Pg. 4 - What’s Shakin’ It’s Swap Meet Season. Pg. 6 - Cruising with Critter All over the southern part of Ontario Pg. 12 - Adventures From The Deep South.... Of Canada. Meet Chil, Pirate & Lock Up Pg. 14 - East Coast Rambler Send for Help Were Burried in Snow Pg. 15 - Fighting for your Rights O.C.C Has a Convention Comming up Pg. 16 - L.C.M.C. Show & Shine 2015 Bad Bob was in Lincoln this Summer Pg. 18 - Clare’s Christmas Open House Rose Meets Santa face to face. Pg. 20 - Whispers of a Neoteric Nomad Guy Proves that Santa Rides a Harley Pg. 22 - Tom Mann Remembered The Road Queen Fondly Remembers Pg. 24 - On The Road JR is doing his final Features. Pg. 25 - Joke Page The laughs just keep comming. Pg. 28 - OutSpoken Custom Cycles Calendar Feature Shop of the Month Pg. 31 - The Bike Lawyer Insurance What do you Really Need! Pg. 32 - OutSpoken Custom Cycles Shop of the Month Pg. 34 - The Boys are Back In Town... Part 6 of 6 from Donny Peterson Pg. 37 - From the far East……Ontario that is. The Super Show is on Beau’s Mind. Pg. 40 - One for the Road. Lil’ Red Loves Shopping at The Show. Pg. 42 - Feature Bike Memorial Street Glide Pg. 45 - Bikers Church It’s Time to Stabilize Pg. 46 - Sticker Stories Halloween and Big Balls. Pg. 48 - Pacific Ponderings Broken Angel Takes A.I.M. Pg. 50 - B.O.T.B. Daybreak 2015 The Blades Host some Great Kids.
Every Wednesday Night All Winter Long It’s Bike Night at Suck Bang Blow Live Bands, Drink Specials and No Cover Charge. Come on out to Stoney Creek, 443 Highway 20 East at the end of Tapleytown Road. Tell Chelsey that The Mag sent you.
January
Jan. 30 – Hip’s Cycle’s 28th Annual Open House 10am – 3pm at the shop, 900 Colborne St. East, in Brantford. th
Jan. 30th - Jacox Harley-Davidson® complimentary Lunch & Learn on ESP To Register, please contact our Marketing Manager Julie Martin at 905-858-6763 or at jmartin@jacoxharley.com by Friday January 29th. Jan 31st – Support the Troops Swap Meet At the Beachville Legion, 39 Zorra Line in Beachville (corner of Zorra line and Queen St). 10am – 3pm Admission is only $5 and kids under 12 are free. For more info contact Hutch at 226339-5184.
February
Feb. 7th – Motorcycle Swap Meet London At the I.B.E.W. Union Hall at 6688 Tempo Road, in London. At Col. Talbot Road and the 401. 10am–4pm, Admission $10 with lots of free parking. Park & Sell your Bike $25, Booths $50. For more information call 705-340-2130 Feb. 7th – Greely Motorcycle Swap Meet Greely Legion, 8021 Mitch Owens Dr., Ottawa Ont. Vendors wanted More Info Call (613) 295 6934, or (613) 724 8140 or even (613) 822 2480 Feb. 12th to 14th – The Motorcycle and ATV Show Moncton At The Moncton Coliseum Complex, 377 Killam Drive, in Moncton, Friday Noon – 9pm, Saturday 10am – 8pm and Sunday 10am – 5pm. For more information check out www.monctonmotorcycleshow.ca . Feb 28th – The Annual Big Al’s Swap Meet At the Dundas Community Center, 10 Market St. in Dundas. 10am – 3pm, $5 Admission, Kids under 12 free. For table information call 905-746-7077.
March
Mar. 6th – Alvinston Motorcycle Swap Meet Alvinston Community Centre Complex, 10am-3pm, $5 Admission, Kids under 12 Free. More Info at 519-312-0516
April
Apr. 9th & 10th – 26th Annual Spring Motorcycle Show At the International Centre on Airport Rd. in Toronto, Saturday 10am – 9pm and Sunday 10am – 5pm. For more Information www.motorcyclespringshow.com Apr. 23rd – Hamilton Bikers Church Spring Swap Meet At Crown Point community Church, 92 Ottawa St. N., Hamilton. 10A.M. – 2 P.M. Admission $5 per person, Tables $10 each. For more info contact: Pastor Ken 905-8708584 or email kenang@cogeco.ca www.hamiltonbikerschurch.com
May
May 1st - Fort Erie Motorcycle Swap Meet West End Arena, Ridge Road, Fort Erie. 10am-4pm For more info: Contact Sean 289-686-6797 or 905-246-1282 or email shawnmccooey@yahoo.com May 22nd - Kawartha Bikers Church Bike Blessing Everyone is invited. It all starts at Bikers Church, 1000 FAIRAIRN ST., PETERBOROUGH at 10:15 followed by a Barbecue and tour of Peterborough County and its highlights. Info call 705-875-5412 May 28th - 4th Annual Ride 2 Reach Charity Ride At Motorcycle Enhancements 427 Speers Rd. Unit 9, Oakville, For More Contact John at Motorcycle Enhancements 1-888-842-2123
June
June 11th – Big Daddy’s Cowpaddy’s 5th Annual Poker Run Registration 9 – 10:30 at the Kempville Restaurant where breakfast will be available. For More information call Greg or Susie at 613-926-0799 or check out www.BigDaddysCowpaddy.ca June 11th - New Hamburg Full Throttle Poker Run Registration starts at 9am, at New Hamburg Legion. BR 532 , 65 Boullee St, New Hamburg. Kickstands up at 10:45am or register Online at www.newhamburgfullthrottle.com
July
July 8th to 10th – 2nd Annual Bancroft Wheels, Water & Wings A whole weekend of events , Concerts, Midway, Beer Tent and More! Classic cars on Friday Night, Hot Rods & Rat Rods on Saturday Night and Motorcycle Show N Shine on Sunday. Downtown Bancroft for more information visit www.beautifulbancroft.ca . July 9th - Lincoln County M.C.- Harley-Davidson Show & Shine At the L.C.M.C. Clubhouse, 4859 Hillside Dr. Beamsville. Gates open at Noon, Judging at 3:00pm, Awards at 4:30. $10 per entry, Trophies for the Winners. More Info: 905563-4267 or email lcmc1967@hotmail.com July 9th – 3rd Annual Hogtown Baconfest Downtown Lucan Ontario, Free Admission Live Bands, Beer Tent, Walking Poker Run, Kids Zone & Lota of Bacon. For more Info check out www.baconfestlucan.ca
July 9th - 13th Annual Kawartha Bikers Church Show And Shine 24 classes, a tattoo class; Live Music, Great Food with all the Trimmings; Vendors, Swap, 50/50. Even Shade provided. Bike registration till 1 pm ; Vendor Registration & info 705-875-5412
August
Aug. 5th to 7th - Big Daddy’s Cowpaddy’s 5th Annual Rodeo & Roast The Big Bash of the Summer in the Eastern Ontario area, 11101 County Rd. 15, North Augusta, Ontario. Gates open at 12pm, Tickets $25 in advance or $30 at the Gate. For More information call Greg or Susie at 613-926-0799 or check out www.BigDaddysCowpaddy.ca
Well here we are well into 2016 and it looks like it’s going to be another busy one for us here at the Mag. The recent changes we made have created quite a stir with both with our readers and our advertisers alike and by the tone of the many positive comments that we have received in person, print, phone and electronically from across the Country and beyond I get the feeling that the general consensus is that We Done Good! It was quite a jump for us to make because once you make the leap it is hard to go back, but when several key factors came together it made it all possible. With the solid commitment from some of our larger advertisers behind us and the continued ongoing and ever expanding support from the smaller ones, combined with a switch to our new printer McLaren Print Graphics who came in with an excellent quote that they would stand behind, we took a leap of faith, and went balls to the wall and all in. We hope it works! With the capabilities of my Managing Editor Al to back my play we figured that the time was right. Al, who continues to astound me with his vast and seemingly boundless knowledge and talent and spends hours in front of monitors experimenting with new ideas and helping our advertisers with their ads and tries to calm my jangled nerves when shit just doesn’t go the way it should, is an essential element and none of this would have happened without him. He is able to take vague ideas and form them into something that goes far beyond what was expected. The Riders Mag has long been “The Most Read Motorcycle Magazine in the Canada” bar none, with a circulation and loyal readership that dwarfs other publications. This is not an idle boast! It is a fact! With the recent changes to the look of the Mag, expanding our borders from just Ontario to Coast to Coast and beyond and the addition of more quality regular contributors who represent the areas they cover from across the Country we will continue to grow. We have established ourselves with our niche market; The Motorcycle Rider. We will let the other magazines deal with what they do so well; the motorcycles, the fancy custom builds that win at all the major shows. The technical stuff and all that we don’t compare with them at all. We don’t do test rides of the latest machines or dwell on details of the different models of motorcycles or accessories, although we will offer opinions and critiques now and then when asked or it is pertinent to our readership and our articles. We at The Mag deal mainly with people. Our people! Those who ride, who own and operate the shops or work in the shops or those who would like to work in those shops and own their own one day. Those who love motorcycles and our lifestyle! Those who party hearty and live the life, dream the dreams and ride….because it is just what we do. Sure we appreciate a great looking custom motorcycle and all the talent, money, hard work, imagination and the craftsmanship that goes into such creations and we will take pictures of them and offer those pictures in The Mag and on our website but our main focus remains on the people. Those who may only be pretty or handsome to those who know and love them. Those who own and love their motorcycles which in some cases are only pretty to
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them, but they are real people riding real machines and they are our people. Those who love to build and ride the bikes they build or those who build them for someone else. But these are just facets in the multi-faceted World of Motorcycles and we at The Rider’s Mag are proud to be part of it! We are at your parties, your weddings, your funerals and we try to represent our communities in an honest, respectful way because we come from the biker community and love and understand it. We laugh with you, we cry with you, we share your joy, pain, pride of accomplishments made and understand when things don’t quite work out the way they were planned.
We are “The Rider’s Mag”!
We are trying to keep our costs in line and next to printing, delivery and circulation of The Mag certainly accounts for a big percentage of those expenses and to deliver a free magazine and keep it that way is a challenge at times. We have been successful in publishing a now, National Magazine without any Government subsidy whatsoever and that is an accomplishment in itself that hasn’t occurred for many, many years. To do this, we count on our advertisers, they are the life’s blood of the Mag and essential for us to stay in existence. We are certainly not getting rich doing this by any means and at times, from a practical standpoint, it is hard to justify doing what we do and the time and the money that goes into doing it. I’ve heard; “We don’t need to advertise right now as we are so busy now thanks to our ad with you.” “We are a charity and should get free advertising.” And in the same breath; “We love The Mag! We get so much traffic from it.” “We get the information on what and where the rides and other events are happening.” “Can you run this in “What’s Shak’n for free?” The Toronto Star closing down its huge printing plant in Vaughn really puts things into perspective or should, on the reality of the shape of things in the print media. The fact is, much of the focus and the subsequent dollars these days is going into Web publishing which is why we also have developed our fully interactive website in order to keep pace in these volatile and changing times. We are just trying to survive and deliver a good product to our readers and a forum for our advertisers and we will continue to do it as long as we have your support and that of our advertisers. We do it for the love of The Mag and our chosen lifestyle and for those of you that we call our Brothers and Sisters. We are all volunteers here including myself. I still have my full time job driving a truck for Canada Cartage System as I have for the past 40 some odd years (I forget exactly how long but I started somewhere around 1970.) to pay my bills. They have been really good to me and I could stay on with them until into my 70’s if need be. I’m still in relatively good shape for the shape I’m in and they do have replacement parts for some things. If I won the Lottery I would quit my day job but keep on publishing The Riders Mag until that money ran out or I hit my expiration date. We have developed new Riders Mag support products. Our “Rider” pins, patches and stickers that are getting really popular and appearing on the back windows of cars and trucks from all over. We also have had a limited series of custom survival knives produced and they are now available online, at our booth at Motorcycle shows and in our “Rider’s Mag” section at Black Gold in Newmarket. New designs of T-Shirts are available and More new ones to come. Show your support!
