Hello! My name is Brian Ridgway and I'm a father of six kids, aged two to nineteen. When I'm not out riding my bike, I'm most likely doing something with the family. For the last few years I’ve been an assistant coach for one of my son’s baseball team, and have bounced around from one child’s sport to the next.
I've wanted to ride in the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge since around 2012 when I first saw someone pass me on the highway wearing the patch. Once I parked the rig that night I looked it up (I was a semi-driver at the time). I knew it was something that I would love to do; ride 10,000 miles, no GPS, sleeping outdoors, seeing some of the most beautiful countryside the states have to offer, and raising money for a charity of my choice. Unfortunately, I knew this dream would have to wait until I had a job that would be more flexible with me taking off work for several weeks in a row. Now I have a job that is more than understanding with me taking the time off to do this and a wife who is ok with me leaving her alone with the kids for a few weeks. These two things made it possible for me to finally be able to apply for the HHMC and I was thrilled to be accepted. The charity I have chosen to raise money for is Wolfhounds Legacy Corp out of Cape Coral, FL. They are an amazing organization that adopts dogs from shelters and trains them to be certified service animals for Veterans.
This will be my first run at the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge and my goal is just hoping to finish and raise as much money as I can for Wolfhounds Legacy. The HHMC will definitely challenge my riding endurance as well as navigating roads I am unfamiliar with.
I've talked to a few riders since being accepted and the best advice I've been given is keep track of your next turn. Another good one is if you see a somewhere to fill up, stop and get fuel, especially if you’re around half a tank. The third is if you’re tired, pull over and take a nap. The other words of advice I've been given is ride your own ride.
I do have a few obstacles to overcome while participating in the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge. One is leaving my wife home with the kids for more than a few days, but I guess that's an obstacle we both will have to overcome. A few of the other obstacles are trusting myself on the turn by turn directions (I feel a lot of U-turns coming out of this) and not stopping to check a paper map every time I think I may be on the wrong road. All in all, I’m looking forward to a great ride, for a great cause, and seeing some not-so-seen parts of our country!
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