Friday the 13th Port Dover

2 Friday the 13th in Port Dover August 2010

Briar Kostesky likes the view from the passenger’s seat on the back of her husband Tim’s Road Star 1700. The couple have been riding for five years and have been to Port Dover from St. Catharines about eight times, but have never been to a Friday the 13th.

Old man take a look at my life ….Reb and Jay Felker, a father and son team survived the first Friday the 13th

and haven’t missed one since. A younger son and two grandkids also ride, but they do it in the dirt … motocross style. “Too crazy for me!” says Reb.

Jay, 45 years old, rides a 1990 Harley-Davidson Fatboy that he bought new and customized to his tastes. Reb, age 70, still rides a Harley-Davidson Clas-sic that he bought new in 1997. “This thing has more horses than Woodbine Racetrack,” he laughs. Happy birthday Rebel on Sunday!

Rick Lancaster has been riding mo-torcycles for 40 years and declares it is his favourite sport. He has made the ride from Hamilton to Port Dover “an uncountable number of times”. “It’s my favourite ride,” he says. “I come here just for the ride but I enjoy the food, too.” Rick currently rides a 2004 Harley Classic and is President of the ‘Acquitted Motorcycle Club’. “We are all clean and sober. It’s an interesting bunch of guys.”

Bikers storieson every page... enjoy them all!

Friday the 13th in Port Dover August 2010 3

Hendrik Lenis is at it again. The local artist has produced another Friday the 13th related print. This one has the ever popular ‘thong man’ as the front focus.

Shown with the original pencil drawing, he and his partners, Barb and Dave Billings have made a limited quantity of 22” by 30” high quality prints on acid free paper. They will be available to Friday the 13th patrons at the Elmer Lewis Parkette (beside Giant Tiger) for $25.00 in a tube. They have started a web-site www.fridaythe13thpublishing.ca where prints can also be ordered.

This is Hendrik’s fourth Friday the 13th print. He will be 70 years old this year and is very active with his artwork. He says, “The romance and roar along with the mystic make this event great subject matter.”

“Celebrating these events are what these prints are about,” he points out, adding, “there has been very little trouble at these events, not like the G-20.”

It is fine art rather than commercial art and he believes in selling them for a reason-able price. Watch for Hendrik in the crowd looking for new material. He will also be sign-ing some prints for lucky customers.

Charlene Cavallo of Port Dover is shown sitting on a Triumph motorcycle. The community is a popular destination for bikers and this bike was in town for a recent ride when Charlene had a chance to examine the gleaming machine up close.

In 1971 when George Simons gave his son Chris a Rupp minibike, he could never have imagined that gift would be the beginning of a life-long passion for bikes. Since that Rupp machine, Chris Simons has owned many motorcycles. He knows bikes inside out and front to back. At one time he operated a well-known bike-shop in Port Dover called “Bikers’ Delight”.

Port Dover’s Friday the13th had its beginning in 1981. It began innocent enough in November, 29 years ago.

Chris Simons suggested to a few

motorcycle buddies that they meet for a few beers at the Commercial Hotel (today known as Angelo’s of Dover). Word spread about the get-together so that Friday evening on November 13, 1981 about 25 guys showed up. They had a great time and someone suggested “let’s meet every month when there is a Friday the 13th.” More came to party in Port Dover on the next Friday the 13th. And, as they say, the rest is history.

This August, Friday the 13th is the 50th Biker Day in Port Dover. It is expected to be the biggest.

THE LEGEND OF FRIDAY THE 13TH

Welcome to the50th Biker Day event

Hendrick Lenis draws Friday the 13th


Hello and welcome to the 50th Fri-day the 13th motorcycle rally here in Port Dover. This day really is a won-drous thing if you consider that it all began only 50 events ago.

When Chris Simons and friends got together 19 years ago they could not have imagined what it would turn into. You and everyone beside you are here to celebrate this wondrous day.

Motorcycling has a life and breath of its own. It is a lifestyle that a person cannot understand unless they have tried it. It has an aura of mystic and adventure that grabs and holds you. If it gets into your blood, you are hooked.

I am hooked. At the end of the season in 2008, I

finally jumped into the quickly growing lady rider market and bought myself a used motorcycle. Being an excited and brand newbie, I pretty much bought the first bike I looked at. Admittedly, it was a bit too tall for me, but we figured we could lower it. It was a reasonably priced 1981 Yamaha 400cc and a beaut if you like the old school style of bike.

I took my M1 and passed no prob-lem. Having only ridden mini and dirt bikes when I was a teenager, I figured I should take a rider course and booked it for early May 2009. I was looking forward to getting my M2.

The first weekend in May 2009 was a rainy, windy and cold weekend. My 5’ 1” body and I showed up for the motorcycle course only to be put on a bike that I could barely touch my tippy toes on when mounted. I dutifully pushed my (larger) classmate across the parking lot to be sure she could bal-ance the bike. She returned the favour (read: ‘pushed me crooked’) ... and I dropped the bike! Confidence shot! I quickly realized that I should have had

some practise before showing up for the course. Most others in the class had some experience and were younger than myself.

