I spent some time this weekend thinking about all the individuals who make up the motocrew, and how I came to know them. After thinking about that for a while, I came to understand some things -- some where new ideas, some just ideas that were reinforced.

• The beautiful diversity of motorcycling. Of course, there is some ethnic diversity in our motocrew, but really more about "walks of life". Some spend time with prisoners all day, some have worked with kids, some techno folks, artists, health care workers, you name it. The common denominator is the motorcycle. We who ride all know the camraderie shared between complete strangers who both ride. Another diversity, and in my opinion, one of the marvels of motorcycling is how many different ways there are to enjoy it -- dirt, street, track, touring, racing, etc, etc, etc. Add another one to the list -- helping others.
   
• Every year I tell people who I am trying to recruit that this weekend comprises 2 of my top 5 days of the year -- I used to qualify that as being "top 5 riding days"....but it's really much bigger than that. And every year, when we get a few new folks to sign up, I worry if I've oversold the concept of camp, and it's amazing power. And every year, I am reminded I should not have worried. You have all done a great job talking about it, so I'll only add that every year I reevaluate if there's a way for me to find more of what the camp offers, in my every day life.
   
• In some ways, I have the easiest job on Motocrew. I just ride all day. One observation I had again this year is that every time I ask a motocrew guy (or gal) to do something that kind of sucks, I just get "you bet" or "no problem". This includes -- waiting for hours for a truck to show up so we can put a damaged bike on it to help a fellow crew member; moving dead animals off the road so AngelRiders don't have to see it, missing parts of the ceremonies to do little tasks that need to get done, and so on. Every boss should have it so easy.
   
• People only miss AngelRide for pretty good reason -- surgeries, big family events, moving out of the country, etc. Everyone either comes back, or wishes they could.
   
• People who meet through AngelRide develop friendships that extend beyond. I caught little pieces of stories where many of the crew had socialized outside of A/R -- be it Ed Dean at a Honda VFR event, others getting together for rides, or couples vacationing together. When you meet people at a special place doing something special, guess what? They are usually special people.

Some other highlights:

• While we all regretted seeing Rob go down, and certainly all wish him the very best, two things became evident. First, the importance of wearing a helmet properly fastened. Second, our medical procedures WORK!!! Having EMT and other med guys on the motocrew helps tremendously, and our communication system did great. We had cell coverage so we got right through to 911, and then updated CIC. About 30 mins later, everyone was asking how Rob was doing...so the word clearly got out quickly. If you haven't heard, he is out of the hospital, and even made it to the finish line to see us.
   
• Seeing the new guys enjoy the event
   
• Stickers from Joey Honda. Thanks for those, Joe -- they look AWESOME, and are such an obvious solution to bike marking. We'll do an official purchase next year.
   
• Having time to actually answer my cell phone on route a bit more, and to talk with Lynn throughout the day to know how it is all progressing.
   
• The evening's festivities at camp, and the morning Memorial Day ceremony. If it weren't for this, I would not do as much remembering on Memorial Day....and that's really what the holiday is about.
   
• Having our route marked not once, not twice, but three times in some areas due to some cretin who stole the signs. If there is a special place in Heaven for Paul Newman, there is a special place in Hell for the person who steals signs from a charity raising money for kids who are deathly ill. Bad karma is a colossal understatement.
   
• Work is about to get really bad for me -- stress is going to multiply, and the future will be very uncertain. This morning should have been doom and gloom as I drove in, but instead I just knew everything would work out -- it always does, one way or the other. This positive attitude brought to you by AngelRide.

You are all my heroes...

Dan B

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