By LuLu

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The “Brotherhood of Bikers” is bantered around by all of us. The generosity of bikers is well known, even bartenders claim that bikers tip better than NASCAR enthusiasts. But on a poker run for a well known lady biker who was smashed into by a hit and run driver, the masses came out on two and three wheels to lift her spirit and lighten the financial devastation of hospitalization and being unable to work! Bikers always amaze me and I cannot get over the difference they can make in someone’s life. Poker runs started as a way to help downed bikers and now they occur each and every weekend for just about any cause you can imagine…but this kind of tragic accident is what the poker runs are truly about! I am including two letters written to the magazine in Letters to the Editor in this edition regarding Jamie’s run.

I also want to thank Twisted Tea, SR Perrott, Budweiser, Sharon Kitts and all the volunteers for making this run a huge success. All types of items were donated for the raffles. The money for the 50/50 was donated back. The stops included Iron Horse, Circus II, Lost Lagoon Wings and Grille and Hidden Treasure. The party ended at Boot Hill Saloon who went over and above for Jamie’s event. Fine music was provided by The Accuzed. But in the end I really want to thank each and every one of you who took your day, your money and gave of yourself to make this young lady feel the “brotherhood”!

Poker run for Jamie armstrong gardner shines The LighT on The Love of bikers

By Raven Van Pelt

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What a great start to Bike Fest, at Adamec Harley-Davidson of Jacksonville located at 8909 Baymeadows Road. The Bike Fest Kick Off Show was presented by the Callahan Cruisers of North Florida. There was classic cars, vintage motorcycles, modern and Best of Show Awards along with many vendors and live music by Jacksonville’s very own Second Shot Band. A great day was had by all who attended the two days of stunt shows Saturday and the car & bike show on Sunday. Adamec thanks their sponsors Tasty Dog, Monster Energy, Sticky Fingers, Hellcat Pinstriping, Alleyway Kustoms, Miller Lite and Second Shot.

By Billy “Kneecap” Braddock

“Oh my God I made it another month”. This month I would like to explain how I was able to achieve such a great attitude. I’ve been described as being arrogant, pretentious, condescending, and sometimes contentious. I’m not Bi-Polar, I’m just irritable, grouchy, and moody. Actually, it comes from my humble disposition, NOT! It’s not easy being the anchovy on the pizza. My childhood may have influenced my thoughtful, reflective thinking.

When I was a kid I saw “Tarzan and Jane” almost naked with a monkey for a kid. An obnoxious wooden puppet called “Pinocchio” that had clothes made of flower paper, a hat made of bread and told lies, almost as often as Obama. “Snow White” lived with seven dwarf men before running away with a Prince. “Popeye” was an uneducated, tattooed, pipe smoking sailor involved in a love triangle with Olive Oyl and Brutus. “Cinderella”, who believed in fairies, rode around in a pumpkin pulled by mice, driven by a rat, while wearing glass shoes and staying out past midnight. Not to be outdone, there was a “Princess” running around kissing frogs while looking for a Prince. “Superman”, was an illegal alien who took his clothes off in a phone booth. “Batman”, whose real name is Bruce and his male partner Robin (who he would be able to marry now) drove 200+ miles an hour on city streets. “Mr. Magoo”, drove a car even though he was so nearsighted that he was close to being blind. “Pac-Man”, who looked like a pizza with a slice missing, ran around a maze chasing deterministic enemy monsters ( Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde) listening to digitized music and taking performance-enhancing pills. Then the pot smoking mystery solving hippies, “Shaggy and Scooby”, who ate cheese pizzas with pickles because they always had the munchies. We sat in bean filled chairs watching TV that was filled with gun toting cowboys wearing white hats shooting the bad guys wearing black hats except for “Have Gun Will Travel”, when the black hat would shoot anybody. There was the Democrat “Maynard G. Krebs”, the beatnik who had an extreme aversion to “work”, “marriage”, and “police”, but “does his own thing” by collecting tinfoil and petrified frogs while watching “The Monster That Devoured Cleveland” or The Son of the Monster That Devoured Cleveland”. Maynard’s middle name was Walter. He would say that he was named for his aunt, and explained the “G” is silent.

