Gold Wing Road Riders Association, GWRRA, SOUTHEAST REGION "A" ALABAMA
CHAPTER "N", GADSDEN, AL. "FRIENDS
FOR FUN, SAFETY AND KNOWLEDGE" MONTHLY
MEETINGS: FIRST SATURDAY OF EACH MONTH. EAT AT 5:00 PM. MEET AT 6:00 PM AT WESTERN
SIZZLIN . Breakfast Meeting 8:30 AM every Wednesday Poor
House Restaurant, 12th & Meighan.Asst. Chapter Directors: Sammy & Donna Conn 205-274-8345
Safety Educators, Chapter N & Alabama District 2003-2004
Couple of the Year Rick & Laura Brothers 256-442-6351 mailto:tworiverrats@excite.com
Newsletter Editors: Jim & Virgie Banks 205-681-0297 mailto:jbanks5509@aol.com
Chapter Historian: John & Shelly Smith 205-467-2673 mailto:jstrav@aol.com (photo not available - requested)
Membership Coordinator R&R: Dewey & Alice Cole
256-442-2458 mailto:travelordcac@netscape.net
Ride Coordinator: Wayne & Liz Gargus 205-274-8670 mailto:wayneg@otelco.net
Webmasters: Kerry & Joyce Wilson 256-546-2811 mailto:kwilson@kerrywilson.com
Joyce, Josh, and Kacey and I recently attended Wing Ding in Grapevine, TX. We were all three honored to be recognized by GWRRA President Mike Wright in the Opening Ceremonies for our recruiting efforts. We were each inducted into the "Hall of Fame" for recruiting at least 101 GWRRA members, and received Personalized GWRRA Hall Of Fame Jackets. The next day, we were each invited to attend the annual Hall of Fame Luncheon, and were presented "Hall of Fame" Pins and Patches for our vests. Kacey was invited to attend the luncheon also. As of this writing, Kacey has 11 members, and will probably be a member of the "Hall of Fame" in a couple of months.
We are the 7th family in GWRRA history to have two family members inducted into the "Hall of Fame", and the first family in GWRRA history to have three family members in the "Hall of Fame".
Thanks to all of our customers, recruits, friends, and to Dewey Cole our Chapter R&R Officer who helped make this possible.
To date, we have recruited a combined total of 359 members into GWRRA.
Secretary & Treasurer: John & Sandra Irwin 256-543-8509 mailto:jeirwin1@bellsouth.net
Technical Coordinators: Butch & Diane 256-593-7053 
Ways & Means Coordinator: Bob & Pam Ray 256-442-4383 
District Officers
District Directors: Ray & Cindy Erickson 334-298-8485 mailto:racyguns@att.net
Asst. District Directors & District Trainers: Bill &
Dian Gulley 256-229-8833 mailto:bamawing@dav.net
District Educators: Paul & Paula Howes 205-938-3961 mailto:phowes1@cs.com
Region "A" Director: Larry & Patty Lingo RegionDirector@gwrra-regiona.org
GWRRA Chapter AL-N
July & August Ride Guide
JULY, 2004
NOTE: Chapter N meeting moved to 7/10 this month due to Wing Ding.
7/4 – 7/8 – Wing Ding Grapevine, TX – COY competition will be on Saturday 7/3/04 from 1:30 to 3:30 PM. HAVE A SAFE TRIP.
7/7 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
7/10 – Chapter N monthly gathering at Western Sizzlin. Eat at 5 & meet at 6 PM.
7/14 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
7/17 – CPR/First Aid refresher course by Donna Conn. Red Cross in Gadsden 9AM-Noon.
7/21 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
7/23 – (Friday) Birthday and Anniversary dinner ride to Pas’Ghettis in Rainbow City. Meet at the restaurant at 7 PM.
