gwrra pa district chapter y harleysville, pa 2018 pa-y newsletter.pdf · blairsville, 2 pm …...
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GWRRA
PA District Chapter Y
Harleysville, PA www.gwrrapa-y.com
Volume 4 September 2018 Issue 9
CHAPTER Y GATHERING BLUE COMET
MOTORCYCLE FACILITY 4042 Mensch Road
Skippack, PA Our Next Gathering
Sept 22, 2018 8:30a.m.
Table of Contents Chapter Y Staff 1
Upcoming Events 2
Thoughts from the CD
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Food For Thought 4-5
Pictures 6-9
From the Web Side 10
PA District Director 11
PA District Rider Educator
12-13
PA FUN FLYERS Take a Look
14-15
Chapter Directors Peggy & Ron Kratz
Chapter of Year Coord. [email protected]
610-287-8393
Assistant Chapter Directors Bob & Elaine Williams
[email protected] 215-887-1686
Treasurer Jeff Kratz
[email protected] 215-256-1626
Member Enhancement
Coordinator Pam Kratz
[email protected] 215-256-1626
Sunshine
Jane Youells [email protected]
215-498-3781
Goodies Store Barbara Silverman
215-256-0432
Ride Coordinator
Position Available
Couple of the Year Coordinators
Doug & Lee Little [email protected]
2017-2018 Couple of the
Year Bob & Elaine Williams
Roll For Dough Coordinators
Bob & Elaine Williams [email protected]
215-887-1686
Newsletter Editor Joan Cope
Web Master Dan Reisinger
Friends for Fun, Safety & Knowledge
CHAPTER Y STAFF
2016 PA District Chapter of the Year
GWRRA PRESIDENT Anita Alkire
[email protected] Home Office, Phoenix, AZ 800-843-9460
www.gwrra.org
PA DISTRICT DIRECTORS Harold & Diane Jackson
[email protected] 814-589-1307
www.codyparker.com
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********************** 2018 UPCOMING EVENTS**********************
Chapter Y Events … More impromptu rides will be communicated through email
SEPT 10 … Y Informal Dinner, PC Pub, 6:30 pm, RSVP Pam [email protected]
SEPT 15 … Bob Becker Celebration of Life, Sellersville Fire Company
SEPT 16 … Lyons Fiddle Fest, www.lyonsfiddle.com
SEPT 22 … Y Gathering … 8:30 am BCMC, Skippack … Ride After
SEPT 23 … South East Veterans Center 3rd Annual Parade, SEVC, 1 Veterans Drive,
Spring City, 2 – 4 pm. Staging 1pm …1 mile parade route around the center.
Road Captain… Mike & Barbara Silverman
SEPT 29 … PA-V Annual Picnic, Cordorus State Park, 9am to 5pm $10 RSVP 9/21
OCT 6 … Foliage Ride Rt. 97 … all day ride… Road Captain – Kermit Gable
OCT 13 … Ride
OCT 27 … Y Gathering & Ride
Around the District
SEPT 8 … PA Goldwingers Ride In for homemade pies at Dean’s Diner, 2175 US 22,
Blairsville, 2 pm … Contact Diane Jackson, [email protected]
or 814-589-1307
SEPT 29 … PA-V Annual Picnic, Cordorus State Park, 9am to 5 pm $10 RSVP 9/21
SEPT 7-9 … PA-K Campout, Western Village Campground, Carlisle
OCT 26-28… PA-K Campout, Artillery Ridge Campground, Gettysburg
Other Districts
SEPT 20-22 ... New York District Rally, Watertown, NY Hilton/Holiday Inn Express
National
WING DING 41 … NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE … START PLANNING TO ATTEND
Other
SEPT 22 … Readshaw’s 2018 Ride to Gettysburg… 11am on Commonwealth Avenue
behind Capital Building, Harrisburg - $10 pp – ride leaves at 1pm – Benefits PA
Gettysburg Monuments Project & Daniel Lady Farm (Peggy has done this one the
last three years, it is police escorted all the way… lunch at HD Battlefield.
