Two years ago Andy and I attended California Bike Week. Back then I wrote about how much fun we had at the show. Each year as the time rolls around again I like to check the website to see what’s new and exciting. One of the major attractions of California Bike Week is the Love Ride. The Love Ride was founded in 1984 by Oliver Shokouh to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. (Having two nephews who died at a much too young age of this terrible affliction, it is a charity of interest to us as you can imagine.) Over the years the Love Ride has grown to raise money for dozens of other children’s charities. To my dismay, I saw announced on their website, that the Ride this year has been cancelled. The poor economy is cited as the reason for the cancellation.
Instead of the Ride, Glendale Harley will sponsor an autograph session with Peter Fonda to commemorate the 40th Anniversary “Easy Rider.” The event will take place at the dealership. The Ride is such a big draw that its cancellation had a domino effect in that several other venues were cancelled as well. All of Friday’s events, including Wall of Death, Stunt Shows, Ride-in Custom Bike Show will not take place. The Wall of Death and the Stunt Shows are two of the events I enjoyed the most. While the Love Ride has been cancelled the founder hopes that folks will still consider a donation to the organization’s charities.
Check out their website for full details and the address of Glendale Harley. If you live in the area and were thinking about going to the show I am interested in hearing about your adventure. Or better yet, if you are patient enough to stand in line for an autograph from Peter Fonda, get a second one for me! And while you are at it, if possible consider a donation to one of the organization’s charities. After all, while we may be missing out on a bit of fun, it’s the children who are really losing.
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3 comments:
I'm disappointed on several levels here. "Weak ticket sales" and charity don't go hand in hand with each other in my mind.
I would like to suggest that people typically want something for thier money, hench, they get to ride AND a protion of their donation goes toward the charity. If sales are low, the portion that does NOT go to charity is not enough to cover expenses. And there are more expenses than one would think. Here in NH it is required to have a police escort for large groups. The police don't work for free, as an example.
such a shame. this ride typically raises hundreds of thousands of dollars. very sad...
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