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From the Gazeebo...  

WWR: ANATOMY OF A GROUP RIDE

When it comes to riding a motorcycle in groups, the Warriors' Watch Riders face problems and situations that are unique among other riding organizations. Here is the way a Warriors' Watch Ride comes together, and is or is not conducted.

Starting at the top, the State Coordinator receives information on a new mission. Once he or she verifies the information provided by the person requesting the mission, he selects a Ride Captain. Warriors Watch is much different from other groups in that rather than having fixed Ride Captains, we trust and encourage ALL of our members to take Ride Captain (RC) responsibilites. The WWR belongs to all of us, and we all take part in attending missions and leading missions.

When a mission entails a motorcycle escort, and most do, the RC has several decisions to make, depending on the unique circumstances of the ride. These decisions are thought out beforehand and communicated to the riders during the pre-ride briefing. If you forget everything else that we talk about here, remember this one thing:

SAFETY IS PARAMOUNT

Rider safety is more important than the ride, more important than the mission, more important than following fixed "rules." Many of the decisions that the RC needs to make on-the-fly can be made by asking the question, "is it safe?"

One of the most frequently encountered safety issues is whether or not to use "blocking" when conducting a group ride (mission). As a matter of policy, the short answer is "no, don't do it." As a matter of practicality, it's not quite that simple.

When leading a motorcycle escort that is reasonably small, say 4 to 24 bikes, the riders should be instructed during the briefing to STOP at all traffic signals. When the signal changes and only part of the group is through, the rider who stops should hit his horn once. The rider in front of him, already through the light, should in turn hit his horn, and so on up the line until it reaches the Ride Captain. The RC will then pull over and stop, OR slow down dramatically until the other group catches up.

That is the rule of thumb for Warriors' Watch rides.

If, however, you are under police escort, all of that is out the window. When there is only one lead police car, things can get tricky. The police car will continue slowly through red lights, and the bikes behind must follow. If the light changes while only part of the group is through, the traffic that now has the green MIGHT wait, or they might NOT. You MUST be alert and aware as you continue through the red light. Honk your horn and have your flashers on to warn the traffic that you are not stopping. In extreme cases, it may be necessary for an experienced rider to leave the formation and "block" traffic for safety's sake.

If you do or if you intend to join WWR escorts, you would be well advised to brush up on group riding techniques, and to learn group riding hand signals.

One of the most thorough treatments of group riding instruction I've seen is on the web page of one of our own members, "Cav," the knowledgeable. Please click here to read, study and learn those techniques.

One final word on Police escorts: If you have a police escort, ALL OF YOUR PLANS AND RULES ARE OUT THE WINDOW. You do what the police escort tells you to do. Also, staying with your escort is important. If the lead police car makes what you believe to be a wrong turn, do NOT go on your own the "right" way and lose the escort. FOLLOW THE ESCORT, even if he's wrong. You can always turn around and go back, or go another way. It's better to make a wrong turn and keep your escort than to go the "right" way and lose your escort. (Besides, on a motorcycle, there' no such thing as the "wrong way". There's only the "long" way!)

MEMBER NEWS

NEW SC

One of the WWRs busiest chapers is South New Jersey. The SC and ASC there have done some reshuffling in response to that workload, and to the efforts of some of their dedicated members.

Redbeard, the SC, will now share SC responsibilites with JohnDelivers (formerly the ASC.) Thank you, John, for doing what you do - it doesn't go unnoticed.

NEW ASCs

New ASCs have been appointed by the SCs: Tugboat, Tiny and Sidecar. Gentlemen, as I said to you on the forums, I know your hearts and I've seen your hustle, and we are all grateful to you for continuing the hard work taking place in Jersey.

NEW REGIONAL

After a search, our National Coordinator, T, has selected a man to take over as Regional Coordinator for Region 2, the Central States. That man is Illinois member John Drake. Regional is a huge responsibility, and John has quite an act to follow, but I am every bit as confident as T is in John Drake. John, you'll be hearing from me a lot. Sorry about that.

SEND A CARE PACKAGE TO OUR TROOPS

If you are looking for an easy way to support our troops, look no further than my favorite troop-support fund, the Adam Conboy Fund's "Operation Bedding." Since its founding three years ago by Gold Star Mom Mary Conboy, Operation Bedding has sent over 10,000 care packages to troops. They know the ropes, they know what's needed. For $20, Operation Bedding will pack and ship a care package in your name to a Warrior who needs it most. Go to the Operation Bedding webiste to get yours!

NEW STUFF

If you haven't been to the Warriors' Watch Riders "Store" lately, there are a lot of new patches there now, and more is coming soon - including one big surprise that we hope to have ready by Christmas. Check out the store! (We finally changed the name of the PayPal account, from "Annettes' Herb Garden," to something a little more, shall we say, "manly." "Free American Biker." Hey! Man-Up!

OUR TROOPS ARE COMING HOME AND SHIPPING OUT, AND WE'RE BUSIER THAN EVER! As of this writing there are 18 missions coming up in the next week. Please check the Mission Planning Forums for upcoming Welcome Home rides - we need your support! The Mission Planning forums can be viewed even if you are not registered on the forums. However, if you have NOT YET REGISTERED ON THE FORUMS, PLEASE DO SO NOW to ensure that you do not miss any of the excitement, planning and discussion of this upcoming activity! Click on this link and register on the forums now!

Until next time: MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS THIS, STILL THE GREATEST NATION ON EARTH, AND ALL OF THOSE WHO DO, HAVE, OR WILL DEFEND HER, AT HOME AND ABROAD.

- Wayne Lutz

*This newsletter is named "The Weekly Ride" or "The Ride", for short, in memory of and to honor Sgt. Jennifer Hartman, U.S. Army. Sgt. Hartman was killed in Iraq by America's enemies. She died in defense of our freedom at the age of 20. This quote from Jennifer was read at her graveside:

"It's not about what happened in the past. It's not about what might happen in the future. It's about the ride, for Christ's sake."

Click here for a Tribute to Sgt. Jennifer Hartman: "The Ride"