Ian McPhee (Australian motorcyclist)

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McPhee on his 2000 BMW R1100RT in the 2019 Iron Butt Rally

Ian McPhee is an Australian long distance motorcycle rider and four-time Iron Butt Rally finisher. In 2022, McPhee and his riding partner Wendy Crockett set a Guinness record for the world's longest motorcycle journey in a single country (team); they are the first team to have ever achieved this record..

Riding

Early History

McPhee grew up riding motorcycles in country New South Wales, Australia. Motorcycles remained his exclusive form of transportation well into adulthood; as his life grew to include a wife and two children, their family vehicle became a sidecar rig built on a 1979 Kawasaki Z1300 platform. On Christmas Eve 2009 McPhee documented his first Iron Butt Association long distance endurance ride on a Triumph Rocket III, earning himself a Saddlesore certificate for riding 1,612km in under 24 hours.

McPhee riding across the Nullarbor Plain in southern Australia

That first certified ride was followed by several, progressively longer, Iron Butt rides in rapid succession. In September 2010 he documented a SS2000k (2,000km in under 24 hours) on his Triumph Rocket III, and four days later he completed a Bun Burner Gold (1,500 miles in under 24 hours) on the same bike. In November 2010 McPhee, once again aboard the Triumph Rocket III, became the first person to successfully document riding more than 3,000km in under 24 hours. The requirements for this ride were extremely strict, with only two stretches of road in the world having speed limits high enough to permit this challenge to be accomplished legally (those being found in Northern Territory, Australia and the Autobahn in Germany); because of this, the Iron Butt Association has since ceased accepting applications for this ride, meaning McPhee will remain the only individual to ever be officially recognized for this feat. He wrapped up 2010 with one final SS2000k, riding the Rocket 2,123km in under 24 hours.

Competitive Career

McPhee began his competitive long distance endurance riding career in the 2012 Butt Lite Rally, an event held every two years in the United States. He finished the six day event in 50th place, riding a total of 5,138 miles on his 2000 BMW R1100RT; this event was his first time visiting North America. Having completed one multi-day rally and several certified long distance rides, he entered the raffle for a starting position in the 2013 Iron Butt Rally. His name was drawn for the 11-day, 11,000-mile event that is billed as "The World's Toughest Motorcycle Competition", and he went on to finish in 29th place after covering 10,041 miles in 11 days. The following year he competed in rallies in both the United States and Europe, then returned to North America in 2015 to score a 26th place finish the Iron Butt Rally. In 2016 McPhee secured a 17th place finish in the Butt Lite Rally, followed by a 14th place finish in the European Tour Rally.

McPhee visiting CarHenge in Alliance, Nebraska, USA

McPhee started 2017 with another World First certified ride. On April 29 of that year, he rode his 1995 Harley Davidson MT350 1,053 miles in 24 hours in the African country of Zambia. He became the first person ever to certify a ride on an MT350, and the first person to certify a ride in Zambia. To date, no other rider has matched either accomplishment.

McPhee returned to the US to compete in the 2017 Iron Butt Rally, finishing the rally in 81st place after suffering a serious back injury and a starter failure. In 2019 he returned for another attempt at the Iron Butt Rally, this time finishing in 37th place. It was during this rally when a portion of his travels happened to overlap with those of fellow competitor Wendy Crockett; the pair found that they shared a similar riding style and rhythm, and they eventually began discussing ideas for a record-breaking endurance ride.

Record-Setting Ride

Planning began in late 2019 for what would become their Guinness World Record setting ride, but the global COVID-19 pandemic prevented the Australia-based McPhee from traveling internationally in preparation for the undertaking. It was nearly three years before McPhee and Crockett were able to reunite in Australia in April 2022, only five weeks after the country fully reopened its borders to international travel and just six weeks before their proposed World Record attempt was slated to begin in the United States.

