YEARS AGO!

...a few close friends of mine called and asked if I wanted to get out of the house and go for a ride. We would meet every

Wednesday night at different locations and would ride to the topless bars in the area. (No Ol' ladies allowed!) This went on for years. We all got caught up with life, families, work, you name it, and before you knew it we weren't riding as much as we used to.

Then one day we all realized that our kids were grown and that most of all life is short. SO! I started getting back out on the bike again and ran into some ol' friends of mine at the Sunset Grille in Annandale, VA . We would hook up every Wednesday at the Grille and would party a bit. Then one night, a good friend of mine by the name of "Meatball" started talking about how we all used to ride on Wednesday nights. So, myself (Rusty), Meatball, Buster, and John S. started riding out at 7:30pm every Wednesday night again. We would go to other bars in the area and come back to the Grille by 11:00 pm and close the bar.

As we rode every week, one, two, three and more friends would join us for the ride. Next thing you know, we had twenty, then thirty bikes following us. At that point, one of the guys talked about making it a motorcycle club. But, after we all talked about it, we decided not to go that way. Clubs are great, if that is what you want to do. I've been there, done that and know first hand what kind of life that is. But, we wanted to do something different. So one day Shel, the owner of the Sunset Grille, came to me and asked if I had an idea for an event. That night, I was out riding and passed by the Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children, Child Life Group. Aha! The next day I called and talked to Leslie Brady at the Hospital. From there we started doing the Run for the Kids. This was all in 2001. Since then we have become a non-profit corporation and have helped Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children, Toys for Tots, Animal Allies and assisted Abate (Mason Dixon Chapter) with the Juvenile Diabetes Run. In 2004, we, the WNC, sponsored the run. We still, and will always assist Abate. We have been in numerous news articles and on channel 9 News, 106.7 FM WJFK and 94.7 Rock Radio, and a few magazines. Getting this together could not have happened without the help of Smitty (Don Smith) and every member of the W.N.C. There are so many things I've not talked about that we've done. This year alone we have the Run for the Kids, Thunder Run, The Lost Pussy Run and we are doing an event with the town of Clifton in September, plus Poker Run, Car show and Chili cook off with the Fireman's Chili Challenge and Toys for Tots. Plus we adopt a Military family every year for Christmas.

We have since been reconizied by the Commonwealth Virginia General Assembly under joint House Joint Resolution No. 836 Article 4 For helping Abate of Virginia, Mason-Dixon Chapter with their annual J.D.R.F. Poker Run and Event.

We have also been reconizied by the Fairfax County, Virginia. Board of Supervisors, for helping raise monies for the Armel and Garbarino families. Two Fairfax County Police Officers who gave their lives in the line of duty. So to whoever reads this, who was a part of making this happen, feel every, every good about yourself, because without you, WE WOULD NOT and COULD NOT do this. So take a good look in the mirror and say, Thank you! And just so you all know... WE'RE NOT DONE YET!