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NEWS
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The BMW C
Published by the BMW Club of Houston
Since 1967
www.bmwclub.org
June 2006
Ken’s Korner
In This Issue
Ken’s Korner
1
Riding the Aloha
1000
1
Coast to Coast—
The Extreme
5
Neat Accessory
Thermometer
4
The Ride around
Texas
6
Tech Tips
9
Activities
Calendar
10
Secretary’s
Report
10
Oh yes, Roethlisberger did his part in
pinning those targets on all other motorcycle
We are going to be wearing targets
riders as he is, or at least was, a no-helmet advo(the kind the media and lawmakers aim for)
cate whose his face paid the price. Fortunately,
again for a while, courtesy of a negligent motor- it looks like he will be fine and with luck will
ist who did a left turn in front of Ben Roethliseven be able to start this coming season.
berger recently. In case you’ve been living in a
The reports I’ve read indicate that Ben
cave for a few weeks Ben Roethlisberger is the
had
no
motorcycle
license at the time of the
starting quarterback with the Pittsburg Steelers,
accident
and
was
not
allowed by local state law
with a mega-million dollar deal in his pocket,
to
ride
without
a
helmet.
What we don’t know
who t-boned an auto that failed to yield and
(Continued on page 2)
turned into his lane.
Riding the Aloha 1000
By Beverly Ruffin Part 1 of 2
Inspired by an Iron Butt Association (IBA) event hosted in February 2006, but captivated by an alternative, I recently managed to complete a
Hawaiian Saddle Sore—The Aloha
1000. (Just in case you haven’t heard,
the IBA now sanctions a whole series
of Saddle Sore rides [1,000 miles in 24
hours] within the borders of each state.
Hawaii’s is appropriately names the
Aloha 1000.)
My Harley-riding neighbor, Rick
Harrelson owns a time-share there and
his plan provided substantial savings
over the IBA event—sans the social
occasions, of course. So over the Memorial Day week we headed for Kona,
on the Big Island of Hawaii.
We arrived on Saturday afBeverly, Harley, Hawaii
ternoon, May 27. Quickly I realized
that our Harley reservations for Sunday morning were too ambitious—so we postponed them to Wednesday. However, at the onset,
Rick began to second-guess his plans to do the Saddle Sore.
The state highway circling the island is a 2-lane black top. And when it’s dark in Hawaii—it’s dark. The highest posted speed is 55MPH, and even that is ambitious at times with the
heavy traffic and 18-wheelers. In the populated areas, the maximum speed is 45MPH and 35 or 25
are common. The terrain and elevation are varied as well—from the lava rock at sea level to the
(Continued on page 4)
Page 2
BMW Club of Houston
Ken’s Korner (Continued from page 1)
is whether he was an experienced motorcycle rider who just hadn’t gotten legal yet in Pennsylvania, or whether he was a new
rider that had a bit of bad luck. He wasn’t being reckless,
though, since he was obeying the speed limit of 35, and just
couldn’t get his machine stopped in time to avoid the car that
suddenly appeared in front of him.
A sports star being involved makes this big news, of
course, and it seems like all I heard on the radio for a day or two,
and still read on the internet, is how dangerous motorcycles are
and how riders should be required to wear helmets. On one radio
show it was reported that insurance companies figure that every
single motorcycle/operator will be involved in a traffic accident
at some time or other. One local talk show host for whom I have
a great deal of respect, and who’s show I regularly enjoy, really
went off on motorcycle use, but while I couldn’t listen to his
entire segment, what I didn’t hear while tuned in was anything at
all about negligent auto drivers creating a danger for bike riders
who are riding safely, obeying the traffic laws, and in general
helping reduce wear and tear on the roads, atmospheric pollution
and saving energy to boot.
