Meetings held the third Tuesday of each month SeafoodPalace on Enterprise Blvd in Lake Charles 6:30 pm (eat

at 5:30)

Chapter “J” Gator News

Region H LA District Friends for Fun, Safety & Knowledge May 2018

Hello LA-J!

Let’s start with a few reminders. The Chapter M Mudbug rally is scheduled for May 12. We’ll beleaving Wendy’s in Moss Bluff at 9:00 am. Be sure to pre-register (form on Google Drive). Also, thefollowing weekend, May 19th will be our chapter crawfish boil at Randy and Julie Fontenot’s. Get there anytime after noon. And, if you haven’t already, let Randy know if you’re coming so they know how much to get.

Sometimes we forget about the opportunities that GWRRA membership provides us. Just last week,Aleta and I and Darmie and Karen made a short trip to Monroe for a hamfest. Darmie and Tommy had a greattime. Not so sure about the girls! After the hamfest, however, we had the opportunity to join the MonroeChapter D for a crawfish boil at the home of Carol and Jim Rodgers. It was a great afternoon and a great timeto visit with some of our GWRRA friends. This opportunity reminded us of how much fun we can havevisiting and spending time with our nearby chapters. If you have the chance, it will be well worth your while togather a few people and make a quick ride to a nearby chapter meeting or event. Chapter M in DeRidder meetson the first Tuesday of the month at the Catfish Hut north of DeRidder. Texas J meets on the second Saturdayof the month at Cowboy Honda. Or, check their websites for events they may have going on. And, WE GETPOINTS TOO!

Most importantly, let’s get out there and ride those bikes before it gets too hot. Summer is just aroundthe corner! Looking forward to seeing y’all at the crawfish boils! Let’s eat some mudbugs!

Your Chapter DirectorsTommy and Aleta Benoit

Chapter Director’s Letter

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

May 2018

1Ride & Eat RikenjaksLake Charles6 pm

MikeMcDonaldBirthday

2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Chapter MMudbug Rally

13 14 15

LAJ MeetingSeafoodPalace (5:30 dinner;6:30 meeting)

16 17 18 19

Chapter LA-JCrawfish BoilRandy andJulie FontenotHome

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

LibertyTheater

Eunice, LADetails to beannounced

27 29 30 31

ScottWilkersonBirthday

Door Prize Winners 50/50 WinnerJulie Fontenot Joel Racca Carl WebbGerry Blalock John GaryDarmie Rudisill Keith SoileauSue Stahl Carl Webb

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Upcoming Events

May 17 to 19 Texas District Rally, Brenham TX

May 17 to 19 Alabama Rally, Mobile, AL

May 31 to Jun 2nd Missouri District Rally

Sept 27 to 29 Oklahoma District RallyWing Ding Aug 28 to Sep 1

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Ride and Eat to Southern Spice Restaurant

Louisiana District Rally

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Hello Chapter J

Here are a few things that went on at our District Rally 2018 in Lafayette.

There were 355 people in attendance at the Rally. Tommy Benoit, Richard & Sue Stahl went over thereThursday. The next morning Karen Rudisill, Johnny and I got there, with Aleta Benoit coming later after work,Scott & Sheryl Wilkerson joined us on Saturday morning . I know some of you weren’t able to make it due tothe weather.

On Friday night we decorated the table for our Mardi Gras dance, winning First Place. Thank you Aleta foryour Talent. We had a great night watching the other Chapters perform their skits. All I can say is there are somany talented people in the various chapters.

The next day Karen and I got ready for the craft class. The ladies attending made Mardi Gras Mask Earrings. We had our limit of 15 ladies. I can say they really enjoyed making the earrings. Yay! Karen. I can’t wait tonext year to see what Karen has in stored for us. Later that day another craft class making bird cage necklaceswas held by Lydia. They were pretty cool.

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Winner of table decorations

The closing ceremony was held later that day. As we know Red & Brenda Rousell are stepping down as LADistrict Directors. They served as Directors for 4 years. Our new LA District Directors will be Mike & PamJastram and Fritz & Johnette Beter. I guess we are going to get double the fun. I know these couples and Iknow that they are going to do a great job.

I want to thank all the ladies that put your talent into making the float. A lot of hard work went into it.Although we all think that it turned out beautiful, Chapter O from Franklinton, LA won 1st place.

I hope I didn’t leave anything out. Looking forward to the next one. I can’t wait to see what they have in storefor us.