OCT 7 … Ride for H.OP.E. Sponsored by Twin Rose Lady Riders Charity Ride. Starts &
Ends at York Motorcycle Club, 2233 Whiteford Rd., York – 10am-1:30pm $15 pp.
2019… RIDE OF THE ROSES … PA RALLY … MAY 16, 17 18, 2019 … Wyndham Garden
York, 2000 Loucks Rd., York – 717 846-9500 … make your reservations NOW.
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************************************************************************** FROM THE DESK OF YOUR CHAPTER DIRECTORS…
Peggy & Ron Kratz, Chapter Directors
SEPTEMBER…
WING DING 40 IS OVER! BUT WHAT A GREAT TIME WE HAD! So much to see and do… people to meet… old friends to share memories with. The ride… the trike was a dream to ride. Next year its in Nashville… start planning to attend. You won’t regret the experience! As many of you know, my mother is 95 and failing as I write this. The finality of it just emphasizes the need for each of us to live each day to its fullest. Take time to enjoy the ride. We each have those moments of a thrill that we think surpasses anything we’ve done before… but I’ve found that day by day there always seems to be just one more to add to my memories. The Chapter Y “experience” just keeps adding to the great memories. Wing Ding first brought the fun of making plans, reservations, registering. Then came the actual trip… THE RIDE. This brought some excitement… the added traffic around busy cities, the group making its way with other vehicles… BIG and small. Add the weather… the HEAT… we all managed it well, following Doug’s advice to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Radio communications, co-rider hand signals and Katie offering soothing eye drops. We were observant of each other as the long riding days went by. The safety communications, sharing rest and lunch stops, and nightly recaps of the day’s highlights. We made many memories. We learned some things about brakes heating, trikes quitting, passing speeds, and no turkey at lunch! Thanks to my riding buddies, not just the lead and tail, but also those in between… all took care of each other! The Wing Ding experience… where do you start… I’ve been to previous WDs and had some idea of what to expect… the others did not. So for them it was a little crazy busy at the welcome area. Consider 8,200 people attended. Its no small job to plan and execute the monumentous amount of details to pull this off and giving everyone a good, no great experience. Each of us will be talking about certain highlights that meant the most to us. Our memories will last forever. We’ll just add new ones next year in Nashville… be sure to join in the fun!
Peggy and Ron Kratz GWRRA PA-Y CDS
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT!!! … C.D.’s Peggy and Ron Kratz
Never Fear A Motorcycle. . . . .
[Edit Note: This piece was originally written for a nonmotorcycle magazine. Their editor asked for a story explaining why we ride motorcycles, despite the risks. We decided to share it with you, unchanged from the first edit. Share it with a friend who doesn't like motorcycles or think they're too dangerous.] “Never fear a motorcycle, but always respect it,” said my dad to an adolescent me. With a firm tone and extended index finger he coached me as I sat stiff-armed with my hands on the bars and unblinking wide eyes locked on him. Fear should never be confused with respect. He shouted a few more instructions and then shoved me as I released the clutch, sending me off with one big slap on the back. Fearing a motorcycle can get you hurt, but respecting one can make you feel more alive than a car ever can. My father lost his brother to a motorcycle accident when he was 23 and two of his father’s friends had already became amputees. So, why was he teaching his only son how to ride such a dangerous thing, encouraging young love that today is full grown? I can’t answer that, but I’m thankful he did. Motorcycle Risks. Many of you four-wheel suburbanites think riding a motorcycle is this dangerous, careless action--that’s an irrational fear. People are still scared of flying despite the fact that you have a better chance of dying in the car on the way to the airport than in a plane, why? Because, if you breakdown on a plane you can’t just pull over to the curb and wait for AAA. Similar to how a fender-bender in a car would equate to a life-threatening accident to me on a motorcycle. Yes, the statistics say there are more motorcycle than car deaths, but that’s not a fair estimate of the risks. To quote a bad movie, Biker Boyz, when the young hot shot makes a bold attempt at a stunt, the experienced rider, played by Laurence Fishburne, tells him he could have been hurt, his response, “Could’ve got hurt getting out of bed.” So, does it stop us from getting out of bed? As a man I respect and former boss, David Freiburger, once wrote, “Since Sonny Bono died skiing into a tree, should we stop all skiing or should we cut down all the trees? No. The passions of the many outweigh the losses of a few.” Risks Unfortunately media portrays our niche group as an evil, dangerous lifestyle, catering to those fearmongers who attend a NASCAR race just to watch a wreck. The general media muckrakes the scary side of motorcycles in an effort for ratings. Skewed statistics and media paint a scary picture of motorcyclists and blur the actual risks involved. Motorcycle death and accident statistics don’t show inexperience or careless action. According to 2008 CDC statistics, almost a third of rider deaths involved drinking. Riding a motorcycle makes you alert and uses all of you. You feel the elements, shift your body to steer, your eyes scan the road ahead, and all of your limbs are used for controls. You can’t put it on cruise and lean the seat back, riding takes all of your attention. So, even a couple drinks can really impair your riding. Another large portion of deaths came from riders without helmets, as not all states require them by law. No gear, no respect (for the motorcycle).
