I know we usually say things like April showers bring May flowers and other stuff but this year those showers were accompanied by many May showers. They brought the eastern Ontario & western Quebec region some of the worst flooding in recent memory and created havoc for literally thousands of homes! I am always tossing platitudes at you especially one that when our brothers and sisters are at their worst, it requires that we be at our best! Rest assured the members of our regions motorcycle community rose to the challenge. Many riders volunteered to fill sandbags and help build dikes as well as lend generators & extra sump pumps to try and hold off the rising flood waters! People went in with trailers and picked up the motorcycles of friends so they could move them to a safer place until the flooding was over. Many bikers opened up their homes to fellow riders and their families when they had to abandon their homes. I know lots of people did similar things but I felt proud of the bikers of eastern Ontario & western Quebec, much the same as I felt about the
bikers who stayed to try and help their brothers & sisters out in Fort McMurray last year during the fires. I am pretty sure that when the water has gone down and the final tally of the damage and destruction is known,
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bike clubs in various areas will be organizing all sorts of rides and events in support of those who have lost everything and need help to get back on their feet. For all of you who did whatever you could to help others, a special thanks for being who you are and your generosity. On the last Sunday in April a number of riders including members of area clubs like BACA (Bikers Against Child Abuse), the Dedicated Few RC, Blue Knights, the Retreads and The Celtic Brotherhood participated in the City of Ottawa’s Official Proclamation of May being Motorcycle Awareness Month. Much like last year the morning started off with overcast skies and there certainly was a nip in the air but none the less riders came out in support and there were a number of information tables set up in the plaza. Some belonging to various clubs and Michel Dupuis from the Casselman, 2804 Dice Run that happens on May 28th. I intend to participate in this ride. There was also a table from the Safer Roads Ottawa division of the City of Ottawa . It was manned by Rob Wilkinson who wears many different hats in his job working for the city. He has been instrumental in assisting SOAR (Society of Ottawa Area Riders) of eastern Ontario in ge�ng safety information and projects initiated in the hopes reducing motorcycle accidents so that fewer motorcycle riders become an accident statistic. After a few quick speeches from members of SOAR including chairman Mike Bossio, Perry Montgomery from the Dedicated Few RC and myself, there was a demonstration by a couple of members of the Ottawa Police, Motorcycle division. They not only offered some good information on ways of preventing being hit by cars on the road that just aren’t watching out for motorcycles. The big hit with the crowd was their demonstration on how a single rider can safely get their motorcycle back upright in case a situation came up where you had to lay it down. Motorcycles are much heavier than years ago and add to that the growing number of women who ride, I was pleased to see how many were eager to step forward and actually learn the skill. I think what really amazes people is they forget that dealing with motorcycles is all about balance and leverage and has very little to do with strength. SOAR hopes to be able to get instructors to show representatives of the clubs and then those members can pass the knowledge on. Like I say, Bikers helping Bikers!