GWRRA Texas Chapter P

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1 GWRRA Texas Chapter P Meet the 2nd Thursday of each Spring Creek BBQ April MMX Spring Edition From your Director Chapter Participants and friends; Ever so slowly, spring is making its way back to North Texas. Finally. We get to enjoy longer hours of daylight, warmer low temperatures and more reasons to get out and ride our wings. This year promises an awesome time to get out and enjoy the color our great state displays. The dogwoods and redbuds have been abundant in color and the bluebonnets promise to be amazing this year. I suggest you take a sick day (sick of work) and escape for that perfect day we have longed for on our wing. This time of the year an event calendar can provide many opportunities to have some fun! There are many events and festivals scheduled throughout the state. Find one that interests you and invite a friend to join you! We hope you all will make plans to attend the Texas District Rally in Killeen May 6-8. This years event and central location provides an opportunity to visit for the day, or stay overnight and enjoy all the fun! This years theme demonstrates our support and appreciation for all of those who have and continue to serve our nation. Lets show our support and Rally the Troops! You can find more information on the Texas District website at Get out & Jeff Mew Chapter Director GWRRA TX-P Safe! Polish your Wing, Its time to ride! Contents Front page...director statement Page 2-3 Chapter Life Page 4 Education Page 5-6 District News Page 7.Sponsor Page 7.Sponsor/Honda West Page 9.Events/Tx Staff Page 9 Puzzle Fun Page 10...Sponsors Page 11...Poster

2 Marshall March Madness 2 Chapter Life We kicked off the rally season by attending the Region H Rally in Marshall. It was a great way to get into the rally mode. The redbud and dogwood trees in East Texas this time of the year are a sight to see as they were blooming and temps were in the 70 s. So was the wind! Not really, but it was more than I like to contend with. F U The Texas District was well represented and the number of out of state riders were pretty well split 50/50. We made and saw friends, and supported their local economy..again, but failed to buy any chrome! What was I thinking? I will have another chance in Killeen. N There was an Elvis sighting and he plans on seeing many more of us at the Texas District Rally in May. Theresa and I got re-certified in CPR and 1st Aid to keep current as Level IV in the REP. Although we slept in, over 100 riders did participate in the free breakfast at the Golden Coral. We won t miss it at district! Thank you Region H staff for providing all the fun! Well done! See you in Plano next year. Many very nice looking Trikes and Bikes F R I E N D S Bike and car wash benefiting the boys club Texas District Director Ken & Barbie Peterson graced us with their presence at last months chapter gathering. Ken was our first honored guest to sign the Chapter banner. In case you missed last months meeting Gary Wilson was the winner of our trike give-a-way. Wouldn t you know, he already had one! Congrats! Hope we see you the 2nd Thursday in April!

3 3 Get your purple camouflage here! Pig Iron City is an awesome store! You will find great surplus Army/Navy equipment, leather gloves & jackets, headgear, boots, patches and more! They can even do the sewing! What a great place to shop! I encourage all to drop by and check them out & thank them for their support! See you there! Show your GWRRA card save 10% Wear your vest or chapter colors to the monthly gathering and receive your non alcoholic beverages free! Compliments of the good folks at SPRING CREEK BARBEQUE. RIDE CAPTIANS NEEDED Want to contribute to your chapter? Lead a ride! Do you have a destination you would like to share with the group? Let us know and we will post it on the calendar for you! You don't have to ride alone! Thank you for supporting our sponsors, as they continue to support GWRRA Chapter P Leadership Directive As you are aware come the end of 2010 you will need another Chapter Director. This individual must complete The Officer Certification Program. This applies to all current and future officers. All current Directors and Assistant Directors at each level (Chapter, District, and Region) must complete the Officer Certification Program by August 31, The Officer Certification Program is open to any Member or Associate Member of GWRRA. The OCP is also an informational seminar for any Member who wishes to learn more about the Association. Currently the day and a half class is scheduled, for June 5-6 at the Civic Center in Killeen. If you are interested in the Director position you will be required to be certified within six weeks of filling the position. Because this is a national directive, the chapter will help defer the cost of this class. This seminar and certification is required for leading a GWRRA chapter. Please see Jeff if you have any questions and are interested.