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Cars. A car is an extension of your house, your office, your life, but a motorcycle is an extension of you. You trade your risks on a motorcycle. Every day you risk being late, getting lost, spending too much on gas and going insane -- I don’t experience those problems. When I leave to ride, unless I’m commuting to work, I only have a vague idea of where I’m going. No GPS or smart-phone directions, because if I get lost, great. I’m on a motorcycle, my day can’t be bad. It’s a mental release that for many is vital to survival. I don’t stress about traffic or directions when I’m riding. It’s a personal experience that has sometimes become a spiritual experience. Even in a pack of other motorcycles or a crowded highway, I ride alone. Getting in a car is like waiting, not living. Sit in traffic, go to point B with the windows up and A/C on listening to a boring talk-show host and stress about the day. Getting on a motorcycle tears away the modern world, no music, skip traffic, alert, riding away from your thoughts and stresses with the twist of the throttle. Friends Most of my fr iends r ide, which means we always have something to talk about. Subsets and cliques of bikers seem intimidating, but some of the nicest people in the world are bikers, because you can’t be all that mad if you’re on a bike. Like the old cheesy bumper sticker, ‘you never see a Harley in front of a psychiatrist’s office.’ And remember, you meet the nicest people on a Honda (that was Honda’s ad campaign when outlaw bikers grabbed media attention in the late ‘60s). I wave at other bikers no matter what type of bike they ride. It’s nice to have a sense of identity even within a large group, but I ride the bikes I like to ride, because that’s what I do. Not because I wish to fit into a particular subset, but because that’s the bike I want. At the same time, it’s comforting to know that you’re not alone in your deranged obsession with everything two wheeled. Close Calls. I’ve had many close calls on a motorcycle. Sliding the curb at 50 mph shooting sparks onto my friend behind me. Laid down a handful of dirt bikes and nearly missed a couple cars on the road. I ride every day I can and find excuses to go get lost on a bike. I believe you have a better chance of avoiding an accident on a motorcycle rather than a car and I’ve had far more accidents in cars than motorcycles. For a goal oriented person, riding is constantly a challenge. Every time I leave my house I learn something new and push myself harder. Not necessarily faster, but better. Every day it brings something out of me that nothing else can. Fearing a motorcycle or not respecting one can get you hurt. No helmet, drinking and careless behavior loses your respect for a bike, but riding sensibly and smart can keep you alive, better than anything on four wheels. Peggy Kratz, your Chapter Director
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You see some STRANGE things at a Wing Ding
Either it was an EXHAUSTING ride to Wing Ding OR someone got tricked into joining a hypnotist -
hmmm
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This is NOT GOOD!
Knoxville by night
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The Wing Ding crew from PA Chapter Y
Peggy Kratz, Rich McFarland, Nettie McFarland, Katie Green, Bob Cox, Jane Youells, Dave Youells, and Pete Grillo.
