ABOUT OUR ORGANIZATION
Welcome to the website of the Long Island Chapter of Women in the Wind, Inc., a not-for profit organization. Women in the Wind is an international organization for female motorcycle enthusiasts. We women wish to promote a positive image of motorcyclists, in particular female motorcyclists. We attempt to educate, encourage , and offer camaraderie to those women who have been riding without knowledge or support of other women riders. When you join, you receive a list of of member's names, towns and phone numbers. It makes it easy to find and meet another peer in your area with whom you can ride. WITW members are a diverse group of women with different occupations, riding all types of bikes. We range in age from late '20s to late '60s.
"WITW has 49 Chapters, 780 members total, with 90 of them being associates. This number does not include the members from Norway, Sweden and Netherlands". The Long Island Chapter was formed in May of 1997.
As of January, 2001, there are 50 registered women in the Long Island Chapter. The monthly meetings are held every SECOND WEDNESDAY of each month, at the Knights of Columbus Assumption Council in East Islip. The location is 58 Greenwood Ave, which is also the westernmost point of Hawthorne Ave., south of the E. Islip train station. The meetings begin at 8:30. Attendance at the meetings is between 15-25 women.
In 1997 we attended many events/runs held by
other motorcycle groups on Long Island. At that time, we had just formed
and were still trying to get direction. In that first year, guest speakers at our meetings included:
("HEAR ME ROAR" WEBSITE)
The year of 1998 had more spotlight speakers and surprises in store for our members. At our January meeting, Long Island HOG, Lead-Road Captain, Warren Leidel, was our guest speaker. His speech included rules of the road when riding in a group, including tips and responsibilities of a good road captain. At our February 16, meeting, mechanics Mike Timmons, TV personalityfrom Cablevision's "You Auto Know....", motorcycle segment, and Stephen "Bronc" Broncatello, of the auto segment appeared together as guest speakers. As on their show, both were witty and informative, covering aspects on battery maintenance, types of oil additives, gasoline and suggested oil weights, which was highlighted with their harmonious humor.
July, 1998, the Long Island Chapter hosted the Summer Nationals for Women in the Wind. Various members of Women in the Wind Chapters attended, traveling from as far as Wisconsin, to attend this event. More information on those Nationals is on a separate page below.
On August 16, 1998, we sponsored a "Run for Saira", at Cedar Creek Park in Wantagh. It was a very successful and enjoyable run, for all working one it, and all the participants. Over 175 people attended, we were quite pleased with the attendance.
In March, 1999 we had another visit from Gasper Trama. Gasper is one of our best supporters. Gasper has scheduled ERC courses, just for our members.
April 1999 found us in a different location. We changed our meetings to East Islip. The guest speaker at this meeting was Tina Calabrese, of Heart and Soul Community Counseling, in West Babylon. Since we have donated to this organization in the past, we voted that night to keep doing so, we enjoy helping local organizations who support women who work hard to keep their lives together. Our formal schedule began with the Blue Knights Bike Blessing. During the month of May, our riders met at different locations for breakfast or for brunch. The riding picked up considerably in June with the LIWITW Anniversary ride to Claudio's in Greenport. The next week was the Blood Drive we have been doing in memory of Laurie Cairo, (a member who passed away in 1998 from Liver Cancer). The following week we rode out to Montauk Point, then we were on a roll...
July 4, 1999 was a day none of our members who participated, will forget. We rode upstat to Camp Simcha, invited by the women of the Chai Riders, another AMA sponsored group. We met up with members of the Sirens, who were also invited, and spent the day at the Camp, giving children rides on our motorcycles. Also in July, we had many new riders join us at Port Jefferson on Tuesday nights, in Riverhead on Thurs afternoons, and also in Bellmore on Fridays. We also took a nice ride to The Lobster Farms in Island Park, a ride opened to family and friends, which was our largest group ride this year. The best thing that happened in August was that we finally received our not-for-profit status! Thank you, Lisa and Barbara, who worked so hard and long for us to achieve this status.
The August agenda was full of rides, breakfast meetings, and other affairs; we took the our first Chapter Ride our of state to nearby Ct, to visit our Sister WITW Chapter, in Bethany. Our August meeting welcomed Chet Smith and Dennis Eddy, of the Blue Knights X; these men informed us of the use of CB's to communicate on our rides. This is something our group researched and more members are adapting to this method. The last weekend in August was quite busy, there were two events: The LIWITW BBQ, also a group ride to the Freeport Nautical Mile.
