JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — Motorcycle officers from across the country competed in Jefferson County on Sunday as part of the Top Gun Motor Officers Competition.
The riders went through a difficult course and showed the crowd their skills.
Jun 042012
Jun 032012
We had on monthly dinner ride at Fuddruckers on Tuesday May 29th. Those in attendance were: Alan and Brenda Berry, Alan and Ryan Stewart, Susan Wagner, Stan and Patti Thibaut, Jeff and Kelly Jamison, Norm Hubbard and his friend Mike Cruce.
Dinner Ride - 01
Dinner Ride - 02
May 172012
We had our monthly breakfast ride this month at the Vail Steakhouse. We had a great turnout and a new member came to eat with us. Rick Hartigan is our newest member. He is a retired TPD officer who worked in the Motors Division.
Those who made breakfast on Saturday were: Stan & Patti, Alan Stewart and Susan Wagner, Bill (Rev) Calkins, Mike Martin, John Howe, Mike Stoddard, Norm Hubbard, Terry, Russ and Jackie, Will Harris, Bev and yours truly.
Here are a few photos.
Apr 292012
Well the yearly Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind (ASDB) Poker run was on Sunday April 22nd. Those who were able to make the ride were: Bob & Rusty Ness, Bev, and yours truly. Here are a few photos of some of the bikes and trikes:
Rusty, Bev and Bob
Indian
Venom
Custom Trike
Apr 262012
Well we had our monthly dinner ride in April to Noble Hops in Marana. Noblr Hops is a Gastropub and I might say they had some really nice food and libations. Those who were able to make the dinner were: Ray & Donna Valenzuela, Dave Lehman, RUss & Jackie Cole, Stan & Patti Thibaut, Norm Hubbard, Jeff Jamieson, Will Hanson, and Bev and of course me.
Here are a few pictures of the “gang.”
The Gang
Bev and Dave
Will, Donna, and Ray
- Russ, Jackie, and Jeff
Norm, Patti, and Stan
Apr 192012
BANGOR, Maine — A group of eight local police officers, bound by the brotherhood of their job and a love of riding motorcycles, started a law enforcement motorcycle club 38 years ago that on Saturday will be inducted into the American Police Hall of Fame.
The Bangor-based Blue Knights International Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club has grown into the largest law enforcement motorcycle club in the world and now has nearly 21,000 members in the United States and 27 other countries.
“Being a member of the Blue Knights is a true, true and devout honor,” John Pasko, vice president of the American Police Hall of Fame in Titusville, Fla., said Tuesday.
Pasko, a veteran officer with the Melbourne Police Department in Florida, joined the club a year ago and said the camaraderie with fellow members is beyond description.
“You bond with so many of the people because you share the same ideologies, the same drive, the same concerns,” he said. “You share the good times and you comfort each other in times of sorrow. I can’t compare it to anything except brotherhood.”
It doesn’t matter what country a member comes from, “we all speak the same language,” Pasko said.
Blue Knights members are active and retired law enforcement men and women who enjoy riding motorcycles. State and local police, sheriff’s, prison service, military police, immigration or customs officers can become members. The only stipulation is that members must have the power to arrest and must own their own motorcycles.
The idea for the Blue Knights started with Ed Gallant, who now lives in Milton, Fla., but at the time worked for the Bangor Police Department.
In the spring of 1974, Gallant, Urban Dyer and Chuck Shuman, who both worked for the Brewer Police Department, met over coffee and decided to form the motorcycle club.
Wayne LaBree and Joel Rudom of the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Department, Mike Hall of the Brewer Police Department, Charles Gesner of Maine Probation and Patrol, Bill Robinson of the Maine State Police, and Doug Miner of the Maine Warden Service attended the club’s first meetings along with Gallant and Shuman.
Twenty-three local law enforcement officers showed up at the second meeting and the club grew by leaps and bounds from there.
Gallant and Shuman — the last two founding members still alive — will be honored at the induction ceremony, which is part of a three-day convention in Cocoa Beach, Fla., hosted by the Blue Knights’ Florida XII Space Coast Chapter.