Kathy Gary

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Chapter LA-J 2018 Couple of the Year

The guys had a ride ending upat the DeRidder Dairy Queen

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Thanks to Accessory Z O N Efor the donation of a large umbrella to

be used for a door prize at ourmonthly meeting.

Tommy, Aleta, Karen and Darmievisited with Monroe Chapter-D attheir annual crawfish boil. Looks likethey put Chapter-J to work.

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District Directors Fritz & Johnette Beter

Hello Louisiana

Fritz and I joined GWRRA Chapter K in January of 2005.

After enduring two years of “coaxing” from our high schoolclassmate Cyndi and her husband Sidney Garaudy to purchase amotorcycle and join them in the adventure of motorcycle riding.They helped us locate one for sale by a former member of ChapterH. We went to “look” at the bike to see if it might be a fit for us –after 10 minutes we KNEW we had a new member of our family. Ababy blue 1990 Goldwing 1500. We were like two kids on Christmasmorning. About a week went by and we received a call from Sidney saying he was on his way over to ourhouse to take Fritz for a spin on our new acquisition. That “spin” wound up being about three hours long andthe rest is history. We went on every ride we could. Met people we never thought we would meet. There isnot a day that goes by that we regretted making this decision to join a group of awesome people. We havemade so many friendships along this journey. We never look back.

Fast forward to 2018. We now have a 2012 pearl white Goldwing. I don’t get to ride like I once did but thathas not stopped enjoying the fellowship GW has to offer.

We held the position of Chapter Directors from 2009-2012 and became Senior Chapter Directors. We are alsothe Chapter Newsletter Editors and Webmasters. We landed a position on the Louisiana District Team in2010 as Webmasters. In 2016 we accepted the position on the Louisiana District Team as MECs. We wereselected along with Mike & Pam Jastram as your new District Directors right before the Louisiana Rally. Weare having the time of our lives.

We urge ALL of you to get out there and do as much as you can to be as active as you can in your Chapters.GWRRA members are great bunch of people. We thank Cyndi and Sidney from the bottom of my heart forintroducing us to this awesome group of people!!!!

We look forward to serving all of our Louisiana extended family. Our door is always open. We are just aphone call or email away.

Fritz & Johnette Beterdd@gwrra-la.org 504-469-3178

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District Directors Mike & Pam Jastram

Hello Louisiana

Our story is similar to Fritz & Johnette, Pam and I decided to buy amotorcycle in 2004. We had taken a trip to Key West and rented ascooter, after returning home Pam mentioned how much fun it wasriding that scooter and maybe we should look into getting amotorcycle. Well, never having owned any motorcycle I got tolooking and talking to people who owned motorcycles, we decidedon a Goldwing. A decision that we have never looked back on. We found out about GWRRA and actually joined before; we tookdelivery of our wing an even better decision. After 14 years,180,000 miles, 38 states, Canada twice, a second wing that is now a trike. I thought it was the smart thing todo when I turned 65. We are still having fun and can’t wait to see the rest of the states that we have notridden in. We have held numerous positions as educators, directors, treasurer and couple of the year. We arelooking forward to serving you as District Directors along with Fritz and Johnette, the four of us only wantwhat is best for Louisiana.

Mike & Pam Jastramdd@gwrra-la.org225-946-3999****************************************************************************

Cell Phone Security

Do you know your cell phone is a mini computer and is just asvulnerable as your PC? It is and you need to pay attention tosecurity on your phone just like a PC. Here are some things that youcan do to protect your phone, your information and you.

From email to texts, phonebook entries, and pictures, your phonehas lots of personal information that's potentially accessible toprying eyes. Bottom line: if you take your phone out of your house,you should definitely use a lock code. You can use a 4-digit PIN oran actual password with letters, numbers, and characters. This willhelp keep nosy people or thieves from easily accessing yourinformation.

Any information you provide on a website is collected and likelyused for serving you relevant advertisements. The Do Not Track option asks websites to refrain fromcollecting your data. The Google Chrome browser for Android and Safari on iOS will allow you to set up DoNot Track. While enabling this option does not guarantee that your data will not be collected, some websiteswill adhere to your preference.

When you call a business that might collect your number, it’s a good idea to thwart its efforts. Many placeswill collect your number, any information attached to it, and then use it for profit. If you don’t want to togglenumber blocking on and off just for businesses, you might consider using Google Voice to call businesses.Then you can very easily block any incoming call that isn’t in your phone book.

