Halibut Raffle & Halloween Party

October 30, 2006 at 8:13 am (raffle)

We had our Halloween Party on Saturday. Lots of fun, and there were some pretty neat costumes, too. We also had the drawing for our raffle. Congratulations to Paul DeHaven, Director of the Gold Wings of the North!! Unfortunately, not all ticket stubs and monies were turned in before the drawing, so we didn’t make as much as we originally thought. If anyone still has ticket stubs and money, please return the money to whomever bought the tickets.

Our next dinner is this Saturday, November 4, at 4pm. Russ and Vicki are cooking. A reminder that our next meeting is on Sunday, November 19, at 4pm. See you then!

Ride on!!

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Monthly Meeting for October

October 19, 2006 at 8:51 am (Meeting)

Our monthly meeting for October went well. We discussed the Halloween party coming up on the 28th of this month. The fun starts at 7pm; get dressed up in your favorite costume and join us for fun and games!! We will also be having our raffle drawing. If you have any tickets left, now is the time to get them sold and turned back in.

Our next Legion Riders’ dinner is on November 4 at 4pm. Russ will be cooking – come on out and support our Riders group.

We also discussed which rides we wanted put in to the North Pole calendar for 2007. We decided that we would have four runs next summer -

  • Memorial Weekend run to the Veterans Memorial on the Parks Highway in May
  • Fourth of July Parade
  • Anderson Bluegrass Festival in July
  • POW/MIA Ceremony in September

We will also try to participate in as many runs by other groups as possible, with a focus on CMA. They have been awesome in their support for us this summer.

Jim and I will be heading down to Kenai this weekend to pick up our Charter and hopefully our membership cards.  I believe we will be having some type of ceremony at our Post to dedicate our Charter at some point in the future.

Well, that’s all for now.  Hope everyone has an awesome month!

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Setpember 30, 2006

September 30, 2006 at 11:48 am (Meeting, links)

Hi all. Sorry it’s been so long since the last blog update. Been a tough summer. Thanks for being so patient with me -

Anyhoo, since the last blog update, we’ve started the Halibut Rod/Reel Raffle, which is going excellent, thanks mostly to Don, who has sold over 400 tickets. For those of you that haven’t sold all of yours, if you are having trouble selling them, let Jim or I know; we can help get them sold. The drawing is less than a month away, so we need to get those tickets sold. If anyone is interested in helping sell the last tickets, contact either Jim or I. Also, if you get a chance, stop over at the Post, the rod and reel is put together and it looks beautiful!! One of a kind, has our logo on it.

Our group is doing Saturday afternoon dinners on the first Saturday of the Month starting at 4:00pm. In October, Don is doing what he calls ‘white-boy enchiladas.’ Sounds tasty! Come on out and join us, and if you have some culinary talent, volunteer to cook for one of our Saturdays. Speaking of food, I found a link to a website called, “The Hairy Bikers Cookbook.” The link is on the left in our blogroll. Check it out, it’s interesting to say the least -

Our next monthly meeting is October 15, 2006, at 4:00pm. We did not have a meeting in September as only three of us showed up. Please mark the date on your calendar and plan to attend. Our group has the chance to get on the Chamber of Commerce Summer Calendar for 2007, but we need to figure out when we want to have our group rides next summer now if we are to be included in the Calendar. The deadline for Calendar submissions is November.

That’s all for now.  See you next Saturday!

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Fourth of July Parade

July 6, 2006 at 2:54 pm (rides)

On Tuesday, some of the Riders participated in the Fourth of July parade in North Pole. I would like to thank Greta for riding with Jim and I as members of the Legion Riders. The parade was a good one; there were many motorcycles in it. All the motorcycles were up front, and it was decided that since the Riders had the largest American flag, we would lead off the parade. Of course, because motorcycles have a very difficult time going slower then about 10mph, there ended up being a huge gap between us and the rest of the parade. We decided to call it, “The North Pole parade parts 1 and 2.” I have updated our Flickr (photo-sharing) account with pictures from the parade. I’ve also added a link on the side of our blog. Check out the pictures when you get a chance.

Just a reminder that our monthly meeting is on Sunday, July 16, 2006, at 4pm. We’ll be discussing our trip to the Anderson Bluegrass Festival on July 29. It looks like there will be quite a few good bands there. Join us, and plan to spend overnight camping.

alr_bumper_sticker.jpg

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June Monthly Meeting

June 23, 2006 at 10:46 am (Legion Riders Websites, Meeting)

First of all, let me apologize for not getting this post done earlier this week. It’s been rather hectic around here.

