Gold Wing Road Riders Association

Transcription

1 Gold Wing Road Riders Association Chapter AB-A A (Calgary) Newsletter June/July, 2007 Wing Wag Johnson Lake Text by Lisa Miller S ince we got the Gold Wing out of suspended animation in early May Colin has been riding it almost every day that he works or has meetings. I, on the other hand, have not been quite so lucky. Between the weather (snow and flooding rains) and work (either Colin s or mine) my opportunities for riding have been quite limited. The end of May and start of June has finally provided both the weather and the time for that to change, but at the expense of my GWRRA newsletter duties. I have forgiven myself for that and justify it by saying that I need something relevant to write about. In the last couple of weeks we have been winging about areas near Calgary. We have taken three day rides in three different directions, one to the west, one to the north, and one to the east. We will have to make a trip to the south but it will have to wait until after Wing Ding. WEST Since I moved to Calgary in 1983 I have heard about the Steak Pit restaurant in Bragg Creek but in all these years I have never been. So looking for an excuse for a ride I suggested to Colin that we ride out to the Bragg Creek area and explore the roads around there for awhile with the restaurant as our destination for supper before returning. We had a great ride, the air was fresh and warm, the smells of the grass and flowers strong, and the fresh green mantle of new leaves on the trees holding the promise of summer to come made for a perfect day. After a couple of hours it was time to eat and we headed for the Steak Pit only to find it was closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and here we were on Tuesday, May 29 th. With plan A thwarted we went to plan B which entailed continuing our ride north on (Continued on page 4) Coming Events Jun 23 Trike Course (Edmonton) Jun 29 Wings in the Sunny South (Lethbridge) Jul 1 Canada Day Jul 4-7 Wing Ding 29 (Billings MT) Jul 6-15 Calgary Stampede Jul 9 Monthly Meeting What s Inside Ride to Big Valley...2 Wings In The Sunny South...3 Motorcycle Ride For Dad...3 Advance Rider Course Pictures...5 Victoria Day Fun Run...6 Safety First...9 News & Notices...9 Classifieds...10 Calgary Area Staff Listing...10

2 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 2 Text by Bob Van nes T hose that ride long trips with me know that I am an early riser. This particular Sunday I decided I would spend time doing some research for a ride. I remember taking a ride with the Innisfail Chapter some time ago and we stopped in a small town that had a boardwalk and wanted I to lead a ride there. However, I couldn t remember the name of the town. So, I started looking at towns near Innisfail on the map and looking them up on the Internet. Voila. The town was Big Valley. No, it doesn t have anything to do with the TV series. So, my plan was to lead a Sunday ride to Big Valley. The group consisted of five bikes and six people. Included were myself (of course), Jack O Reilly, Carol Meyers, Cheryl Dielissen, and Jim and Sharon Bleaney. I had set my GPS and we were finally out of the Fox Hollow parking lot by 10:30 a.m. It was a pleasant ride north with our first stop in Three Hills for gas for some, and pressure release for others. As we approached Big Valley(not the TV series) members from the Innisfail Chapter were heading in the opposite direction. I wish they would use a CB channel closer to ours. With the short range of the CB s in these bikes, and both parties to the conversation going in opposite directions, one has to be quick to get from channel two to twenty in order to be able to say HI. Jack Hill responded and then we rode out of range. Upon arrival in Big Valley (not the TV series) I was surprised there were parking spaces available given all the people mulling around. It turns out the train that travels from Stettler to Big Valley(not the TV series) was in town. Hence the crowd. We were drawn to the Jimmy Jocks Boardwalk by the smell of the freshly baked cinnamon buns. Surprisingly, there were no takers from the group. However the Gold Wing Restaurant Raiders Assoc. did decide they wanted to chow down in a small café on the boardwalk. With the multitude in town it was going to be a 20 minute wait. Did I mention there was another attraction in town? Yep, there was an antique car show set up down by the train station. So, we needed another restaurant to raid. While the ladies investigated the Frog store, Jack took a look at the café next door to the boardwalk but the sign on the door said they were closed as the staff were volunteering down at the park. Next we check out the hotel across the street. Following the payment of the bill for the chow, we decided to walk over to view the old cars. That decision was like pulling teeth. The train let off its whistle to let people know it was time to head back to Stettler. By the time we walked back to the bikes, the train had pulled out of town, the antique car show had left and the town was deserted. If you are planning on a ride to Big Valley (not the TV series) plan on arriving around 2:30 p.m. and you will have the town to yourself. On our way south we stopped for gas in Trochu. Well, those that came to breakfast with a full tank. The ride home was a mirror image of the ride out, except when I got to the corner of highway 9 and 566. I missed the turn. Jack and Cheryl live in the north part of the city and headed west at that junction. Good thing someone was paying attention. The remainder of the group followed me as if I knew what I was doing. The result was perfect. The rest of my followers also live in the deep south. We continued south to highway 22X and then west into the city. Thanks to the participants on the ride for making it a great day.

