Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
The Official Newsletter of the
Women in the Wind®
Ladies of Chrome and Leather Chapter
Calendar 2
Heading on down the Highway 3
Greetings from the Vice-Pretzel 5
Tales from the Road 8
Safety-Wise 9
March Ride Picture 11
Secretary’s Notes 15
Financial Footnotes 17
April Birthday 17
Member Snapshots 18
WITW Summer Natilonals 19
L.O.C.A.L. Officers 20
www.ladiesofchromeandleather.com
Inside this issue:
April 2016
Our Purpose:
To unite women motorcyclists with friends of common interest
To promote a positive image to the public of women on motorcycles
To help educate our members on motorcycle safety and maintenance
LOCAL Chapter
Ride
April 16,2016
Borrego Springs
Flo’s Restaurant
Van Buren Blvd
Riverside, CA
Breakfast 7:30
Meeting 8:30 KSU 9:15
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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April 2016 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 LOCAL
Ride
Borrego
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30
May 2016 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9 10 11 12 13
2016 Ride
14
California
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 LOCAL
RIDE
22 23 24 25 26 27 28
29 30 31
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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Hello Ladies,
Spring has sprung for us in Southern California and it has been and promises
to be a great riding season. I know from all the feedback, everyone had a great
time on the Amazing Ride – Season 2 and I believe it is a “keeper” and will con-
tinue to be an all-time favorite for our chapter.
This month, is our annual ride to Borrego Springs and I look forward to joining
all of our great chapter members on that fun and challenging ride. I know for
myself, and I am sure for you, there are always take away nuggets, experiences
and skills that we can improve on and continue to work on as we ride. I appre-
ciate so much that we continue to talk about safety and we look for train-
ings/classes/discussions that can build on our individual experiences. Sandy
has been doing a great job as Safety Officer but because we are a large chapter,
she could use a partner to help her provide even more of these helpful activi-
ties. If you feel that this is a passion for you, step up and volunteer to help in
this worthwhile area in our chapter’s progress.
As we talked about at the meeting in March, we are providing help for a great
cause that Trish Smith-Lewis brought to our attention. We will be collecting
items that can be brought to our monthly meetings for Family Services Associ-
ation. We will be collecting the following items: 1) Feminine products (wipes,
pads, and tampons), 2) Toothpaste and bar soap, 3) Crayons and pencils, 4) Di-
aper wipes. After each meeting, the items collected will be dropped off for this
fine charity. Thank you, in advance, for your commitment to giving to this
worthy cause.
We have talked in the past few months about trialing and possibly changing
the venue for our general meeting. That is still in the discussion phase, so for
now plan to meet at Flo’s with breakfast at 7:30, meeting at 8:30 and KSU at
9:00-9:15.
Heading on down the Highway
Karen Scott
President
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19 Chapter
eating and Ride
Heading on down the Highway Karen Scott
Ride California is quickly approaching! I hope you all have cleared your calen-
dar for May 13-15 and plan to join with your LOCAL sisters and sisters from
afar to experience what makes us the awesome women we are, on and off the
bike. I have no doubt that Sol Sisters will “bring it” and make it a memorable
weekend for all of us as attendees. Hope to see you all there!
Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage
Karen S
RIDE CALIFOR-NIA
in San Diego, California
May 13-15, 2016
at the Residence Inn
San Diego Rancho Bernardo/Carmel
Mountain Ranch (858) 673-1900
11002 Rancho Carmel Drive, San Diego, CA 92128 $100.00 to $150 USD/night 1 & 2 Bedroom Suites Rate available 05/10/16 to 05/18/16
Book by April 21st
www.witwsandiegochapter.org
Please print, complete and mail application and release, page 1 & page 2 with a check or money order made out to “WITW Sol Sisters”
Send to: Carol Kropp 16983 Boulder Oaks Drive Ramona, CA 92065
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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Kim Airs
Vice-President
Greetings from the
Vice—Pretzel
It’s That Time of the Year
Happy spring everyone! As they often say, you can take the girl out of Boston but
you can’t take Boston out of the girl. Just look at my Boston Red Sox tattoo on
my right forearm!
