Yankee Beemers Motorcycle Club News

September 2014

2014 Yankee Beemers M.C. Officers Executive B oarrd

President: Bob Blethern tnkdrvr@gmail.com Director: Dwight Nevins

Vice President: Bill Cusack bcusack@comcast.net Director: Marc Waegemann

Secretary: Victor Cruz vcruz@mediapr.net Director: Gary Nelson

Treasurer: Jim Sanders jamessanders27@comcast.net Director: John Shields

Editor: Dwight Nevins ybshorts@gmail.com Director: Ken Springhetti

Publisher: Dana Lewis ybnews@verizon.net

Webmaster: Ken Springhetti zrx1100@gmail.com

Forum: Gary Nelson nelco.1@verizon.net

On the cover : Cars Trucks Bikes and Trailers

as seen at the Lime Rox Rally 2014

Below: Hey Nick Salerno < It looks like you may have overshot

St Paul by about 700 miles ? And is that a rental ?

Nicky says “If Sturgis is the NOISE , Black Hills are the Music”

Are we noticing fewer BMW’s at the BMW CLUB events ?

Love ALL Serve ALL

Editors View

By Dwight Nevins

September is the fullest month on our YB Calendar .

The perennial favorite event of the year for many , is the Larz Andersen

Classic is Sunday Sept 7. Alas the Rice-O-Rama is also the same day ,

I’m gonna try to make BOTH this year.

That same weekend is the Foodies in the Foothills at Snow Farm in the

Berkshires , a rally with warm comfortable beds and gourmet food , as

opposed to canned chili on the fire and sleeping on the cold ground !

OSBMWR’s Gathering of the Clams is one I have had on my list of ral-

lies to attend before I die , but not sure I’ll make it again this year , So I

sure hope I don’t die before October 2015 > BUT WHO KNOWS ?

Whacky Hat rally follows Sept 19—21 returning to

Jamaica Ver-HEY-MON-t . See who is whackiest this year !

I will be turning over the crown to the next worthy Haberdasher

9/28 At least 2 of us YB’s

have signed on for the

Distinguished Gentlemens

ride, held in many locations

including Boston and Rye

NH . Proceeds to Prostate

Cancer research .

I hope my double breasted

suit still fits >

wWW.GENTELEMANSRIDE.COM

10/4 08:00 Wagner BMW Motorcycles of Worcester cordially invites us to their BMW Enthusiast Breakfast. Eggs Bacon Sausage and Bagels. Following breakfast, enjoy a scenic group ride through the Fall Foliage rich back roads of Central Massachusetts.

Vice Prez sez

By Bill Cusack

Wow, the season closer for the YB camping season is on-ly a month away! By popular demand we are back at Ja-maica State Park, Jamaica VT. Sept 19 -21. Check it out here: Jamaica St Park For those who have attended this rally in the past at Jamica we have the same half circle of camp sites from site 7 around to the Aspen lean-to, see map. Aspen will also be the designated Whacky cen-tral site where we will have the evening fires and closing ceremonies. The park is open to the public and we will need to camp within our selected sites, but we have plen-ty of room. Its Vermont, what can I say? Some of the best riding in the northeast, plenty to do and see and we should seeing the beginnings of the spectacular fall foli-age. Also it could be warm or cold, wet or dry, or all of the above, come prepared. This rally is what we call a no support rally meaning we will provide coffee but you are on your own otherwise. I’m sure there will be the various feasts that always happen. Bring what you need and a little to share. The restrooms feature doors, running water, and hot showers, bring your quarters. Firewood is available from the rang-er at a reasonable cost. The town of Jamaica is very near and the gen-eral store in the center of town has most any-thing you might need including a deli, meat counter, wine and beer. .

We have a new co-chair for this rally, John Van Hook who

is new to the rally master thing has steped up to the posi-

tion and also the coffee making responsibilities. He is aware

of the down side to no fresh coffee for 100 sleepy YB’s and

has promised to bring all sorts of technical wizardry into

play to be sure it happens. I have given him the secret to

success and I’m sure he will do a good job and we welcome

his help!