We got quite a bit accomplished at our meeting on Sunday. We will be doing a couple of rides next month – the North Pole Parade on July 4, and we’ll also be doing a run on the 29th of July to the Anderson Bluegrass Festival. Dates and times for both events are on our iCalendar. We will leave Post 57 for the run to the bluegrass festival, and it’s optional whether or not you want to camp overnight. Jim and I are planning on staying overnight, and there will be a follow-on vehicle carrying all the camping gear. If you are interested in staying over, get with Jim to drop off your camping gear.

Also, at our last few meetings we have been discussing a charity to sponsor. We have decided to sponsor Alaska Youth Football (also known as Pop Warner Football). Howard Smith (Smitty) was supposed to come to our meeting and tell the group what it’s all about, but he was unable to make it. We went ahead and voted to give AYF the monies collected at our burger burn last month. I got with him to find out what it’s about, and what’s needed. This is the information that I received from him -

Alaska Youth Football

It is the only sport not sponsored by Eielson Air Force Base.

There are three divisions -

  • Rookies: ages 7-10
  • Juniors: ages 10-12
  • Seniors: ages 13-14 (15 if the student is home-schooled)

There are four AYF teams in Fairbanks: Cowboys, Rams, Redskins, and the Saints. Delta Jct. has one team, Green Bay, and North Pole has three teams: Vikings, Broncos, and the Seahawks. The season runs from July 5 – Sept 15. Practice season is from July 5 – July 21, with the regular season starting afterwards.

Moose Creek has 10-11 kids in AYF, and the cost per child is $150.00 if they have their own equipment. If they need equipment, the cost goes up to $185.00.

Well, that pretty much wraps it up for this post. Have a great month, and we look forward to seeing you on July 4 and July 29!!

alr_jun_18_06.jpg P.S. – Click on the picture; it will take you to our new Flickr account. As time permits, I will move the photos from the Memorial Day Run to this account. Also, if anyone else would like to submit ALR-related photos, let me know and I will show you how to upload the pictures.

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Memorial Day Run

May 31, 2006 at 8:01 am (rides)

Last weekend, Jim and I made the run from Post 30 to the Veterans' Memorial on the Parks Highway. Other than a bit of rain and hail on Saturday, the weather was great. We both came back with sunburns.

We left Saturday not knowing what the schedule of events were at the Memorial, but we did find out that most people were staying at the Grizzly Bear Campground in Denali Park. We were able to get a campsite there, and the folks in the cabin next to us told us that the Memorial service would be on Sunday, not Monday.

Sunday we got up and rode Jim's bike, with our Legions' wreath safely tucked inside the backpack, down to the Memorial Park. We found out on the way that there would be a parade (of sorts) that started 13 miles south of the park, returning to the park. We joined the rest of the group down at Mary's cafe, and by 1:30, there were between 275-300 bikes in the parking lot. After the Blackhawk helicopter flew over us, we pulled out. They call it "Rolling Thunder," and I can see why. We stretched out on the highway for about 4 miles. What an amazing feeling, knowing that this many people would take time out from their weekend to honor our Vets in this manner.

As we entered the Memorial, we circled around the upper side of park, and then we pulled into the lower parking lot, which had been barricaded so that no vehicles would park in there. It was reserved for motorcycles only. As we pulled into the parking lot, we had to go around the Blackhawk to get to our parking spot. We parked and went up to the memorial.

The service was put on by the Vietnam Vets M/C, and they did an amazing job honoring our vets. After the service was over, Jim wanted to place our wreath, and asked one of the Club members if he could place it with the rest of the wreaths. He said it would be ok, and escorted Jim to the place where the wreaths were. Jim place our wreath, shook hands with a few of the Vietnam Vets members, and we headed back to our campsite. Monday we returned home.

Since this was the first time that anyone has made the run, it was fortunate that we had people willing to share their information with us. Next year, we hope that our entire Group will ride with us. It was a great weekend, and if you would like to see pictures, click on this link -

Memorial Day Run

Just a note – this Saturday the Harley Shop is doing their Victory Ride, and one of their stops will be at our Legion Post. As we talked about in our April meeting, our Group agreed to be at the Post to welcome riders and provide some type of refreshment. Jim and I will be there firing up the grill, and we hope to see some of the other members there also. I'm not sure of the time, but as soon as I find out, I'll let everyone know. Hope to see you this Saturday!!

 UPDATE –

The Victory Riders on Saturday will be stopping at our Post around 1:30ish.  They will only be stopping long enough for refreshments and a chance to stretch their legs, so Jim and I will not be doing a burger burn.  Please feel free to join us in welcoming the riders though.

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Monthly meeting

May 24, 2006 at 5:59 am (Meeting)

Since only four people showed up Sunday for the meeting, we decided not to have a regular meeting. Instead, we talked about the burger burn (made $71.00), discussed putting on a raffle and how to go about doing that, and came up with a few suggestions for a pet charity to adopt. It was suggested that Pop Warner football is starting up, and has very little support, so that may be the direction to go in. Don had a safety handout; copies of it have been left at the Legion Post for the rest of the members.

