It seems that we start many seasons with the adage, “The more things change, the more they stay the same”. There appear to be a number of traditions that repeat each year or at least many years.

 

It always snows during the Expo (or in the case of this year’s Indiana Motorcycle and Powersports Expo being postponed until 2023, we were at the “Not Expo” within the Ford 67th Annual Indianapolis Boat, Sport and Travel Show), we are always looking for the right people to strengthen our instructor corps, the early class dates fill fast and we are always looking for a home for one of our sites.

 

We are proud to continue the tradition of opening rider course registration at the Expo, even without the Expo. We truly value our relationship with Renfro Productions and Management and were delighted to be able to be a part of this year’s show so that motorcycles could still be present (Motorcycle Rodeo and Tiny Tots Riding Experience).

 

There is obviously one of these traditions that we’d prefer to do without. It would be great if we could have a location for every site across the state, well in advance of the start of the season. Unfortunately, we are at the mercy of property owners that are generous enough to allow us the use of their facilities.

 

You may have heard us explain before that as a 501(c)(3) charitable, not-for-profit organization providing a community service, we have very limited funding. In working to keep the tuition cost affordable so that training is accessible to those seeking it, we don’t have the resources to own training centers across the state (unless one of us hits the lottery).

 

This year it is our Indianapolis site that is without a home. We have been searching for a full year now as we found out last spring that we would lose the former location in May of 2021. We are grateful that we’ve had a number of people offer suggestions and we have spoken to hundreds of people about prospective properties. Regrettably, they have not been large enough, or the property owner had some issue and we have yet to secure a suitable facility.

 

What we need is a paved (concrete or asphalt) surface about the size of a football field. The ideal dimensions to accommodate a training range are about 160’x260’. 

 

What we want, is the contact information of someone that has the decision-making authority for such a facility. Once we have the opportunity to explain what we do and how we do it, we can satisfy most property owners’ concerns.

 

We’ve been offering this invaluable, life-saving, community service for more than 40 years, training about 150,000 riders along the way. This is the first time in almost 40 years that we have started the season without a location in the Indianapolis area. Please help us correct that.

 

Ride Safe,

Ride Free,

Jay Jackson