Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/751464
54 nDecember 2016n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS by The Breeze FORT MYERS, FLA., OCT. 7–8—On the morning of September 3, the ScootinAmerica crew loaded into their bus, Egor, and started to make their way from a fundraising benefi t in Craigsville, Indiana, 266 miles to the fi rst stop of the Final Countdown, an odyssey that had started almost two years before to benefi t the Wounded Warrior Project. With 27 bikes in tow and a police escort they hit the road at 7:00 a.m. The only thing missing was the Warhorse. Adam Sandoval and Scooter, his Chihuahua, left Florida in November, 2014 to give back to this country. The plan was to hit all 702 Harley- Davidson dealers in the lower 48 to raise money and awareness for our veterans. Things had gone pretty well till July 2, 2016. An inattentive driver crossed the yellow line hitting Adam, doing severe damage to his left leg and totaling the Warhorse, his 1990 Electra Glide. Two months later, with warn- ings from his doctors, he was ready to go. The Warhorse? Six Bends Harley- Davidson in Fort Meyers, Florida, fully restored it and would be deliver- ing it on September 3 to the fi rst stop, Neidengard's H-D in Wintersville, Ohio. My wife Christie and I were so impressed with Adam's efforts that we decided to meet up with Adam and his crew at the dealership and ride with them for the few days we could get off work. Neidengard's, a third-generation dealership and the oldest in Ohio, was like a fairground. With over 200 bikes and over 400 people there to meet them, the quest to hit the fi nal 96 deal- ers was off to a good start. Kim and John Neidengard and the Ohio Valley H.O.G. chapter had set a food line, silent auction, and 50/50's to help the cause. With music from White Collar Criminals, the parking lot swelled with people and the event was a complete success. Neidengard's, the top dealer in the country for raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project, handed over a total donation of $5,000. But where was the Warhorse? Like a well-scripted movie, the Six Bends rig pulled into the parking lot at 2:30 p.m. on September 3. When the trailer door opened, Adam had a mixed look of Christmas morning and seeing an old friend. He quickly loaded Scooter and his gear because we had a deadline, and mounted the Warhorse for the fi rst time in two months. We said our goodbyes, and with 25 bikes in tow we took off. A beautiful ride down Ohio 22 and 250 got us to our next stop, Adventure H-D. Adam had some diffi culty shifting, so we made some quick adjustments to the Warhorse. We left with nine bikes on our way to our fi nal stop of the day, Harley-Davidson Biketown in Austintown, Ohio, where we arrived at around 9:00 p.m. But this day was far from over. Pictures had to be taken to prove we made the stop. Then the tents had to be pitched on the grass strip between Biketown and the parking area. Then the real work began. Adam wanted to shoot a video, so "Broadway" Scott Dustin quickly set up his equipment and started shooting interviews in Egor. Broadway, ScootinAmerica's creative director, quit his job in Paris, Texas, to fi nish the trip with Adam and the team. Meanwhile at a picnic table in the parking lot, Diane "Tooter" Jordan from Farmington, Minnesota, who'd taken leave of her job to become Adam's road manager, went to work on her computer. When the interviews were done, he moved to his editing station in the bus and settled in for the next few hours to fi nish up. She was busy for the next hour or so setting up the stops for the next day's run. This pace rarely stops: the plan- ning, videos, live feeds to Facebook, repairs… it was a never-ending job for Adam and his crew. Next morning was leisurely by ScootinAmerica standards, because of the holiday weekend. We had break- fast, loaded up the bikes and hit the road. Because of the time crunch caused by the accident, the team set up a three-tier system with the rest of the dealers, going from Tier 1, little or no participation, to Tier 3, a guaran- teed donation of $1,500. This would leave approximately 100 dealers to visit in 29 days—no small feat. Today if we could hit a handful of Tier 1 dealers and our one Tier 2 stop, we could possibly give Adam Monday to rest up his leg a bit. Our fi rst stop would be Thunder H-D in Sharon, Pennsylvania. We stopped, took our picture to prove we had made the stop, and moved on. Next stop was Warren H-D in Cortland, Ohio, where we took a quick SCOOTINAMERICA The final countdown Military supporter completes two-year riding mission Crisscrossing the country several times over the past two years, Adam Sandoval and Scooter have visited every Harley-Davidson dealer in the lower 48 states Egor and the Warhorse arrive in Fort Myers Map courtesy of ScootinAmerica