The club has evolved into much more than the founding members ever imagined, Shuman, who lives in Largo, Fla., but spends summers in Holden, said this week in an email interview.
“I have enjoyed meeting new friends from around the world,” he said.
The Blue Knights Northeast Convention is May 11-13 in Bangor, the European convention is May 31 in Croatia and the International Convention is July 22-27 in Tyler, Texas.
International president Bob Flanagan, a retired police captain for the Dover Police Department in Ohio, said the induction into the hall of fame is a great honor for the club he joined in 1980. His wife, Connie, also served as the international president in 2005.
“It’s all about the camaraderie of it and motorcycle riding,” he said Tuesday. “It’s a fun thing to do.”
Apr 142012
Below is a narrative from our honorary member Jeff Jamieson on a recent trip to Tombstone, Arizona.
Jamieson Family and Friends
As my family and I were enjoying a beautiful afternoon in Tombstone Arizona on Tuesday April 3rd, 2012, we were “Taken by Surprise” when we discovered “Victory Police Motorcycles” parked on the back streets of Tombstone! When I say “Victory Police” I mean “Victory Police.” That is all it said. There were no other words saying what agency they represented. My friends and family were “Very Concerned about the ROGUE motorcycles we discovered on the “Backstreets of Tombstone.”
strange Victory Police bikes - 1
strange Victory Police bikes - 2
Moments later the ‘Rogue Bikers Appeared,” and confronted me taking pictures of these most “futuristic two wheelers” I’d ever seen, and said “What are you doing mister?”
Strangers
These guys were all different sizes and I was “Stunned” and afraid for me, my family, and my friends. They were very quiet, but did not appear to be very accepting of my questions and photographs. I did over hear one of them say “let’s go get our other forces and return to Tombstone” We were stunned, as to where these “Unmarked Victory Police Motorcycles” came from.
I questioned their “Preparedness to capture “The Most Popular Western Town in America” and they showed me an “Assault Rifle” in their trunk
M-4 Assault Rifle
and said “These Cowboys Can’t Compete with us.” This “town is NOT Tough Enough.” I did not have time to take a picture of a “Rocket Launcher” that was mounted to the “trunk” of one of the other bikes.
Strangers mounting up - 2
As they mounted up to leave we “quickly and quietly went about our business.”
Startled Cattle
Even the ‘Cattle” were surprised to see these “Bikes.” My family and I sped out of town, and turned off the road in hopes that the “Rogue Bikers” would pass us by.
Santa Rita Mountains
We finally took refuge by the southern rim of the “Santa Rita Mountain Range” and radioed for help! As they passed by we could swear we heard the banjo music playing from the movie Deliverance.
Later we found out that these mysterious men were from the Victoria B.C. police department, Constable Kenny Fetherston and Sgt. Glen Shiels. I only hope that they are not going to try and overtake the regime in Tombstone. The cowboys in Tombstone don’t take too kindly to foreigners especially from Canada.
Apr 142012
The gang
We had our monthly breakfast ride once again at the IHOP on Cortaro Farms Road. Today the weather was not too pleasant with rain and chilly wind. However eight members and their family made the ride even if they came in cages. Those making the breakfast ride were: Stan and Patti Thibaut, Twan, Will Harris, Russ and Jackie Cole, Bev and of course me.
Apr 042012
Stan and Patti Thibaut needed a break to get away from it all and decided to take a trip to Las Vegas and stay in their time share. They were supposed to fly but because of a mix-up in their flight reservations they ended up riding their BMW to Las Vegas. Unbeknownst to the them I was there for a little R & R and to attend my annual Security Convention. We met up at at the Harley Davidson Cafe for lunch. Below are a few photos of our lunch. They have the worlds largest and heaviest flag on display in the Cafe. It is recognized by the Guinness Book of Records.
The Chain Flag weighs over 7 tons.
The Chain Flag measuring 25 ft tall and 37 ft, 8 in. long.
The Chain Flag is made of 201 lengths of chain.
The Chain Flag is made from 44,000 individual chain links.
