Commuters, tourers, Iron Butt Association riders and even some weekend warriors rack up significant mileage every year on their motorcycles.

The AMA LongRider Program provides a way to formally track those miles while earning patches for achievements.

Mileage awards are available at 10,000, 25,000 and 50,000 annual miles. In addition to the awards, AMA LongRiders are recognized on the AMA website.

Lifetime Mileage awards are offered at 25,000, 50,000, 100,000, 250,000, 500,000, 750,000 and 1 million miles. Riders who achieve 1 million miles will earn a special AMA LongRider plaque.

These four riders, with a cumulative 139 years of riding experience, are enrolled in the AMA LongRiders Program. Here are their stories.

 

Craig Phillips
Concord, N.C.
Current ride: 2016 Victory Cross Country Tour
Years Riding: 40 years

My first bike was a 1971 Kawasaki 100 that I somehow convinced my dad to let me buy when I was 15. I rode it through my high school years. Then school, family and work became priorities, and my riding really tailed off.

My story is one of finding myself at a point later in life where I could take the time to ride like I wanted and complete trips I had dreamed about for years.

I own a 2004 Suzuki VL800 and a 2016 Victory Cross Country Tour. The Victory gets 99 percent of the miles these days.

Until 2017, I would say I averaged fewer than 1,000 miles a year. In 2017, at the urging of my brother, I decided to get off the couch and do more riding. It was something I always wanted to do, but just didn’t make happen.

In early 2017, I bought the Victory and rode about 5,000 miles that year.

I also joined the AMA in 2017 and found out about the AMA LongRider Program. I registered for a couple of reasons. One, it’s a little bit of motivation to keep the wheels turning. Second, I like the “official” recognition of what I have accomplished.

In 2018, I put together a lifelong dream trip and spent three months touring the country. I rode 28,000 miles and hit 47 states, including Alaska. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I loved it.

I knocked out some Iron Butt Association-certified rides, including a National Parks Tour. And there was never a day that I woke up and didn’t feel like jumping back on the bike.

This year will be less, but I hope to push 20,000 miles.

 

William Hauptman
Hyde Park, N.Y.
Current ride: 2011 Triumph Tiger 1050
Years riding: 38

I’ve been riding motorcycles since I was 4 years old. At age 9, I started racing motocross and continued until I was 14. For many years, I didn’t ride much. But then, at age 27, I purchased a new street bike and started road riding, which I continue to enjoy today, 15 years later.

I received my 19-year AMA pin this March.

I own several bikes, including a 2010 Triumph Thunderbird 1600, a 2011 Triumph Speed Triple, a 2011 Triumph Tiger 1050 and a 2016 Triumph Thruxton 1200. The Tiger gets the most mileage, because we use it while vacationing.

I usually ride between 5,000 and 6,000 miles per year. There are no commuting or highway miles. I mostly do 100- to 150-mile recreational rides. I do some two- or three-day touring trips once or twice a year, and those rides tend to be 200 to 300 miles per day.

All of my riding is recreational riding. I ride every chance I get but, because of my job, the opportunities are limited. I might ride 50 miles after work some days, then put 150 to 200 miles on the bike on a weekend.

I also take trips, where we do a clover leaf ride or something like that. Then I am riding 200 to 300 miles a day. When I get the chance, I just like to go.

I discovered the AMA LongRider Program while browsing the AMA website. As an Eagle Scout, I am quite familiar with the concept of pursuing goals that are rewarded by a patch when achieved.

I would like to earn the Iron Butt “Saddle Sore” and the LongRider 10,000 mile annual patch at least once. I would also like to think that I would earn the LongRider 100,000 mile Lifetime Award.

I would like to encourage all who ride to join AMA, not only to support the organization, but also to be kept informed of what is happening in the world of motorcycling.

Organizations like AMA, manufacturers like Honda and well-represented clubs, like The Motor Maids, worked very hard to reverse the public’s animosity toward motorcyclists.

 

 

Dorothy Gulla
Fort Myers, Fla.
Current ride: 2018 BMW S 1000 XR
Years riding: 10

Growing up in an Italian household, I never expected to be riding a motorcycle! My only experience was riding as a passenger, which I found very boring and often fell asleep.

One day, I decided to try out the “rider’s” seat. Wow! A light overcame me! I felt in control and had a sparkle in my eyes. Needless to say, I was hooked.

Over the next few months, I got my motorcycle endorsement and immediately joined the AMA.

I starting riding on a blue ZZR600 Kawasaki, followed by a 675 Daytona Triumph and 848 Ducati.

