July newsletter

The Knights Table

Monthly Newsletter July 2013

Greetings from your President   Will

The Biker stereotypes

By Will

The second you swing a leg over a set of wheels you're prone to riders and non-riders sticking you into a tidy packet of biker stereotypes. As the president of The Palm Beach Knights, I know better than to try and categorize bikers based on their ride (OK that may not be totally true)... 

But our shared imagery must come from somewhere.

If you have spent any time at a biker event, you get to see a big cross section of motorcyclist. This is your opportunity to test the stereotypes. (And point and make fun of) I chose the Leesburg bikefest for my observations.

The result was... well... kind of funny. As it turns out there is a lot more truth to the stereotypes than many of us would like to acknowledge. 

Here's a list of what I read online.

Stereotype: Harley riders hate full faced helmets; 

BMW riders love them.

Conclusion: True

Then there are those predictable BMW riders. 91% of those who rolled past us wore a full face helmet. OK, maybe that one wasn’t that big a surprise. Also, 82% wore long sleeves and pants. Staying true to the unwritten by-laws of the BMW fraternity that geared up-ness is next to godliness. How many Harley riders did the same? Also, no big surprise about 14% with full-face helmets (14%!!). The rest donned their signature half-helmets that wouldn't save a kid on a big wheel in the park. They did, however, score very high in the long pants category, at 95%. Thank God, I mean just the thought of seeing those hairy, lumpy, scarred appendage’s is enough to give me a sleepless night. Long sleeves were a different story... only 29% had coverage down to the wrists. Who Hell needs sleeves anyway?? 

I’m with them on this one. I mean why did I spend all that money on Tattoos just to cover em up.

Stereotype: Goldwing riders are obsessed with decorations/embellishments.

Conclusion: True

It's true that the Goldwing's big Tupperware festooned body makes it more conducive to a little dress-up, but owners  seem to out-do even their fellow tour bikers in the ornamentation's category. 39% of all Goldwing riders who rode past flew an American flag attached to the back of their bike (Harley tourers were their closest competition, with 10% flying the flag); So much for the whole why don’t you buy an American bike thing!  30% had a stuffed animal strapped on somewhere; and 15% had tassels sprouting from the hand grips. I’m not sure if this is some kind of alternative lifestyle symbol or just beautification's. (yes, I know I have them also) Of all the bikes viewed "decorated", 71% of them were Goldwings. Is it because their riders like to take a little more of "home" with them wherever they go? They certainly have the room.  Sounds like its own stereotype altogether, (but that doesn't necessarily make it untrue...)

  

Stereotype: Sportbike riders never wear proper gear.

Conclusion: True/False

Who you callin' a squid? Ok, 96% of all sportbike riders wore full-face helmets, a huge number that would lead one to assume this group fully acknowledges the jeopardy associated with riding machines manufactured for velocity... But don't discard your stereotype just yet: This same group of riders ranked the lowest in other protection; only 20% wore both long sleeves and pants (and of those, 60% were Ducati riders -- take the Ducati riders out of the mix, and you're down to only about 10% who were fully covered). That means the remaining 80% were in the famous shorts and t-shirt beach-ready combo, which defies our best attempts at logic. Must be that road rash is in vogue with this segment.

Stereotype: Female riders are wiser about gear than male riders.

Extra points!!!!

Conclusion: Slightly true.

The stereotype of female riders as careful bikers led me to expect their gear habits would blow the guys out of the water, but the differences weren't so extreme. Female bikers wearing full-face helmets totaled 40%, compared to 37% of their male counterparts. And 33% of ladies were properly attired in long pants and sleeves, compared to 28% of the guys. We'd still declare the ladies victorious winners, but after a few sightings of some fashion abominations, there was a mandatory docking of points and we had to call it a draw. 

 I should note that female riders wearing bikinis, got bonus points. After all, that got them “seen” and isn't that the safest option.

  

Stereotype: All biker dudes are covered in tattoos and chest hair.

Conclusion: False

We know... We were disappointed too. We'd kinda hoped that the gruff, tattooed biker with a rug of chest hair under his vest would dominate the visual landscape, but the numbers came up short.(no not really)  Of those surveyed, only 11% had any sort of tattoo showing, and an even slimmer fraction bared their rug -- 3%. To add insult to injury, most smiled when they passed by, which completely rescinded our idea of bikers as a rough-n-tough bunch.

Of Note: 

If you want to see a video of Roscoe's Chilli fest
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-a-aByHcng
Not too early to get your Hotel 

The Hotel is ..

LA QUINTA INN & SUITES LAKELAND WEST

1024 Lakeland Park Center Drive LAKELAND, FL 33809

call 1-863-859-2866

We have a special Rate of $69/night. When you call tell them you are a Palm Beach Knight to get the special rate. I would do it now, the rate is good until October.  you can cancel free of charge .

