|
|
 GWRRA Wingin' It e-Newsletter
"Friends for Fun, Safety and Knowledge"
(Copyright 2009-all rights reserved.)
|
|
| Executive Message |
 |
|
Melissa Eason
Executive Director, GWRRA
Hello Members,
It's autumn, and the air is a little crisper; the leaves are alive with color; and the days are a little shorter.
Anyway, that's what I've been told many of you are experiencing in your corner of the world. But without the calendar telling me it's October, it's hard to tell from my Phoenix backyard. It's true, the air is a little cooler with temperatures in the 90's; my cactus hasn't lost any needles that I can see; and it's still sunny all day long.
What I do notice is the Gold Wings and other bikes are back on the roads full-throttle, enjoying the wonderful autumn weather that we Phoenicians wait so anxiously for all summer long.
While we are out enjoying the beautiful weather, the riding season has come to an end for many of you.
How does a Chapter stay active in the off-season? Plan your rides for next year, update that Chapter Scrapbook, take a Leadership Training class or MFA class. Sew those patches on your vest, update your membership record, or plan your route to next year's Wing Ding. Why not shop for those goodies for your bike so you can have them installed and ready to go come riding season. Make contact with those who haven't been to a Chapter gathering lately just to let them know you're thinking of them.
Have you ever thought of partnering with a sister Chapter across country? Select a Chapter that has the climate to ride year-round and have them share their rides with you. Live vicariously through them! Why not send out a Chapter survey and see what the Chapter Members enjoyed the most during riding season and plan for next year accordingly. And don't forget to get out in the community with MAD and let them know we're here. You can also plan a bowling night, attend a movie, have family days and bring the kids and grandkids. It's a great time to catch up on all those things that there never seems to be enough time for during riding season.
For those of you who can still ride, ride safely, and for those who can't...get creative and plan other things to do to keep our GWRRA family together. As we start looking toward the Holiday Season, let's not forget why we all joined GWRRA...for the friendship and comraderie...enjoy!
Always remember to ride safe and "Every Member Matters!"
|
| How GWRRA Has Positively Affected My Life? |
|
Remember, I am still looking for stories about how joining GWRRA has positively affected your life. Please send your stories to me here.
|
| GWRRA is now on Facebook! |
 |
|
Check out GWRRA's new Facebook page and sign up to follow us! It is easy!!
|
| "Did You Know?" |
 |
Check your GWRRA history knowledge and see if you know the answers to these questions?
1-What were the nicknames of Paul Hildebrand, Founder of GWRRA, and Shirley Stephens-Garcia, Co-Founder of GWRRA, when they started our Association?
2-What city hosted the western most Wing Ding in the USA, and what was the year?
3-When did GWRRA set up its first regions, and what were their designations?
(Answers in coupon block below.)
|
| Des Moines & Iowa Trivia Feature |
|
Let's see how much you know about IOWA this month.
1-WHEN DID THE STATE ENTER THE UNION?
2-WHAT IS IOWA'S STATE TREE?
(Answers to be found in the coupon block below.)
|
| NEW Product--
WEB MASTER PATCH |
 |
Now available
GOLD WING ROAD RIDERS ASSOCIATION
"WEB MASTER" Patch.
4" Dia., Black twill base with metallic gold text and merrow border, plain on back for sew-on application.
Price $5.95 ea.
Order from GW Pin and Patch
1-800-843-9460 Ext.274
Denny Baumann
GW Pin & Patch
|
| Travel Now |
|
Friendly REMINDER!!
Another one of GWRRA's Member benefits is your access to the extensive network of Travel Now. This Travel Site has over 44,000 hotels, airline reservations, tours (both for goups and individuals), cruises, and anything else you may want as far as travel is concerned. Check it out to see if the benefits are right for your needs. Click here Travel Now. |
| Rescue PLUS! |
 |
|
Remember to sign up for Rescue PLUS! It will add more miles and more vehicles to your standard FREE Rescue towing package from GWRRA. PLUS, it only costs $25 per year to upgrade the entire family!! Sign up now by calling
800-843-9460.
|
|
Greetings!
