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Vol. 2 - Issue 12
| December 2011
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I. Team Ride West at....2!
It might seem hard to believe, but January 3rd of 2012 will mark the first day of the 3rd year of operation for Team Ride West. Two years ago I showed up for my first "official" day as a Ride West employee (having already attended a Ride West event and a WSBMWR breakfast) and met William Casperson outside the store. He agreed to have me sign him up as the first member of Team Ride West.
As our 2nd year draws to a close we can now boast of well over 700 members, over 150 of whom have attended at least one ride, dinner, or event this past year. We have some very nice t-shirts to show off with, and this coming year should see the addition of the ordered long sleeve versions as well as some decals for fairings and helmets. We have had over 75 rides, dinners, and various events in the past two years, and the schedule for 2012 is beginning to fill.
We have no dues and there are no plans for any. We have no assigned duties (although Team Ride West members often volunteer to help out at our charity rides, or at Ride West events, or other events), and no committees or other political structures.
New this fall was the creation of two e-mail lists. One is for those who like to receive frequent motorcycle-based e-mails (98% of the membership) and the other for those who, for a variety of logical reasons, prefer to receive only 1 e-mail or so a week (2% of the membership). If you would like to be on the list other than the one you are on now, please let me know.
I THINK we are in good shape, and therein lies a problem, or at least the potential for a problem. Not only am I too close to the forest to see the trees, I AM the trees. Since our lack of political structure, committees, and such (intentional) leaves all of the organizational tasks to one person (intentional) there lurks the possibility that I am missing out on an obvious service or club feature you would really like to see in place (unintentional). If so - tell me!
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II. The 9th Chilly Turkey
The Chilly Turkey is a charity ride many of us have worked on and/or participated in for 9 years now on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. All proceeds are sent to Riders for Health to assist with health care infrastructure in Africa, and the $300 raised this year will purchase a LOT of health care in that part of the world.
The weather for this version was dry, but golly Bob Howdy cold, with snow in some places, frost on the lawns, and the threat of black ice everywhere. Fortunately, those who chose to enter had a wonderful combination of attitude, experience, equipment, camaraderie, and judgment. Most rode the entire route, some elected to insert a "long cut" to the finish when the roads grew hazardous, and a few chose to return home to ride another day. Everyone had a great time, and no crashes or other problems were reported.
Door prizes were given to all who made it to the finish, and further prizes await those who entered and chose discretion over valor is electing not to finish. We are all about judgment! No matter what the choice made as to the route, it was the correct choice.
Thanks to Lee Stewart, Paul Bullard, and John Willox for their assistance with route proofing and GPS version creation.
On behalf of Riders for Health, Ride West BMW, BMW of North America, Café Veloce, and Rok Straps (all of whom contributed door prizes) - congratulations to these stalwart motorcyclists!
Anand Namasivayam Pablo Gonzalez - Gandolfi
Rick Glover Tad Haas
David Weed David Black
Carol Carpenter Bill Hucks
John Willox Steve Cunningham
Paul Bullard Aimee Johnson
Dave Bowen |
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III. A Picture is Worth...
Want to look tall? Ride a BMW R 1200 GS Adventure!
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IV. Close Out and Clearance Center!
Closeout and Clearance Center!
Next time you're in the store, meander over to the "customer lounge" area and check out the new "Closeout and Clearance Center." Just as the name implies - lots of cool stuff and VERY attractive prices! A GREAT place for Holiday Shopping!
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V. More Free Magazines!
If you enjoy e-zine magazines, newsletters and information pages that are full of items of interest and free, here's another one for you. Actually, two! Go to www.pss.com and www.pssrider.com and sign up to receive Puget Sound Safety's information page news AND e-zine. And the e-zine is interactive - you can contribvute information, ideas, etc. Cool stuff!
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VI. A New Look at Safety
We have taken several looks at safety in the past month, in some unusual ways.
Attorney Max Meyer gave us a lot of information on legal rights in motorcycle injury accident cases at a seminar on November 10th. One week later, SPU Psychology Department Chair Dr. Jay Skidmore provided ample food for thought about what factors go into persuading your brain that you are safe.
