Presidents Message - Spring 2008
Wheels In Motion
A belated Happy New Year to you all! I hope we hear of fewer deaths in 2008, as 2007 wasn't a good one. One of our past presidents, Earl Chalfant is no longer with us. Earl was our fifth president, serving the club in that capacity during 1982 and '83. That's a relatively short period for AMCA presidents, but Earl served the club in various other capacities as well. He was famous for his extra-long green Indian four, with the custom rear suspension and he developed an improved clutch for the Fours, derivatives of which are standard to this day. I met Earl over 40 years ago and I well remember him letting me ride his green machine.
I heard of another AMCA member's demise today as I write this. Bill Felton, one of our oldest members, is also gone. There is an old saying, "You can't wear out an Indian Scout." Bill tried harder than anyone I know, because his was as worn out as any bike I've seen still running. He used to show up on road runs and ask me if "I could work some of my magic on it"- in other words get it to start. I used to get it running with some mixed feelings, as Bill could barely see. When he was banned from driving, he got a fishing buddy who happened to be a physician to get his license back for him.
Another good Bill story- A couple of years ago, Bill and his lady friend, Kay, (romanced because she could drive) came to BC for a visit. We were invited to my son's in-laws for dinner and they said we were welcome to bring our guests. The in-laws lived on Eagle Island, which is a very swanky part of this area and separated from North Vancouver by a narrow, shallow channel.
The way to the island was via a shallow draft boat with a 5 hp outboard which our host Brian operated from a standing position in the rear. Brian is a very big fellow. Kay was no lightweight either. Kay decided to move to the rear of the boat to talk to Brian and as a result the vessel went down with all hands, in three feet of water. Kay was screaming, imagining she was on the Titanic, but Bill Felton, along with the rest of us were laughing pretty hard. It was one of life's great moments. Everyone walked ashore with no problem, bailed the boat, and carried on.
We have another good slate of events happening in 2008, beginning with the Eustis meet in Florida. For those of you on the west side, the Borrego Springs Road Run in Southern California is a good excuse to head south. Both are great events so I intend to do both. Club members will also be pushing bikes at the Las Vegas Motorcycle Auction in exchange for a generous donation to the Club by MidAmerica Auctions as well as some excellent exposure. We sign up quite a few members at this event annually. The Perkiomen meet at Oley is next- my favorite place to find those really early parts and machines. Next up is the Hudson Valley Chapter's road run in New York followed by the first "official" meet at Rhinebeck. Last year's experiment turned out to be the second largest swap meet on our calendar, so watch this event grow. The Viking meet takes place the same weekend in St. Paul and is another event in a new venue which is growing. If you make all those, you can then head to Angel Fire, New Mexico, for another great road run by the Rocky Mountain Chapter. Making all the events is virtually impossible, but it's fun trying. More events follow, obviously, but they will be discussed in the next issue.
Our ongoing discussions with the AACA Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania, are almost at their conclusion at the time of writing. We will be entering into a trial period of two years with the AACA Museum. If all goes well, and we see no reason why it won't, we will set up a permanent arrangement as partners based upon floor space used. Initial plans revolve around two-year-long displays of motorcycles having various themes, such as "The Evolution of the American Motorcycle", a similar display on British, European, and Japanese machines, and perhaps certain major makes. Ideas, lenders, and volunteers are most welcome from the membership on this one. The AMCA will get major visitations at this first-class museum, which draws over 50,000 visitors per year. Both parties are very excited about this new venture. We hope you will visit, and lend your support.
Cheers,
Pete Gagan
National President, AMCA
