Elections were held at our annual Christmas party and for another year, the same officers listed above will serve you, the Greater Cincinnati BMW riders and our communities to promote and maintain the respectability long associated with BMW motorcycles and their riders, nurture sportsmanship and fellowship, and to encourage courteous and responsible riding. (our Mission).
I’d like to personally thank my fellow officers for their hard work and dedication to the club. Thanks to our president, who lives in a neighboring city. Bob consistently shows his club devotion and represents us well. Thanks to Greg our VP for all the great rides and for taking minutes for me. Thanks to Henry for keeping things straight and handling the financials for the club. We’ve got more money than we’ve ever had before. Thanks as well goes to Jerry Cummins, our mileage contest coordinator for all of his work. It makes me want to go after our reigning mileage champion, Jack. Thanks go to Bill Berry for leading us to the Blue Ridge Mountains for what is to be an annual campout event, and his famous Queen City Tour. Thanks to Mike Crumm for organizing our poker run/Boy Scout dinner event. On a poker run a full house is a sure winner… so I thought. And what a great Christmas Party we had. Thank you very much Kathy. To those of you who sent me articles and pictures for our newsletter and web site, you made my job easier. To all who stepped up and offered their homes as our meeting places, you made it more personal and homey. Thanks. Any March meeting takers?
It was a good year for the club. We needed it after 2000. We were blessed with no major accidents and I sure hope we maintain our record of safe riding for 2002. We are a growing club. It seems like we vote someone new into the club every meeting. Club involvement has been much improved, and it’s a testament to the dedication and enthusiasm shown by all. Have a safe and happy holiday.
New Years Day Breakfast ride
It’s become another tradition to gather for breakfast and weather permitting, ride on the first day of the new year. Bill Berry has a plan for the 2002 New Years breakfast ride. Here’s a very recent eGroup email Bill sent out on 12/20/01.
O.K. boys and girls, start the new year off on the right foot(wheel). The Annual New Year's Day Breakfast Ride
When...
January 1, 2002 @ 9:00am
Where...
Bassanno's, Rt.28, Milford, Ohio (east side of Cincinnati)
Directions...
From the north; I-275 east/south to Rt. 28. Turn right onto
28, resturant about one mile on left.
From the south; I-275 east/north to Rt. 28. Turn left onto
28, resturant about one mile on left.
What...
Good food and ride weather permitting. We will try to leave the restaurant around 10:00 for a nice little ride off the beaten path thru Clermont County. If the weather is not real nice we will stay on the beaten path. If the weather is lousy, we will probably go back home, not worth the risk. There will be plenty of stops for coffee and warmth. Length of the ride depends on the conditions but will be approximately 50 miles plus or minus the weather. Should be home in time to watch some of the football games.
Don't feel like riding, take 4 wheels, we won't mind, the food is still good.
Hope to see you there!!!
Our
January Business meeting will be held at Hueston Woods
on January 12th 2002. Dinner
will start at 6 and the meeting will be held afterwards.
With any luck we hope to use the same area around the fireplace for our
first meeting of 2002. Rooms are
still available, but if you do plan on spending the night, you had better book
you reservations, as they are no longer holding our block of rooms.
To reserve your room, call 1-800-282-7275 and let them know you are
from The Greater Cincinnati BMW Club Reservation # 954415. Payment is made
at time of reservation.
Directions: From I275 to
US-27 (Colerain Ave.). Turn right onto US-27 North. Follow US-27 into Oxford. In
the center of town, turn right onto St. Rt. 732 North. Follow St. Rt. 732 to the
park entrance.
The Prez Sez
Holiday greetings! I would like to take this opportunity to send a BIG thank you to Kathy McAfee for her excellent work. Because of her efforts our Christmas party was great! I hope those of you who attended had a good time and didn’t go home hungry. Those of you who were unable to make it missed another fine GC party.
The next item on our social calendar is the Hueston Woods outing in January. Twenty-five of us signed up for dinner at the lodge so far. Mike will have details elsewhere about voicing your intentions to join us for dinner. We want to let the folks at the lodge know how many of us there will be.
There were eight Greater Cincinnati members (that I can think of), at the RA brunch in Dayton. Thanks for coming out, it was a fine day for a ride. After everyone got their fill from the buffet, Bob Wood filled us in on what’s happening at the state and national levels of the RA. Bob explained the impending changes in the RA organization and the effects that might have on the Ohio clubs.
