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GOLD WING ROAD RIDERS ASSOCIATION SOUTHEASTERN “REGION A” ‘HEADQUARTERS OF THE “A” TEAM’ |
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Region "A"-News
JUNE 2008
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The Official newsletter of Region "A" |
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Region "A" Directors
Bob & Nancy Shrader
9333 Rolling Circle
San Antonio, FL 33576
352-668-3164
regiondirector@gwrra-regiona.org
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Well, the rally season just keeps rolling along and getting better all the time! Nan and I had the pleasure of attending the South Carolina District rally in lovely Anderson, SC and had a ball. This rally was Carl and Donna Blackston’s first rally as the SC DD and it was a great success. The weather was excellent, the venue (the Knights Inn) was also good and the rally was very well organized. Carl and Donna along with the entire SC District staff deserve kudos for hosting a fantastic rally, especially on their first effort. Great job folks, this was a memorable event and we’re looking forward to next year in Myrtle Beach. That makes the third great Region “A” District rally we have attended since the Florida rally kicked it off in March. Each Region “A” District rally has been successful and well managed by their respective District staffs and we are proud of all of you for the hard work and commitment you’ve demonstrated. Our next Region “A” District rally is Georgia 12th-14th in Athens, GA. We look forward to seeing many of you there for what promises to be a fantastic Toga Party. This is a new venue for the GA rally and we know you’re going to like it. See you in Athens! Wing Ding in Greenville is fast approaching. Our Region “A” Couple of the Year, Gregg and Pat Harbison will be competing for International Couple of the Year. Wouldn’t it be great if Jake and Joanne could hand their title off to Gregg and Pat and keep it in Region “A”? If you are planning on attending Wing Ding (and we hope many of you are) be sure to come on out for the selection for International Couple of the Year and support Gregg and Pat. These guys have surely got what it takes to go all the way to the top! Many of you know by now that our Executive Director, Melissa Eason has appointed David and Kathy Orr as the new International Leadership Training Directors. They replace CJ and Bo Karcanes who stepped down several weeks ago. David and Kathy are from North Carolina and we had the pleasure of meeting them at the South Carolina rally. They seem to be very enthusiastic and energetic in their approach to Leadership Training. We think they will do a fine job as Leadership Training Directors and we look forward to working with them in the future. I know we mentioned this last month, but I’d be remiss if we didn’t remind you that Region “A” is going to need assistance selling tickets at Wing Ding in Greenville. Any interested members are asked to contact their respective Chapter or District Directors for sign up. Thanks, in advance! Also please remember our great Region “A” rally coming up September 11th-13th in beautiful Dothan, AL at the Holiday Inn. We’re going to have a great time, lots of neat prizes and good food. Get registered and come on out and join us for a rally we know you’ll enjoy! Nan and I look forward to seeing you at a GWRRA event soon,
Bob & Nan |
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Region "A" Asst. Region Directors
Jim & Sue Jackson
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Sue
and I put the GL1800 Black-Cherry on the road about daybreak on the Friday
morning of the South Carolina District Rally.
Since we was already a day behind for the Rally, we decided to blast up
I-185 to I-85 and
ride through ‘Hot-lanta’ in the HOV-lane.
And that we did.
Was very surprised it took us only about 45 minutes to blast through
‘Hot-lanta’ from the Southside to the Northside.
Traffic was almost nothing so we let the good times roll and the HOV-lane
was again good to us without backups or slowdowns.
Of course it’s always exciting riding through or in ‘Hot-lanta’ on
the Wing. Pulled
into the Rally site around 11:00 AM just in time to check in and go to lunch.
The immediate area was crowded with delegates, Wings and vendors.
Parking even a Wing and trailer were at a premium.
Yep, the vendors setup immediately in the parking lot so when you walked
out of your room the vendors was in front of you. Very convenient. First
year South Carolina District Directors Carl and Donna Blackston and their Staff
really put on the dawg for their first Rally presentation.
Lots of door prizes, games, seminars, food and of course good times.
We didn’t win the darn 2008 Gold Wing that was given away, but we will
have another opportunity during Wing Ding which will be held in Greenville, SC
this year. Hope to see many of you during Wing Ding.
By the way, if you have a few hours we (Region ‘A’) would appreciate
your help in our responsibility of selling tickets during the Ding.
It’s fun, you meet a lot of folks and it’s inside in the
air-condition. Just think about
July in Greenville, SC and how warm it will be outside so come volunteer some
time with us and stay cool while you have some fun. The
Georgia District Rally is coming up within a few weeks so hope to see many of
you in Athens, GA which is a new Rally location for the Georgia Rally.
Come out and play with us during the Georgia Rally.