These were just some of the things that were able to mold my warped mind.

I drink Vodka because I don’t like to keep things bottled up.

The party isn’t over until you’ve had your mug shot and made bail.

Love is not the best feeling. Finding a toilet when you have diarrhea is better.

Sometimes I miss my ex-wives but I can’t remember where I hid the bodies.

I do charity work daily by volunteering my opinion.

“Dammit I’m Mad” spelled backwards is “Dammit I’m Mad”

Read more on my website nobodiesopinion.com

P.S. I’m writing this from my hospital room where I’m being treated for oral cancer caused from smoking.

Like they said in the military, “Smoke’um if you got ’em”.

I hope to see you on the shiny side of tomorrow.

Get better soon, who will remind us of how much better life was when we were young if you don’t! I love you Kneecap and whether you agree with everything he writes or not…Kneecap has given us food for thought monthly for 8 years, made us all think…sometimes cringe…but always think! GET BETTER OR ELSE I WILL HAVE TO MISS YOU!!!

LULU (your biggest fan)!!!

By Lulu

There is a little bit of Saint and a little bit of Sinner in every biker! But the Saints came out to our Twisted Tea Bike Night at Saints & Sinners. We raised 175 dollars and 92 pounds of food for the Second Harvest Food Bank which was the most raised at a single event!! Ultra generous Leo donated his $50 cash winnings from the food drive raffle. A special thanks also to Brent who made a large cash contribution!! Our next event will be at Grandview Live (a gentleman’s club) but don’t be scared off ladies it is a sophisticated club and beautifully decorated! The date is Thursday, April 14th from 6-8pm…don’t forget your canned goods and tell the doorman you are there for Twisted Tea to get free admission! Thanks to all who come to our bike nights and support our ad clients!

By Deborah Speicher

The Shakes, Rattles, Rides & Rods event to benefit Parkinson’s disease was back this year. Last year’s inaugural event was a success which was no surprise since so many people are affected by Parkinson’s disease. Many of the participants or their family members and friends have been diagnosed with this horrible disease. If you ever had to watch a loved one suffer with Parkinson’s and know that there is no good medicine to thoroughly ease their symptoms, you would realize how important it is to raise money for this cause.

Once again, spearheading this event was Mike Savidge of Go For A Ride Magazine and Rick Karczewski of AmVets Post 44. About six years ago, Mike’s wife Charlette was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and, more recently, Rick was diagnosed with Parkinson’s as well. All proceeds from this event were donated for research to Team Fox (part of the Michael J. Fox Foundation) and to the Frances J. Zesiewicz Foundation for Parkinson’s.

This year’s event was moved to the AmVets Post 44 in Plant City. Thankfully, the weather was clear and sunny but winter decided to arrive in Florida on that day. Nonetheless, many came via motorcycle and the rest in cages. For a mere $15 donation, participants were provided with lunch, live music by the Honky Tonk Hitmen, vendors, and more. Kudos also to event emcee, Parti Patti, who did a great job especially with the auction.

At last count, the donations totaled over $13,000. Way to go! Please consider supporting an event that benefits Parkinson’s disease research and let’s eradicate this disease in our lifetime.

By Lulu

Community minded as they are, Stormy Hill Harley-Davidson hosted an event for the furry members of town and for those who love animals! The ride ended with a great lunch and music by The Fender Benders. Animals were on site searching for a forever home and a huge auction helped raise much needed funds for the South Lake Animal League.

On a side note, Stormy Hill has resumed their bike night. The new location is Lilly’s on the Lake in downtown Clermont at 6pm on Wednesdays. It is hosted by Bike Night Pam and a bike show with trophies is part of the festivities. Each week a different charity will benefit! So ride out on Wednesdays for a night of fun.

By Ron Cox

More than 225 riders and passengers turned out on February 13th for the Inaugural “Doin’ It for the Kids” poker run. The event was co-hosted by The Ronin Riding Club and The Dixie Roadhouse.