I started my riding career in Boston in 1995 when I took the MSF course to get
my license. It took me a few years to get my butt in the saddle, getting my first
1973 Honda CL175 in 1999 to learn how to navigate the roads in Beantown that
are built on ancient, early settlers cow paths (no kidding, look it up) where the
car drivers NEVER look for bikes and NEVER use their turn signals. After a few
months on the little putt putt (with an aluminum block that kept spitting out
spark plugs), I hopped on my 1987 Yamaha Radian for a few years of trouble free
riding.
But because of the geographic location of Boston, I was forced in the autumn to
make my annual slog into my auto parts store to buy a bottle of Sta-bil to add to
the gas tank to keep the gas fresh over the cold winter months. It always made
me sad. I’d kiss my bike when I garaged her, gently covering her and letting her
know I’d take care of her and wouldn’t let her gas freeze in the tank.
The taste of spring would begin to rise in mid-winter with the New York Motor-
cycle Show, tempting us in January to ride a few hundred miles south to the
show. Most of the time, getting there happened in a car with snow tickling the
windshield on the way down and back, while carrying the fantasy in our minds of
which bike we wanted to buy in the spring.
Then came Daytona in early March. Woody, our intrepid member of my Boston
club Moving Violations MC, would make the 1200 mile ride in 2 days on her
BMW, sometimes in a winter snowstorm because, well, she just HAD to be there.
She finally got to the point that she left a bike at a friend’s house and flew down
there later years to have a bike in Florida for the week. Me? I attended the late
winter ritual gathering twice, once with Woody and one year with several mem-
bers of my beloved Moving Violations Motorcycle Club from Boston.
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19 Chapter
eating and Ride
19
Ch Vice Pretzel rambling Kim Airs
Then I changed my life because of my incurable addiction called motorcycle rid-
ing when I moved to Southern California in October 2006. And while the rest of
the country goes through the seasons in much more defined ways, we here in
SoCal have the year round luxury of riding when we want to without the burden
of avoiding treacherous weather that would force us to buy electrics to keep
warm when we ride.
But I still think I’m in Boston sometimes. Around this time of the year, I start
planning my rides for the year that is something I do ever since I began riding. It
starts with the annual pilgrimage to Laughlin for the last weekend of April, the
27th to 30th this year. That’s it… kick off the riding season with a big ass motorcy-
cle rally! Not sure if I’ll go this year but I always add it to my calendar. Check out
www.LaughlinRiverRally.com for details.
Then it’s Overland Expo in Flagstaff, Arizona. As many of you know, I’m a fledg-
ing dual sport rider, wanting to conquer the rocky roads and smooth ones too, on
a 1991 BMW R1000GS that will soon be mine. It’s a gathering of basically every-
one who wants to be a land wanderer, on two wheels or four (or sometimes more).
Everyone camps there and last year, it actually snowed, surprising everyone and
earning the name “Snowverland Expo”! When you want to be an adventure rider
(or ADV as we call it), you experience weather when you ride, eat, and sleep, so
what’s a little snow when you’re gathered with hundreds of like-minded explor-
ers!? This year will be my first OX and I’m looking forward to it immensely, snow
be damned! Overland Expo is May 20-22 and the website is
www.OverlandExpo.com
Of course, I’ll be at the amazing WITW Sol Sisters’ Ride California in San Diego
the weekend before, always a do-not-miss event on my calendar! If you haven’t
registered, make sure you do, even if you get there in your car. It’s three great
days of sisterly love with my favorite women on the planet.
The summer will be packed with riding, of course, breaking in my dual sport with
a few lessons for riding in the desert from my ADV pals in the desert. That will
be fun!
