North Shore H.O.G. Chapter #2147 Newsletter August 30, 2016

Please make your calenders:

Chapter meets for the rest of the year:

September 10, 2016 October 01, 2016 November 05, 2016 December 03, 2016

Christmas Party:

December 10, 2016 At: NOLA Southern Grill 1375 Gause Blvd Sledell, LA 70458

Fundraisers:

Ride for Elvis September 17, 2016 ------Ride for a cure (Breast cancer)

October 08, 2016 Remember there will be a decorating Bra contest Yes Ladies and Gentlemen can enter. You can wear the Bra or your Bike can wear it.

General HOG minutes 06AUG16 Call to order 9:40am Pledge-All Blessing-Joy

Anna (for Ray)--$7,317.79, as of 05JUL16 Spoke of Kyle's deployment, where he has no internet, so no newsletter at this time. Apologized for that and the issue with his mom. No apologies necessary; family comes first. HOG compliance requires 4 newsletters within a calendar year; have met the obligation of 2, with 4 months left. Anna will step in for the time being.

Peyton-Suspension workshop on the 13th of August, starting at 2pm. This will be the twentieth tent event...end of summer.

Joy---Christmas party, 10DEC16, Nola Grille on Gause Boulevard; $15.00 per person, after November, goes up to $20.00. The caterers need a head count. Menu includes mini-muffalettas, bacon-wrapped shrimp, and other finger food... Natchitoches-Festival of Lights,15th and 16th of December, Best Western accommodations. Rolling Thunder-POW/MIA ride, Washington, D. C. sponsored by the Manassas dealership, will have a sponsored ride to the Pentagon where the parade will start.. NO WEAPONS, OF ANY KIND, WILL BE ALLOWED on the Pentagon grounds. Get caught with any type, you will GO.TO. JAIL. Best Western has a full breakfast; cost of rooms=$120.00. Activities director will have the full ride route, soon.

Ward- spoke of the history of this ride, 30th anniversary. Informed members of the Friday night sunset ceremony, with the Marine Corps Silent Ceremony being the highlight of the evening. Ride to follow the next morning.

Dave- spoke of the safety problems with high temperatures, as well as thunderstorm riding, making braking 50% less effective. Ward also spoke about defensive driving, ESPECIALLY because of left turn fatalities. Dave said that the ride to Mandeville, to Mandina's would begin at 10:45am.

A new member was welcomed; Ken (Hardcore) Aycock

50/50 went to R. J.

Adjourned at 10:30am Change Is Good Author: Todd “THOR” Robinson

Just over 33 years ago, the Official Riding Club” of Harley-Davidson was born. At the inception of the Harley Owners Group the focus was bringing together the passionate and brand loyal riders of Harley- Davidsons. The concept was born to get people out riding and having fun. To bring together dealers and their best customers, to bond with the motor company and most important to ride and have fun with each other.

So it’s not shocking that when looking back we maybe could have done a couple things better. When we introduced the Harley Owners Group we took care to talk to the other MCs, rider groups etc. to make sure we showed the proper respect to the riding community. We created a historic logo, using an agreed upon 2 patch look. We took great care in naming our chapters, working with dealers and the communities involved. We protected our logos to make sure that everyone would know who we are and what we stand for…with one exception…the CHEVRON

The upper chevron was never protected by us. The thought was that the shape was not distinct enough to protect and the wording inside was different in each one so no common thread to protect. For years this was not an issue; however over the past several years there have been a number of HOG wanna be clubs starting up. Many of these are former chapter members who for whatever reason have left the chapter and are representing themselves as chapters. Some are national members who portray themselves as chapters; some are just people out there to deceive the public.

In our efforts to stop this trend and to be customer lead, yes we listen to you; we finally found a simple solution to the issue. We have created a new chevron that can be and is protected by our trademark.

The addition of the Bar and Shield to the chevron means that we can now enforce the entire 2 patch we proudly wear. This will help with everyone, biker and non, to easily identify who is a legit chapter and who is not. It will more easily allow us to go after those who are not legit chapters and those who misrepresent the Harley Owners Group.