7/24 – Blount County Covered Bridge Tour – Depart Cowboys at 7:30 AM and take hwy 278 W to the Rainbow Café at Hwy 278 & 231 West of Snead for breakfast. We’ll spend the day riding Blount County roads and visit the 3 remaining old wooden covered bridges. Those “N” members living in Blount County (Sammy/Donna, Harold/Shari, Wayne/Liz, Lon/Liz, Jimmy/JoAnn) will plan a fun and scenic day of touring for your riding pleasure. We’ll eat lunch and dinner in Blount Co. topped off by a visit to an old fashioned Drug Store Soda Fountain in Oneonta before heading home. Dinner location to be announced by 7/10 gathering.
7/28 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
7/31 – Basic CPR/First Aid course by Donna Conn for those who’s card has expired or who have never had the course. Red Cross Building in Gadsden 9 AM – 5 PM.
7/31 – Dinner ride to Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ in Decatur. Depart Cowboy’s at 5:30 PM.
AUGUST, 2004
(Tentative)
8/4 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
8/7 – Chapter N monthly gathering at Western Sizzlin in Rainbow City. Eat at 5 & meet at 6.
8/11 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
8/13 – Birthday/Anniversary ride to Sonic on Meghan Blvd. W. of Cycle World.
8/14 N Mall Show at the Gadsden Mall. This is one of the fund raising events for our charity. Those who are displaying bikes, meet at the main entrance to the Mall no later than 8:30 AM. We must have the bikes in place prior to the 9 AM store openings & go in as a group. It’s also a good recruiting day for new GWRRA members. (Honorable mention: That’s how we got Sammy and DONNA.
8/15 – Pool party at Dewey/Alice. Bring drinks & a covered dish(s) to eat at 1 PM.
8/18 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
8/21 – Overnight Ride to Foley, AL and eat at Lambert’s. Depart Cowboys at 7 AM; meet others at the Chevron in Springville at 7:30 AM.
8/25 – Breakfast at the Poor House 8:30 AM & ride.
8/27-29 – KY District Rally in Paducah.
8/28 – Overnight ride to Chapter L (Thomasville) Fun Day at Claiburne Lock & Dam. Breakfast on your own and depart Cowboys 6 AM. Meet others at the Chevron in Springville and depart there at 6:30. Ride Interstate and State/County highways to Thomasville & spend the night
Articles
Chapter Directors: Tery & Barbie Cleveland 256-538-1443
-Terry & Barbie 
. Sammy and Donna Conn 
WORST
CASE SCENARIOS
(What
to do when it all goes wrong)
The
following information is taken from the April 2004 issue of “American
Motorcyclist” magazine. We hope to
reprint most of the article over the next few months. Many thanks to Wayne
Gargus for providing us with this excellent piece of advice. Part One of
Three Articles .
LIGHTNING:
If you’re looking for a single weather phenomenon to worry about while
riding, this is it. According to experts,
lightning kills more Americans in an average year than hurricanes and tornadoes
combined. And, they note, it can be
particularly deadly for motorcyclists.
Surprisingly, people traveling in cars are actually relatively safe in thunderstorms, because lightning tends to hit the metal cage of the car and follow that metal to ground, often leaving the car’s occupants unhurt. Ah, but we’re safe too, right, because we’re rolling along on rubber tires that insulate us from the ground. Wrong, that small amount of insulation means little when compared to the incredible voltage in a lightning bolt. There have been many documented cases of motorcyclists being struck by lightning, usually with tragic results.
Steve
Hodanish, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service, was the lead
investigator into the death of a Colorado motorcyclist who was struck by
lightning last August. And he notes that
motorcyclists need to be aware of the risks when riding through thunderstorms.
He says that lightning can travel seven miles or more before striking the
ground. Since sound takes about five
seconds to travel a mile, that means if the time between the flash and bang in
less than 35 seconds, the lightning is close enough to hit you.
