Meet The New Rider # 1227 Jonathan Kennemore

My name is Jonathan Kennemore  aka Jo-nathan from Mayfield, Kentucky, and I’ve been riding for 19 years. It all started when I was 17 years old, after my dad bought a Kawasaki Vulcan for us to share. At the time, he probably had no idea he was lighting a spark that would turn into a lifelong passion.

 

 

 

Over the years, that passion grew. I spent time riding sport bikes while commuting through college, but everything changed when I got my first Harley-Davidson and started taking longer rides. That’s when I truly fell in love with the road.

 

 

 

When I first heard about the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge, I thought the people doing it were insane. But the more I learned about it—the purpose, the challenge, and especially the impact it has through charity—the more I realized it was something I needed to be part of.

 

 

 

I’m riding in the Hoka Hey to push myself beyond what I thought was possible, but more importantly, to give back. I am raising money for  Action for Autism  in Fenton, Missouri, which provides therapy and education for individuals with autism, primarily ages 2 to 21. Their work helps build life skills, support families, and create real, lasting change.

This ride isn’t just about the miles for me—it’s about purpose.

DONATE: Everything helps!

Meet The Returning Rider # 966 Jonathan Santos

 

Hey everyone, Jon Santos here. This year’s 2026 Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge will be my second. When I first learned about Hoka Hey in 2018, I knew that I had to try it. I completed the 2020 Hoka Hey in 24^th place and made it to the end of the road party with a couple of days to spare. I am proud of my achievement. I enjoyed my journey and the challenge that it gave me. I got to meet a lot of new people, and some I now consider family. I am looking forward to this year’s ride. I am excited to reconnect with my fellow riders, nature, and this year’s journey wherever it may take us.

My biggest take away from the 2020 challenge was that no matter how prepared you are, you are not.

I do as many long-distance rides as I can but sometimes work gets in the way. I also try to get out and explore the country with my wife Carrie on the bike. Last year was her 1^st 1000 miler.

We have 4 children and 2 grandchildren, and they all know how to ride and enjoy it. I love to ride and I am glad that I can share my love of riding with my family and friends.

This year, I am riding for the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund. https://give.curealz.org/fundraiser/6514561

Thanks, and I am looking forward to seeing everyone out there!

Meet The New Rider # 1196 Jarrod Maloney

 

My name is Jarrod " Jrod" Maloney. Im 46 yrs old from Clarksville, TN. Got my first motorcycle at 15 and haven't looked back since. I'm an US Army Veteran and was medically retired from the military in 2011. I then went to MMI and became a motorcycle technician  for 12 years. I'm currently a Industrial Maintenance Technician.

 

  

My current bikes are 2021 Indian Challenger and a 2022 Harley Pan America. Ill be using the Indian for the Hoka Hey. I've ridden in every state in the lower 48 numerous times. I've been to just about every national forest, park , and every major scenic attraction there is in this country. I've been to all the oceans and every mountain range with my bikes. Riding brings me peace. 

 

 

I'm looking forward to putting my skills to the test during this upcoming  Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge. This has been a 4 year wait for me to get into the challenge. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. This will be a true test to for me. All I want to do is just finish this challenge. Don't care about any other status or bragging rights, stickers, patches, or who did it the fastest. I want to do it correctly and cross that finish line. And raise some money for my charity. 

 

 

I look forward to meeting and riding  with y'all in the near future. 

Here's my charity I will be riding for. 

https://www.workingdogsforvets.org/

Meet The Returning Rider # 998 Jason Jenkins

 

In 2011, I stood at a dealership in Las Vegas and watched Hoka Hey riders with a mix of awe and a quiet, nagging thought: "I’m not that rider." I spent the next decade proving myself wrong, one mile at a time. After years of Iron Butt runs, cross-country trips, and a pandemic delay, I finally transitioned from a spectator to a participant in 2022.

 

That first challenge was my "masterclass" in the reality of the road. I learned that all the planning, lists, and time spent in my "happy place" (my garage) are just the foundation. The real work happens when there is no GPS, the rain is falling, and the only thing moving you forward is the advice I received years ago: "Ride YOUR ride, not someone else’s."

 

For the 2026 Challenge, I’m returning to the starting line in Woodstock on my 2016 Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited. This bike and I have shared many miles, but the Hoka Hey demands a different kind of partnership between man and machine. I’m back to refine what I’ve learned—to embrace the uncertainty, respect the technicality of the route, and find that unique clarity that only comes from 10,000 miles of back roads and sleeping under the stars.

 

My mission remains dedicated to the Nation of Patriots. As a 100% volunteer organization, they ensure every dollar raised goes directly to U.S. Veterans and their families in the local area. I’ve seen the direct impact this support has on those who served, and it is an honor to carry their cause on the back of my Ultra Limited.