This is a fist step in many things that will be unveiled in the upcoming year that will help your chapter grow, that will help your chapter get back to what we were founded for to ride the best damn motorcycles in the world and have fun doing it.

Be My Guest… or Be a Member

Author: Todd “THOR” Robinson Regional Manager

Ah yes… it is a nice day and everyone has met at the dealership for a ride. The ride calendar in the newsletter listed this as a “Closed Ride”.

Note #1: Closed Ride= Chapter members and no more than one guest per member. Each guest must sign an event release form. (Members sign the annual chapter membership enrollment and release form which covers all closed rides for the year)

Note #2: Who is considered a guest? A guest is anyone who is not a member of your chapter.

Here are a couple of scenarios for you:

 Individual is a H.O.G. member from another chapter. They are still considered a guest to your chapter, so they must sign a release form for the day.  Individual was a member of your chapter but hasn’t renewed their chapter membership. They need to renew prior to participating in the ride or event or else they are a guest and must sign a release form for the day.

Basically there are no ifs, ands or buts here. In the above scenarios, each individual will have to sign a release for the day. This is the process in which you and other chapter officers/volunteers are protected.

Does the guest need to be a friend or accompanied by a chapter member? No. For instance, they may just happen to be at the dealership that morning and want to go with your chapter on the ride. They should be welcomed to join in on the ride. Invite them along, be friendly and ask if they have ridden with a group before. Give them a brief overview of group riding techniques, hand signals, etc. and of course get them to sign a release form! Again…be welcoming to the new person on the ride. They just might be your next dedicated volunteer or officer. During breaks along the way, ask them how they are doing, talk about the riding and fun the chapter has. Let them know what H.O.G. and your H.O.G. Chapter is about. Before the end of the event or ride remember to invite them join!

Here’s a question we receive often related to the guest: How many times can they attend rides, meetings and other events as a guest?

Good question and the answer depends on the chapter and sponsoring dealer. For example, does your chapter and/or dealer consider it an issue with someone continually attending your chapter activities and never joining? If so, you don’t have a “guest” problem, you have a “membership” problem. Your chapter may decide a guest policy.is needed. Get your primary officers together and draft up a simple policy. Decide on what a reasonable number of rides and/or events a guest can attend to get an idea of what the chapter is about. For example, should you provide 1 free pass? Or 2 or 3? Meet with your sponsoring dealer for their input and approval. Again, make it simple and easy to understand. After a guest policy in place make sure it’s communicated to all chapter members at the right time and place. You want your chapter to grow, but you want to be fair to the members who have paid their dues to belong as well. Habitual guests obviously enjoy the chapter if they are attending many events, so invite them to join and get them signed up!

Why No Bottom Rockers? Author: Todd “THOR” Robinson Regional Manager

The following article was originally published in the Fall 2011 issue of Chapter Officer News. Because officers change each year, it bears repeating…

The Harley Owners Group® logos you wear on your vests and jackets are intended to be worn with only one rocker – a top rocker proudly displaying your local chapter name. Article X “Trademark License” (#4) of the Annual Charter for H.O.G. Chapters states: “The current H.O.G. eagle logo shall be displayed only with the official chapter name, which official chapter name shall be displayed above the H.O.G. eagle logo and within the official H.O.G. chapter chevron as depicted below.”

Wearing a lower rocker conflicts with the trademark license granted with the Charter. In the US the abbreviation “MC” or the wearing of a bottom rocker can have a special social meaning. It is often used to designate territory. It is reserved for the “MC” community and its members to designate affiliation to those mutually recognized in the “MC” world. The vests and jackets of people wearing lower rockers may become objects needed by “prospects” of other (three-patch) motorcycle clubs as a requirement for membership. Since the very early days there has been an agreement between H.O.G. and many other motorcycle clubs that as long as we do not authorize use of lower rockers, our vests and jackets will not be removed from our members. Norscot, our chapter patch supplier, does not, and will not, supply lower rockers. And, Harley Owners Group won’t authorize a chevron to go below the large H.O.G. patch. This is true even if the “3rd” rocker is not designating a territory and merely a nickname or club name. The use of a lower rocker violates the long lasting agreement that H.O.G. has had with the motorcycle club community. Remember it’s not only you that you affect by wearing a lower rocker but all of your brother and sisters in H.O.G. Please follow the Charter and respect the above agreement to avoid putting yourself in conflict with those clubs that wear lower rockers. Wear the H.O.G. logo and your chapter chevron proudly … don’t wear a lower rocker!