What
to do? If you find yourself
approaching a thunderstorm, your first and safest option is to stop and find
shelter in a store, gas station or restaurant. If
you’re caught out of range of buildings, hiding under a freeway overpass can
help, but don’t seek shelter under a tree – that can actually increase your
chances of getting hit.
No
buildings or bridges? Look for a low
spot, pull off the road, park your bike and walk about 20 yards away from it.
Then crouch down to get as low as possible while keeping only the balls
of your feet in contact with the ground. Under
those circumstances, the bike may be a more attractive target than you.
If you’re traveling in a group, stop and spread out, with about 20
yards between each person, so that a single strike doesn’t hit all of you.
BLAZING
HEAT: For motorcyclists, heat
can be even more dangerous than cold, since may of us just stop riding when the
temperature gets too low, but we’re not equally cautious in extremely hot
weather. As with hypothermia, the first
step in dealing with hyperthermia or heat stroke is recognizing the symptoms.
Basically, when you stop having to go to the bathroom or when you stop
sweating, you’re already in trouble. But
watch also for rapid pulse, a throbbing headache, dizziness, nausea and
confusion. If you experience any of those
symptoms, stop now.
What
to do? The cure for
hyperthermia is simple, cool down and drink plenty of fluids – well beyond
quenching your thirst. That should be
easy if you’re riding through a populated area, but if you’re caught far
from civilization, you should find shade and drink any water you’ve been smart
enough to carry on your bike. This
isn’t the time to try to ration water, if you have it, consume it.
Stay calm and remain shaded until you feel better.
That may mean waiting until sundown. When
you do resume riding, don’t be tempted to take your jacket off – that can
dry you out even faster. Also, stop as
soon as possible to replenish your onboard water supply.
TORNADOES:
This one is easy. Tornadoes are
extremely intense storms that can destroy whole communities.
But there’s one reason for that, communities can’t get out of the way
of the storm. You can, so take advantage
of the mobility.
What
to do? According to weather
experts, most tornadoes move at less than 50 mph, which is considerably slower
than your bike. So if you see a tornado
ahead, turn around and run from it. Don’t
try to skirt the edges and don’t try to predict where it’s headed – just
get away. Simple, right?!
Taking extra precautions to be prepared for anything is a must before heading out for an extended trip; but we also need to be mindful of the weather patterns even for a day ride, especially this time of the year. Next month, we will look at mechanical emergencies. Remember, Safety is for Life.
Rick and Laura Brothers, AL-N Rider Educators
We have been experiencing “technical difficulties” with our computer off and on for over a month and were unable to transmit our article in time for the June newsletter. Thanks to the Harrison’s for rerunning our previous article last month.
On May 6th, we left for a long planned trip to the Arkansas District Rally with several of our riding buddies from Chapter N. We took the scenic route going and saw some beautiful country along the way. When we finally arrived at the Lake DeGray State Park near Little Rock, “they” were waiting for us. Because we had pre-registered, the District staff knew to expect a group from Alabama and they all came out to greet our arrival. And then they put us to work. We were honored to be asked to help judge their District COY selection process and their newsletter competition. It was quite an experience sitting on the “other side” of the table and we were just as nervous. When you hear a judge say that it was very hard to make a decision, you can really believe them. Any of the couples that competed were very capable of representing their district well, but as they say, only one couple could be selected. Even though this was one of the smaller rallies that we have attended, everyone had a great time. We were amazed at the level of involvement throughout every event. It really is true; the more you participate, the more fun you will have. We plan to go back again.
May 15th we got to visit with Chapter Z in Santuck and listen to some great musical entertainment. There were a lot of our good friends to chat with, delicious hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill and don’t forget about their famous homemade ice cream!
May 22nd was Chapter K’s Funday at the Music Hall of Fame in the Tri-Cities area. The chapter had a new event this year to help raise money for the Ride for Kids, a dunking booth. They had invited the District staff and Chapter Directors to climb into the wet seat and take a turn. Rick put on his safety gear (duck head swim ring and goggles), climbed up into the seat and proceeded to heckle the crowd. No one had as much fun as our illustrious leader, Cindy, but she also went down. It was all in fun and they raised a good bit of money with this booth.