MEMBERS GETTING OLDER!!  

Happy Birthday to:

Brian “RAM” Murphy  

John “Kali” Kalinouski  

Rick Priezzoli   

 We have been having some really awesome rides:

Patriot Guard Mission

•    July 2 · 
•   This mission was canceled. I hope to be able to post more Patriot Guard missions in the future.

Bike nights at Renegades. July 3rd

This got rained out.....SUCKS!!

Sunday Brunch at the Seminole Country Inn Indian Town July 14th

This was Steven "Gunner" Cohen's inauguration ride as a Road Captain. I want to take a moment to say what a great job he did and that we look forward to him leading more rides in the future.  The weather threatened us for days, but we got real lucky and had a dry ride.  The food was excellent.

6th Annual Fort Lauderdale Summer Bike Fest July 21st

We had a great turn out of knights for this event. While the day was HOT, we didn't get wet. It was good to meet some new Knights, Marc, Bart and Tom.

We had a large group, and I thought of splitting us in to 2 , but I wanted to see how we would do as a large group. All in all I think we did great. The event was, well the usual kind of small Bike Fest we have come to expect. Still fun to do every once in awhile. Sitting together in the restaurant and just hanging out was the best part for me. A big atta boy to Tom"Echoes" for making the big effort to come even though I could tell it hurt like hell!!! Thanks Bro

Our first "OFFICIAL" Club (K)night get together July 26th

With a little searching I was able to get us our own room at Hurricane Grill and Wings. The room was great, except for the AC malfunction!!! This made it a little hot.(sorry) I have to say as far as I could tell everyone had good service and the food was great.

(at least someone pays attention when I talk)



We had a very good turn out with over 30 people attending. I was so happy to get to meet families and friends of members. We had many new and old members join us. Luca and Bonnie celebrated their 4th wedding anniversary with us!!

The Knights are growing and getting more popular all the time. We had some awards: congratulations to Paul Sachse, Paul Manna, Lauren Petschek, who won achievement awards. Also a big congratulations to Steve "Greenies" who won a motorcycle pocket watch for reaching the 5K miles mark!! The iPad was won by our own Mark "Kruzen, and the 50/50 was had by John Kali. Thank you all for making this a great night and a great club. Knights Rule!

Member of the Month
Everyone who attended the club night!!! 

( and their friends and Families!!

UPCOMING RIDES:

Ft Pierce Tiki Hut Sun Aug 04 9:00 AM

Ride to LaBelle for some good BBQ 

Sat Aug 17 9:15 AM

Punta Gorda Village Fish Market & Restaurant 

Sat Sep 07 8:15 AM

Roscoe's Chili Challenge weekend. 
Fri Nov 08 8:00 AM

June newsletter 2013

The Knights Table

Monthly Newsletter June 2013

Greetings from your President Will

Is it or isn't it “more than just a ride”?

By Will

While I know that it always starts with the motorcycle, it can go well beyond that.  For me there has always been a biker social aspect of riding, and for some this includes entities like our club. For many people, the idea of a motorcycle club is a new and somewhat unknown idea. While others have tried different clubs and found them lacking (myself included).   Along with books, various television shows and movies over the years, media certainly has played a role in the growing popularity of these types of groups, in reality they have always been so much more than what is shown. (Some of it bad, some good)

Why do people join motorcycle clubs? Funny you should ask. (I know, but in my head you asked)  There are as many reasons why, as there are clubs. First, it depends on the club itself. Guys don't just join a club for the sake of joining a club, but because that club offers a specific purpose.

Each has different, philosophies. Of course, the people in the club have their own personalities, and that makes each club (including The Knights) unique.

People join motorcycle clubs mostly because the club offers something that they're wanting. Be it a sense of brotherhood, a sense of family, partying, or spiritual healing.  For me it’s the sense of brotherhood and fellowship. (Ok, a little partying) I founded this club with that idea in mind. If you're wondering why you should join a club, take a look at the club. (I hope ours offers some of it all)

As I stated our club like some other motorcycle clubs was founded with the purpose of brotherhood which is why our motto is “It’s more than just a ride”.  Some clubs are more like "support groups", particularly on staying clean and sober, or recovering from alcoholism. Think of them like an Alcoholic Anonymous group, but for bikers. (No, not me)

Keep in mind that we are also a "riding clubs", as opposed to a "motorcycle club". The riding club is centered on riding motorcycles. Motorcycle clubs usually have a greater goal or agenda than just riding bikes. The riding club offers no other purpose than to go out riding with some folks, grab some lunch, have a beer, and be with friends.