There are lots of products available, some of them for sale at Ride West, to increase your preparation and safety when enjoying motorcycling, and feeling prepared does lead to feeling safe and that leads to increased enjoyment. There are GPS systems galore, the SPOT locator system, and insurance policies that will pay for a medivac helicopter to come and fetch you from wherever you might need to be fetched from.
Here are a couple of items that are not the be all and end all, but which can be significant.
1. Road ID. This is a product created for the runner and triathlete market, and is a wrist band that carries your name and contact information and wharever else you can fit into the space provided. I have a couple of phone numbers on mine plus "no known allergies," so if there is a situation where I am unconscious or otherwise unable to communicate, the EMTs will not need to pause to wonder if the medication or drug they want to inject me with will be OK. Road IDs are sold on the Internet, and I think they are a very good idea.
2. A business card. Max Meyer's presentation on motorcyclists and how they fare in injury accidents with the legal system persuaded me that in such cases, you need an attorney, and the sooner you have one the better. As such, I now carry a business card from Max in my wallet. It is free and could come in handy. Ride West has no financial connection to Max, but I
3. have one of his cards, or you can get one from an injury accident attorney of your choice, but carrying such a card would be a good idea, even if (hopefully) you never need to use it,
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VII. Events Calendar
Click to Register
Team Ride West Ride
Saturday, 12/3/2011 - 10 a.m. Meet at Ride West
Accident Scene Management Seminar
Thursday, 12/08/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room
South America!
Tuesday, 12/13/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room
Alaska!
Wednesday, 12/14/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room
Thursday, 12/15/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room \
Accident Scene Management Class ($60)
Saturday, 1/7/2011 - 9 a.m. in the Club Room
B. Hucks DualSport Prep Seminar
Thursday, 1/12/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room
Team Ride West Ride
Saturday, 1/14/2011 - 10 a.m. Meet at Ride West
Team Ride West Dinner
Tuesday, 1/17/2011 - 6:15 p.m. Cafe Veloce
Women's Empowerment Seminar
Thursday, 1/19/2011 - 7 p.m. in the Show Room
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VIII. Pithy Words to Ride By...
Peace on Earth, Good Will to All.
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IX. Team Ride West Events
SEMINARS:
November 1st GripTwister Tours. Dave McKay presented a fun evening of off-road adventures on the Baja peninsula for 65 people - first in a lecture format and then with several dozen rapid-paced slides with anecdotes. Dave's obvious experience and expertise showed through, along with a healthy dollop of humor. GripTwister leads several rides a year to this area, and in April he will do one with most of those in the tour group members of Team Ride West. Want to go? For more info, please go to www.griptwister.com.
November 8th Motorcycles and the Law. Attorney Max Meyer presided over one of our smallest seminars (the evening before what is for many a three day Veterans' Day Weekend) but due to the topic the small group of 9 was perfect. Max had an amazing amount of information to share, and what I took from it especially was that in an injury-accident with another vehicle involved all of us need to have legal representation, and the sooner the better. That led me to the brainstorm that a good piece of "safety equipment" for each of us to carry is the business card of an attorney who works in the area. I have been impressed with Max's knowledge, presentation, and professionalism, so I now have one of his business cards with me on all rides. If you would like to do the same and do not already have such an attorney you work with, Max has been kind enough to present me with a deck of them - ask for one next time you are in!
(Neither Ride West nor I have any business arrangement or kick back or any of that sort of thing with May or his firm)
November 15th Motorcycles: Safety vs. Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll. Jay Skidmore is the Chair of the Psychology Department of Seattle Pacific University, an author, and a long- time motorcyclist. He led us through an exploration into what circumstances make us feel safe, and segued into a discussion of maintaining our physical abilities as we age, including work on balance and flexibility. His words provided a lot of useful ideas!