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Kim Airs
Vice President
19 Chapter
eating and Ride
Vice Pretzel rambling Kim Airs
Then the last weekend of September finds me riding up for my annual Hori-
zons Unlimited gathering near Yosemite, loaded with my trusty tent and
sleeping bag on the back of my bike. My fellow riders at the gathering have
done RTWs (round the worlds), left the event to launch their rides to the tip of
South America, shared road recipes and done many, many adventures. I go
there to learn more about this wide, wide world and dream of where I want to
go next. Check out www.horizonsunlimited.com for world wide, wild adven-
tures .You can spend HOURS on that website and I encourage you to do so.
When I ride back home from the Mariposa County Fairgrounds where the Ho-
rizons Gathering is held, the cool weather will be tickling my helmet, the
gloves will be thicker than earlier in the season, and a smile will be on my face
from ear to ear.
Why? Because I know I can ride year round and don’t need to buy another bot-
tle of Sta-bil ever again.
Bring it on!
Kim A
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Hello Sisters!!!!!
I know we all had a wonderful time at the Amazing Ride Season 2 last month. Thank you so
very much Sandy – you did an amazing job putting it all together!!
We will be meeting at Flo’s for the April meeting. We need to be on the road by 9 as this is a
longer ride and we are meeting up with the Sol Sisters. Our typical chapter ride for April is
Borrego Springs. We are always hopeful to catch the flowers blooming. We will be heading
down the 215 (new route) to our normal Shell gas station at the 79 South exit for a quick break
and fuel up. It is only an hour from Flo’s so plan accordingly. A quick trip further south to the
76 (new route) and then we will be traveling east past Pala through the valleys, rolling hills and
all the orchards that smell amazing!!! If only we could bottle that smell!!!!! We will be meeting
the Sol Sisters at Lake Henshaw. Please be aware at the stop in Lake Henshaw the parking lot
is on somewhat of an incline. Make sure your bikes are in 1st gear to prevent the bike from roll-
ing and try to park facing uphill.
From Lake Henshaw we will head to San Felipe Road and down Montezuma Valley Road all
the way to the valley floor. For those that have not been on Montezuma – it winds down the
side of the mountain face. The views are amazing. We will be stopping just past mile marker
12 at a pullout that is marked by a rock wall. There is plenty of room for everyone. We had a
photo taken there before with the valley floor behind us.
Continuing down the grade to the valley floor we will have a lunch at a called Pablitos’ Mexican
Bar & Grill.
We will be taking the 79 back to the 15, please note that is roughly 1-1/2 hours to Temecula.
It is a great ride with beautiful scenery!!!
Hope to see you all there!!!!
Gail S.
Road Captain
LOCAL
Road Captain
Gail Schrenk
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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“Look Where You Want to Go”
– or, “How Not to Hit What You’re Actually Trying to Avoid”
Have you seen the recent video of the biker up on Glendora Ridge Road who hit the fire truck?
Most of us have ridden Glendora Ridge, so we know
it’s a road with two-way traffic but no center lines. I
don’t want to comment on the way this biker was rid-
ing before the crash; the point of watching the video
(taken with the rider’s GoPro) is to see as good of an
example of target fixation as you are ever going to see.
It’s a difficult video to watch (it’s actually terrifying)
but we can learn a lot by watching the actual accident
frame by frame.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qicjDdBGZGA
Target fixation occurs when you identify a hazard - a pothole, the curb, the CAR COMING
AROUND THE CURVE TOWARD YOU ON THE CENTER LINE!! - and you just can’t take
your eyes of it! Or YOU may be taking a curve at what you thought was a realistic speed for
the curve and halfway through the curve realize it’s a bit tighter than you thought. The natural
tendency for an inexperienced or uneducated rider is to think, “Uh oh,” and apply the brakes
(while still staring at the guardrail at the edge of the road she is fast approaching), almost
guaranteeing she is not going to make the curve.
So we probably have all heard this old adage, “Look where you want to go.” But what does
it mean in the context of motorcycle riding? How can it get you out of tight corners (no pun in-
tended)?
