ACHOG Weekly Newsletter & Ride Info 10/08/2019
 

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Safety Tip of the Week 

Motorcycle Helmets and Child Car Seats

What do motorcycle helmets and child car seats have in common? They are both designed to protect for just one crash. I got the idea for this safety tip from a Handy Man article entitled,” 32 things not to buy at a garage sale.”
So the problem with buying one of these two items from an unknown source is you never know if it’s been in a crash. Both of these items can have damage that is not visible.
While we are talking about helmets, maybe you bought yours brand new. Let’s talk about how helmets are tested. They are tested by dropping them from a certain height. So here is a question for you that no one wants to hear. Have you ever dropped your helmet? If you have, it is compromised. Yea I know, some of them cost a lot of money, and what you do with this information is your business. The way helmets are designed to protect your head is, they are supposed to absorb energy and begin a type of break down so your head doesn’t have to. When you drop your helmet, this process starts and it is not always  visible. The shell may just have a ding or a scratch that you can paint over or live with but the real damage occurs to the inner shell, which you can’t see. Of course it is hidden by both the outer shell and the liner.
So there are two take aways here. One is don’t buy used helmets and two, if you’ve dropped yours, it may be time for a new one; or at least know you are not wearing the protection you think you are.



 

Harley Trivia
 

The Knuckle
 

I've talked about the Knuckle Head before. It's a V-Twin motor made by Harley from 1931 to 1947. It was replaced by the Pan Head. For those interested in going to Sturgis or who have been and plan on going back, there is a Saloon in downtown Sturgis with the same namesake; The Knuckle Saloon.
The Black Hills are some really great riding roads and everyone should go to Bike Week at least one time. However my favorite time to ride the hills is after bike week is over. Most of the stuff down town is gone, which is fine by me, however The Knuckle is open all year long. You gotta figure; a place with an iconic name, in Sturgis, and open 52 weeks a year has to have something going for it.Check them out on line and then stop in for a visit the next time you are in the area.

  
Monthly Meeting

Meeting for will be Saturday,  October 12, 2019 at the new dealership, 380 Outlet Mall Rd., Saint Augustine, FL. Meeting usually start at 9:30 a.m. however there is an exception Saturday because of the Unity Pink event and ride. Please join us at 2:00 p.m.
 

Tidbits

The Grand Opening has come and gone. It was a great success and a good time was had by all. There were literally thousands of motorcycles that showed up. Sometimes I forget how many riders we have in our area until you see them all in one place.
I was overwhelmed and overjoyed at the participation by our chapter volunteers. It couldn't have been done without them. Thanks guys and gals. You are the greatest. I'd like to give each and everyone of you a hug but I think I already have. That's what we do. We signed up several new members and I can't help but think seeing our members working and yet having a good time was part of the selling point. Of course I also want to give a special thanks to the members from out sister chapters from JAX HOG and OP HOG for helping out also.

We also had our first chapter grill out. That was Friday at the VIP and "soft opening". It was a great success and we took in quite a few donations. I would like to extend a special thanks to not only our members who cooked but also Manya, Kirby, and the JAX HOG members who helped us to get that started.



A Very Special Thank You

I would especially like to thank Michael "Bear" Cooper for his wonderful contribution to our chapter. For those who havn't seen it, it is a custom flag stand that carries "Old Glory and our Chapter flag. The base includes a Harley Davidson crank shaft with the iconic twin pistons. We will proudly display it at many of our events and it will live in our new "HOG Pen" for all to enjoy.  




National Dues

I'd like to remind everyone to be mindful of your national dues. Technically, your chapter dues expire when your national dues do. This is not about nit picking but it is a liability issue. Probably the best thing about HOG is the insurance they provide when we ride as a group. This is one of those things that doesn't matter until it does. I'd also like to ask you, should you realize your national membership has lapsed and you want to participate on a ride, just ask for a waiver from one of the road captains.

