Friday, June 29, 2012

Monthly Message for June 2012


Hi Folks,

The month of June is coming to a close with dangerously hot weather in the St. Louis area.  As I reflect back on the first half of the year, I would like to bring some thoughts to the attention of the members of Gateway Ducati Owners Group:

1-    Paid membership continues to expand thank to the help of our membership and sponsoring dealership, MotoEuropa.
2-    The experiment of having a second bike night has not gained much traction as of yet.  Due to my travel schedule, we will not have a second bike night in July. 
3-    The members of the Gateway Ducati Owners Group seem to prefer riding rather than going to bike nights, at least during the summer months.  This I understand.  I will be speaking with our ride captain about a second ride for the month, which may be the same route as the first ride, just a different leader.  Please advise via email if you like the idea: president@gatewayducati.com
4-    Our membership is very busy during the summer month with many items other than our owners group, so participation drops somewhat.
5-    Our younger members, who are often in the earlier stages of career and family, are very enthusiastic and are essential for the future of our Owners Group, but are pulled in several directions and often cannot participate in every event.
6-    The mutual support and working relationship between GDOG and MotoEuropa continues to improve. 
7-    We must continue to improve the offerings of our activities for our membership to enhance the Ducati ownership experience.  These activities need to be initiated and implemented by us.  We control the future of our group!


The takeaways from the above list of items are, in my opinion, that we need to continue to provide interesting presentations at our bike nights, have fun rides, and continue to support each other and our sponsoring dealership in order to make the St. Louis area a hotbed of Ducati related activities.  As of now, the same members are involved in planning and implementing activities and events.  Please advise me of what events you want to occur and at what level you are interested in implementing the events you desire.  Every member’s participation, regardless of the level, is important and valued! Please email me at: president@gatewayducati.com.

June had many activities for the Gateway Ducati Owners Group.  Before we get into the past events, get out your calendar so you can plan for the following upcoming events:

            July 3- Bike Night is cancelled due proximity of July 4.

            July 7- Group ride, led by Joe Henderson, riding to Steelville.

            July 19- Bike Night, Cancelled

            July 21- 2nd Group ride?
           
            August 4- Group Ride- destination to be determined

August 7- Bike Night at Triumph Grill.  The presentation is by Jeff Pittinger, Ryan Harrison, and Gary Kwawer on touring on Ducati Motorcycles.  Also, important information regarding the direction of the Ducati Owners Groups, as presented by the factory, will be discussed.

August 16- Bike Night at Café Pinxtos (?).

Also, per Pete Hall at MotoEuropa, the remaining I-70 MCRA Series dates are as follows:

§  Heartland Park Topeka - Jul 7-8
§  Gateway Motorsports Park - Aug 4-5
§  Putnam Park – Sept 8-9
§  Heartland Park Topeka - Sept 29-30
§  Gateway Motorsports Park – Oct 13-14

The track day held over the Father’s Day weekend was successful.  We have five more opportunities to enjoy ourselves.  Two of the days are in our backyard at Gateway. 

June started off with a spirited ride to Bixby and back.  There was great participation.  All riders returned on the vehicles they started the ride on.  What is clear from the ride participation is that the St. Louis area Ducatistas want to ride. 

The first bike night in June was a short business meeting where we discussed the preparation, processes, procedures, and etiquette involved in track days.  We discussed what we want in upcoming bike nights and different trips and presentations we can go on as a group.

The second Bike Night was held on the 21st.  As I was out of town, Vito Sicola led the meeting.  To say that the meeting was sparsely attended would be a complement as the only attendee was Chuck Howell.  As of now, the experiment of having a second monthly bike night is not working.  There will be no second bike night for the month of July due to my travel schedule.

The last days of June are ending with very hot temperatures. The forecast for the beginning of July is for very hot temperatures, so be prepared and be safe.

For those of you who are MotoGP fans, Vito Sicola and Andrew Quinn are arranging the ride to Indy for this year’s event.  Vito can be reached at vicepresident@gatewayducati.com for more information.

Please ride safely.  I shall see you at the events.

Sincerely,
Gary Kwawer
Chief Contact Person and President
Gateway Ducati Owners Group

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