USA Four Corners Tour
Since 1984
Most challenging ride in SCMA catalog c. 7000 miles/11265 km.
Step out of your comfort zone – Traditional or True X.
Be part of the legacy – over 2200 finishers, c. 60/yr.
Pick your own points of interest – visit relatives.
Combines well with Best 15 US Roads or Three Flags Classic towards Triple Crown Award.
4 corners of the US in 21 days.
Our Ultimate Ride
Most riders have a regular day or weekend loop that they travel when they just want to go ride for a bit with minimal planning. Surprisingly, one in ten people has never traveled outside the state in which they were born, and more than half have visited 10 or fewer states. Motorcyclists are almost certainly underrepresented in that statistic, but almost all of us have some part of the USA that we have yet to ride. If you’re thinking there’s more of the country that you’d like to experience, a lap of the country riding the USA Four Corners Tour might be just what you’re looking for!
USA Four Corners Tour
The USA Four Corners Tour is a self-guided and self-paced ride of roughly 7,000 miles. It forms a lap of the contiguous United States by requiring stops in San Ysidro, California; Blaine, Washington; Madawaska, Maine; and Key West, Florida. Riders will have 21 calendar days in which to visit those four cities using a route of their choosing. A pace of 400 miles per day leaves plenty of time for sightseeing and side trips while accomplishing the Tour in 18 days with three contingency days.
For those seeking a more difficult quest and/or more exposure to the heartland states, we offer the True X version of the USA Four Corners Tour. The True X version adds a visit to Lebanon, Kansas, (the geographical center of the contiguous US) between each corner city after the first. This increases the ride distance to roughly 11,000 miles and correspondingly the time allowed for completion is increased to 26 calendar days. A pace of 500 miles per day would complete the Tour in 22 days with 4 contingency days but you are almost certain to consume at least one of those contingency days for cycle maintenance. As an extra incentive, those who complete the True X version in 21 or fewer calendar days will have the honor clearly identified in the True X Finisher’s List.
Four Corners Park in Madawaska, Maine, is the only park in the world dedicated to long-distance motorcycle riding. Madawaska has been a required stop on Four Corners since the ride became available in 1984. The Park is the culmination of a vision by Mainer Joe LaChance and his wife Diane, and Four Corners riders have been contributing since the Park was created.
Walkways within the Park are composed of granite pavers rather than the usual asphalt or concrete. Many of these are engraved with the visitor’s name and a message relating to their visit. Purchase of a paver offers a unique opportunity to support the ongoing operation of the Madawaska Four Corners Park as well as leaving a lasting impression visit.
The mail-in form to order a Four Corners Park paver is here, or you can call the Park Association at (207) 436-7450 to discuss customization details or place an order.
In Lebanon, Kansas, the US Center Foundation maintains the Geographic Center Park, encompassing the parks grounds, chapel, monument and parking area. It also manages the Lebanon Visitor and Community Centers (where some SCMA names were engraved in a past offering), the downtown park and the century-old Town Hall on Main Street.
If you’d be interested in supporting the ongoing maintenance and improvements at the Geographic Center Park and other community assets in the Lebanon area, you might consider a donation to the US Center Foundation. The donation page on their website supports both secure online and mail-in donations and allows you to earmark your donation for the Geographic Center Park if desired. The form for mail-in donations can be found here.
See more history, pictures, and detail on Four Corners Park and Lebanon, Kansas, in the SCMA May 2025 Newsletter.
Four Corners Tour Rules
Please note there are two different Four Corner Tours: Traditional and True X. You decide, at your start point, which ride you want to do. Here is a FOUR CORNERS INTRODUCTION packet especially for new FC riders with a welcome letter and easily printable details of the two Four Corners rides.
For the Traditional version of the Four Corners Tour, you have 21 calendar days to ride your motorcycle to each of the Four Corner cities of the United States listed below. You may visit the corner cities in any sequence and choose your own route.
For the True X version of the Four Corners Tour, you have 26 calendar days to ride your motorcycle to each of the Four Corner cities of the United States listed below while visiting Lebanon, Kansas, between each corner city. You may visit the corner cities in any sequence and via any route provided you make the mandatory stop in Lebanon, Kansas between each corner city. Under the True X rules, you would make a total of 3 visits to Lebanon, Kansas, and one to each corner city during the course of your Four Corners Tour.
If you finish the True X in under 21 days, your accomplishment will be uniquely identified in the Finisher list, in gold lettering.
