York Wings: Ride For Sight

Years later and long after I had left the club, I participated on my Virago in the 1989 edition of the Ride for Sight. Because I was bringing my entire family, I first trailered my

1989 Ride for Sight: Minden, Ontario

bike to Muskoka where my in-laws resided. They, mercifully, took on the responsibility of looking after their grandchildren, while Caroline and I rode the relatively short distance to the event in Minden the next day. It would be the first time that I would see so many Harleys all in one place, and the yearning for one would become more powerful than ever. Little did I know at the time, but before the year would be out, I would have one of my own at last. See 1989-2001 HD Electra Glide.

As of this writing, my last Ride for Sight was in 1991, and it was held at Trent University in Peterborough. It was kind of weird when the volunteer who was processing our registration recognized our address as the home of one of their friends. Apparently they had hung out with the kids of the parents who had sold us their house ten years earlier. Sometimes the world seems so small. It was also when I ran into Jim Bently for the first time in over a decade. He had grown a beard and now rode a Harley, but was otherwise just as I had remembered him.

The threatening funnel cloud developing.

We stayed in one of the campus dorms that were not only comfortable, but also quite convenient as we could walk to all the activities. Among the highlights for that year included Ronnie Hawkins for the evening's entertainment, and funnel clouds that threatened, but, thankfully, never touched down.

The Central Ontario Ride for Sight has more recently made its home in Collingwood, and this year (2003) it celebrated its

1991 Ride for Sight Show & Shine: Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario

twenty-fifth anniversary. I would have liked to have gone, particularly because of the special recognition given to the York Wings, but I did not have the time available to make the cross province trip twice in one week. I chose to attend my first Port Dover - Friday the 13th instead. Next year, I think it might be time for me to revisit this worthy event once again. See www.rideforsight.org for more information on the ride.