That being said; we have been successful in bringing in reliable, real people to deliver in various parts of the Ontario and our people in other Provinces are rapidly expanding their territories as riders in those parts are introduced to The Mag. We have now got a P.E.I representative who will start with this issue as there are lots of Bikers on Spud Island and they will soon have The Mags at their favourite spots and a representative who they can relate to. I intend to grow our presence throughout the East Coast and West Coast including Newfoundland and then fill in from each of those points back to Ontario. We are interested in getting people involved in representation and or deliveries in all the different regions. In Ontario we would like to find such representation in North Bay and London areas. In addition to that we have “Hankster” developing things down in Phoenix, Arizona and taking the Mag down there with him. I went out myself in December on a two day run to deliver The Mags to our various outlets throughout the South Western portion of the Province hitting London, Lucan, Rodney, Chatham, Tillsonburg, Windsor, Sarnia then back home through Clinton, Orangeville and a few other spots. It was a great trip, meeting people that I hadn’t met before and seeing some awesome shops, meeting many nice people and made some valuable contacts along the way. I’ve always felt that a personal interaction with someone who is actually attached to The Mag is always better than just a delivery. I was able to meet up with our new man Bernie from Windsor in person, we’d had many interesting, enlightening and encouraging telephone conversations and shared many e mails and texts with over the past couple of months. Bernie is also the Editor of the O.C.C. Newsletter. I was extremely happy to welcome him aboard, along with and two other gentlemen who I hadn’t met as of yet. They will lend the personal touch to deliveries and cover events out that way as well as looking after advertising sales. This month I will be retracing that route but will add the Niagara region to my agenda as our new delivery guy “Dutch” is vacationing in the sunny South. He is replacing my long time right hand man Alex MacRae Senior, who regretfully had to give up the run that he loved doing because of health issues. I returned home mid-day Friday then on Saturday I worked my usual run from Newmarket, Udora, Pefferlaw, Port Bolster, Beaverton, Sutton and Keswick and heading back to points South. This has always been my favourite run as I have so many friends to visit along the way and the time it takes me to complete my run is contingent upon how many people I stop and talk to. When I hit Fred Hale’s Motorcycle Sales & Strictly V Twin in Pefferlaw that is now being run by Amy and Ted Hale. It usually turns into a gabfest but this trip in particular Fred and Family had completed the renovations that they had done to the store and created something special that they were proud
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of and gave me the grand tour. Awesome job! Stop in and check them out! Tom Mann – Biker TV R.I.P. L&R There have been a lot of my brothers and sisters who have passed on recently. I have grown tired of using stock segues into what I have to say like: “I am shocked and saddened” or other cliché phases but these pieces are hard to write because they are meant to be a summary of someone’s life and what they meant to you and however tired and overused, they get me started on a subject on which I would rather not have to dwell on or deal with but have to. In the case of Tom Mann, it is particularly hard, as he did so much in his life and touched so many people and definitely left his mark on this World. His work and his memory will touch us all again and again for years to come and I will remember him fondly. I feel less than qualified to write about Tom as he and I didn’t hang out together much as our individual, busy schedules did not put us together very often, but I did enjoy getting to sit down together on those rare occasions when fate or business put us in the same place at the same time. He was quite a character, to say the least and always a pleasure to talk to. It is with sadness that I announce his passing and regret not being able to spend more time with someone of his calibre. It is with pride that I can say that I knew him and I loved his spirit, compassion, energy, enthusiasm, sincerity, honesty, style, commitment and dedication to his craft, his love of life and his courage to be unique and an individual. I had to convey my own personal feelings about Tom in my own words and pay tribute to this remarkable human being. I will now leave it to Heather Ireland to try to capsulate the life of a man with whom she shared a dream and a passion and she stands a far better chance of doing so than I. She submitted an excellent article about Tom’s Celebration of Life on Jan. 9, 2016 (That I sadly was unable to attend do to prior commitments.) and share her memories and experiences with you, it appears on Page
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22 of this issue. PDR MC – Christmas Party This is one of my favourite parties and I don’t think I’ve missed one in years, particularly when going down there with the Brothers of the Blade on the “Party Bus”. This, for those who haven’t read my columns about this annual excursion before in my columns is a full sized coach outfitted with washroom facilities, a bar, festive lighting and a great sound system that The Blades charter to convey us all at a modest price, to and from the party in style, free of worries of parking or “Ride Programs” or anything else that could interfere with our enjoyment of the evening. The party starts at the Blade’s Clubhouse and then continues all the way down, priming us for the excellent party hosted by the Paradice Riders MC. and all the way back and for the very hearty partiers long after they return to the Blade’s CH. I was not at all surprised to find the vibrant, vivacious and very talented Lora Lee and The Tequila Rockingbirds on stage once again. They seem to have established themselves as a mainstay band for this event. It is good to see because they really seem to enjoy themselves and put on a Hell of a Show and as usual put on a high energy, performance that has the dance floor packed all night long! This is a well-attended much anticipated annual event that sees Clubs, friends and supporters from all over in attendance. The food is awesome and the mood is always light and cheerful and there is 50 at the bar!!!! I was a little burned out from work and getting the new issue of The Mag out, I even forgot to bring my camera. Hence, no pictures to accompany this article but in retrospect, it was a blast and kind of a nice change just to take the night off and just have a great time with some fantastic people! See you next year! BDR – MC – Christmas Party I have been invited to many of these parties over the years but had never been able to
attend due to a very busy schedule but this year I had a rare open spot on my calendar and when BDR Member, Dangerous Doug volunteered to be designated driver I just couldn’t refuse. Do to booking issues they were unable to hold it in their usual spot at the Legion on Hensall Circle in Mississauga and instead booked the Legion down by the Lakeshore in Toronto. It is a fine venue but somewhat smaller than what they are used to. We picked up Doug’s lovely lady Flo on the way down from the bar that she works at on Eglington called “The Loaded Dog”. It’s a large, fantastic looking bar and they were in full swing with a great band wailing out some Good Ol’ Rock ‘n Roll tunes to a packed house. It was customer appreciation night and a lot of customers were really
appreciating it. They handed us some tickets upon arrival, that could be exchanged for free drinks and don’t you know I took them up on the offer and to my surprise and pleasure they serve 50! This evening was certainly off to a good start and it was tempting to stay there a while longer but we were on a mission and we piled in Doug’s car and he piloted us the rest of the way to the Legion. I filed the bar in my memory banks and will definitely
remember my way back. The place was packed but we found a table after wandering through saying hi to a whole lot of friends and of course Johnny Sombrero and Pete Edge who were enjoying the evening. A disk Jockey provided some great old tunes to set the mood and everybody just mingled and enjoyed each other’s company. I don’t think anyone ever stayed at one table except when they laid out and excellent buffet dinner. The time flew by and before we knew it, the time to leave was upon us. It was a great night
spent with some good friends and I hope to come back again some Christmas. Outspoken Calendar shoot This shoot was going to be somewhat tricky as the featured bikes were yet to be finished until just before the Supershow at which the bikes in question were to be featured as examples of the HydroGraphics system that Tom and Olga had just brought into their shop. As previously arranged, I dropped off my Trike with them
to be detailed (But I still hadn’t got my fenders and lowers back from the painter, who was experiencing problems of his own being in mid renovation in a new home.) in my newly acquired trailer which had yet to have the final graphics applied in Mississauga. Brian seemed totally calm even as he explained that his booth and tank that were needed to do the HydroGraphics on the bikes that were to be featured in the upcoming show had just arrived and needed to be set up and the motorcycles were
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in pieces waiting for their HydroGraphics to be applied and then reassembled. I asked if my bringing the Trike in to be detailed at this time was a wise idea as I didn’t want to add to his problems by dropping off a filthy motorcycle, to which he calmly replied “Oh yeah! No Problem.” I still couldn’t help but feel incredibly guilty as I wheeled it into his shop and I left. For the next week and a bit I found myself running back and forth like a mad fool, from Newmarket to Uxbridge to Mississauga and other variations of the same destinations! I was constantly on the phone and accomplishing very little or so it seemed. I had to take time off from my day job, driving truck for Canada Cartage as I juggled Doctor’s appointments, dental appointments (Having somehow broken a front tooth and having to get the broken part glued back on so I wouldn’t look like the kid from Deliverance.) to fit everything in and I knew my problems were miniscule as compared to Brian’s. He still remained perfectly calm throughout! “I’m going to have to check out his medicine or liquor cabinet or both.” I thought to myself. “No one is this calm and collected without help of some kind!” Apparently that is just the way he is. I think he should consider a moto along the lines of “Cool is not just what we produce and what we do but the way we are and the way we do it!” After a week and a bit of me running around madly, things started to come together. The rear fenders came back from Jabber and looked spectacular but the lowers weren’t ready yet and they wouldn’t be on the Trike for this show. I was going to take the Trike back over to Bronson’s to have the fenders reinstalled but there was no time for that now and Brian said that he would gladly put them on for me, thereby saving me another step. When I picked up the Trike I was blown away by the job that he had done! It hadn’t looked that good since…… ever! At least not since I have owned it as it was always in one stage of completion or another and I’d never had the chance to really clean it up. To be totally honest I know that even if I had the time and done it myself, it still wouldn’t have looked this good! Now it just gleamed from every, or any angle. Even underneath I could find no trace of dirt. It actually seemed too clean to be mine! My philosophy is “If someone does something better than you and they do it for a living, don’t try and compete, let them do it. Pay them! Let them earn and continue to be there next time you need them and you can get on with what you do best! At the same time he had gotten HydroGraphics system installed and up and running and I was able to get some step by step pictures of the process being done to the parts that were to be reinstalled on the bikes that were going to the show. I began to suspect that he had a gang of Elves secreted away somewhere in the shop who would pop out and do the work so that Brian could take the credit. I knew that they would be there on time and look great because Brian said they would and that is as good as being done…in Brian’s World that is called Outspoken. I would not be able to get pictures of those bikes for the article until at The Supershow at which time I would find an appropriate girl and do the shoot relying on Al’s proficiency with Photoshop to make them look great! So far, so good! To be continued at The Supershow! Supershow 2016 I’m just going to touch on the Supershow this issue as I’ve got to complete the Outspoken story and all our other writers have written about the Show in their articles and
they will run this Month. I will save my write up on the Show for next Month. But I will say it was great! We set up early Thursday and there were very few other booths or displays that had been set up at that point. When we arrived back at the Show Friday morning one of the first places that I checked out was the fabulous display that Outspoken had set up just down the aisle from us and it looked spectacular. The bikes were all together with the exception of the decker whose rear bags we not yet installed due to some issue or other. But the bikes and display looked great. I knew that it was now on me to find the right girl and get the shoot done so that Al would have something work on and to lay out when he stayed back at the office on Sunday to get the stuff that was to go on the gloss colour sections ready for the printer. My search for the girl ended on Saturday afternoon when I was walking by Motorcycle Enhancements display and saw John talking to an amazing looking girl with jet black hair, sexy outfit and some magnificent and interesting tattoos, her name, Shel Bae (Shelby) seemed appropriate as it was as exotic sounding as she appeared. I interrupted their conversation and asked if I could
possibly borrow her for a little while. They both instantly, agreed and I managed to get the shoot done, but not without some problems, not with the girl or the bikes, but my camera. I couldn’t get it to focus at times and some of the shots just didn’t come out. As I have stated many times; “I am not a photographer. I am just an old guy with a decent camera and I take lots of shots and rely largely on the law of averages to come up with something that we can work with and use. With my method, they can’t all be good but they can’t all be bad either! Maybe someday I will actually read the manual and know what I’m doing.
But who does that? There was lots going on at the show which I will deal with next issue but one thing that did arise from setting up our booth was lighting. I purchased the 10 x 20 canopy rig that Beau had brought to another Show last year as it worked so well. Last year Beaus right hand man Chuckay had strung some fluorescent light fixtures and they worked well but we felt that LEDs may be the best way to go but the price just didn’t fit our modest budget. While getting some work done on our bar setup at my Pal Dusty’s shop, another friend Alphie stopped by all excited about a new venture that he was involved in as The Ontario distributor made in Germany, full spectrum LED lights that were top quality on top of being super energy efficient while providing all the illumination that we could want. He had my attention. Now a meeting that included Al was set up and somewhere along the way we became a dealer for these top quality, LED lights which lit our display at our booth. These lights burn very little energy produce no heat and illuminate better than anything else on the market. It all happened so fast and unexpectedly on top of all the other stuff we had on the go that we have yet to get a whole lot of details but will by the March issue and will let you know, as we are replacing all the fluorescent lights in our shop with these cost effective LEDs that provide a better, healthier light at a fraction of the cost. So until next month’s Issue, which is the start of another volume here at The Mag… Volume 18 (boy time flies when you’re having fun) please stay safe and have a Happy Ground Hog Day!
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The Rider’s Mag would like to introduce a new stable of writers that will be attending and writing about events that occur between Chatham and Windsor Ontario, The Deep South as we are referring to it in the magazine. These guys will be responsible for delivering the bundles of mags and sales as well. So if you know of an event that you feel the Riders Mag may be interested in covering or a business that would like to advertise look for the Deep South Crew on the Riders Mag web site. Readers that live in this area will be pleased to have local content back in the mag. Rick “Lock Up” Gravel is a member of the North Wall Riders and he’s a straight shooting son of a gun. Webster’s Dictionary should have a mug shot of him to define the phrase Old School. Lock Up has put over 6,000 Ks on his Harley Davidson Fat Boy in 2015. If you ask Rick what kind of bike he rides he’ll answer “A friggin loud one”. Rob “Mr. Chil” Marr is an easy going gentleman who’s always ready with a smile and a camera. He was forced to retire from Heinz when they so rudely shut their doors in Leamington. Chil occupied his free time by accumulating 35,500 Ks on his Victory in 2015. Bernie Martin “The Pirate” Is the Newsletter Editor for the Ontario Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs and Independents (OCC). He has supposedly been trying to behave himself since grade 4 with not much success. He is his teacher’s worst fears realized and the apple of his mother’s eye. Pirate has a list of excuses as long as his arm for why he doesn’t have as many Ks on his HD Deuce as Rick has on his bike.
Welcome to The Mag Brothers!
Adventures in the Deep South... Of Canada This past weekend I attended the 18th Annual Bikers Breakfast. The name says it all almost. It may have started out by a group of bikers and we will get to that but now is open to all bike or no bike. Where to begin , the beginning I would say. So 18 years ago a group of people had a thought, lets go someplace for breakfast. How many of us have done this, a thought? So Mitch Laframboise, Butch and Sharron Roehler decided to have breakfast in the county. So they and 14 other friends went to Colasanti’s Tropical Gardens. The second year 25 went and so on and so on. An event is born, So they went from there and picked the first Sunday after Christmas to have it annually. The event got bigger and bigger with
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attendance varying around the 140 mark . No one has really counted……lol . Time has passed and last year the reins were taken over from Butch and Sharon by Rod Roehler and his wife Heather Court. They in turned had a thought lets make this
into a fundraiser for Windsor’s Downtown Mission. Bad bikers always fundraising for worthy causes in their areas. So non perishable goods and warm articles of clothing were being asked for. Good time was had by all and the food was good like normal. It was great seeing faces not seen for a bit because riding season is over. Well we are still riding which is awesome but our time will end soon. Hopefully this goes on getting bigger and bigger. Thank you Rod and Heather for your time and effort on keeping the Biker’s Breakfast going. So don’t forget people to mark your 2016 calendars for the first Sunday after Christmas for the 19th annual breakfast!!!