There are a lot of telemarketing services that will call your phone just to determine if the number actuallyreaches a person. Once that happens, your number is put on a list that is sold to other companies, and you'llreceive even more spam calls and possibly texts. If you’re not on an unlimited plan, you may incur additional

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charges for text messages you didn’t want to receive in the first place. Instead of picking up and confirmingyour number, use a caller ID solution to figure out who is trying to reach you. On Android, check out CurrentCaller ID by Whitepages, which will display caller information as small window on the incoming call screen.On iOS, you’ll have to use a slightly different approach: install Truecaller and take a screenshot of anincoming call for the app to identify the caller (the app creators say that currently there is no way to interceptthe call process).

Despite all your efforts blocking access to your apps, number, or other information, you are still faced withthe threat of someone physically stealing your device. To combat this, keep a firm grip, putting the device ina hard-to-access place (tight front pocket, deep pocket in bag), and refraining from advertising the fact thatyou have an amazing new device. Hopefully these tips will keep your phone from taking an unwantedexcursion with a thief.

Riding on a Wing and a Prayer

Fritz & Johnette Beter

Louisiana District Webmasters

webmasters@gwrra-la.org

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THE MOTORIST AWARENESS PROGRAM GOLD AWARD

The Motorist Awareness Program Gold Award is presented atGWRRA District Rallies by the District Motorist AwarenessProgram Officer or the Motorist Awareness Program Director. This award recognizes members who have contributed to thesafety of motorcycle riders in at least five of the followingways:

1. Presentations to students of public or private schools oruniversities.

2. Presentations to members of community organizations, bothcivic and religious. (one event per organization counted percalendar year)

3. Presentation to Driving Schools.

4. Presentation to AAA or AARP driver classes.

5. Presentation or MAP exhibit at Company Safety Days (one event per company per year)

6. Presentation or MAP exhibit at Community Safety Days (one event per community per year)

7. Presentation or MAP exhibit at the National Night Out.

8. Presentation or MAP exhibit at a community festival or fair.

Mickey and Mary Searels

LA-District Motorist Awareness Coordinator

mad@gwrra-la.org

337 370 8956

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Tech Tip

Internet & Cell Phone Security

We all heard of the problems with Facebook and thecollection of data. Also a part of this problem is if you useyour Facebook account and password to link other websites.Linking any websites or companies on the web with thesame ID and password is a BIG mistake. Would you go toyour bank’s website, login and share your ID and passwordwith your favorite grocery just so they can charge you whenthe want? NO you wouldn’t. The same principle applies toyour ID and password with Facebook or any other socialmedia website. Keep them separate at all times. If you havelinked websites, we suggest removing these links.

Last week Facebook posted instructions as to how andcheck to see what companies you have linked with them. With tracking where you surf on the internet a realbig issue, we suggest removing these links and login to the companies with a separate ID. This way none ofthe companies that you do business with will know about each other.

We have talked about this before so we are addressing this again.

THE IRS AND MICROSOFT WILL NEVER CALL YOU. I repeat, THE IRS AND MICROSOFT WILLNEVER CALL YOU. If you ever do get a call from someone saying they are from the IRS or Microsoft, givethe phone to your kids or grandkids. You may as well get back at them. LOL

One last thing. Are you getting calls on your cell from numbers starting with your area code and the 1st 3digits of your number? These are all bogus calls and may be the calls asking you if it is OK for them to tellyou about a special offer. If you say YES, the will try and say that you gave them permission to charge yousomething or use your phone number to open some kind of account. DO NOT SAY ANYTHING!!! In factdon’t even answer the call.

We found an APP for your cell phone that will block unwanted calls. It works very well and the best thing isit is FREE. The name is Calls Blacklist. It is very easy to use and works very well. Get it from your phonesAPP store.

We hope this information was helpful. If you have any questions, please ask. If we do not know the answer,we will do our best to get the answer for you.

Riding on a Wing and a Prayer

Fritz & Johnette Beter

Louisiana District Webmasters

webmasters@gwrra-la.org

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CHAPTER J LAKE CHARLES

TEAM LEADERS

Chapter Directors

Tommy & Aleta Benoit

337-485-2835

Asst. Chapter Directors

Darmie & Karen Rudisill

843-457-3093

Chapter Educator Scott Wilkerson

337-842-6431

Membership Enhancement Aleta Benoit

337-485-2835

Chapter Treasurer, Webmaster Sheryl Wilkerson

337-842-7330

Newsletter Editor

Katie Soileau

337-515-0859

Scrapbook Editor

Karen Rudisill

843-457-3093

Ride Coordinators

Jerry Racca

337-912-8662

Randy Fontenot

337-526-0079

Event Coordinator

Katie Soileau

337-515-0859

Couple of the Year 2018

Richard & Sue Stahl

His 337-377-8317 Hers 337-540-3276

Benevolent

Kathy Gary

337-794-8326

SWLA War Veterans’ Home Brice & Shyla Palmer

337-433-6816

Medic/First Aid Trainer

Donna Mead

337-515-7809

Motorist Awareness Tommy Benoit

337-485-2835

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District Educators - Jim & Reba BerryGreeting guys and gals,

