Help! Help! Help! Casino night is coming, and we are coming up short on help. Anyone who has attended this event knows that it is a difficult event to put on and requires a lot of people to properly staff. Bob Bacon has been calling around in an attempt to round up enough Black Jack dealers to cover all the tables. His efforts have so far been rewarded with a less than enthusiastic response. I find it difficult to believe that it is not possible to get enough volunteers to support this chapter, when all that is being asked is for a 5 hour time commitment for the entire year. If we cannot staff this event, we may be forced into holding several small fund raisers throughout the year, like many other chapters are forced to do. We have a great thing going here, folks, so lets not screw it up. We also are asking ALL Chapter "I" members to bring a large can of chili and a dessert. If you have not yet signed up for a job at Casino Night, please call Ken or Bob to do so.

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The setup for Casino Night will be at the Thurston County Fairgrounds at 10:00 AM. We will have coffee and donuts, and it only takes about an hour. Everyone working the evening should be there by 4:00 PM for a meeting. We could still use some auction items, so let us know if you have something to donate, or better yet, bring them to the January breakfast. Let’s have some fun and make some money.

Ken and Jan

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The ride cards will be available at the January breakfast. We will also have many of the flyers for upcoming events. If you have not yet called Ken with the odometer reading on your bike, please do so before long so you can get in on the high mileage contest. See Bob’s article for some additional ideas on these contests.

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There is a flyer contained in this newsletter for an ERC on May 9, 1998. To attend the only local course for the year, you must be registered by April 1^st. All riders can benefit from this instruction. Any questions can be directed to Bob Blair at 956-0287. See you there.

*****

MOOOOVING THE HERD

by Bob & Debbie Bacon

Asst. Chapter Directors

What happened??? It seemed just a few months ago we had Casino Night 97 and now in a few weeks we'll have Casino Night 98. Where did the year go? Wing Ding 97 just seems like last week with good times, friendly people, fun, rain, we could've stayed home for that. Well anyway there are a lot of memories and miles for 1997.

Here it is 1998 and we have some planning to do for Chapter "I". We are still working on Casino Night 98, and we need some help with other activities for this new year. This is your Chapter and I would like us all to enjoy this upcoming year.

To make things a little bit more interesting we are offering a free breakfast at our monthly meeting to the current GWRRA member whose membership number is listed in this month's newsletter, and the upcoming months’ newsletters for 1998. Now the membership number in question is not going to be in all of my articles, it will be somewhere in Chapter "I" newsletter. You'll have to read the whole newsletter to see whose number was drawn. Then that lucky person has to come to the following monthly meeting and claim their breakfast.

Let us not forget the Ride line drawing for the free breakfast each month also. Members call the ride line and listen to the message then give their name at the end after the beep. We take all the names and there is a drawing for a FREE breakfast again at our monthly meeting.

Ken is working on a LEATHER BUTT AWARD and a ride card for this next year. I have been approached by some of our lady riders, who would like to have a cushioned version of the leather butt award for them. So lets all get our mileage in to Ken for each and every motorcycle. We'll have some sort of paper for the events, rides, and chapter meetings that we ride to. In the end we'll come up with a real prestigious award for the real Leather butt.

The big thing I see is the ideas for our Chapter events need to be presented to staff. Let’s get these ideas out for all to know about and we can have some good fun. As we all know " The more you know the better it gets".

Speaking of fun our upcoming "Rally in the Valley" has the worst dressed "CDs" in the district contest. Mark your calendars, write down your ideas, and bring them to the FEBRUARY Breakfast meeting. We need to make a real Chapter "I" effort to show our support for Ken and Jan. By the way, they promised that they would be going to another Chapter's meeting or be out of the country for that meeting, so we can plan behind their back. This is going to be a fun event for all of us here and also in July in Yakima.

Bob & Debbie Bacon and Jennifer Iverson

Asst. Chapter Directors

*****

By Robert Blair

MSF Instructor

Chapter Educator

I received a telephone call the other night from a friend telling me that an acquaintance, someone we both know, had an accident and totaled his motorcycle. He was laid up in a local hospital as well as his passenger. Unfortunately, he was not a licensed motorcycle rider, or at least that is my understanding. Can you see the soapbox coming? Good - I hope so.. For your sake and that of others, read and take note.

Not withstanding all of the stories about having an endorsement does not make a good rider; or, I’ve been riding all of my life and haven’t had a bad accident, so what is all the fuss about? If you really wish to vent, then here is the place to tell me your tale, just insert names, locations and motorcycles in the blank spots and the rest of us will get on with life.

The fact of the matter is that an endorsed rider is a better rider. Why? Because an endorsed rider has proven his ability to at least a minor degree and has begun to take responsibility for himself. Something that an unlicensed rider has yet to do. If you are lucky enough to have taken the rider course, then you are far ahead in terms of qualifications and responsibility. Had an ERC? Then come to the head of the class.

Back to the guy who is filling in the blank spots. I have heard the stories and I have seen the facts. I see them every class on the range and in the classroom. Failure, dismal performance and lack of confidence all point back to the untested unlicensed rider. Sorry folks. The truth hurts most to those who lie to themselves.

Not needing an endorsement translates to: "I am to intimidated and too insecure to go and try to do those things on my motorcycle." I can’t take the time, or I can’t afford it right now, still translate to: "I am too intimidated and too insecure to go and try to do those things on my motorcycle." I can out ride you any day of the week: translates to: "I am too intimida---." Need I say more?

Going beyond the intimidation and the foolish factor. If you are riding without proper endorsement and you do have an accident, you will have to share more of the burden of responsibility even if no other vehicles are involved. Simply because if you are not properly licensed you legally are not qualified to ride. You will receive a citation, have to pay a fine and perhaps your insurance company will not cover your medical costs. Worse yet, if they do, they might come after you to repay them by suing you in court. You may also be asked to post a $10,000.00 cash bond in order to keep your driver’s license so that you can drive your car. If you fail to comply, your driver’s license may be revoked or suspended. More fines and possibly jail time. Are we having fun yet?

Riding without endorsement may cancel your insurance policy, or at worst, put you into a premium pool that forces you to pay extremely high rates for the next few years. You will be considered an assigned risk and subject to all sorts of restrictions and exceptions to your coverage.

No doubt you have heard that it is not necessary to have insurance coverage for a motorcycle. In part, that is true. If you are making payments (in other words the bike isn’t totally yours), it must be insured. You must be able to cover damage or injury to another’s person or property. If you don’t, or can’t, here comes another cash bond that you can’t afford and you might even lose your home, or job, or both.

You constitutional rights are the same as mine. They say that I don’t have to put up with someone driving down my roads without proper license, insurance or qualifications.

I am sorry that my friend’s friend got hurt. I am truly sorry that he wrecked his motorcycle and will not likely ride again. I talked to him some time ago about taking the basic MRC:Rss class. The class would even have been paid for him and probably too the cost of the endorsement. That’s how good a friend he had. The bottom line was that he was too intimidated and unsure of his ability to put himself in a position to learn how to keep from getting hurt and in the end he did.

It is very important that you know your limits and ride within them and getting the proper endorsement is the first step you need to take because……..The More You Know, The Better It Gets.

*****

A big "Happy Birthday" to those folks whose names appear below. If you’re a Chapter "I" member, and your name doesn’t appear here, and you’d like to be included, please contact John Oakes, at 438-0253.

January

Marsha Wolf – 10^th

George Peck – 10^th

Pat Gardner – 16^th

Bernie Desper – 18^th

Lee Shriver – 21^st

February

Charlie Nokes – 3^rd

Ron Brown – 19^th

Men’s leather jacket, size XL $100. Also 1500 stock windshield $15. Call Ralph Desper @ 786-1728.

Size 12 Ladies Hein Gehring Jeans, worn 3 wks. $175. Men’s size 38 Hein Gehring Concord Jacket. $275. X-S Shoei Helmet – Silver $175. Worn 1 mo. Call Mike or Connie @ (360) 458-7032.

Shoei Helmet, XXL. Teal, w/headset. $100 Call Don Farrar (360) 455-1294.