Iron Butt Supreme – Hoka Hey Winner Takes Home $250,000 Top Prize
Will Barclay ended his two-week long, 10,000-plus mile ride across the United States and Canada at the front of a long and dusty line of entrants as he crossed the finish line Friday evening to take home the top prize in the Hoka Hey challenge.
Barclay, a former Ohioan now living in Florida, was a repeat winner as he took the 2010 Hoka Hey challenge as well.
Half a million dollars in two years is quite an accomplishment, but winning the challenge itself is a monumental feat.
The endurance ride began Aug. 5 in Phoenix, Arizona, and tore through 48 states and parts of Canada before coming to a close at the Joan Harriss Cruise Pavilion. A tired but victorious Barclay was met by his family, race officials and a large crowd bikers before claiming his prize. A clearly exhausted Barclay accepted congratulations fromwell-wishers and took a few moments to talk briefly about his journey before presumably taking a long rest.
“We are so fortunate to share an amazing continent that you really get to see if you do it this way, on two-lane roads with nothing between you and the environment. It’s an amazing place, a lot of beauty, a lot of beautiful people, a lot of beautiful wildlife, a lot of nature is not yet gone,” Barclay said.
For his victory, Barclay will pocket $250,000, but before the result becomes official, Barclay’s machine was quarantined by race honchos and will now be examined fir any illegal performance enhancements, fuels or banned content. Once the bike has been cleared, Barclay himself goes under the microscope as he must undergo a lie detector test to determine whether or not all rules and routes were followed. A drug screening test is also part of the grilling before the results are finalized .
The remaining 24 riders will split $250,000.
The rules of the Hoka Hey stipulate that riders are forbidden to sleep in hotels and were required to take their rest breaks within 10 feet of their motorcycle. According to Barclay, that was the toughest part of the challenge.
“Getting tired sometimes was the hardest part,” Barclay said. “The ride was beautiful, the Harleys are beautiful… I don’t think I heard any negativity this year, really a great experience. The Cabot Trail is beautiful. I had the privilege of driving it before in a rental car but it was really nice on a bike today, really beautiful. It reminded me of Maine on steroids.”
Filmmaker David Roma is producing a documentary about the ride. Known for his work on ‘ Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood ’,’ Hogan Knows Best’,the ‘Miami Ink’ series and producing the documentary film “Gasland,” Roma received an Academy Award nomination for “Gasland” in 2011.
The 2011 event called for each rider to pony up an entry fee of $1,000. An official Hoka Hey Challenge 2011 Road Glide has been commissioned by Harley-Davidson and will be put on display in the Harley-Davidson Museum located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Event organizers named the challenge after the Lakota indian language battle cry of legendary Sioux warrior, Crazy Horse. Roughly translated, Hoka Hey means “it’s a good day to die”.
Being stuck on the side of the road next to your bike is no fun, and your insurance coverage needs to include help when you need it.