3 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 3 Wings In The Sunny South will be held from June 29 to July 1, This is a great date and location for anyone traveling to Wing Ding in Billings, Montana to fit in another rally and help support this new chapter. Rally and contact information is available at the Chapter AB-L web site: Text by Lisa Miller On June 2nd I decided to collect my grandpuppies from my daughter so they could run around in my yard and keep me company on a beautiful late spring day. On the way home, driving northbound on Crowchild Trail my progress was brought to a grinding halt by city police on motorcycles and in cars. I came to a stop just above Bow Trail and I found myself with quite a bird s eye view of what was happening. I watched as a vast, seemingly unending, line of motorcycles of all makes and models wound their way off westbound Bow Trail, onto northbound Crowchild Trail, and subsequently exiting onto eastbound Memorial Drive where city police had also halted the flow of traffic to allow all the motorcycles to stay together and move freely through the route. At first I didn t understand what I was seeing and slowly realization dawned that I was watching the procession of the Ride for Dad in support of prostate cancer research. As I watched several Gold Wings travel the route I wondered if any of our GWRRA family had joined the ride, and how many participants were involved. It was a wonderful sight to see so many motorcycles in one place. How often I have seen this same area bumper to bumper with cars and never felt the same degree of awe as I felt watching all the motorcycles, why is that? After a very entertaining 15 minute delay I finally made it home. A quick phone call to Rick Brown provided the answer to a couple of questions. Approximately 250 to 300 bikes and bikers raised $80,000. The Ride for Dad will be repeated next year on June 7, 2008.

4 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 4 (Continued from page 1) highway 22 to Cochrane where we dined on steak at the Prairie Smoke restaurant. With the sun still high in the sky, a full stomach, and a wondrously warm evening to enjoy we headed home, the Steak Pit will have to wait for another day. NORTH Our trip north was initiated for a far less inspiring reason but with equally enjoyable results. My parents who live in Cold Lake were going to be in Edmonton for the day so we decided to drive up to visit with them for the afternoon. We had planned to make the trip on the Gold Wing but those plans were washed away with the torrential rains of Tuesday, June 5 th and Wednesday, June 6 th so we were forced to compromise and take the car instead. Upon our return home I discovered that my cell phone was missing. I knew I had it when we ate at the Swiss Chalet in South Edmonton Common during which I had decided to have a pint of beer. It turned out that was a big mistake as there are no restrooms which are easily accessible from the southbound lanes of the QEII highway, between Leduc and the Wolf Creek Motel, just north of Red Deer. Meanwhile the Wetaskawin Rest Area beckoned and taunted me, but is only accessible when traveling northbound. The highways department has even posted no stopping signs on the southbound lanes to deter people from running across the highway. This necessitated a trip into the bushes so Colin turned off at the Hobbema exit ramp and I dashed into the trees to answer nature s call. Since that is the only place we stopped we reasoned that my cell phone must be laying there in hiding and so a rescue mission was conceived. Thursday, June 7 th was a beautiful day and about 3:00 p.m., after I finished work Colin and I got on the Gold Wing and headed back on a treasure hunt of my own making. The plan had been to use Colin s cell phone to call my cell phone and let the ringing tell us where it was hiding. All I can say is the idea was better in theory than in practice as the noise from the highway drowned out any sound my phone could possibly make. Not wanting to give up we continued to search the tree line all the while being swarmed by mosquitoes, something I had mentioned to Colin after my previous visit to these particular trees but which could only be fully appreciated in person, thank goodness for our riding gear as it protected us from the onslaught. We were about to give up when Colin climbed back up the embankment and noticed that he could see his trail in the tall grass and as he scanned from above he spotted my trails from the previous day. He called to me just as I saw evidence of my previous visit and looked down to find my cell phone laying there waiting to be collected Eureka! What a tremendous sense of accomplishment and joy, that phone has all of the numbers I need for work! Back on the Gold Wing we congratulated ourselves on a perfect rescue mission and stopped at the Dairy Queen in Innisfail for dinner and desert to celebrate our success, then we continued our homeward journey enjoying the calm pleasant weather if not necessarily the scenery. A few livestock trailer on the highway reminded us of stories we have heard about sloppy encounters with the same and the odors encouraged us to move by them quickly. Turning into Calgary at Country Hills Boulevard we saw a sign for Delacour and wondered aloud to each other where exactly it was and agreed we would have to check it out one day, a conversation we have had more than once over the years. As mentioned at the beginning of this article we also have done a trip to the east and plan a trip to the south after Wing Ding so as space prohibits continuing I will hold them both in reserve until the August Edition. TO BE CONTINUED May 50/50 Winner Ron Myers

