NORTHWIND RIDERS TANKBAG

November 2008

From the Director’s Chair

How has the year flown by so fast? It’s time to think about what needs to be done to put our bikes up for the winter. You may still be able to ride for a while longer if you can bundle up or have a heated bike or clothing; the rest of us will have to suffer and put our bikes away for the winter.

Fortunately for some of us, Fox Valley Cycle had a great maintenance seminar last month to tell us about what needs to be done to maintain our bike; and not just for the winter either. Thanks go out to Bob for giving such a great presentation.

Besides the regular winter maintenance, don’t forget to give your bike a good washing and waxing so you don’t end up with a rusty bike in the spring.

Just think, Spring is coming!

Until then, keep the shiny side up.

Minutes of Meeting – October 18, 2008

Cindy called the meeting to order at 9:40 am and read the WOW Mission Statement.

Secretary's Report:

No additions, deletions, or changes were noted for the September meeting minutes.

Treasurer's Report:

Judy presented a report of the chapter finances. Sharon moved to accept the report as presented, CJ seconded the motion and it was passed.

Road Captain’s Report:

After the September meeting, several members rode to Dwight and lunched at That 50’s Place restaurant.

Committee Report:

Kim reported on the Fox Valley activities. The Scavenger Hunt Contest materials were due Oct 18. The winners of the Scavenger Hunt Contest will be announced at a Women Only Party hosted by FVC on Saturday, November 14 at 7:00PM. The party will be held at the store and there will be games, prizes and more. RSVP to Kim or Michelle at the store.

The Mystery Ride sponsored by FVC was held Sunday, Oct 19. All registered riders should be at the store by 9:30 am and the ride started at 10:00. Kim has made inquiry at Women On Wheels Magazine regarding nomination of Fox Valley Cycle for Dealership of the Year and is waiting for response.

Regarding the upcoming Holiday Party, Sharon reported that there will soon be a sign-up sheet posted for dishes to bring.

Marilyn and C.J. are still working on a new site for the annual Mr. Lincoln Campout event and are planning to investigate the Peoria area.

Old Business

Pam wanted to remind everyone in regard to the revising of duties of the Ride Coordinator that everyone is asked to come up with a destination for a one-day ride idea for our 2009 schedule to submit by the December meeting. A write-up on the ride to include whatever information you can (i.e., the general route, points of interest enroute, lunch stop, contacts, etc) to be turned over to the Ride Coordinator at a later date. Ladies, please help the schedulers with this. Even if you have no idea how to plan a route and do not want to lead a ride, let us know where you want to go and maybe someone else can develop the plan. You do NOT have to lead the ride.

Regarding the 2009 Dream Trip, the list of submitted trip ideas was published in the previous newsletter. The list was reviewed at the meeting and the Natchez, TN destination was selected. Judy had submitted this idea so she is going to bring information about the route and destination to the next meeting. Rides to Hell, MI and Anamosa, IA were suggested as weekend trips. We need date suggestions for these trips.

There being no further business, Kim moved to adjourn, Liz seconded and it was passed. The meeting was adjourned at 10:42am.

New Business

If you entered the WOW Mileage Contest this year, be sure to get your ending mile submitted. The form for this is in the current magazine.

Ladies, we need some ideas for February and March social events. Please bring your ideas to the next meeting or call Liz Fischer.

Respectfully submitted,

Jan S.

Secretary

Tankbag Tidbits

I am happy to say that the Editor received two responses to the request for write-ups on the Mystery Ride sponsored by Fox Valley Cycles. And here they are…

Fox Valley Mystery Ride

By Judy G.

We had a great time on the Fox Valley Mystery Ride. Kim and Joanne did a fantastic job leading and shepherding the flock. We had 15 or 16 bikes with a combination of experienced and new riders. It really helped having the Wings scattered through the line because they could communicate with each other. We even had Michelle, and Chelle from Fox Valley riding with us. That was a treat. I almost didn’t recognize them without the parts counter or desk in front of them.

I don’t know about anyone else, but I had no clue where I was most of the time. I know we crossed Rt. 47 a few times and we were on and off Rt. 64 a few times but most of the time we were on farm roads that didn’t even have names. The weather was great and the roads were really good. Not a gravel road among them. A few times I thought I knew were we were going for lunch, but I was wrong each time as we passed up one restaurant after another. When we went up and down the Rock River on Rt 2, I was sure we were going to stop at the paddle boat for lunch, but I was wrong again.

One of the big reasons we had such a good ride was Kim’s pre-ride meeting. She promised that she wouldn’t lose anyone and she didn’t. The MOST IMPORTANT thing she said, in my opinion, was to remind everyone that they should not make a turn unless they were sure the person behind them saw that they were turning. They should pull over and wait if they had to Knowing that the person ahead wouldn’t turn until they saw you in their rear view mirror kept people from getting anxious about being left behind or about cars getting between the riders. You knew that you just kept going straight and eventually you would either catch up, or see the person ahead of you taking a turn. Kim also reviewed the hand signals for the new riders. A few riders got separated by lights and were really behind for a while but we didn’t lose them either. Altogether, it was a wonderful ride.

The mystery was finally solved when we pulled into White Pines State Park in Oregon IL. We had a fabulous meal with more food than we could ever eat. Ribs, chicken, corn muffins, it was great. Thank you, Fox Valley, for providing the lunch. And thanks to Kim and Joanne for leading and sweeping a great ride.

Fox Valley Mystery Ride

By Pam R.

On October 19th, a group of 15 women riders, consisting of many NWR members, met at Fox Valley Cycles to embark on a full day’s adventure of riding to a destination that would be a “Mystery”. As everyone was pulling into the dealership, we were photographed and arranged into riding positions to provide for strategic placement of riders with CB’s and rider experience.