Dixie is Cape Coral’s premier country music honky tonk and Ronin has been heavily supportive of the area’s charities like “Bikers for Babies” and today’s recipient Ronald McDonald House (RMH) of Southwest Florida. Clubs from all over the area came out to support RHM including SWFL HOG, American Legion Riders, Black Ops M/C and the Lost Riders.

As almost everyone knows RMH provides housing for families while one of its children is undergoing treatment for cancer or other life threatening medical problems.  A Ronald McDonald House is that “home-away-from-home” for families so they can stay close by their hospitalized child at little or no cost.

By Lulu

One of the best parts of traveling through the sunshine state is the new people we happen upon. We were delivering to the Ocala/Leesburg area and in pursuit of finding a bar we were told to search out Softails & Knuckleheads and happened upon a poker run by the Nam Knights. The run was to benefit the First Responders and we were invited to tag along…so we did. We traveled to Baseline Bar, EDTs, Opus Billiard Bar & Kool Kats. We met lots of nice people who braved a little bit of cold weather for the ride. Thanks for being so welcoming! And check out these bars when you are scooting around!

By Lulu

Lightening didn’t strike twice but the rain clouds sure did. The last two poker runs hosted by the folks at The Rock of Daytona and Rue & Ziffra, PA have ended up wet!! Still successful in that people got out and rode for a good cause of their choosing. The premise behind the “You Decide the Ride” is you vote which charity you would like to see the proceeds benefit prior to the event online. Then you show up and ride with a great bunch of bikers (or swim like a duck for the last two) for a fun day and a party at the end. The next ride is May 14th starting at Ponce Inlet at North Turn. Registration is from 9:30 to 11:30 and the party ends at Main Street Station! Go to youdecidetheride.com to pick your charity! And pray for a beautiful sunny day!

By Lulu

Well I must apologize to the members of the Daytona HOGS! They hosted us at their annual Christmas Party and I should have sent them a proper thank you by mail. But as an apology I decided to rave about these wonderful peeps here!!! If you aren’t a member of your local HOG group and you ride a Harley you certainly should reinvestigate their perks. Not only do you meet really great people who love to ride just like you, they host parties, work on charity events and simply nurture each other in times of need!!!

No one does any of the above better than the Daytona HOG chapter. Thank you to all for treating us like royalty at your Christmas event!

By Pete

Awrighty then! Here I am March 1st doin my monthly delivery along the west coast. A beautiful day fer a putt, 75ish n sunny. I stop in High Octane in Homosassa round 11am n drop off bout 150 Thunder Roads mags. I’m takin a few pics n havin a beer n chattin with lots of nice folks. Met Emory who was on an older trike with a Ford 289 ci motor with 400 horsies!! WOW that thing has gotta fly. Anyway bein new to the area I ask a group where Kilo’s Bar n Grill is. Dave says we’re headed there now, so “follow us”. So, there’s 3 guys n myself, 2 on nice baggers n one on a sporty. The baggers start out n “sporty” does a huge burnout leavin me chokin on “Dunlap bullion”. I’m gaspin fer clean air n thinkin “What did I get myself into?” We get to the gate on US 19 n wait for an opening to pull out. AGAIN, “sporty” does this HUGE burnout leavin a long wavy black streak on the road.  I’m suckin thick smoke n now my eyes r burnin n can barely see. Hadda give it all I had to keep up n not get separated. We pull into Kilo’s n heart is pumpin fast from a short but very spirited ride. Jus wanna thank those guys for showin me the way. Names n better descriptions are bein withheld so the cops don’t catch on. Hope to see you guys on my April delivery of Thunder Roads.

By Lulu

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Hadn’t been on an overnight ride with the Rossmeyer sisters in over two years, so when the chance to ride with them to Treasure Island came upI was happy to sign up to saddle up! What I wasn’t prepared for was that it required getting out of a warm king sized fluffy bed before the sun came up to mount a cold seat and ride to the Atlantic Ocean for sunrise…riding in the high 30s. But the excitement of the ride across the state almost made the shivering bearable. That and the knowledge that the first stop was for pancakes at Deleon Springs and a warm griddle at the table to warm my red mittens.

