Chapter Director David Morris 772-349-8482 dwm8228@gmail.com Monthly Gathering Every 2 nd Weds at Southern Pig & Cattle Restaurant 2583 SE Federal Highway Stuart, FL Socialize 5:30 Dinner 6:00 Meeting 7:00 Contents CD 1 ACD 2 Gathering 3,4 Rides 5,6 Safe Miles 5 Calendar 8 Spirit 9 Dist Rider Ed 10 1 GOLD WING ROAD RIDERS ASSOCIATION TREASURE COAST WINGS FL2-O Volume 35 Issue 7 July 2018 I hope you all had a great 4th of July, we certainly did. The weather cooperated until it was time to go and see the fireworks in downtown Stuart. We were scheduled to join in on the Sunday morning July 1 st ride but the torrential rains on the last day of June presented us with a roof leak. The clean-up kept us up till 2 am so we canceled going on the ride. This is the season when our ride schedule is limited. There are many reasons for the empty calendar of events. Those reasons fall into several categories. - Our Road Captain, John Dubose and many of our other members are snow birds who spend their summers up north in cooler climates. - The Florida weather imposes its own set of issues that make it difficult to schedule rides well in advance. - Vacation plans by many other riders take them out of state, which leaves a smaller interest group. - Jim Rich serves as our Road Captain during the months that John is away and although he and Marilyn have led two great breakfast rides this summer, they will be away for more than two weeks in the later part of July. - We would like to encourage others to step up and lead a ride or make suggestions about possible destinations. You don t have to be the lead to suggest a ride that you would enjoy in July and August. Finally, due to the nature of the summer rides being scheduled and planned at the last minute you should not depend on our Website being current. Both Barb and Jim are sending out email notifications when a ride gets planned. If you are not receiving e-mails, please take a few minutes and let us know. David Morris Chapter Director FRIENDS FOR FUN, SAFETY, KNOWLEDGE DISTRICT OFFICERS District Director Bill & Cheryl Smith 561-278-6187 FLDD2018@gmail.com District Rider Educators Rick & Pam Northrup Ricknorthrop13@yahoo.com Asst District Rider ED Ray & Claudia Vega (561) 704-7478 CHAPTER OFFICERS AND TEAM FL2-O Chapter Director Dave Morris 772-349-8482 dwm8228@gmail.com Asst Chapter Directors Jim & Marilyn Rich Membership Enhancement Terry Henderson Road Captain John DuBose Ride Coordinators Barry Covard,Nancy Karnell Chapter Educators Barry Covard,Nancy Karnell Asst Chapter Educators Larry & Tammy Pounds Chapter Treasurer Kathy Prater Chapter Webmaster Barry Covard Newsletter Editor Barb Parish Tech Herb Metalflake Jebb 50/50 Bud Parish Couple of the Year Jim & Marilyn Rich Person of the Year Bud Parish Spirit Team Chair Sandy Pisano
2 ASSISTANT CHAPTER DIRECTORS JIM and MARILYN RICH PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Jim Rich Eric Trow runs the Stayin Safe advanced rider training school in southeastern Pennsylvania and writes safety articles for Rider magazine. Eric s latest article was You Never Ride Alone, making the point that you should always ride as if you had a loved one on the back, but the article that really caught my attention was when he admitted that his parking lot skills were pretty poor. Having taught riding for many years and harping on people to work on their weaknesses he was embarrassed to admit that his slow speed skills were lacking. Having finally admitted to his weakness, he decided to set up some cones in an empty parking lot and practice until he mastered riding at slow speeds. The Jupiter ball parks see very little traffic on weekdays, so I set up cones (or, in my case, tennis balls cut in half) and practice U turns, cone weaves and figure eights. The one thing that keeps me from improving as much as I d like is that when I m practicing alone I have no desire to put myself in a position where I have to pick up a 900 lb Gold Wing, but Eric s point is that everyone needs to evaluate their skills from time to time and work on their weakest link; so, practice, practice, practice.
