Takes on Meeting of the Minds

By Matt (Dr. Vern) Driscoll

Wow this was my first MRF Meeting of the Minds. I can’t believe I waited 22 Years to attend! I went with Jen Dewitz a Member of Region 2A who is also the State Rep. for the MRF. Also, along for the ride was Laurie Fabian who is also a Member of Region 2A. I was not allowed to drive because my wife and Jen claim that I am too aggressive of a driver and that I may or may not have received a substantial speeding ticket on the way to a Board Meeting this summer. Again, I can neither confirm nor deny that that is true.
The MRF did not disappoint when they stated we would “…receive more information that can fit into two saddle bags!”

Thursday night we had a Meet and Greet where we learned of ABATE’s successes in legislation, since the last Meeting of the Minds. One of the most significant legislative wins, in my opinion, was ABATE of Pennsylvania’s 35-year battle with their State’s Legislature as to whether or not the State’s Motorcyclists had the right to choose whether or not they wear a helmet! It took 35 years, but with the tenacity of a Pitbull, they won the battle. Let that sink in, 35 YEARS! They never gave up! And that is what the 30 State’s Coalition of Clubs and SMROs do every day with Grassroots Lobbying.

I also learned from presenters about a myriad of topics about motorcyclist rights e.g. How to Strengthen the gap between Clubs and SMROs. I also learned how various types of Social Media can help SMROs be more successful in their Lobbying efforts. I attended a session on Public Relations which was very informational and eye opening. I sat in on a session where SMROs and Coalition of Clubs assisted in setting the 2020-21 Legislative Strategy. That was a humbling yet exhilarating session.

Pardon the cliché, but the “Icing on the Cake” was all of the Awards that Members of ABATE of Wisconsin were awarded. First, Jen Dewitz, who belongs to Region 2A, and who also serves as Wisconsin’s MRF State Rep., was presented with the MRF’s “Deborah Butitta MRF State Rep. of the YEAR Award”! But Wisconsin wasn’t done yet! Dave Dwyer and Gary Klinker were inducted into the Motorcycle Riders Foundation “Hall of Fame”! Which shows that Wisconsin is still a Power House in the Nation’s SMROs and the MRF.

It was a privilege to represent WI at an awesome National Conference.

By Cathy Dial

MOTM was very interesting with over 40 different SMRO’s being represented. I was very impressed to see that the event drew attention from Liberia which to be honest I, didn’t think they rode motorcycles there. Not sure why I thought that, but it was a pleasant surprise.

The conference was a great success. I feel that Indiana did an outstanding job and greatly appreciated that all meals were included, so that we did not have to venture out to eat.

What I took away most from this conference, was a sense of motivation. As someone who is still rather new to the scene, I found it wonderful to see how many women are actively making a difference in a lifestyle that used to be part of the “Boys Club”. I like the ability to connect with people from all over and brainstorm for ways that we can all accomplish a common goal.

When sitting in the sessions for sustaining memberships and the clubs, I was grateful that all of these members, despite what region of the country they came from, could put aside the affiliation or support for a specific organization and talk as brothers to ensure that the lifestyle and sport we all enjoy so much is protected to the highest possible level.

A very emotional depiction of the tragic events in Waco, TX was described by a club member who was personally there and suffered a great injustice and violation of his civil rights, made me realize that we are in fact, discriminated against and targeted by uneducated individuals. Even sadly, some of those in law enforcement.

I look forward to continued work with both ABATE of WI and the MRF as we prepare for BITB and STEAM.

Thank you for allowing both Seven and I to attend on scholarship.

By Laurie Fabian

I attended my first Meeting of The Minds and found myself excited and nervous at the same time.
Excited for new adventures, yet nervous for the unknown. To be honest it was a flurry of activities
and information. I was a bit overwhelmed! I met some amazing people from all over the country.
The sessions were very informative and inspirational, and I left there with a renewed sense of purpose
and excitement to become more involved.

Thank you to A.B.A.T.E. of Indiana for your hospitality.

By Jessica Brennan

Last year was my first adventure at Meeting of the Minds where I received the Young Activist Award. This year I got the full experience as a general member of ABATE of Wisconsin. My favorite session was probably Thursday night’s Slides of Fame, where each SMRO was able to share their accomplishments over the past year. This gives people an opportunity to hear about issues that hadn’t been considered yet, and to congratulate groups on wins. I also enjoyed learning about this year’s young activists, Haley and Christopher. As a young person myself, it is always good to see that there are others who are getting involved with motorcyclist rights issues. I attended many breakout sessions including MRF A&E, Public Relations, and Advocacy. Saturday night was the banquet and awards event, which is always a good time, especially when Wisconsin ABATE members get recognized.

By Dave Dwyer

The Thursday evening start of the Meeting of the Minds is one of my favorite sessions. After the MRF Board Members introduce themselves the stage is turned over to the States Rights Organizations in attendance. This is called Meet the States and gives the SMRO Leaders a few minutes to tell the crowd what has been going on back home for the last year. 30 SMROs sent in information this year, though only 27 were on hand to present it live.
As expected, many SMROs are struggling financially this year because of the lack of fund raising events they have been able to hold. Despite that, some SMROS had considerable successes, the most important was Missouri winning their battle to ride helmet free. They have been fighting for this for most of 40 years. Last year they had a win in their Legislature only to see a last minute veto dash their hopes.

Friday morning we heard from Rocky, our MRF Lobbyist, on the state of our Legislative Agenda in Washington D. C. The House of Representatives version of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act was a wonderful vehicle for including our Agenda items in. This bill started at 894 pages in Committee and ballooned to 2,309 pages by the time it was passed on the House floor.

Major wins for Motorcyclists included retaining the ban on NHTSA lobbying against us, a 30% increase in Motorcycle Safety Training funds, the retention of prohibition of the use of Federal funds for Motorcycle only checkpoints, Mode of Transportation added to Race and Ethnicity as Data Point in the collection of data on traffic stops. Reestablishment of the Motorcycle Advisory council with one seat designated for a National Motorcycle Foundation, (thank you Rep. Gallagher) and including Motorcycles in Automated Vehicle studies along with a dedicated seat on a Working Group for a Motorcyclists Rights Group.

The bill was then sent to the Senate where it died. With the Senate divided along party lines and the need to have 60 votes to pass bills, there was no hope that either the House bill or a Senate bill would pass before the Sept. 30 expiration of the current bill, so a continuing resolution was passed to maintain the current funding levels for another year. Not all is lost though, when Congress comes back into session next year there is a very good possibility that all the policy provisions will be included.

Next on the agenda was the presentation of State Federal Legislative Awards where ABATE of Wisconsin was recognized for passing our Autocycle Bill.

Following the break was a presentation on Motorcycle Riders Foundation Awareness and Education, a501c3 organization that sponsors the Young Activist Program and they help to fund some of the Educational workshops at MOTM. Existing as a separate organization, they are not a part of the MRF, though the goals of the MRF and MRFA&E are closely aligned. If you are looking for a Charitable Organization to make a tax-deductible donation to make sure you check them out at mrfae.org.

MRF has a State Reps program that asks members to be the liaison between the MRF and their SMRO. Every year the MRF honors the State Rep they feel has best fulfilled the goals of that position. Nominations are made by the Leaders of the SMROs, and this year our own Jen Dewitz was honored with the Deb Butitta Rep if the Year award. Seeing Jen work tirelessly all year to advance both the MRF and ABATE of Wisconsin I am not surprised she was awarded this honor. Congrats Jen, very richly deserved.

For another year ABATE of WI leads all categories of MRF Membership except for Sustaining Motorcycle Clubs. We have the most Individual and the most Sustaining MRF Members of any state. My personal opinion is that at least part of this continued leadership in these categories is due to the importance the Leadership of ABATE of WI puts on MRF membership and the willingness of our Members to support the work the MRF and ABATE of WI does in Washington D. C.

My next job was helping Rocky and Jay Jackson in the Legislative Strategy Session. This is where the SSMROs discuss and set the Federal Legislative Agenda for themselves and the MRF for the coming year. As usual, there was some lively discussion on some of the issues, but in the end, agreement was reached, and the Legislative Priorities set.

I finished out Friday by helping with the Election of MRF State Reps Rep to the BOD in the Reps meeting. Two State Reps hold positions on the MRF BOD representing the needs of the State Reps. They are elected in alternating years, and as Chairman of the MRF Elections Committee running that election is part of my job.
Saturday morning Hardtail gave the State of the MRF address along with the MRF Financial Report. The MRF is healthy, but needs to grow Membership to stay that way. If you are a Member, thank you. If not, please consider joining. You can join on our website www.mrf.org, or use the convenient application form in this newsletter.
Next on the agenda was the Executive Director’s Town Hall meeting. This meeting is keyed to helping the Leaders of our SMRO Partners figure out how to best work with the MRF. While directed specifically at the Leaders this session, like all sessions at MOTM are open to everybody.

Saturday evening was special for me as Gary Klinker and I were among those in this year’s class of Freedom Fighters inducted into the MRF Freedom Fighter Hall of Fame. For those who have not been around as long as some of us, Gary was the Executive Director that had the faith in a fairly new ABATE member to appoint me as Chairman of our Legislative Committee way back in 1990. The rest, as they say, is history.

By Betsy Jennings

On Thursday, Sept 24th I attended the MRF Meeting of the Minds Conference 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. This was my first MRF Conference, so I was ready for my experience to start

Breakouts were: 20-21 Legislative Strategy (Jay Jackson); Public Relations in a Changing World (Cathy Brush); Bridging the Gap Club/SMRO (Russ Radke & Paul Landers}; Sustaining Club Meetings (Russel Radke); and CQ Using Technology to Win in Washington (Big Dave Monroe). Each of the breakouts informed me on why we fight for our rights, and some of the ways we do so. I want to inform people in my region and hopefully, they will do the same. The presenters, from all over the country, were extremely informative, knowledgeable, and down to earth.

At the award banquet, it was amazing to see the people receive their awards. No matter if you are a club member, SMRO member, or an independent, it is extremely important to be a voice in the biker and legislative world.

I would definitely go again and encourage others to attend. Remembering our fallen and giving awards to some deserving individuals. I would encourage my ABATE family to get involved and let your voice be heard.