Todd “THOR” Robinson,

Ladies of Harley – 28 Years Later…

Author: Cindy Johnson

Has it been that long? Really? Yes, as a matter of fact is has! This afternoon I had the distinct privilege of having a seat in the 3rd floor offices of the Harley- Davidson Museum perusing old issues of Hog Tales magazine looking for information on when Ladies of Harley (LOH) began and what it started out to be. Kimberly Thomas, archivist at the museum, was good enough to already have the original LOH announcement pulled and waiting for me! Turns out that it wasn’t in Hog Tales magazine at all, but in the summer 1986 issue of The Enthusiast magazine. It described why LOH was created, what it was and how members could participate. The original purpose of LOH was to not only support women motorcyclists, but also identify and address the special needs and requests of women motorcyclists, provide a source of information for women with questions regarding the sport and to also develop activities for women motorcyclists. That original spirit of LOH still holds true today, all around the world, as chapters celebrate women riders through various events and experiences.

To participate back then there was an LOH enrollment form that had to be completed. These days all you have to do to participate is check a little box on the HOG Member Enrollment Form when you join H.O.G. or call 1-800-CLUB-HOG anytime throughout your membership. The benefit of checking that box or calling is that you get a patch, pin and LOH imprinted on your membership card. Plus, each renewal year you’ll receive an LOH pin indicating the current year. In addition, if you are a chapter member, chances are there might be some LOH- focused events taking place throughout the year. So what has changed in the last 28 years? There are certainly a lot more women riders in 2014 than there were in 1986. Plus, chapters have a lot more women holding one of the four primary officer roles than ever before.

But you know what hasn’t changed? LOH is still as hard to define as it was when it began. Since the inception of LOH, the H.O.G. staff has been asked questions like, “What exactly is Ladies of Harley?” Something else that hasn’t changed is the look of Ladies of Harley. The logo you see on the first-year patch and pin as well as the annual renewal pin is the same as it was 28 years ago! This is where we’d love to hear from you. We have a refreshed logo we’d like your opinion on. We’d also like your opinion on some other LOH-related questions, such as how you would define LOH and how we can continue to improve LOH. Please go to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Ladiesofharley and let us know your thoughts.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Save to Boobies Ride

Join the NorthShore Ladies of Harley in helping find a cure. October 08, 2016 (Saturday); Kick stands up at 10am at

Mike Bruno's Northshore Harley-Davidson. Cost is $20.00 per bike (everyone must wear Pink). Donations to be give to Susan G. Coleman . . Sign in for the ride will start at 9am at

Mike Bruno’s North Shore Harley Dealership . Return to the dealership for lunch. . Prize will be given for the best decorated Bra. You can wear the Bra or your Bike can wear the Bra.

Dealer’s address 791 West I-10 Service Rd. Slidell, LA 70450

Phone: 985-288-2443

Ride for Elvis Join the NorthShore HOG's in helping Elvis Atwood in this time of need. September 17, 2016 (Saturday); Kick stands up at 10am at Mike Bruno's Northshore Harley-Davidson. Cost is $20.00 per bike donation to Elvis. . Sign in for the ride will start at 9am at Mike Bruno’s North Shore Harley Dealership . Return to the dealership for lunch. All proceeds will go to Elvis Atwood.

Prize will be given for the best dressed Elvis

Dealer’s address 791 West I-10 Service Rd. Slidell, LA 70450 Phone: 985-288-2443