E.C.M.U. Here to Help
Pictured above from left to right: Shelly, Rhonda, Joanne, Kevin, James and Cheryl A new beginning in our area. I was also lucky enough to meet with the new unit, actually it is the first unit of its kind in Canada. South-western Ontario meet the brand new E.C.M.U., which stands for Emergency Care Motorcycle Unit. This is a dedicated group of people, 6 strong as of now. Who train year round to keep updated on recent updates of Emergency First Aid, CPR, etc. They train under the tutelage of James Ridout founder. They are available all year long to motorcycle and also non motorcycle events. They are strictly a non-profit organization . They will work your event for free but DONATIONS are greatly appreciated which will pay for their supplies and equipment. This is not mandatory but come on people, ...time and equipment , every little bit helps. They do demand a card of “Thanks” after the event so it can be posted on their Facebook page. Directors Shelly Middleton-Beno and Kevin Gale
can be contacted either on their Facebook page, Emergency Care Motorcycle Unit or through their email address emergencycare.mu@gmail.com. This is an awesome group of individuals who donate their own time to something they are passionate about. They are always looking for dedicated and reliable volunteers to join their team. So keep them in mind when planning your next event.
Editor’s Note: Thanks Chil for these two articles it’s Great to have the Deep South Team Joining Us. Ride Free!
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RAMBLINGS FROM SNOW COUNTRY
Hello from the East! I have to start by apologising to two of the major contributors to the Wharf Rat Rally and a sponsor of the rally. My column should have read: Parts Canada (not Parks Canada) and Annapolis Basin Conference Centre (not Convention Centre), sorry, sometimes there is a problem of brain waves flowing through the alcohol to my fingers on the keyboard! I have to talk about a great experience that I am having with the
bike shop where the “couch” is resting. I received a recall notice involving the brake system on my ’06 wing, so I called the dealer in Miramichi, J.H.Stewart Ltd. Being a foot of snow I asked if it could be done in the spring. Then what I heard from the service manager Nick was something I couldn’t imagine in my 45 plus years of riding. They told me that they would pick up my ride, fix it, and deliver it back (no charge). I am amazed at the quality of service this shop delivers and will recommend J.H. Steward Ltd (Harley & Honda) for respectable, dependable service!
Next, I was able to make it back to Ontario in November to attend the Friday 13th in Dover. I had a chance to meet up with many old brothers from that neck of the country, Dirty Nick & company from B.R.O. and John and Louis from N.B.S. Riders. John sent me recently a report of the club’s Christmas endeavours, which included sponsoring two Port Colborne families in need with food & gifts for Christmas, a donation to a local music enhancement program (headed by Jack Mitchell) to provide instruments and teach their up coming musicians (who really would never have the opportunity to do so), and a large donation of food to the outreach organization to provide the needy. These guys prove the fact that bikers are an asset to the community. Way to go brothers! Looking forward to our first bike show this year, which is in Moncton on February 12-14. I’ll tell about it later. That’s it for this month. Atlantic Jeff signing off. theridersmag_atlantic@yahoo.ca
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Far too often, we take for granted the things in life that bear no direct cost to ourselves but when referring to the Riders Mag – the word ‘free’ should never be confused with having no value. Since the millennium, I have been fortunate to publish my opinionated scrawls – first as an event reporter and later via this column. This is also true of the many contributors who report on the happenings of our lifestyle, issue by issue, thereby breathing life into otherwise seemingly one-dimensional event announcements. Throughout the years past - this vital publication has illuminated many absurdities and injustices, which have led to some important victories and instituted meaningful changes. Much like our lifestyle, the Mag has grown expeditiously and has now distinguished itself as a national publication – a major accomplishment in merely a few short years. Thanx to JR for fathering the Mag . . . Critter & Al – KEEP ON, KEEPIN’ ON, ‘cuz we (the collective we) are all the better for it. The OCC held its first meeting of the year in January and the turnout was amazing. The room was filled to capacity with many forced to stand for the duration. The numbers were over 150 members representing over 40 clubs plus 17 Independent members. Next year we will secure a room that seats 150 !! This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Ontario Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs & Independents. Issues never take a holiday and the necessity for our cause has never been more apparent. One of the reports delivered at the meeting highlighted the anticipated changes to the Ontario Highway Traffic Act governing motorcycle handlebar height restrictions. Due to the efforts of our Political Action Committee, the Ontario government has agreed to review the regulation in 2016. In the interim, our PAC is establishing a liaison with the new Federal government in order to harmonize the changes nationally. Another important event on our calendar is the upcoming Fifth Annual OCC Conference. The location for 2016 is Niagara Falls and is being hosted by OCC member club – BRO Ontario. This event is open to OCC members only and features expert speakers covering topics that affect many areas of our lifestyle. This year’s banquet will also double as our 20th Anniversary party and should be memorable cuz – black leather looks amazing against a backdrop of cascading water, Eh Ollie? Sooooo, if you’re considering membership in the OCC, then now would be a very good time to make join the crowd. Independent membership is a mere $25.00 per year and those dollars will be hard at work in establishing a non discriminatory environment for the bikers of Ontario. It appears that some companies in the motorcycle insurance industry are makin’ a grab for your wallet. I have had bike insurance with TD for the past five years and my rate remained static until 2016. Recently, I was notified that my renewal rate is increasing an additional 25%. I immediately began to shop around and was able to renew with Allstate at my old rate. There was a CTV Pat Foran Consumer Alert report, aired on January 12th , detailing that some bike owners were being subjected to rate increases of 40-50%. My two-cent worth of advice (and worth every penny) is …..You better question any rate increase unless you were involved in an accident or garnered some traffic violations. Don’t swallow the old ‘it’s an industry-wide increase due to an upsurge in motorcycle accidents’ and spend some time on the blower scoping out other carriers. You just might save yourself some significant cash. Meaning no disrespect and at the risk of soundin’ like a patronizing wise-ass, I want to make a plea that is of benefit
to our lifestyle and the individuals who populate it . . . If you have read this far, then you understand how important it is to convey (to your friends and acquaintances who enjoy the Riders Mag) that there is more contained within these pages than they may realize. So remind them that, in their haste to flip to the joke pages, to pause and take the time to read the written content from the contributing writers who have worked hard to fill these pages with pertinent information - information that is ‘FREE’ but, nonetheless, highly valuable . . . Rooster Rider aka Larry Lilly OCC Treasurer OCC = ONE COMMON CAUSE Rooster Rider
@roostahrider
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Lincoln County MC – Annual Show and Shine – 2015 My friend Jerry and I had put on some miles with an excellent, four hour ride down to the Lake Erie North Shores before we worked our way back to the LCMC Clubhouse to take in what is one of my favourite events of the year. This annual event has long been considered by many to be one of the best all Harley Show and Shines in Southern Ontario and it all happens at their beautiful Beamsville Clubhouse. With the beautiful weather that we were getting they would surely see a great turnout. They draw some of the best bikes around from all over the Province and these are divided into 12 Classes plus Best in Show and there were a lot of fantastic entries here today.
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I made my way around checking out the great looking bikes and getting some great shots before turning my attention to the vast display of door prizes that were up for grabs. They also had a great looking Harley engine clock and an H-D fridge that were going to be raffled off a bit later. The day flew by and it was time for the awards presentation which is always a highlight for me as there is always a lot of enthusiasm displayed by the participants. There are lots of hoots, cheers and good natured heckling that erupts from the crowd and accompanies each announced winner. It speaks volumes about the kind of participants and the fine people running it. Great job guys! See you next year!
L.C.M.C. 2015 Show & Shine Winners
Special Interest Antique Stock Sportster Custom Sportster Stock Softail Custom Softail Stock Road King Custom Road King Stock Decker Custom Decker CVO Radical Best Of Show
1st :Barb R. 1st :Mark C. 1st :Brian A. 1st :Frank B. 1st :Bill Big 1st :Kerry J. 1st :Ron G. 1st :Paul H. 1st :Don F. 1st :Al S. 1st :Danny S. 1st :John T. Glen G.
2nd :Lee J. 2nd :Bill A. 2nd :Carol G. 2nd :Randy E. 2nd :Ed S. 2nd :Don K. 2nd :Collin M. 2nd :Willie U. 2nd :Gary K. 2nd :Luch C. 2nd :Brian M.
3rd :Craig F. 3rd :John M. 3rd :Jessie N. 3rd :Tim K. 3rd :Terry H. 3rd :Steve S. 3rd :Steve L. 3rd :Brett C. 3rd :Gino G. 3rd :Carole K.
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Last year at this time we were in a deep freeze and shovelling snow…this year bikers in Niagara have been riding often and quite a few bikers rode to Clare’s Open House. I’m glad I rode the bike in because the parking lot was full when I pulled in with people parking along the road on both streets. The store was full of people looking for the 50% off select merchandise and the 15% off all regular priced items. I counted over 30 people standing in a long line waiting to check out with their HD items in hand. The ladies behind the counter were all decked out in a Clare’s leopard print top that was very attractive and I heard people asking if they had them for sale. The store was packed with Christmas items, clothes and of course new and used bikes. I heard that Santa was even looking at picking up a new ride for the spring. A new feature this year was Clare’s supplied the wrapping paper, bows and things and the Niagara Ladies of Harley supplied the Elves to wrap the Christmas gifts for the customers. Nice touch! Clare’s Open Houses, both spring and fall, are opportunities for old friends to see each other and to catch up. In the spring, it is always about Poker Runs, long trips planned and are you going to Sturgis this year? There is always the guy who is getting a new bike or working on finishing a custom ride for the summer. In the fall, it is about what are you doing for Christmas, going to Daytona this year or any cruises planned. You get the picture: friends catching up and telling tales.
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As usual, the different Clubs from around the area show up, shake hands and wish everyone well. I noticed Lincoln County MC, Welland County MC, the Regulators and the Independent Riders making the stroll around the store and talking to old friends. Some clubs were noticed by their absence. Niagara HOG was there in large numbers with a membership drive on, pizza on the table and members welcoming people that would wander by HOG corner. Members were looking at old group pictures, trying to decide what year it was taken. Same thing every
open house…a stroll down memory lane. The highlight of the day was when Santa and his helpful Elf, April, came in HO-HO-HOing and working the crowd. Santa was pleased to have pictures taken with the good little boys and girls…and he even had a few pics taken with those that were naughty…I hear Santa likes them best. I hope everyone has a good winter and that we see you on the road in the Spring….go well…Rose
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Here we go again. Another winter motorcycle show season is upon us promising to be one of the best in the industry. With the International Motorcycle Supershow already gone by, and the fact that we are half way through winter makes this one of the shortest off season I’ve ever experienced. People seem to be in great spirits and health as they prepare for the upcoming riding season. Maybe it’s the fact that there was a Santa Clause on a bike here in Sudbury on December 25th/2016 for the first time in the past 50+ years that I’ve been around.
This year’s Supershow was by far one of the most interesting to date. Aside from meeting and chatting with Donny Peterson who was signing calendars at the Rider’s Mag booth, which by the way, looked awesome and professionally set up with Critter’s trike and all kinds of Mag apparel for sale. The show gave us the opportunity to meet Paul Tettul Jr. from the Orange County Choppers TV show
I have started to see a lot of posts on social media in regards to great rides that will be taking place in 2016 just as an example, we have the 6th Annual Ride Manitoulin that like previous years is one of North Ontario’s most sought after due to its location on magnificent Manitoulin Island and one of a kind riding roads. More detail will be available at a later date on this event so stay tuned or visit them online. We also have numerous other events pouring in as people want to be first to get their words out there and what better way to do that but by advertising it in The Riders Mag.
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as well as Horny Mike and Rolli from Counting Cars, another well know TV program. New friends as well as old friends gathered in the beer garden to savor a refreshment or two after walking and exploring the endless halls of biking apparel and machines. This year, I opted to stay for two of the three days and am I ever glad I did. So much more to see and
do. It gave me time to admire in details the art creations of “Fitto” master airbrushing artist who was present on Saturday and Sunday. I hope to contact him at a later date and do a segment on his amazing paint creations. Speaking of the Mag, what do you think of this new
look? Compliments and words of praise have been pouring in from all over and all the credit goes to our editors and the staff at the Mag headquarters which are the results of endless hours of work. What a great job they did and we thank them for doing that. We are also being distributed coast to coast now, making the Riders Mag one of Canada’s most sought after magazines. Makes me proud to be part of an awesome team like this! Great job to all those involved! Cheers! Up in Northern Ontario, things are pretty quiet as the cold days of winter have finally arrived and everyone settles in to pass the time either doing inside activities or by finally taking their sleds out. I for one am looking forward to some fun in the sun with some rum! Heck, might even look at renting a scoot out there and putting on some tropical mileage under my belt! I still hold fond memories of the last time I did that. Met all kinds of interesting uniformed people from what is a third world country that have a totally different way of going about their regular duties in comparison to their similar compadres up here in Canada! ;) Also happening up here in Northern Ontario, I just received word that several motorcycle enthusiasts from the St-Joes Island and Sault Ste-Marie area are interested in distributing our great publication up that way. As more information and details come in, I will introduce you to them and will be updating the online map to see all the great locations that you can pick up a copy of The Mag. What awesome news that was when I got the call telling
me about it as I’ve been actively looking for help in all parts of Northern Ontario. If you’re looking for something to do while getting your bike ready for spring or just to past the time this winter, you can go visit a great friend of The Riders Mag at Leatherworks Plus on Lorne street in Sudbury. Ben and his pleasant staff are always eager to help you whether
you’re looking to upgrade your leathers or just looking to get something repaired to even just go pick up your copy of the Mag, either way they would be happy to see you. The selection available in this retail store is incredible as is the manufacturing service they provide of all sort. At the moment, they are having a 40% off selected biker apparels as well as a great deal on Sheepskin coats to keep you warm. Purchase a Sheepskin coat and receive $250 off the price if you mention that you read this article in The Riders Mag but only for a limited time only (end of February). This is an exclusive Riders Mag / Leatherworks Plus offer. They are also featuring a 30% off winter boots for both men and woman. So don’t wait and get to Leatherworks Plus now and see for yourself how much you can save. As always, I’m available to cover motorcycle and biking related event throughout Northern Ontario but if you have something that you would like to submit, feel free to contact me and we’ll discuss how we can incorporate while giving credit where credit is due. Any suggestions that could improve the North being extra distribution points, to advertising your business in The Riders Mag are always welcome and will be entertained with respect when the time comes. I leave you this month with a simple thought….. ”If everything seems to be under control, you’re not going fast enough!”
