Meet the Board: Event Coordinator; Gary (Blackie) Barnes Rider # 662

Born and raised in the small country town of Quanah, Texas, a farming and ranching community on the banks of the Red River & Pease River that was a part of the Comancheria strong hold of the Comanche tribe.  The Town was named after Quanah Parker,  the Last Chief of the Comanches.  My blood is Comanche and  Scottish.

              I was a Texas Peace Officer and Game Warden for thirty years before retiring ten years ago.  All my life I've been riding both Wild Horses and Iron Horses.  New adventures have always been a part of my life, from working the Mexican Border to the neighboring states of New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas and Oklahoma.  On horseback I got to smell the roses among other things, but the motorcycle always got me further faster, henceforth my love of Harley Davidson's 

              I found out about HHMC through my old Game Warden partner Bubba Vincent , also a HHMC Rider.  I was living in Hawaii in 2010 when the first challenge took place..  Bubba called me and told me he had found us a new adventure to try, but I was in the motion of moving back to Texas and didn't have time to get prepared.  So I told Bubba , who rode in 2010, that if he liked it then I would ride in 2011.   He did and so in 2011 I made my first HHMC , which just happened to be the longest challenge they've had.  Starting at Mesa, Arizona ...riding to the Pacific Coast, All 48  Continental US States, Gulf of Mexico , up the Atlantic Seaboard to Nova Scotia .   And what a Ride it was...from the time I left home and returned home on my 2011HD Ultra Classic, I put in 19,087 miles in 22 days of riding.  The adventure was the most demanding challenge I have ever put myself through.  From the heat of Death Valley, 120 degrees at midnight, to 16 degrees a top Bear Tooth Pass...along with rain from Hurricane Irene, sleet, hail, wind, earthquake in North Carolina, lack of sleep and living on protein bars and jerky I fit myself into a pair of jeans two sizes smaller and 28 lbs lighter once I reached the finish line at Cape Britain , Nova Scotia.

 

            My first day gave me 1206 miles into my challenge and eight more 1100+mile days....but lack of sleep at the beginning three days caused me to hallucinate (Bad) from Lewiston, Idaho while climbing over Lola Pass into Montana.  You hear of people hallucinating , but until you've experienced it then you have no idea how deep the mind can travel.  I've always been a man of Spiritual faith and of God, and I've always prayed to him, but this was the first time I've ever heard his voice talking back to me.  I can definitely say HHMC has had a Major Influence in my Spiritual Life now !!!

            Since that ride in 2011 I have been with HHMC ever since ....after meeting Jim Red Cloud and his wife Beth, and being asked by Jim to come work with them, I have been a part of the Greatest Long Distance Family ever born....the HOKA HEY OYATE'S !!!   One of the great things about riding the challenges is the family you make with the other riders.  We're all definitely different in our own ways, but our cravings for adventure are the same.  We've been described as misfits and dysfunctional....and yes to a point we are...but We're All Warriors , Warriors who fight for the weak, helpless, injured, needy, disadvantaged and anyone else who ask for our help.  I have done nothing but Grown by being a part of this Tribe over the past eight years and I'm proud to know that I'm a Hoka Hey Warrior !!!   HOKA HEY !!!

  My advice to any new rider riding the  challenge ......"Expect the Unexpected" ...."Sleep when you feel the need"..."and stay alert" ...."they're all kinds of creatures that will join you on a HHMC" !!!

Meet The Board: Logistics Officer, Steve Briscoe. Rider #779

I first started riding at the age of 16 and I’ve been an avid rider since.  I joined the Army at the age of 17 in 1972 and after a short break between 1976 and 1982 I returned to military service and retired in December 2004 as a First Sergeant.  My military career bounced between leg infantry and logistics.  I continue to work for the Department of Defense as a sworn in DA Civilian and often find myself in harsh environments around the globe that, at worst, disallow riding and at best still disallows riding.

I am married with no children.  My wife and I both believe that if you are unwilling to do something for free then it may not be worth doing; at the very least you need to check your motives for every action.  I have been known to get articles published in regional magazines and local papers and recently published a book about my experiences riding the Hoka Hey Challenge. 

My first Hoka Hey experience was with the 2013 Challenge; I found it to be one of the most grueling, but most fulfilling events I have ever participated in.  I can honestly say riding the Challenge changed my life, but not as much as the change that took place in me from knowing the people of  Hoka Hey. 

I work well with a team that has a common goal, but will admit I lack patience while dealing with incompetence, apathy, or just plain stupidity.

Meet the Board : Rider Relations Director Junie Rose # 383

Many of you already know me from the years I have spent riding the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge and many are getting to know me through the challenge. As the director of rider relations I am one of the first people you meet when signing up because I do your entry interview. Once we determine whether we are a good fit for your riding experience and passion for others we go from there. My job as the interviewer is to determine, as best as I can from a phone conversation, if you understand what is asked of you.

I absolutely LOVE to ride motorcycles. I love the people I meet on the road and at motorcycle events. Riding in the dirt as a kid in Illinois is were I had my first riding experience and from there occasionally road but did not get real serious until my kids were older. My first Harley was a 2006 Smoky Gold and Black Fatboy. I went in for boots and came out with a bike. From there I started taking trips on the bike usually with one of my kids on the back. 10 miles of dirt roads in the dark in North Dakota heading for Saskatchewan was my first encounter with what I would call tough roads. My daughter and I were following a challenge Harley Davidson had put out to earn a commemorative pin. It required you to ride from Sturgis to Saskatoon. I got the pin!

