Riders,

During last night’s Department Executive Committee meeting, we voted to start an attendance challenge for the American Legion Riders Department of California. The rules are easy and five winners will be drawn at our state convention at ALR 108 (Amador) next May. The contest runs August 1, 2018 through April 30, 2019. The five winners will have their 2020 parent organization dues paid by the ALR DEC. If you are a Paid Up For Life member of your parent organization you will receive the cash equivalent of the per capita your post pays to department. The rules are easy and as follows;

Attendance Challenge Rules

1. Attend your parent organization meeting without a Riders vest – one entry
(If you are a dual member, Post/Squadron or Post/Auxiliary, you get an entry for each one attended)
2. Attend your Riders meeting – one entry
3. Attend Rally – one entry
4. Take American Legion Basic Training (legion.org/training) – bonus entry
5. If you are a Post, Auxiliary, Squadron officer you will still receive an entry because of your willingness to serve our parent organizations as an officer.
6. ALR DOC officers are not eligible to win.

Submit your attendance on a monthly basis to your chapter and ensure they send it to the Area VP. We will keep track of your entries.

For God and Country,
Mick Sobczak
President
American Legion Riders
Department of California
www.alrdoc.org

Veterans First * Professionalism * Teamwork
Always with passion and a sense of urgency!

08/25/2018
9:30 am to 4:00 pm

RECORDING YOUR MILEAGE FOR YOUR CHAPTER

We have a lot of new Chapter Presidents and riders who might not know, but the American Legion Riders Department of California (ALR DOC) has a place to record all your mileage ridden during the year.  Whether you ride in a group or by yourself to support a Veteran’s Funeral, Honor Flight, Veterans Event, Fun Raisers aka Poker Runs, Memorial Day, Parades or even going to another Post for a Meeting, Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner.

Last year, the American Legion Riders recorded a whopping 1,099,050 miles.  My challenge to Area VPs, individual Chapter Presidents and Riders, is to get involved and get those numbers reported.  We are currently sitting at 95,304 miles for the year so far.  So get your miles logged, whether you ride 500 miles or 10,000 miles, we want to know.

The statistics don’t lie, out of 89 Chapters on the ALR DOC Website (dated 7/26/2018), only 31 Chapters so far this year are recording mileage.  We need to do a better job in this area.  We are missing over half of our Chapters contributing to our overall total mileage for the year.

Why should you care?  Your mileage is very importance because it shows how involved the American Legion Riders are within each of our communities across the state and the different types of Veteran Activities we support.  Our ALR DOC President reports these numbers to the State of California American Legion Convention every year.  It shows the American Legion how the Riders support their Parent Chapters by being involved in Community Events which reflects on them.

Who is authorized to log in mileage on the ALR DOC Site?  Each chapter has three Point of Contacts authorized to enter information on the ALR DOC Website (http://alrdoc.org/home.php).  If you need help, ask your President at the next meeting, who these 3 people are or just look it up on our website listed above.  Normally, the President, Vice President and Treasurer…but could be other people like the Ride Captain or Secretary.  If you are one of the 3 people and having issues logging in, contact the Webmaster for help.  Just make sure you are listed as POC for your Chapter.  Some Chapters have elected new Officers, but haven't changed their POC on the site or listed their new Officers yet.

How do I count the mileage during a ride?

• From a common starting point (typically your Post) to the event
• Mileage ridden during the event
• Mileage back to common point (typically your Post)
• No matter how many bikes/riders go on the ride, mileage is only counted for ONE bike/rider (i.e. 10 riders go on a 100-mile ride for a fund raiser, you only record 100 miles)
• “Pop-up” rides, Rides of Opportunity and “Social” rides are not to be included in the mileage.

By only counting one rider, larger Chapters and smaller Chapters are put on a much better playing field at the end of the year.  So, get out there and start recording some miles.

Is there a ALR form to fill out to record my mileage?

No, every Chapter has their own way to recording mileage, from submitting a monthly form (locally made) to an appointed person, such as the Ride Captain or Secretary or listing completed rides at the next monthly meeting to one of the POCs.  

For more Information on what rides count towards mileage, log onto the ALR DOC Website, click on Resources, then click on Safety and then ALR Cup Rules.

Every President or Point of Contact should be actively involved in recording these miles for their Chapter.  If you are having problems, email any State Officer for the American Legion Riders for help.  As the Safety Officer and the POC for this program, email me at alrdocsafety@gmail.com.  I will get back to you within 24 hours of receiving your email.

08/18/2018
12:00 pm to 3:00 pm

No flyer

MOTORCYCLE CLINIC HOSTED BY ALR CHAPTER 69 HOLLISTER

AUGUST 26, 2018 @ 0900 VETERANS HALL HOLLISTER

I am happy to announce and support the upcoming Motorcycle Clinic hosted by the ALR Chapter 69 (Hollister) at no charge to our members.  The Motorcycle Clinic is being instructed by Sergeant Eddie Chan of the San Jose Police Department.   This is a great opportunity for anyone who is able to attend this event and falls in line with our goals to become better Motorcycle Riders. 

 To attend this Clinic, you must RSVP, Mark A. Scherer, Sr. President, ALR Chapter 69 by email at send2marks@outlook.com.

Instructors Resume:  Sergeant Eddie Chan is a Police Officer with 24 years on the San Jose Police Department. He served in the United States Marine Corps from 1986 to 1992 and has extensive experience training police motorcycle officers and civilians’ riders alike.  Sergeant Chan has 40 years of riding experience, which includes being a motorcycle instructor for his department and with the California Motorcycle Safety Program. He competes in police motorcycle competitions and is considered one of the top police riders in the country. When Sergeant Chan is not competing on his police motorcycle, he continues to hone his skills at the race track.

Topics covered in his clinic include:

Street survival

Getting to know your motorcycle

Clutch/Throttle management

Head/Eye placement

Set up in the turns

Braking

Practice/Drills

Question/Answer session

All Riders are required to bring proof of motorcycle insurance, valid Driver's License, an approved DOT Helmet, gloves, long pants and boots.  Please bring your own water or drink, it will be hot.

Again, this clinic is scheduled for Aug 26, 2018, (Sunday) and all riders will meet at 0900 hours at the Veterans Hall in Hollister, 649 San Benito St, Hollister, CA 95023, and go from there.   Remember you must RVSP to attend so they can get a head count to ensure enough instructors are on hand for the clinic.

If you have specific questions, you can contact Mark Scherer at 831.262.4337.

Rob Carrier                                                                        Mark A. Scherer, Sr

ALR DOC Safety Officer                                                President ALR Chapter 69

08/18/2018
4:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Past Chapter 84 President, Retired Captain Ed Norton, rode in the NVAR from Auburn to DC back in May.  Upon arrival Ed was selected to lay the wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

08/19/2018
8:00 am to 11:00 am

No flyer