5 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 5 Photos by Terry Burrill Below are pictures from the May Advance Rider Course courtesy of Terry Burrill (our very own Rider Course Instructor) Unfortunately I don't have at- tendance lists again but, as with the April Co-Rider Course, you know who you are.

6 Wing Wag Text by Dorothy Baker Photos by Dorothy Baker O June/July, 2007 off at 9:00a.m. We were on our way by 9:02 a.m. and that was probably the only time on the entire trip that we were even close to being behind schedule. For those of you who have ever Page 6 quickly and things ran smoothly or at least early. Our first stop was at the Radium turnoff were we had a snack, before heading to Invermere for lunch. As all good Goldwing riders we lived up to our reputation. We live to ride we ride to eat. The weather cooperated nicely and we removed our coat liners to enjoy the next leg of the trip. By Cranbrook we had to stop for ice cream (27oF), so we arrived in Creston by 4:30p.m. After checking in at our motel, we walked to a nearby pub for fluids and food. ridden with some of this group On our return to the motel, you will understand that for a Cheryl, who had left Calgary few of the troops, 7:00a.m. much later than us and taken a more direct route, joined us. Dorothy. We had agreed to meet really means 6:30 or maybe at the service station on the #1 6:45 packed, gassed, and ready We had a brief meeting to dis(continued on page 7) highway by the Cochrane turn- to go. We all caught on very n May 17, 2007 a group of us left for the Victoria Days Rally in Ephrata, WA. The group consisted of 8 people on 6 bikes, Gary and Susan, Ron, Carol, Bob, Jack, Jim and

7 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 7 (Continued from page 6) cuss the next days start time before hitting the sack. Jim was up at 5:15a.m.to fill the bike with gas and give it a wash. We updated the GPS and joined everyone for breakfast 15 minutes ahead of schedule at 7:15a.m. Well fed, we hit the road by 8:00 a.m. and headed for the border. We had no problem crossing the border and we continued on to Mettaline, Colville, Kettle Falls, and Republic. Lunch was at a Tex Mex Restaurant and then south and west to Grand Coulee Dam. After a quick picture stop we did the last leg of the ride to Ephrata, WA. As usual we went straight to the campground to register and pick up the itinerary. Next stop the Hotel to check in and freshen up. A wonderful warm ride with great people behind us and another meal ahead of us. Breakfast with the group was at 7:00a.m. and our first stop of the day was the campground for the flea market at 8:00a.m. Chet s Honda was next on the agenda, with 20% off all purchases. Jim bought a hat! At this point we parted ways and Jim and Dorothy went to Leavenworth, while the rest took a ride. We all met back at the hotel to ride to the banquet together. A roast beef dinner put on by the local chapter was followed by entertainment by the PUGS (a group of kids riding uni-cycles and snakeboards). Wow what talent and coordination. There were 265 people in (Continued on page 8)

8 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 8 (Continued from page 7) attendance. Our group returned to the hotel afterwards and took some time to plan our next day. The night was short as we were again up and ready to ride before our 7:00 a.m. group breakfast. May 20 started with a poker run after checking out of the hotel and packing the bikes. The weather was showing its first signs of turning not so nice. We drove through lovely countryside with water bugs (Bob s word) on our windshields for a while. By noon the sun was shining again and we returned to the start point by 2:00 p.m. We were all winners as everyone got a prize. A certain pair of Christmas moose mugs became a lovely parting favour at a hotel on the way home (they were pretty, but tough to pack in already full bikes). The wind up ceremony was over by 4:00 p.m. and our group of seven bikes and nine people headed to Coeur-D -Alane, ID. Chinese food (yummy), a soak in the hot tub, and a group-planning meeting rounded out the day. The forecast was for possible snow, so we agreed to meet in the morning to finalize our plans. Cold wet rain met us in the morning so we bundled up and headed out. Thank goodness for heated clothing and seats. We drove through rain and under grey skies most of the way finally hitting snow on the 22X before Longview. The fields were white and the passengers saw snowflakes. The riders were busy avoiding the bumper-to-bumper four wheelers and the ditches so apparently did not notice actual snowflakes in the air. Despite the weather we all made it home safely after a great time spent with good friends. Thanks to all who participated for a super long weekend, and we look forward to many more fun rides this season. Writers Wanted 1020 Meridian Rd. N.E. Calgary, AB T2A 2N8 If you have a story about your recent motorcycle adventures we would love to share it with the other GWRRA members by publishing your story in the Wing Wag. Please your stories to Lisa Miller at goldwing calgary.com