Metal Eagle
Chain Flag
Stan cruising the strip
Patti and Stan
T-Shirts - 01
T-Shirts - 02
Stan and I both happened to be wearing H-D T – shirts. Mine was from Israel and Stan’s was from the UAE. They took a photo f us in our shirts and it would scroll across their photos screen.
Now this is a Bier
Alpine Horn
Jagermeister Spanking
The next night we all decided to go to the HofBräuhaus. The HofBräuhaus is an exact replica of the one in Munich Germany. Stan and Patti have been to the one in Munich and can attest to the authenticity. There was a live band who played all night long. We enjoyed a varied selections of German food and Bier. They also offered shots of Jagermeister. However along with the shots you also got spanked, yes spanked. From the picture you can only imagine the pain I felt after this was over.
Enjoy some of the photos from our trip.
Apr 042012
Motorcycle lovers agree: supreme function, beautiful form, and the need for speed are what fuel their fire and love for the motorcycle. Difficult to understand for those outside bike culture, motorcycles are loved and cherished by their owners.
There are, however, some really stupid problems with them. Enjoy this look at this list of 10 worrisome elements of motorcycle design.
1. Motorcycles Have Two Wheels
Can’t even stand up on its own — what is that about?! Although an impressive strata of physics and engineering goes into making motorcycles run, it’s a bit worrisome that a motorized vehicle with the capacity to tour the world can’t stand up on its own. And aren’t kickstands on a bike just a little bit dorky?
2. They’ve Gotten Fat
Everyone puts on weight as they get older, but motorcycles are ruling the road. Much like the injection and fire-paced popularization of the Sport Utility Vehicle into American car culture, huge motorcycles are becoming increasingly popular, especially in suburban populations. Why chunk up the slim lines of cafe cycles and the languid angles of an Easy Rider-style bike?
3. The Cyborg Segway
The Deus Ex Machina is a wearable motorcycle concept, and looks like a human-Segway hybrid. Although the future is amazing and cyborgs are certainly hip, it’s unclear whether turning your body into a motorcycle is in any way a safe way to travel.
4. The Harley Wobble
The Harley Wobble is a design flaw noticed in the early 2000s, and is a distinctive wobble that occurs when riding, usually on curves. These bikes tend to shake from side to side — while on sport bikes and other brands of road cycles, this rarely occurs.
5. Disc Locks
Ever had your wheel lock up and been shot face first off your motorcycle? This embarrassing fumble probably occurred because you forgot to disengage your disc locks. It’s OK, rookie. It happens.
6. Crotch Rockets
This entire class of motorcycle? Total design flaw. It seems like the Ducati 999 and the Yamaha YZF-R1 were designed to give jerks and wannabe stunters the idea that they could act like they run the road.
7. The Motorcycle-Tank Mashup
Leave it to 1930s France to design a bothersome motorcycle. Perhaps not at the top of their game (you know what happened a few years later, right?), the 1937 military designed tank-motorcycle hybrid is more operable (read: barely) in targeted reproduction today than it was 80 years ago.
8. Bad Handling
The 1972-1972 Kawaski 750 Triple 1V and H2s were known as widowmakers. Honda, Kawasaki, the Ariel Arrow, Moto Guzzi: all of these bikes (and many more) have had various recalls, customer complaints, and accidents caused because of poor vibration frequency, shocks, acceleration, weak swing arms, and more. Bikers beware: although the mystique of the wind in your hair and the road grumbling below are intoxicating, don’t be surprised if your dream bike is more lemon-scented than fresh.
9. Invisibility Cloaks
The Moto Undone, an “invisible” motorcycle created by Joey Ruiter is as fascinating as it is beautiful. But worrisome here is the idea that your fellow motorists can’t see your perimeters. Good for a show-off and certainly fetching as a work of art, this abstract cycle is better for showcases and design philosophy than five o’clock traffic.
10. Inclement Weather
One of the biggest design flaws of motorcycles — and certainly a barrier of entry and interest for many non-cyclists — is the lack of weather protection on a motorcycle. While road rash and burns from poor exhaust routing are issues for some, the idea that there’s no true shield on a bike from the wind, rain, and other sinister elements leaves a lot of prospective riders, well, out in the cold.