Welcome to the November Southern Route, RC Newsletter. Let’s see if we can bring you up to date on what’s new and what’s not so new.
What’s Not so New
Southern Route leadership continues to meet and to plan. The focus this month has been on building the various volunteer teams, these teams are necessary for our safe ride across the country.
State Coordinators have been working with the various hotels to have enough hotel rooms and host hotels for all the riders. The hotel list will be posted on January 1, 2023. Please do not contact the hotels prior to January 1, as the state coordinators have not finalized the hotel contracts.
Our Quartermaster, Ken Ley has been trying to gather the information necessary to order all the needed supplies; hats, brassards, rockers, windshield banners, flashlights and safety vests. It’s a big job and we appreciate the work and time he has sacrificed for the Run.
Yes, we have all been busy and that is not new.
What’s New
Volunteers Needed
Southern Route Leadership teams still need volunteers, particularly in the staging team and platoon leadership. To perform their duties efficiently, the staging team needs TWENTY volunteers. We currently have 6. If you are a seasoned rider (more than one year) please consider volunteering for the staging team.
Another team with a few vacancies is platoon leadership. I came up through the ranks in platoon leadership. I can’t think of a more rewarding place to volunteer. You meet and get to know the riders in your platoon. You are the face of the run for FNGs. You are in the trenches and can really help the riders. Southern Route operates with approximately FORTY-THREE volunteers in platoon leadership. We are about half-way there. If you are a seasoned rider (more than one year) please consider volunteering for platoon leadership.
Pre-Paid Fuel
In September we introduced the new PRE-PAID fuel opportunity at a cost of $150.00. Why are we offering a pre-paid fuel option?
- No need to dig in your pockets at the pump
- Gas stops will be quicker, thus allowing riders more time to rest and hydrate
- Because we can. We have calculated how many stops are donated and how many will be rider funded. All non-donated stops will be $10 stops, totaling $150.00.
If you have any further questions, please see the September newsletter where the pre-paid fuel option is explained in greater detail.
What is new this month, is that we have an on-line pre-paid fuel option.
Following Midway Route’s lead in accepting on-line donations, you may pre-pay for your fuel NOW.
Click here to buy your loved one or yourself, all the out of pocket fuel needs to ride to Washington DC.
This is a great gift for a Veteran and or a rider. Let’s face it Dad’s and Grandfather’s/Mom’s and Grandmother’s are the hardest people to buy Christmas gifts for. They tend to buy what they want, or they already have everything they want. Southern Route just made it super easy for you to buy your motorcycle enthusiast a Christmas gift. Pass on the message.
SAVE YOUR RECEIPT. When you arrive in Ontario, you will be given a wrist band to wear to show you have pre-paid for your fuel. For the convenience of paying on-line, there is a fee of 4%.
Registration Price Increase – Be sure to register before January 31. After January 31 there is a price increase of $15.00.
Veterans Day – November 11, 2022
November 11, 2022 marks the day we honor and remember our veterans.
World War I officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.” In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day.
In 1954, after World War II, at the urging of veteran service organizations, Armistice Day was changed to Veterans Day and on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a national holiday, a day to honor American veterans
As Veterans Day got its start from World War I, so did the wearing of the Remembrance Poppy. Lt. Col John McCrae penned the famous poem “In Flanders Field” in the spring of 1915. The poppy spoken of in the poem became a national symbol of hope and remembrance. Today the United States tends to wear a remembrance poppy on Memorial Day while in the United Kingdom the remembrance poppy is worn in November. Why not wear a poppy both, in May and in November?
The simple wearing of a Remembrance Poppy during November shows that you remember the sacrifices made by veterans as well as our active-duty military. It shows that you REMEMBER the 1,582 still missing from the Vietnam War. You also honor the families who still wait for answers.
We Ride – To REMEMBER – Romeo Tango Mike
Kris “Eyes” Wood
Southern Route Coordinator