How about a whole show devoted to the absolutely out
of control drivers on the Katy Freeway and the Southwest Freeway that make me pucker up even in my Dodge diesel pickup,
and make me want to say my prayers when returning from an out
of town ride on my BMW motorcycle. I am filled with apprehension each time I approach the city on those roads. Last weekend while on Highway 59 between Beltway 8 and 610 I was
passed by a silver Ferrari that was being driven at least 100 mph
since I was at 65 mph and the speed differential was HUGE!
Fortunately I was in my truck and being startled by the sound of
a wide open V-12 only affected my heart rate and didn’t have
any effect on my driving.
The Ferrari part of this is a little unusual, but the rest
isn’t. I’ve come to expect at least one pass by someone driving a
rice rocket (usually in groups of 2 or 3, chasing each other), or
some other fool driving at a much higher rate of speed than the
Club Officers
President
Ken Webb
[email protected]
Vice-President
Guy Pickrel
[email protected]
Secretary
Jim Green
[email protected]
Treasurer
Charles Storer
[email protected]
Sergeant at Arms
Barb Smith
[email protected]
Web Editor
Janice Yeager
[email protected]
Club Historian
Diane Cox
[email protected]
Newsletter Editor
Chuck Cooper
713-823-1549
rest of the traffic. My fear is that one of these idiots will misjudge and clip me from behind while weaving thru traffic and
this has come close to being the case several times. My eyes are
at least as often in the mirror as looking forward, but when
someone is weaving thru traffic at 90 mph one doesn’t have
much of a chance to spot them before they are on you. Where
are the Houston Police? This kind of driving is dangerous for all
motorists, but absolutely lethal to someone on a motorcycle
without benefit of a surrounding cage. Motorcycles are dangerous? I guess they are when they are sharing the road with drivers who have little thought or regard for the lives of others. I am
continually amazed at how the negligent actions of drivers garners little to no punishment in many cases. The attitude of
judges and juries with respect to bikes is “they were motorcyclists and knew it was dangerous”. That is, your life on a motorcycle isn’t worth as much as when you are in a car or truck.
How about a talk show devoted to getting drivers to
slow down, especially in and around high traffic areas, obey the
posted speed, don’t run red lights or stop signs, and think about
how their actions can affect others. How about reminding drivers to ALWAYS make sure that the adjacent lanes are clear before make a lane change. Go ahead and miss that turn if it
comes up before you realize it and you are not sure that traffic is
clear. It’s not the end of the world to have to go to the next exit
and come back from the other direction. A high speed differential between any motorists (and that includes US) and surrounding traffic is always dangerous. Personally, I’ve never bought
into the idea that being aggressive and riding faster than traffic is
the safe way to go. Staying with traffic, staying out of blind
spots, giving folks a chance to know that you are there, and getting out of the way of tailgaters seems just a whole lot better to
me. Unless you are planning to cross the state, or the country,
driving fast just doesn’t save time or get you there appreciably
faster. What ever else you do, and however fast you drive or
ride, watch constantly for left turners. The helmet thing is a
whole other article, but with our club it isn’t really an issue; we
all wear them.
BMW Club of Houston
Page 3
Page 4
BMW Club of Houston
Aloha 1000
(Continued from page 1)
rain forest at 4,000 feet. One trip on the 200-mile loop around the
island in our rented Mustang convertible, and we both questioned
my decision as well.
By Monday, I had scrapped my plans for the Saddle Sore,
in favor of a more traditional Hawaiian vacation. And I shared that
with my riding buddies back at home. No one argued.
So Rick and I investigated the Thurston Lava Tube and
hiked the 4-mile trail across the Kilauea iki Crater in Volcano National Park. We saw the sights in that convertible and walked the
black sands beach. We took a dinner tour to the top of Mauna
Kea—13,800 feet, where we learned about astronomy and saw
more stars than I knew existed. And perhaps the highlight of the
tour for me was seeing the Southern Cross. After years of singing
about it, along with Jerry Jeff Walker and Crosby Stills & Nash—I
finally saw the four-star constellation that is rarely seen by North
Americans. I was really enjoying
my holiday.