Now I consider myself a young -- almost 50 years old -- kind of gal and gritted my teeth and gave it my best. I was doing well on the straightaway, the 180 turns and gearing up and down. Next, as the rain and wind whipped up, I had to find my way through the stupid 8” pylons that represent the streets of the real world. I got flustered with all the bikes going every which way and couldn’t do it. Well, I just rode around the course until finally the instructor pulled me off and told me to go home, get some practise and come back next year (with $400). He deemed that I was a danger to others and myself on the road and needed more experience. The question I have is, where do I practise? I have to travel down a road to get to a parking lot. It might sound like I’m making excuses and bitching ... and I am. But I also know that you have to be really safe out there, and so I have some decisions to make.

My bike has been lowered as much as it can be, the seat has been taken apart and the foam shaved. I bought taller boots and I still can’t touch the ground with flat feet. I still really want to ride solo. I may get a different bike, I may not. I might just continue to ride bitch. It is after all, what I do best. ;)

I may not be a true biker, but I sure wanna be ... There’s lots of us out there and we are making riding more main-stream, hopefully for the benefit of all.

Enjoy this wondrous day ... it’s all about you!

Lynn SonnenbergPublication Co-ordinator

I love to rideAnd new skills still to learn

W E L C O M EA warm welcome to Port Dover

is extended by our elected officialsMayor Dennis Travale

Member of Parliament Diane FinleyMember of Provincial Parliament Toby Barrett


By DONNA McMILLAN

Rose Yerex of Port Dover wears many hats. She is a lifeguard at the Simcoe Recre-ation Centre Pool. She owns a business from which she teaches CPR and First Aid for Fan-shawe College. She is the mother of two sons. And, she has always had a keen interest in motorcycles.

Her love of bikes led her to a Friday 13th event in Port Dover in July of 1984 where she met her life partner, Greg. A true Friday 13th inspired love story, they married the fol-lowing June. Since that time, the couple has enjoyed many short and long distance rides together. Just prior to this interview, the Yerexes took their toy hauler and bikes for two weeks of riding in New Hampshire and Quebec.

Born in 1953, Rose remembers riding on the back of her brother’s Honda 90 and other guys’ bikes while she was in high school. Her first street bike was a Honda 350. “It was good enough to get me where I wanted to go”, she said. She lived in Toronto and Rose would ride her motorcycle throughout most of the year, using the motorcycle police as her guide for when to put her bike away. “It was back when women didn’t ride their own motorcycles,” Rose said. “I did most of my riding solo, travelling to such places as the Blue Ridge Parkway in Tennessee, Missouri and the East Coast. Everyone was surprised, when I stopped and took my helmet off, to see a female changing oil in the parking lot”. She also made a ride by herself to Gimli, Mani-toba to attend a BRO (Biker Rights Organi-

zation) gathering and then rode on to the St-urgis Motorcycle Rally in the Black Hills of South Dakota. She remembers hearing how important it was to the Mayor of Sturgis to support the rally because of the economic boom for the community. Much to their sur-prise, when Greg and Rose did finally meet in Port Dover, they discovered they were both at BRO in Gimli at the same time and could see each other in their pictures. “It was fated we would meet,” Rose told me.

Over the years, Rose has owned quite a few bikes. The 350 didn’t last long. She moved up to mid-range, always riding 650 to 750 cc bikes. Rose currently owns a 2001 800 cc Ka-wasaki Vulcan Classic.

Since marrying, Greg and Rose have taken many great motorcycle trips. Often, they ride with good friends, Chris and Mary Simons. A motorcycle trip through New Zealand is one of their highlights.

Last year, Greg and Rose took their motor-cycles west, riding in Washington, Oregon, California, Montana and others. Also in 2009, they attended Daytona Bike Week with Chris and Mary and rode down to Key West. “Lots of women ride their own motorcycles now”, Rose noted. “But I do most of my rid-ing with Greg”. Locally, their favourite rides are along the lakeshore east and west. Rose is looking forward to this summer’s Friday 13th, remembering that it was the one in the summer of ’84 that introduced her to Greg.

“I love Friday 13th. I think it is wonder-ful,” she said. “I’ve seen it grow over the years and I see all the dollars that come in to town from this event”.

Rose Yerex of Port Dover rides a Kawasaki Vulcan Classic. She is seen here wear-ing custom leathers from Port Dover’s On the Fringe.

Port Dover woman met her husband at Friday 13th in 1984


Corporal Stilwell hasthree tours overseasand a new Suzuki bike

By MICKEY STILWELL

Corporal Michael Stilwell is posted to CFB Kingston and is a Land Communication Information System Technician... basically he sets up all communication between Afghanistan and Ottawa and maintains satellite links and related jobs. He is the reason soldiers can call home! Michael, who just turned 25 in April, joined the army at 18 and did two years of college through the Canadian Forces.