It is hard to believe that it is October already. Fall has come so fast and this year has just flown by, or could it be that I am just getting older and time is passing by faster? Don't answer that... I have had the fortune of catching up with some "old" friends and talking about past experiences with them and rides we took "in the day," as well as activities and events we participated in compared to those things today. On one hand it was fun to reminice; on the other, it was a little sad to think how long ago it was!
This led me to think about our dilemma as an Association. We are getting older as a group. Even though we don't ask your age on the applications, you can tell when you attend a Chapter gathering, Wing Ding, a Region or District Rally. Like many other social organizations, such as the Masons, VFW, and many others, we as groups are getting older. And if we do not bring in younger Members, we will be in trouble in the future.
But that is not my biggest concern. My bigger concern is the attitude of some of our Members. I have received emails asking us why we accept single riders, or women riders, or families with young children, etc. And, why do we have Chapter gatherings on Saturdays or Sundays or whatever? I want to reiterate that I only received a few of these type of emails, but still...it makes me think! Do people not understand what GWRRA really is? Do they not understand our Chapter concept? Why we were founded? I guess I should explain.
Let me first start by saying, GWRRA is open to anyone who has a Gold Wing or any other motorcycle (as they can be an Associate Member), pays their dues and wants to have FUN! GWRRA is a non-profit, non-political, non-religious organization founded for the purpose of meeting with like-minded, motorcycle people who like to ride Gold Wings, get together for FUN, learn about these awesome machines, learn to ride with more skill, and much more. The Association has grown over its 32+ years to offer many benefits and events and become a huge family for this FUN, enjoyable environment.
We don't ask what you do for a living, we don't vote for Volunteer Officers and we create these small local groups (called Chapters) in your communities to meet with and most importantly...find FRIENDS! Our motto, "Friends for FUN, Safety and Knowledge" was developed and is utilized in everything we do for our Members.
So, when folks join us and start to ask us to limit those who want to join us, or ask us to change what we do or ask our local Chapters to stop serving their local communities, we simply ask....why? We have been doing what we do for 32+ years and yes, we will discuss ways to make GWRRA better for the future, but we will not abandon what has made us what we are...the biggest Motorcycle Family in the world! So, if it does not serve the people who want to join us for the same reasons that everyone else joined us, or it does not serve the majority of our Members of the Chapter, then why change it?
We need the younger riders. We encourage the women riders. We want singles to ride with us or to start their own Chapter or, something else! Or start an Internet Chapter....tell us what you want to make GWRRA bigger and better. We have been listening to our Members for a long time and will not stop now, as long as it does not stop anyone from joining us who wishes to ride with us!
Thanks & ride safe, 
Ed Price
Marketing Director, GWRRA
"EveryMember Matters"
|
|
|
Featured Associate at Home Office 
John Cracchiolo:
Mail Room Operations
Hi everyone. I've been with GWRRA for 9 years now. I do the purchasing and receiving as well as manage the office supplies. My responsibilities also include some building maintenance, all the mail and shipping Official GWRRA Product orders.
Here at the Home Office, I process over 10,000 pieces of mail per month. That includes new Member packets, renewal packets and GWRRA Official Product orders.
I've been married for 10 years and have 2 wonderful girls-Kayla, 9 and Emily, 6-and spend as much time with my family as I can. We like to go to the beach as often as possible.
If I can ever assist you, please let me know. |
GWRRA Officer Profile: 
Motorist Awareness
Division Directors:
Charles & Nancy Mallett
Hello, we are Charles and Nancy Mallett, the Motorist Awareness Division (MAD) Directors.
We reside in DeSoto, Illinois, a small community located in Southern Illinois. In May 1974, we were married in our hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. We have two children, four grandchildren and attend First Christian Church in Carbondale, IL. I am a law enforcement officer serving as a patrol sergeant with the Jackson County Illinois Sheriff's Office. Nancy is an office manager at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.
Nancy and I joined GWRRA in 1983, and we are Life Members. In 1984, we organized and chartered Illinois Chapter "Q". We have served the Chapter as: Senior Chapter Directors, Assistant Chapter Directors, Rider Educators, Motorist Awareness Coordinators, Public Relations Officers, Member Enhancement Coordinators, Phone Tree Coordinators and Chapter Historians. We were honored in 1996 as the Chapter's Couple of the Year. Nancy has been the Chapter Secretary and continues her active involvement as Newsletter Editor. I am a level IV in the Levels Program and a Certified Rider Ed Seminar Presenter. Nancy is a level III, pending approval of her level IV application. I am a 2008 recipient of GWRRA's "Good Samaritan Award" due to my actions, which prevented a twelve year-old youth from choking (MFA training is definitely worth your time). Most recently, we have been serving on the Region "E" Staff as Motorist Awareness Coordinators. Our current ride is a 2004 pearl magenta metallic GL-1800. We have toured 48 States and 5 Canadian Provinces.
Outside of Association life, we enjoy family activities such as motorcycling and camping. I enjoy deer and turkey hunting both with bow and firearms. Nancy enjoys her involvement with church functions and when time permits, stitchery along with some photography.
We both share a deep passion for GWRRA and its Members. Through our involvement in this Association we have had meaningful life experiences, which otherwise we would not have enjoyed. We have developed many close relationships, and this is truly an extended family. Nancy and I look forward to working for the Members. We hope our involvement will help Make-A-Difference and help to make a safer riding environment for all.
If ever we may be of service to you, feel free to contact us either by phone or email. Home: 618-867-2920 Email: RideAware@yahoo.com |
GWRRA Member Profile: 
SHERWOOD "POPS"
GOINS
Sherwood, or Pops as he likes to be called, is 88 years young. He was born and raised in Lotus, Louisiana. Pops is a widower but has since found a new riding partner, BJ Berly. He is very much a family man, having serveral children and grandchildren. Being a US Army Veteran, Pops is one of our few surviving soldiers who served during WW II in the South Pacific.
He is an outdoorsman and truely enjoys fishing, camping, and hunting with a specific love for hunting turkeys.
Pops joined GWRRA in 2004 and was introduced to GWRRA by a Member of his local Deridder, LA Chapter, George Crump. He recruited his first Member in October 2006, with his main focus being to grow the size of his local Deridder Chapter.
After receiving his heart bars for recruiting, he decided he was going to put his "whole heart" into GWRRA recruiting! This is very easily evident as he has 107 recruits in just under three years. Pops says he recruits new Members, because he likes people and enjoys meeting new people.
Congratulations, Pops....Keep up the great work and thank you! (Ed)
|
JOKE of the MONTH!
This joke came from Don Bowden, CD,TN-D in Nashville, TN.
This man and woman were having a wonderful home-cooked meal, but the wife was very quiet. The man thought "uh-oh" I've forgotten something. So after dinner he said, "Honey, what's wrong? What did I do or forget?"
She looked at him with a very stern look on her face and said, "IT'S OUR 15th ANNIVERSARY TODAY!!! TOMORROW THERE HAD BETTER BE A GIFT IN THE DRIVEWAY FOR ME THAT CAN GO FROM 0 TO 200 IN 6 SECONDS OR LESS OR WE'RE THROUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When she got up the next day, there was a gift in the drive. She brought it into the house and unwrapped it.................It was a brand new bathroom scale!!!!!!!!!!!
Not sure if he ever came back home...
Ok, ok....if you have a better one, send it to me here at Wingin' It! |
Member Travel Story
Steve Wilhelmi, Ninilchik, Alaska
Alaskans enjoy 9,000-mile ride in Canada and Western U.S.
Four Alaskans enjoyed a ride of a lifetime in September and October of 2008, when they traveled by motorcycle from their homes in Ninilchik, Alaska to the border of Arizona and Mexico.
The couples were Steve and Linda Wilhelmi, and John and Delores Lindeman who reside on the Kenai Peninsula 40 miles north of Homer. Ted Larsen and Ellen Williams later joined them on the ride in the Lower 48. The three couples all rode Honda Gold Wing trikes.
For the Lindeman's and Wilhelmi's it was a long-awaited adventure to ride the ALCAN Highway from Alaska through Canada to the Lower 48. The two couples started their trip September 2 and traveled only during daylight hours wanting to take in all of the fantastic scenery. During the eight days it took to ride through Canada they saw an abundance of wildlife and traveled through the scenic Peace River Valley and the Fraser River Valley.
The couples crossed into the U.S. near Seattle and traveled to Portland, OR where they visited friends and family.
On September 15, the riders departed Portland and traveled east along the gorgeous Columbia River Valley.
