Our 2017 Blue Knights International Convention will be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from July 16 – 21, 2017. You can check this link, Blue Knights 2017 International Convention for more information. Registration is $135 per adult for one week prior to June 1, 2017. After June 1st the cost goes to $155.
Rich Fancher and his wife Debbie, Norm Nestlerode, John Howe, and Bob Ferrier along with our friend PK O’Neil rode to the International Convention in Reno. Here are just a few pictures of the boys who rode up together. I’ve also created and Album in the “Photos” Tab at the top of our Home Page.
Come to Reno and enjoy riding through the spectacular Sierra Nevada Mountains, view the majestic Lake Tahoe, and take a step back in time with a ride to the Historic Virginia City.
While you are here you will have the opportunity to attend guided rides, follow suggested routes at your own pace, walk the streets of downtown Reno, participate in our local gaming, take a Steam Engine Ride through the Virginia City foothills, see the famous Naval Top Gun facility, tour the California Highway Patrol Academy, and many other locations. With your registration fee you will, at a minimum, receive a plated breakfast, formal banquet dinner, nightly hospitality suite, numerous guided rides/tours, 1 convention t-shirt and the time of your life!!
You may also decide to go out on your own and visit some of our amazing shopping centers, including Cabela’s and Scheels Sporting Goods, or knock some balls around on one of our many top notch golf courses. You can raft the rivers, float the lakes, cruise the mountains or play the odds in one of the casinos, but you will NOT be bored!
Registration until February 1, 2015, $150.00 per person. After February 1st, $175.00 per person.
Online payment is also available at http://mkt.com/blue-knights-nvii/bk-international-convention-reno .
(Note: Upon Checkout you can change the number of “items in your cart” from 1 to 2 or however many people you are paying for at the time.) Please include your payment confirmation code on your registration if you pay online.
OR you may include a written cheque with your completed registration form (US Funds) and mail it to the NV II Blue Knights. See forms below.
Room reservations may be made by calling the Eldorado Hotel at 
1-800-648-5966. Tell them you are attending the Blue Knights International Convention and give the room code YBKINTL. As soon as the hotel has our online registration set up, we will put a link on our web page.
El Dorado Resort Casino HOTEL IS FULL
345 N Virginia St, Reno, NV 89501, United States
1-775-786-5700 or 1-800-648-5966
Room Prices before Tax:
July 10 & 11th – $109 per night
July 12th thru July 16th – $69 per night
July 17th & 18th – $109 per night
Silver Legacy Resort Casino
407 North Virginia Street
Reno, NV 89501, United States
Local : (775) 329-4777
Toll Free: (800) 687-8733
Convention Code: KNIGHT
The Silver Legacy and the Eldorado Hotels are connected indoors through shops and restaurants. Either hotel will have direct access to events, hospitality, meetings and the banquet without the need to leave the building!
For more information email RENO2015@bknv2.org or visit www.bknv2.org
Below are minutes/agendas from the 2013 Hot Springs Convention.
The 2014 Blue Knights Convention will be held in Waidring, Austria. The Convention runs from June 22 – 29, 2014. The below listed links give you an overview of the convention along with a tour of the town and surrounding area of Waidring.
More to follow:
2014 International Convention Information Video
2014 International Convention Video
The 2013 SWC will again be at Big Bear Lake from June 5 – 9. Many of you will remember that we had our 2007 SWC at Big Bear. Well the Northwoods Resort is again our host hotel and they are giving us the 2007 rates of $89 for our rooms on Thursday and Friday and $99 for Saturday and Sunday. Those of you who went before will remember the great time and many great rides. Believe me this is truly a great place to have our SWC. For more information and registration form you can got to SWC 2013. For more information on the hotel you can go here: Northwoods Resort.
Tentative Itinerary during the 2013 Convention
The 2013 International Convention will be held in Hot Springs, Arkansas July 14 – 19, 2013. It will be hosted by BK AR IV. Registration for the full week is $95. You can fill in your registration HERE online and print it out to mail in. This form is in PDF format but you can fill it in on-line.
The host hotel is the Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa. Room rates for the Arlington are $92 for single $102 for double.