It started as a joke,
really—the fact that Rick had an
obligation to leave for home on
Thursday. But I didn’t. And he
pointed out that the room and car
was paid through Saturday. One
thing led to another and a single
phone call extended my vacation
through Saturday.
After picking up the
Harley’s on Wednesday and taking
a brief ride on “our” side of the
island, I was convinced that my
decision to pass on the Saddle Sore
was the right one. My timing was
off and I found it difficult adjusting
to the cruiser, having covered so
Black sands beach
many miles on BMW touring
bikes.
But the sun rose on Thursday morning and the day just
felt different. Rick and I both agreed that it was perhaps the best
day yet—although all the days had been marvelous. Maybe it was
just that our bodies had adjusted to the new time zone. Or perhaps
the trip up to Mauna Kea had affected us more than we thought. Or
it was just the feeling that the vacation was almost over (especially
for Rick). We were up and on the bikes relatively early. And that
Harley purred like a kitten and turned on a dime. She was easy to
handle in the curves.
It was there on the bike that the cogs began to turn and a
plan materialized. I’d extend the bike rental until Saturday morning
and buy a full-face helmet (Harley rental only included a beanie)
and rain gear, just to be on the safe side—after all, this was the
rainy season. I’d put Rick on the plane that night, get a few hours
sleep, do the Saddle Sore on Friday, and have all day Saturday to
do Kona and sleep on the flight back. And I wouldn’t tell a soul.
When we picked up the bikes the day before, we were told
that they were due in Hilo on Friday and that we couldn’t extend
the rental. But I figured that if this ride were meant to be, they’d
arrange it somehow. So I let that be the guiding factor. I didn’t
share my plan with Rick—he had been clearly against my riding the
island in the dark.
When we returned to the dealership that afternoon, I
talked with the salesman about keeping my bike. He reminded me
that they were both due in Hilo. “But won’t they accept another
motorcycle?” I suggested. “I have to have this one.” And with a
few strokes of the computer keys, it was set.
Buying a full-face helmet was out of the question, as was
additional riding gear. So a $7 pair of goggles and rain gear they
provided with the rental was the best I could do. The only other
problem was returning the bike—the time-share was over 20 miles
from the dealership and I would wind up there with both the bike
and the rental car. But oh, those Harley guys—for a price they
would pick up the bike at the Hilton. What a deal. Things were
falling into place. It was a good
sign.
I was hoping to keep all
of this from Rick, but there was
too much to arrange. If he had a
reaction, he kept it to himself. I
was a little pleased that someone
would know that I was going to be
riding that island by myself, because I did not tell the guys back
home about my change in plans.
After delivering Rick to
the airport, I went in search of an
all night station, power bars and
protein drinks. The food and drink
were easy, but an open station was
another story. Everything along
the main drag was closed and it
wasn’t even 10PM! The clerk at
the grocery store assured me that a
station across the street was open and would be all night, and I believed her. So back to the room I went to get a few hours sleep.
Surprisingly I was in bed and fast asleep by 11:30. When
the alarm went off at 2AM, I decided that it was a bit early, so I
slumbered until 2:45. Then I was up and off. I was somewhat put
off by the more than 20 miles into Kona before even starting the
ride. But it was unavoidable—there simply weren’t any open stations between the Hilton and Kona. So I resigned myself to the
inconvenience.
But what a shock and disappointment when I approached
the “all night” station and found it closed. Now what? I thought.
Feeling oh so foolish, I headed back to the main drag and continued
south, wondering how far I’d have to ride before being able to start
the Saddle Sore.
(Story conclusion in July issue)
BMW Club of Houston
Page 5
Coast to Coast—the Extreme
By Beverly Ruffin
Five college students are riding bicycles from the Atlantic to the Pacific. And for what, you ask? To increase awareness of hurricane impact in general, and to assist in Hurricane
Katrina clean up in specific—that’s what. Oh yeah, and with a
goal of raising $15,000 for relief organizations as well. That’s
quite a feat.