He has done three tours overseas. The last one he came home December 14, 2009. In February, he came down to visit us and made a trip to Robinson’s Motorcycles in Wheatley, Ontario. He purchased his new bike -- a 2006 Suzuki Boulevard CT90 1500cc totally loaded and customized. It was delivered on February 21st and sat in our garage until March break when he rode it back to Kingston and has put over 4,000 km on it since then. He also announced he and his wife Jenn are expecting their first baby in October.

His first major ride this year was the Heroes Highway Ride out of Trenton base... 1200 bikes with $11,000 raised for the Wounded Warriors’ Fund. A group of friends all rode to Michael’s house in June and camped in his backyard, that weekend we put over 1500 km on the bikes.

Michael rode on the back with me from the age of seven and at 16 got his first bike which was a 1985 Yamaha Maxim 700cc which he rode until two years ago when at 6’ 2” it was too small for him, and because of tours overseas waited to purchase a new bike.

Michael signed a 25-year contract with the army and will retire at 43 years of age.

We, his parents, are very proud of Michael’s accomplishments and his loyalty to his country. We support all of our soldiers serving for Canada’s freedom!

A fan of theDeals Gap

Peter Smith is also a fan of the ‘Deals Gap’ ride in North Carolina, but he adds, “it’s still a nice ride out here to Port Dover from Brampton. It’s a nice place to visit. Motorcyclists always like to have a destination.” Peter has been riding for 21 years and currently owns a 2008 BMW R1200.


By LYN TREMBLAY

LOTTIE ZIMMERMAN jokes that her retired husband Cliff has too much time on his hands.

Visit his cluttered workshop in the basement of their Port Ryerse home, and you’ll quickly find clues as to what keeps the former aircraft mechanic busy. The space is a virtual museum of vintage motorcycles.

Cliff bought his first bike, a 1947 Indian Chief, in 1966. “I used to drive it from Brant-ford to Port Dover after picking tobacco all day,” he recalls.

After he started working for Air Canada in 1970, Cliff sold that bike and didn’t have anything to do with the vehicles until 1978 when he bought another 1947 Indian Chief. Thus began a passion that has lasted down through the years until he has accumulated 12 motorcycles, most of them rebuilt and restored by Cliff from parts sourced from around the world.

After he sold the second Indian Chief, Cliff says he got into dealing with those of a much earlier vintage. It took him six years to restore the 1917 Model ‘O’ Indian, that he points out has a button-spring suspension. “This is basically a drugstore bike, a lady’s bike,” he says. “These weren’t macho so they weren’t very popular. They are quite scarce actually.” The bike reaches a maximum speed of 30 mph. One of the bikes in his

basement -- a 1918 Model ‘O’ (that has a leaf-spring suspension) will be his rider someday. He also has a 1917 model.

Cliff manufactures the gas tanks, luggage racks, chains, etc. using drawings of original models. He has made 75 gas tanks.

A 1907 Rene Gillet out of Paris, France was manufactured up until 1928. One of its unique features, Cliff explains, is that it has a belt drive and no clutch. It was the first bike built with a twist hand-grip and has a magneto in the gas tank that provides the ignition spark

-- to get it started you pedal like a bicycle!Another novel bike that makes Lottie

shake her head was created from a 1950s era bicycle. “I bought this is a moment of cra-ziness that I inherited from the Port Dover boys (referring to Greg Yerex and Chris Si-mons). This guy had an engine from an ul-tra-light aircraft. I had to have it,” explains Cliff. “I changed the direction of the rotation so now it will push the bike down the road at about 20 mph.” To take it on the road, it’s classified as a farm vehicle, so “just for fun” Cliff turned it into a crop duster!

In his garage, Cliff is working on a 1949 Harley Davidson (the first made with hy-draulic suspension) that is parked beside his current rider, a 1986 Honda Gold Wing.

Other bikes are scattered about in differ-ent stages of restoration. They include a 1938 Indian Flat Track Racer and a 1938 R23 BMW. To rebuild the latter, an engine was shipped from Germany and the frame came from Paris. Cliff believes the rarest bike he owns is a 1976 Suzuki RE5. “It has a Wankel rotary engine and a triangular piston that rotates like a Mazda RX7 engine,” says Cliff. “They only made it for two years and they lost their shirt on them.”

Tucked into a corner are the remains of a 1952 New Hudson that belonged to his father William. “He used to ride it from Brantford to Hamilton all the time,” says Cliff, “be-cause you didn’t need a license to drive it.”

Vintage motorcycle collector Cliff Zimmerman with a 1917 Model ‘O’ Indian Chief, a 1907 Rene Gillet and a novel ‘crop duster’ bike.

Collector tinkers with vintage bikes


By LYN TREMBLAY

Norm Dorr has a vision. He would like to see a member of the Canadian military win a custom bike built especially as a tribute to soldiers.

