Robert
Goffinski, better known in the motorcycling community as Gopher, turned
70 years old last December and was trying to figure out how to
celebrate that milestone. He had planned
to trade in his 2015 Ultra Classic for a new 2018 and revisit Alaska, a
trip he and his wife Maggie made in 2013. However, after hearing about
the Hoka Hey and learning additional details
surrounding the event, he knew he had to “take
the challenge.” Gopher has been riding for over 45 years and has been
to every state you can ride to and every province, from Quebec west.
Gopher
has held many leadership positions in the motorcyclists’ rights
movement, some of which as State Coordinator for ABATE of Illinois, and
as a member of the BOD for the Motorcycle
Riders Foundation. He has lobbied on behalf of motorcyclists in his
state legislature and the nation’s capital He served as an elected
official in his local community and is active in his church and a
community service organization. He is currently enjoying
the eighth year of his retirement from a career as a union electrician,
Local #134 IBEW. Gopher lives in Sycamore, Illinois.
Gopher’s
friends think he’s insane but this isn’t his first long distance ride.
He has ridden numerous times non-stop between Chicago and Sturgis and is
usually limited to miles per
day by his passenger. Years ago, he rode from Prescott, AZ to Chicago,
IL straight through, 36 hours. Resting only for a half hour nap in
Tulsa, OK. While his friends think he’s crazy they say, “if anyone can
do this at 70 years old, he can.”
For
health reasons Gopher never served in the military but has several
friends who have and some have returned with issue regarding Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD. He has chosen
to raise funds for the Disabled American Veterans and the Christian
Motorcyclists Association’s youth ministry program. You can go to his donation page.
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