With all the horror stories I’ve heard, I was surprised
by how much of the city is “business as usual.” I was equally
amazed at the disparity of brand new high dollar housing for
sale across the street from the modest original structures that
remain in disrepair. Gasoline and food is still a bit dicey in
some spots. All in all, it was an experience in contrasts.
The five left Houston earlier this month and won’t
return until the middle of August. Their planned 4,500-mile
route will take them from St. Augustine, Florida to New Orleans and north through the mid-west before finishing up in San
Francisco.
Charlie Storer and I decided to ride out and visit with
the group on Saturday, June 17, during their respite in Moss
Point, Mississippi. It was an easy decision since one of the five
happens to be his son, Patrick.
We left Houston on Saturday at 5AM and returned by
the wee hours of Sunday morning. Our little jaunt took us to
New Orleans as well. But our goal was beignets. I’m happy to
report that the famous Café
DuMonde is still there
serving those hot little morsels—and at $1.59 for
three, still a heck of a good
bargain. I was told that the
French Quarter was virtually untouched by the hurricane—and that is true.
We enjoyed visiting with the “Fab Five” and ol’
Charlie dove right in and helped with one of their projects—
clearing debris from the front of a house that has been virtually
untouched since the storm. Our visit was quickly over and I
returned for home, leaving Charlie behind to help them with
routing issues between there and New Orleans.
Neat Accessory Thermometer
By Robert Stallones
While riding back from Big Bend during a cold front last February I was nervous about crossing small, wet bridges. I was
afraid that by the time I realized there was ice on the bridge it would be too late. However, my riding buddy had a thermometer on his
bike, and he said that the temperature was a balmy 42 degrees, so we shouldn't have a problem with ice. That was the first time I had actually found a
thermometer useful, so I decided to get one also.
I chose a waterproof MotoFizz ThermoClock available from Aerostitch for $22.00. http://www.aerostich.com 1-800-222-1994
Double-stick foam attaches the mounting bracket to the bike. The
bracket will remain on the bike, but the thermometer/clock snaps into the
bracket and can be easily removed. I put mine on the windshield mounting
stalk of my GS. There are also several minimum/maximum memories, so
you can check to see how cold or hot it was throughout the day.
This is a quality accessory that I used last weekend, along with my
sweat, to confirm that it was really hot (103 degrees) while riding to Fayetteville for lunch.
Page 6
The Ride Around
Texas
The Motorcycle Tourer’s Forum/Iron
Butt Association’s Inaugural
Ride Around Texas
By Jim Green
BMW Club of Houston
the ride was actually on the Arkansas side of Stateline Road in
Texarkana.
Three of us had planned to make the ride together:
Charlie Storer on his 1971 /5 BMW, my friend Delores
McNutt on her Honda Valkyrie and me on my R1200 RT.
Before the ride we had worked hard getting the bikes ready.
We put a 4 gallon fuel cell on Charlie’s bike and a 5 gallon
cell on the Valkyrie, which, by-the-way, gets worse mileage
than most small cars. With the fuel cells we all had comparable range, which proved to be critical as there were several
stretches that would have been far beyond the range of the
stock bikes.
We began the ride around 4 AM on May 9. By the
first check point in Port Arthur, we had picked up another
rider, Bob Cromby from the Temple area who proved to fit
right into our group and be a good riding partner.
As we passed back through Houston on the run from
Galveston to Victoria, Mike Murphy, Barb Smith and others
hung a banner from one of the bridges over Highway 59 and
cheered us on. I’m not sure who other than Mike and Barb
were involved, but we greatly appreciated the cheers and encouragement. Thanks to all of you.
Ever wondered just how big Texas is? Well, the
Motorcycle Tourer’s Forum decided to find out. In coordination with the Iron Butt Association, the Motorcycle
Tourer’s Forum organized a Ride Around Texas (RAT).
Details for the ride were worked out by Doug Woodall,
Jason Jonas and Alan Leduc in coordination with Mike
Kneebone, President of the IBA. The inaugural ride was
held May 9-13. There are two different versions of the
ride which differ only in the time it takes to complete.
