Road Runner Ramblings

Transcription

1 1 Volume 26, Number 2 CHAPTER "O" TEAM O Fallon, Missouri May 2016 Road Runner Ramblings CHAPTER DIRECTOR Gene & Karen Kaufmann gwrra.mo.o@gmail.com ASSISTANT CHAPTER DIRECTOR Harry & Nancy Schonhoff harrybassman@aol.com CHAPTER RIDER EDUCATOR Jim & Donna Bromley bromley.j@sbcglobal.net TREASURER/HISTORIAN Joe & Pam Biondo jabiondo@sbcglobal.net MEMBERSHIP ENHANCMENT Steve & Diana Lake slake@hotmail.com 2015 COUPLE OF THE YEAR Steve & Diana Lake slake@hotmail.com WEBSITE Dave Miller dm3280@swbell.net RIDE COORDINATOR Brian & Christi Heideman brheidman@centurytel.net MEMEBERS AT LARGE Joe & Vera Hulsey jhulsey486@hotmail.com Chapter Web Site Meetings at Moudy s Bar & Grill 2151 West Terra Lane O Fallon, MO I-70 & Lake St Louis Exit. rd On the 3 Monday of the Month 6:00 to eat, 7:00 to meet Happy Mother s Day! When the month of May rolls around, the first thing we think of is Mother s Day. This is the month we recognize our Moms. Fathers get a day, Moms get the whole month. But that s ok; they deserve it since moms are the ones that take care of us. Happy Mother s Day to all of our Chapter O Moms. I would like to tell you about our ride down to Mena, Arkansas the last week in April. We left on Saturday the 23rd and made our way to Harrison, Ar. We took HWY 19 all the way to the Arkansas border. What a great road! The next day we headed to Mena, Ar. via HWY 23 (the Pig Trail) and another great ride. Once in Mena we did our Shamrock tour rides that Brian H. had set up for us and what a job he did. The weather eather was perfect and the routes and the roads that we went on where just as good. I think my favorite was the Talimena Scenic Drive that goes from Mena to Talihina, Ok. It was fantastic. I can t describe it in words. We saw many sights (including the home hom of Bigfoot) and the scenery was breathtaking. Karen took a lot of pictures as usual. Due to the weather forecast on Friday we decided to start back home Thursday. We headed towards Hot Spring and then north up Highway 7 to Harrison. On Friday morning we started for home in the rain but eventually drove out of it and had dry ride back to O Fallon. Again, I would like to thank Brian for mapping things out for us. It was a GREAT trip. Now back to May and Mother s Day. The day before Mother s Day is our Ride for Kids fund raiser. I hope to see everyone there to help collect money for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. We also have our Springfield /Niehaus trip the following weekend. So join us for some fun this month. Ready, Set, GO! Gene and Karen Karen Kaufmann Friends for Fun, Safety & Knowl Knowledge

2 2 April 9, 2016 Back in the Saddle Ride On a very chilly Saturday morning, 13 of us met at the Middendorf-Kredell Library for a seminar on team riding. The seminar was presented by Steve Lake and it was a great review of skills and techniques when riding together. After the seminar three of the guys headed out to put some of those techniques into practice and the rest of us went to lunch! We lunched at Cappacino s in O Fallon and then headed for home hoping for warmer days ahead! Thank you to Steve for the excellent presentation and to Al Smith for putting together the ride.

3 3 April 12, 2016 Happy Anniversary to Chapter O On Tuesday night, April 12 th eighteen of us gathered to celebrate the start of Chapter O 26 years ago! We met at Bemo s in Cottleville for a great dinner. After dinner we all had anniversary cupcakes and sang the Anniversary Song to Chapter O! We are so grateful for the Chapter founders and all those riders and co-riders who have come along since 1990 to make our Chapter so special. Thanks to each of you for continuing the tradition of Friends for Fun, Safety and Knowledge!