In September our group held a book drive to St. Mary's Children's Hospital in Bayside, and also a back-to school collection of school supplies, which were donated to Heart & Soul Community Counseling Center in West Islip.
Fall found us, like squirrels in the Autumn, stocking up for the upcoming Outreach and Fundraising projects; " A White-elephant-type-auction," which generated money for the charities we support. "Wish Lists" were filled out, shopped for, and then donated to The Retreat, (a local shelter for abused women and their children), and also for families from Heart & Soul Community Counseling, in Babylon, NY.
The Year 2000, for many, had some "glitches"; unrealized reports of Y2K computer crashes, unusually rainy weekends, and unofficial President announcements and Election confusion; but ended with a beautiful snowstorm on December 30 (ironically "Nor'Easter"). Yet the achievements of the LI WITW Chapter HAD been realized, were official and did not end in confusion, but with positive and pride-full moments and memories for members who helped make them possible.
Our riding year began early, with the Trip to the WITW Nationals in Tampa, Florida. Because we had so many members present (18), our chapter was voted "Best Represented Chapter". As weather permitted, our riding season began approximately May 27 and ended Oct 22. We participated in many AMA Runs, and thanks to our Road Captains, we were able to complete many LIWITW rides. There were rides on Long Island, Connecticut, and upstate New York. Considering the weather and our various schedules, we completed 15 rides, an average of 2.5 rides per month, not too bad an average at that.
The Run for Saira was in the planning for many months, holding 8 run planning meetings at various members' homes; as the number of meeting attendance increased, we met in diners. The Run was a huge success, (again, considering the weather). The run generated enough profit to send $3,600 to Saira. Our last general meeting of the year, in November, was a special treat. Steve Sorensen, of On the Road Again Motorcycle School drove his huge tractor-trailer to our meeting. He and Bill Pfeiffer, Harley Davidson Specialist from Predator Performance, actually performed a basic motorcycle maintenance and winter storage mini-course. It began in the meeting hall and ending in the fully equipped tractor-trailer. Another highlight of the year was the Holiday Party at Molly Malone's on Dec 8, followed by the Gift Wrapping Party on Dec 10, for the family from Heart and Soul.
"You have not lived a perfect day, even though you have earned your money,unless you have done something for someone who will never be able to repay you."
~Ruth Smeltzer~
As you can see, we keep very busy. Our group enjoys actively participating in the positive things we can do for others less fortunate than ourselves. Our membership has become so varied, there are exciting and fun times, meetings, and rides. Many new friendships have been formed. Many memories have been made. As all relationships, we have had our struggles, but have become stronger and more unified as a result.
Our dues are $30.00 a year, which are prorated as the year goes by. These dues help defray the cost of small expenses, such as hall rental, meeting refreshments (coffee, tea and cake), and postage for the member's monthly newsletter, "The Nor'Easter", which goes out to every one of our members.
The Long Island Chapter also belongs to the American Motorcycle Association, District #34
(AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE ORGANIZATION)
All members of Women in the Wind must join the National Women in the Wind Organization for a yearly fee of $15.00, payable every March. This fee entitles them to the National Newsletter, "Shootin' the Breeze," published six times a year and a small WITW patch. Members are also invited to attend Summer and Winter Nationals, which are hosted by different chapters around the Nation.
Women are welcome to attend the next Long Island Chapter meeting of Women in the Wind. We do not pressure anyone into joining, and you are invited to stop by and see what we are all about. Our members may bring guests to special meetings. These guests will be asked for a $2 donation towards the meeting.
"I am an organization person. I believe in individuals banding together. I don't believe in unilateral actions. Some people don't like organizations. But it is always awesome to me when you can pool a lot of talent and a lot of people who have so many talents. That is when you really can make your program move."
~Hortense Canady~
"Alone we can so do little: together we can do so much"
~Helen Keller~
If you have any questions you may e-mail Joyce Ehlich, President, at (joisea@aol.com>
Or, if you wish, you may write by snail mail to our post office address:
Women in the Wind, Long Island Chapter, Inc.
P.O. Box 415
Stony Brook, New York 11790
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