Thunder Press Article, April - High Seas Rally

Romine retains Top Fuel title… see page 87Harley-Davidson and American Motorcycle News FEB ’07“Riding with you since 1992”FREELOVE RIDE 23One day in LA when everyone’s a starby Terry RoordaGLENDALE, CALIF., NOV. 12—You can think of the Love Ride as a sort of bikerBrigadoon; a mystical place that materializes out of the early morning mists of CastaicLake for a single day each year, unchanged in all pertinent particulars from its last emergencethe previous November. The principal players are still principally playing, thecelebrity mainstays are still mainly staying, the Love Riders reappear in the same numbersand same leathers, and the schedule of events returns essentially intact. It’s only theSee “Love Ride 23,” page 15, column 1HARLEY-DAVIDSON’S RESTYLED FLSTF FAT BOYSUPERSIZED FOR ’07See page 34HOGS ON THE HIGH SEASPlundering through paradiseA scalawag’s retreatby Robert FillaPORT CANAVERAL, FLA., NOV. 5–12—What is 1,000feet long, churns out 100,000 hp and hauls 1,500bikers to exotic locales while cruising at 20 knots?That would be the Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of theSeas, the third largest luxury cruise ship inthe world, during this year’s FourthAnnual Hogs on the High SeasCaribbean Rally Cruise.The answer to the question,“Can you have amotorcycle rally withoutmotorcycles?” is aSee “Hogs on theHigh Seas,”page 84, column 1

HOGS ON THEHIGH SEASContinued from page 1definite no. The new question is,“Can you have a biker rally withoutmotorcycles?” Despite a lot ofdoubts on my part, apparently youcan. And it can be as fun as hell evenfor a jaded old fart like me.Now I’ve grown up along thecoast and I’m at ease with the water.But the idea of being trapped on avessel with 3,100 passengers (and…gasp… 1,560 were bikers) along withan additional 900 attendants, somehowjust didn’t… well, float my boat. But inthe spirit of adventure, I tossed myapprehensions to the four winds anddecided to swashbuckle forth. And what better way to start than a kick-off partyat the Radisson in Port Canaveral, the rally’s host hotel. That evening, I had myfirst taste of what my fellow cruising partners would be like—nonstop actionwith a penchant for fun that would not be denied. It was a wild evening wherethe bikers shut down the bar.The idea for HOHS originated with Dean and Debbie Anderson, seasonedriders who were somewhat burnt out on the standard fare presented by mostbike rallies. They launched the first Caribbean cruise in the fall of 2003 andlater added a second one that toured the Alaskan coast. Their attitude concerningHOHS is one of when you take the bikes out of the equation, bikers are freeto have some real fun without the bravado and posturing so prevalent at all the“cookie cutter” bike events. And it seems to work since theycontinually sell out all available cabins for each HOHS.Last year, the Mariner of the Seas hosted 1,200 bikers onthis cruise. This year there were more than 1,500. Theyexpect about 1,800 bikers for their Fifth Anniversary tour ofthe Caribbean in 2007. Eventually they hope to have anentire ship (don’t ever call it a boat) full of happy bikers.Riders of all makes and models are welcome. Theyhave no qualms about what label your two-wheeled passionmight carry. Although it may be tagged with the moniker of“Hogs” on the High Seas, it’s apparent that title refers moreto the participants than to any American made V-Twin.(HOHS states emphatically that they have no affiliationwith or allegiance to either Harley-Davidson or the HarleyOwners Group.) So what is the enticement that continues todraw repeat customers to this event along with newcomerswho have never been on a cruise before? Part of it has to bethe massive amount of prizes given away during a week onthe saltwater. This year, more than $400,000 in merchandisewas ponied up by the more than 20 vendors that had beenhand-selected by the Andersons to be a part of this rally.Other major motorcycle vendors that cannot be on handalso donate to the cause each year to promote the most important aspect of thisrally: the HOHS Dialysis Fund.This is the charity that was selected for all HOHS cruises and entailscountless hours of working closely with Dialysis at Seas, a medical companythat Dean and Debbie charter to provide dialysis treatments for up to 14patients while on the water. Since dialysis patients require treatments two tothree times per week, it is almost impossible for them to escape the routine ofstaying near their medical provider and enjoy the comfort and pleasure of anextended sea cruise. But HOHS charters the team from Dialysis at Seas eachtrip to provide this service for those desiring to break free from the mainland.This year 11 patients were accepted and they had only one goal: to have thetime of their lives.Continued on next page84 February 2007