 The one with Utah Highway Patrol is when my 2022 ride officially ended. 

The self-doubt of 2011 is long gone. Now, there is only the road and the resolve to see it through.

-Jason “Dr. Tiki” Jenkins

• Blog: www.DrTiki.com

• Instagram: @doctiki

• Charity: www.NationOfPatriots.com

Meet The Returning Rider # 902 Kenneth Brooks

 

The 2026 Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge will be my fifth Hoka Hey challenge. 

I look forward to each Hoka Hey for the challenge it provides. 

After retiring from the Army in 1994 and spending the next twenty years doing explosive and chemical weapons disposal jobs from Florida to Alaska and years spent in Afghanistan and Iraq, I miss the challenge of overcoming hardship and danger.

 

I have now been riding motorcycles since 1970.  I would say my confidence level is as high as it will ever be after finishing three Hoka Heys, while only experiencing a deer strike in 2022.

 

I find fund raising for the charities to be easier with an organized group rather than on an individual basis. My charity of choice is Mile Monsters Inc 

 

 

Until a Duchenne’s Muscular Dystrophy cure is available, helping the boys afflicted with DMD live their best lives is my small contribution. Any size donation for our cause is appreciated and can be made at : Mile Monsters Hoka Hey Team 2026 | Mile Monsters Inc,.

 

My wife, Kathy, is my biggest supporter in all that I do.  Be it the Hoka Hey challenge, the Ride to Eat scavenger hunt, the Tour of Honor and starting in Apr, the Mural Madness group.  I can always count on her for suggestions, and to have my back. I couldn’t succeed without her.    

Meet The New Rider # 1263 Dale Mentzel

    Hello all! My name is Dale Mentzel aka “Nugget” rider #1263.  

Riding began similar to a lot of folks; mini-bike to dirt-bike and then onto the street. I've no idea the why, but I've been in the world of motorcycling all of my life. From college to study motorcycle mechanics, to a career turning wrenches on them and now back to college to teach. 

 

 

    I first heard of the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge in 2010 and was intrigued. Timing and circumstances in life weren't in alignment to even consider an attempt though.  Mileage up and mileage down years would go on by. Rooster #1116 came on board at my workplace. He had completed the 2022 HH and was preparing for the 2024. His wife Beaner #1117 would be attempting it with him. Listening to him go on and on about details, strategy, gear and an Amazon obsession was energetic (and sometimes annoying lol).

 

 

    Destination Daytona the day before the start was electric. You could feel it in the air. So i followed along on the ride tracker website. Tracker Addiction is a real thing!  That was it, I was hooked. What started as a curiosity turned into  self-evaluation.  To ask “Why do it” is just as difficult as “Why not do it?”.  With either answer, you will never be the same.

      +No one remembers the names of those who stepped aside, only those who are triumphant and of the fallen along the way.+ 

 

    The charity I will be riding and collecting donations for is the Mile Monsters.  For those who don't know of this charity please visit this link: Mile Monsters Inc   The goal is To help kids to live their best life. 

 

 

 

My Donate link   for Mile Monsters Inc any donation is greatly appreciated! Personally, I think the time in life is right for this challenge. It’s the allure of the unknown and a calling for all the right reasons. May the remainder of my days be for all the right reasons.

Meet The New Rider # 1353 Julius Harris

 

Hello, my name is Julius Harris.  I am 56 years young, married to my first real love Angela who met when I was 20.  I am the father of three young women ages 25 who is married, 22 and 14.  No grandchildren yet, but looking forward to it.  I have worked in the aviation industry for over thirty years and run a family-owned Tree Stump Grinding company for twenty-two years along with my wife and boy in-law.  I have been riding motorcycles since I was 11 or 12 years old. I have ridden all the lower 48 states many times over, Alaska and yes Hawaii too.  I have traveled all through Mexico, Belize, and six out of the eight provident of Canada a couple of times.  I ride a 2016 Harley Davidson Road Glide but looking really hard at the Indian Pursuit Dark Horse.

 

 

I want to ride in the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge because that word "challenge".  Not only do I enjoy riding motorcycles but LOVE it.  This is something that I have never done.  Yes, I have had to use paper map at times, yes, I have camped out and slept on and under my bike at a rest stop or gas station.  But not all at the same time.  This will be epic.  And also, to be around like-minded people who love motorcycling.

 

 

The non-profit that I will be raising money for is The Sancof Achievement Center based in Nashville Tn.  I was drawn to them initially because the founder rides a motorcycle.  But the work they put in for the young boys in that community is so inspirational and deeply need.  They provide a safe place to learn and be truly mentored to grown into young productive caring men.  And now they are in the process of opening a K1-k12 school for boys and girls.  I want to be able to contribute even more by participating in the Hoka Hey Challenge.