Practice snapping your head all the way to the side when you approach any turn or curve – you
can move your eyes a bit, but keep your head pointing in the direction you want to go. It’s al-
most impossible to look one direction and have your bike just head off on its own in another di-
rection – after all, your bike is just an extension of YOU. If you don’t look where you want to
go, your bike is just going to go where you’re looking instead.
Sandy Wietecha
Safety Officer
SAFETY-WISE
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SAFETY-WISE (Continued) Sandy Wietecha You may have to WILL yourself to look where you want to go. For sure, if you keep looking at
impending doom, you’re going to have an up close and personal experience with it. In the case of
the biker up on Glendora Ridge, instead of looking at the side of the road where he needed to go
(you can see there was actually room for him to go around if he reacted immediately), he froze
and watched the truck right up until he hit it.
Target fixation applies to U-turns as well as mountain curves. This is a skill I have to work on
constantly. In fact, U-turns are actually NOT one of my skills! It’s SO tempting to watch the far
side of the road to see how close you’re getting to it until you finally either hit the curb or have
to brake and walk your bike around the rest of the way, all the time just KNOWING all the oth-
er riders and drivers are watching you and thinking, “Oh, it’s a girl.”
So for planned maneuvers (like U-turns), snap your head to the left and look back at the way
you came. Your bike will surely follow you around!
And if you find yourself heading towards a hazard, IMMEDIATELY will yourself to look away
and where you really want to go. Your motorcycle will go right along with you and immediately
move in that direction.
Like every other riding skill, this one needs to be PRACTICED. Don’t wait for that unexpected
object in the road or a car that swerves into your lane. Practice looking where you want to go so
it is a completely automatic response.
The other day my grandson was getting ready to
go for a bicycle ride. He got on his bike on the side-
walk about 3 or 4 feet from a stop sign. Of course
when he started up, he wobbled a bit getting up to
speed. I could see him looking at the stop sign and
thinking, “I need to miss that for sure,” and sure
enough, he ran right into it. Just like the video of
Glendora Ridge, it was a perfect example of target
fixation. (So, after we picked him up and dusted him
off, he got the 5-year-old’s version of this safety tip
from Grammy.)
“Look where you want to go” applies to life in general!
Don’t let your eyes wander away from your ultimate goal!
Sandy
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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March CHAPTER Ride
The Amazing Ride Season Two
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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March CHAPTER Ride
The Amazing Ride Season Two
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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March CHAPTER Ride
The Amazing Ride Season Two
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March Chapter Ride
Amazing Ride Season Two
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Karin Whitehead
Secretary
WITW - LADIES OF CHROME & LEATHER CHAPTER GENERAL MEETING MINUTES
March19, 2016
Welcome to: New Member – Alisa Marie
Guests - Michelle and Mo from Fire and Ice Chapter, Fresno
Rockers and Pins handed out by Sandy for Safe Mileage
Congratulations to members recognized for Safe Mileage:
100,000 mile club member Bonn’e Judge –
#7 Nationally , #1 for LOCAL Trish Carlson – 21,517 miles
#10 Nationally ,#2 fro LOCAL Becky Torres – 21,384 miles
2nd highest mileage Nationally – LOCAL -82,109 miles
Congratulation to Kim Airs who won Sister of the Year at this year’s Inter-
national Meeting. Awards will be presented to winners at April meeting
Charity Project Update – 2 ideas proposed by Trish Smith-Lewis. The board
decided that the chapter will collect specific items that they can bring to our
monthly meetings that will be donated and delivered to Family Services Asso-
ciation.
Specific items are: feminine products (wipes, pads, tampons), toothpaste and
bar soap, crayons and pencils and diaper wipes. We will collect these items for
at least the next 3 months
Quaid Harley generously donated 3 bike rentals for a day to be used to raise
money for charity. The board is still in the process of deciding how best to use
these gifts. Will keep you posted.
