March 11, 2003
Dear BMW RA Ohio Rider,
As I wrap up this newsletter
to go to print, a soggy flock is breaking up at Daytona for the return home
and Bike Week 2003 is history. Unfortunately, due to the weather, not
all of the motorcycle races were run as planned, but the first race of the
new BMW Boxer Cup Series did get off on time. This was the only race
of the Series we will see scheduled here in the United States and it was
done with all the excitement, eloquence, and class BMW is known for.
There were almost fifty, virtually stock R1100RS machines, each adorned with
the unique bike rider's country of origin custom paint scheme. If you
haven't seen the, now famous, jug bump at nearly 180 MPH, find someone who
taped the race and watch in amazement at the way the racers handled these
Boxers. I watched as the Stars and Stripes painted number 46 of Brian
Parriot took second place just behind the French rider Roberto Panichi in
a photo finish. It's really good to see BMW back at the track in any
event.
More than racing made history
at Bike Week this year. This, as many of you know, was the second year
the BMW camp out was held at the Holiday Campgrounds and the first year both
national BMW Clubs were present in a cooperative atmosphere. I am still
waiting for the full accounting, but anticipate a positive report from Headquarters.
Also slated was a first ever BMW RA Board Meeting during Bike Week where
much of what is to become of the new RA structure was discussed. One
of the issues on the agenda was how we will restructure our regional officers
and representatives. I am hoping the Board spent some time considering
the proposal I submitted for Regional Coordinators and modeling their structure
around the way we have been operating here in Ohio.
If you are new to the RA and
live here in Ohio you might be surprised to find out that there is an organized
state-level group here that is quite active, both during the normal and off
riding seasons. In Ohio we have five indoor brunch meetings (one in
each geographical quadrant of the state and one in the central state area)
and a minimum of three riding season camp outs. All these events are
for this region's members and usually at little or no cost. These statewide
events seem to foster better local rider communications, awareness, and camaraderie.
They also promote a more coordinated scheduling of events amongst the Ohio
clubs -- avoiding overlapping dates. To this end, Ohio BMW events are
well attended and supported by other clubs within the district. This
is our mission in a nutshell and part of that mission is to keep you informed
through a local newsletter like this one. You will find this newsletter
in your mailbox or (if you are online) available to read on our web site
twice a year. In this issue of the RA Ohio Update I have included a
separate calendar for the year outlining each event. I highly recommend
you save it for reference during the 2003-riding season, but for complete
up-to-the-minute details of any of the events, go to the Ohio-RA web site
at the address in the letterhead. Feel free to join in at any listed
event. And don't forget, the most important item in our mission is
to ride and have fun.
LOCAL CLUB NEWS
As you read this issue you will
surely be thinking forward to the fast approaching riding and camping season.
I for one have had enough time inhaling the two-stroke fumes of my snow blower
and am looking forward to the sweet smell of lilacs as I jet past the smartly
painted Bi-Centennial Ohio Barns on my Beemer.
If you're in the Cincinnati Club,
you will likely be seeing as many of these barns as you can for the contest
Jim Smith and Mike LaBar have set up for you. Mike has posted the contest
details on their web site at http://w3.one.net/~labrew/OhioBarnRules.html
and lists all 88 county barns and a map. The Greater Cincinnati BMW
Club (GCBMWC) has continued their active communications on their Club's Yahoo
Group and runs a high tally of postings per month. They are even sending
their newsletter via E-mail to online members. This may prove to be
the wave of the future. I have been trying to do something similar
on the state level and beginning with this issue these Ohio-RA newsletters
will be available in PDF on the web site and in the eGroup files section
to read and print..
In Cleveland, the BMWMOC club
will award its members MoCal points (a new participation tracking system)
to members caught in a Bi-Centennial Ohio Barn Photo-Op. That plus
a host of other membership participation incentives will give their members
points that will in turn be cashed in for helmet stickers. The member
with the most stickers will eventually end up with a cash prize at the end
of the season. Now you're talking. This is quite an innovative
program and it aggressively solicits member participation. I will keep
an eye on this incentive program and report back on how it works out in a
later issue.
The Ohio RA Regional Meetings
are almost over for this winter with only the Central State Regional Meeting
and Brunch remaining on the schedule for Sunday, March 16. As I wrap
up the series I have found the local clubs in Ohio continue to be strong
and viable. Some are growing, like Toledo, while maintaining their
usual events while others like the Buckeyes have leveled out and are about
the same size, but doing more events. For the second time in as many
years, the Buckeyes will run their Dunlop Elite Series Poker Run on June
1st to benefit the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum and would love to see
a strong showing of Ohio BMW riders. And as usual, the Buckeyes are
also planning their BS Rally again at Lake Snowden on September 5-7 this
year. Mark your calendar for both events -- they are for all riders.