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Robert Thomas McLean Mann “Tom Mann” ~Producer, Storyteller, Biker~ Oct. 9, 1961 – Dec. 14, 2015 The Princeton Centennial Hall was at full capacity for Tom’s Celebration of Life on the 9th of January. Without a doubt, Tom was with us, laughing down at us all, as I know he was responsible for the fire alarm wailing loudly, inside the building for at least a half hour, until the fire department showed up and finally shut it off. Despite the chilly day, a handful of riders showed up on 2 wheels and bikers from far and wide came out to pay their respects. After a few words and a prayer from Reverend Dave, Tom’s Brother, Doug Mann hit the podium and started the service with a loud and proud Tom impression “HOW’S IT GOIN?!” Doug gave a tribute to his Brother, followed by tributes from his Sister, Karen Meadows and family friends, The wisher Girls. Biker TV Crew, Johnathan “Johnny” Howlett and Pat Pullin, put together a video memorial. I then gave my eulogy of Tom’s accomplishments and our coast to coast high jinx and we then heard touching tributes from lifelong friends, Wayne Drake “Uncle Wayne” and Ian Scott “Little Ian” Ian told a humorous story about Tom vs. Ian’s attack rooster, who had torn many strips off of Tom over the years and mysteriously ended up under the wheels of Tom’s car one night. Tom’s friend, Ian Tatham then said a few words and lastly, Tom’s Father Bob Mann “Pops” thanked everyone for coming and with Tom’s Mom, Marilyn by his side, told a humorous tale of how Tom had added him to the Biker TV credit roll, with the title of “Senior Transportation Specialist.” The service closed in honor of Tom’s Scottish heritage, with a bagpiper playing amongst the crowd. Tom called himself a storyteller. Back in the 90’s while residing in Ottawa and volunteering at a homeless shelter, Tom befriended the people there and learned of a place called “the heater” a series of sewer vents under a bridge in downtown Ottawa, which provided some semblance of warmth and shelter to the homeless people that called it home. Tom spent 24 hours living on “the heater” with them and
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filming to tell their tale. The Documentary aired nationally and was also used by the Canadian Government to raise awareness. For those that haven’t had a chance to view it, you can find it on YouTube. Toms work on “Life on the Heater” is a testament to his compassionate and kind nature. He touched the lives of many with his relaxed demeanor and his ability to listen and be a friend. His laugh was infectious and we spent much of our time together doing just that. Laughing. Tom and I met back in the day, while he was working on the documentary, “Chrome and Thunder” Tom had heard of me in the biker community, tracked me down and approached me with the intention of featuring me as, what he described as the “Smoking Hot Biker Chick!” Naturally I was flattered and intrigued with his project. We had such a blast working together, that we became good friends. Tom’s purpose with “Chrome and Thunder” was to get away from the typical tales of mayhem and tumultuous biker activity and dispel misconceptions about biker culture. The Documentary aired nationally on City TV. Tom being appreciative of my gift of gab, and my passion for riding, approached me once again. This time, to host his next brainchild, we spent a great deal of time, planning and throwing ideas around, and with that, Biker TV was born. Tom’s vision was a weekly television program, produced by bikers, for bikers, with the full half hour, including the commercials, dedicated to all aspects of biker lifestyle in Canada, With Toms determination, Biker TV was a success and was the only show of its kind in Canada. Biker TV quickly became a weekly highlight to bikers Nationwide and around the world. Over the years, Tom and I shared many adventures and our road trips and shenanigans were the best times of my life. With minimal funds, a chaotic schedule and often, inclement weather, we would hit biker events Canada wide. Highlighting many people involved in the biker community, helping to raise awareness for countless worthy causes and charity rides and making friends along the way. Biker TV ultimately grew to an audience of ½ million viewers weekly and 10,000 online daily. As the show gained popularity, everyone wanted to be a part of Biker
TV. Tom would schedule a last minute gig, call me up short notice on a Thursday and greet me with “Pack your shit Road Queen, we gotta be in Truro, Saturday at noon!” We would ride thru the night to get to the shoot, fueled by Red Bull and beef jerky. With Tom having poor eyesight, we would ride side by side, with our high beams on and our eyes peeled for moose. On this particular road trip, we logged over 8,000kms in one week, plus shot video, partied, saw the sights and spent time with friends along the way! Tom often wore denim button up shirts, forgetting to button down the pockets hence leaving a trail of his pocket contents down the highway. I’d follow Tom anywhere and quite often I was following a trail of bandanas, smokes, business cards and other miscellaneous items. A highlight of our travels was riding to Inuvik, Northwest Territories. We rode loaner Super Moto bikes from Yamaha Canada and Toms father Bob “Pops” drove the support truck and we all conquered the notorious Dempster highway, the only road in Canada that crosses the Arctic Circle. Tom also had bad luck with things melting to his hot exhaust pipes and it was difficult to keep him in a rain suit. I would wave him over to the shoulder, smoke billowing out of his saddlebag. We shared many giggles, standing on the side of the road in the rain with his saddlebag and its contents burnt to the pipe and his rain pants smoldering. Tom had plans of the two of us ridding Baffin Island in the future and I plan on completing that rugged trip, and melting a few rain suits myself in his honor. Tom and I shared a penchant for riding in inappropriate riding conditions. I remember riding to Port Dover in January. It was below zero with snow and freezing rain. We were so bundled up that we could barely move. Tom was wearing a huge hoodie on top of his riding gear and he put the hood over top of his helmet and tied it up tight around his face. He called his look the “who killed Kenny” after the south park character. We had only made it as far as Ingersoll and when we stopped at a red light, I knew he could hardly see as his glasses were fogged up. I yelled over to him “YOU GOOD HAWKEYE?!” When he turned to respond, the opening on the hoodie stayed to the front as his helmet turned inside it and he yelled back, his voice muffled through the cloth of the hoodie “VISIBILITY IS KINDA FUCKED!” As Biker TV grew, Tom expanded his craft, by producing a show with a similar format to Biker TV called Trucker Television. With the slogan “Celebrating life on the open road” that is just what the show did. Also airing nationally on City TV, Trucker Television gained popularity quickly, providing its viewers a weekly in depth look into the world of Trucking.
It is obvious that Tom was well liked, respected, left a lasting impression on the people that he encountered and was loved by friends and family. Rather than dwell on the sorrow of losing him so unexpectedly¸ He would have wanted us to celebrate his extraordinary life and achievements and focus on memories of good times. I will hold the memories of Tom, close to my heart and I will never forget him showing up at my house unannounced, putting his lips up to my door screen and chanting loudly into my living room … “ROAD QUEEN!” Tom’s Facebook entry dated 4 days before his death reads...
“Live your lives that the fear of death cannot enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion. Respect others in their view and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life and beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and in the service of your people, abuse no one or no thing, for abuse turns wise ones into fools and robs the spirit of its vision. When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, sing your death song and die like a hero going home.” Tecumseh “No Fear, No Anger, Rock Hard, Ride Free” Tom will live on in our hearts and his legacy will live on in the archives of Trucker Television and Biker TV. Gone but never forgotten. Ride in peace my friend. Heather Ireland Biker TV Host/Road Queen
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The countdown is on issues are flying out mostly because the mag is monthly at this time of the year but since my tenure ends at the end of this calendar year 8 issues to go, never thought that I would ever stop but the mag is going in a different direction and my services become obsolete but I still do have work to perform before I am done I will still cover some of my favorite events when my schedule allows and I do have a few feature shoots to get done to finish out this year. I have reviewed my list and the shoots that are already done and as it stands for men’s shoots I only need to get two and that would be a special construction bike, and I have no applicants on file for this category and a vintage bike, now I do have a couple vintage bikes on my list but one has been there for a while waiting to come out of the shop. Whatever bikes are on my list that I do not shoot for this year will be passed along to Critter and I will make myself available to do shoots because it was the one part of the job that I really loved. I have more need for ladies as it stands now I have enough ladies on my list to finish out the season but I only have one of them shot so far and I need four more to round out the ladies and their Harleys season. So gals remember this is it for me so no bullshit or you may never get it ok? I will be around with Senior here and there as I am sharing driving responsibilities with his usual driver Bad Bob and we will show up at events from time to time knowing some of our favorites are Big Als swap meet , the Fort Erie Swap meet just to name a few that he can’t stay away from right? I will definitely be out in Dover in May as a matter of fact if I have my way I will be moving out there in the spring and staying out that way for the duration, actually that’s just a dream I have too much crap to be able to stay out there full time but I do plan to spend more time out that way this year. I will also be riding in some of my favorite events again schedule permitting as I do travel a lot and some of it is with my aging parents which is my primary job these days, such is life at least so I am told. See you out there on the road.
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Ponderisms: How important does a person have to be before they are considered assassinated instead of just murdered? Why do you have to “put your two cents in”...but it’s only a “penny for your thoughts”? Where’s that extra penny going? Once you’re in heaven, do you get stuck wearing the clothes you were buried in for eternity? Why does a round pizza come in a square box? What disease did cured ham actually have? Why is it that people say they “slept like a baby” when babies wake up like every two hours? If a deaf person has to go to court, is it still called a hearing? Why are you IN a movie, but you’re ON TV? Why do people pay to go up tall buildings and then put money in binoculars to look at things on the ground? Why do doctors leave the room while you change? They’re going to see you naked anyway. Why is “bra” singular and “panties” plural? If Jimmy cracks corn and no one cares, why is there a stupid song about him? Can a hearse carrying a corpse drive in the carpool lane ? If the professor on Gilligan’s Island can make a radio out of a coconut, why can’t he fix a hole in a boat? Why does Goofy stand erect while Pluto remains on all fours? They’re both dogs! If Wile E. Coyote had enough money to buy all that ACME crap, why didn’t he just buy dinner? If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, what is baby oil made from? If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons? Why Do the Alphabet song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star have the same tune? Why did you just try singing the two songs above? Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog’s face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him for a car ride, he sticks his head out the window?
Well, I was in total shock, and I couldn’t say a word She said, “I’m going upstairs to my bedroom, if you want one last wild fling, just come up and have me”. I was stunned and frozen in shock as I watched her go up the stairs. I stood there for a moment. Then turned and made a bee-line straight to the front door. I opened the door, and headed straight towards my car. Lord And behold, my entire future family was standing outside, all clapping! With tears in his eyes, my future father-in-law hugged me. He said, ‘Paulie, we are very happy that you have passed our little test. We couldn’t ask for a better man for our daughter. Welcome to the family my son..’
THE ITALIAN WEDDING TEST I was a very happy man. My wonderful girlfriend and I had been dating for over a year. So we decided to get married. There was only one little thing bothering me. It was her beautiful younger sister, Sofia. My prospective sister-in-law was twenty-two, wore very tight mini-skirts, and generally was Bra-less. She would regularly bend down when she was near me. I always got more than a nice view. It had to be deliberate, she never did it around anyone else. One day she called me and asked me to come over. ‘To check my Sister’s wedding- invitations’ she said. She was alone when I arrived. She whispered to me that she had feelings and desires for me. She couldn’t overcome them anymore. She told me that she wanted me just once before I got married. She said “Before you commit your life to my sister”.
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And the moral of this story is: Always keep your condoms in your car. What Makes 100%? What does it mean to give MORE than 100%? Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%? We have all been to those meetings where someone wants you to give over 100%. How about achieving 103%? What makes up 100% in life? Here’s a little mathematical formula that might help you answer these questions: If: ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ Is represented as: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26. Then: H-A-R-D-W-O-R-K 8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98% And K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E 11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96% But , A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E 1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100% And, B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T 2+21+12+12+19+8+9+20 = 103% AND, look how far ass kissing will take you. A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G 1+19+19+11+9+19+19+9+14+7 = 118% So, one can conclude with mathematical certainty, that while Hard work and Knowledge will get you close, and Attitude will get you there. It’s the Bullshit and Ass Kissing that will put you over the top. Now you know why some people are where they are! A Retired Person’s Perspective 1. I’m not saying kill all the stupid people. I’m just saying remove all the warning labels and let the problem work itself out. 2. I changed my car horn to gunshot sounds. People move out of the way much faster now.