His hope is that he can interest the Cana-dian government or a private corporation/individual in paying what it cost to build the bike -- approximately $29,000. It has been ap-praised at well over $50,000.

“I would like to see everyone in the mili-tary get a free ticket, and have a draw for the winner,” he states. “If I won the lottery, I’d donate it myself.”

The bike is called a ‘Bobber’. It is fash-ioned in the style of the 1940s-50s model but is built with modern technology that includes a 113 cu. in. Ultima engine, a six-speed trans-mission with a two-inch open belt drive. The exquisite paint job is designed with a camou-flage-look in the three colours matching the equipment used by the Canadian military in Afghanistan. The words ‘Lest we forget’ and ‘Tribute to: Past, Present & Future Troops” have been hand-painted on the bike.

The bike has taken 400-plus hours to build. Norm will be bringing it to Friday the 13th to display at the BB Gas Bar (bottom of

Main Street). “I think it would look good go-ing down the Highway of Heroes,” he says. “I think it would be a morale booster for the guys in Afghanistan. Let them boot around on it in the sand over there. I think it lets the guys know somebody is thinking about them. I’d like to see Prime Minister Harper sitting on the bike.”

Norm has taken his project to Ottawa, to the National Head Office of the Royal Canadi-an Legion. They could not help, but suggested he try to get the provincial government inter-ested. On the day this reporter visited, Norm also invited MPP Toby Barrett along to see if he had any ideas. Mr. Barrett thought he should “appeal to an organization or corpo-ration to step in and take it to the next level and through whatever means, get it into the hands of the military. I think of the hell our guys and gals have been going through in Kandahar.”

This avid motorcyclist has been building custom bikes since 1968 when he was just 14 years old. “I can’t get them out of my sys-tem,” he grins. “I’ve dropped them. I’ve slid with them. I’ve had them on top of me.” He is also a big believer in loud pipes. “They save lives,” he says.

Another bike currently sitting in his Wa-

terford shop looks like it is moving while standing still! “You just want to lick it or hug it,” says the proud builder.” He describes the gleaming ‘Pro-streak’ as “a pit bull or a no-neck bouncer”.

Another bike parked nearby is a Suzuki ‘Hayabusa’, the fastest factory bike in the

world that reaches a speed of 360 kilometres per hour. The beginnings of an ‘Easy Rider’ -- just the frame and tires, will be on display at Friday the 13th as well. Norm would like motorcycle enthusiasts to see how a bike is transformed from rough welded metal to a glass finish.

Motorcycle builder Norm Dorr would like to see his custom bike (straddled by MPP Toby Barrett) in the hands of a Canadian soldier.

Motorcycle builder wants soldier to win custom bike


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Lots of good things to do on a bike

Wayne ‘Gibby’ Gibson often rides his bike to Port Dover from London. “We come here quite a bit. We like the fish and the cold beer... and the girls if there are any,” he laughs. Wayne is a real estate agent and finds Port Dover’s new growth “very interesting”. “I’d love to live here and sell real estate. The prices are affordable and there are some pretty nice houses.”

Wayne’s 2003 Harley David-son Ultra Glide Classic is the 18th motorcycle he has owned. His favourite ride over the years has been to Vancouver, a trip he’d make every year if he could. Wayne also rides in the annual ‘Realtors’ Care Foun-dation’, a charity ride which raises money for kids without shelter. “We’ve made $40,000 each year for about 10 years,” says Wayne, “and we’ve been on rides all over the place -- Nash-ville, Lake Placid, this year to Sault Ste. Marie. There are lots of good things to do on a bike.”

Riding along lakeDan Carlesso is new to the sport of

motorcycling. He recently rode his 1981 Yamaha Seca 750 to Port Dover from his home in Fort Erie. “I rode along the wa-ter. It was a beautiful ride,” he says. “I’ve been up through the Halton Hills and to Collingwood, and this year I’m working my way along the Lake Erie coast.”

Loves the ridePatrick and Mary Robillard love the

motorcycle ride from Hamilton to Port Dover. Patrick has been riding for about 20 years and Mary is content as a passen-ger. “I like to be able to look around at all of the sites while he drives,” she says. The two currently ride a 2000 Suzuki In-truder.


By JOAN DOYLE

Ric and Marlene Hodgson celebrated their 49th wedding anniversary yesterday (August 12). Today, he is leaving his bride at

home and riding here for Friday the 13th.This couple is from Ilderton, Ontario, a

small town north of London that was put on the map earlier this year during the Vancou-ver Olympics by the ice dance team of Tessa

Marlene and Ric Hodgson took a 9,000 km trip last year to Calgary. They trav-elled all that way on their 2001 Honda Gold Wing.