With McPhee riding a 2012 Yamaha XT1200Z Super Tenere and Crockett on a 2001 Yamaha FJR, the pair immediately set out on their first official ride as a team: an Iron Butt SS8000K certificate ride around Australia, during which they successfully documented a total of 8,439km in under five days. Although the pair categorized the Australian ride as unusually diffircult due to historic bad weather., animal strikes, and mechanical difficulties, the pair found that they functioned well as a team and decided they would move forward with the World Record attempt in North America

McPhee carried spare tires during his World Record ride

With McPhee riding a 2000 BMW R1100RT and Crockett on a 2005 Yamaha FJR, and with material support from MCCruise motorcycle cruise controls. and Innovv dashcams, the record attempt was set to begin in Montgomery, Alabama, USA on May 20, 2022. Their planned route had them visiting 49 US states plus Washington, D.C. in alphabetical order, photographing every state capitol building along the way. Unfortunately, Crockett suffered a medical emergency on May 17th which required immediate surgery and hospitalization. With the clock already ticking on McPhee's American tourist visa, the decision was made that he would begin the alphabetical ride on his own, visiting the Alabama capitol in Montgomery and the Alaska captiol in Juneau before reuniting with Crockett on May 28th in Craigellachie, British Columbia, Canada. Only those miles ridden side-by-side as a team within the United States counted towards their record goals, so after a nine day delay the pair was able to officially mark the start of their Guinness World Record ride attempt in Oroville, Washington state, USA on May 29, 2022

McPhee's and Crockett's motorcycles at the end of the 80,208-mile world record ride

To fulfill Guinness' stringent documentation requirements, McPhee tracked his progress using a SPOT tracker and Crockett tracked her progress using a Delorme InReach tracker. The planned ride had the team covering 83,000 miles in 80 days, but following their delayed start they continued to be plagued by historic bad weather, animal strikes, illness, a second hospitalization and various mechanical delays. They ultimately lost 52 riding days to myriad troubles. They documented their final alphabetical state in the Wyoming capital city of Cheyenne on August 14, 2022, 77 days and 63,474 miles into their Guinness record attempt. Including Washington, D.C., this location marked the 49th capitol for Crockett and the 50th capitol for McPhee, making them the first riders to earn the Iron Butt Association's Alphabetical Capital Expedition and Alphabetical Capital Expedition Plus certificates, respectively.

With nearly 17,000 additional miles required in order for the duo to claim the world record, they pushed on for several more weeks before ultimately concluding their ride on September 25, 2022 in Odell, Illinois, 119 days after the ride began and a full 39 days behind schedule. After a lengthy review process they were able to successfully claim a new world record, with Guinness recognizing their total qualifying distance at 80,208 miles (129,082km). Their total shared miles across Australia, Canada and the United States totaled 97,319 miles (156,620km) in just under six months

Personal Life

McPhee lives outside Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. He has two grown children and a wife who supports him in all of his long distance motorcycle riding pursuits. He has spent his career as a heavy equipment mechanic in the mining and drilling industry, a job which has allowed him to travel - and ride - all over the world.

Awards and Accomplishments

McPhee has earned 16 certificates from the Iron Butt Association in Australia, Africa, Europe, and North America. These range from the 1-day, 1,000-miles Saddlesore to the 100k Mile Club, awarded for documenting more than 100,000 miles in a calendar year. To date, he is recognized as the only person in the world to have certified a Saddlesore in Zambia, a Saddlesore on a Harley Davidson MT350, a 3,000km day, and the 50-captiol Alphabetical Capital Expedition Plus.

McPhee and Crockett at the Linking of the Rails Monument near Ooldea, South Australia

He has successfully completed four Iron Butt Rallies and six shorter rallies, ranging from 34 hours to six days, on three different continents

In December 2022 McPhee, together with Wendy Crockett, received the World Traveler Award in the Team Strange Trails to Rails Grand Tour event for documenting bonus locations in three countries. This included all three available Transcontinental Railroad bonuses, which required visits to Last Spike monuments in Australia, Canada, and the United States.

References

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