Breakfast refreshments of bagels, juice and coffee were offered everyone prior to gathering for the Rider’s meeting. Once the meeting was completed, the group pulled out at 10:00 am, knowing nothing more than lunch would be awaiting us at 2:00 pm. Where could we possibly be going that was four hours away?

With JoAnne as sweep, Kim led everyone out of the parking lot and guided us on a fantastic ride following roads that had everyone thoroughly confused as to where they were or headed. Ultimately, the “Mystery” was unraveled as we pulled into the White Pines State Park near Oregon, IL. Chris from FVC was there to meet everyone and was taking a video of the group as we pulled into the park.

Following a four hour ride, everyone was hungry. If someone didn’t get enough to eat that day, it was her own fault. We had a great barbeque lunch that included, but was not limited to all you could eat ribs, chicken, baked beans, cole slaw, corn bread, and dessert.

Everyone had a great ride, a great meal, and a great time. To top off the afternoon prior to departing, FVC had a drawing for two door prizes. The winners received frogs. So with full stomachs, everyone split up into several groups and headed home for the day having had the “Mystery” solved.

(Judy and Pam – Don’t forget your 30 points for submitting the articles. -Ed)

Dave and Busters Gathering

Our “Fall Gathering” at Dave and Busters in Addison, IL, was a lot of fun. About 25 WOW members and supporters from our northern Illinois Chapters met for dinner and then played arcade games afterwards. We all want to thank Renee from Redhawk Riders, Gigi of Wild Roses and our own Cindy for organizing this event.

Birthday Announcements

Only two of us were born in November (and only 2 days apart): Sharon “Rusty” (11/17) and Kim (11/19). An honorable mention goes to our newest member, Robyn who was born on 10/29, just missing October’s recognition. Happy Birthday to all.

Happy cruising.

– Editor

Rusty’s Ramblings...

By Rusty H

W.O.W. Illinois State Ambassador

I’m a bit late with the Ramblings... this month. I have a self imposed deadline of the 5^th of each month, but this month the 4^th just wore me out. First I got up early to go to the polls and still make it to work on time. I have a second job now helping out a friend of mine with disabilities, so I spent the evening scrubbing walls and watching the results on TV. And then of course I had to stay up late to watch the speeches. So, by time I got home from work on the 5^th, I was beat! I had plans for the next couple nights so here I sit at my friend’s house in Springfield, typing away!

I hope everyone got out and voted. I don’t care who you voted for, but the way I look at it is that there are a lot of people who gave their lives so I could go to polls and have my say. I’m not wasting their sacrifice.

OK, off the soapbox. It’s looking like fall is here. We had snow flurries yesterday in the Quad Cities. The ‘official’ W.O.W. riding season is over. I hope everyone has written down their mileage and is getting ready to mail it in. I mentioned last month that I feared I would be the low mileage winner in our Chapter, but there is one Support Member who worked a LOT of hours and now he has fewer miles than me. Thanks Pat!

It’s also time to start getting ready for the International Motorcycle Show in Chicago. The dates next year are Feb. 6-8^th at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. I have e-mailed the volunteer schedule to all IL Chapter Directors, so get with her and let her know when you can work. Remember, working the booth for a while will get you into the show for free. I’ve also been told that the promoter’s are featuring an area for women motorcyclist right up by the front door, so it sounds like we’ll be front and center or at least close to it. Last year at the last minute we were also asked to volunteer at the Women’s Motorcyclist Foundation. I have contacted the Coordinator to see if we are being asked again. I’m told that if I have contact info for the WMF it’s up to me to see if they need help. So far, my e-mail hasn’t been answered, but I sent out a schedule for both booths.

Ok, let’s look at the ride schedules. The North Wind Riders are scheduled to have a meeting Dec. 20^th, but a ride or lunch place is not listed. I’m sure they’ll think of someplace to go after their meeting. The post- it note with my pass word to the NCI Wild Roses webpage is at home so the only activity I can report for them is in January. They’re talking about making an overnight schedule planning meeting during the Wicked Wheels Weekend at Best Western Timber Creek Inn in Sandwich, IL. This will be the weekend of Jan. 10-11, ’09. Anyone interested can contact Gigi for more info.

The Shawnee Riders are meeting on Dec. 4^th and then going on a ride on Dec. 7^th. I don’t think they’ll be riding motorcycles, but you never know. I’ve ridden in December and it’s a little chilly. The River Valley Lady Riders meet on the first Thursday of the month. They’ve been meeting at the Paddle Wheel Pizza Parlor in Fulton, IL. The food there is great. However, lately the service is just way too slow, so there was some talk of moving someplace else. The River Riders are meeting at MaryAnn’s for our Christmas Party on Dec. 14^th and then there is nothing on the schedule until Jan. 09. On the 11^th, we’ll meet at The Lodge in Bettendorf, IA at 10 am for their Champagne Brunch. Jan. 22^nd is our first meeting of the year and we’ll meet at my house to plan our ride schedule for the rest of the year.

Next year the Ride-In will be in Kerrville, TX and will be held July7, 8, 9, 2009. The Springfield Campout looks like it will be changing venue, so as soon as details are set, I’ll be sure to let you know. Sharon “Rusty” L. will send out flyers as the event gets closer. I haven’t heard that the date will change, just the location. You can mark your calendars June 5, 6, 7, 2009 for that weekend. In the Quad Cities, Sturgis on the River is moving to the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds in Davenport, IA and will still be held on Father’s Day Weekend, but not on Father’s Day. And don’t forget the Int’l Motorcycle Show in February.

So, to cap things off, make sure you get your mileage turned in, get with your Chapter Director or me and let us know what hours you want to work at the IMS booth(s), and be thinking of places you want to go next year. See ya in Feb.!

Ride safe,

Rusty