I had planned to do a little bike riding earlier this month, so when an old army buddy mentioned that his motorcycle ministry group was riding to Leesburg, Fla., to take part in the 2025 Leesburg Bikefest, my ears perked up. He then asked if I would care to ride along with them.
The itinerary would have the ministry members riding from Inverness, to stop at the Gator Harley Davidson in east Leesburg, then, after a nice Sunday service ( by a biker chaplain), we would cruise into town to take part in the other half of the “Bikefest” experience.
I mentioned to my friend, Mr. Dennis Mills, that I no longer had my Harley as I sold it after my wife burned her leg on an exhaust pipe. I now own a Suzuki “AN 650” (Burgman) scooter.
He mentioned a few important details concerning what the day would look like. First, he mentioned that the ministry group he was with was called “Servants of Christ” (which originated in Derby, Connecticut) and all the members were God fearing, salt-of-the-earth people. He also said that their ministry had other brand bikes in their lineup besides just Harley-Davidsons.
A quick note here, they do not call themselves a club, but a Christian Motorcycle Ministry.
And another item he spoke of was that, as I would be missing going to church with my family, there was going to be a preacher speaking under a big pavilion right at the Harley dealership.
We had talked about meeting up somewhere on the HD grounds, and I had figured that it may take a while for us to make a connection, but as I was getting off of I-75 at the Wildwood exit, his group had just passed me by. I knew then that it was going to be a good day!
This was actually the first time that I had the privilege to ride with a group of other bikers and not be “looked down on” for not having the preferred vehicle. The group made it to the parking area of Gator HD by 9:15, and as the event was just getting cranked up, we were among the first 100 bikes to be parked. (Nice!)
I couldn’t help but notice that besides the large majority of Harleys already parked, there were many other brand bikes as well. I felt good seeing this, and will give you this reason why. There are a great many riders of differing brands that may feel a little intimidated riding an off-brand bike to a big event such as this or even to the bigger Daytona Bike Week event. Those riders would feel right at home and comfortable experiencing this event.
The times have changed, and in my opinion, the age of most of the riders visiting the Leesburg Bikefest has changed as well. I was surprised to see so many other riders at that first venue who were men who served their country in the armed forces. We met at least a handful of riders who were ex-paratroopers and one who had worked the same heavy parachute facility that I worked at up at Fort Bragg, N.C. He had been there just two years after I had done my time on that site and probably drove some of the same rough terrain forklifts that I had spent so many hours on!
Now this ministry group, the Servants of Christ, had their own “colors” for the motorcycle ministry, indicated by patches on vests that they all wore, and I must admit that their artwork on the backs of the vests was impressive. After listening to the preacher, walking the midway of assorted sales canopies, and of course, trying out their fine foods, we went back to the lines of parked bikes, mounted up, and headed to the second location.
Once all the bikes were parked, it was decided that they were to have their official monthly meeting under one of the big oak trees, just north of the main attraction. This is where I really got to like their group members. They started out the meeting with a prayer, and then a hat was passed around for donations (to go to one of the charities that they help out). It was not long after I decided to tell their story in the paper and join in with their numbers.
In closing, I can say that I never figured to have the want to join a motorcycle club, but then there have been a lot of instances and events in my life that I would have figured to never have attempted to do. Again, I can look back at a well-used term from days and stories earlier. “NEVER SAY NEVER!”
I hope that y’all have a blessed week, until we can do this again!!