The Insanity Gold, which requires you to complete the
3115 miles in 70 hours, or the RAT Insanity ride which
gives you 85 hours to complete the trek. Now that the
inaugural ride has been completed, the RAT will become
the newest Iron Butt long-distance ride.
The rules for the ride are straight forward. It
starts and ends in Texarkana. You must go clockwise
around the state and stop at each of the 18 checkpoints
strategically located around the edges of the state without
ever leaving the state of Texas. We almost ran afoul of
this final requirement even before we started. We found
out the evening before we left that the gas station across
the street from the hotel we’d planned to fill up to start
When we pulled into the check point at Victoria,
Charlie began having trouble with the steering on his bike.
But he tightened up his steering damper and decided it was
safe to continue. However, by the time we got to South Padre
Island, the problem had worsened and he decided that he
couldn’t go on. So, Charlie spent the night in South Padre and
returned to Houston the next day. This proved to be a blessing
in disguise. While we missed having Charlie on the ride,
Cathy told him that he couldn’t attempt any more long rides on
BMW Club of Houston
“that old bike” and that if he intended to keep doing this,
he’d have to get a new bike. Charlie called me the next
day to report all of this from a bike shop. He was already
out shopping. No telling what he’ll be riding by the time
you read this, but at least he’ll get a new bike out of the
deal.
We made about 1200 miles that first day before
stopping outside of Del Rio for a two hour nap. At daylight, we decided to double back into Del Rio for breakfast realizing that there are no McDonalds or much of
anything else between Del Rio and Big Bend.
We lost a little time and each added a few miles
when we became separated in Big Bend. Yes, I know.
There is only one road that goes through Big Bend Park,
so how could we get separated? Well, we did. Even
though it wasn’t funny at the time, we can now look back
on the comedy of errors that sent each of us in different
directions and added a few miles before we eventually
got hooked back up. But, Big Bend was the best riding
adventure on the trip, especially that great road between
Lajitas and Presidio.
Later that day we made the turn at Anthony and
headed back east through a check point at the Guadalupe
mountains and on to Kermit where we made the turn
headed up the Panhandle. We got about a three hour nap
that night somewhere around Andrews. Then we made
the longest trek of the trip for me, up the west side of the
Panhandle to Texline. It was one of those roads that I
thought would never end. Are we there yet, dad? It was
also pretty chilly that morning with temps in the 40’s.
When we finally made it around the Panhandle
and back down to Childress, we all felt that we were on
the home stretch as it was a straight shot back to Texarkana. However, it was still almost 400 miles. About now
is when it hit home that this is a really big state. We
made it in to Texarkana around 2 AM; a total distance of
just under 3200 miles in 68 hours.
Page 7
One of the rules I didn’t mention earlier was that to
qualify for the Insanity Gold (the 70 hour ride) you had to already have completed an extreme Iron Butt ride of at least
1500 miles. Delores is a strong rider and a real competitor.
Even though she had only completed a Saddle Sore 1000 and
didn’t qualify for the Gold ride, she completed the ride with us
under the 70 hour mark.
All in all it was a great ride. We got to see a whole
lot of Texas and I really enjoyed meeting the other riders.
These were seasoned, safety conscious riders and generally a
very friendly bunch. Each bike was as unique as the individual. I thoroughly enjoyed cruising the parking lot and talking
to people about how they had their bikes set up for long distance with all the gadgets, fuel cells and gizmos.
I also gained a great deal of respect for the Motorcycle Tourer’s Forum. This event was extremely well planned
and went off very smoothly. In addition to the RAT, they also
had a 24 hour rally, an 8 hour rally and of course an awards
dinner Saturday evening. I am looking forward to participating in some of their future events. I suggest that you check out
their website for links to tons of good information on a wide
variety of motorcycle touring topics, as well as information on
their upcoming rides.