The Whacky Hat Crown (sometimes referred to as the

Wacky Crown) will be on display for the duration of the rally

to foster competition among those who might win the honor

of dealing with this thing for the next year. The winner must

be able to get it home in one piece and return it at Whacky

Hat 2015. The crown is only seen publicly once a year so

be there to see it and behold its rich history.

Past winners are usually on hand

to explain their piece of creativity

for the crown and relive the good

times and prosperous year they

had as winners. The subject of this

year’s Wackiest hat contest is…

you guessed it, Jamaica! Build the

best hat with stuff you pick up dur-

ing the weekend ride which depicts

something to do with Jamaica. YA

CAN’T WIN if you DON’T HAVE A

HAT :

Cost is $25 for the weekend and pre-registration is always

appreciated through PayPal on the website. We also accept

all forms of payment, send a check to the treasurer or bring

cash if you need to wait to see what the weather will do.

Prez sez

By Bob Blethern

It’s funny how time flies when you are having fun, I wrote the below as my reason for becoming president. It’s been two years since I volun-teered for the office of club president, I’m proud of the job we have done. Thanks to Bill Cusack for bringing enthusiasm to the vice presi-dent’s job, also thanks to Jim Sanders for the excellent job he has done as treasurer, Victor thank you for once again stepping up as secretary and also thank you to the volunteers that have made the club events a success. I know it’s a bit early; there is currently a team in place to take the reins of the club, I am not stepping down yet, I’ll be around until the holiday party in January, My next favorite riding season is fast ap-proaching. I’m not wishing time away but I enjoy the cool dry air of fall. Ride safe every one. Bob

Bob Blethen for President | Mission statement As president of the Yan-kee Beemers, I wish to stay the course and to keep the club moving in the right direction. I have been a YB member for about 11 years as well as serving on the board of directors.

For me, being president means being the head volunteer. I’ll tell you right now, I am not President Marc Waegemann. He and his team have done a great job. Unfortunately, they have to step down. Originally my plan was to wait until retirement before running for this office but I real-ize the time is now.

I have been riding for about 35 years and I have had various marquis for motorcycles. When I first joined the club I had a Suzuki Wes Cooley replica GS 1000S. I have had a few dirt bikes, I had a 2002 R1150 RT, which was my first BMW. I currently have an Aprilia Futura and an R1150 GS.

I went to my first MOA rally in Moodus, CT. I don't remember the year exactly, it might have been 1996, but I do recall riding a KLT demo and an R1100 RS. I went to an RA rally in VT when the Yankee Beemers provided the on premise security.

I had been to Larz Anderson a few times for the European bike show. I knew about the Yankee Beemers well before I had joined around 2000. I just moved from Martha’s Vineyard to Medway and was looking for some people to ride with. At the time our meetings were being held at the Colonial in Bellingham, a short ride for me.

Since joining the club I've done approximately 20 track days. My moti-vation for the first track day was to become a better rider. Before that, in 2003, I went with two friends of mine on an Edelweiss tour, called “The Best of Europe.” I found that my skills needed some sharpening. The track days were also addicting, leading to a purchase of a track-specific bike, a Ducati 750 Sport. In the last ten years I have crammed a lot of riding into my life; two more MOA rally's, another RA rally, two AMA events in Ohio, at which one of them BMW was the featured marquis. A ten-day tour of the southeast capped off with a trip to Barber Motor Sports Park and mu-seum in Birmingham, Alabama. I also attend at least four YB events a year. I met my wife Christine on the school bus when we were in elementary school. We were only recently married about five and a half years ago. There was a 30-year gap in time since we had seen each another.

Christine wanted to know what all of that stuff in my closet was for; she didn't know about my addiction to motorcycles. She has some con-cerns about my running for president, so I suggested that she become more involved, since, after all, she would become the First Lady. We shall see how that works out.

Thanks for reading my ramblings. My name is Bob Blethen and I ap-prove of this message.