We continued down the highway through beautiful country roads with two gas station breaks to finally find a watering hole known as the Sandbar in New Port Richey. The bartender was thrilled to hear the roar of the bikes pull in on a quiet Thursday afternoon. After a group shot and a shot or two to warm our innards we finished the trek to Treasure Island and our nice hotel, The Bilmar. Most of the group dined at Sloppy Joe’s that night, but we headed off for sushi and a cruise around town, finishing with cocktails and a great evening in the HOT tub poolside. We were not able to make the trip back with the Rossmeyer group as we decided to head to a motorcycle expo that was nearby the next day. The new friends we meet on these overnight rides are what makes going on our adventures fun…thanks for having us!

By Lulu

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One of my favorite antique bike show events happens every January in Frost Park in Dania Beach. This year heavy rains a few days before made for a slightly boggy field and the ample parking that was available across the street at the old Jai-Alai fronton was off limits due to the casino occupying the building. But it was still a highly attended event, hundreds of antique bikes, vendors, swap meet, music and the vintage bicycle show made the ride to Dania worthwhile. If you enjoy the nostalgia of motorcycling in days gone by put this on your list of events for 2017.

By Lulu

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As all of us in Florida know, we are the luckiest bikers in the world. We have year round riding weather! We may get wet, we may be hot, and at times, even need to don our leathers; but we can always ride without snow tires! So our riding brethren from all those cold parts of the USA love to invade Volusia and Flagler Counties for Bike Week and Biketoberfest. But what many, even who reside here, may not know is we have more to offer than the beach and biker bars! We have polled Volusia and Flagler County resident bikers and asked them to tell us the best biker friendly bars, restaurants and the roads they love to ride. Many you will be familiar with and some may cause you to go off your beaten path while visiting.

We have more Biker Friendly Bars than probably any other area in Florida, the favored list is as follow. (Note that the ones highlighted in yellow have ads with Thunder Roads and I would really like to see you visit them!)

In Daytona: On Main St. the list is Main Street Station, Boot Hill Saloon, Dirty Harry’s and Froggy’s. We are proud to have a very classy new gentleman’s club Grandview Live on Grandview. Some of the favorites on 1 are Saints & Sinners, Iron Horse, and during Bike Week and Biketoberfest Broken’ Spoke. Chris’ Lounge on US 1 is part of Bike Week history. Off of Flomich is an old bar Rowsey’s and off of Beach St. is an even older beer and wine bar Walden’s. On A1A in Flagler Beach is Beach Front Grille where I tend bar and gaze at the Atlantic on Mondays and then Finn’s by the pier. Going west on 100 right at the pier in Flagler will take you to the Dog Pound Saloon which one of my best friends is the owner of. If you are here the last Sunday of Bike Week it is Dog Pound’s Survivor Party which includes a free BBQ! West of US 1 on CR 2006 is Bull Creek Fish Camp with a waterfront view. Finnegan’s Black Cloud Saloon is going north on US 1 in Bunnell.

My must do list for Bike Week includes 3 things! Willie’s Chopper Time on the last Thursday of Bike Week, the bikini contest at Main Street Station and a visit to the Cabbage Patch for coleslaw wrestling

Going south on US 1 you will run into the First Turn with a great outside deck and food and we have a new ad client just south of First Turn…The Boat Bar with a very nautical look and in New Smyrna Beach, Chase’s on the beach with a pool and ocean view and Pub 44.

Out in the western area of Volusia we have the infamous Cabbage Patch renowned for their Coleslaw Wrestling in Samsula. And in Deland OB’s and Rudy’s Crossroads both great watering holes and OB’s had great burgers.

Great places to eat that are not chains are listed as: First Turn (Port Orange) for steak & seafood, Beach Front Grille (Flagler Beach), OB’s for burgers, Woodie’s BBQ is known for its great BBQ! Brick Yard (Daytona), Lulu’s off Granada beachside, Babe’s Blue Room (Ormond Beach) and Iron Horse (Ormond Beach) for burgers and DB Pickles (Ormond Beach) for home cooked foods and excellent desserts. The best spots for sushi are Bamboo Garden and Ronin’s. And even though Blackwater Inn isn’t in Volusia County it is just east on 40 and has a great outside porch in the trees and I love the shrimp!