Page 8
BMW Club of Houston
BMW Club of Houston
Page 9
Tech Tips from
Murph’s Garage
I haven’t been around for a
couple of months, as Chuck
has had some good trip reports to fill the pages of the
newsletter. This must be a
slow news month, as I just
got an email from Chuck
asking about a submission.
This one will be short. I’m
prepping my motorhome and
bike for a two week trip to
Cheyenne, WY. Barb Smith
and I are going to a motorhome convention in Cheyenne and we have planned
three side trips to Rocky
Mountain NP, Rapid City,
SD/ Mt. Rushmore, and
Flaming Gorge in Utah.
We’re leaving in three days,
so my mind is pretty much
wrapped up in preparation
details.
I do want to point out a maintenance item that
recently reached out and bit me. I had a total failure of my
rear drive. I’ve read bits and pieces about this failure, and
how it is a continuing problem for BMW riders. Naturally
I took the approach, “never happen to me”. WRONG. My
first indication was a leak of gear lube on the ground under my rear tire. Leaking lubricants is never a good thing
for any type of motor-vehicle. I figured a seal was bad and
a replacement would get me back on the road.
I happened to see my old friend, Harold Hollister,
at Hickory Hollow a couple of days after the leak occurred. He mentioned that Paul Glaves had just done an
article in the April, 2006 BMW ON magazine about rear
drive failures. I vaguely remembered the article but didn’t
read it because the old “never happen to me” syndrome
had kicked in. I couldn’t find my magazine so Harold sent
me an electronic copy he had saved for future use.
I looked at the procedure, not too difficult, and considered
doing it myself. I then thought about the upcoming trip to
WY, my lack of “quality” time to work on the bike and the
possibility that more than just a seal was damaged. I did
the prudent thing and called Dan Drom at Wild West
BMW.
I loaded the bike on my trailer and took it to Dan
early on Tuesday morning. We discussed the rear drive
failure and the fact that my bike has 90,000 miles. All
“modern era” BMW’s use a single-sided swing arm; great
for tire changes, but tough on wheel bearings. I left the
shop cautiously optimistic that the rear drive was not toast.
When Dan called that afternoon and told me the
gear set was ruined, that really made my day. The cost for
a new rear drive is $1,000 and the wobbling ring gear also
took out the ABS sensor for another $150. I told Dan to go
ahead with the repairs and went down to sell a pint of
blood. The bike was back to me in two days, good as new.
The moral to this story is check for looseness of
your rear wheel. If you have access to the April, 2006 ON,
read Paul Glaves’ article. He describes how the bearing
can be checked for wear. Basically the bike is put on the
center stand to raise the rear wheel off the ground. Grab
the rear wheel front and rear and see if there is any movement side-to-side. A good bearing will not have any movement. To replace the bearings will cost about 25% the
price of a new rear drive.
Guess that’s all for this month.
Ride Safe – Mike
Classified Advertising
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Clothing
Joe Rocket Ladies Cleo Jacket, silver, ladies size L, worn 2
weekends only, mint.
Price new $129.95, asking $75.00
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Services
Independent Beauty Consultant: Rebecca Knisel
9106 Theysen
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713-934-8433 www.markay.com/rknisel
Page 10
BMW Club of Houston
Activities Calendar
Houston Activities
Every Week/Month
Every Sunday
Breakfast With The Beemers
Two Locations:
1. Goode Company Taqueria,
4902 Kirby Dr. at Westpark
2. Denny’s, FM 1960 at Hwy 290
Start your Sunday with your friendly fellow BMW
riders. Breakfast at 8 AM or so; there is usually a ride
starting about 9 AM
Every Thursday Evening Social Gathering
7 PM, Hickory Hollow Restaurant, 101 Heights Blvd.
General Meetings
7 PM, second Thursday of the month, at the Hickory
Hollow Restaurant, 101 Heights Blvd. This is the
club’s monthly general meeting — come early for tire
kicking and storytelling.