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From the Web Side… Dan Reisinger, Webmaster
Hello Chapter Y!
Joan is in the other room watching “So You Think You Can Dance!” Which had me thinking about why so many stories but so few articles. And it comes down to “you don’t think you can write”. Actually, writing is just typing the words onto a screen that you would be telling someone else. Each month when I sit down to write something for Chapter Y’s newsletter, I imagine the computer screen is someone I am talking to. Depending on the article it can be Peggy Kratz or Dave Youells, or Rich or Nettie McFarland, or Mark Johnson, or Nick or – well you get the “picture”, I am relating to the person about something I think they will have input about. Yep, I am talking to myself because I am writing my script and their script. What makes it interesting is sometimes they have a better script than ME ! LOL. So what happens when I get your story? Well, first thing I do is jump for joy because I LOVE hearing someone else’s story, adventure, or new experience. Next I make sure the font (that letter type and size you see in your Word processor – whether it is Word from Microsoft, Word Processing from Open Office, or WordPerfect from Corel) corresponds to the one we use in the newsletter. There is also line spacing of the paragraphs and margins. We have a template that Peggy Kratz setup before we came onboard to help so there are different margins that what is the default of everyone else’s word processor and we have to copy and paste your story into our template and line it up. Then we sit back and check for spelling and basic grammar – we are not grading you but if you type your and you’re is more appropriate, you will see that small change in your article. Very seldom have we had to make changes – see most of our storytellers ARE great at telling their stories! But what happens if you have difficulty in “getting it just right”? Again, we are sitting back and letting you tell your story and picturing what you are telling us. We keep your original article safe and secure and we start typing what we hear you saying. After we have edited your article, we send you your original and our edited copy to get your permission to make our changes and if you have additional input or thoughts that you remembered after reading the article we look forward to them too. You would be surprised how “chatting” about your article reminds a storyteller about that one thing that was too important to leave out, added humor to their story, or I “meant” something else – and they are glad all of us caught it. I think a lot of times “we” forget that this is OUR newsletter! Take a look at other chapters in PA (http://www.codynparker.com/chp_newsletters_flyers.html ) and their newsletters – if you see something that you would like to see added, let us know, see something you could contribute, let us know, found an interesting article in another magazine, let us know, and if you want to write an article, well sock it to us! LOL.
Until the next Ride. . . . . Dan Reisinger
The PA District Rally horse race (above), Roll For Dough picture with District Directors (right and below).
Enjoying a Chapter Y weekday ride to Maryland. Pete Grillo led the ride, stopped off at a Marina (where he has his sailboat), showed how the watercraft “live”, and even made sure there was an Ice Cream STOP!
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Pennsylvania District Directors… Harold and Diane Jackson Sometimes it is hard to write about next month when there are so many evenets happening at the end of the current month. So, lets start with what is happening in September then we will go back and talk about the end of August.
The month starts off with the unofficial end of summer celebration Labor Day. But, we know it is not the end of riding season. Thank you for updating the PA District Events Schedule on our webiste. Please join in the FUN!
We plan on seeing you on Saturday, September 8th at 2 pm for Pies, Pies, Pies in Blairsville for the District ride-in to Dean’s Diner. The pies are homemade and they make 25 different kinds daily. So, please plan on riding to Blairsville and join us for pie. No reservations necessary however, if you or your chapter plan on attending, please let us know. Then we can give the diner an idea as to how many will be participating. The PA District Raffle Tickets will be distributed this month. The program will be the same as last year. The tickets sell for $5.00 and are based on the Pennsylvania Lottery Pick 4 evening drawing held in February 2019. Let’s get out and sell as many tickets as we can, this program supports many of the activities we have at the chapter and district level. The registration form for the PA District Rally “Ride of the Roses”, May 16-18, 2019 at the Wyndham Garden in York, PA will be distributed. Make sure you take time to review the registration and get it in early if you plan on attending any of the special events, many of them have limited space. Don’t forget everyone is eligible for the $100 drawing if you are registered by February 28, 2019. Do you enjoy All Chapters West or All Chapters East? We are looking for two chapters; one to host All Chapters West and the other to host All Chapters East. Chapters that have hosted these events have had a great time and it is a nice fund raiser for the chapter. If your chapter would like more information or you have questions please feel free to contact me. Thank you to PA-I for hosting a Road Captain’s Course. The sky was dark many times during the day but, when it was time to practice what was learnt in the classroom it was a beautiful day. Thank you to everyone that participated. Many of us will be coming home from Wing Ding, the National Rally was held in Knoxville, TN. Thank you PA District for the huge attendance at Wing Ding. Again, thank you to all the volunteers that helped with ticket sales! We hope everyone had a great time and had a safe ride to and from Wing Ding. School is back in session. Please watch for children, give yourself extra time to get places and obey the school bus traffic laws. Remember to always ride safe!