My love of the BMW S 1000 RR began in June 2013, when I walked into the Max BMW dealership in Brookfield, Connecticut. At that time, I was living in Danbury.

The moment I laid eyes on the red/blue/white S 1000 RR, I knew it was going home with me. Luckily, Max had one available, and I rode off with a big smile on my face!

Fast forward to June 2016. Now living in Fort Myers, Fla., I connected with new friends and joined a few motorcycle groups/clubs. One of my friends convinced me to join her and her boyfriend to ride from Fort Myers to Hamburg, N.Y. Our destination was the 2016 BMW MOA International Rally.

Needless to say, I was a bit nervous, since this would be my first long-distance motorcycle journey.

However, before departing, I realized that my calendar had a few other “adventures” coming up in the fall. I decided another motorcycle was in my future.

One June 30, 2016, I bought my 2016 S 1000 RR (red) from Gulf Coast Motorcycles in Fort Myers.

After the BMW MOA rally, my friends had plans to continue on to Nova Scotia. Due to work commitments, I needed to get back home. The only obstacle: this would be my first solo motorcycle trip. Could I do it?

I looked at my S 1000 RR and decided to go for it. Friends of mine in Syracuse invited me to stop by on the return trip. I was amazed. I had fallen in love with solo motorcycle traveling.

As I was reading my May 2017 American Motorcyclist magazine, I noticed an article about the LongRider Program and decided to participate. This program is a great inspiration for me, because I look forward to achieving the 250,000 mile goal.

I have traveled extensively since the 2016 BMW MOA International Rally on my two RRs. One of my favorite ride destinations is the Americade Motorcycle Touring Rally in Lake George, N.Y.

I met up with some of my friends at the rally in 2017, riding solo from Florida. My intention was to return in 2018.

However, my plans had to be altered. I was on a women’s motorcycle tour and got hit from behind by another rider, throwing me off my 2016 S 1000 RR. I was hospitalized in North Carolina with serious injuries. Thankfully, my gear saved my life.

My faithful traveling companion (just shy of 50,000 miles) was totaled. This broke my heart.

My plan was to get on the healing path and back to riding as soon as possible. In the interim, I traded my 2013 S 1000 RR (54,143 miles) for a 2018 S 1000 XR.

In July 2018, I set out on another journey on my XR. This included stops in West Gap, Va.; Little Switzerland, N.C.; Johnson City, Tenn.; and Charlotte, N.C. From there, I set out for the BMW Rally in Wellsboro, Pa., and then the return trip to Fort Myers, Fla.

I enjoy all types of solo riding: to destinations, as well as loops to experience the roads and countryside. I also travel with friends and various motorcycle groups or clubs.

I am looking forward to the availability of the 2020 BMW S 1000 RR, my dream bike.

I ride because I want to live in the moment, experience freedom, be my true self, knowing that I can do whatever I set my heart upon. Result: pure bliss!

 

 

Brian Jagger
Dublin, Calif.
Current ride: 2018 BMW R 1200 GS Rallye
Years riding: 51

I have been an AMA member for close to 50 years. I lost track over the years, but it has been continuous from when I was competing in enduros.

I am down to three motorcycles now: a “someday” project bike that I bought new is a 1969 Yamaha DT1S 250cc; a dual sport 2004 Honda XR400 plated for California, with an E-button; and a 2018 BMW R 1200 GS Rallye. The BMW is getting the most miles.

I try to do one long adventure ride every year. I ride between 8,000 and 15,000 annually. In 2005, a BMW that I passed to to my son-in-law had 168,000 miles on it at the time.

I am retired, so no commuting for me. And I try to avoid freeways. Most of my miles are adventure/touring. I still do some light dual sport riding.

My style now is “I ride to survive.” I still like riding at a brisk pace, but ride at 80 percent of what I think my ability is.

I saw the AMA LongRider Program in the AMA magazine and learned I could count mileage that I had already ridden if verified by an AMA club. Being a member of the Oakland Motorcycle Club (Charter 72, an AMA Historic Club), it was done.

I do not have a long distance mileage goal, per se. I do have places that I want to go, see and experience. That may add up to some more miles. I may get to 250,000 miles before I know it.

The LongRider Program is a fun way of logging the miles, but it is not the goal. The riding is the reason.

I am still riding AMA events. I have been involved in putting on AMA competitive events and recreational events, and the AMA has been a good resource over the years.

I am an Honorary Life Member of the 112-year-old Oakland Motorcycle Club. and a life member of both AMA District 36 and the AMA.