Although I am on the board I do not look at the route prior to the event because for me that would be like unwrapping a Christmas present before Christmas. Riding the event is my favorite part of the HHMC but a close second is the new family I have married into and of course fund raising. From the first riders meeting when I heard Jim Red Cloud speak from his heart about the Lakota People  he pricked my heart to help. Another of my jobs as the director of rider relations is to encourage and direct the riders in their fund raising efforts. I love my job and although it is a volunteer position I feel like a CEO! I get to hear the road stories and write the Meet the Rider biographies you are reading. This allows me to share some of my road experience and what it has been like to be one of those five Warriors who has ridden all the HHMC routes.

Fund raising for me has come very naturally and at a very young age I saw the needs of others and felt lead to help. Whether it was a walk-a-thon, bike-a-thon, dance-a-thon I was in. It is hard sometimes to ask people for money but when it is for a cause I believe in I haven't been disappointed yet. As a kid I walked for a youth center that years later my kids benefited from. There are always going to be needs and I like to say "If everyone does a little a lot gets done." Philemon 4-7

I look forward to seeing what the road has in store for us and seeing the finish line a little sooner than I did in 2016.


 


  

Meet the Board: Beth Durham Director of Operations

I was born in Ft. Sill, OK and was not only an “Army Brat” but a “Preacher’s Kid” and finally a “Shrink’s Daughter”!  Some might think this meant I was nothing but trouble my whole life but, what it really means is that I am “STRONG!" 

          I started riding motorcycles when I was 16 years old and have either been in the saddle or on the back ever since.  I met the love of my life, Jim Red Cloud, when I was just 19 years old and the two of us made a great team.  Through the years, we owned several businesses, along with real estate investments and other ventures.  Jim and I are both proud Navy veterans; he served from ’73 to ’75 and I served from ’92 to ’98.  Jim was also and artist and created some truly amazing pieces of work.  His creativity and drive knew no bounds and it brought us many amazing things and took us to many amazing places in our life together.

          Still, there are very few things that we did together that could rival the creation and promotion of the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge.  This event is the result of Jim’s inspiration and my determination.  I’ve always known that hard work and perseverance is necessary in order to get by in this world and the HHMC has demanded that of both it’s riders as well as its founders!!

          Since Jim passed away this last summer, I have had to rely on every ounce of strength and determination I could muster.  Still…  In my weaker moments, it has been my family – both my biological family and my Hoka Hey family – that has carried me through.

That, and the memory of Jim’s own words; “HOKA HEY…  Every day is a good day to die if you live your life well.” 

Meet the Riders of 2018

We are not that far off from kicking up some dust in Medicine Park, Oklahoma. Interviews are being finalized and the elite riders of the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge have been selected for the 2018 challenge. As we did in the 2016 challenge we will feature each rider so You the reader can get to know a little about why we not only chose them, but They chose us. There is something about the type of rider this challenge seems to attract that seems almost crazy to others. Setting the bar a little higher for the long distance rider. Riders that aren't even sure what they are looking for but feel they can find it riding the Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge.

So that being said stand by to meet the new riders and returning riders and see what they have to say about why they want to give the 2018 event a go.

Meet The Rider: Joe Lacey # 802

Joe  #802 has ridden one previous Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge in 2014 with his good friend Shannon Mc Kinley  #803  who has also return for another go around. The two of them read about the challenge on the internet and thought " this is some kinda tough ride ," and decided it wasn't to tough for them to give it a shot. Successfully navigating their way to Homer, Alaska old school style, sleeping next to the bike and ride long distances was a game changer for both and now feel the need to do this again. Joe is not interested in being the first one to the finish line he just want to get out on the road and ride.

Sleeping in an over grown abandon dugout for a baseball field was a memory Joe recalls on his first attempt at riding the HHMC. He remembers he was very thankful for that little bit of shelter out in the badlands in the rain. A sheriff had told them where it was and that he would keep an eye out for them on his over night shift so they could get some rest. Advice he would share with new riders is how important it is to rest when you need it,stay hydrated. Joe will be riding a 2015 Street Glide with a heated Corbin seat for those cold times in the mountains and a Klockworks wind screen.

Meet the Rider: Bob Stegeman # 794

Bob # 794 will be riding his second Hoka Hey Motorcycle Challenge this year. In 2013 he not only rode and finished he won the Super Glide Willie and Sally from Wolf's Run so generously gave away that year. He learned about the HHMC from a friend and the two of them looked it up on the internet and Bob decided "I gotta do this." He felt like he was at a crossroad in life and he wanted to see if he still had what it takes to do a ride like this.

Critters were everywhere out on the road and he and his fellow riders Sam and Kurt from Norway played dodge the critter until they took the advice of a local who told him "You better not go any further tonight, the wild life out there are nuts." Funeral parlor parking lots were the sleeping spot of choice for the three amigos and sleeping at a gas station in front of the pumps turned out to be a great alarm clock. Later into the ride Bob recalls Sam had a wreck but like the true Hoka Hey family he made sure he was safe before moving onto the finish line, where he won the new Harley, hmmmm sounds like his efforts where being rewarded. He feels riding with someone else is the way to ride the HHMC.