9,000 km ride to Calgary

Virtue and Scott Moir.Ric and Marlene own a 2001 Honda Gold

Wing with an 1800 cc. engine. Their machine weighs 900 pounds and is a very bright yel-low. “You can definitely see it coming,” Ric chuckled during a recent Sunday trip to Port Dover. It has a CB radio, a GPS and the directional signals are in the mirrors, that helps to make their movements more vis-ible to others on the road, he pointed out.

The couple was clad in Joe Rocket jack-ets and pants, that they appreciate for its durability and the lightness of the poly mesh material.

In 2009, Ric and Marlene went on a 9,000 km trip that they accomplished over three weeks. From Ilderton, they rode to Sarnia to cross the border into the U.S. They trav-

elled through the American Badlands, saw Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Yellow-stone Park, Glacier Park and then went to the Calgary Stampede. From there, they headed east to see the International Peace Garden south of Winnipeg and then back into the U.S. for the trip home to Ilderton.

It was just a great trip, he said, mention-ing that motels in the U.S. averaged $40 per night less than in Canada. Many also threw in breakfast. Why can’t they do that here in Canada, he wondered aloud.

Just a few weeks ago, the couple trav-elled to Gaspe. “It was a nice ride, even though it was cold, wet and windy,” Marlene commented. “I almost like that weather bet-ter than the high temperatures we have now (high 20s C).”

Toronto Motorcycle Show is Dec. 10-12

Just as Port Dover celebrates the joys of

motorcycling, so does the Toronto Motor-cycle Show.

The Toronto Motorcycle Show organiz-ers say it is the only Ontario event where the industry’s major manufacturers exclu-sively showcase their new model lineups. It’s also the official launching pad for the seven-city 2011 Motorcycle & Moped Indus-try Council new model caravan that travels coast-to-coast annually.

The Toronto Motorcycle Show is open Friday, December 10 from 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.; Saturday, December 11 from 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, December 12, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (South Building) besdie the CN Tower.

Admission price for adults is $16.00 and Juniors aged 6 to 15 are $10.00. A Family Pass is $38.00. A discount coupon for admis-sion is on page 16 of this newspaper.

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WELCOME TOFRIDAY THE 13THIN PORT DOVER

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By JOAN DOYLE

For Rick Carpenter of Simcoe, the appeal of doing a road trip by motorcycle lies in the opportunity to get a close-up view of ev-erything around him.

Four years ago, he and his wife Lynn climbed aboard their 2005 Harley Davidson Electra Glide that was purchased a year earlier at Rocky’s in Lon-don. It is the eighth bike that he has owned in his 40 years of riding. “Owning a bike is a hobby for me,” he said. “But I wouldn’t say it’s exactly a cheap hobby.”

The Carpenters, ac-

companied by two other couples, headed eastward for their holiday. Their route took them alongside the north shore of the St. Lawrence River into the maritime splendour of the Gaspe Peninsula, then into New Brunswick and to the Atlantic Ocean. “The scenery was great,” Rick said. “There is beautiful country in northern Que-bec. We liked the big hills, and seeing the water, seals and whales. We travelled about 5,000 km. on that trip and we were gone over two weeks.”

The three couples rode most days and spent their

Rick Carpenter travels on a 2005 Harley Davidson Electra Glide.

Biker loved northern Quebec sceneryevenings in motels, with Rick saying that he is get-ting a little too old to enjoy camping anymore.

Rick intends to be at

this year’s Friday the 13th. It’s a bash that he has rarely missed since the early days when few bikers showed up.

COMMENTSABOUT THE DAY ?

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Tina Nowell has always been a passenger on the back of a motorcycle and she intends to keep it that way. She’s been riding on the back of Wayne Penner’s bike for a number of years and the couple recently rode into Port Dover for the first time. Wayne has been riding for about 40 years and cur-rently owns a BMW 1200 GS which he picked up in San Francisco in April and rode home to St. Catharines, via Las Vegas and Phoenix.

Tony Harrison started riding motor-cycles about 30 years ago, and it’s been 20 years since he and his wife Tammy had their first date on the back of a bike. After marriage, along came responsibilities -- the house, the car, a child -- and motorcycling was sidelined.

“Now our daughter is in university and these are our new babies,” says Tammy, as she straddles a 2009 Harley Davidson 883 Low Sportster next to her husband’s 2009 Harley Davidson Street Glide.

The two recently rode into Port Dover from St. George, on one of their many daytrips to the town.

Tam-my took posses-sion of her first

bike just a year ago, the day after she com-pleted her mo-torcycle course. “It’s a nice thing the two of us can do to-gether,” she says, “and he doesn’t have the pressure of me on the back of the bike.” The two recall a ride to Sudbury and over to Manitoulin Island as one of their most awesome rides so far, but the ride to Port Dover is one of their favourites as well. “If we come to Dover, we come during the week, because we know what it’s like during the weekend,” says Tony, adding, “whenever my grandmother comes from England, she has to come to Port Dover. She loves it. If she came to Canada this is where she’d live.”