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3. You can tell a lot about a woman’s mood just by her hands. If they are holding a gun, she’s probably pissed. 4. Gone are the days when girls cooked like their mothers. Now they drink like their fathers. 5. You know that tingly little feeling you get when you really like someone you’ve just met? That’s common sense leaving your body. 6. I don’t like making plans for the day because then the word “premeditated” gets thrown around a lot in a courtroom. 7. I didn’t make it to the gym today. That makes 1,500 days in a row. 8. I decided to stop referring to the bathroom as the John, and now I call it the Jim. I feel so much better saying I went to the Jim this morning. 9. Dear paranoid people who check behind shower curtains for murderers: If you find one, what’s your plan? 10. Everyone has a right to be stupid. Politicians just abuse the privilege. When I was young I decided to go to Medical School. At the entrance exam we were asked to rearrange the letters PNEIS and form the name of an important human body part which is most useful when erect. Those who answered spine are doctors today while the rest of us are just sending jokes via email. An old geezer became very bored in retirement and decided to open a medical clinic. He put up a sign outside that said: “Dr. Geezer’s clinic. Get your treatment for $500, if not cured, get back $1,000.” Doctor “Young,” who was positive that this old geezer didn’t know beans about medicine, thought this would be a great opportunity to get $1,000. So he went to Dr. Geezer’s clinic. Dr. Young: “Dr. Geezer, I’ve lost all taste in my mouth. Can you please help me ??” Dr. Geezer: “Nurse, please bring medicine from box 22 and put 3 drops in Dr. Young’s mouth.” Dr. Young: “Aaagh !! -- “This is Gasoline!” Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You’ve got your taste back. That will be $500.” Dr. Young gets annoyed and goes back after a couple of days figuring to recover his money. Dr. Young: “I have lost my memory, I cannot remember anything.” Dr. Geezer: “Nurse, please bring medicine from box 22 and put 3 drops in the patient’s mouth.” Dr. Young: “Oh, no you don’t, -that’s Gasoline!” Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You’ve got your memory back. That’ll be $500.” Dr. Young (after having lost $1000) leaves angrily and comes back after several more days. Dr. Young: “My eyesight has become weak --- I can hardly see anything !!!! Dr. Geezer: “Well, I don’t have any medicine for that so, “ Here’s your $1000 back.” (giving him a $10 bill) Dr. Young: “But this is only $10! Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You got your vision back! That will be $500.” ~~~~~ MORAL OF
Continued on Page 53
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Questions from the Bike Show First, I would like to start by saying “Thank you” to all the readers who stopped by my bikelawyer.ca booth at the Motorcycle Supershow in January to say hello. It was very gratifying for me to hear that so many of you actually read my column. Now that there are a few other lawyers with booths at the Motorcycle Supershow,some of you may wonder, “How should I choose a lawyer to represent me?” Well that’s easy. Go for the one with the hottest girls. Everyone knows you’re sure to win in court if you have a babe in hot pants on your side. (Yeah, right!) At the show I always get asked these questions: I was injured in a hit and run accident, do I have a claim? The driver that hit me was not insured, what can I do? I was hurt in a single vehicle accident, what can I do? The accident was my fault, can I get any compensation? The answer is that you do have some options, as long as you have a valid insurance policy on your bike or whatever vehicle you were driving. If you were a passenger in someone else’s vehicle it gets a little more complicated. Every policy of auto or bike insurance issued in Ontario covers you for damages caused by an unidentified (i.e. hit and run) driver or an uninsured driver. So if you are involved in an accident caused by the negligence of a hit and run or uninsured driver, you can make a claim against your own insurance company for compensation for property damage and injuries. This applies even if you do not actually hit the other vehicle. I have a couple of cases where my client was injured after being cut off by another car that just kept going (of course proof may be difficult in those cases). There are two levels of coverage for this. The standard coverage which is part of every policy covers you for damage caused by uninsured and unidentified drivers up to $200,000.00, which is the minimum amount of liability coverage that we are all required by law to carry in Ontario. The second level of coverage is optional, called the OPCF44R Family Protection Endorsement. It provides 3 benefits over the standard coverage: 1. It covers you up to the amount of whatever liability coverage you are carrying on your vehicle; most of us carry at least $1 million; 2. It covers you up to that limit even if the other driver had insurance but for a lower amount than the amount you are carrying. 3. It also covers you, your spouse and dependents if you are injured by an uninsured or underinsured or unidentified driver while you are in another vehicle or a pedestrian. This means there are a couple of things you should do right now regarding your insurance policy:
1. Always make sure you have the OPCF 44R endorsement on your policy. It is not expensive. It is such a no-brainer that I believe most brokers will include it almost automatically. 2. Always buy increased maximum liability coverage. That is the amount that you will be covered for if you injure someone else, but it is also the amount you have available for you and your family if you are injured by an uninsured, underinsured or unidentified driver. Minimum is $200,000. Most policies are issued for $1 million. But it costs next to nothing to go to $2 million or even higher. If you are injured seriously enough that you can never work again or need serious ongoing care, even $2 million may not be nearly enough. If you are involved in a single vehicle accident, consider whether it was caused or contributed to by some other factor. I have a case right now against the City of Toronto for a client who crashed after hitting a pothole on the Gardner. I have had other cases where construction workers created a hazardous situation that led to a crash. My client received compensation. There have been cases where accidents have been caused by livestock or other domestic animals on the road. The owners of those animals may be liable. Remember, in all of these cases, even if you are at fault for the accident, you are entitled to no-fault accident benefits coverage under your policy. Again, this is a claim you make to your own insurance company. The basic coverage provides payment of medical and rehabilitation costs, attendant care costs (if you can’t take care of yourself) and income loss (up to $400 per week). Increased and additional benefits are available as optional coverage on your policy. That is a topic for another column. Please check out my website by going to either www.bikelawyer.ca or www.timleighbell.com . Please feel free to send any questions or comments to me at tim@timleighbell.com .
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Time hasn’t caught the good folks at Outspoken in Uxbridge napping or just coasting through life since the Calendar shoot that we did here last year. News of a “Top Notch� shop with great people running it spreads fast in the Biker World, particularly in an area with a distinct shortage of good shops offering any kind of decent service without travelling miles to get to them only to find long waits to get whatever was needed done. Brian and Olga have not only filled a void but set new standards in service and customer relations. Business has been good since they opened their doors, detailing, servicing and repairing different makes and models of motorcycles but there have also been some tremendous changes in that short period of time and things are about to get a lot busier yet. They have now expanded the shop into what was an adjacent unit in order to not just keep pace with the demands that were being placed on their very busy shop but to house the new equipment for their recent venture into Hydrographics.
prepped parts and within minutes, walk out with them all done and ready to be installed. Brian and Olga are open to new innovations and always ready to do whatever it takes to keep them on the cutting edge and provide their valued customers with not just the latest but the best methods available to make their bikes the best they can be. They are moving quickly into the kind of custom builds that turn heads and win prizes at the big shows so keep an eye on them as they are in this for the long haul and just don’t go for pretty. Pretty alone doesn’t get it done. If you are looking to do some modifications to your old ride now or in the future, whether it is mild or wild or something in between, something personal or unique, check them out. They listen and will treat you honestly!
Brian was really excited when he first told me what they were about to do and with good reason. This system is really fantastic as it lets you choose from thousands of stock graphics and designs and have them applied to your parts, helmets or whatever you have in a fraction of the time and cost of custom paint jobs done in the traditional methods. With the addition of a special printing system that is still yet to be brought in you will be able to create your own custom graphics and designs. It is amazing to watch the transformation from bare parts to custom coated parts done in a matter of minutes. For straight forward jobs, you could walk in with your
The Boys are Back in Town (Thin Lizzy) Part 6 of 6 Egil and I rode to the top of Denmark into the ferry terminal in Hirtshals for the overnight ferry back to Bergen, Norway. I need no map to know we are getting closer to Norway. The sun leaves as the cold rain begins. The chilly wind is biting from the North Sea. Some of the Bergen guys are already there as are the boys from Stavanger, Norway. We ride our bikes into the ferry hold and tightly secure them. These ocean going ferries are huge. Our bikes are surrounded by transport 18-wheelers. Cars are on the decks above. The ferry will get to Stavanger after about 12 hours and then we have another 6 hours to Bergen. We all settle in and head for the bar.
Sailing into Bergen, Norway. The everpresent, threatening clouds frame a rugged and beautiful vista. It reminds me of Canada’s Newfoundland that the NorLeft: The ferry wake as we weigian Vikings discovered. I suspect the seaward head into the North Sea. houses are brightly painted for the same reason as Below: Partying overnight on our East Coast. Returning fisherman can easily spot Denmark to Norway ferry. their waiting homes. The girls in Canada that see We arrive in Bergen and ride our bikes off the ferry. We pictures of Jorn like him, sec- have ridden through 10 different countries and some of ond from left because they them twice. I do not know how many miles we put on but think him very good looking it was a lot. It would have been easy to keep going. Europe is free and that he looks like the acPolice do not bother you unless doing something wrong. tor Jason Statham. I like him One hardly sees police...not like at home. Sure, they are for different reasons. Jorn is there but not in your face. Every country has been conquered and occupied, usually quiet and protective with a many times. The people have learned to value freedom. sense of humour but is more They have earned freedom through spilled blood. intense than Statham. As a result, individuals are allowed to be different, free
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to do what they want as long as they do not break laws. Police are reactive to broken laws not proactive in what they think may be future law breaking like at home. I have spent this long ride lulled into the peace of being left alone. Norway immigration/customs changed all this. The Special Treatment We are waved into a secondary check for the “special treatment” from some very suspicious and officious, powertripping female customs inspectors. Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) is home to feminism. However, it is irritating when the insecure must prove they are tough to their male counterparts at our expense. I am especially interesting to them because I am from Canada. There must be significance to this fact. The last thing they think is that I am a tourist like the hundreds of others that pass by without inspection. This is far too simple a reason for these people when it comes to DON. What is the REAL reason Don is here, they want to know. An older male supervisor who has been around the block a few times watches from the sidelines. Finally, he becomes exasperated at his officers bothering us “bad people” while the “good people” are being waved through with whatever they may be smuggling. Taxes in Scandinavia are very high so traveling residents are tempted to buy the same items elsewhere for much less. The females reluctantly wave us on our way with a
scowl. We arrive at the clubhouse a half hour later to many smiles. I feel free again in the ultimate mancave. The clubhouse is a former military cold war bunker built into the side of a mountain. It is self contained with all the comforts of home including some heated floors, many bedrooms, club rooms, and a bigger workshop than my former bike dealership. The next day, Egil and I hooked up with his wife Kine and most of his nine kids. Kine runs their tattoo shop as well as the household and puts up with Egil. Maybe that is why she sends him off to travel with me when he is not working as an electrician on a North Sea oil platform? Truth is she gives Egil his freedom. It works as he always looks forward to going home. We went downtown to walk around the quaint cobble stone streets. I love history so Egil started explaining about the buildings and statues. Bergen (founded in 1070) near the end of the Viking age is on the west The Bergen clubhouse. Our coast of Norway with arrival is too cool. “The a population of about Boys are Back in Town” by 300,000. It is the second Thin Lizzie is blaring over largest city after Oslo. Bergen is spread over 465 the outside speakers. square kilometres (180 sq miles) and is surrounded by 7 mountains. It has a mild climate for Norway as the Gulf Stream warms it up (yeah sure is all I gotta say). All this means is that the rest of Norway is real fucking cold.
Overlooking Bergen harbour eating ice cream. Egil loves to get me eating junk food so he won’t feel guilty about what he eats. He bought me the biggest ice cream cone he could find. I must say it did taste great.
The Vikings colonized Iceland and then Greenland. The remains of a Viking settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada have been carbon dated to around the year 1000. Sorry about your luck Christopher Columbus. These seafaring warriors had no fear of death by the
cold seas or battle. Who else would head out into the violent, freezing North Atlantic in an open sail/rowboat not knowing if they would find land. The Vikings were secure males as they also loved to write poetry, sometime humerous. A tip to the wise... pretend you like their poetry and laugh at all the jokes. Speaking of Vikings, Olaf who I met in Greece (funny guy at the bar who found beer for our party when the bars had none) has generously offered me a bike to ride from Tromsoe, Norway on another ride of a lifetime next summer. He wants to take me from Norway and a few other countries to Lithunania, and Latvia as a side trip and then to the Baltic Riviera in Poland. Two concerns come to mind; Bergen is the warmest spot in Norway and its mountain passes were closed by snow just after we rode to Greece this past JUNE! Secondly, Tromsoe is almost 2000 Donny with Viking statues kilometers north of Bergen in Bergen Square. The Vi- about 250 kilometers from kings founded many cit- the Arctic Circle. These guys ies and colonies, including are bred tough! I feel honoured with the Dublin, Ireland and Nor- invitati on but had already mandy, France. made plans to ride with Boz from England up to Poland...maybe, I can talk Boz into hooking up with Olaf in Lithuania or Latvia. Olav loves culture and history and wants to teach me. He can tell that I love to learn as does Boz.
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Our Youngest Supporter While we were at the Big Party in Greece, Egil dragged me around all the support booths to buy support crests from around the world. I could tell it was important to him although I was not understanding why. As soon as we rode into Bergen, Egil went home to see his wife, Kine and his 9 kids. Kine had a tiny black leather vest and sewed the crests onto it. A few hours later, Egil walked into the clubhouse with Kine and their 4 year old son Ty. I instantly understood. Ty became one of the boys hanging out with his biggest hero, his dad.
Ty hangs his support vest beside the old man’s.
That means your left foot works the foot clutch and your left hand shifts the transmission. But since Egil’s bike has a left-side handlebar clutch lever and jockey shifter, you can’t do both using one (your left) hand. So Egil effortlessly operated the clutch as designed with his left hand and reached over with his right hand to bang the shifter to put the tranny through the gears. The surprise of the whole trip was that I couldn’t keep up with this 60 year old Harley in traffic. Egil zipped in and out, white lining the hilly and twisting two-lane roads of Bergen. The kicker is that I’ve been riding Harleys and owned a Panhead before Egil was even born! Yes, the Road Glide has almost double the horsepower and two extra transmission gears over this old Pan, but not the maneuverability. I want to thank the boys of Bergen, Stavanger, Tromsoe, Erfurt, Coastland, Potsdam (Berlin), Prague, Budapest, Belgrade, Greece and all the others who took me under their wing.
Egil showed me a picture. Egil had hung his vest in the closet. While he went about his business, Ty found a chair and hung his vest right beside Egil’s. After a final night’s sleep at the clubhouse we left on the 20-mile ride around the low lying mountains to return my rented 2015 Road Glide to the good people at the dealership, Harley-Davidson Bergen, www.hdbergen.no. The guys there are friendly, knowledgeable, and speak good English. Egil decided to take his Ty modeling his vest with stripped-down hand banger mousetrap support crests from Bul- (handshift), (spring-loaded garia, World, and Milano clutch actuator), single throttle (no (Milan). throttle return push spring), four-speed transmission-equipped, rigid-frame Panhead with apehangers for the ride. The hand banger is designed for use with a foot clutch.
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Bergen, Norway H-D dealership treated us great. The service manager and head tech pictured are knowledgeable and friendly.