3 July 2018 GATHERING WRITTEN BY Terry Henderson Chapter Director, David Morris, called the Gathering to order at 7pm on Wed., July 1, 2018 at the Southern Pig and Cattle Co. in Stuart. Approximately 20 Chapter FL2-O members were in attendance plus, Ray Vega & Claudia and Bill & Cheryl Smith were there from FL2-A. We all wished Marilyn Rich a Happy Birthday and congratulated Sondra and Jim Cuff on their 52 nd Anniversary. Laura and Michael Smutek brought their grandson to the Gathering. As Mathew stood up to be introduced, I asked him to tell us if he wanted to follow in his Grandfather s footsteps and ride a Gold Wing one day. He enthusiastically said, Yes. Good answer, Mathew. I also thanked Sondra for bringing the delicious fruit salad and cookies to share with everyone. Regarding coming events, David shared the good news that our Christmas party will be held at the Champions Golf Club on Wed., Dec. 12. This is a very nice venue that Barb and Sandy were able to secure for us at Summerfield on US 1 in So. Stuart. David invited Sondra to share some information regarding the up-coming Flea Market on Oct. 20 from 8am-12pm. She encouraged us to save all our good stuff and plan to be a part of this great fund-raising event for our Chapter. David called on Barry Covard, Rider Educator, who encouraged everyone to make sure and send him their mileage every month. He and Nancy just returned from a trip up north and they did 800 miles last month and 1140 miles this month. Glenda Wright reported traveling 8000 miles this summer. David welcomed Ray Vega and Claudia back. Ray said that he is in chemotherapy now and that there are 2 side effects. He loses his voice and he gets hiccups. He said that everyone was great at the hospital. They really appreciated his positive attitude and they loved his Scooby Doo cell phone ring tone. He feels positive that he ll be around for another 20-25 years. We all wish you well, Ray! Bill Smith reminded us to plan ahead for Wing Ding in late Aug. The welcoming party is on Tue. night, Aug. 28, at the Appalachian Museum about 20 miles away from Knoxville. Pre-registration is also on Tue. from 5-8pm. Make sure you join in on the food, fun and entertainment. There are lots of planned activities in the months ahead so please check out the District calendar for all the upcoming events.
4 Ray Vega and Claudia said that they plan to set a date for a CPR class with a maximum of 24 people in a single class. They are also going to schedule ERC and TRC classes in the cooler months of Dec., Jan. and Feb. Barry also reminded everyone that all our classes are free due to ticket sales. Out of the 1000 tickets, we have 750 left to sell before the District Rally in March so get your tickets today! Ray and Claudia announced that David & Terry and Al & Myrta are Level 4 Master Tour Riders. The main reason for the Rider Ed. program is to acquire the knowledge and the ability to operate a motorcycle in a safe manner, in all conditions. Congratulations for your accomplishments and wear your new Master patch with pride. ACD, Jim Rich, invited David to pull the winning 50/50 tickets. Joe Trotta and Metalflake won prizes donated by Chapter FL2-A and Jim cuff won the 50/50. The meeting was adjourned.
5 Chapter Ride Breakfast Ride Report: 5 bikes and 8 riders made the early morning trek to Nick s 50 s diner including lead Jim & Marilyn Rich, George Scholes, Jenks Davis, Bud and Barb Parish and tailgunners Greg and Percy Comstock. Dave & Terry had planned to join us, but arrived home last night to a leaky roof, RIGHT OVER THEIR BED! The trip took us down the back way and then up the beach on the return home. Food and service at Nick s was excellent as usual. Marilyn and I arrived home by 11 am with an additional 90 miles on the bike. Written by Jim Rich CHAPTER SAFE MILES PROGRAM 2018 SAFE MILES Please remember to submit your miles each month at the chapter meeting on the sign in sheet or email them to Barry Covard the end of each month. barrycov@comcast.net Please put SAFE MILES FL2-O in the subject line. This makes it easier to identify your email.
6 Breakfast Ride Report Sunday June 10 Ride Leader- Jim & Marilyn Rich Great breakfast ride to the Time to Eat diner for their good food and service and then off to the wilds of Palm Beach Gardens. A slight detour at the beginning after someone decided there was one too many light poles on County Line Road. We had 6 bikes and 11 riders with Jim & Marilyn Rich as lead, followed by Joe & Sandy Pisano, Bud & Barb Parrish, Greg & Percy Comstock, Jenks Davis and Dave Morris & Terry Henderson as tail gunners. Our bike added 99 miles to the odometer. John & Peggy DuBose- Visiting Chapter VA-X Peggy and I visited Chapter VA-X Salem, VA this afternoon. They meet at a church at 3PM then afterwards go to K & W Cafeteria for dinner. It's about a mile from the church and off time works well. Chapter VA-X received the award for best Virginia Newsletter this year at VA District Rally.