June 2006
23-25
The First Big Bear BMW Rally, BMW
Owners Club of San Diego and South Coast
BMW Riders Club, www.scbmwrc.com or
www.bmwoscd.org
July 2006
6-9
Club General Meeting, 7 PM
20-23
BMWMOA International Rally-Essex Junction, Vermont, see www.bmwmoa.org
August 2006
Club General Meeting, 7 PM
October 2006
13-15
36th Annual BMW Club of Houston Rally,
Fredericksburg, Texas
November 2006
22-26
By Guy Pickrel for Jim Green
The June meeting was called to order at 7:12 PM; Ken
Webb presiding, attending officers included Guy Pickrel, Charlie
Storer and Barb Smith. Jim Green was absent; Guy Pickrel took
the minutes. Visitors Todd Hoover, Dave Harvey and “Roy, Jim, &
Buck” were recognized. Charlie Storer gave the Treasurer’s Report. Club President Ken Webb commented on the great quality of
the newsletter and thanked those who have submitted the articles.
Club Members were reminded that the club membership dues are
due at the end of July.
Several club members gave ride reports. Beverly Ruffin
recounted her trip to Hawaii and the Aloha 1000 she completed.
Ben Muller told of his ride in a completely restored B-25 with a
film crew from the History Channel, episode to air on August 5th.
Mike Murphy highly recommended the Rocket City Rally in Alabama, where he and Barb Smith ran into Dave Beck. Paul Yeager
showed the attendees the first place prize for the winner of the
recently completed Presidential Tour. Guy Pickrel talked about his
ride through Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Carl Chapman
agreed to deliver the shirt to Floyd Crow. Paul also reminded the
attendees about the “Texas World Tour” ride competition currently
underway.
The following up-coming rides were discussed:
•
Ken Webb invited interested parties to join him and Guy
Pickrel on a ride to Alpine/ Ft. Davis area tomorrow and
member Terry Shinn signed on.
•
Beverly Ruffin discussed the Pancake 1000 ride to Marathon.
The ride was rescheduled for Friday, June 16th. This will be a
qualified Saddle Sore 1000.
•
Carl Chapman shared plans for a day-long GS ride on 50%
gravel roads in the coming months; watch for details coming
soon on the Club Website.
•
Ken Webb reminded members to sign-up early for accommodations if you plan on participating in the Thanksgiving ride to
Ft. Davis.
Annual BMWRA Rally, Boise, Idaho
www.bmwra.org
13
10
Meeting Minutes
Thanksgiving in West Texas. Club ride to
Fort Davis, Indian Lodge, Davis Mountains
State Park, and Big Bend area.
For details on these and many other events, visit
www.bmwclub.org
Guy Pickrel gave an update on preparations for the annual
Club Rally scheduled for October. He let the members know that
volunteers will be needed to support the rally this year and to expect solicitations in the coming months. Members who would like
to volunteer, contact Guy Pickrel.
New Business. A motion was presented from the floor to
create a committee to look for another place for the BMW Club of
Houston to meet. This was precipitated by excessive noise and the
inability of many members to hear the proceedings. The low quality food and facilities were cited as justification for a change in
venue. One member motioned that this topic be covered in the
newsletter.
Scott Black won $47 in the 50/50 drawing. The meeting was
adjourned at 8:20 pm.
BMW Club of Houston
Page 11
BMW Club of Houston,
Ltd.
P.O. Box 7542
Houston, TX 77270-7542
Editor: Charles Cooper
2725 Cason Street
W University Pl., TX 77005
Phone: 713-823-1549
Editor’s Note
At the next (July) Meeting, we will vote on a motion to
create a committee to look for another location for the Club’s
monthly general meeting.
Boost Your Business Advertise in the BMW Club of Houston News
Annual Advertising Rates for Display Ads
Business Card ~ $100
1/4 page ~ $200
1/2 page ~ $300
Full Page ~ $400
Monthly Rates for Display Ads are available upon request
Classified Advertising is free to Houston BMW club members.
Non-members may advertise BMW motorcycle items only.
All classified ads run for 3 issues unless renewed.