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By JOAN DOYLE

BOB POST, or ‘Posty’ to his pals, calls his bright

red Cam-Am Spyder Road-ster “a sweet ride.” The ve-hicle, with two wheels in the front and one in the back, was introduced to motorcycle en-thusiasts a few years ago by Quebec-based Bombardier Recreational Products.

While Posty was not the first customer -- that hon-our goes to Jay Leno whose machine has the 001 serial number -- he’s had his flashy ride for three years. “This is the first motorcycle that I’ve ever owned. I was looking for a tryke like this. Actu-ally, my wife talked me into buying it -- she’s a darling!

“I bought it for entertain-ment and for a hobby,” said the Bradford resident who made a trial run to town recently in anticipation of establishing the best route here for Friday the 13th.

As he munched on a hot-dog on Harbour Street, it be-came evident that his choice in motorcycles has a lot to

do with being safe. “I’m a retired paramedic supervi-sor and anytime there’s a

motorcycle crash, the riders are basically organ donors. On a two-wheeler you have

got to be at the centre of gravity at all times. But, the chances of me being thrown

off my tryke is next to nil. It’s stable and that’s what I like about it.”

Equipped with a Rotax 990cc engine that runs on premium gasoline, Posty sounded like a salesman as he pointed out its unique features. “It’s trunk is ac-tually in the front where there’s enough room to store two helmets,” he said, including the Spyder hel-met with its graphic detail-ing that he wears.

The front of the ma-chine is equipped with six lights for night-time driv-ing. “You’ve got to be vis-ible,” he noted. There is one foot pedal that is used for all brakes. None of the braking system is done by the handlebars. And the rear tire is twice the size of those on the front, thus giv-ing stability and good han-dling on high-speed rides, he said.

As he looked down at the muffler, he commented, “it’s really quiet,” Now, that is a feature that is sure to impress a lot of Port Do-ver residents when he rides back into town today for Friday the 13th.

Bob Post of Bradford enjoys both the comfort and the stability of his three-wheel Cam-Am Spyder Roadster. Manufactured by Bombardier, its Y-shaped frame is similar to that of a snowmobile.

Retired paramedic picks three-wheel ride for safety


By JOAN DOYLE

IF YOU WERE CELEBRATING your 90th birthday, what would you like as a present?

Edna Bowyer of Simcoe thought long and hard before deciding that the best gift she could receive would

be to go for a ride on a motorcycle.Edna, dressed in a pretty pink pant-

suit, greeted 200 friends and relatives who gathered on the afternoon of July 17 at St. John’s Anglican Church (north of Port Dover) for her party and fish fry. About 4 o’clock, a thundering rumble could be heard in the parking lot.

It was Edna’s birthday present.Jim Jackson, also of Simcoe, had

brought his Yamaha Virago with its 1100 cc. engine to the party to give the birthday girl a ride. The motorcycle, that he has owned for eight years, was decked out with streamers, balloons and a sign on the back about Edna’s 90th birthday.

“I’ve known Edna’s son Bruce and her daughter-in-law for quite awhile,” he said, “and I’ve known Edna from the Simcoe Horticulture Society. I joined 20 years ago and she was already a member.”

As party guests watched, Edna put on a borrowed helmet, black leather jacket and sunglasses for the 90th birthday ride. “She

looked like a real biker,” Jim said.Travelling at about 70 kph in places,

he drove her along St. John’s Road and turned right onto Blueline Road to get over to Highway 6. He turned left and drove the birthday girl along Main Street in Port Dover and headed down to the beach. Then they got onto the Radical Road. He turned right onto Port Ryerse Road so Edna could have a look at the new solar farm. Back at Highway 6, they turned left toward Highway 24 and then proceeded back to the party.

“It was a great ride,” Edna declared. She mentioned that she has always been fascinated by motorcycles, but in her younger years Edna always rode a bicycle.

Jim said: “She was a good passenger. She really enjoyed it.”

Edna’s ride on July 17 was not her first.

It turns out that 10 years ago when Edna celebrated her 80th birthday, she also wanted a motorcycle ride as a pres-ent. Jim obliged. “That time she was wearing a dress and high heels when she got on,” he recalled.

Now that Edna’s 90th birthday celebra-tions are over, she has already got her eye on her next big birthday. “Jim has prom-ised me another ride when I turn 100,” she said with a laugh.

It was a wish come true when motorcycle owner Jim Jackson showed up at Edna Bowyer’s 90th birthday party to give her a ride. Contributed Photo

Edna’s 90th birthday present was a bike ride


By DONNA McMILLAN

A Mother/Daughter team will be motorcycling from Newfoundland to Vancou-ver to raise money for SOS Children’s Villages Canada, stopping in Port Dover on Friday, August 13th.