4 T Education Get licensed, get trained, get sober, get in gear! 4 A lot of people think motorcycles are so dangerous that only someone with a death wish would ride one. Anecdotal evidence and -- truth be told -- highway safety statistics confirm that bikes have a higher rate of injuries and fatalities per vehicle-mile than cars, buses, and trucks. But the raw stats are very misleading. If you look at most instances of someone wrecking a motorcycle and getting killed or hurt, you'll usually find that the rider was either unlicensed, untrained, drunk, not wearing the proper safety gear, or a combination of the any and all of the above. You'd be amazed at the number of people who ride motorcycles without having a motorcycle license. They can't be bothered to get a motorcycle license, because it would require them to go back to the DPS and ride around with a cop following you, like a teenager getting a driver's license for the first time. And they think that if a cop stops them and finds that they're not licensed to ride a bike, all it's going to cost them is a fine. So they don't bother to learn some basic skills and take the silly DPS test to get a motorcycle license. (I must admit when I was younger I rode for several years without a license.) Unlike driving a car, however, operating a bike requires more than just common sense. For example, when you're driving a car, if you step on the brake too hard and lock up one or more of the wheels, you get off the brake to get the wheels rolling again. On a bike, that strategy can get you thrown onto the road -- with the bike tumbling after you -- should you lock up the rear wheel. (Solution: keep the rear wheel locked and bring the bike to a stop, if you can.) Steering, too, isn't always intuitive. A lot of self-taught motorcyclists try to steer the same way you do on a bicycle: by leaning over. Well, that does make the bike turn somewhat, but there's no way you can make a quick swerve or a tight corner that way. (Solution: Use "counter steering," which involves pushing on the hand grip that's on the side toward which you want to go -- push the left hand grip to turn left. Counterintuitive, isn't it? That's why it's called "counter steering.") A weekend training class, such as those offered by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation will teach you enough skills to help you keep the rubber side down in most traffic situations. The classes are minimal compared to the cost of a new Goldwing or hospital bills. Yet a lot of people are too proud to admit they could use a little instruction -- just as they're too proud to go to the DPS and take a riding test -- so they do without. It hardly needs mentioning that riding drunk is a bad idea, and that wearing a decent helmet and some safety gear is a good way to bounce back, should you ever have the misfortune of hitting the pavement. If you've ever watched a motorcycle road race like the Daytona 200, it's amazing how much protection a leather riding suit provides -- those guys take some pretty nasty spills, then get up and dust themselves off as if nothing had happened. The bottom line is that if you look those motorcycle safety statistics and throw out the data points involving riders who were unlicensed, untrained, drunk, and/or not wearing good safety gear, riding a bike properly is much safer than people think. Brian Handleson Chapter Educator

5 Where are you? We want all riders to become involved in the Riders Ed Program. See Brian Handleson to get you registered, and start climbing the ladder to achieve the goal of Master Tour Rider. We should all be committed to riding safely! Attend a class, sharpen your skills, and be prepared in case of emergencies. Wear proper riding gear and stay accident free. You can find more information on the REP By checking out the national website at and clicking on the divisions tab then Riders Ed. 5 Friends, for Fun, Safety & Knowledge Get your WING ready for Spring!

