Welcome

The Border Riders Motorcycle Club (BRMC) is an organized group of guys who like to ride and camp.  Our membership spans the Pacific Northwest, with the greatest participation in Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver B.C.  We have one of the largest memberships of gay clubs in North America, and welcome like-minded guests to join us on our monthly club events and local activities during the riding months.  Check the main page of the website at http://borderriders.com for additional information. 

October Club Meeting Recap

Despite the sunny weather, only a couple of people rode their motorcycles to the home of Doug H. in Surrey, BC.  Doug’s home is in a pleasant neighborhood and it also is the home where he grew up.  A total of seventeen people made it for the get together. Five of them were guests.  There was a hour of snacks, good conversations, joking, and camaraderie during the hour leading up to the club’s business meeting. 

At the meeting, the main business included reports on the plans for next year’s riding season.  Chris L. reported that he is working on finding good venues for the overnight stays during the Fiftieth Anniversary Circle Tour.  This tour will take seven days and will have legs in all three of the regions of the BRMC.  Reports were made on the plans for the Meet and Greets in Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver during the 2019 riding season.  There was discussion of how to make BRMC more visible in our Gay Community.  To this end, Tom C. recommended that BRMC members be regular attendees of the Back Fire Moto motorcycle group events.  Plans are in the works for creating posters, and flyers that members can have with them when attending such events.

Nominations were opened for electing the 2019 officers.  All of the current officers were nominated.  Nominations were also opened for accepting new members.  Kas C. was nominated.  Nominations will not close until the December meeting.  Voting to accept new members and to choose officers will happen at the Annual General Membership meeting (AGM) in January at the Cuff in Seattle. 

The meeting lasted slightly more than a half hour.  It was followed by a picture of the group in front of Doug’s house under a huge Canadian flag.  Doug then served a delicious barbecue chicken dinner with all the trimmings and the conversations continued into the evening. 

From the Handlebars of the President

Our “winter” meeting season was kicked off with Doug H. hosting the October meeting at his home in Surrey, BC.  I would like to thank Doug for hosting the rowdy group.  Doug put on a great spread but unfortunately I wasn’t able to stay and enjoy dinner.  I rushed home on my motorcycle, swapped vehicles and headed to Seattle.  There was very little traffic at the border.  I took the Truck Crossing at Blaine and pulled right up to the guard station.  No other vehicles were in front of me.  

The Amazon Spheres had a Corpse Flower in bloom on display.  The UW botany program donated several Corpse Flowers to Amazon and this was the first one to bloom.  The Spheres added additional hours to be able to see the flower so Tim and I decided to drive to Seattle and see it.  We had obtained tickets Saturday morning for the 10:30 tour.   It was neat to see but unfortunately the rest of the Spheres were closed off and we were only able to briefly see the flower. 

As we move into our winter meetings we still have a lot of fun to be had.  Our November meeting will be in Vancouver, WA and feature a Thanksgiving meal.  December will see the return of our annual Holiday Party and White Elephant gift exchange to be hosted by Chris L and Richard.  Then in January we have our Annual General Meeting in Seattle and followed by our Anniversary Banquet in Portland in February. 

Jeff C

Treasurer’s Trappings

It’s T-Time

A big thank you to Brother Doug Hutchinson for hosting the September meeting. Your house is very welcoming & very comfortable. Thank you for all your work and hospitality Doug, great job & much appreciated.

Treasurers Report

Our cash flow for 2018 is currently exceeding our 2018 beginning balance. The board has been trying to generate some seed money to help with our 50thAnniversary fund so this small excess cash will come in handy in 2019. This and the gifts some people have already made will help with the cost of our 50thAnniversary Celebration. We still need some additional funds to pull this off so feel free to donate.

That said, if any of you would like to make a donation towards our 50thanniversary fund, please contact me at Treasurer@BorderRiders.com & let me help facilitate this gift. I say gift because this is not a tax-deductible charitable donation. It is a gift. Contact me if you want details as to how this is.

As of the release of this newsletter, I have not received anything from the IRS regarding our Not-For-Profit Application. They say allow 6 months, but I can’t help but get impatient.

Portland Area Meet & Greet

There will be no change to the M&G until the 1st of the year. The Meet & Greet “M&G” in Portland will be from 7 to 8 on Tuesday November 6th at The Eagle on Lombard. I hope to see you there.

As you all know, I have been looking to see if there was a different place we might want to have our M&G. Suggestions ranged from location (to far north) to venue (no porn, it’s distracting) to non-alcohol (can we meet at a coffee shop) and so forth. I went to several places throughout the city and looked at several options and at the end of it all, I believe the Eagle on Lombard is the best place for us to use as our “Portland Club House”. The Eagle has always been easy to work with. The staff are very accommodating, and they let us put up that big poster board. Really, what more can we ask for?

There is a change however. Starting in January the M&G will move from Tuesday to Wednesday. The time and the place will stay the same. Only the day will change. This change was to align ourselves with our other Club House Schedules. Vancouver BC is going to start their M&G back up and that will happen on the 2nd Wednesday of the month. Seattle is moving theirs to the 3rd Wednesday of the month. This will give us a M&G on 3 Wednesdays a month and make it easy to remember if you happen to travel to these other places on a Wednesday. 