HOGS ON THEHIGH SEASContinued from page 85A short walk down the beach we founda full market of locally made goods(and some very ambitious salesmen)right alongside a troupe of energeticdancers. This was also the site whereCaptain Johnny disembarked his personalRoad King (the only rideablebike on the ship) and took to the beachto toss a little sand and get chummywith the passengers.Shore leave ended at 4:00 thatafternoon as a ragged group of participantsmade their way back to theMariner.The next three ports of call wereOchos Rios in Jamaica; Georgetownon Grand Cayman; and Cozumel,Mexico, with each of these emeraldgems doing their best to ratchet up thegood times to a more fevered pitchthan the previous one. The wildest(not necessarily the best) “biker” partyhad to be the madness at Buffett’sMargaritaville in Ochos Rios (dancingon the bar and a water slide that terminatesin the pool bar helped encouragethe madness). But then my cabin mateand I discovered a most excellent timeduring the “free shots for everyone inthe conga line” at Señor Frog’s inGeorgetown. And the steamy time atCarlos and Charlie’s in Cozumel threatenedto overflow onto the streets anyminute. But my favorite memory ofthis island resort was of the beautifulseñoritas in summer dresses zoomingthrough the crowded streets on dustyscooters. Next time, I’ll ignore thewarning and rent a scooter of my own.And no matter whether you walked,stumbled, crawled or were carried backto the ship at day’s end, you werealways treated to a beautiful sunset—an orange sun melting into a distantpurple horizon—along with the knowledgethat you’d wake up on a differentforeign shore by first light. And that isone of the greatest highlights of takinga cruise, the ability to completely losetrack of time.A little adviceWhile we’re on the subject of bestutilizing your time while losing trackof time, here is a short list of my do’sand don’ts: Do take a decent camera(most shots will be embarrassing butsome may be passed down to yourgrandchildren); do wash your handsfrequently (a better alternative to fightingthe Norwalk virus than the consumptionof mas tequila); do paceyourself. You have an entire week todefile your character (and muchoopportunities), when on the islands.Do keep track of the time as CaptainJohnny will leave your ass—we lefttwo passengers in Ocho Rios andanother four in Grand Cayman. Nonewere HOHS members. Do utilize thetwo TV channels in your stateroom tocheck on both the ship’s and theHOHS’s schedules of events.As far as the don’ts: Don’t delay inapplying for a passport (mandatory onall future cruises); don’t blow off theexploration activities available at eachport of call in lieu of shopping orpartying (you can always get a buzz onback home at your favorite bar); don’tthink you can do it all (there is simplytoo much packed into this one week);and please, don’t think you are invadingthe privacy of the dialysis patientswhen they are undergoing treatments.They are strapped to a machine forthree to four hours at a time and appreciatethe visit and a chance to sharewith you just how special this timeis to them.And one final don’t: Don’t getin a rush scheduling time off for thenext HOHS event. As of December2006, all slots for the Fifth AnniversaryHOHS Rally (November 2007) havebeen filled. So unless the Andersonsare able to secure an additional blockof rooms or there is a cancellation, thenext HOHS rally with available spacewill be their Mexican Riviera cruise(April 13–19, 2008) that departsfrom California, or their sixth WesternCaribbean excursion, slated forNovember 2–9, 2008.By week’s end we had been treatedto a “bikeless” bike show (photos sentin and judged by Iron Works magazine),the previously postponed BellySmacker Contest (featuring some ofthe most rotund heroes on board theMariner), the Best Beard Contest (wonby Fuzzy while in full Santa-suitregalia), a tattoo contest open only tothose sporting HOHS tats (including agal who had a full HOHS back piece)and a Buxum Wenches Contest (youcould only wish to be shanghaied byone of these raven-haired beauties,arrr). And then our great hosts, theAndersons, surprised us all by givingaway a second grand prize motorcycleon Saturday night, a custom bobber.Both the trike and bobber were built byTerry Stonehocker from Gear Gasm.Mike Costic from Cumberland, RhodeIsland, rode away on the trike, whileKathy Buckbinder from Sumner,Washington, became the new ownerof the Gear Gasm Bobber.While a cruise may not be foreveryone, if you ride a bike and everdo have the urge to attack the openseas, wouldn’t you rather be surroundedby like-minded crazies instead ofsnobs? And learning the ropes concerninga cruise is much the same aslearning the ins and outs of any bikerally. By week’s end, we were a muchmore seasoned crew than when we hadfirst launched. It was no longer frontand back but fore and aft. No left andright but instead, port and starboard.Floors became decks and roomsbecame cabins. And for one shortweek, strangers became mates. L90 February 2007