have bested the old transcontinental "Iron Butt" record of 114 hours and 49 minutes, which was set last year by a BMW rider from Maryland.
A few hours after starting his solo journey on a gravel road in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, a truck forced Mr Eagan off the road.
His motorcycle flipped over into the tundra, breaking his windshield, one rear-view mirror, auxiliary fuel tank and shearing off the saddlebag containing his spare clothes.
"I think I broke my big toe and dislocated my finger and elbow a little bit," Mr Eagan, 56, said.
He patched the bike together with zip ties and drove on through Alaska, Canada and the continental United States, making a pit stop in Kansas City to change tyres and stopping occasionally to nap or refuel.
Mr Eagan says he endured suspicious border patrol agents, traffic snarls and torrential thunderstorms but completed the trek without any speeding tickets.
"You don't have to really ride that fast to do a record like that. You just have to stay on the bike and be efficient," he said.
:lol: :rotflmao: :lol:
"I'm a little tired... a little bit bruised," biker Gary Eagan said.
Mr Eagan and his Ducati Multistrada have bested the old transcontinental "Iron Butt" record of 114 hours and 49 minutes, which was set last year by a BMW rider from Maryland.
A few hours after starting his solo journey on a gravel road in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, a truck forced Mr Eagan off the road.
His motorcycle flipped over into the tundra, breaking his windshield, one rear-view mirror, auxiliary fuel tank and shearing off the saddlebag containing his spare clothes.
"I think I broke my big toe and dislocated my finger and elbow a little bit," Mr Eagan, 56, said.
He patched the bike together with zip ties and drove on through Alaska, Canada and the continental United States, making a pit stop in Kansas City to change tyres and stopping occasionally to nap or refuel.
Mr Eagan says he endured suspicious border patrol agents, traffic snarls and torrential thunderstorms but completed the trek without any speeding tickets.
"You don't have to really ride that fast to do a record like that. You just have to stay on the bike and be efficient," he said.
:lol: :rotflmao: :lol: