Tales From The Riverbank January 2017

Bombshell Betty Winter Riding Last Christmas Poker run, Mileage Challenge results and more

January 2017

Editor's thoughts Welcome to the first edition of Tales From The Riverbank of 2017.

Christmas seems an age ago and yet the winter is still here, bringing its usual mix of cold and rain. I wonder how many of us have stuck to their resolutions? To be honest, I didn't make a resolution this year. "Try not to buy too much for the bike"... That's probably not going to happen, so I thought I would leave it.

Inside these pages you will not only find pictures from the December club night, but the other gatherings held over the festive period. I do like seeing how everyone appears to be more "relaxed" as the party evenings go on. Good to see "the horn" makes its return.

Looking through the events and rides lined up for us on the website, I can't wait to get going. If you aren't a fair weather rider (like myself) and a little blizzard doesn't put you off, take a look at the excellent article on winter riding. Some great tips there.

You know that the season is approaching when the Battle of the Kings is launched. Last year's entry by Reading Harley Davidson, "Anne Marie" was fantastic. They've only done it again with "Bombshell Betty". A very different build and look but stunning! In this issue there are a few pictures to whet your appetite.

Voting will be open on the Harley Davidson website so make sure you pop online and choose your favourite.

This magazine is only posible with your input. Your ideas, articles, pictures, jokes and stories are always needed to help fill these pages.

You can email me items at the address given below or you can find me on Facebook and message me.

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Happy reading.

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Ride safe and have fun! rs ub Andy me mi ss sv ion all ey st ho o: g.o rg .uk

Inside this issue Front cover

Bombshell Betty

Page 2

Editor's Thoughts

Page 4 - 5

Director's Update

Page 6 - 8

Ladies of Harley

Page 9

Thunder in the Glens

Page 9

Wanted - LOH

Page 10 - 11

Club night at Reading HD

Page 12

Roadcrew meeting

Page 13

It's Christmas

Page 14-15

Upcoming event & rallies

Page 16 - 17

More Christmas Evidence

Page 18-19

Battle of the Kings

Page 20- 21

Breakfast Club

Page 22

Mileage Program - The results

Page 23

Poker Run - The results

Page 24 - 26

Winter Riding

Page 27

Vote now

January / February Birthdays January Colin Wilkins - 15th Sue Knight - 18th Sue Mirtle - 21st

February Cilla Pierre - 3rd Jane Osborne - 6th Adrian Lightfoot - 7th Chris Smith - 11th

Happy Birthday

Back cover

Meet the Committee

to you all.

If we've missed you or got things wrong, drop a quick note to the editor so we can put things right.

Huge thanks to all who have sent copy in for this month's magazine: Don, Sue D, Linda, Sue K, Nick, Malc, Ralph & CJ :-)

Hi And welcome to my last Directors piece in Tales from the Riverbank.

What a great way to celebrate Christmas and the end of 2016. Sixty two members of Thames Valleys massive enjoyed a joint Christmas party at the Holiday Inn Maidenhead. We were served a three course Christmas dinner and coffee to follow. Then came the dancing which carried on until the early hours of Sunday morning.

A small group who were staying at the hotel overnight finished the evening with a night cap in the lounge before going up to our rooms. Most who stayed over managed breakfast next morning, with only a couple suffering with hang overs!

Well done Pat and Barry for arranging such a great evening.

Our last club night of 2016 was held at Reading Harley Davidson with food and drinks supplied by the dealership. Thanks Mike. During the evening the winners of the 2016 Poker evenings were announced and the top three poker hands walked away with cash prizes and certificates.

This year’s winners of the Thames Valley Mileage challenge received their winning prizes. Hayley West who covered 7210 miles and Paul Houghton who covered an amazing 14385 miles. They both received gift vouchers from the dealership and a bottle of wine. Well done Hayley and Paul.

To my surprise Lee got up and said a few words and presented Hazel with a bunch of flowers for "loaning me" to the Chapter for the last seven years to take up the roll of Director. Hazel would like to thank you all for the beautiful bouquet of flowers.

Following Hazel’s presentation Lee presented me with a beautiful glass decanter engraved with the Hog logo and the words "To Don our outstanding Director" and from the dealership a hot air blower for drying the bike after washing. Can I say a huge thank you to you all for the terrific gifts and compliments I have received over the past few weeks from so

many Chapter members. Thank you.

As 2017 has now begun we have a full ride out calendar right up to September.

We have some terrific events planned for this year. As well as our regular visit to The Cider Rally, which is the first rally of the season, we have many other events to look forward to. These include the Chill Out weekend in Cornwall, Thames Valleys Birthday Bash, The Boys Weekend in Europe, Thunder in the Glens in Aviemore and Blazing Blitz on Hayling Island.

As more information becomes available about future events we will pass it on to you.

On May 19th there is a small group from Thames Valley who are hoping to complete the Iron Hog Challenge. The challenge is to visit as many dealerships in England in a set period of time.

You must start at Guildford Harley Davidson and visit Plymouth, Maidstone, Edinburgh, Glasgow dealerships, and finish the challenge where you started, back at Guildford Harley Davidson. I have three or four places available if anybody would like to join us.

The total trip is around 1600mile in three days (serious biking). Contact me to show your interest and put your name forward.

Do you own Harley Davidson high-vis vests? If so, would you like your name embroidered on the front and the Chapter name on the back? This will cost ÂŁ20 and can be turned round in a week. If you would like your vests embroidered bring them to club night or arrange to meet me at the dealership.

As this will be my last piece as Director of Thames Valley UK Chapter, I would like to wish the new committee of 2017, the very best for the future and the new Director all the best.

I hope they enjoy the position of Director as much as I have over the last 7 years.

It’s been a blast!

Don Director

Ladies of Harley Hi Girls, How time flies when you're having fun ! After two years as your LoH representative, this is the last piece I'll be submitting in this role.

I'd dearly like to thank you all for your support and company over the past two years - and sincerely hope you can reflect on the many funny, happy memories.

(I certainly can, lol!) Like my wonderful predecessor, Sue Brown, I really do believe that Thames Valley have one of the best Ladies of Harley groups around - which is down to each and everyone of YOU. Thank you too Elaine (Shepherd) for your guidance, support & font of knowledge, you're a star. x x The results of the mileage programme were announced at December club night HUGE congratulations to Hayley West, who rode the most miles throughout 2016 for the girls (7210 miles) - what a fantastic achievement! In total, 13 lady riders submitted their mileages for our chapter challenge, clocking up over 39000 miles ! Well done girls along with all you pillion riders x I sincerely wish our new Ladies of Harley representative all the very best - I'll offer as much support as you wish - and will continue to be an active member of the club.

As I write this...oops, I haven't actually been out on the bike this year, but plan to do so at the earliest opportunity 'cos I am getting twitchy ha ha !!

On a personal note, I'd like to sincerely thank all the committee members, especially Don - you all work tirelessly in the background & miraculously make it all happen for the club - you're awesome.

Last, but no means least, thank you Hazel Wibbs for your kindness & support to so many of us gals x Ride safe ladies,

Sue D x LoH Officer Thames Valley Chapter 07775 913562 I still maintain, "well behaved women rarely make history!

Join The National LOH Team Marjorie Rae is seeking a volunteer...

"To complement Elaine Shepherd's work in her role as National LOH Officer and add new and different perspective to LOH activity, I am looking to appoint a nonrider to this new role. The successful candidate will be accountable to me and work in collaboration with Elaine at a national level.

Applications from all LOH Chapter members are welcome. Being in the position or having experience of being an LOH Officer at Chapter level is not a requirement, nor is the position closed to Chapter LOH Officers wishing to apply and retain their position at Chapter level. The latter is perfectly acceptable. These things will all be taken into consideration when evaluating the applications."

If you are interested in further information please contact Nick West who has a draft of the terms and roles / responsibilities

Thunder in the Glens Thames Valley UK Chapter are organising a group ride to Thunder in the Glens on August 24th and will be staying overnight in Carlisle and completing the ride on the 25th to Aviemore. Tickets and information about accommodation on site can be booked through www.dunedinhog.com when you have bought your tickets contact the Mc Donald site to arrange hotel accommodation.

Hotel Information for August 24th Premier Inn Carlisle (J44, M6, Park House Road) Rooms £58 Meal deal £23 per person 2 Course evening meal including 1 drink and Breakfast www.premierinn.com Cumbria Park Hotel (1.5 miles from Junction 44) £62 B&B Evening meal extra www.booking.com Both Hotels serve good food and have off road parking Details for return journey are still to be arranged.

December Club Night December's club night was held at Reading Haryley Davidson. Mike and the team were excellent hosts. Here are a small selection of photos from the evening.

Road Crew Meeting In the run up to the holiday period, your road crew gathered in Henley to settle the ride calendar for 2017.

We took your ideas and suggestions, mixed them with some things that our road crew want to do, the National HOG events calendar and many other sources to come up with a really full calendar for the coming year.

This year we will be supporting Thunder in the Glens with a club ride to Aviemore. It has been two years since our last club foray to the Rally and so I feel sure it will be a good one.

Malcolm and I worked through the ideas, loading events, rides and activities into the calendar with nearly thirty enthusiastic club members.

The activities are now available on the Club event calendar for you to peruse.

Some will require more detail as we nudge closer to the date, but you should be able to look and see which of the events fit your own calendar.

There are events for most weekends through the prime riding months, and in some cases there will be choices and alternatives which should help to give a wider coverage of the different tastes within the group.

There are still opportunities to add to the program, so if you have an idea, contacts, or even want to arrange something for your fellow members please let us know at activities@thamesvalleyhog.org.uk

Nick

Christmas Party December saw a group of fifty eight merry makers attend a festive gathering at the Holiday Inn in Maidenhead.

The event had been arranged by Pat and Barry and was an amazing success.

The food was great festive fare, the music was seasonally spot on and the company was fabulous. Faces new and old managed to attend. Dancing and the usual lighthearted shenanigans carried on until the wee small hours.

Thursday, 19 January Club Night (closed event)

Thursday, 17th March Club Night (closed event)

Saturday, 21 January Ride / Drive to Lakeside Dealership

Sunday, 19 March Pioneer Ride (see website for further details)

Thursday, 26 January Ace Cafe Harley Night (open event)

Saturday, 25 March Rusty Rideout (see website for further details)

Tuesday, 7 February Committee Night

Thursday, 30 March Ace Cafe Harley Night (open event)

Thursday, 16 February Club Night (closed event)

For all rides, check the website or call the hotline to confirm.

Thursday, 23 February Ace Cafe Harley Night (open event) Saturday, 4 March Chapter Mileage Challenge starts - Reading Dealership Tuesday, 7 March Committee Night See in this magazine, TV HOG website or Facebook for details.

Dates, events, ride-outs and activities.

Details correct at time of going to print.

Please check the website for updates and amendments.

RALLIES 2017 CLUB NIGHTS

The Cider Rally 28th April - 1st May

February

16th

March

16th

April

20th

May

18th

June

15th

Iron Horse Rally 12th - 15th May

The Gathering 9th - 12th June

Hogs in the Hayfields 16th - 18th June

Roar on the Moor 30th June - 2nd July

Wake the Lakes 6th - 9th July

Proud to be Rutland 14th - 16th July

Dragon Fever 20th - 23rd July

East of England Rally 27th - 30th July

Heart 'n' Soul Rally 28th - 30th July

Back to the Forest Rally

MAGAZINE CONTRIBUTION DEADLINES

February

9th

March

9th

18th - 20th August

April

13th

The Old Skool Rally

May

11th

June

8th

20th - 21st August

Thunder in the Glens 25th - 28th August

Circus Maximus 7th - 10th September

Blazin' Blitz 29th September - 2nd October

Check website for details on all events

Here's Betty.

The morning of January 14th saw the unveiling of Reading Harley Davidson's entry for 2017's Battle of the Kings.

Mike Wilson introduced "Bombshell Betty" to a packed showroom.

The classic Old Skool looks and some of the most exquisite details make Betty a real contender for the crown.

If you missed the reveal you can catch it on the Reading Harley Davidson Facebook.

She looks good in these pages, but so much better in the flesh. Voting for the Battle of the Kings is now open on the Harley Davidson website.

The Breakfast Club Even after all the food that must have been eaten over Christmas, thirty two members of Thames Valley Chapter needed more. They turned up at the Toby Carvery on Stafferton Way in Maidenhead, for the all you can eat breakfast. A feast was consumed and good conversation flowed.

Mileage Challenge 2016.

Hayley West and Paul Houghton are the 2016 winners of the Thames Valley Mileage Challenge, they both receive gift vouchers from Reading Harley Davidson and a bottle of wine each.

2015

2016

2015

2016

Hayley West

-

7120

Paul Houghton

8107

14385

Sue Knight

2649

7180

Malcolm Poulter

13386 9593

Sue Dodds

3143

4583

Dave Knight

3132

9500

Thelma Bryant

3715

4573

Ron Jackson

8909

8556

Elaine Shepherd

11452 4237

Chris Smith

6656

7811

Nick West

5091

7586

Christmas Hamper Winner Congratulations to Luke Shanks and Sam Hand, the winners of the raffle for the Christmas hamper. The lucky winners are pictured here with an artists impression of the hamper.

Poker Run - The Results For all of you who took part in 2016's poker run, here are the hands and results.

Hand Linda Friend Mick Friend Fred Cotsford Yvonne Cotsford Chris Smith Janet Smith Don Wibberley Hazel Wibberley Ron Jackson Pat Jackson Tony Robson Linda Robson Deb West Nick West Malc Poulter Sue Poulter Ray Shepherd Elaine Shepherd Shirley Churchill Bernie Churchill Dave Knight Sue Knight Nij Jones Trish Moss Paul Major Gill Major Michael Walters Thelma Bryant

Position

King Flush 1st Place Queen High Pair of 5's 2 Pairs - Jacks and 9's 2 Pairs - 7's and 4's Pair 7's Pair ofJacks 2 Pairs - 3's and 2's 2 Pairs - 9's and 4's 2 Pairs - 9's and 3's 2 Pairs - 8's and 2's Ace High 2 Pairs - Queens and 3's 2 Pairs - 7's and 4's 2 Pairs- Queens and 2's 3 Jacks 4th Place Pair of 3's 2 Pairs - Jacks and 5's 3 x 6's 5th Place 10 Flush 2nd Place 2 Pairs - 9's and 2's Straight Ace - 10 3rd Place Pair of 8's Pair of 5's Pair of 6's Pair of 2's Ace High Aces High

Winter Riding.

The winter weather has arrived at last, but this does not necessarily mean that your bike must be stored away until the spring.

So, here are my five top tips for safe and enjoyable winter riding:

1. Wear Correct Motorcycle Gear in a Layered Fashion Seasoned winter motorcyclists wear layered clothing in addition to various pieces of heated gear. During the summer months wind is a welcomed part of riding to cool us down.

The cold winter wind, if not properly prepared for, will make riding very uncomfortable and could affect your reaction time and cause rapid frostbite on any exposed skin.

Dress in the winter the way you want a rain gear to work in the summer, with no leaks, in this case cold air leaks!

