I am planning on riding to the Dixie ABATE meeting this Saturday. The weather will be cool but beautiful! I plan on taking back roads from the east, however, if there is interest I will meet up in the Hoover area. We can meet about 9:30 AM and ride down Hwy 31 to Greenville. The meeting is at 2 PM at Bush's BBQ. We should get there early so we can have lunch before the meeting. Anyone interested in meeting up?
Funny you should mention this. I've been meaning to do a thread explaining what Dixie ABATE (American Bikers Aimed Toward Education) is all about. I don't have time to do it right now, but if anyone has questions, they can PM me.
Short version: We are Alabama's only SMRO (State Motorcycle Rights Organization). Our mission is zero motorcycle fatalities. Almost every other state has one or more SMRO. We are friends with the leadership of most of them. The MRF (Motorcycle Riders Foundation) is our "mother ship." It supports us, and we support it. Dixie ABATE is a sustaining member, as I am. The people of the MRF are members of SMRO's all over the nation.
Our methods are three-pronged:
Education of the driving public: We teach drivers ed students in high schools statewide
Education of riders: We advocate rider classes / gymkhana and hope to establish a scholarship fund to help riders take riding classes when they can't afford them
Education of legislators: Our legislators make laws that affect us, usually without any input at all from people who actually ride. We represent every rider in this state. If we have a sufficient presence at the state house, our legislators will know us and will consult us when someone sets motorcycle-related legislation in front of them. We strive to know what is going on with our legislators, though sometimes we fail. Autocycle legislation was all greased up and slipped through the process and was signed into law during the recent second special session, completely under our radar. We're not perfect.
We have billboards up over three cities:
(http://i756.photobucket.com/albums/xx202/KrisCook/teach%20them%20billboard_zpsjduflbdw.jpg) (http://s756.photobucket.com/user/KrisCook/media/teach%20them%20billboard_zpsjduflbdw.jpg.html)
(http://i756.photobucket.com/albums/xx202/KrisCook/Billboard%20Ginny%202_zpsm5vcorrx.jpg) (http://s756.photobucket.com/user/KrisCook/media/Billboard%20Ginny%202_zpsm5vcorrx.jpg.html)
We hold a state-level meeting every other month, in locations all around the state.
If you ride, we represent you. That is hard to do when we are not hearing from you. Dues are $20.00 a year for a single membership. That's 38 cents a day and we work 24/7.
http://dixieabate.org/memOnline.html (http://dixieabate.org/memOnline.html)
Tri-County Chapter (Montgomery area) will meet at Wal-Mart in Millbrook. 145 Kelley Blvd.36054. We will be behind the gas station.Meet at 10:30
KSU 10:45
Bluesman, What roads will y'all take from there, super slab or back roads?
31 all the way