Jim & Sue |
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Senior Region
“A” Educators
Ron & Pam Lantz
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FOUNDATION URGES MOTORCYCLISTS TO GET INVOLVED DURING
MOTORCYCLE SAFETY AWARENESS MONTH
IRVINE, Calif., May 06, 2008 - Spring marks the traditional start of the riding season and the Motorcycle Safety Foundation is encouraging motorcyclists to take an active role during Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month to help reduce the growing number of traffic collisions involving motorcycles. MSF asks riders to consider any or all of the following three approaches to educating themselves and other roadway users: 1. Become a better rider. Taking refresher riding courses refines motorcyclists' skills and reinforces their strategies. Whether selecting the MSF's Basic or Experienced RiderCourseSM or another provider's advanced courses or track schools, training is available for riders of every skill level. For motorcyclists, the MSF has five critical messages:
2. Spread safety messages. Motorcyclists who volunteer their time to talk with high school driver education classes in their community provide a much-needed service. Novice car drivers need to hear first-hand that careless or impaired driving threatens the safety of motorcyclists and other vulnerable roadway users. Presenters may wish to incorporate MSF Host-An-Event modules into their presentations: the "Intersection" kit, featuring a dramatic short film that examines a car/bike crash from the perspective of every one of the motorists involved; or the "Riding Straight" module, which includes interactive Fatal Vision® simulator goggles that give participants a realistic feeling of alcohol impairment and its harmful effects on even the simplest of tasks. 3. Share the experience (the MSF "First Ride" initiative): The Motorcycle Safety Foundation understands that not everyone wants to be - or even should be - a motorcyclist. However, non-motorcyclists can get a sense of the magic of motorcycling as well as an appreciation for the challenges and vulnerabilities of safely navigating on two wheels by being a passenger on a motorcycle piloted by an experienced rider. MSF suggests that experienced motorcyclists who are comfortable carrying a passenger take someone on their first ride during the month of May. Riders can give a friend, relative, co-worker, or neighbor a brief, gentle ride in a non-traffic environment. (Of course, both the operator and passenger should wear full safety gear, including a DOT-compliant helmet.) Those who get a taste of motorcycling may come away with an enhanced awareness of motorcycles while driving their cars. This is critically important, since in a typical car versus motorcycle crash, the car driver violated the motorcyclist's right-of-way. After the ride, motorcyclists can impress upon their passengers the need to remember that experience - especially the feeling of being exposed to the elements and other traffic - when they get back in their car. As is always the case, the MSF will: make expert safety spokespersons available for interviews; post newswire releases; seed and facilitate coverage with print, broadcast and online media; host rider training demos for media; and post information on its website (www.msf-usa.org) and that of Discover Today's Motorcycling (www.motorcycles.org). The MSF staff is also asking news media across America to remember that cycle safety is of critical importance and to help spread important messages to all kinds of motorists, including the following messages MSF developed for car drivers and other motorists:
"Improving the safety of our nation's 16 million motorcyclists involves not only the riders' awareness of risk factors and taking appropriate precautionary measures," said MSF President Tim Buche, "but it's also incumbent on car and truck drivers to be on the lookout for motorcycles and share the road responsibly. Especially now that riding season is in full swing." Since 1973, the MSF has set internationally recognized standards that promote the safety of motorcyclists with rider education courses, operator licensing tests, and public information programs. The MSF works with the federal government, state agencies, the military and others to offer training for all skill levels so riders may enjoy a lifetime of safe, responsible motorcycling. The MSF is a not-for-profit organization sponsored by BMW, BRP, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Kawasaki, KTM, Piaggio, Suzuki, Triumph, Victory and Yamaha. For RiderCourseSM locations, call
800.446.9227 or visit Ron & Pam
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Region "A" Membership Enhancement Coordinators
Bob & Karla Greer
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EXTRA…EXTRA…
Read All About It!
Why
does your GWRRA Local Chapter need Public Relations?
As far as that goes…Why does all of GWRRA need Public Relations? People have a strong inclination to believe what they read in
newspapers, magazines and newsletters or what they see on TV or hear on
the radio. If we want to
create a positive image of our Association, and motorcycling in general,
in the minds of the public, your local GWRRA Chapter needs to have a good
PR plan in motion that will take advantage of every available means of
reaching the public. Everyone promotes GWRRA to some extent. When we wear the GWRRA logo, we are GWRRA.
We have PR opportunities all around us, whether we are on the bike
or off the bike. However, a
Public Relations Coordinator is a person who is prepared to spend their
volunteer time to keep a positive image before the public of the
accomplishments achieved and the fun-filled events held, by writing
articles or giving speeches. Public
Relation Coordinator’s refine the art of telling others “Who we
are”, “What we are”, and “Where” and “When” we can be found. A
Public Relations Coordinator is
in place at the District, Region and National
level for support but it is clearly at the Chapter level that
Public Relations has the most impact.
A Chapter can have an actual Public Relations Coordinator on staff,
but sometimes this job falls to the Chapter Director or Assistant Chapter
Director. As long as the PR plan is well defined and your staff knows
who is responsible for which tasks, the job of PR can be divided
throughout the year and throughout the staff. Public
relations not only helps to improve the motorcycling image in the
community, but it helps to grow our Chapters and therefore helps to
strengthen this wonderful Association we belong to.
As the Public Relations Coordinator you are responsible for
publicizing GWRRA and all that it stands for.
This can be done through mall shows, cruise-ins, charity events,
writing articles for local newsletters, TV and radio coverage, speaking to
non-GWRRA groups, writing articles for the local Chapter newsletters and
even writing articles for Wing World. If promoting your Chapter’s Fun-Filled activities is something you are interested in, let your Chapter Director know that you would like to be the Chapter Public Relations Coordinator. For more information, take a look at the GWRRA Membership Enhancement Division Public Relations Guide, 6th Edition, July 25th, 2007. (This guide book can be found on the National web site, on the M.E.D. page under Guides and References.)
Bob & Karla
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Region "A" Couple of the Year Coordinators
International Couple of the Year 2007-2008
Jake & Joanne Jacob
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Well,
here we are at the beginning of summer. We spent the last few months
traveling – to the Alabama District Rally in Mobile, Tennessee’s
Spring Fling in Pigeon Forge, Missouri’s District Rally in Branson, and
we’re soon off to Americade for a week of meeting and greeting in New
York, New Jersey, Vermont, and who knows where else?! Before we know it,
we’ll be at Wing Ding and be turning over the reins to the 20008-09
International Couple of the Year. It’s been a great ride and we’ve
appreciated all your support. As
Region Couple of the Year Coordinators, we will soon be turning our focus
to the Region Rally in Dothan. We’ve gotten to judge and attend many
Couple of the Year selection processes and we’ve learned something new
at every one. We hope to bring all those great ideas together at our
Couple of the Year selection process!
We
will see you all soon! Jake & Joanne |
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Gregg and Pat Harbison
Region "A" Couple of the Year
2007 - 2008
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We’ve just about worn out Willie
Nelson’s song “On the Road Again”, along with our voices, but
that’s where we are; On the Road Again. This time to Kingsport, TN and
the Region “N” rally those fine folks from the Appalachian Region are
sponsoring. We’ll be avoiding both Chattanooga and Knoxville so our ride
should be a bit more relaxed by avoiding places where they drive like they
do in New Orleans. Yikes! May was quite busy for us as we had
just finished up hosting the MS District Picnic the last weekend in April
when the following weekend found us in Anderson, SC for the South Carolina
District Rally. To say that Carl and Donna and their District personnel
put on an excellent rally would be a severe understatement! For a first
ever effort of that magnitude, it was really marvelous! Great job, folks.
We sure would love to have won that beautiful Gold Wing you guys gave
away! The following weekend after South
Carolina we were involved with the Motorist Awareness Day where our
various Chapters handed out literature at the numerous Mississippi Welcome
Centers across the state. We’d arranged permission to use the Welcome
Centers back in February and May 10th our MS Chapters were out
in force handing literature to the guests stopping at the centers. All of
our Chapters were well received and we can report that the day was a
success for both motorists and
motorcyclists. We helped man the Welcome Center south of our home and
thoroughly enjoyed the day with our home Home Chapter. We attended several other Chapter
functions across the state before we had to take time out to get ready for
our trip to the Region ‘N’ Rally. When we return from Tennessee, the
following weekend we have a Chapter function to attend in the north part
of the state and the weekend following that we’ll be with the gang in
Athens for the Georgia District Rally. Once we’re home, we’ll turn
right back around and head to the northern part of the state for another
Chapter function. Guess what’s happening the following weekend? Nothing, really, but we’re leaving that Friday
or Saturday, depending on the condition of our derriere’s, in order to
be in Greenville, SC on Monday for all the preparations we’re involved
in at Wing Ding. Thank goodness WD is in the south and not back in
Billings this year! As you know, Region ‘A’ is
responsible for the ticket sale duties again this year. I know Bob has
already mentioned it but it won’t hurt to pass on another reminder.
We’ll be there helping and we hope you’ll be there with us. Play it safe, ride it right and
always be aware of that other
driver. Gregg & Pat |
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We
have a Classified Section on
the Region "A"
Site where
you
can post your items,
with a picture, that you have for
sale.
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