Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/727617
74 nOctober 2016n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS by Diane "Shadow's Wife" Jones OCEANSIDE, CALIF., AUG. 7—It is Sunday morning and what better way to spend a beautiful day in Southern California than on a ride to Oceanside for the 14th annual Bikers For Christ Bike Blessing & Downed Biker Rally at Kennedy's Custom Cycles. With the early morning coastal haze starting to blow out, the bikes started to blow in. There were motor- cycle clubs and riders from all over Southern California and even a beau- tiful couple from Pieve Vergonte, a province in northern Italy. Frederico and Barbara were in the midst of their 18-day tour of California on a rented Harley-Davidson when they came upon the notorious Bill Kennedy of Kennedy's Custom Cycles the previous day and were personally invited to this day's festivities. As it happened, it was fortuitous that they were on their way to this bike shop for this event because they had some issues with their rental bike and in true biker fashion, Bill opened up the back shop and got them the tools they needed to make the fi x and they were able to enjoy the event and the rest of their day as they continued on their California tour. The welcoming you get from Pastor Z and the Bikers For Christ crew is unforgettable; it doesn't matter who you are, what you are or where you came from, they are there for you in your time of need, and your time of crisis—as well as your time of joy. They are truly bikers with heart and soul and, of course, Jesus. Between them and the folks at Kennedy's they make sure that folks in need are always being taken care of, including downed bikers, wounded veterans, orphaned chil- dren and more. The women from Quilts of Valor were there and presented a beautiful handcrafted quilt to Bikers For Christ National Pastor Fred Z of Rushing Wind Ministries in Oceanside to honor their veteran members and honor the work of Bikers For Christ in their unwavering efforts and support of the wounded veterans. Some of the funds raised for this event were immediately put to use when Bikers For Christ presented the Pacifi c Savagez MC a check in support of one of their members who had just gone down that very week on a motorcy- cle, a special opportunity to actually get to witness fi rsthand the result of the generous giving of our motorcycle community. A spotlight was also given to a long-time good friend of Bill Kennedy, Frank Baronne, a huge advocate for many charities including the Orphanage of Guadalupe. He came by to show his support for this worthy cause and spoke to the crowd about the work being done for the orphans. T here were some awesome ven- dors who also come out to show their support for the cause: Bob's Biker Bits, CMA, Cisco Threads, Ericson Enterprises, Evil Edge Knives, Rosie's Detailing and Purple Slice. The whole day the air was fi lled with the awesome music of two great bands, Eric Turner and the Full Throttle Band, and Chrome Dome. The food that was served up by the great Five Loaves and Two Fish was excellent; everyone was enjoying the food, the tunes, the brotherhood and the love of all things motorcycle. There were close to 25 different motorcycle clubs—Hessians, Final Option, CMA, The Huns, Boozefi ghters, Graveyard Gamblers, Pacifi c Savagez, Grifters, Devils Diciples, Violators, Solo Angels, Soldiers for Jesus, and Pioneers to name just a few—repre- sented at this event and there was no denying that bikers will come together and work for good, to help those in need and be a part of something bigger than themselves. 4 Visit these participating shops for dynamometer tuning and run your bike at its full potential A DYNOJET Dynamometer paired with an expert technician can give you the assurance that your bike is running at its full potential. The DYNOJET Dynamometer can be used to match the proper after market accessories your bike needs for the performance you want. IN NEED OF A SIMPLE TUNE-UP? Let the DYNOJET Dynamometer find the ideal ignition timing and carburetion specs to make your bike run as smoothly and cleanly as possible. …GET THE ADVANTAGE THE DYNOJET DYNAMOMETER ADVANTAGE. MAXIMIZE YOUR BIKE'S POTENTIAL TODAY BY VISITING ONE OF THESE PARTICIPATING SHOPS TO GET RIDE THE BIKE OF YOUR DREAMS... ARIZONA Kingman PERFORMANCE SPECIALISTS, INC. 4906 Olympic Drive 928.692.6601 www.kellysperformancespecialists.com NEW MEXICO Belen NEW LIFE BUILDERS 19530 Highway 314 505.861.1565 newlifebuilders@juno.com www.newlifebuilders.us WASHINGTON Kirkland CYCLPATH 12700 NE 124th St 425.825.7284 info@cyclpath.com www.cyclpath.com 14TH ANNUAL BIKERS FOR CHRIST BIKE BLESSING & DOWNED BIKER RALLY Gathering for the greater good Bearing witness to the generosity of bikers Biker clubs coming together for the greater good Frank Barrone and Bill Kennedy sharing about children in the orphanage in Guadalupe Italian bikers, Frederico and Barbara with Bill Kennedy fi xing up their Harley rental