Renewals are done and we would like to update the website. Please check
your personal information on the website and if you have any changes to be
made (new bike or need a new picture), please send update to Dee and she will
update your information
Secretary Update
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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Secretary Notes cont.
Business cards are available if members need them
Next month’s meeting will be at Flo’s. Breakfast at 7:30, meeting 8:30 and KSU
at 9:00
We are still in need of an Assistant Safety Officer. Please notify Sandy or Karen
if interested.
TJ announced a charity ride and music festival in Orange County on May 21. All
proceeds will benefit the Patriotic Service Dog Foundation. If you are interested,
website is www.TheAmericaRide.com for more information
Three WITW International SISTERS OF THE YEAR
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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April Birthdays
Shirley F. 4-4
Andi T 4-6
Jamie C. 4-15
Jerianne E. 4-17
Kim C. 4-28
Financial
Hello Ladies
Congrats to our Amazing Ride Winners Great job and good times for all. Thanks
Sandy
Memberships have been sent to Nationals....we had 43 renewals...
Those of you who remember Joanna Gasca, she will be back in a couple of months
when she retires from the US Air Force and returns to SoCal..
I really appreciate all of you getting me payments on time. made my life much easi-
er. Oh Yes,,,,and most important...we are still a solvent chapter..
Patty Z
909 225 4152
al Footnotes
Financial Footnotes
Patty Zagata
Treasurer
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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Name: TJ Pillsbury
My Ride(s): Honda 1300 VTX R
My Riding Experience: : 20 years behind Trish Carlson Occupation & Industry: Trade show installer
Hobbies: : Vacation
Favorite Ride: Behind Trish
Dream Motorcycle: On it
Dream Ride: Dream Ride: Every Ride
Member Snapshots
Name: Gail Gillo
My Ride(s): 2012 Can Am red RSS-SE5 Spyder Can AM
My Riding Experience: 1985-1997 2012-present. Bought my first bike from a
woman who said take MSF course-best thing I ever did. Took the advanced course
too. 1975 Honda CB400F, 1980 Goldwing GL1100 standard, 1982 Goldwing
GL1100 Aspencade
Occupation & Industry: Physical Therapist at San Antonio Regional Hospital
20+ yrs
Hobbies: riding, reading, candy crush(addicted)
Favorite Ride: PCH 1 San Simeon to SF, Skyline Blvd or La Honda Rd to Alices
Restaurant up in the Bay Area Peninsula.
Dream Motorcycle: 1982 Honda Goldwing GL1100
Dream Ride: -hundreds :) Hwy 550 the million Dollar Hwy Arizona up through Colorado, The Dragon,
LA to Washington State along the Pacific coast
Name: Trish Carlson
My Ride(s): Honda 1300 VTX R My Riding Experience: Since 1969 Occupation & Industry: Property Management Hobbies: Traveling
Favorite Ride: Anything with Twists
Dream Motorcycle: On it
Dream Ride: Swiss Alps
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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Registration and further information can be found in STB and
the national web site
Issue 191 The L.O.C.A.L. Informant
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L.O.C.A.L. OFFICERS
2015-2017
PRESIDENT:
Karen Scott
VICE PRESIDENT:
Kim Airs
SECRETARY:
Karin Whitehead
TREASURER:
Patty Zagata
ROAD CAPTAIN:
Gail Schrenk
SAFETY OFFICER:
Sandy Wietecha
ASST. ROAD CAPTAINS: Cathie Siglow
HOSPITALITY:
Linda Trowbridge
NEWSLETTER EDITOR:
Karin Whitehead
WEBMISTRESS:
Dee Norman
Mark Your Calendars!
May 7th — Intl Womens Ride
Day— Newcombs Ranch
May 13-15 — Ride California 2016
San Diego
May 21—- Chapter meeting and Ride
Forest Falls via Oak Glen
June 18 — LOCAL Chapter
To Order
WITW Name Tags
Go to:
LOCAL Website
www.LadiesOfChromeAndLeather.com
“Members Only” section
And click on: