Auntie ABATE / “Cuz” Report

Two yearly major events happened in February. First was Officer’s Training. Wow, what a good weekend to gather information from other regions and obtain new ideas from the many presenters on the schedule. ABATE sure knows how to pack a lot into a weekend and I know whoever you talk to about Officer’s Training will tell you it was one of the best. I’ve been a member for 23 years now and I am still learning new things. I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks.

Chopper Gilmore presented a section on the price of freedom and what led him to where he is today. A first-hand talk about the realities of being in the Vietnam Conflict. His brother Slider Gilmore presented a section on how successful people become exactly that – successful. His take on success is to set goals. Something all of us in ABATE are used to doing. Krissy Bowe, our Marketing Director gave a very informative talk about how to get the word out using social media, one on one contact, and creating event posters. John Reblin went over the yearly income and expenses that we have – a real eye opener to some. We are a large corporation that takes all of us in our own way, to run. Our new Officers came away with a lot of information on how to successfully run a region, how to meet with Legislators at Lobby Day. On Sunday Hardtail visited the history of ABATE of Wisconsin / The MRF and how we got to where we are. The Motorcycle Rights Movement was and still is the passion of many dedicated people and ABATE of WI is the best. 50 years and still going strong.

The second event in February was THE most important day of the year for Wisconsin motorcyclists, Lobby Day. The halls of the Capitol were swarming with black jackets and vests. This day gives our members a chance to meet with the legislators we elected and present our concerns about the future of motorcycling in our state. From what I’ve heard, we were very well received and came out of it with some fresh ideas about how to pursue future legislation we would like to see brought to the table.

Both of these events take lengthy planning, and we are very fortunate to have the best people working behind the scenes to get it done. Anyone with suggestions or ideas please email them to abate@abatewis.org. Starting now we plan for next year.

Proud to belong to such a worthwhile organization.

Your ever loving “Cuz”