The way to plug air leaks is with layered clothing that will cover your arms, legs, torso, neck and chin making sure not to obstruct breathing which will cause your eye protection to mist up at slower speeds. Additionally, heated gloves are an optimum choice for winter riding comfort.

2. Cold Weather Means Colder Tyres As everyone should know, cold tyres means limited traction. Riding helps increase heat in the tyres, but even the briefest stop can allow the tyres to cool down.

Many riders steer from side to side to warm up their tyre rubber, but this is a waste of time.

To truly get heat in the tyres, accelerate and decelerate quickly for a while, obviously being aware of traction. Hard on brakes to hard on the throttle puts heat in tyres much more quickly than swaying.

Also, make sure you have adequate tread on your tyres for winter riding. You will need to channel water or snow more than ever on wet roads that are cold.

Check your tyre pressure regularly; this is more than crucial during the winter months when optimal traction is needed.

3. Increase Visibility and Following Distance While riding in the winter, increase your visibility and space. Increasing visibility simply means looking further down the road, helping you recognize hazards before they occur.

Increased visibility allows you to react to a potential threat well in advance, and this is more than needed in winter when traction is limited from the cold roads.

Look as far ahead as you can.

Increase your following distance. By leaving a larger gap in front you will have more time to react to hazards, (such as cars ahead stopping,) or being able to see something on the road.

On dry roads leave at least a two second gap, four seconds on wet roads and eight seconds on snow or ice. You know it makes sense!

4. Watch for Salt, Damage to Road Surface and Black Ice Salt is not only an enemy to metal, but also traction. Treat salt like ice; if you see crystallized appearances on the side of the road, stay away.

If you do have to ride when there is salt on the road clean your bike thoroughly afterwards to remove the salt from your precious chrome.

Look well ahead, and pay close attention to the road surface which will be in poorer condition during the winter months. Potholes, manhole covers and road paint are to be avoided. Leaving that sensible gap in front will help with this.

Black ice; if it even remotely looks like ice, stay well away. When riding in cold weather, especially on side roads, if you come across sand or leaves, especially if it is shaded, consider it iced and ride as you would over wet leaves, no turns or hard braking and keep the motorcycle going straight until you pass the hazard.

5. Pick the Optimum Time to Ride During the winter we will have limited time frames to ride and need to consider weather forecasts, temperature and moisture conditions before riding. Begin riding later in the morning and end earlier in the afternoon.

This is due to morning and evening frost on the roads. The later AM start allows the frost to dissipate once the sun rises, and the early PM sunsets and temperature drops that will allow frost to form on the road surface and impact on traction are avoided.

That’s it, common sense really. Riding all year round is certainly enjoyable and to take advantage of the passion we have without any seasonal restriction brings varied experiences.

Harley Davidson v-twin engines love that chill in the air and run so smoothly in cooler conditions. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if our v-twins ran on a hot summer day in traffic like they do in the winter? Ride safe, ride prepared, ride often, ride in the winter. Try it, you’ll like it!

Ralph

The cr own is there for th e taking

t a k u w . o n o .c n Vote o s vid a d y e l r a .h w w w

2016 Officers & Committee

PRIMARY OFFICERS

Don Wibberley Director

Pat Adams Asst. Director

Nick West Asst. Director CLUB VENUE Grenadier Guards Club Maidenhead Rd, Windsor, Berks, SL4 5EY

Colin Wilkins Treasurer

Sue Moyler Secretary

https://www.facebook.com/ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk

Third Thursday of every month 7:30pm

COMMITTEE

Sue Dodds Ladies of Harley

Andy Tunley Editor

Lee White Webmaster

Chris Smith Membership

Sue Knight Historian

Mandy Mussong Merchandise

Barry Adams Activities

Malcolm Poulter Activities

Linda Friend Photographer

Chris Earley Photographer

Email any committee member at (position held)@thamesvalleyhog.org.uk