In addition to Portland’s regularly scheduled M&G on the 1stWednesday of the month, I am going to start going to a different location in a different part of the city for a 2ndM&G. I cannot promise to do this every month, but I will try make it happen as often as possible. I will announce in the Newsletter when and where this 2ndM&G will be. Hopefully those who can’t make it to the regular M&G will be able to attend this 2ndM&G. I’m thinking about calling this the Out & About M&G since it will not be at the same place. If you have a suggestion for a name, please send it to me and I’ll take it to the board for a vote.

Portland’s October Day Ride

Portland did try to do a day ride on 10/7 but it was rained out. Since it was already scheduled, several of us met for brunch in downtown Vancouver, WA and ½ of us went to Pro Caliber and drooled on a couple new bikes. We were joined by a new guest Chris who was a great addition to the day.

Those who tried to go on the day ride on the 7th ended up being able to go on the 14th. We went from West Linn, OR to Carson, WA, to Cougar, WA to Woodland, WA and from there we all went our separate way. Lot’s a fall colors and a wonderful viewpoint. The weather was dry and cool, and traffic was minimal. The road had its challenges with dips, sweeps, twisties, drop offs and pot holes. It was a very technical, mostly a slow ride, but lots of fun.

Stan

November Club Meeting

Our guest Kas C and his husband Chris will be hosting the November meeting.  Social hour will begin at 4:00 followed by the meeting at 5:00 with dinner to follow.  Dinner will be a semi-traditional Thanksgiving Turkey Dinner.  Please BYOB.  Cost for US members and guests will be $20, and for Canadian members and guests $15.  Following dinner plans are to head to the Portland BRMC Clubhouse “The Eagle on Lombard” for additional social time.  Directions and address for the meeting/dinner location will be provided in the confirmation email after payment has been made via the website.

2019 Board of Directors

It is time to begin thinking about members for the Board of Directors for 2018. Club Bylaws state nominations for club officers are to be done at the October, November and December club meetings with the elections held at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Voting is by secret ballot with the person receiving the most votes in each position assuming office beginning at the time of Annual Banquet.

Officer positions are President, Vice President, Road Captain, Secretary, and Treasurer. Please give some thought to serving as an officer of the club. The following members were nominated at the October meeting:

President: Jeff C

Vice President: Dan S

Road Captain: Dennis H

Secretary: John D

Treasurer: Stan C

Holiday Party - December 8th

This year our annual Holiday Party and white elephant gift exchange will be hosted by Chris L and Richard A at their place outside Burlington, WA. The date is December 8th.  Detailed directions will be provided in the confirmation email.  Group social time is at 4pm, dinner at 6pm, followed by the gift exchange.  Chicken Cordon Bleu with all the fixings will be prepared by Chris, Richard, Stan, and Alan.  Jeff will be providing the desserts.

Also, remember to bring a gift for exchange. Keep the value under $10. Both gag gifts (no pun intended) and fabulous gifts are encouraged. And, of course, festive holiday attire is encouraged.

Chris and Richard have invited members and guests to stay at their place.  Please contact Chris L for arrangements as it is on a first come first serve basis.   Also, Jeff C has a couple of sofas and lots of floor space if anyone wants to stay at his place. 

AGM - Annual General Meeting

The annual AGM will be held on January 19th at the Cuff Complex in Seattle. This is the time to renew club dues, elect officers for the coming year as well as conduct club business. Please remember that if your eligibility to vote has lapsed that you must attend two business meetings in order to be able to vote at the AGM. If you have questions about your eligibility to vote please contact the club secretary.  Please watch your email for you ballot prior to the meeting.

Anniversary Banquet

It is not too early to start thinking about the Anniversary Banquet. Jeff B has taken on the task of helping plan and organize the banquet for the club.  The banquet will be on February 16th to be held at the East Moreland Golf Course south of Portland. 

Calendar of 2018 Events

• January 20 Annual General Meeting – Seattle

• February 17 Anniversary Banquet – Vancouver, BC

• March 17 Club Meeting

• April 21 Club Meeting

• May 18-21 Victoria Day Weekend Camp

• June 15-17 Milo McIver, Estacada, OR & Portland Pride

• July 20-21 Evans Group, Kettle Falls, WA

• August 17-20 Goldstream Provincial Park, Vancouver Island, BC

• September 14-16 Bear Hollow Camp, Fossil, OR

• October 20 Club Meeting, Vancouver BC

• November 17 Club Meeting

• December 8 Holiday Party

Calendar of 2019 Events

• January 19 Annual General Meeting - Seattle, WA

• February 16th Anniversary Banquet - Portland, OR

   

Birthdays

We have 1 member with a birthday this month.  Please take a moment to wish him a great day.

• Don W

Meet & Greets

BRMC members will be available for new and returning guys to connect and learn more about the club and opportunities to participate.  If you are interested, check out when and where in the cities listed below.  Also, in addition to the club's monthly events, local rides may be organized, weather permitting.  To lean more, email the Road Capatain for specific details, or to ensure a member to meet you, at captain@borderriders.com.

Portland: Meet & Greet - 2nd Wednesdays, 7pm at The Portland Eagle

Seattle: Meet & Greet - 3rd Wednesdays, 7pm at The Cuff

Vancouver BC: Please contact the Road Captain for arrangements

Contributions of Photos & Stories

If you have photos and stories to share, please send to news@borderriders.com