Four Corners Tour Checkpoints:
- San Ysidro, California
- Blaine, Washington
- Madawaska, Maine
- Key West, Florida
- True X Only Lebanon, Kansas
- Geographic Center of the United States
- Lebanon Post Office or Lebanon Community Center
- Lebanon Service Station (Cenex)
- You need not return to the first corner city to complete the event.
- No time extensions will be granted under any circumstances.
Your ride commences with the date and time indicated on the Dated Business Receipt (DBR) from the Four Corners Tour city where you elect to start. The date and time from the DBR obtained in the final corner city will mark the conclusion of your Tour. Regardless of the time or time zone on the receipt, both the start and finish days will count as a full day against the time allotted to complete the ride. Be aware that your time allotment is measured in calendar days rather than 24-hour periods based off your start time.
All decisions are made by the Chair of the USA Four Corners Tour, or the SCMA Chairman and are final.
For each required city:
- Take a selfie showing you, your motorcycle, and a clearly identifiable landmark of that corner city. A Post Office is always a good choice since it shows the city name.
- Obtain a DBR and ensure the city, date, and time of your transaction are legible. The city on your DBR must be one of the four cities or Lebanon, Kansas. Take a photo of the DBR with your odometer reading also clearly visible in the photo.
Upon returning home, pair your corner photos and your DBR/odometer photos by location. Submit your request for certification and your ride documentation via the USA Four Corners Certification Request. You will be able to select certification with or without swag. You must be a member to request certification and pay the fee.
Your ride documentation must include the following:
- A selfie (as described above), and a DBR/odometer photo from each corner city - a total of eight (8) photos.
- If riding a True X :
- A selfie (as described above), and a DBR/odometer photo from each of the three (3) locations in Lebanon, Kansas.
- Three (3) DBR/odometer photos from Lebanon, Kansas, each of which has a timestamp between two consecutive corner city DBRs.
- An additional six (6) photos for True X.
Submissions via SpotWalla Track(s) or Day One Journaling mechanisms are acceptable if your photos are included. Please Note: Pictures can be included in these submissions via your phone; see the Electronic Ride Journaling page for more details.
Hurricane Exception - if the state of Florida has blocked US-1 to the Florida Keys due to weather conditions, you may use that barrier in place of Key West. Take the proper selfie at the barrier location and obtain a DBR in the general vicinity of the closure.
You will be near the area of the Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour running the Four Corners. Be sure and review this ride for your planning.
Certified Finishers will be invited to attend Finishers' celebrations.
Four Corners Tour History
The USA Four Corners Tour is the second longest-running, long distance riding tour the SCMA offers. In 1976 Joe Usatin came up with the idea to ride to each corner of the United States. George Keller, the first “route scout,” started out in 1977 but had repair delays due to hitting a coyote and was unable to test-ride the tour in 21 consecutive days. Board members Russ Trumbull and Ron and Dorothy Watkins also worked to plan the ride, with Russ Trumbull completing it in1979. The first USA Four Corners Tour was offered in 1984 and chaired by Seth Johnson.
How did the 21-days become the maximum number of days required to qualify as a USA Four Corners Finisher? Joe Usatin ventured out as the first rider in 1976 along with his nephew. When they reached their 4th corner, their elapsed time for their journey was 21 days. The SCMA has used that as the standard ever since.
Later, a board member had the idea of issuing a challenge to ride the Four Corners in a True X pattern. In 2011 Chuck Gatecliff of Brighton, Michigan, and Barry Bullington of Neoga, Illinois, decided to take up the challenge. Using Lebanon, Kansas, geographic center of the contiguous US, they began at one corner and rode to Lebanon, Kansas, then to another corner and back to Lebanon, then to a third corner and back to Lebanon, and finally to the 4th corner to complete a True X pattern across the continental USA. Although the distance almost doubles, it was decided to only allow an extra 5 days to complete the event. Riders have 26 days to complete the True X at an average distance of 11,000 miles.
Even though GPS now has “extreme corners” down to a finite science, the original destination corners of Blaine, Washington; Madawaska, Maine, Key West, Florida, and San Ysidro, California, were chosen because they were the most extreme corner cities that had a post office to be used to document a rider's proof of visit and now, they have travel accommodations such as gas stations, restaurants, and lodging. The freedom of the ride is that you can begin at any corner and there is no fixed route to follow. You can do your own route at your own pace as long as you do all four corners in 21 days or less. You can take time at the beginning or the end of the ride to visit friends, relatives or see more of the United States.
USA Four Corners Tour has proven to be a popular choice for riders from all over the North American continent and has drawn riders from Europe and Africa.
It is a challenging ride that will leave you with lasting memories!
Certify Your Four Corners Tour
Congratulations!
Follow this link to request certification of your USA Four Corners Tour.