Hello fellow patriots. We are less than 30 days away from the 15th Annual Jeremy Redding Memorial Ride. We have been very busy planning and evolving this awesome event to make it better than ever. This annual event continues to grow and with that, there are always going to be growing pains and unforeseen issues.
That said, last year we had a few unforeseen issues and some self-identified areas for improvement. We want to ensure we always provide a safe, positive experience so we assembled a team of people work through the issues and recommend solutions.
Some of the items we identified were as follows:
1) Sound system is inadequate.
2) Awards & speeches too long.
3) Motorcycle dismissal, two concerns (3A & 3B).
4) Ride emergency stop due to mechanical failure resulting in a crash, two concerns (4A & 4B).
5) Unsafe riders.
6) Broken down motorcycle.
The following will be corrective actions we are putting in place to improve our processes. As mentioned, we take your safety seriously and want to ensure we are providing a positive experience as we want everyone to return, bring a friend, support us, and grow with us.
1) Sound system – it was brought to our attention that since we have grown, the crowd can no longer hear the presenters.
Corrective action – we will be using a multiple speaker, higher wattage system.
2) Awards & speeches – We have too many activities to squeeze into one hour before the ride departs and being pressed for time, we failed to have a pre-ride brief.
Corrective action – we will streamline the events prior to the ride departure to ensure we have time to cover the pre-ride brief prior to the Blessing of the Bikes before departure. We will have one opening speech, one scholarship award with essay reading only.
3A) Motorcycle dismissal – During motorcycle dismissal, there were people/groups that attended the event to support us (thank you) however, they were not going on the ride. This caused confusion and created gaps in the departure pack.
Corrective action – We will be establishing “The Hog Pen” for riders that are there to support but not riding to park separately from riders that will need to be released in the pack. We are going to attempt to release all riders going on the ride from one side of the parking lot behind the Color Guard.
3B) Motorcycle dismissal – During motorcycle dismissal, the first row was released and the person releasing the bikes ran to the start of the next row where they were parked and got on their bike to leave assuming everyone else would follow. A gap was created, and the Police pulled away from blocking.
Corrective action – The person identified to release the bikes will not be on the ride. He is also with the fire police and trained in maintenance of traffic. There will be one single person releasing rider.
4A) Ride emergency – Unfortunately, there was an accident due to a mechanical failure on a rider’s motorcycle. When this accident happened, about 30-40 bikes behind the Color Guard, all riders stopped separating the pack. When the second pack resumed, the lead bikes did not know the route. To make matters worse, the Jeep Club assumed the first bike was the entire group and left their post after the first pack went through.
Corrective action – This year we have approximately 20 motorcycles that the riders will be wearing safety green shirts. As bikes are released from the parking lot, we will integrate two “safety green” riders about every 25 -30 bikes. In the event the ride pack breaks, riders will simply need to follow a safety green rider.
4B) Ride emergency – When the accident occurred, everyone stopped and after ride resumed, the rider’s bike needed to be picked up.
Corrective action – We will announce at the pre-ride brief that if there is a rider down, or there is a breakdown, only the first four bikes should stop and render aide so the rest of the ride can continue to move.
5) Unsafe riders – Unfortunately, we had a few people that were riding unsafely and making those around them uncomfortable.
Corrective action – Regrettably, we cannot control the action of others. We will make an announcement during the pre-ride brief that although we appreciate your support, if you cannot conduct yourself and ride safely, please do not participate in the ride. Please remember why we are here.
7) Rider broken down – We had an accident which resulted in a supporter needing transportation of himself and his motorcycle.
Corrective action – This year we will have a chase truck and trailer traveling the route behind the pack to render aide if needed. This also helps the Jeepers identify the back of the pack. I addition, we will have the last two bikes identified for the Jeepers in the vent the chase truck had to stop and render aide.
We hope to see everyone again this year, we greatly appreciate your support. This email is being sent to everyone that we have email addresses for so please spread the word to your friends as we do not have everyone’s email address. In closing, be sure to register early this year as we are giving out a 15th anniversary poker chip to the first 300 people. Thank you for your time, keep it upright and we’ll see you soon.
Delaney & Todd Robertson
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