Blanca Scanlon-Sharpe and her mother, Kathy Sharpe, planned to leave St. John’s Newfoundland on August 2 on their riding ad-venture. Inspired by some recent motorcycle movies, a desire to do something to give back and knowing motorcycling is a common ground for both, they de-cided to establish a mother/daughter ride and invite others to join them. During their 25-day journey, they will be hitting major cities in most provinces. Accom-panying riders are asked to collect pledges of a suggest-ed minimum of $250. They hope to raise $2 million over the next three years.

Kathy Sharpe has been

riding for more than 25 years. She has done 5 or 6 tours of Europe, ridden in North Africa and crossed from Europe into Asia over the Bosphorus Bridge. In an internet video, she talks of riding through floods, in the desert, in hail and with almost hurricane winds.

“Mom is more of a biker chick than I am,” Blanca said.

SOS Children’s Villages Canada raises orphaned and abandoned children throughout the world, as well as helping poor families care for their children.

The co-founders of Mother-

Daughter Ride, the two have established a website mdride.com where sponsors, donors and interested riders can view the details and help support the ride. Some sponsors in-clude: Comfort Inn; Holiday Inn; Quality Hotel; Belt Drive Betty; Yamaha; BMW; Toronto Motorcycle Show; and others.

A Silver Maple Tree of Remembrance was planted on May 21 this year by offi-cials of the Canadian Mo-torcycle Association and local dignitaries. It can be seen near the entrance to Kinsmen Park, entrance off Highway 6 in the east-ern part of town (one kilo-metre from the lift bridge).

CEO Marilyn Bast-edo explained during the planting ceremony that was celebrating Traffic Safety Week, “planting the Tree of Remembrance is in memory of the motor-cycle riders who have died

on our roads.”CEO Bastedo stated the

reason for planting the tree in this community, “is because motorcyclists always feel so welcomed here in Port Dover,” add-ing that the association headquartered in Hamil-ton did not even consider another location.

She issued an open invi-tation to all riders and lo-cal citizens, saying “come anytime to visit this site.” Eventually it is planned to have a plaque and a bench there.

The gathering was in-

formed a special Day of Remembrance will take place near the tree in Kins-men Park on November 18, 2010. It will honour the memory of people who have died in motorcycle accidents so their families can have a designated day of remembrance.

National Road Safety is being emphasized to reduce the number of deaths. The number of fa-talities has been going up since 2007 but it must also be considered that there are many more motor-cycles on the roads. While

stressing highway safety CMA’s Government Liai-son, Road Safety & Land Use Issues officer David Stewart, stated that “in ed-ucating our own riders, we must educate car drivers to check their ‘blind spots’ when driving and to be watching what is around them.”

At the tree-planting ceremony Norfolk County Mayor Dennis Travale commented, “this memo-rial tree planted today is to remember not only the deaths that occur, but that safety is paramount.”

Mother/Daughter Ride coming to Port Dover

Memorial tree planted for bikers


Welcomebikersand

visitors to

Port Dover.

Pleaseenjoy

our townand planto visit

us againduring

the year.


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Day trips bring couple to Port Dover on a regular basis

By JOAN DOYLE

Dean Rudge and Pam Tervo enjoy going on day trips and one of their favourite destinations is Port Dover.

The Welland couple was spotted in town recently with Dean’s new Harley-Davidson Road King Clas-sic. He purchased it eight months ago from Clare’s in Niagara-on-the-Lake. It is the eighth bike that he has owned since starting out on a scooter when he was 12 years old.

The couple usually rides in a group and they prefer travelling on the secondary highways.

“Every Sunday we pick a place on the map and go someplace different,” Pam said. “We’ve done day trips to Port Stanley, Long Point, Turkey Point, Paris, Sim-coe, Delhi and here to Port Dover. We actually come here a lot.

“Capt’n Billy’s is our favourite place to eat. They serve really good pizza there,” she said.

Pam said that the Harley is a comfortable bike for her to ride as a passenger. While Dean is concentrat-ing on driving, she gets to look around and enjoy the scenery.

Dean Rudge and Pam Tervo enjoy making a day trip to Port Dover on his Harley-Davidson Road King Classic. While he drives, it’s a comfortable ride for passenger Pam who can enjoy the scenery.

Business Directory


By JOAN DOYLE

Three stock cars that compete in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series are on dis-play in the parking lot at The Arbor hotdog stand this weekend.

The vehicles belong to St. Williams resi-dent Rob McConnell. From Monday to Fri-day, he is the owner of Hal-Nor Plumbing & Heating, now in its sixth year of busi-ness. But come the weekend, he and his crew -- most of whom are fellow plumbers and their significant others -- are off to the track at least four or five times in a season

“I’ve always been a NASCAR fan and I’ve always wanted to own a stock car,” Mr. McConnell said. He bought his first car seven years ago. Since then, his stable has expanded to include two others. Two start-ed out as Chevrolet Monte Carlos and the third was originally an Impala. Through the efforts of Mr. McConnell and his crew, they have been overhauled, modified and reincarnated as stock cars.

One is specifically for racing on oval tracks. Another is for racing on road cours-es, and the third is a show car.