4 4 April 16, 2016 MS Walk Seven Chapter members joined Christi s Sole Mates on Saturday to walk for MS. We split up to walk the one mile route and the three mile route. Venders were there to provide freebies and educational materials for the participants. It is a great cause and Christi and Brian appreciated the support of the Chapter by those who walked and those who donated. April 23 to 29, 2016 Shamrock Ride to Mena, Arkansas Three of us enjoyed a wonderful, relaxing week-long trip to Mena, AR thanks to Brian Heideman, our Ride Coordinator. We had great weather the entire week except for a bit of rain on the last day heading home. We saw beautiful scenery, enjoyed tales from a long time Mena resident at the historic train station, traveled on some eerie fog covered roads, stopped to see Big Foot, ate at the State Park Lodge, discovered who Queen Wilhemina was and gave refuge to a homeless cat! We saw lots of logging operations and chicken farms along the way too. And our last day we stopped for some pie at the Cliff House in Jasper overlooking the Arkansas Grand Canyon. I think that place is a favorite of most of us. We had a wonderful time and we are always thankful for a safe arrival back home.

5 5 Are We Havin FUN Yet? The question above is not rhetorical. We really want to hear if you are? As you follow this column in the newsletter each month you might be wondering why we capitalize the word FUN every time it shows up in one of these articles, so we ll tell you. The reason we capitalize FUN is because it s the first of the three words highlighted on the GWRRA logo. Putting FUN first in the GWRRA s motto was not an accident. FUN is the sole purpose of why the Membership Enhancement Program even exists within the organization. Of course the GWRRA has a huge commitment to Rider s Education and Safety too. All GWRRA Chapters devote time each gathering to Rider s Ed talks, safety articles each month in their newsletters and they all do their best to offer all the training members care to attend in terms of knowledge seminars. But we think we can all agree.we re here primarily for the comradery and the FUN. So what does Chapter O have on our May calendar that s FUN for us to do? ******************************************************* May7 th.annual Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation Ride For Kids Fundraiser at Walmart. Please turn out to make this a success for the kids again this year! May 8 th...don t for get to call mom! It s Mother s Day!! May 13 th, 14 th and 15 th..niehaus Appreciation Days / Land of Lincoln Weekend May 16 th...chapter O Gathering. May 30 th...memorial Day Steve & Diana Lake Membership Enhancement Coordinators

6 6 RIDER EDUCATOR (MAY) Newsletter article With the weather improving to summer I imagine your thoughts are moving towards a trip on your vehicle of choice. I would like to share just a few thoughts that might help with your preparation. Trip planning might be easier by starting with lists. These are in no particular order. 1. Vehicle preparation. 2. Destination. 3. A travel plan. 4. Room or campsite reservations. 5. Your planned route with stops for food, fuel, rest, site seeing etc 6. Clothing that would include riding gear. 7. First Aid Kit that would include medicines and a list of allergies along with any major medical challenges you experience. 7. Communication equipment with spare batteries. 8. A long range weather forecast. Leave a copy of your trip plan with someone you will be able to contact the entire time you expect to be gone. This will enable you to update them of your status. You might include a approximate time they might expect to hear from you. Discuss your plan with some experienced travelers to get their advice on needs and suggestions that might make your trip even more enjoyable less hassle free. Do not leave without your GWRRA Gold Book Enjoy the open road. Have a safe pleasant trip. Share your adventure with us upon your return. CHAPTER O RIDER EDUCATORS JIM & DONNA BROMLEY Jim & Donna Bromley MO Chapter O Rider Educator Ride Smart & Be Safe

7 7 From our Directors I sat down at the computer the other night to write this article when I was interrupted by an from Assistant Jere with a preview of his article. Well, there is no way I could ever be that clever and wordy so enjoy and join us at McGrath s Powersports in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, June for the 2016 Region E Rally. We will be kicking things off with some very special awards and then choosing the 2016 Region E Couple of the Year and Individual of the Year. After a fun filled day, you will be treated to an Ice Cream Social courtesy of the Iowa District. Life is short so have dessert before dinner. After dinner we will finish off Friday with a talent show and after dark the light show and parade. Cedar Rapids is home to F-Troop (IA- F) and they quickly said yes when I asked them to plan some guided rides. Now I don t know the area like they do, but my imagination starts conjuring up rides to places like Anamosa for a visit to the National Motorcycle Museum or the Amana Colonies for a little shopping and lunch at one of their fine restaurants. Maybe a trip towards Dubuque and along the Mississippi River and the list goes on and on. The technicians at McGrath s will be putting on a seminar each day for you to learn a little more about your bike. Something new this year will be the District Pride Competitions instead of chapters competing. The games are going to be organized by the Illinois District so be prepared for fun and surprises. The Nebraska/South Dakota District will be shining up the trophies for the Bike Show so it will be interesting to see what folks have done to their bikes over the winter. We have free lunches each day. The Patch Shop will be there. And of course there will be a few things to raffle off. This has been the most unusual rally we have ever planned, but at the same time all of the customary rally features will be offered. We ve made the rally fit the location and we are so grateful for its location. Thank You & Ride Safe, Bruce & Barb Beeman GWRRA Deputy Directors