When it comes right down to it, a biker club is only a group of individuals who share a common passion and love for their motorcycles. It is a group of friends, family and comrades that have found a strong and common bond, which is started with a common love of motorcycles and riding them. If you strip away all the stereotypes that are seen, a motorcycle club is very much like any other club in existence. There are criteria for membership, there are benefits for belonging, and the members are expected to act in a manner that reflects the ideals of the group as a whole.

Like many close-knit groups, biker clubs are characterized by a strong sense of belonging to something that is grander than what you are. It's about a strong bond, a friendship that while borne out of the love of motorcycles has grown into something much more. For many motorcycle enthusiasts, being part of a biker club is a sense of pride, of honor, and some would even say a sense of familial love that may be lacking in other areas.  It’s been my hope from the very beginning that we would become this kind of club. I’m happy to say I think that while we still may be evolving, we can take pride in what our club has become.

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, 'Wow! What a Ride!  
~Hunter S. Thompson

Of Note: 
Congradulations to Steven "Greenies" for being made an officer for the 
Knights. Thanks for all your help!!

Also:

The club has finally decided on an official communication system...we are going with the Sena SMH10.

MAKE SURE YOU RSVP FOR OUR UP COMING CLUB NIGHTS ON JULY 26TH. IT WILL BE A GREAT TIME AND A GREAT CHANCE TO HANG OUT WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

Raffle:

To help pay for the outlay to have club patches made, I'm donating a slightly used iPad to the club. It is in perfect working condition and sells for about $300 on E-bay. We will be raffling it off. Tickets are $10 and we'd have to sell at least 20 tickets, but not more than 30. 1st place wins the iPad, 2nd and 3rd a free club patch. Please help your club out and buy at least one ticket. The drawing will be held on the Club Night!!! 

 MEMBERS GETTING OLDER!!  

Happy Birthday to:

Tim Franz 6/19
Will             6/23

We have been having some really awesome rides

Elliott Museum Hutchinson Island.  June 9 ·

We had great weather and a really nice ride out to Hutchinson island. The museum was worth the $12. Great idea from our Road Capt. in training Gunner!! BBQ lunch was a topper, and then we payed the HD dealer a visit. We ran into another Knight while we were there. Seems Lauren needed to visit the HD dealer as well.

Gunner and I tried to recruit this guy in the glass case!

Officer's meeting June 13th

Here we are hard at work trying to make your club even better. (does't Greenies look thrilled )

We meet at  Johnnie Brown's so the officer's could discuss some issues with communications, up coming rides and tricking...I mean convincing Steve Greenies to be our club Secretary. We were join by Lauren and her boyfriend. After the meeting we had a some good food and beverages. Kruzen and I rode home along the beach. Perfect (K)night for that ride. 

Rib City Immokalee June 15th

A great time was had by all! The ride out to Immakalee was easy and enjoyable. We were joined by a new member  

Keith Baldwin. It was Keith's first time riding with the Knights and first time riding with a group. He did an outstanding job and we hope to see him on many more rides. OK so we go to a place called RIB CITY, and I think I'm the only who got RIBS!!! Oy. Good to see MJ and Devon who rode 60+ miles just to be with us..Thanks guys! Greenies found us a deserted back road to take home, it was great. Good job!

Tech day/ BBQ  Sunday, June 23, 2013

Well it was a perfect way for me to celebrate my birthday.

We had some fun, food, and even got some work done on a couple of bikes. Thanks to Kruzen for all the help with a real PITA job of putting my new grips on. Greenies got his oil changed and Gunner assisted. John Kali arrived just in time for cake, maybe that was planned!! 

Clewiston Inn Sunday Brunch Sunday, June 30, 2013

Canceled due to weather! While I really hate to cancel rides, it's a call I have to make. If it rain hard enough and we're out, it sucks! if I cancel and it rain later or in a different spot it SUCKS!! I have to decide based on safety, comfort, and enjoyment. 

Member of the Month

MJ. For riding so far just to be with me....OK us.

Thanks MJ it's people like you who make this club great!

Check out the upcoming events:

Bike nights at Renegades. July 3rd

Sunday Brunch at the Seminole Country Inn Indian Town July 14th

6th Annual Fort Lauderdale Summer Bike Fest July 21st

Club (K)night get together July 26th

The Knights Table

Monthly Newsletter May 2013

Greetings from your President Will

 

The difference of Riding a motorcycle and driving around in a car.

By Will

Last year on a family vacation in the Smokey Mt., I found myself saying “man I wish I had my bike with me”. That got me thinking, and….writing.