We had a wonderful trip...living the dream. Donny Petersen My 7 tech books are available on Amazon.com; the last 3 are now on iTunes. My website www.donnypetersen.com has not been working properly for the last while. It is now. It also has more content and stories and stuff. The books are published in the U.S. and priced in American dollars. If you want one, two, or seven email me at HD2010@live.ca and I can sell you signed copies in Canadian dollars. You can see the books on my website.
This is officially my first column written in 2016, so Happy New Year everybody. In past years it has been a tradition for me to head down to Toronto and participate in the Motorcycle Supershow to help promote the Mag and meet up with old and new friends and as a bonus I get to see what new in products there are for motorcycles and the people who love to ride them. We got lucky with just some rain and good traffic on the 401 for the whole trip down to Toronto with the exception of stopping by Motorsport Plus in Kingston to say hello to the parts manager Preston Paul and to drop off some more Mags. Other than that we did the rest of the trip in one clean sweep and didn’t hit any big rush hour traffic coming into Toronto. Once we got up into the airport district we stopped by our hotel to drop off some of our luggage and bumped into Perry Montgomery from the Cornwall area getting himself registered at the front desk. I have mentioned Perry in my column many times because he is a strong supporter of the Mag and the TCB and it is well appreciated. When we arrived at the International Center and picked up our passes and I.D, my next step was to see how the new double rig canopy looked in our booth and I have to say it was pretty awesome with Critter’s Riders Mag trike situated to one side and overhead the new LED lighting system to brighten everything up. All this complimented our new look for The Riders Mag which includes a glossy cover and center page and a new process to make the pictures even sharper so we believe 2016 is going to be one exciting year for all of us who work on getting our publication out to all of you. As luck would have it the neighbors to our right were none other than Ray Bonner & James Taylor, together these two guys head up the promotion of Pace Law’s Motorcycle Division and they both work tirelessly doing their best to see that injured bikers and their families are protected in the event they are injured in some way. Thanks to efforts of Ray and JT, Pace
Law has not only become a strong sponsor of our magazine, but they have been very active in helping The Celtic Brotherhood with their ongoing efforts to promote brain injury and PTSD awareness across the province. Once settled in, Chuckay and Hark headed out to take their first look at the whole show while I used the time to catch up with everyone in the booth and also to met Bernie, who is now our new rep for the “deep south” of our province and who along with a couple of other guys will be keeping our readers in the Windsor-Chatham area updated on what’s going on in their community. In keeping with tradition, those of us who work the show always meet up to have breakfast at a little cafe called the Airport Grill, one of those places where you can get breakfast the good old fashioned way where your food arrives at the table exactly the way you ordered it and they are very “biker friendly” only makes it more enjoyable. I thanked the three generations of women who run the diner and took a picture of the mother and daughter before we left. Before the doors opened I took a quick stroll around Salon 5 where most custom bike builders are set up at this show to exhibit their building skills and it gave me the opportunity to get some pictures of some of the motorcycles before the crowd pours in. One booth was filled with a large number of various futuristic looking motorcycles and Hark mentioned that he thought they all looked like they were from some movie like Mad Max and he wasn’t far off
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because these bikes really did bring home the idea of imagining what custom bikes might look like in some post-apocalyptic movie including one extremely futuristic looking trike in the display. During the walk I also had the opportunity and pleasure of getting a warm welcome from some of the ladies who are members
of a WC called the Iron Sirens, a club I strongly support and I have always encouraged other women who ride to consider joining a club like this one and seeing more and more ladies take their place in the motorcycle community has always felt right to me. Much thanks to Roxx and Cherry for once again making us feel welcome and look forward to seeing the Iron Sirens in the Spring. Back in the booth everyone had already started handing out copies of our “new” issue which as I mentioned earlier sports a new logo with our name and a glossy cover and center page where we highlight special calendar featuring events taking place in whatever month’s issue it is. The public’s reaction to the changes have been phenomenal and much to our delight so was the demand for our support shirts and embroidered patches and we were sold out of some items by the day’s end. The Motorcycle Supershow always draws big numbers but this year’s crowd makes me think it was one of the larger one’s attended, it seemed the hallways and salons were jammed up with people all day long and many of the folks commented on how there was so much to see and they hoped one day would be enough to see everything. Later in the morning Alex Jr, the original founder of The Riders Mag dropped by for a few hours and brought his father Alex Sr., who has always come down to each show to hand out copies of the magazine to people just like he has for the last 17 years. All the time that JR and I were talking I was noticing the respect given as people came up to Alex Sr. and mentioned how they have made a tradition of getting their copy from him whenever they come to this show. The weather plays a large factor in who attends this show and because it was only rain from Ottawa to Toronto there were a large number of riders from Ottawa, Kingston, Cornwall, Pembroke and even as far away as Montreal. It stayed so busy that we passed on taking a prolonged tour of the show and by about 6:00 pm we decided to leave the care of the booth to the younger members and we headed back to the hotel for a rest and then out for some dinner. The next day after breakfast Chuckay, Hark and myself took some time to hand out some “Award of Gratitude” plaques from The Celtic Brotherhood to Ray & JT at Pace Law Motorcycle Division and to The Riders Mag for their ongoing support of the TCB’s efforts in traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress disorder awareness especially the Busted Bucket Challenge project because without their help we could never reach out to the public the way we need to in order to make a difference. Funny how when I looked over the
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pictures of us with the awards it doesn’t seem to matter how many times we have all done this, we still look like a herd of freaking deer caught in some cars headlights. Sunday’s crowd was a pretty fair size compared to past years and when it was near time for me and the guys to head back to Ottawa we decided to walk the length of the show and when we reached the end Chuckay was kind enough to go back and bring the truck down to pick us up. Keep in mind that a show like this one had lots of everything for people to see, motorcycles, clothes, gadgets and a large number of clubs of all types who had booths there to promote their club’s activities. Also a large numbers of rides had booths at the show hoping to get riders to participate in their upcoming events. Speaking of that, there is one event I would like to mention called the Blue Tie Ride and is dedicated to the issue of prostate cancer. This ride began about 5 years ago and because I like their sense of community spirit I thought I would mention that if your club or group would like to perhaps start your own blue tie ride in your area you could contact me and I will gladly pass your request on to their chairperson, the “Lovely” Dolly Betancourt
Except for testing some hot sauces from the Mad Gringo booth and picking up some beard oil on the way out the three of us were back on the highway before suppertime and back in Ottawa in time to beat any snow that fell. There is one last thing I forgot to mention about while we were at the show over the weekend and that was all the attention my new Brotherhood ring that Elias from Noura’s jewelers custom made for us and during the weekend a couple of dozen people commented on how impressed they were with the craftsmanship and asked where we had it made. I fully expect to head down and attend the Super Swap Meet in Syracuse New York and will let you all know how that goes although there may be much fewer Canadians going down to this show this year because even though it is a great swap meet, the exchange rate between dollars makes it pretty hard to find much that is treasure. I also want to remind
all of you of our own Greely Swap Meet coming up on Feb 7th at the Greely legion Hall on Mitch Owens Road. Every year this event keeps getting better and better and Al, James and Grant have done a great job of hosting a true swap meet in the Ottawa area and I should mention you can also stop by The Riders Mag table and say hello! .. As always I want to remind all of you that if you have an event or ride or if you are a business that deals with either motorcycles or the people who ride them, you might like to advertise or be a distributor for ‘The Riders Mag’ and if so please contact me either by email or by telephone. Email: theridersmag.beau@gmail.com Follow me on Twitter: Riders Mag East : http://twitter.com/motorcyco_beau Read The Riders Mag Online: http://theridersmag.com/online I want all of you to remember... We make our motorcycle communities stronger!... By making them better! .... Brotherhood! Motorcyco Beau!
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One for the road
The Show MUST Go On! I’m not sure how some people have come to the conclusion that anyone who rides a motorcycle is bad news. The stigma really pisses me off actually. I recently read an online publication that made a nasty remark that people who ride motorcycles must live in trailers, have tattoos and are not contributing members of society. Where am I going with this? Well, I recently attended the Toronto International Motorcycle Show, and it dawned on me during my trek around the various halls, schmoozing with the crowd, that motorcycle riders are some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. If given the option to be in a large venue with motorcycle riders, or to attend a business seminar, sign me up for where the bikes are! So, when I was allowed to go and play at the motorcycle show, I was excited. SO excited in fact, I went for two days! This is MY Disneyland!!
Packing my camera, I ventured into the show to meet’n greet with the various vendors and guests alike. Something you’ll notice at these shows, is the various rides (charity and just for fun) that run throughout Ontario. Even a booth for Nova Scotia’s Wharf Rat Rally. So if you’re looking to plan your summer riding itinerary, it’s the place to go. Mike and I are usually at some kind of an event every weekend during the riding season and this is where we start our list, so if you have an event between Durham and Kingston feel free to shoot me an email. Making my way to the Riders Mag booth, I finally met Al!!! I always thought that our editor was a ghost, or the very least, an alter ego of Critter. I could never meet or find the man at any events! (Yet, I’d hear others say, “While I was talking to AL.”)
…..with Lil Red
Alas, he exists and so I hung around the Riders Mag booth awhile, passing out the mags, taking random pics. Seeing all the people walking through, carrying bags with helmets, jackets and who knows what else, I had to go spend money and play. After all, I am female and I have the gene to shop on occasion.
Making my way through, I remembered that Paul Jr. was going to be at the show, and although I didn’t want a signature, I thought it’d be pretty cool to have my pic with him. So I headed over to where he was gonna be, and the lineup was ugly. I mean, UGLY! So, walking past the line, I heard someone say something, then felt someone reach over to where I was standing. Hey, it’s my buddy Robert Allen, from our Trenton/Campbellford bike runs. He did mention to me in our travels that he was coming to the show. So I’m glad that we could briefly catch up. Being that he was in line, by the time we chatted about upcoming rides and such, he was next in line to meet Paul Jr. I was just looking for a pic of Paul Jr., but after chatting with Rob, I was afforded the opportunity to sneak in the photo, and I did just that. (thanks Rob!)
So after the pic, we made small talk and planned to meet up for food and drinks later during the show (Mike was coming after all and would like to catch up as well). Besides, there’s more folks to catch up with and then there’s the bikes!! Back to my search. I had to find that ‘Resident Evil’ bike.
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It’s something to see, and this year, they added lights and a bit more colour. It was awesome. Got pics of every angle, just to appreciate it! While wrapping up with this creation, another friend of ours called out. Hey, Dr. Dan Boyle! He’s our chiropractor and runs his health centre, Natural Rhythms, out of Stirling. And I gotta say, if you have an issue that needs remedied with body, heart and even your head (don’t we all?) this guy’s on it! And he rides!! Who better to understand the kind of straightening out you need, then a fellow rider. Pleasantries exchanged, onto wrapping up the day. After all, there’s always tomorrow. Before leaving for the day however, I was given the pleasure to sit with Critter and have a couple of drinks, even do a little bit of shop talk. And while sitting alongside Critter, discussing the changes he’s made to the mag (notice the shiny cover?), we had person after person stopping by to say hi, shoot the shit, or even join in the shop talk. This Critter is a popular guy! On to the next day!! And as Mike and I arrived, we began making plans with our friends Glenn, Wendy, Mike and Lina, to meet up and catch up! We see more of them in the summer, not so much in the shitty weather. So during our rounds with our friends, we bumped into more people we know from our rides. That’s why I love this show!!! And it so happened that these friends, Dennis and Gayle from Live Better Sprouting in Stirling, just bought an Indian Motorcycle! Mike’s gonna be pissed. He’s been eyeing an Indian ride for awhile now, and here his buddy Dennis got one! A matte black Scout! And as he’s discussing the deal he got for his new baby, he’s not shy to say it’s my fault. Last year I showed him an article on the Indian Chief and he’s been bitten ever since. I should be in sales!!! My son is by far not even close to being ready to ride a motorcycle yet, he wants a truck first. But we found these motor-powered bikes, and some had some pretty mean wheels on them. We took some pics cause this is something Mike and Jes can build themselves. We stopped by the Riders Mag booth again and couldn’t even get by because of the crowd. Our very own Donny Peterson and Larry Pooler were there, selling 2016 81 support calendars and Donny’s new book. How does he have the time? And he was kind enough to stick around and sign his book for people as well. So I suppose I’m gonna have to weasel up to the booth. With trusty camera in hand, I’m snapping pics, climbing chairs for a better shot. Critter was there to help with the proper photo op, and he made sure that I didn’t fall off
the chair that I stood on for an ideal pic. (As I’ve said before, and some of you already know, I’m far from graceful!) The crowd, the vendors, the friends (even got to meet the guys from Quinn’s Custom Motorcycle in Welland) and the drinks, what more could you want. When we as riders, miss the beautiful riding months, this is the place to be.