The roads we were told to travel are A1A going north of Granada for the unobstructed beach view. The Loop starting on Beach. Many enjoy riding through the Ocala National Forest.

No visit to Volusia County is complete for a biker without dropping in on Destination Daytona. Just browsing makes it a great place to spend a few hours. Places to make stops that may not be your typical biker destination, but things we think are worth your time are The Lighthouse in Ponce Inlet, take a ride ON the beach in Daytona (don’t forget to wash the salt off), the Speedway in Daytona, Tomoka State Park with the old Fairchild Oaks and the statue of Chief Tlmokie, Bulow Ruins, visit the manatees in Blue Springs, the city of Deland has a historic downtown area and you can cook your own breakfast at DeLeon Springs. Our county also has golf, horsebackriding, sky diving, boat rentals, camping and fishing expeditions.

Many of the bars in our areas have bike nights and free BBQ to thank their biking patrons for choosing them as their riding destination. We offer wonderful homegrown musical talents so find a “Cool Joint” after a long day of riding and relax or dance the night away. And thank you for visiting Volusia and Flagler!

By Billy “Kneecap” Braddock

Here I am getting excited about the upcoming 75th Daytona Bike Week. Who wouldn’t be excited with approximately 500,000 bikers coming to their neighborhood for a rally that includes motorcycle racing, concerts, parties, and street festivals? The rally started back in 1937 but took a break between 1942 to 1947 because of World War II. I must admit I haven’t been to all of them but I did make many.

I started thinking, “Oh My God”, I made it, and according to today’s standards I shouldn’t have. Things have changed dramatically since I was a kid. I realize life has an expiration date, but I guess mine is longer than the one on my milk carton.

When I was growing up we didn’t have child car seats or airbags. The thing that protected you from going through the windshield was your mother’s outstretched arm across your chest when she locked up the brakes… When one of your classmates died, you dealt with it. The school didn’t send in “grief counselors”. ADHD wasn’t heard of and kids were not given Mind Altering Drugs. Nobody cared about your “self-esteem”. If you failed you learned to deal with the consequences. Not everybody made the team, and the teams kept score. There was a winner and a loser. This had a way of making you stronger. I ate eggs fried in bacon grease. The biscuits, pie crusts, and fried foods were made using lard. Spam came out of a can, not in your e-mail. Come to think of it, we didn’t have the Internet, computers, cell phones, X-box’s, play stations, tablets or television with limitless channels. We had real friends and real books not a thing called Facebook .We had “Social Networking” it was called “Go outside and play”. We even got into fights with other kids, even our friends. We’d end up with bruises, scrapes, cuts, and sometimes even broken bones. I rode horses, went hunting when I was 10 with a real gun, and drove a pickup long before I was old enough to get a license. I was spanked by my parents and the teachers at school when I needed it. Of course, I would never tell my folks that I got my butt spanked at school because I knew they’d whip my ass again. That did teach me something. It was called “Respect”. I always carried a pocket knife, rifles and shotguns on my pickup gun rack and a .357 in the glove box. I never remember hearing about killings in our schools. The “Pledge of Allegiance” started my school day. I didn’t even lock the doors of my house. I never worried about going out after dark. There were bad things and good things but we didn’t need the government to tell us what was right or wrong. The 10 Commandments told us. I was not Politically Correct, because I wasn’t afraid to say what I felt and thought. Everyone had the right to be offended or offend. I’m not sick, I’m twisted. Sick has a cure. On second thought, maybe it was all the lead-based paint that I chewed off the windowsills that led me to be able to write this column. When we have a meeting of the minds, mine has a tendency not to show up.

Remember Florida, March 15 is the Presidential Preference Primary election. Polls show that many of Americans are dissatisfied with the way our politicians are running our government. But who picked them? Take the time to research the candidates and “VOTE”.

Read more on my website nobodiesopinion.com

See you on the shiny side up tomorrow