OK let’s tell the truth as a Palm Beach Knight you enjoy the company of other riders more than just about anyone else. (Well mostly) Think of the biker events you’ve been too, Leesburg, Bike Week, and Roscoe’s as compared to say “Sun Fest”. While we may partake in a friendly rivalry with other bikers, it doesn't really matter what they ride, only that they understand the emancipation and independence that comes with being one of us. There is a lot to be said for being around people who recognize your frustrations when the engine doesn't purr the way it should, or if your paint job gets a scratch. (That one really hurts) There is something about pulling out onto the highway, as a member of a long line of other bikers that gives you a sense of belonging that few other things can match. Or how about doing a lane change so perfectly that it looks like a choreographed dance movement. How can anyone in a car know what that feels like? Once you've become a part of this group, once you've become a true biker, it can be difficult to be anything else.

Riding a motorcycle is poles apart from driving around in a car. Today's cars allow so many conveniences and isolate the driver from the world around them. I have always said that a car is just a conveyance to get from one place to another.  It's almost like watching a live television show while you drive around your neighborhood. In a car, you are a passive spectator. Think of all that surrounds you, a protective framework of rubber, wire, plastic and steel inclosing you. You have the voice of a GPS to tell you where you need to go, a blinking light to remind you when to put your seat belt on, and even a bell to let you know when your door is ajar (still looks like a door not a jar to me).  What’s next a special smell that lets you know you need gas?? There are heaters and air conditioning to keep you nice and comfortable on your journey. There is also a way to easily play your favorite music and sing along without thinking. (OK, I do that in my helmet)  It's a crafted environment where most times the link to the world around you is absent, gone, invisable, and kaput.

The saga differs significantly when riding on a motorcycle. That protective, and some say restrictive frame is gone. You are more physically and mentally in contact with the world around you. (Well you better be) The environment is no longer sitting outside your window of shatterproof glass or beneath the steel at your feet. The air is whipping around your helmet, you can feel the heat of the day on your arms, (or in some cases, the bald spot) whiff the exhaust or whatever they’re smoking from the other vehicles. Now that can sometimes be a disadvantage, riding through Clewiston comes to mind. You can feel the sensations and sounds of the life around you. In a very real sense riding a motorcycle allows you to become part of the environment around you. In the case of Love Bugs, they become part of you!!You feel the rain, heat, lightning and wind. You know that the sun is glaring down on your back, and your body feels the rise and sigh of every bump in the road. Unlike a car, there is no feeling of passive separation. There is only a feeling of active engagement. How many car drivers know the experience of seeing the Sun rise from the seat of their motorcycle?  Only a better writer than me could do that vision justice.

Don’t forget that any member can make a suggestion about a ride or an event. We are always looking for more new places to ride to. So if you know of a place or an event, make sure to suggest it on our website.

Of Note:
Congradulations to Steven "Gunner" for being made an officer for the Knights. Thanks for all your help!!

Raffle:

To help pay for the outlay to have club patches made, I'm donating a slightly used iPad to the club. It is in perfect working condition and sells for about $300 on E-bay. We will be raffling it off. Tickets are $10 and we'd have to sell at least 20 tickets, but not more than 30. 1st place wins the iPad, 2nd and 3rd a free club patch. Please help your club out and buy at least one ticket.

 

 

 

We have been having some really awesome rides:

Dune Deck Cafe: (Brunch) May 5th

While it was a small group we met a new member John “Kali” Kaline and his wife. Great people and I'm sure Kali will be a core member in no time. Thanks for paying your dues and buying for a club shirt, we appreciated the support.

Casa Tequila Mexican Grill  May 11

A great ride with really nice weather. We took our time and after a nice twisty road, we got there just as they opened. Some of the Knights said it was some of the best Mexican food they’ve had. We did our club proud by fighting off the invading hoard of love bugs!! I kept hearing the flight of the Valkyries running through my head. (look it up) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V92OBNsQgxU
 I think we killed more bugs this time than ever before. I decided in the spirit of the Knights to have a contest to see who could kill the most….Steve “Greenies” was the voted winner.….he will receive his commemorative pin, and a reciepe for Love Bug suffle on the next ride.

Ride to Cafe 27 May 18^th

Well I got to see another class of kids graduate from my school, which is great except I had to miss this ride. Thanks to our Capt. Kruzen for leading the ride and Paul Sachse for tailgunning. I was told something about  3/4 of flying  dead Gator or was it a flying 3/4 gator...see what happens when I'm not around.

Harry and the Natives Breakfast/Ride May 25^th

We had a nice short summer ride. The weather was great even if it was a bit warm. I have to say the food and service was excellent. They sat us in no time. The place has an interesting  old Florida atmosphere. We sold 8 raffle tickets woo hoo!! We are on our way. The ride back along the beach back was very relaxing. 

Upcoming Rides don’t miss out on:
Elliott Museum Hutchinson Island.  June 1st

Rib City Immokalee June 15th

John Stretch Park B-day picnic/ride June 23rd
Clewiston Inn Sunday Brunch June 30th
 

Member Photo of the month:

Lauren!! Who rides a long way just to be with us. She is always smiling and never complains. Thanks Lauren for being one of the Knights!