Seminole Sports supports the Florida District Rider Education Raffle Sales that fund training for Florida District. GWRRA members. 7
8 CHAPTER EVENTS Saturday July 21 Breakfast Ride to Pogey s Okeechobee. Leave 8:15 from Cracker Barrel at Kanner/ I-95 August 6 12:30 Spirit Team Meeting, Food Court Treasure Coast Mall GATHERING August 8 Southern Pig & Cattle Meet at 5:30/Eat at 6:00 October 20 FLEA MARKET Minsky s Gym, Port St Lucie Save your stuff!! December 12 CHAPTER CHRISTMAS PARTY Champions Golf Club Stuart Florida Rally March 21-23, 2019 MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS NOW!!! August 8 John Bettencourt August 14 Amelia Thorpe August 17 Jack Seeley August 20 Laura Smutek August 23 Willard Hackett GWRRA ANNIVERSARY August 2006 Percy Comstock August 2006 Greg Comstock August 2007 John DuBose August 2007 Peggy DuBose August 2007 Al Colussy August 2007 Myrta Colussy August 2008 Nancy Karnell August 2008 Barry Covard
9 HAVE YOU HEARD? It looks like the summer break is over for our chapter Spirit Team. Several events are on our agenda for the fall and winter months ahead. Our next planning meeting will be August 6 (12:30) at the food court in the Treasure Coast Mall. Our team would love to have input from our chapter ladies. You are welcome to join us. Speaking of events. it s that time of year to get ready for Wing Ding. Joe and I are looking forward to travelling to Knoxville at the end of August. The schedule of events looks very exciting! Hope to see you there. Stay cool and ride safe. Sandy Pisano Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much Helen Keller SANDY PISANO SPIRIT TEAM CHAIR
10 DISTRICT RIDE EDUCATOR As we are now into summer and the warmest time is in front of us let us be mindful when we are out on our bikes. Just a few tips to help remind us to beat the heat so we can enjoy our rides and have more FUN. Early mornings are our best times to beat the heat! Even at that remember to hydrate with plenty of water. I know we all need that cup of coffee to kick start our morning but, it s water that we need when we are out in the heat! So, keep plenty of water with you when you are riding, and it does not have to be ice water. In fact, ice water can be harmful when you are overheated. Keeping that fair skin covered helps from not only keeping from getting fried but keeps you from DE-hydrating so quickly. Yes, even that early morning sun along with the wind therapy, will dry you out very quickly thus, the reason for the water. Cover what you don t want cooked. Now of course the first thing that the ole sun is going to fry upon is what? Yup, you guessed it. Your head. So, of course, we are going to cover it, right? What ball cap is best to wear to protect me from the sun and keep me cool? Hmmm. Let me think.i can t think of any, can you?? Of course not! So, I guess I ll wear my safety helmet! Good choice? You bet! For one, it will definitely be a whole lot safer that a ball cap if I take a tumble, right? For another, it is certainly cooler than a ball cap! Don t believe me? I hope you read your Wing World magazines. Several years ago, there was an article debunking the theory of hot- between a helmet and a ball cap and no helmet. The helmet was the coolest. Your head is going to fry without protection! This Florida sun is wicked! Besides if, God forbid, you take a tumble, let the helmet take the damage and not you. I am one that has a problem with the heat. So, I must take breaks quite often. I may ride only 30-45 minutes at a time then I must stop. The heat cause cramps and exhaustion very quickly. Taking breaks is another way to help beat the heat. I know I m not telling you anything you don t already know. Just throwing out a reminder as this heat is upon us to help keep you safe. We are all family and I want to see you down the road safe and sound! Let s use some common sense and have FUN! Ride Safe, Ride Aware, Rick & Pam Northrop Sr District Ride Educators
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Thanks ~ To everyone who wrote an article for this month s newsletter: David Morris, Terry Henderson, John DuBose, Jim Rich, Sandy Pisano, Barry Covard, and Rick Northrop. Thanks for reading! 12