RIDES:
For our only Team Ride West ride of November we chose to join the WSBMWR club to comprise and entry in the annual Veterans Parade in Auburn. It turned out to be an educational and fun adventure! Here is who went from our club:
Name Motorcycles to be ridden 1. Dave Preston - BMW F 650 GS 2. Ron Pollard - BMW F 650 GS 3. Eric Pollard - BMW F 800 R (maybe) 4. Paul Bullard - BMW K 1600 GTL 5. Jon White - BMW K 1200R Sport 6. Robert Fullerton - BMW R 1200 GT 7. Paul Fison - BMW R 1200 RT 8. Joe Edwards - Honda ST 1100
As soon as we left Ride West I began to notice items of interest.
1. A BMW F 650 GS is SUCH a cool bike! Every time I get to ride one I am impressed all over again. I think this bike is the most underrated motorcycle of all time. It is smooth, had ample power, great handling and brakes, and can go pretty much anywhere except to really severe off-road usage. On this day it was very happy to cruise at an indicated 70pmh, which with a speedo error factored out is about the edge of where you will not get a ticket. It was a great ride.
2. An Arai RX-Q (see evaluation below) has a chin "spoiler" you can pull down which really helps keep your neck warm - but only if you remember to pull it down before you hit the freeway, which I did not.
3. I need to remember to bring my tube neckwarmer.
To my surprise, I got the group and my chilled neck to right where my directions said we should be in Auburn by 10:15pm. More items of interest came up:
1. We did not need to be anywhere until 10:30pm. 2. The address from the WSBMWR forum was incorrect, so we were not in the right place at all.
Fortunately, we were "found" by another WSBMWR member who had the correct address but was lost. Paul Fison knows Auburn, so in short order we got our group to where we should be. Then we learned more items of interest.
1. The parade starts at 11am 2. There are over 180 entries in the parade. 3. We were almost the last entry. 4. The entries move at about one every 45 seconds.
i.e. - we had a two hour wait. However, the weather was sunny and crisp, and other groups waiting on our block included a Corvette Club, two Ford Model A groups, a fire engine, and some Buffalo Soldiers with a horse - so there was a lot to see and talk about. I even was so bold as to purchase two burritos at a 76 gas station - and they were not bad!
At almost 1pm we rolled out and enjoyed the parade experience. Some people watching assumed everyone in the parade was a veteran. (I am not). Many veterans were watching the parade and enjoying that it was put on for them, which is true. For me, I enjoyed the big-heartedness of America in that we had a group of about 20 motorcycles in a Veterans Parade, and all of them German or Japanese brands.
At the end of the parade I thought maybe we would split up into smaller groups, which is what happened, but I was surprised that the "group" riding straight back to Ride West BMW consisted of = just me. A good time apparently was had by all. |
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X. You, Me, You-Tube, We..Etc.
We have our own Team Ride West web site page on the Ride West site. Go to www.ridewest.com and locate the Team Ride West page. There you'll find lots of information, links to ride videos and slide shows from past adventures.
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XI. Dinner at Cafe Veloce
We enjoy a fine time and great food at Café Veloce for our club monthly dinners. "Our" night is the 3rd Tuesday of each month. We're in the "club" room in inclement weather and out on the deck when the sun shines.
This month's TEAM RIDE WEST CLUB DINNER will be CANCELLED because of all of the other holiday events, dinners, and parties we all have! We'll meet again in 2012 on Tuesday, January 17th.
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XII. The Ride West Difference
Say you're chatting with friends about the varied events and rides you're enjoying with Team Ride West. Say further that these friends ask you, "What makes Ride West different?" Here are concepts we would thank you for putting across - the "Magnificent Seven."
1. With Team Ride West, more rides, dinners, and events than anyone else. 2. More in-store sales, swap meets, seminars, classes, etc. than anyone else. 3. Ability to purchase insurance for your bike, home, and auto - all in-house. 4. More demo bikes than anyone else. 5. Encouragement to take longer demo rides than any one else. 6. Service Department capable and happy to work on any brand. 7. Wide assortment of used bikes of all brands.