Harold and Diane Jackson, Your PA District Directors
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FROM YOUR PA DISTRICT EDUCATOR… Chuch & Evelyn Stone
Hi Folks:
Now that fall is upon us, let’s take a few minutes and talk about Motorcycle Safety and RIDING DURING THE FALL SEASON. Fall is finally here and the cooler days and reduced number of evening storms mean it is time to get the bike / trike out of the garage. Some people actually prefer to ride in cooler temperatures. Before you can ride, there are a lot of things to check, but let’s focus on the two/three items that separate your bike from the pavement – your tires. Your tires are the two/three most important things on your bike. If you think about it, your tires are the only thing keeping your bike from being a 1,000 pound paperweight. Check your tire pressure against the specified pounds-per-square-inch in your motorcycle owner’s manual. Colder weather can cause your tire pressure to drop five psi. Even under ideal temperatures, your bike’s tires will lose air pressure each month. Riding on under-inflated tires will cause your fuel efficiency to be reduced, the tires to wear unevenly and most importantly, your bike to handle improperly. Take 30 seconds each morning before you ride and check your tire pressure. If you check your tires every day and they lose a pound every month and suddenly you lose five psi in one tire, you might have a serious issue like a nail in the tire, dry rot or even a bent wheel rim. If you don’t check your tire pressure, you may be thumbing a ride or worse. It is important to check your tire pressure when your tires are cold. Tires are considered to be cold when you have ridden less than a mile or after your bike has been parked for three hours. If you are forced to check your tire pressure when hot, you will need to add four psi to the recommended pressure specified in your owner’s manual. Be sure to recheck the tire pressure again when the bike has cooled down. What if you check the tires when they are hot and the pressure is too high? Don’t worry about it. Normal riding will cause the tires to heat up and increase the tire pressure. When the tires cool down, you will probably find the tires are at the right cold air pressure. If your tires consistently loose more than two psi per month, the tire, valve or wheel rim may be damaged. If this is the case put the bike in the bed of the truck and take it to a dealer to have it looked at. If your wheels have an inner tube which is leaking, the tube can rupture. When the tube has a catastrophic failure at even 45 mph, your riding skills will be put to the test. One last thought-valve caps. Yes, valve caps, those little 25 cent items keep the valve core clean and free of debris and help keep the pressure where it’s wanted.
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Yes, your tires are critical to safe riding, but with minor care you can keep the air in the tires and your bike off the ground. Ride Safe and Ride Proud.
Chuck & Evelyn Stone PA DISTRICT EDUCATORS
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DICE RUN
HOSTED BY GWRRA PA CHAPTER ‘K’
SPONSORED BY VELOCITY CYCLES
6653 Carlisle Pike, Mechanicsburg, PA
Date: October 13, 2018 (Saturday)
Time: Registration from 9-11 a.m.
Last bike out at 11 a.m.
Cost: $5.00 per person
Awards Ceremony: 2:30 p.m. (50/50 & prizes)
Depart from and return to Velocity Cycles.
Route is approximately 70 miles long.
This Photo by Unknown Author is
COMPLIMENTARY HOT DOGS, CHIPS AND WATER.