A Snapshot of the Nineties

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January 1996

The second in the series of masthead designs for the newsletter was used. The suggested name was "The Freedom Flyer," and the graphic was of a vintage Harley.

The new executive had been elected; Rocco continued as director, while Rick continued as the editor. A total of nineteen individuals occupied eleven official positions (Road Captain, Activities Coordinator, and Safety Officer had multiple appointees).

Chapter meetings had moved to a new location; Gasoline Alley on Woodward Drive .

Regular columns included:

• Rocco's Message - He had just come back from the T.O. Bike Show and had received a huge amount of information about many upcoming rallies and rides. Thirty-seven chapter members and guests had dinner at Mother Tuckers during the show.
  

• Minutes from the last Meeting -The chapter was organizing a number of winter events. There was a plan for the chapter to participate in a baseball tournament (in the snow), for a snow sculpture team at Winterlude to be headed by Russ S, and with last year's success with the Relay on Ice, it was hoped that a team could be put together for this year's as well.
  
  Market Pete raised $1500 for the Snowsuit Fund, and true to his promise, cut his (long) hair.
  
  A chapter participation plaque for the Trenton HOG Rally was received, and would be displayed at Hurst .
  

• "The Captain Harley" cartoon series by Russ S was started.
  

• Top Ten List - By Joe B who listed the reasons "To Trailer your Bike to Florida ."
  

• "Tech Trivia" question about Evo regulators and spot lights was submitted by John K ( Hurst ).
  

• Re-Prints - included in this edition were miscellaneous bits from various sources, many totally unrelated to motorcycles. I think the editor was working hard to fill the newsletter's pages. One re-print that was motorcycle related came from the Durham chapter and followed a "Dear Abby" format asking and answering "Questions of Consequence."

The Long Distance Awards for 1995 were announced. The top three riders each had over 30,000 km and were all within roughly a hundred kilometers of each other. But only one could win, and that was Bob L with 30,316.7 km.

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March 1996

The masthead this month came from Gary M and was called "HOG News."

Regular columns included:

• Director's Message - More members than needed had volunteered for the running of the annual Flog Your Hawg. Norm relinquished control of his run, and passed on the torch to Irvin, Axel, and Don.
  
  The Relay on Ice team skated 90 miles and raised $1001.
  
  May 25th is the 1st annual Ride for Something.
  

• Minutes of the previous Meeting - Fourteen members skated on the Relay on Ice team, and won a Bailey's T-shirt to be raffled off amongst themselves.
  
  The chapter submitted their choices for the Top Ten Destinations for Discover Canada.
  
  Tina was accepting photos for the 1997 chapter calendar, but this time of the men. A few of the 1996 LOH calendars were still available for sale.
  
  The Sparks Street Mall Management had set aside July 6th for the Harley Day event.
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Carole D was the first to be profiled in this new column.
  

• "The Captain Harley" cartoon series by Russ S.
  

• Top Ten List - By Joe B, who covered the "Top Ten Signs Spring is Finally Here."
  

• Re-Prints - Two re-prints were included this month. The first came from "HOGWASH" and was on the subject of fraud artists and supposed certified cheques; some good advice on selling your bike privately.
  
  The other was an article originally published in the chapter's first newsletter. It was written in the spring of '86 by the chapter's founding Director, Andrew K. I decided to include this article in its entirety because of its historical significance to the chapter:

I've met quite a few active HOG members in Ottawa . They enjoyed their bikes immensely, but had become bored riding alone. Also, they felt remote from the centre of HOG activities, the US .

I was always inclined to ride actively. It was just not enough to pull my bike out of the garage and go for a ride alone. I've learned that the best fun is to ride with friends, contribute to a larger group, all of us sharing something in common.

Then Barry Wilcox took over. In March, 1986 I received a package from Milwaukee that included a HOG chapter registration form. By March 24 th , our chapter was officially registered as #9007 Eastern Ontario HOG Chapter, Ottawa . I was asked to accept the position of Chapter Director and put together a nice bunch of Harley riders. I accepted.

At the beginning, local Harley riders kind of refused to acknowledge HOG's existence. The US chapters were doing well, while we were having problems getting four people together. I concluded that Ottawa just wasn't ready for it yet. So the only thing I could do was ride and wait.

Then I heard that Peter Hurst had received a franchise for HD. Now we had two Harley dealers in the capital region. The suggestion was made to me that the club should switch the sponsoring dealer (had problems with Motosport Plus on Bank St.). So John H became the dealer's liaison with the chapter.