Mentioned above the Toledo Club
continues to grow it's membership and host both spring and summer camp outs.
Their February newsletter included a full color photo (on glossy stock) of
their members at their annual banquet. If they grow any more they will
need a wide-angle lens for next year. Toledo also recently approved
a new patch design that is now for sale through their club and they are looking
into updating their Constitution and Bylaws. They are moving and shaking
in Toledo complete with a web site and are a club to keep an eye on.
All in all, Ohio's local BMW
clubs continue to thrive and provide numerous rider events for all to enjoy.
The number of exclusive Ohio BMW events always surprises me as I put together
my calendar. Be sure to support your local club and their efforts.
Imagine for a moment what life would be like without them and I'm sure you
will realize they are the jewels in our crown here in Ohio.
OHIO RA REGIONAL CAMP OUTS
FOR 2003
If you missed it last year, the
newly located Spring Camp Out (13 miles east of Mount Vernon) was a big hit.
There were thirty-five on the roster and everyone reportedly had a good time.
Last month during a severe snowstorm I called to reserve the same set up
we had last year that includes the grassy camping area and pavilion.
(My way of keeping semi-sane during the winter.) Each site has water
and electric and is on level ground. The Kokosing Valley Camp and Canoe
also has a camp store, laundry, hot showers, and flush toilets. Restaurants
can be found in nearby Millwood and Danville via a short ride on the wonderful
roads in the area. Camping is $4.00 per person, per night, payable
to the campgrounds as you come in. The Ohio RA Regional kitty will
fund hot and cold beverages and I will give a BMWRA one-year membership away
to some lucky rider on Saturday night. Hope you can make it to this
one.
Our premiere event of the
year is the Ohio Regional Summer Camp Out on Father's Day Weekend (see
calendar). This event is our regions all out attempt at a full-fledged
rally, but keeping in the traditions of the RA -- without the hoop-la.
Each year we have kept the menu quite interesting and this year is no
exception. There are additional details on the web page, but I
will summarize this event for you. Friday evening we will again
have a hungry-riders soup pot for a meager donation. Camping is
free and includes a shower, Port-a-Potties, pool, arcade games, coffee,
tea, cool beverages, and some of the best riding roads in Ohio.
Saturday, by pre-paid reservation only, enjoy your choice of a steak,
ribs, or BBQ chicken dinner catered on site by the Scioto Ribber Restaurant
of Portsmouth, Ohio. They are famous for their enormous steaks
and dinners that you can hardly finish by yourself. Each dinner will
come complete with baked potato, sweet n' sour German Style or creamy
style Cole slaw, roll and butter, all for $16.00. Please note
-- if you are interested in the catered dinner you must prepay before
June 2nd. There will be no extra dinners available on site.
After dinner I will have a brief Ohio RA Regional Meeting, a door prize
and club membership give away sponsored by your Ohio BMW Dealers, bonfire,
and the usual festive atmosphere. This has become the Ohio RA
event not to miss. To reserve a dinner ticket, call Randy or Kris
Phipps at 937.587.3443 or E-mail them for details.
Last but not least, the Halloween
Camp Out is on the calendar a bit earlier than usual this year, but will still
be held on the time change weekend (October 24-26). This will allow
the NE Regional Meeting and Brunch (Atwood Lake Lodge) to be on the calendar
in its proper time slot (2-weeks later). The Halloween Camp Out near
Cadiz has slowly morphed from a Spartan outing to the literal food orgy of
recent times. It started out several years ago as just a Chile pot.
Then a bean feed was added, to the mix. Now we have pumpkin pancakes
with sausage and maple syrup just for breakfast. There were always
the normal share-a-dish-if-you-wish items like some homemade cookies and
a jug of cider, but this may be getting out of hand. I don't think
anyone left the campsite for food last year.
Those who did go for a ride mostly
ended up at the Mathias Grand Opening Celebration for a hot dog lunch and
door prize drawings. Gene and his crew have moved into a wonderful
new facility on the south side of New Philadelphia that has room for them
to grow. The parking lot was full of visiting BMW's and their showroom
was buzzing and standing room only when I was there on Saturday. It
was good to see a supportive turn out on such a marginal day, weather wise.
One of the Ohio RA Halloween Camp
Out regular events is the Sam Hill Memorial Ride to the Motorcyclists Memorial
Foundation (MMF) site in Hopedale, OH. This year I found Sam's name
is clearly now part of the memorial wall and just a few names below Gary
Paine (GCBMWC), who also lost his life while riding. Strolling the
walkway I also noticed two memorial bricks placed by the Toledo BMW Riders.
I snapped photos of both and forwarded them to the club. Let's all
hope we have many safe riding years and won't need to add any more RA's to
the MMF. I will be updating the web page soon with the new MMF photos
and finally bring closure to these recent losses.
