Editing Iron Butt Association (section)

===Iron Butt Rally===

The Iron Butt Rally is a competitive motorcycle road rally held in the United States. It was first held in 1984, and beginning in 1991, now takes place in odd numbered years, usually in August.  The rally lasts 11 days, and riders often travel over {{convert|11000|mi|km}} in that time.  During the rally, entrants earn points by riding their motorcycles to various "bonus" locations in the U.S. and Canada.  A bonus is a task or destination with a point value.  To earn the points for a bonus, a rider must provide evidence by photographing an object or scene, purchasing a particular item, or by various other means specified by the organizers.

The rally consists of one or more checkpoints, which may be located anywhere the United States, and one or more lists of bonuses with locations, times of availability (if limited), and varying point values. Each leg of the rally has its own bonus list, and only the bonuses for the leg currently being ridden are known to riders and can be earned.  A bonus list typically contains far more bonuses than can be earned in the time allotted during a leg.  This introduces a significant strategic element to the rally, since each rider must determine for him/herself which bonuses to attempt, and what route to use to reach them, while still reaching the next checkpoint before it closes.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://forum.ironbutt.org/index.php?threads/so-you-want-to-enter-the-iron-butt-rally.1569/|title=So You Want to Enter the Iron Butt Rally|work=Iron Butt Forum|access-date=2017-10-02|language=en-US}}</ref>

Entry into the Iron Butt Rally is by lottery only and every lottery entry must be an Iron Butt Member first.<ref>{{Cite web |title=IBA FAQ |url=https://ironbutt.org/IBAFaqs.html |access-date=2022-07-17 |website=www.ironbutt.com}}</ref>

To be considered a finisher of the event, a rider must be present at each of the checkpoints within a specific time window, and must earn a minimum number of bonus points during the rally. Additional achievement levels (gold, silver, bronze) can be reached by earning more than the minimum required points.

Themes are often employed, with 2011 being about visiting U.S. states and their capitals; 2009 were crime scenes; 2007 was about gateway and arches (i.e. [[Perce Rock]] on the Atlantic, [[St. Louis Arch]], and [[Golden Gate Bridge]] on the Pacific); and 2005 was about lighthouses.

First-time finishers are assigned a 3-digit number membership to replace their previously assigned number...that often are five digits in length and over 1,000.  As of 2019, slightly more than 600 people have officially finished the Iron Butt Rally. In 2019, [[Wendy Crockett]] became the first woman to win the rally.