Cyclerides.com Weekly Update
12/5/07 

Greetings Riders,
 
Well, It must be December in Arizona, because the rains are now making their long awaited appearance. While it is good for the water table, it sure does put a damper on motorcycle riding and in particular Toy Rides. As most of you know the rains started on Friday and didn't let up until Saturday afternoon. Which also happened to be the window of time for the Toys To Kids Ride. But as usual, that didn't stop the loyal motorcycle riders in Arizona from finding a way to deliver their much needed toys to the kids anyway. The rain coming was no secret, that is why I encouraged everyone to go ahead and drive to the end location at Westgate to deliver their toys. While Mother Nature was kind to us at the start location, we still had 50 riders that braved the elements to get there on their bikes.

We had 115 kids that attended the event that were bussed in from the Thomas J. Pappas Schools. These are kids that are living in homeless shelters in Downtown Phoenix and the surrounding area. They are some of the nicest and well behaved kids that you have seen. Even though their personal situations keep them from being real outgoing with strangers, they are very appreciative of this one day that they are the focus of everyone's attention.

The day festivities started with getting the kids fed with a hamburger and fries from Johnny Rockets. We were then all entertained with 5 songs by the Rancho Santa Fe Children's Choir from Litchfield Park School district. These were all 1st and 2nd graders and wow were they good. This was followed by Magical Aaron doing some magic tricks and riding the giant unicycle while juggling. Then came our annual closing by Elvis which has become a favorite performance by both the children and adults alike. 

Then it came time for the children to pick out their gifts and this year I did something a little different. Two weeks ago I talked in the newsletter about giving, how good it feels to give and lucky we are that we are able to do that. Since these kids really don't have the opportunity to do much giving, I explained to them that all of these motorcycle riders were taking time out of their day and were making the effort to give to them, and that they would now have the opportunity to do the same with someone that they cared about. I asked them to pick a total of 3 gifts. They could get 2 toys for themselves and then get one toy to give to someone else. It could be for their brother, sister or a friend that they would want to share with. I'm not sure where it will go from here, but when I asked if they would like to give a gift to someone else, there was a resounding cheer. It just seemed like a good way to make them feel good about themselves and pass the blessing on down the line.
 
Under the circumstances with the weather, it turned out to be a great event. My biggest fear was that we would get 115 kids sitting in front of us and not enough toys to go around. But thanks to all of you loyal Cyclerides.com readers who made the trip, each child got their 3 gifts and there were about 100 left over. A far cry from last year when we had a couple thousand left over, but the important thing was that our needs were fulfilled. Everyone who attended had a great time and felt good about their effort to make these kids Christmas just a little bit better. I know it was tough to get out on a day like that, get in the car and drive to a toy ride, but you were a blessing to these kids. I personally thank all of you that made this a success. You are the best!
 
Click Here for some pictures from the day.
 
If you want to see a small snippet of what the day looked like with the kids and Elvis singing, Click Here to View.
It is really cool to see all the kids and adults having a good time.
 
Thanks again to Westgate City Center for providing the end location setup and working with me on Plan B to make this happen under cover. Also thanks to Bret Kaiser, AKA Elvis for coming out once again to entertain, as well as the Rancho Santa Fe children's choir and Magical Aaron.
 
If you would like to book Bret for entertainment at your next party, you can reach him at 480-473-4939 or at http://www.bretkaiser.com/ He recently did the "Elvis Lives" show at Casino Arizona. 

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Poll Results! 

Two weeks ago I had a story in the newsletter about coming up with a way that we can recognize that a rider stopped on the side of the road truly needs assistance. (Click Here to read the full story) So last week I inserted a poll into the newsletter to ask if you would like to make the standard call for help to: "Tie a Yellow ribbon or cloth to your outside handlebar" or "Give a thumbs up/thumbs down signal to the passing rider". The results are in and there is a clear winner. 
 
With 730 votes tallied, the overwhelming winner with 454 votes (62%) and a 2 to 1 margin was to "Tie a Yellow Ribbon or Cloth to Outside Handlebar". The tally was 232 votes (31%) for the Thumbs up/down signal. There were 44 of you that got creative with "Other" suggestions including "Mooning the oncoming rider", "Have your woman take her top off, that will get everyone to stop!", "Wave a photo of Scott Pasmore", and my favorite, "Is it a Harley? If so, it's probably broken". Click Here to view the results.
 
It looks like the majority of riders like the idea of tying a piece of cloth, bandana, ribbon, etc. to the outside handlebar of the bike signaling a clear statement that you need help. I used the example of a yellow ribbon but it could actually be any color that you have available or would want to get that would be noticeable, that is why I picked yellow. If you don't have anything to tie onto your handlebars, the thumbs up/down is the next most popular method and should be universal as well. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be alerting media as to the results of this poll to help get the word out. I will also be checking into the best method of getting something to pass out so that riders can keep these on your bike in case of emergency. Stay tuned for updates on this in the newsletter. Thanks to the 730 who participated in this poll.
 

Next Week 

Saturday, December 15th
Chester's Harley Holiday Style. Join Us For Great Gift Ideas! Spend $100 and receive a free $10 gift card.
Free continental breakfast from 8-10am. Free Lunch cheeseburgers and chili from 11am-1pm. Free gift wrapping by Ladies of Harley, Photos with Santa and Hooters Elves, Music, Stilt Man, Meet the Chester's Racing Team, Harley-Davidson Motorcycles of the 80's gift sets (with qualifying purchase), Learn to ride information, Raffles, face painting and treats. And don't forget to check out the latest in Harley-Davidson motorclothes and leathers for the cool riding weather. Chester's is located at 922 S. Country Club Dr. in Mesa, AZ. 480-894-0404.
 
Saturday, December 15th
Buddy Stubbs Harley-Davidson Holiday and Customer Thank-You Party.
Join Buddy Stubbs for a Holiday Celebration from 11am - 3pm with Free Lunch, Live Music, Appearance by Santa, Fashion Shows, Pool Tournaments, Giveaways and Free Gift Wrapping. Plan your ride to take advantage of a free Museum tour to see the largest collection of vintage motorcycles in the Southwest. Tours starting at 12:30pm. See the latest in 2008 Harley-Davidson motorcycles and Motorclothes. Buddy Stubbs HD is located at 13850 N. Cave Creek Rd. in Phoenix. For more information call 602-971-3400.
 
Sunday, December 16th
W. Steven Martin's Police Toy Run. Ride to help Police and Fire Santa's in Arizona bring smiles and gifts to children in need through the hands of the people that care this holiday season. Check-In at Chester’s Harley-Davidson located at 922 S. Country Club Dr. in Mesa from 8am to 10am. A $10 donation and new toy per bike is greatly appreciated. Run T-shirts and 50/50 raffle tickets are available. 50 mile ride will end at the Native New Yorker in Maricopa. All riders must have a motorcycle endorsement and insurance to participate. For more information call 480-899-0366 or ptdmotors@cox.net. 

Extras 

Ok, this video is absolutely amazing. Illusionists drive me crazy in the first place, but this one is one of the best you will see. Click Here to be amazed.
 
For those of you that like aviation, here is a web page of photographs from Fleet Week in San Francisco. This guy took some incredible pictures of the Blue Angels in flight including them doing 700 mph over the tops of boats in the harbor 20 feet off the water. Click Here to View.
 
This video has been taking You Tube and national media by storm. I have seen on the network and cable news stations. It is called the Best First Wedding Dance Ever. Click Here to View.
 
I don't know if this is for real or not, but it sure ticks off this bull. Supposedly this is a Taser for animals. Click Here to View.
 
Stay tuned next week for some Christmas Gift Ideas.