Tech Tips D Nevins

Motorcycle Nights in Lowell happen every Tuesday during the sum-

mer .On the banks of the Mighty Merrimac

EVERY type of cycle will be found here Choppahs , Bobbahs ,

Croozers Tourers Ratbikes Sportbikes Dragbikes ShoBikes >>>

Heck Maybe even a Beemah or two . So come on out to the fun

163 Pawtucket Boulevard, Lowell, MA. “Take a right at the Trashcan “

Visit on the web : http://www.motorcyclenight.com/

Reflections of a Connecticut Yankee Beemer

Ken Woolley YB# 1382 It’s been exactly 10 years since I first joined the extraordi-nary community of BMW motorcycle rid-ers. It all began when I purchased a new R1200C in 2004 to serve in the role of stablemate to my 1999 Triumph Leg-end. At the age of 66, it now seems likely that I’ll long be out-lived by both of these fine machines. In honor of this anniversary, I thought it appropriate (and found it somewhat therapeutic) to reflect a bit on what the ride has been like thus far. Besides, I’m retired now and there’s only so much time one can spend mowing the lawn, cleaning the gutters, and walking a Beagle. It seemed to me that a brief writing exercise might be a welcome change of pace. I flipped a coin in order to determine where to send the result, and the Boxer Shorts easily won out over the Atlantic Monthly. Without delving too deeply into ancient history, I should say that I first started riding sometime around 1967. The bike was a 50cc Bridgestone, which was a neat little two-stroke street bike with a rotary shift pattern. As I recall, it got something like 125 miles to the gallon on some arcane mixture of oil and gas-oline. This was followed over the years by a series of increas-ingly larger displacement Japanese motorcycles. Throw in a couple of Harley-Davidsons during the 1980s and the Triumph in 1999, and that brings us to that fateful day in 2004 >>>

I first eyed the BMW that I had always wanted. It came from the late Canton Cycles in Winsted, Connecticut, com-plete with ABS, Telelever suspension, cross-spoke wheels, crashbars, and heated grips. A classic opposed twin that was painted black with white coach lining: a BMW just the way God intended it. I’ll never forget that inaugural ride and the feeling that came over me when I first blipped the throttle. I felt the bike pull hard to the right, as if it planned to go sideways rather than forward. Although I had ridden many motorcy-cles before, once I got under way and heard the sweet sound of that boxer, I knew that this was going to be something completely different. And so it was. It’s been a wonderful ride, and much of it greatly enhanced by my association with the Yankee Beemers. There are few things better than riding into a Yankee Beemer rally, or arriving at some obscure place like Bloomsburg PA or Johnson City TN, and seeing the Toy Box and that big old YB banner. It seems that the hard-working members of this club have become masters at creating a home away from home at a rally site. The coffee is always on and, as far as I know, no one has ever starved while camping with the Yankee Beemers. We all know it’s primarily about the ride, but it’s also pretty cool when Fred Rau shows up at Heath and then writes about it in his upcoming Motorcycle Consumer News column. >>>

Reflections of a Connecticut Yankee Beemer

Reflections of a Connecticut Yankee Beemer

Or when, at a BMW MOA national rally, people like Gail Hatch or Muriel Farrington make a point of stopping by YB Central just to hang out. I’ve traveled quite a bit on the BMW over the past 10 years, alt-hough nothing approaching the impressive distances covered by a number of other YBs. I’ve ridden south to Birmingham, Ala-bama, west to Ohio and Tennessee, and north as far as Quebec, Ontario, and Nova Scotia. These journeys have involved some incredible stretches of pave-ment, including the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Cherohala Skyway, the Cabot Trail, and West Virginia’s Smoke Hole Road. There have been lots of memorable experiences along the way, and some of the best have come as a result of being a member of the Yankee Beemers.

Roadtrippin’

With Dwight Nevins

Destination : YB Lime Rox Rally

In my ongoing quest to sample ALL of the Rallies and Meets spon-

sored by the YB , the Lime Rox Rally in far northwestern Connecticut

had eluded me till this year. I can only say that I’m sorry I missed the

last ones . I had been to Lime Rock Park only once before in 1983 for

the Memorial day races , and didn’t remember it as the beautiful pas-

toral setting I saw this year !

Jack Phelps and John Shields were our hosts for this event, I called

Jack on the Friday morning to ask him to suggest a route ,”Route 20 is

BEAUTIFUL ! “ Yes Jack was right : Ct 20 from Windsor to Canaan is

quite beautiful . However it is NOT the same as US20 , my mistake .