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Memorial Street Glide
This month’s feature guy is Big Ed from Toronto, and this beauty 2006 Street Glide is known as “Family Memorial”. It’s his fourth Harley and his 6th motorcycle overall. He picked this bike up one year old at the Harley dealer and says that he thinks it came through the auction probably as a repo from a finance company. After he picked it up a couple of his buddies called and said they had also bought road glides and when he went to check out their rides he says he parked next to theirs and they were exactly the same, well let’s just say that experience resulted in what you see here. Ed started out riding metric saying when he was a young lad he wanted to ride and had always aspired to ride a Harley but figured that before he bought the real thing he should probably learn how to properly ride a bike. He
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started out with a 1979 Yamaha 650 and from there he moved on to a 1980 Yamaha 650. One of the hard lessons he learned while teaching himself to ride was the hard cornering on wet pavement rule saying that he was on a curving corner next to where he lived with his mother back then and came ripping down the corner leaning it more than he should have and he went down. Fortunately he says one of the neighbors in the complex saw the incident and came out and helped him get the bike back up. He fired it up and rode on; never fixed the damage or anything just filed that as something not to do in the future. After he had gained his confidence with the metric bikes he bought his first Harley, it was a late 1984 Decker with an evolution engine which he purchased from a Harley dealer, who no longer exists.He then started monkeying around
with customizing bikes with that very first Harley. He never did say what was the fate of that bike but he did have a couple more. The more recent bike was a 1992 Heritage Softail which was a bit of a departure from the Decker theme that runs through Ed’s life but he did say that the bike was heavily customized and that he was riding about 10 years ago through Scarborough with a lady on the back of the bike when an unobservant woman driving with an infant in a car seat pulled a left turn in front of him on a green light. He flew over the handlebars after t-boning the car breaking 3 ribs and injuring his back. The lady was less fortunate spending over a week in hospital with severe internal injuries. The bike was a total loss and the cops accident reconstruction crew said that if he had hit the car a little further back that there was a very high probability that the child in the car would have been killed as well but that accident changed his life and his attitude about riding with passengers especially his two daughters who are adults now and were teenagers at that time. His mother also loves his bike
and had asked him if she could have a picture of herself sitting on his current bike, of course he obliged. She had the picture enlarged and hung in her home and also posted a version on face book, many of her friends urged her to ask Ed to take her for a ride but he will not. This ride replaced his heritage softail picking it up the year after the accident. At the time we did his shoot Ed had racked up over 50K invested in this bike all because of the fact that his bike was too exactly like his buddies bikes and he wanted to stand out. Ed says that for every year since he bought the bike as a bone stock 1 year old street glide with very low mileage the bike has been torn down as he upgraded the bike and its look. The entire engine is chromed out, Ed says that there is nothing more that could possibly be done to add chrome to the engine, and each year he added a bit more to the bike focusing on the body work and paint as well as the stereo system. The list of suppliers is long and what I found most amazing was that he bought the bags and the rear fender and filler from different suppliers and not only made them work together but did so in different years. The bags are extended not just a piece molded onto the bottom of the existing bags, complete replace-
ments with all that extra space but still using the factory hardware, the side panels match the bags, the fairing was painted inside and out, a quick remove tour pack resides on the back of the bike if he takes a passenger which he says is rarely. The tour pack is complete with a set of rear speakers. The front and rear fenders, rear fender fillers and the dashboard were all the previous winters project which also involved swapping out the factory 16 front wheel for a 21” although he retained the factory dual disc brakes and calipers opting for chrome covers. There are a million other things added to this bike including those hi end tweeters that nest nicely above the instrument cluster giving him a fifth and sixth speaker and the paint was also finished up last year which drives the name family memorial but to really see the theme the tour pack needs to be on the bike as well as it contains tombstones and the names of 7 members of Ed’s immediate and extended family who have passed away. He says he told his daughters the bike is never to be sold and he wants his name added to the memorial when he passes but if he buys another bike which is in the plans when this one’s finished they can sell that and split the cash. So just when you think Ed’s bike is as maxed out as it can get he says that he is adding speakers to the lids of the bags last winter, a 6 gallon gas tank and L.E.D. instruments into the existing fairing, wow he’s spent a lot of time thinking about this. I asked Ed about travel, he says the longest ride was to Montreal on this bike but that he has been to Daytona but did not have a bike with him. This machine has won 34 show and shine trophies and he wants to ride it down east to the Cabot trail as well as to Sturgis, Laconia and Daytona if he can just get some time off work.
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Stabilizer and Peace of Mind! When I had my first bike, a guy I knew warned me to put stabilizer in it for the winter and I didn’t listen. He told me about how he put his Kawasaki in warm storage from Oct. till May without the stuff and paid nearly two grand to get the carburetor and gas lines cleaned in the spring. I figured that I would start my bike and run it every couple weeks in my cold shed and all would be well...and it was. Of course, I was a new rider and rode it as late as possible and started in late March (God bless southern Ontario weather!). A year later, I borrowed Dad’s rotor tiller that had sat in his cold shed for a year and found that I had to rebuild the carb and install new gas lines before it would run! I soon had an ‘89 Classic and it was harder to get it out of my long driveway than my sportster and wound up riding less in the winter and began to use stabilizer, just on general principles. For a good laugh, my small bottle of it is a ten year supply! Thanks to a mild winter in the Hamilton area, I’m still riding my bike and today, after a brief prayer, I’ll put my first dose of stabilizer in this winter and top up the gas.... and have a ride (shedding a tear for you guys further north and east...but just one tear). Most of you know that stabilizer is peace of mind for longer storage, a given for most riders. It’s also peace of mind that can ward off some worry in the winter and prevent disaster in the spring. I’ve heard it said that people suffer more from depression in the spring than in the winter but I’m not sure that it’s true of most motorcycle riders, This time last year we all had PMS! How about having the best peace of mind possible this winter. In John 14:27, Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.” I bet you’d like something better than you’ve ever had this year and spiritual peace will take you there. It’s the best stabilizer ever and it’s not just a ten year supply, it’s guaranteed forever...and it’s free! The peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7) Please pray with me: Jesus I ask you to take my heart and mind and soul and make them yours today and forever. Please give me peace and let that spread among my friends and family and help us to beat the winter blues this year. Amen When you say your prayers, please mention a good word for Pastor Dave and all the Bikers church pastors across Ontario. God bless the rest of your year;! Pastor Ken hamiltonbikerschurch. com 905 870 8584 kenang@cogeco.ca
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‘Good morning! Here we go kids, keep your hands in the car . . . we’re gonna go reeeeeeeeal fast now! Summer carried on into October and even November this year, what a great year to be a biker! I saved my last ride of the year for this month hoping writing the memories would kick out the winter blues. Before my last great riding adventure, Grey Bruce hosted their annual Halloween party. After getting dressed up as a court jester with full face paint and all I headed out. I hadn’t been to the barn in many years so when I first walked I was welcomed
in the 90’s and still have one at home. The only logical thing to do was to have a little rock on the bike so I did. Halloween was one rockin’ and rollin’ night this year! With my face paint cracking I entered the costume contest and was very surprised to conquer second place! The prize was to come in handy at the upcoming New Year’s Eve Bash. With spirits high and my drink low it was time to head home. I signed the ceiling again as my last two signatures had been covered by new walls! The very week after Halloween was an unusual forecast
with floods of déjà vu. Memories of sleeping in the barn, memories of friends long gone, memories of boyfriends long gone, and memories of laughter, lots and lots of laughter! Once my eyes adjusted to the smoky haze I saw the crazy bunch from Port Elgin with their KKK member and many ABATE members from various chapters including Woodstock, Toronto, Huron-Perth, and Brantford all supporting one another. It’s great when a club sticks together over the years, through thick and thin. It seemed like all the good people were in one place again, and in costume! There were quite a few clowns, a nurse (could be handy), a maid or two, the KKK, some scary monsters (until you get to know them), a pregnant nun, a cowgirl, a bag lady, and a little bit of sexy here and there. Then I suddenly spotted the “Rocking Bike”! I had actually helped bondo the “Rocking Bike” prior to paint at some point
with temperatures forecast over 15 degrees, but during the week. Normally I work during the week but like any responsible biker, I played hooky and went riding with my friend Dennis. After all the group riding, tight timelines, and silly summer traffic it was a nice break to ride nowhere in particular without a schedule. Dennis had never been on the Big Bay road before so we decided to ride that route. The road from Wiarton through Big Bay and back to Owen Sound is one of my top 5 favorite local rips with the Georgian Bay and the Bruce Peninsula to the right and the escarpment to the left, it is just spectacular! We decided to take a different route home so we didn’t end up back in Owen Sound so we turned back south . . . or so we thought. Well, the road winds up down and around, maybe even doubling back twice, and next thing you know we were lost on the Kemble Mountain! Wherever we were it was definitely a beautiful road, or at least what was left of the road with half of the lanes crumbled into the shoulder but hey, it ain’t fun if it’s all smooth!
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A few weeks later my good friend Tracey turned 50 which inspired a surprise birthday party. This is no easy feat considering that Tracey is the center cell of the entire group of close friends and family. Nothing happens with-
out Tracey knowing about it . . . except for this! Poor Tracey, she had been contacting family and friends for weeks trying to find someone to spend her 50th birthday with but every single friend and family member told her they were busy. She was a bit down considering nobody wanted to hang out with her during the half century transition. We sure fooled her as we ALL wanted to spend some time with her on her special day! HAPPY 50th BIRTHDAY TRACEY!!! We all love you!
Some other interesting things happened during the late fall. ABATE Woodstock took 2nd place for best float in the Woodstock Santa Claus Parade. This is one of the few biker moments that is seen by the entire community. This is our good side that people do not see or understand, thank you Woodstock ABATE for showing the community the simple truth without the Hollywood theatrics. Every month there is bad news, more loss and this month the biker community suffered some huge losses. Pete Sinclair was a funny guy and true biker with a heart of gold. Many bikers, in fact most bikers around here have met Pete at some point and will miss him dearly.
The biker community also lost Tom Mann recently. Tom Mann was the camera and much more behind Biker TV. Tom brought us fantastic footage from biker events near and far. Tom brought the profound, quirky, and deep thoughts to life! Sometimes I completely understood Tom’s views and sometimes I was completely baffled but it was always interested in the read. Thanks Tom for bringing us Biker TV, a first in Canada! May they both rest in peace and both ride forever free!
The numbers are in from the Big Balls Dice Run but rather than just tell you the number, I would prefer to share with you the letter from Marianne Hebb, the Chair of the London Down Syndrome Association. We really did rock that weekend, oh yeah baby!!!
“Big Balls Dice Run has some even bigger hearts! Wow, what a wonderful donation you made at the 13th Annual London Down Syndrome Association Gala on Saturday evening! You have made our kids and the families your reason to ride and we can’t ever say thank you enough! Your donation last year was large and now $40,000, WOW, WOW, WOW! Doug and Lise Lounsbury thank you for beginning this great ride and weekend over 25 years ago and for your organizing committee who all work hard in planning and executing it each and every year! All of the wonderful participants, sponsors, and donors who return year after year, a big HEARTFELT THANKS for “Riding for Our Kids!” We look forward to hearing those motors running in 2016!! YOU GUYS ROCK!!” Marianne Hebb Chair, Board of Directors London Down Syndrome Association Take care of yourself and hug your loved ones close because this life thing can disappear in a split second. Ride on!’
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It has been a relatively mild winter with a few very cold days... but we are pretty lucky out this way. A lot of riders keep their bikes insured and on the road year round, so when the rain stops, and the clouds part, anyone who can is out there on their bike. Although Winter riding has a few extra hazards to watch for, like icy patches, and congested traffic, impatient drivers that are distracted, etc.
Knowing full well that the motorcycle Community is truly a family and that we do look after our own. It’s a beautiful thing to have an organization such as this, watching over riders and their families like guardian angels. If you have ever ridden or been a passenger on a motorcycle you know what an exhilarating and almost intoxicating event it can be. It is all encompassing a mind and body experience, where all of your senses are engaged. The sights, the smells, the feeling of the wind, the freedom and independence it gives. It is almost a religious experience. But as we all know it can also be a very dangerous thing. There are Road hazards, wild animals, bike problems and of course we have probably all had a near miss with
So in the name of safety for this Wintery Feb issue I thought I’d introduce to you, a very cool group of people. They are known as A.I.M. The Association for Injured Motorcyclists. I was first introduced to the AIM organization at a popular fundraiser here in the Lower Mainland, a wellattended event, by both MC’s and individuals alike, The Old-Timers Dance!! Held just before Christmas. It was here I where I met and had an impromptu interview with President Dave Munro. We had the opportunity to chat about A.I.M. Who they are, what they do, why they do the things they do, and where they’re located.
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an inattentive driver in their cage. We probably all know someone that has laid their bike down, and unfortunately we probably all know somebody that has been injured or worse, lost their life, doing what they love, just riding their motorcycle. It is the lamentable price that motorcyclists pay for the freedom we love. In cities and on highways, people in cars and trucks just don’t look out for bikes and their riders. The drivers are sadly under the belief the bikers should watch out for them. Yes, we’ve all seen the bumper stickers that say, “Loud pipes save lives” and they do. We all know the basic rules to keep safe which include: keeping your bike in good condition, with good brakes, tires, proper headlights and tail lights (both day and night) with proper working signal lights,(as well as knowing your hand signals) knowing how to ride in a group or formation, staggering bikes and riding at a safe and reasonable following distance, knowing a car or trucks blind spots, flashing your brake lights and using your hand signals before stopping, and not being afraid to use your horn. And of course, if all else fails, Yell obscenities!!! All of these things will ultimately help to keep you and your passengers safe, but let’s face it, People in cages either don’t care, don’t understand, Or both...they need to wake up AND LOOK AROUND!!! Now of course there are other things that a rider can do to protect themselves and their passengers, like wearing proper certified helmets and eye protection, wearing thick
leather or other protective or reflective riding gear, always wearing proper footwear and/or gloves. But really just being prepared is more than half the battle. Even with all of the preparations and caution unfortunately our brothers and sisters still get hurt at times. But this is where the incredible people from A.I.M. jump in and step up to the plate. AIM is an incredible group of men and women that provide so much more than just simple hospital visits. President Dave Munro, tells me that A.I.M. provides legal, moral and rehabilitation guidance to the injured rider. They provide friendship, support, transport to and from Dr.’s appointments, they provide an attentive ear and big shoulders to lean on. They have even modified Bikes for the injured rider and provided a feeling of security in uncharted waters. They are a wealth of knowledge. And this reporter definitely got the impression that if they did not have the answer ‘They would surely find it!!!’ According to their very informative website: www. aimvancouver.com , they assist victims who are unable to return to their homes or former occupations, they will refer victims and loved ones to existing education and rehabilitation agencies, and they also supply hospital victims with things like reading material ie: “The Riders Mag “, TV rental, and will locate special equipment like wheelchairs if needed. There are Lawyers within the membership that give legal counsel and support to injured individuals their families and to the society as a whole. It should also be mentioned that the directors, regional representatives, and members serve the association on a volunteer basis, and that fundraising for AIM, to do their good work, is attained by membership fees, donations, recreational functions, and fundraising events. Aim is not a “motorcycle club” per se it is an association... And organized cause. AIM has four chapters in British Columbia
Prince George, B.C., Canada V2M 5Y6 Tel: 250.596.1410 http://www.aimnorth.ca/ --president@aimnorth.ca PLEASE learn more about the organization, membership, to get support for an Injured Motorcyclist, to make a donation, or to attend an event. They also have great tips about motorcycle safety... We love our readers... At The Riders Mag, so please... Always remember to have fun, and be safe. Happy Anniversary To The Jesters, N.Surrey Broken Angel will be handing out The Riders Mag at the Vancouver Motorcycle Show on Jan. 22-24 FridaySunday Tradex (at Abbotsford Airport) YXX 1190 Cornell St. Abbotsford, BC V2T 6H5. Friday: 10am-9pm, Sat: 10am8pm, Sun: 10am-5pm I hope to see you there!!! Stop by meet me... Tell me your story...and get your copy of The Riders Mag If you are from the West Coast, British Columbia or Alberta and you’d like to feature your club, organization or event on the Pacific Ponderings page or if you would just like to say a special happy birthday or happy anniversary please contact Susie via email: brokenangel@ridersmag.com
Much Love and Respect always... Broken Angel
Vancouver chapter, A.I.M. Vancouver Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley Suite #37, 13320 - 116th Avenue Surrey, B.C., Canada V3R 0R8 Tel: 604.580.0112 Fax: 604.580.0114 http://www.aimvancouver.com/-info@aimvancouver.com Interior/Okanagan/Kootenay chapter, A.I.M. Interior P.O. Box 2152 Station “R” Kelowna, B.C., Canada V1X 4K6 http://www.aiminteriorbc.org/-- aim@aiminteriorbc.org A Vancouver Island chapter, Vancouver Island (Please contact A.I.M. Vancouver until further notice.) And a Northern BC/Caribou Chapter, Northern B.C. / Cariboo President: Darryl Laing 452 Dornbierer Crescent
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It seems that Mother Nature has been remembering her meds these days as she doesn’t seem to be bi-polar as much lately! I have to applaud her for showing her bright warm side for the 15th annual B.O.T.B Daybreak BBQ yet again. In all the years of this event, there has only been 1 year in which the rain showed its’ grump and forced the rain date.