We traveled through many different states such as:
Montana: There we saw Scenic Hwy 12, Bear Tooth Pass, Red Lodge, and the Custer Battlefield at the Little Big Horn.
In Wyoming: We saw Yellowstone National Park, Cody, Big Horn Mountains and Devils Tower.
In South Dakota: Ellen Williams of Anchorage met us in Spearfish and began her segment of the trip. We traveled through the Black Hills, Lead/Deadwood (grave sites of Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane and Saloon #11), Mt. Rushmore, Keystone, Needles Highway, Spearfish Canyon, Badlands, Wall Drug, and the Pioneer Auto Museum.
Then in Colorado: We saw the Rocky Mountain National Park, Vail, Loveland Pass, the Eisenhower Tunnel, and the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde National Park.
In Arizona: We saw Petrified Forest, Chiracahua National Monument, Tombstone and the O.K. Corral, and Karchner Caverns.
We completed the ride October 15, cleaned up the trikes and put them in storage.
We could have packed more sightseeing into this trip, but we wanted places to see, and things to do for future rides. This was the third trip for the Wilhelmi's, the second for the Lindeman's, and the first for the Larsen's and the Williams'.
We are already in the planning stages for next year's ride and another adventure. We were so proud, the three Gold Wings performed flawlessly! |
|
GWRRA Discount Program Links!
Here are links to some GWRRA Discount Programs.
If these Discount Programs may be of interest to you, just click on the link or call 800-843-9460 or 623-581-2500 (in Phoenix) for more information.
|
HOME OFFICE NEWS & REMINDERS
Reminders from Member Services:
Please update your Gold Book information by November 2nd to be included in next year's Gold Book. The Gold Book is a service directory, and if you have chosen not to have any codes listed, you will not be listed in the Gold Book. Call Member Services now, if you wish to list a code or codes, so you will be listed in the next Gold Book.
************************************
"Who is Who"
This is a question our Member Services Department hears quite frequently from Members. They have received their new Member or renewal packet, and tucked inside is a membership card for the co-rider with the word "Who" where the Member's name should appear.
When filling out the membership application, the applicant will often neglect to fill in the name of the co-rider. If Member Services cannot reach the applicant to verify the co-rider's name when processing the application, the card gets issued with the word "Who" in place of their name. Oftentimes, once the Member received the "Who" card, they will call and request a new card with the co-rider's name.
Because it can take up to two weeks to receive a replacement card, remember to fill in the co-rider's name when renewing or filling in a new application. This will ensure that the co-rider receives a membership card with their name and not the dreaded "Who" card.
===================================
*Here is another "Did You Know?" Did you know that GWRRA sells Gift Certificates? So, if you would like to buy a gift membership for someone special or a gift of Official GWRRA Merchandise or even just give the gift of a Gift Certificate, call Member Services and ask them how! Just call 800-843-9460 or 623-581-2500 in Phoenix. |
GWRRA Recruiting
Program
Just a reminder, in case you never heard the news, RECRUIT two (2) new households and you will receive a $5 gift certificate from GWRRA.
The $5 gift certificate can be used for anything from Official Products to Membership Renewals to Wing Ding Registrations.
For more information, call 800-843-9460 or 623-581-2500 in Phoenix. | |
|
|
|
|
| Save 20% |
Featured Official GWRRA Product:
WHITE LONG-SLEEVE EAGLE SHIRT, WITH POCKET
WHITE LONG-SLEEVE SHIRT WITH POCKET. GWRRA ON FRONT WITH EAGLE LOGO ON BACK. WINGS ON SLEEVES. ADD $1.00 FOR 2XL AND 3XL SIZES.
Product Code 3082000
Click here for pictures. On sale now for 20% off the regular price of $20.00, now only $16, if you mention the special code on this coupon.
Answers to "Did You Know?"
1-Paul's = "Boogie Bird" & Shirley's = "Sam"
2-Wing Ding VIII, Santa Clara, CA, 1986
3-June, 1978=3 regions; Eastern, Central & Western
Answers to "IOWA Trivia"-----IOWA ENTERED UNION = 12/28/1846
IOWA'S STATE TREE = Oak Tree
|
| Offer Expires: 10/31/09. Mention code e-news |
|
|