June 5th was Chapter N’s Funday at Cycle World in Gadsden. There was a good crowd there and the weather was perfect. “Thelma and Louise” serenaded our esteemed District Director, but he still went home with Cindy. There was also a good photo-op with Ron Keller’s Corvette Pace Car and the Mardis’ Pace Car trailer.
June 12th was Chapter D’s Funday at Bama Power Sports in Oxford. Although the weather was considerably hotter, there were a lot of people there also for their poker run. The chapter served up burgers and hotdogs from the grill, but the hot item of the day was the cold drinks. Henry & Glenda Thornton did an excellent job with their first Funday.
We will see you next at the Georgia District Rally in Hiawassee or if not there at Wing Ding!!
Rick
and Laura Brothers
Rick & Laura Brothers Chapter Educators
Editors Corner
We
will start with the sad part first, during June we lost Gary Fuller, he will be
missed. As we go through our daily routine, us keep Betty in our thoughts.
We
had 9 of our group show up at the Pig Roast Ride on Saturday June 19th. At least
7 of us rode the ride, at least most of it. There was a lot of bikes there, I
never did hear a the number. After we got back from the ride, we ate supper
there, and as hot as it was we begin leaving about 6:30 PM. It looked like they
had a real good crowd, we sure hope the money was as good for the CHILDREN.
Just
wanted to thank all of you, that were there, David, sure has been good to us.
IN
MEMORIAM
GARY
FULLER
ALBERTVILLE,
ALABAMA
JUNE 2004
Jim & Virgie Banks
RIDE
WITH THE EYES OF AN EAGLE
GWRRA
REGION A TRIKE SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP (SIG) NEWS FOR JULY, 2004
At
this year’s GA District Rally, our modern Gold Wing’s and their
riders/co-riders, took a fun trip back in time to the stone age.
The theme “Jurassic Wings” provided a series of fun pre historic
events. Dino, the Dinosaur along
with many other strange looking characters, were there to keep us entertained.
The mountains and lakes were beautiful as always, and it “did not rain
on our parade.” It was a
beautiful and fun weekend.
We
had a Trike Hike lunch ride on Friday to West Family Restaurant near Cleveland,
GA. Although the group was small,
the food, fun, and fellowship was great. Some
of us stopped in Helen for a quick visit and to scope out facilities for our
upcoming Region A Rally on September 9-11.
Another Trike Hike will be planned at the Region A Rally, and we hope to
have more participation there.
I
also had the pleasure of meeting Sandy and Doug Gray, formerly FL A/DD who now
reside in Richland, GA. Sandy has
agreed to become the GWRRA Trike SIG District Representative for GA.
I urge all Region A Trike SIG Rep’s and Assistant Rep’s to send her a
congratulatory e-mail and welcome her to our group.
sdjawjariders@bellsouth.net
. For you GA trike and
side car riders, Sandy is looking for a couple more assistant’s located in the
central and northern parts of the state. This
can be a fun assignment that does not require as much work as most Chapter
Officers and staff positions do, and Sandy will appreciate your assistance.
We
also have a good lead on a District Rep. for FL and hope to announce that one in
the next newsletter. Charles Gaines
is still looking for another Assistant Rep. in the northern part of MS, and we
would like to be able to announce that one in the next newsletter as well.
You can contact him at ccgaines@prodigy.net
.
Always
RIDE WITH THE EYES OF AN EAGLE and especially on the trip to and from Wing Ding.
I’m sure we’ll have lots of news to report following what is expected
to be the biggest and best Wing Ding ever.
Wayne Gargus, Region A Trike SIG Rep.