As our membership grew, we realized that we needed a new meeting place. The Polish Community Centre offered us their hall on a monthly basis. At last count, we have forty-two members and we are growing.

The Road Captains had put together a comprehensive guide for group riding which included illustrations by Russ S outlining the different hand signals

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April 1996

The submission for the newsletter masthead contest in this issue showed a stylized Harley with the numbers 86 incorporated within the graphic.

Regular columns included:

• Director's Comments - Rocco reminded everyone to submit their mileage to Mike M for this year's chapter mileage contest.
  
  Also, those who wished to participate in the Harley Day on Sparks St. Mall had to submit their plate number to obtain a show permit.
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Brenda P was the featured lady.
  

• Minutes of the previous Meeting - Fifty-five members and two guests had made the meeting.
  
  Rocco welcomed everyone for the 10th anniversary meeting. Antonio supplied the anniversary cake. Andrew K spoke as the founder of the chapter and drew the prizes (ten were given out).
  
  Russ F had volunteered to be the coordinator for the chapter's set-up and campsites at the Sturgis and Canadian National Rally.
  
  Next meeting would be at Hurst's Open House.
  

• Minutes of the previous Executive Meeting - An unusual addition to the newsletter and filled with information, some of which was as follows:
  
  Rocco made it known that certain motorcycle videos were available for viewing by the membership.
  
  Jo-Anne advised that she was seeking speakers for the chapter meetings.
  
  Gary had volunteered to assemble a package for new members consisting of material covering subjects such as group riding etiquette, and hand signals.
  
  Rocco was to approach Russ S to become the new Public Relations officer.
  
  Mike offered to create a PR Document which would refer to chapter activities, and focused on informing law enforcement agencies about the chapter.
  
  Joe B would be awarded a free chapter family membership for the year for his work on the chapter web site (as a token of appreciation).
  
  A chapter phone directory would be created and made available for those members who wished to be included.
  

• Re-Prints - There were two re-prints: the first was by a John Frank (from an unspecified publication) that talked about ten preventative maintenance items to check on your bike at the start of the new riding season. The second re-print discussed engine break-in procedures and came from New Cruiser Magazine.

The Road Captains updated the chapter Hand Signals (covered in the previous newsletter) by adopting a new one from the Boston chapter: "ad hoc stops." The Captains also sent out congratulations to Norm M, Rene F, and Andrew K whose names were all added to the 100,000 km Hard Riders plaque.

John K ( Hurst ) wrote a short tech piece on the question of using high or low octane fuel on your bike.

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June 1996

Another issue of the newsletter and another submission for the masthead contest, this time by Tina B. The masthead had the title "HOG News" book ended with two RCMP mounted officers on one side, and the parliament buildings on the other.

I noticed some major changes in this month's newsletter. First, there was no report from the director, nor were there any minutes from the previous meeting included. More controversial and possibly connected, I found a member's letter to the editor upset with his liberal editing of submitted articles/opinions, and the editor's rebuttal for his actions.

Also announced was the end of newsletter mailing - newsletters would now have to be picked up at either the meetings, or at Hurst .

Regular columns included:

• Public Relations Report - New to this newsletter was a report from Russ S, who had earlier accepted the executives' offer for the position of chapter Public Relations officer. He covered the status of an upcoming Ottawa Citizen article on the chapter.
  

• Top Ten List - Joe B's latest top ten: "Ways to have a 'Grant W' kind of Rally" was no doubt in response to Grant W's first top ten list, "Ten Reasons why I like Touring with Joe B."
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Jo-Anne H was the featured profile.
  

• Re-Print - First, from Boston 's The Bar and Shield, a short editorial about a new web site "Women of the Road On Line." There was also a letter to an unknown publication on the subject of motorcyclists and traffic.

Mike and Nancy reported on the evening seminars on basic motorcycle mechanics that were conducted by John K (Hurst) at the Sir Wilfred Laurier campus. They gave their full endorsement for the course.

The last notable contribution this month came from Russ F and included a compilation of vehicular statistics.

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July 1996

The masthead submitted had a hand drawn eagle in a landing position just above a bike mirror reflecting the Peace Tower . The title: "10 Years - Flying Free" The Courier.

Feathers had definitely been ruffled. The editor had submitted his own resignation letter, though he felt "fired" would have better described his situation.

Regular columns included:

• From the Director - Rocco reviewed past events, and had made one last call for masthead contest submissions before judging would begin.
  

• Minutes of the previous Meeting - Seventy bikes and forty-seven members were counted attending.
  
  Gary was thanked for the chapter sign that hanged at Gasoline Alley during chapter meetings.
  