My intermediate destination was the newest Max Store in South Wind-

sor Ct. I tried to head southwest when I realized these were not the

same roads. I needed to get headed in the right direction to Max’s.

Well I entered and left Monson SEVERAL times . Remnants of that

tornado that ripped up Monson back in ‘11 must have kept blowing me

around and around before I finally made it into Connecticut at the cor-

rectional institute in Enfield , pfew !

Finally got to Max’s and saw

a few of the gems that were

in the store , an ‘as new’

R100RS and 1970 R75/5.

Both a little out of MY price

range. If time didn’t prohibit

me from lingering I would

have liked taking a test ride

on a new S1000R. I got

directions on how to catch

up with CT20 , Real nice

roads up that way. >>>

Roadtrippin’ ( cont. )

On across 20 and 44 to get to South

Canaan , nearing the destination I

took a time to explore the Beckley

Furnace , quite an interesting look

into Metallurgy from a bygone time ,

Also I figured out why it’s named

Lime Rock, after passing a HUGE

Limestone Quarry about another

mile past the Furnace .

Arriving at the track mid afternoon Friday found a sizable crowd

already setup , but plenty of high ground left to pitch my tent. Friday

evening featured a BBQ prepared by ‘I didn’t know I could cook?’ JJ

Shields. A memorable Bonfire ( from what I can remember) capped off

the evening , courtesy of Jack Phelps’ wood wagon .

Saturday was the BIG DAY , took in all of the Auto Action on the road-

course was the Porsche club’s track day . Much like the Yankee

Beemers hardware , About half of the race/street cars were German ,

and the other half other exotic desirable pieces of hardware , some

itallian , some God Only Knows what! At 1:00 PM SOME of the win-

ners of the HOT LAP raffle got to go 140MPH in a BMW M3 , Ned

Phelps got to go in my winning seat, as I was off fiddling with technolo-

gy somewhere else .

Roadtrippin’ ( cont. )

To show his appreciation of my tardiness, I was lucky enough to have

Ned Phelps give me a guided tour of the best roads in his former

neighborhood , The hilite of which was a dual sport ride , UP the Salis-

bury Ski Jump , where they have 20 ,40 and 70 Meter Ski jumps !

Our WeeStrom’s got us up to the base of the 70m steel tower, then it

was huffin and puffin for me the rest of the way up to the launch pad.

Looking back down, I think I might have pooped myself a little. A pretty

impressive drop …. Check the video on their site :

http://www.jumpfest.org/

Jack and his brother were both competitors in their youth, and now

they officiate at the meets held there annually in February .

We made it back to HomeBase at the track right as the rest of the rid-

ers were coming in from their “parade” laps (Don’t go over 70 in front

of the tower) , damn I missed that too !

Dinner was a BYO Meat affair with plenty to share with all . I didn’t

make it too very late on Sat eve, after I went to get my tent in order ,

Er…. good night Dwight

The ride home on Sunday was great , backroads up to rt 63 in SW

Mass and caught the I90 back from Westfield.

It looks like I’ll have to return next year for my laps on the track .

Lime Rox Rally 2014

Lime Rox Rally 2014

2014 Yankee Beemers Calendar

September 7 Larz Andersen Europen Motorcycle Day

Museum of Transportation B15 Newton St, Brookline, MA

September 5-7 Foodies in the Foothills

Snow Farm 5 Clary Road Williamsburg, Mass

September 12-14 RI Gathering of the Clamz Rally

619 Camp Fuller Road Wakefield RI 02897

September 19-21 Whacky Hat Rally

Jamaica Stae Park, RT 100 Jamaica Vt.

September 21 Breakfast @ Willowbrook

8:30 AM #16 Hastings Street, Mendon, Ma

October 4 Wagners Breakfast ride

8:00 AM

October 19 Breakfast @ Willowbrook

8:30 AM #16 Hastings Street, Mendon, Ma

October (T B D) Dana’s Gould Sugar House Ride

Gould’s Sugar House , Shelburne, Mass

November 2 Carl’s Vanilla Bean Ride

Pomfret , Ct

November 16 (T B D) Breakfast @ Willowbrook

8:30 AM #16 Hastings Street, Mendon, Ma.

December 21 (T B D) Breakfast @ Willowbrook

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