Local Dues Sale

I would also like to remind everyone of a sale we have every year on dues. Please share this with prospective new members. Between July 1 and October 31 our dues go down to $10 for new members. If they join in November, the price again becomes $20 but we will cover them for the coming new year. To avoid any confusion like last year, remember, a member who joins in November must sign a waiver-application for the rest of this year but another for the following year which we can accept after December1.
Because of the Grand Opening of our new membership, any new members can pay $20 and we will take you all the way through 2020. They will still have to sign a waiver for both years.


A Note For New Members On Dues

This hopefully will clear up several questions we got at the membership table during the Grand Opening. Following is the answers to the most FAQ.
1. You must be a National HOG member to be a local chapter member.
2. Your wife, girl friend or who ever may want to join you in our rides, parties and activities must also be a National member to be a local member. They can be an associate member however for $25 dollars a year.
3. There are no associate local memberships. All member dues are $20 a year. Look at it this way, the passengers have just as much fun as the riders. My wife would argue that they have more. And riding is not the only thing we do.
4. A guest may participate in two ride events without joining. However they must sign a waiver for each event. After that they must make a decision to join. Usually they do after they see how much fun we have.
5. Memberships are not transferable from one chapter to another. Each chapter is an independant organization supproted only by our members and sponsoring dealership. I'm still amused by one gentleman who stormed off because we couldn't transfer his dues from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
6. The number one rule and what we do is,"Ride and Have Fun."

    
Up and Coming
 
  
Unity Pink Ride - October 12

Our first event at our new dealership will be the Unity Pink ride, previously, Think Pink. In addition to as much rider participation as possible we also need volunteers to help with registration, staging and parking. Following is a link for the event which also has a signup link. Please mark this on your calendars and help all you can. By the way if you are a volunteer, you will still be able to ride. Don't forget our first meeting at the new dealership will follow the ride. Hopefully everyone will already be there. The meeting will begin at 2:00 p.m.https://unityoutreachstaug.org/get-involved/#ride
For those volunteering to help with the Unity Pink ride, we are asking them to please be at the dealership between 7:00 a.m. and 7:30 a.m.

 

Mountain Ride


The Smokey Mountain Ride is  October 21 through October 25. I will be leading a ride Saturday the 21 to Milledgeville for the first night. We will go up 441 most of the way and avoid the Interstate. The following day we will go to Helen for some light sight seeing and lunch. Afterward we will head to Tallulah Falls for some incredible scenery of the gorge and water falls. Then its on to Waynesville, NC for the next two nights. Hopefully you will have reservations for the Best Western Smokey Mountains. There is information and phone numbers on the website for lodging at Milledgeville and Waynesville. We will spend the next two days riding the mountains. Friday we will head back home. Plans are at the present to make it in one day via the Interstate.  


Progressive Dinner

One of the chapters favorite activities is the Progressive Dinner ride. After noting a scheduling conflict with the Grand Opening, the new date has been set for Sunday October 20.  A ride that visits three of our members homes for hor d'ouevres, entrees, and then desserts. Julie and Ken are doing appetizers, Charles and Francis are doing the entrees, and Ruth and Scott  are doing the desserts.  There is now a sign up sheet on the website. The deadline for signing up is October 12.  



Check link below to see our calendar and upcoming rides, events, and meetings.

http://www.ancientcityhog.com/ 
 
Disclaimer - Since being a member of Ancient City HOG is not a requirement to subscribe to this newsletter, it must be noted that all rides posted on this site are closed rides, unless otherwise stated. A closed ride is composed of members and  guests, with guests being required to sign a waiver, and is not advertised; hence the disclaimer. Also guests can't outnumber the members.

Please Share - Send us stories and member info to share with your Chapter Friends and then see it here!  Just shoot it via email to:  director@ancientcityhog.com  

Come Out and Join Us On Our Rides...Hope To See You Soon... Terry    
          

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