NATIONAL SCENE
There have been some positive
changes in the way the BMWRA operates as a club and I'm hoping you may have
noticed. Recently guidelines and deadlines for everything from, the
everyday, to the annual operations of the organization, have been adopted
and implemented. This has put things like publishing the OTL on a workable
timetable. You should actually get this month's issue, this month and
possibly earlier if a Manager Editor is hired. Some of these changes
are due to a more streamlined way that the Board of Trustees (BoT) is doing
business, its decision-making (from our new Bylaws), and in part, to new
personnel at Headquarters.
The last time I wrote to you,
Linda Gotcher had temporary taken over as the RA's Association Administrator
(AA) while Ed Jorgensen was placed on active duty with the military.
Ed not knowing how long he would be away has relinquished his position to
Linda. She accepted, and was officially hired as the new Association
Administrator. Linda has moved the RA Headquarters into a specially
adapted room in her house for her duties. One of the fine documents
Linda has recently submitted to the BoT clearly defines the duties, responsibilities,
and salary of the RA's AA.
Further work of the current BoT
has been to create the position of Rally Coordinator and fill it with the
best qualified person we could find. After some taunting, Juli Tucker
has enthusiastically accepted the position. Juli also submitted a "Job
Duties, Responsibilities, and Pay Scale Proposal" document that the BoT readily
approved. We couldn't be in better hands. Juli already has this
year's site secured and is laying groundwork for rallies four and five years
from now. She has also initiated a Rally Newsletter that goes out via
E-mail that I have been posting onto the Ohio RA eGroup message board.
If you do not subscribe to the Ohio RA Yahoo Group you can sign up separately
and have it delivered directly to your own E-mail. These e-mails will
keep you up to date with the progress of the RA's national event.
As Rally Coordinator, Juli has
done her usual bang up job and gotten what very well may be, the Rally of
the year (if not the decade) lined up for us in early October. My only
concern, living in Northern Ohio is possible inclement weather leaving or
returning home, but I'm told the weather in Alabama at that time of the year
is magnificent. The Barber Motor Sports Park, Barber Museum,
3-days of Reg Pridmore's CLASS, and the nearby Airhead Invitational are only
the highlights. There is a ton more information on the RA web site and in
upcoming OTL's. This will be another not to miss event. So, tell
your boss today you want the first week of October for vacation.
At the annual Board of Trustees
Meeting in Red River, NM (last August) the task of redefining the old officer
positions was given to me. I used Ohio as a model and recently submitted
a proposal to the Board to consider at an informal meeting held during Bike
Week 2003. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend, but Gordan presented
it and we should know soon if we will continue here in Ohio as is and if
other regions will have the opportunity to follow in our footsteps.
It is my hope that the BMWRA will once again become known for its grassroots
outreach and develop a network of Regional Coordinators to aid the process.
Top of the list at this recent
meeting was installing a Managing Editor for the OTL. This would be
some welcomed assistance for Robert and is a long overdue step for the already
excellent publication.
Another big issue slated for
discussion at this meeting was the fate of the Chartered Clubs program.
There has been some talk of dismantling it. I have been adamantly opposed
to the idea and would be willing to take it over myself if it came down to
that. If your local club has not renewed its charter for this year,
please have your club secretary or other official do so as soon as possible.
The process of renewing a Club Charter with the RA has gotten even easier
with the revamping of the web page. Have your club officer log onto
the BMWRA web site (see header) and the renewal can be done online.
It only takes a few minutes. No more forms to get lost in the mail.
As you can see the Board of Trustees
has been busy and seems to be moving in a positive direction. The current
BoT is comprised of people who have a vast knowledge of where we have been,
what worked in the past, and a good feel for what might work in years to
come. They all care about the future of the RA and seem willing to
make it work again. I hope this will be a pivotal year for the Association
and its membership.
Since my appointment as Trustee,
I have had occasion to toot my horn for Ohio as well as serving the interests
of all RA members. This is certainly a special situation for Ohio RA's
and to that end, if you have any suggestions, questions,
comments, or concerns about the
way the RA or your Region operates, please address them to me. You
can be sure I will be your voice at Headquarters.
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
The future of the BMWRA in Ohio
seems to be bright. We have a strong group of active clubs statewide.
We have money in our treasury for our upcoming events, and we have a full
schedule of activities lined up until the snow begins to fly again.
At this point, all we need is you to make this all come together for one more
year. So stick the enclosed 2003 Ohio-RA Regional Calendar to your
refrigerator so you don't miss an Ohio event. I'm looking forward to
this riding season and seeing you all on the dusty trail again.
Ride with the RA,
Bob Wood
Bob Wood
Ohio State Director & Trustee
BMW Riders Association, International
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