  All three blocks on Sparks Street would be occupied on Harley Day. Rocco was to be seen for passes.
  
  Everyone was reminded to check the photo album at Hurst . Lindsay regularly added new pictures.
  
  The Adopt a Highway program was being looked into by Jo-Anne
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Joan A was profiled
  

• Harley Trivia - Doug T ( Hurst ) posed three questions, and then provided the answers, but scrambled.
  

• Top Ten List - These lists had become quite popular. Lorna Y did her own entitled "Reasons NOT to go Seadooing with Joe B," while Joe B had another list of top ten things "Overheard at the 1996 Ontario HOG Rally."

Joe B had written a letter to the editor (apparently a vacated post), and talked about the recent Sparks St Merchants Harley Day which had featured over 100 bikes from the Ottawa, Outaouais, and Perth chapters.

Last, but not least, a rider's report from Leo B who had summarized the chapter's involvement in the Ontario HOG Rally in Windsor .

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September 1996

Christie H had become the new "acting" editor.

The latest masthead submitted for the contest showed three graphics: the HOG logo with eagle on the left, the silhouette of the peace tower on the right, and the HOG logo without the eagle in the centre framed by the words "The" and "Pen".

Regular columns included:

• Director's Drivel - Thanks Grant W for having taken over the running of the Toy Run and announced that this was his last year as Director.
  

• Top Ten List - by Joe B, "Ten Reasons to Take a Long Summer Tour."
  

• LOH - Planning for the Scavenger Hunt was underway, and a date had been chosen.
  

• Re-Prints: There was a Buell FAQ page re-print, promotional material from the Ottawa-Carleton Safety Council for their Motorcycle Rider Course (MRC), a "You Might Just Be a Biker" satire from the Durham chapter, and from the internet, a short piece about the joy of motorcycling.

This issue had three Trip reports. The first was written by Rocco, and was about his vacation at the Vermont/New Hampshire Rally. This was followed by Tom, who had attended the same rally and provided everyone with his own detailed perspective of the event. The acting editor had written the third and final report which related her experiences at the Memphis Rally. A lot of reading!

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October 1996

I'm not sure if this edition of the newsletter contained a submitted masthead for the contest, or was just one thrown together by the acting editor because the submission well had gone dry. Essentially, it was two official HOG logos (one for the group, and one for LOH) framing "Riding with Freedom."

Regular columns included:

• From the Director - Rocco reviewed past events, and reminded the chapter to submit nominations. He also announced a mini contest next meeting for the Best T-Shirt picked up while riding.
  

• LOH - Judy reported on their 1st Scavenger Hunt.
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Annette J was profiled.
  

• Re-Print - Only two re-prints were found in this issue; "The Ten Commandments of Harley-Davidson" from Missouri Columbia chapter newsletter, and a congratulatory note to the chapter from the Salvation Army for another successful Toy Run.

Acting editor Christie H expressed her enjoyment in producing the newsletter and announced her intention to run for the position in the next election.

Joe B. had progressed from Top Ten lists, to putting together one that contained no less than fifty milestones from his "Recollections of My Summer of 1996 Tour." He also penned a humorous exposé on "The Fine Art of Waving."

Grant W had put quite a bit of effort and research into his article "Motorcycling and Hypothermia." It spanned several pages and provided the reader with many tips and recommendations. He also wrote a comprehensive report on the 1st Annual LOH Scavenger Hunt.

And finally, Leo B wrote about a group from the chapter who rode to Port Dover's Friday the 13th in the pouring rain and freezing cold, and wouldn't have missed it for anything.

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November 1996

Regular columns included:

• Director's Stuff - The masthead contest was over, and the winner was announced. (I had won!) Rocco also congratulated John for winning the T-Shirt Contest.
  

• LOH - Judy W called for new LOH Profile submissions.
  

• Getting to Know Your Ladies of Harley - Catherine H-W was profiled.
  

• Top Ten List - by Joe B, this time it was ten reasons "Not to Get Stuck in a New York City Traffic Jam" and was written while he was stuck in said traffic. Grant W collaborated on the list with some suggestions of his own. Grant W then one upped Joe B with a list of 57 "Things Over-heard on the Biketoberfest Trip."

Lee W created a newsletter within a newsletter, and it came complete with its own masthead, issue number, and table of contents (even if there was only one page). The subject: "Biketoberfest or Bust, In the Fast Lane" which related the exploits of a small group from the chapter who went to Daytona. A funny and enjoyable read!

Also found in the newsletter, a comprehensive compilation from the internet (five full pages) outlining the timeline for Harley-Davidson and organized by decade from the early years to the present day.

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