The RA is expected to propose that the positions of District Governor and State Director be eliminated. This could be a problem for Ohio since we’re one of the few states that have an active director. Ohio has a number of state level activities such as the winter brunches and campouts during the riding season. At this point Bob’s not sure if or how Ohio can continue to support these activities within the new organization. Hopefully since the RA has the Right Attitude, they will find a way to work this out. You faithful RA members should probably sharpen your letter writing pencils. We may need to convince the powers that be just how important the current Ohio structure is to us.
The new year is starting to take shape very nicely. We could potentially have cookout/campouts near both Versailles and Hillsboro thanks to generous members. Both the MOA and RA national rallies will be in intriguing locations this summer. And, I have it on very good authority that Henry’s Restaurant near West Jefferson, Ohio has some of the best pies anywhere, so I’ll be checking it out as a possible ride destination. As the current Rally’s ads say, “Gotta eat!”
Once again, if you’ve got a favorite ride or destination that you would be willing to share with the club, let Greg know. We’re always looking for suggestions.
Happy holidays, everyone!
Bob
MOA Dues Increasing
Members have until March 1, 2002 to renew under the current dues structure. New members must join on or before December 31, 2001 to also take advantage of current dues, which are $25/year. The dues will go to $32/year. The most convenient way of “locking-in” present rates is to renew or join at the BMW MOA website: http://www.bmwmoa.org/forms/MembershipRenewalForm.htm You may also snail mail the application for membership found in each issue of the BMW MOA's BMW Owners News. Please call BMW MOA Headquarters at 636-537-5511 if you have any questions. The membership benefits can more than pay for dues.
GCBMWC Dues Don’t Increase
GCBMWC dues remain at $15 for a single membership and $18 for an associate membership. Henry will gladly take your money at the January meeting at Hueston Woods. Your deadline for GCBMWC dues is March 9th, 2002.
Motorcycle Safety Tidbits
Avoid riding in the center of the lane. That is where debris and oil droppings from cars accumulate. Stay in the right or left track where the rubber of the cars meet the street. Painted lines and sewer lids should also be avoided… Of course you knew all this.
2001 Mileage Contest
From our Mileage Contest Coordinator Jerry Cummis:
2001 2UP Award for
Passengers:
Ann Long with 5100 miles
Lynn Cummins with 3980 miles
Gail Ulrich with 2879 miles
2001 High Mileage Rider: Jack Basham with 18302
miles.
He received a certificate and a free oil change from BMW of the Tristate. Jack
was also given a 100,000 mile award from BMW. Congratulations Jack!
Newly Inducted Members of the newly acclaimed 10K
Club (with mileages over 10000 miles):
Jack Basham with 18302 miles
Greg Cullers with 16141 miles
Jerry Cummins with 16121 miles
Chris Long with 12635 miles
Edward Eismann with 11813 miles
High Milers:
Mike LaBar with 6746 miles
Michael Crum with 6326 miles
Bill Berry with 5673 miles
Steve Snyder with 5547 miles
Peter Roberts with 4618 miles
George Becker with 4330 miles
Bob Ulrich with 3694 miles
Lynn Cummins with 3486 miles
Jimmy Smith with 3070 miles
Karl Perry with 3003 miles
Deana Smith with 2118 miles
Henry Pierce with 1771 miles
The total mileage for everyone who participated was
125,394 miles. The average mileage per person was 7376 miles, which clearly
demonstrates that BMW riders ride more than other motorcyclists! The average
yearly mileage for motorcyclists is only 6000 miles.
Congratulations to everyone!
FTWO – Tip
of the Day
With permission from Chip Robie, NC Tarheel rider, after riding to a winter club meeting.
An Idiot's Guide to the Snow Ride...
I should not ride my
bike out there,
Not even with blond ponytail hair,
Not even wearing 'lectric vest
And Proud Heart beating in my chest
I should not ride it in the snow!
But why I did, I just don't know.
It does not ride well in the slush
It falls right down, turns you to mush
Don't try to think you're going to win
Or keep unbroken bones and skin
And thinking "I just won't go fast"
Is like a promise to bust your ass.
You should not ride bikes in the sleet
Even putting down your feet
You should not ride bikes on the ice
Buttocks clenching seat like vice
You should not ride bikes in the snow
Or slidin' on your ass you'll go
When weather's froze and skies are darked
Take the cage, the BIKE STAYS PARKED!
Cold Cohones, Excessive shrinkage
(hands too cold to find my dinkage...)
Your Annual
Idiot,
Chip Robie
Idiot Extraordinaire
K12RS Snow Pilot and Jackass.
Not Recommended at all.
Internet Notes as of 12/23/01
GCBMWC.org hit stats 2487
Egroup messages 434
Egroup members 45