The
First Time I Saw Sammy Conn
It’s late, 2:00 AM. I just arrived home from a 10 hour shift at a half-way house
for juvenile delinquents (young thugs). It’s
cold and spitting snow. In the next
room I hear Liz gently snoring. I
had just received a call from a church in Cleveland, AL. to come and preach a
trial sermon. I had talked at
length with one of the elders and felt in my spirit a move was imminent.
Liz and I were members of TN-J2, so I logged on the
internet in search of a new GWRRA family in AL. Getting out my Atlas I decided by the GWRRA site map I might
prefer a group called AL-N, Coosa Valley Wings. I clicked on their newsletter and eventually enlarged a
breakfast photo taken at a place called The Poor House (I could identify with
that name). It was then I saw him,
Sammy Conn. (It would behoove you,
at this time, to view this photo) an old man, grey headed, white mustache, white
goatee, arms folded, looking not at all happy or friendly.
Maybe I’m mistaken about AL-N. Should
I look elsewhere?
I write this in response to the many accounts
I’ve heard about concerning un-friendly Chapters and a bad first impression in
attending those Chapters. Experience
has taught me that first impressions are sometimes not true ones.
Chapters in real life, like people, have bad hair days.
It could be the individual was having a bad hair day.
It could be the dynamics of the Chapter personality is on the opposite
end of the continuum. This
doesn’t make the Chapter bad, or negative, or lacking, or to be avoided, it
only means the Chapter is different and maybe I’ll have to look elsewhere to
find my individual niche. I’m
glad I didn’t click close on AL-N because of a still photo of a bunch of old
people having breakfast (Harold was in the photo also).
The night I met Sammy Conn, I told him I was
expecting to meet an older person (his hair, mustache, and goatee were more
blond than grey). You see, that
still photo, from which I formed my first impression of AL-N, was not a true
one. It only revealed the exterior,
in a given moment, of a man named Sammy Conn.
If I had relied on that first impression I would never have met and come
to know what a great person Sammy Conn is, nor would I have experienced the
warmth and friendliness of everyone who make up AL-N.
I’m glad that in my short journey on this
terrestrial ball that my path of life allowed me to pause for a moment in
relationship with AL-N. All of you
are great and I am privileged to call you all, Friend.
Rev. Diesel
JA
AWARD
WINNER FOR
2003
TERRY
CLEVELAND
JA
AWARD
WINNER
FOR
THE MONTH
OF
MAY
Sammy
Conn
Rick Brothers
50/50
WINNERS
FOR
THE JUNE GATHERING
Ann
Adcock (Chapter. K)
Dian
Bratcher (Chapter K)
All of the men and women who are fighting for our freedom
Our country's leaders 
Tom Wilson, (Kerry's Dad) 
7-13-04: Good news: My Dad visited the Cancer Treatment Center in Little Rock
this week, and was told that he is completely free from cancer. Thank you for
your prayers!
Bob Brooks, (Chapter D)
Kerry Stephenson, Back trouble
Laura Brothers, Eye Surgery, recovery. I am happy to report that Laura is doing well from her surgery. She is still experiencing some discomfort during recovery, so keep praying for her.
Motorcycle and Automobile InsuranceMotorcycle Liability Only Rates, as low as $115 for the 1st year and $45 for the 2nd year for non-GWRRA members.
Motorcycle Liability Only Rates as low as $70 for the 1st year, and $45 for the 2nd year for GWRRA members.
Full Coverage rates (Example) for a 2003 Honda Gold Wing GL1800 as low as $292 per year for GWRRA members.
Auto Insurance Mandatory Liability Only Rates as low as: $100 Down, and $30 per month.
Call Kerry Wilson or Josh Dodd at 1-800-575-3779 (1-800-57-KERRY) or 256-546-2811.
David Santos, Santos Printing 256-54-PRINT
Jim Rogers TriKing Trikes of Northern Alabama1127 Tom L. Smith Dr. Odenville, AL 35120 205-629-6009 www.trikingtrikes.com
Charity Pig Roast June 19 & 20, 2004