They are all numbered with ‘13’. “Peo-ple think 13 is an unlucky number,” he said, “but fans always cheer us on. Every-body wants good luck for #13.”

Stock car fans may have seen his cars among the roaring engines and squealing tires at racetracks in Cayuga, Delaware, Mosport and at Kawartha Speedway.

One car actually made its debut in the racing world a month ago at the Toronto Honda Indy. As the Canadian Heroes car, it’s wrapped in a Canadian flag and is a motorized tribute to our soldiers in Af-ghanistan. Driven by Trevor Monaghan of Hamilton, that race along Toronto’s Lake-shore got off to a great start for Car #13, it clocked an all-out speed of 160 mph. But with only two laps to go, it suffered battery failure, causing it to drop to 24th place in a field of 31 racers.

Rob McConnell and crew are show-casing the cars during Friday the 13th in the hopes of raising some much-needed cash to supplement a shoe-string budget. “I don’t have a big corporate sponsor, so we’ve always relied upon smaller spon-sors,” he stated.

Participating in one race costs about $15,000, Mr. McConnell noted, adding to do the whole NASCAR series would cost about $400,000, “...so that’s why we only do the local races.”

The crew plans to take #13 to the Kawar-tha Speedway on September 25 to compete in the 13th race. To make that race date happen, Mr. McConnell has a couple fund-raisers at his display in The Arbor parking lot. He is selling men’s and ladies’ shirts for $25 each, and purchasers get to sign their names on #13.

For those mechanically inclined, he is also having Pit Stop Challenges to see who can change a tire the fastest. In the Canadi-an NASCAR racing world, rules allow two

tires to be changed in 14 seconds, he said. Any purse money that is won at a race

will be put toward the building of memori-als in the hometowns of Canadian soldiers who have fallen while on tours of duty in Afghanistan. “We’re showing awareness for the war and we are hoping everyone does come home safely,” Mr. McConnell said.

One of #13’s crew -- Matt Bergeron -- is going on a tour of duty to Afghanistan in a month’s time.

Friday the 13th brings #13 stock cars to town


By JOAN DOYLE

Reva, who won’t give her last name, receives a lot of compliments about the colour of her motorcycle. Her 2002 Harley-Davidson Sportster, with its 883 cc. engine, she bought from a friend, is finished in an

amazing metallic purple. It’s a change from the rou-tine black colour that domi-nates a lot of the motorcy-cles on our streets.

“Yes, I do get a lot of compliments about the paint job,” the young wom-an from Six Nations said. The same vibrant colour,

as well as lighter shades of purple, is also part of the personalized design on her black helmet.

The Sportster is the first bike that Reva has ever owned. “I wanted to ride so that’s why I bought it. I know it can be dangerous to ride a motorcycle. You sim-

ply cannot day dream,” she stated.

Since she has a young daughter at home, Reva only clocks about 3,000 km. in a season. Most of her riding is done with friends who enjoy trips to Niagara Falls, Turkey Point and, of course, to Port Dover.

The paint job on Reva’s Harley-Davidson Sport-ster is an eye catcher. Many compliment its metallic purple finish.

Metallic purple finish is an eye catcher


519-438-1450

Kim Matthews owns a 2004 Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail Classic. She’d buy another Harley in a heartbeat.

By JOAN DOYLE

”I love this bike,” de-clared Kim Matthews dur-ing a recent visit to Port Dover. She was referring to her 2004 Harley-Davidson Heritage Softail Classic that she purchased in Al-bany, New York.

“I’ve had a Metric and a Harley and I would buy another Harley in a heart-beat. It is such a fun bike to ride.”

Kim’s machine, with oodles of chrome reflect-ing in the sunlight, is equipped with a Stage 1 kit. She explained that it allows more air to circu-late through the engine resulting in more horse-power. In other words, the kit makes her bike faster, “... but I really don’t need that,” she said.

She also noted that her bike is loud, something that her neighbours do not really like, that is probably its only negative quality. On the positive side, she said, “This bike is good on gas.”

Kim, who hails from Delhi, drives a Smart Car for her job as a visiting home nurse. It gets 80 miles to the diesel gallon and she can pack a lot of stuff into it even though it’s a com-pact. “Would I drive it on the 401? No, I wouldn’t for safety concerns. I’d rather drive my Harley on the 401,” she admitted.

For Kim, there is noth-ing better after a long hard day at work then jumping onto her Harley and going for a ride. “It just takes all my worries away. It’s al-most as good as a hot tub.”

Harley takes my worries away... as good as a hot tub

FROM DOVER TO DOVER

In February of this year,

Andrew Long shipped his 1983

Harley Davidson from Port Dover

in Ontario to the Port of Dover in

southern England. While Andrew

enjoys riding in the English coun-

tryside, he has found another

couple -- Betty and Bob, shown

above -- who also enjoy sitting

on the Harley. The two seem like

natural riders.

Friday the 13th Port Dover

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