8 8 Things are gearing up in the next few months and we have lots of rides and events planned. We would love for you to participate. Most rides and events don t require a signup but some will for planning purposes. Check out the dates ahead and make plans to join us! Saturday, May 7 th Fundraiser for Ride for Kids WE will meet at the Wal-Mart in O Fallon at 9:00 am to hand out beads and collect for Ride for Kids. If you have helped out before you know how generous the residents of O Fallon are and how easy it is to ask for donations. Please join us Saturday to raise money for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation! WE ussulally collect about 5 hours then head to a local restaurant for a late lunch. We need lots of folks to help cover those hours. If you can come for any length of time it would be appreciated! Thank you! Satruday, May 14 and 15 Land of Lincoln Weekend We will meet on Saturday morning for Breakfast at Cracker Barrel in St. Charles off of Veterans Memorial Pkay at 7:30. We will leave at 8:30am to head to Springfield by way of the back roads. We plan on stopping for a quick lunch along the way and making it to the Lincoln Library Museum by 1:30. After our tour of the museum we will check in to the Springfield Microtel Inns and Suites. If you havent made reservations yet be sure to use your GWRRA Corporate Code for Wyndham properties. Sunday we will head to Litchfield for Niehaus Days and a ride to Prairetown later in the day for their chicken dinner to support the volunteer Fire Department. If you can t make it on Saturday you can plan on meeting us on Sunday at Niehaus days. Hopefully someone we know will win the bike! Monday, May 16 Chapter Gathering We hope to see you at Moudy s for our monthly gathering! Thank you to Donna Bromley for brings birthday treats last month. Those cream puffs were to die for! And thanks to Roger Wilhelm for being our On the Spot contestant! Great job! Thursday to Saturday, June 2 to the 4 th Missouri District Rally We hope you can join the group heading to the District Rally in Branson. Details on Come Light the Night are on the District website and are on the flyer attached to this newsletter. It is a great place to ride and hand out with friends. Chapter O has registration duty on Friday afternoon so we hope you can join us at that time to help out. Friday, June 24 to Sunday, June 26 Region E Rally -

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12 12 May 2016 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday 1 Dan & Pam Moore Saturday 7 Keith & Tara Wooden John Nixon Wal-Mart Fundraiser Joe Long Mother s Day 15 Land of Lincoln Weekend / Niehaus Appreciation Days Joe & Pam Biondo Harry & Nancy Schonhoff 12 Peggy Senior 13 Niehaus Appreciation Days Tara Wooden Dwayne Ketcherside e 14 Land of Lincoln Weekend / Niehaus Appreciation Days 21 Joe Biondo Randall Jones Motorist Awareness Memorial Day

13 13 June 2016 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday MO District MO District t Rally Rally Branson Branson Saturday 4 MO District Rally Branson 5 6 Candy Ervin Dorry Gerdeman Susan Real Randall & Diane Jones Steve Lake Morie & Pat Winn Day Ride Father s Day

14 14 July 2016 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday 1 Saturday 2 Vern Bromley Penny Jim & Donna Long Long Hildebrand Bromley Weekend Tr rip Weekend Trip Independence Day Long Toni Nixon Weekend Trip Joyce Bell Gene & Day Ride & Karen Baseball Kaufmann Game Keith David & Wooden Andrea Miller 31 Donna Bromley