The clubhouse was busting at the seams in high spirits Friday night as everyone jumped in, full force preparing for the next day’s events. The stories of years past seemed to put a bounce in everyone’s step. The “remember when” was the mark of a slew of laughter and others jumping in as if they were auditioning for the part of Horshack from Welcome Back Kotter. “Oh, Oh, Oh, Remember when…..” It was enough to make you believe for just a moment that the world was perfect. All hands were on deck, nothing was being left unattended. Inside the club house it looked like a prep station for an army brigade. The mountains of Hot Dog Buns, Hamburger Buns, the team hard at work slicing cases of tomatoes, crying eyes chopping onions, huge jars of pickles, condiments and salads galore, it was all enough to make ones mouth wa-
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ter. The smoke billowed from the BBQ’s outside as what seemed like a cow was being cooked. The mammoth burgers and enormous hot dogs concealed every inch of grill there was, as the hours went by cooking all up for the hungry herd. The night was an early one, we all headed home to snuggle up in our beds, to dream of sugar plums dancing in our heads, for this eve was nothing short of Christmas Eve indeed. The big hearts of Clubs always extend their arms to those in need, whether cancer, lupus, the less fortunate, the blind, autism and the never ending list continues. The Brothers of the Blade have been raising funds for the last 25 years for those with special needs and during this time they have been able to help in so many ways. Over $400,000.00 in donations have been put towards so many things, bathroom upgrades, special equipment, sunrooms, family room renovations, new windows and doors, new furnaces, exterior decks, handicapped lifts, and the list goes on and on.
As with every year past, the blue sky was masked in the early hours with those threatening grumpy clouds, but nothing would stop this day from being what it always is, the skies opened up and it was Spectacular! We all enjoyed our coffee, tea and maybe a few Caesars here and there while we waited for the day to begin and the anticipation arouse for the guests to arrive. The cars began to emerge around the corner, one after another, like a convoy of ships coming home from a long haul. The property became the site of almost 250 people from near and far. Familiar faces, new faces, all with smiles that could warm the world. Parents brought their kids, workers brought their residents, kids brought their grandparents, it was definitely an incredible sight to see. Once the shrieks of excitement settled (well, not sure if the excitement ever subsided), it was time for the bikes to rumble, and the rides to start. The kids (a term of endearment that reflects their innocence and purity…) lined up
as if it were a free for all cotton candy toss. The Members and volunteers toured the property with smiling passengers for about an hour. It was extraordinary to watch 5 “Big Bad Bikers” gently lift those in wheelchairs onto the back
of bikes and walk beside them. The food was now served, a great spread to fill everyone’s hunger, followed by refreshing ice cream. The games begin with as much excitement as the rides. First, the egg race, and with that comes the chilling thought of just one of those eggs, plopping right off the spoon and onto the hot pipes. I noticed some of the riders leaning so far over that it was a miracle they didn’t tip the bike. Others went so far as to sit on a towel and cover the tank in hopes that that one little slip of the egg wouldn’t fry itself to their shiny clean bike. Member Gary’s job was to hand the eggs to the kids, but somehow as one of the riders past, he managed to get that egg launched straight into the centre of his chest causing his shirt to look like a perfect bull’s-eye on a target. Moving on to the weenie bite. I’m always in awe of how
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many of the kids manage to have enough room in their stomachs to eat the weenie after the huge feast they all just devoured. There were some that managed to get a good chunk of it, some just missing, some just grabbing and yanking the whole thing off, and those that twisted their body as far away as possible in order to avoid coming into any contact with it. Great entertainment all around and good for laughs.
The Potato Race is never one to miss. Watching the hay get tossed every which way seems fun right up until the full on WWE match starts over that last standing potato. I always wonder how many kids end up the next morning with black eyes. With rides, food and games in tow it was now time for the speeches and awards. We all gathered around as Brother Puss presented this year’s donation to Ann, $8,000 towards a new roof and a new gas stove. Never failing to grace us with their high-spirited excitement, several of the kids race up to the mic to thank all the Brothers, Wives, Ladies and volunteers for their hard work. Missing this year was Amanda, the fearless, peppy voice for all. Some health
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issues kept her away this year and it was sad not to see her, though many of the kids stepped up in her absence and conveyed their gratitude for this day. With the tremendous turn out this year, it was amazing to see some come from as far as Hunstville. The Muskoka B.O.T.B. have been working with Community Living Hunstville for over a year in hopes of helping in their local area and those with special needs. Muskoka sponsored the travel for the crew to come down to the Whitchurch Clubhouse for the BBQ, where they could enjoy what the day is all about. Member Easy made his way to the podium and presented a beautifully restored electric wheel chair to Tracey. Tracey seemed taken aback by it all and after a few moments found the words she was looking for to thank everyone for their generosity. With Anne overjoyed with their gift, Tracey glowing at hers, there was only one more thing to tend to, the kids gift bags. For 15yrs Ray and Maggie Carter have put together gift bags for every one of the kids who attend the event. No one has ever gone without, whether it be the kids from the group homes or the kids and grandkids of guests. This year, an incredible 85 bags handed out and enjoyed. The crowd lessens and the cleanup began. As I chipped in wiping tables, I could hear the chatter around me. Fantastic, Incredible, Amazing, Super, Fabulous and Sensational where just some of the words rolling off everyone’s tongues describing the day’s results. Another great event and another year to be proud of. Great Job B.O.T.B. and all who participated! The Critter Crew will be here, there and everywhere this summer, so enjoy the sun, enjoy the fun, and I look forward to meeting, greeting and seeing all. The Mag Hag
THE STORY~~~~~~:-Just because you’re “Young” doesn’t mean you can outsmart an “old Geezer”!!! A psychiatrist was conducting a group therapy session with four young mothers and their small children. “You all have obsessions,” he observed. To the first mother, Mary, he said,”You are obsessed with eating. You’ve even named your daughter Candy.” He turned to the 2nd mom, Ann and said, “Your obsession is with money. Again, it manifests itself in your child’s name, Penny.” He turned to the 3rd mom, Joyce. “Your obsession is alcohol. This too shows itself in your child’s name, Brandy.” At this point, the 4th mother, Mrs Smith, quietly got up, took her little boy by the hand, and whispered, .. .”Come on, Dick, this guy has no idea what he’s talking about. Let’s pick up Peter and Willy from school and go get dinner.” An elderly man had owned a large farm for several years. He had a large pond in the back. It was properly shaped for swimming, so he fixed it up nice with picnic tables, horseshoe courts, and some apple, and peach trees. One evening the old farmer decided to go down to the pond, as he hadn’t been there for a while, and look it over. He grabbed a five-gallon bucket to bring back some fruit. As he neared the pond, he heard voices shouting and laughing with glee. As he came closer, he saw it was a bunch of young women skinny-dipping in his pond. He made the women aware of his presence and they all went to the deep end. One of the women shouted to him, ‘we’re not coming out until you leave!’ The old man frowned, ‘I didn’t come down here to watch you ladies swim naked or make you get out of the pond naked.’ Holding the bucket up he said, ‘I’m here to feed the alligator.’ Some old men can still think fast. With a very seductive voice a wife asked her husband, “Have you ever seen Twenty Dollars all crumpled up?” “No” said her husband. She gave him a sexy little smile, unbuttoned the top three buttons of her blouse and slowly reached down in her cleavage, created by a soft, silky, push-up bra, and, pulled out a crumpled twenty dollar bill. He took the crumpled Twenty Dollar bill from her and smiled approvingly. She then asked, “Have you ever seen Fifty Dollars all crumpled up?” “No I haven’t,” he said with an anxious tone in his voice. She gave him another sexy little smile, unzipped her skirt, letting It drop to the floor and seductively reached into her panties and pulled out a crumpled Fifty Dollar bill. He took the crumpled Fifty Dollar bill and started breathing a little quicker with anticipation. “Now,” she said, “Have you ever seen 50,000 Dollars all crumpled up?” “No way!” he said, becoming even more aroused and excited to which she replied: “Go look in the garage.”
with Balls. Do they, however,know the difference between them? Here’s the official distinction GUTS - Is arriving home late, after a night out with the guys, being met by your wife with a broom, and having the Guts to ask: Are you still cleaning, or are you flying somewhere? BALLS - Is coming home late after a night out with the guys, smelling of perfume and beer, lipstick on your collar, slapping your wife on the ass and having the Balls to say:’You’re next, Chubby.’ I trust this clears up any confusion. Medically speaking, there is no difference in outcome; both are fatal AS I AGE, I REALIZE THAT: 1. I talk to myself, because sometimes I need expert advice. 2. Sometimes I roll my eyes out loud. 3. I don’t need anger management...I need people to stop pissing me off. 4. My people skills are just fine... It’s my tolerance of idiots that needs work. 5. The biggest lie I tell myself is “I don’t need to write that down, I’ll remember it.” 6. When I was a child I thought nap time was punishment... Now it’s like a mini vacation. 7. The day the world runs out of wine or beer is just too terrible to think about.
There is a medical distinction between Guts and Balls. We’ve heard colleagues referring to people with Guts, or
THE RIDERS MAG ----- PAGE 53
As I was lying around, pondering the problems of the world, I realized that at my age I don’t really give a rat’s ass anymore. If walking is good for your health, the postman would be immortal. A whale swims all day, only eats fish, drinks water, but is still fat. A rabbit runs and hops and only lives 15 years, while a tortoise doesn’t run and does mostly nothing, yet it lives for 150 years. And you tell me to exercise? I don’t think so. Just grant me the senility to forget the people I never liked, the good fortune to remember the ones I do, and the eyesight to tell the difference.
8. Even duct tape can’t fix stupid, but it can muffle the sound! 9. Wouldn’t it be great if we could put ourselves in the dryer for ten minutes; come out wrinkle-free and three sizes smaller! 10. If God wanted me to touch my toes, he would’ve put them on my knees 11. When the kids text me “plz” which is shorter than please. I text back “no” which is shorter than “yes”. 12. At my age “Getting lucky” means walking into a room and remembering what I came in there for. 13. I don’t have gray hair. I have “wisdom highlights”. 14. I don’t trip over things, I do random gravity checks!
Now that I’m older here’s what I’ve discovered: 1. I started out with nothing, and I still have most of it. 2. My wild oats are mostly enjoyed with prunes and allbran. 3. I finally got my head together, and now my body is falling apart. 4. Funny, I don’t remember being absent-minded. 5. Funny, I don’t remember being absent-minded. 6. If all is not lost, then where the heck is it ? 7. It was a whole lot easier to get older, than to get wiser. 8. Some days, you’re the top dog, some days you’re the hydrant; the early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese. 9. I wish the buck really did stop here, I sure could use a few of them. 10. Kids in the back seat cause accidents. 11. Accidents in the back seat cause kids. 12. It’s hard to make a comeback when you haven’t been anywhere. 13. The world only beats a path to your door when you’re in the bathroom. 14 If God wanted me to touch my toes, he’d have put them on my knees. 15. When I’m finally holding all the right cards, everyone wants to play chess. 16. It’s not hard to meet expenses.... they’re everywhere. 17. The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth. 18. These days, I spend a lot of time thinking about the hereafter, I go somewhere to get something and then wonder what I’m “here after”. 19. Funny, I don’t remember being absent-minded. 20. HAVE I SENT THIS MESSAGE TO YOU BEFORE.... ? Don’t worry about the world ending today - it’s already tomorrow in Australia! My wife and I went to the Royal Show and one of the first exhibits we stopped at was the breeding bulls. We went up to the first pen and there was a sign attached that said, ‘THIS BULL MATED 50 TIMES LAST YEAR’ My wife playfully nudged me in the ribs .......Smiled and said, ‘He mated 50 times last year, that’s almost once a week.’ We walked to the second pen which had a sign attached that said, ‘’THIS BULL MATED 150 TIMES LAST YEAR’
THE RIDERS MAG ----- PAGE 54
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