The 2013 International Convention will be held in Hot Springs, Arkansas July 14 – 19, 2013. It will be hosted by BK AR IV. Registration for the full week is $95. You can fill in your registration HERE online and print it out to mail in. This form is in PDF format but you can fill it in on-line.
The host hotel is the Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa. Room rates for the Arlington are $92 for single $102 for double.
Here are the BOD Meeting Minutes from the International Convention in Chesapeake, VA. and the General Membership Meeting Minutes.
Tyler, Texas is located 90 miles east of Dallas/Fort Worth and 90 miles west of Shreveport, Louisianan. Tyler, Texas is the perfect location to relax and enjoy East Texas hospitality. Tyler is small enough to feel like home and large enough to offer numerous entertainment and recreational activities. Known as America’s Rose Capital, Tyler is famous for its Municipal Rose Garden that features over 38,000 rose bushes spread over 14 acres.
Tyler’s charming brick streets lead visitors to an array of family attractions, quaint antique shops and unique specialty stores. Outdoor buffs enjoy crystal-clear lakes, challenging golf courses and scenic campgrounds that offer fishing, picnicking, paddle-boating and hike and bike trails.
For those who prefer refined culture, Tyler’s exciting Broadway and Ballet performances, symphony concerts, world class art museums and wonderful cuisine are sure to please any palate!
Children of all ages love Caldwell Zoo, Discovery Science Place and Hudnall Planetarium. Special events throughout the year include the Texas Rose Festival, Azalea & Spring Flower Trail, Festival on the Square and Movies under the Stars in Bergfeld Park.
Today over 101,000 people call Tyler home. Tyler enjoys a diversified economy and is the home of two colleges, and a major university. Income producers to our economy include manufacturing firms, healthcare facilities, educational and retail centers and the agricultural industry.
As a major retail center for East Texas, Tyler offers first-class facilities, attractions, and services with economy in mind. All purchases by visitors to our city are subject to a sales tax of 8.25% Visitors staying overnight in Tyler hotels or motel can expect to spend 13% in room tax.
OK I finally sat down and have written a report of what went on at the 2011 International Convention. The convention ran from July 17 – 22, 2011 in Chesapeake, Va. Hosted by VA V.
I arrived late on Sunday afternoon. The trip from Cincinnati to Chesapeake was a long 11 hours and 670 miles. Upon arrival there was a cookout from 4:00 – 6:00.
Starting on Monday and every day thereafter you were treated to a breakfast buffet. After breakfast was the BOG Meeting.
Those not wanting to attend the meeting or spouses could take the Yankee Candle Tour. There were also a lot of self-guided tours and other guided tours presented by the host chapter.
Below is a recap from Bob Seeyle.
Board of Governors: Voted to go to Hot Springs, Arkansas in 2013. The dates for the convention will be July 14 – 19, 2013We appreciate the presentation from TN 1 in Memphis and hope to have this option again. Koen Hutse, European Rep announced their plans for a bid to host International in Austria in 2014. Start saving up those air miles!
A proposal to have the Special Fund include other family members got a majority, but not the required 2/3’s vote for a by-law change. The main hang-up was that some prefer language that would include children.
We had an excellent presentation regarding the 2012 Int’l Convention in Tyler, TX hosted by the TX XXXIV chapter, July 22-27, 2012. The host hotel is filling fast. Info on the Int’l website. (See below)
A vote was taken at the General Membership meeting regarding a proposal to hold future Int’l Elections/vote counting at the Int’l Convention instead of in Bangor in January. Much discussion was about changing the method of counting the ballots and having this handled by a private company. (This is still being researched and finalized). After a vote, this proposal stands and is now in effect.
At the Board of Directors Mtg, a proposal was passed that will have the Conference in charge of “Members at Large”, instead of the Int’l Office. The Election Committee gave a report and they are getting close to a proposal that would have a private company handle of future Int’l Elections. A draft Sexual Harassment Policy was presented and will be forwarded to our attorneys for review. A proposal was passed that will allow Conferences to opt out of receiving mailed copies of minutes; a big cost savings.
BOG Awards: Roger Farris Award for best represented chapter (formula: number attending, divided by total chapter members, times miles via direct route) was the Edmonton Chapter with 5 of 29 members riding 2574 miles! The Horst Maier Award (same for UK and Europe) was the England IX chapter with 4 members present. The Frank Gillespie Long Distance award went to Bruce from Edmonton Metro with 4,475 miles, 2nd place Mike Cate, WA II President with 4,420 miles. The John Bartholomew award for the most (per members) donated to the Special Fund went to the FLA XVII Chapter.
We had many Distinguished Service and Life Saving Awards. Those present received their awards. All will be sent to the BK news to be published. BOG Vice-Chairman Lon Strayer held a raffle for a Motorcycle Communication set (value $300) that was donated with proceeds going to the Special Fund. $731 was raised. Thank you Lon.
That’s a brief recap until the complete minutes are published. Those traveling home had extreme heat and some heavy rain. So far, no accident reports. Was a great week, good seeing everyone. Thank you VA V….RWP
Bob Seelye, Chairman
Board of Governors
2012 International Host Hotel:
Dates of Convention July 22 thru 27 2012
It’s at the Holiday Inn in Tyler, TX. Room Rate 94.00/night POC reservations: Rebecca McLaughlin 903-561-5800
After the BOG Meeting there were a few vendors in the Host hotel parking lot. We had a guy doing pin stripping, a guy selling flags, the Hooter Girls offering photos of them with you and your bike, and a Nascar Simulator. You could try your hand a racing around a track.
At 13:00 there was the General Membership meeting.
That evening we had a fish fry at the local Shrine Avitities Building. Here we had live entertainment (a group called Everafter), free margaritas, and all the food you could eat. They were also raffling off a Henry repeating rifle.
After dinner the hospitality room opened starting @ 7:00 pm and ending ??:?? Playing this night was Mitch Foutz.
I meet a group from NJ XVII and we went on the self-guided poker run. You had all week to complete the poker run. You just had to get your brochure stamped so they knew you went to all the locations. Once you completed the poker run you brought your brochure back, drew seven cards for the best hand. Winning hand got $500.00. The poker run took you all around the Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, and Norfolk area. We did stop at the Ocean View Restaurant which has the longest Pier in North America. Ocean Pier is located in Norfolk, VA.
That evening the hospitality room had a Woman singing Patsy Cline songs. She sounded just like her. Later in the evening it was “Karaoke time.”
Wednesday morning started out with our morning breakfast buffet. From there we staged for the parade through Chesapeake and Virginia Beach areas. We had over 600 bikes of all makes and types in the parade. We had a police escort through town where residents actually stopped in the opposite lanes to observe our parade.
After the parade I and the members of NJ XVII finished our last three stops of the poker run. After we returned and drew our cards one of the NJ members drew a full house.
In the afternoon there was the motorcycle skills competition. This was similar to the Motors Competition that is held in Tucson each year. Not as elaborate but just a fun to watch. We even had the police escort guys run the competition with our Blue Knights.
Wednesday evening we went back to the Shrine Activities Building where we had a “Southern Style” bar-be-cue cookout. We even had the remnants of the pig to partake in. We had Cam & The Riverboyz as entertainment.
In the Hospitality room we had a local artist Dave Derring to sing.
After our morning breakfast on Thursday we took off on bikes in a group for the tour of the Norfolk Naval Base. Once on the base we boarded tour buses for a trip around the base. We could not get off the bus for the tour and were not allowed to take close-up photos of the ships that were in port. The Enterprise was there for refueling. We found out that in order to refuel they have to cut a hole in the ship to refuel her. Also in port was the Yorktown, The New York, which was made from steel from the WTC, and the Arlington, which was made from steel from the Pentagon. We were allowed to take photos of the ships from a distance. Many of the ships you can see from the photos I took that are posted in the Photos Section.
Thursday evening we had an hour social hour before dinner where there was an ice sculpture of a motorcycle. Within the motorcycle was a tube. You could purchase “shots” which were poured through this tube and cooled as they came out the back of the bike.
The banquet dinner started @ 19:00 where we had a buffet consisting of seafood pasta, chicken, roast beef, vegetable medley, roasted red potatoes, and an assortment of desserts.
Friday was the day of farewells and “See You Next Year.” Everyone is looking forward to next years International Convention in Tyler Texas.
I will post the information for the 2012 International Convention on our Web Page in the days to come. Keep watching ;the “Categories” Section under Conventions.
RWP
RoN Friend
Secretary/Treasurer
BK AZIX