Spring has definitely sprung. Pollen, ragweed, April showers, May flowers and visions of vacation rides in ourhead. I have heard some excited talk about Americade, Wing Ding, District Rallies and even just a ride tovisit cousins Billie Bob and Clarice over in Booger Hollow. Some of these rides may take 2, 3 or 4 weeks.How can we best prepare our bodies to survive this long on the road? Lastyear, I presented a Power Point I had written at the Region Rally. I named it“Riding Nekkid”. Now before you get to blushing, let me explain what I mean.

Last September and October, our chapter planned a ride from Monroe to NovaScotia, via Niagara Falls and the Fall Foliage of New Hampshire and Vermont.The trip was to take 29 days. We had never ventured out on a trip this long.How would we keep everyone in good spirits and in riding condition? So, this iswhat I came up with:

N is for Nutrition

Try to eat on the road as close to your home routine as possible. If you normally eat cereal at home, eatcereal on the road, not 2 eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy, oatmeal, etc. Just because it is free atthe motel doesn’t make it a smart idea. Drink plenty of water during the day. Stay away from caffeine andalcohol. Keep some healthy snacks. Remember, your medical issues are NOT on vacation.

E is for Energize

Get plenty of good sleep. Bring that CPAP if you have one! Walk around when you can. Stopoften to rest. S T R E T C H! I have seen some of you take a 15 minute power nap on apicnic table or under a tree. Great idea. If you are in a resort area, you might try a massage.

KK is for Keep Kalm (so I can’t spell)

We were on a road trip a couple of years ago on the Missouri backroads and noticed how much roadkillthere was. We also noticed most of it was squirrels and other quick moving animals that often changeddirection to avoid getting hit. We also noticed several turtles that were alive and crossing the road, none ofwhich were on the disabled list. That is because the turtle is slow and deliberate, allowing you time to avoidhim, and in the words of Mike Jastram, they are always wearing a helmet! This is a great teaching point.Don’t plan your day with too many activities. “Haste makes waste” and stress, and distraction, none of whichare good for riding a motorcycle. Take frequent breaks, listen to some soothing tunes (50’s and 60’sclassics) or just the sound of the humming engine and wheels turning on the road, do some deep breathingexercises, don’t ride after sundown, avoid big cities and try to avoid heated conversations with your saddlepartner.

I is for insurance

This would be insurance for the bike and the body. Do you have proof of insurance on the bike? Do youknow if you are traveling outside the United States, some countries will not accept your medical insurance?Canada, for example, does not accept Medicare and will not settle with your group health insurance carrier.Check into purchasing a travel policy for the area you are traveling. Pack all your meds and proper clothing.Be ready for cold weather, hot weather and wet weather. Just because it’s the middle of July doesn’t mean itcan’t be less than 50 degrees. Remember Wing Ding in Madison, WI? Do you have a list of all your groupsICE’s?

GWRRA RIDER EDUCATION

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D is for Detail

Plan, plan and plan. Do you have enough funds to make the trip? Prepare a detailed itinerary and hand itout before you leave. This doesn't mean it can’t be changed. Life happens! Get everyone’s cell phonenumber so you can set up a group text. To make reservations or not to make reservations? I like to makethem. I think this eliminates some stress. A few years back, on our way to Wing Ding in Madison, our groupof 7 bikes arrived at our hotel about 10:00pm to find it closed. It had no electricity due to tornados. I pulledout my cell phone, opened a hotel app and found an alternate hotel within 10 miles. I was a boy scout.

BE PREPARED!

Remember, if you wear out, stress out or get ill on day 5 of a 30 day ride, Momma ain’t gonna be happy.And we all know what that means. Since our trip to Nova Scotia I have renamed my power pointpresentation “RIDING NEKKIDer”. The “er” stands for EVADE ROCKS! Nuff said.

Jim & Reba BerryLouisiana District Educatorsed@gwrra-la.org

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GATOR

NEWS

Goldwing Road Riders Association

South Central Region H

Louisiana District

May 2018

Tommy and Aleta Benoit597 Anglewood DriveLake Charles, LA 70611

Friends for Fun, Safety and Knowledge