6 DISTRICT NEWS 6 The Shilo Inn is FULL. However call them for all reservations and they will direct you to their overflow associated hotels. The Comfort Suites are giving us the same rates of $85 for their suites as well. Early Bird Social No Ice Cream in the parking lot, this year at the Thursday night Social. Instead, Killeen Power Sports will graciously open their doors to their beautiful dealership and will be serving hot dogs, etc. Rider Ed Activities at the Rally Rider Education will be supporting a PLP Facilitator Classroom, PLP Range, TRC, both classroom and range activities, Co-Rider Seminar, and the ever popular Level IV Breakfast, with the location TBA at a later date. If you are in need of a Rider Education course to maintain level currency, move-up the level s program or just sharpen your riding skills, the TRC would be 8-hours, well spent. Additional Rider Education activities include the First Aid/ CPR New (1st time) participants, First Aid/CPR Refresher Course, and Motorcycle Crash Scene. Killeen-Heights Rotary Welcome Gold Wing Road Riders convention to Killeen, May 8, 2010! Join us for a delicious lunch for only $10 With your choice of; Crawfish Fried Chicken Catfish and hushpuppies! 11:00 am 3:00 pm Live music, Children s Activities, Silent Auction, with all proceeds supporting many charitable organizations in Killeen! Special Events Center The USO Variety Shown includes a talent show, a Jitterbug Contest and who knows what Special Guest might show up! As part of the Rider Education Division activities, the Top Gun Challenge returns to the Texas District Rally in Killeen, TX on May 7-8, We are extremely fortunate to have the Top Gun Team, that conducts this event at Wing Ding, located right here in Texas. Andy Lancaster and his "Team" will have all the necessary paperwork at the Rider Education Table for you to sign up for this prestigious event. Top Gun Schedule Friday 10AM-12AM practice range Saturday 10AM-12AM competition itself NOVICE Have you got what it takes? Do you have the skill to be Top Gun? EXPIERENCED EXPERT For additional information, contact Andy Lancaster at or rideredtexas@aol.com Special Event for Friday, May 7, 2010 First Calvary Hose Detachment of Ft Hood

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8 We hope to see you at an upcoming April 3rd Spring Fling Ride to Hico 8 8th monthly Chapter gathering 8th-10th Louisiana District Rally (Lafayette) 10th Chapter O Austin Bluebonnet Rally smile 24th-TX O2 Brownwood Rally May 6-8 Texas District Rally in Killeen Arkansas District Rally find more on these and other events on the Texas District website at Ken & Barbie Peterson District Directors TexasDD@gwrra-tx.org Lynn Heene District Trainer TxTrainer@gwrra-tx.org Mark Heene District Webmaster webmaster@gwrra-tx.org Chet Roby District Educators TXED@gwrra-tx.org Collen Campbell Assistant District Educator Fred & Mandy Mew Assistant District Directors TexasADD@gwrra-tx.org Carolyn Barton Membership Enhancement Division txmedac@gwrra-tx.org Donna Holley Asst. Membership Enhancement Division asstmec@gwrra-tx.org Ken and Barbie Peterson Pamela Meyer Treasurer, Newsletter Editor & Patch Diva treasurer@gwrra-tx.org Don & Linda Holley Vendor Coordinators Dave & Jean Simmons District Couple Of The Year Texas District Website H Website

9 Puzzle fun 9 Time Find and circle all of the words relating to Time that are hidden in the grid. The words may be hidden in any direction. CENTENNIAL CHRONOGRAPH CLOCK DAY DECADE EON ERA EPOCH HOUR MIDNIGHT MILLENNIUM MINUTE MONTH SECOND SUNDIAL WEEK WATCH YEAR Sonic Socials are back! The weather cleared and the temperature crept into the low 60 s for our first social of the year. However 15 folks turned out to make it a nice way to start. As temperatures warm, we hope to see more riders come out and join us in the coming months. Mark your calendar & we will see you on the fourth Thursday of each month in Cresson. Here are a few web links that you may find useful No Photo Available

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11 WE INVITE YOU TO VISIT US! GWRRA TX-P meet the 2nd Thursday of Each month at the SPRING CREEK BBQ in Granbury. We start at 7:00PM Join us for the fun!