9 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 9 SAFETY FIRST UPCOMING COURSES 1. The Edmonton Chapter will be holding a Trike Course on June 23, If you are interested in attending please contact the Rider Educator, Fred Partridge, by Phone or rider gwrra.ca. 1. LET'S GO! Manufacturing and Team JW would like to invite you to a Motorcycle Show and Shine in Blackie Alberta on the July 1st weekend. Please feel free to contact Leslie, or John, or Lee at this address, cybersurf.net. While this event is not sponsored by our chapter we want to inform you of motorcycle events that may be of interest to our membership.

10 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 10 Classified Ads The Classified ads are free to all members and associates of the GWRRA. While advertised items do not have to be Gold Wing related, we do insist that all ads pertain to motorcycling. Ads will appear on a space available basis for one month. Should you wish to continue to run your ad for a second or succeeding month, you must resubmit or renew your ad. Deadline for submission is the 25th of the month preceding publication. To post an ad or if the item is sold or the offer withdrawn, please contact Lisa Miller at: goldwing Calgary.com CLASSIFIED ADS 1992 GL1500 SE, teal, AM/FM/cassette/intercom with front and rear speakers, CB radio, gear indicator, AGM battery, thousands of dollars worth of extras including Corbin aftermarket seat and backrest, all reflectors replaced with lights for increased visibility, all mileage is highway miles. $10,500. ALSO: Color matched Tinymite deluxe tent trailer also available for $3,000 extra. Contact Colin O Brien at Phone or cdobrien@shaw.ca. June 50/50 Winner CALGARY AREA STAFF Chapter Directors Jim & Dorothy Baker chapter goldwing calgary.com Quartermaster Brian Perrin goldwing calgary.com Newsletter Editor Lisa Miller goldwing calgary.com Treasurer Joy Somers goldwing calgary.com Ride Coordinator Rod Banman ride goldwing calgary.com Rider Training Don Martin rider goldwing calgary.com Rider Education Wes Braden rider goldwing calgary.com Rider Course Terry Burrill Instructor goldwing calgary.com Social Coordinators Rose Perrin social goldwing calgary.com & Sharon Sanders social goldwing calgary.com & Joanne Quinlan social goldwing calgary.com Social Coordinator & Vi Banman Membership social goldwing calgary.com Enhancement Assistant Membership Darryl Minsky Enhancement goldwing calgary.com Coordinator & Webmaster GWRRA TOLL FREE NUMBER (CANADA & US) NATIONAL LEADERS Executive Director Melissa Nordeoff (623) Intentional Dir of Ops TBA Natl Dirs for Cdn Ops Ron & Carol Hodgson (403) Natl Rider Ed Director Gordon Murphy (709) Region J Directors Phil & Margaret Craven (250) District Directors Ross & Audrey Woolsey (780) Chris Matthes NOTE: addresses in this publication are displayed in a manner that will deter automatic address harvesting programs. This step is taken to reduce unsolicited to any addresses we post. We regret any inconvenience caused for our legitimate visitors. Remove all the spaces in the address to make it work.

11 Wing Wag June/July, 2007 Page 11 EVENT SCHEDULE DAY/DATE EVENT AB-A SPONSOR Jun 23 Jun 29 Jul 4-7 Trike Course (Edmonton) Wings in the Sunny South (Lethbridge) Wing Ding 29 (Billings, MT) Monthly Meetings Monthly meetings are held on the 2nd Monday of each month. This is a time to share information and to meet old and new friends who like to ride together for FUN, Safety and Knowledge. See you at the next meeting at the Fox Hollow Golf Club, 9th Street and 32nd Avenue N.E. 6:30; Meeting at 7:00 PM. Friends for Fun, Safety, and Knowledge Come ride with us...everyone Welcome! For the latest updates on what we are doing and where we re going, check out our website: Rain, snow or shine, we meet for breakfast every Sunday morning about 9 AM. This is a great year round way to stay in touch with your GWRRA friends. So, if you have missed the opportunity to join us for breakfast recently, why don t you come on over to the Fox Hollow Golf Club, 9th Street and 32nd Avenue N.E.

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