I would also like to welcome our newest member, Greta. She recently got her bike, a Harley Street Bob. That puts us up to 15 members and 3 supporting members.

We are still planning on going down the Parks Highway this weekend to place the Auxiliary’s memorial wreath at the Veterans’ Memorial. If anyone else is planning on going, could you send Jim an email and let him know? We’ll be leaving on Saturday and returning on Monday.

Our next meeting will be on June 18, at 4pm. Hope to see everyone there!

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Monthly meeting news

April 17, 2006 at 1:44 pm (Meeting)

Yesterday we had our monthly meeting. Despite the fact that it was Easter Sunday, most of the members were able to attend, which allowed us to get quite a bit accomplished. We were able to welcome Paul DeHaven as a guest. He and his wife are the Directors of the Goldwings of the North Chapter here in Fairbanks. Check out their website; they have rides listed, and Paul told us that all the rides are open to anyone.

A few months ago, Jim (our Director) was approached by our Ladies’ Auxiliary and asked if our Group would be taking the memorial wreath to the Veterans’ Memorial on the Parks Hwy. Although our Group had not yet formed, Jim agreed to taking on the responsibility of ensuring that the wreath was delivered. At yesterdays’ meeting, the members agreed that it would be an ALR-sponsored ride, and it was also agreed that as many members who were not already committed elsewhere would go on the ride. The ride will be for Memorial Day weekend, leaving on Saturday the 27th of May from American Legion Post 30, and returning on Monday, the 29th. Someone will be following the Goup on four wheels, carrying the wreath and all the necessary camping gear. We are, however, hoping that perhaps someone in the group might have access to an RV or pull-behind trailer that they would be willing to let us use for the weekend; that would be much more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. If you can help, please let Jim know.

Russ, our Assistant Director, told us about the recent success with the bike raffle to faise funds for a local woman dealing with cancer. He suggested that we may be able to co-sponsor a raffle in the future, which would get our name out to the public. As co-sponsors, we need not put out any money, just agree to sell tickets.

Our Secretary, Vicki, had also put together a calendar of all the local groups’ rides coming up this summer. The rides are listed on our iCalendar. Our Groups’ events are also listed on the iCalendar.

We also decided to have our first fund raiser. We will be having a pool tournament and burger burn on Friday, May 12th, starting at 5pm. The pool tournament will be limited to the first 20 people that sign up, and there will be cash prizes. The burger burn will be a donation of $5 per plate, and will include all the fixins. Even if you don’t shoot pool, please join us for the burger burn and bring your friends and family. If you are lucky enough to have your road clear, bring your bike!

It was also brought up in the meeting that we should start thinking about adopting a charity. The requirements are that the charity must support either Veterans’ or children/youth programs. Bring some ideas to the next meeting (May 21 at 4pm) for who you think our Group should adopt.

Also, at our next meeting we are hoping that the weather will be good, and the roads will be clear, as we have tentatively planned to meet at the Post at 4pm and ride somewhere (Birch Lake?) and have our meeting with the mosquitoes.

Well, that’s it for the meeting highlights. Thanks to those of you that were able to make it yesterday, and we look forward to seeing everyone at the pool tournament/burger burn!

Ride on, safely

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First meeting

April 3, 2006 at 7:32 am (Meeting)

Yesterday we had our first meeting. We are now officially a Chapter of the American Legion Riders. Twelve people showed up to get this group off the ground. The meeting took almost two hours, but everyone was happy with the results when it was over.

Congratulation to our new Officers. Both Jim and I appreciated the fact that so many people stepped up and volunteered to take Officer positions in the Group. We were both worried that no one would want to fill the Officer positions and it would be like pulling teeth to get it accomplished. It’s great when you’re wrong in a situation like that.

Our next monthly meeting is on April 16, 2006, at 4pm. We’ll be planning our rides for the summer, so please join us with suggestions on where to ride, either with or without the other clubs/groups in the area.

The following Saturday, April 22, 2006, is the installation of Officers at Post 30. It will be a potluck type of thing starting around 4pm. You can find listing for all of our upcoming events on our iCalendar. If you have something to submit for the iCalendar, please let me know in the comments section of this blog post, or send me an email. For security reasons, I won’t list my email address here, but most of you in the Group have it. For those that don’t, I’ll be sending you an email so that you will have it.

That’s it for now. Ride safely -

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Links and Such

March 30, 2006 at 11:49 am (links)

You may have noticed on the left of the blog that there is a growing number of links to other sites. Some are Legion Riders’ related, some are American Legion related, and others are just some interesting websites about motorcycles. New links are being added all the time as we get them; today, a link for the State Chapter in Kenai was added. Check out their website, it’s got some pretty interesting stuff in it.

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