Remember, when you send in a new customer who purchases a new BMW and mentions your name BEFORE the deal is done YOU get a $200 gift card! |
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XIII. Team Ride West Concept Ride Procedures
Team Ride West Concept Ride Procedures
Team Ride West rides are referred to as "concept rides" because route and destination changes may evolve during the day depending on the wishes of those on the ride, the weather, and events of interest we may find along the way. The initial route directions will be sent out by e-mail a few days prior to the ride, but it is not required that everyone on the ride follow the same route or reach the same destination!
Here are the guidelines that we follow:
- Arrive at the start of the ride (usually Ride West BMW) with a full tank of fuel and funds for fuel, food, and other expenses during the day.
- Sign in and receive the printed instructions if needed.
- (Pause - if you do not have both a motorcycle endorsement on your license and insurance on your motorcycle, we ask that you wait until you do to ride with us.)
- Be VERY careful as we turn out of the Ride West parking lot onto 16th. Cars can and sometimes do turn left from Lake City Way onto 16th - potentially at a lethal speed.
- Once on the ride, find a group to ride with of 3 to 5 bikes - based on friends, model, experience, style of riding, and/or desired pace.
- Allow LOTS of space around you - front, side, and rear. Do not "tailgate."
- At major intersections that involve a turn, make sure the person behind you (in your group) has seen the turn before you accelerate away.
- RIDE AT YOUR OWN PACE - always.
- Pass on the left - well over the centerline. Do not pass on the right - EVER, under any circumstances barring dire emergency.
- Use hand/foot signals as needed. There's no required guide to these.
- On the way home, once past the final group fuel stop, it's every person for him/her self. You may drop off at your exit or street without the need to let the entire group know - but mentioning your intent at the final stop is a nice gesture.
- Other groups of motorcycles? - pass them very carefully with lots of room.
- For groups larger than 15 bikes or so, we will expect people to take some responsibility for following the route directions and/or others in the group, or for finding their own route. This rule is called "YOYOMF" for "You're On Your Own My Friend." Kudos to Bill Hucks for coming up with the phrase, although his version is just a bit more colorful.
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XIV. Anorak's Corner
An "anorak" is a British slang term referring to someone who gets far too hung up on minor details and will walk up to you at a show and tell you that the pinstriping on your freshly restored classic bike is not quite the right shade of green, etc. People who spend all their mental effort on the details and lose track of the meaning, in other words. So in that spirit...
Did you know that Team Ride West even has Operating Procedures? You might wonder why a club with no dues and no officers and no budget needs them, but I find them handy as a foundation for our actions, and I do consult them once in awhile. We're going to print sections of the Operating Procedures in our newsletter on a continually rotating basis so that I'm not the only one who knows what our actions are based on. If you see anything here that you want to question or perhaps modify or suggest an alternative for - please do so! Thanks to Tim Rice for catching the snafu in the section last month!
Article II: MEMBERSHIP
Ride West BMW reserves the right to deny or cancel membership to individuals. Team Ride West members are expected to portray motorcycling and Ride West BMW in a positive and respectful manner at all times.
Article III: CHARITABLE WORK Team Ride West members may choose to put on charitable events, either as a club or in conjunction with a Ride West BMW charitable event.
Article IV: OFFICERS Team Ride West officer positions will be created only when club members express a need for and desire for them. If interest is shown, the officers elected shall form a Board of Directors, charged with the overall organization and operation of the club. They will discuss and make decisions based on the combined and shared interests of Team Ride West and Ride West BMW. In all cases, the Operations Officer, an employee of Ride West BMW, shall have the authority to modify, amend, alter, and/or veto any decision made by the Board of Directors and/or the general membership.
The Board of Directors, if and when created, shall consist of 5 members: President: Runs meetings, and serves as a spokesperson 3 Board Directors: Varied tasks as assigned by the President and/or Ride West Operations Officer: Dave Preston or other Ride West BMW appointee
ARTICLE V: TERM LIMITS The officers of the club will be selected or appointed to begin with, and then be subject to winning election on a yearly basis. There shall be no limit on the number of terms an individual can serve in any such office. |
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