IRON BUTT RALLY / LDX RALLY

The Heart of Texas Rally is photo scavenger hunt on motorcycles.  That is the basic description.  In essence, it is a combination of problem-solving, route planning, but most importantly, long-distance riding.  For those that have joined the Iron Butt Association and are looking to get involved in events that will help build your riding experience for larger rallies like the Iron Butt Rally and others, the Heart of Texas Rally is a great multi-day event which will challenge your route planning and long-distance riding skills.

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The Heart of Texas Rally was originated through James Stovall in 2010 as more of a Ride To Eat.  In 2011 he evolved it into more of the LD Rally most of us are familiar with.  James hung his hat up as a rallymaster in 2016 but graciously handed the baton to Paul Tong who has taken the helm since 2017. 

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The past themes of the rally have been:

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• 2017 – El Camino Real de los Tejas : Rally focused on the numerous pink granite Camino Real markers from east Texas to the Rio Grande marking the ancient Spanish highway through its northern territory.

• 2018 – Six Flags of Texas : Rally focusing on locations with specific history relating to the different countries which have at some point laid claim to territory in Texas.

• 2019 – Grapes of Wrath : A rally focusing on the unique Texas wineries and vineyards which are located throughout the great State of Texas.

• 2020 - RAWHIDE : A rally focusing on the 4 major Texas cattle trails of the 1800's : the Shawnee Trail, the Chisholm Trail, the Great Western Trail, and the Goodnight-Loving Trail.  These trails cover territory from the Rockies to the Mississippi, from northern Mexico and far into Canada.

• 2021 - Holy Rollin': A rally focused on the many historic and beautiful churches located throughout Texas including historic Spanish Missions and the 19 Painted Churches of Texas.

• 2022 - Days of Thunder:  The 1990 movie and NASCAR were the underlying theme.  You got points for visiting racetracks in Texas (major professional tracks, dirt oval tracks, dragstrips, etc) but had to earn fuel credits from historic old Depression-era gas stations in order to earn the points.  

• 2023 - World Wide Texas Tour : 2023 rally was based on ZZ Top (That Little Ol' Band From Texas) and their 1976-1977 World Wide Texas Tour.  ZZ Top's tour was planned to go international but due to quarantine concerns, only toured domestically.  We took the tour back on the road with riders visiting locations from all over the country and globe such as New York, Chicago, Detroit, London, Moscow, Paris, Dublin, Germany, China, and Poland (of course, those are all places in Texas, you see).  We even have the riders headed to the stars with visits to Saturn, Mercury, Venus, and others.

• 2024 - Boomtown: revolved around the oil production boom in Texas from the mid-1800's until the present. The 58 hour anywhere start was on Thursday April 25 and the 30 hour anywhere start was on Friday April 26 with both finishing in Irving, TX on Saturday April 27, 2024.

• 2025 - Comancheria - Lords of the Plains: The 2025 Heart of Texas Rally was held from April 22-26, 2025.  The rally was based off the Comancheria, the empire of the Lords of the Plains.  The Comanches' history ranges from Wyoming down to Mexico but its history in Texas was well-documented.  Riders claimed bonuses dealing with Comanche culture, history, and the battles they fought.

• 2026 - The 2026 Heart of Texas Rally, May 6-8, 2026 started and ended in Irving, TX.  The actual start location was an old bridge in southeast Irving that Bonnie and Clyde actually used to move in and out of the west Dallas neighborhood where Clyde's family lived. The rally was based on the actual locations where Bonnie and Clyde either stayed, worked, or committed their heinous crimes.  Extra bonus points were awarded to riders who collected bonuses in the chronological order in which they occurred.  Bonuses were located all over Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas and included as far north as Minnesota and as far east as Georgia.