On Sunday, June 26, 2005, over 450 riders poured into the parking lot at Harrah’s Casino in North Kansas City, Missouri for Janey’s Over the Next Hill Ride for Immacolata Manor. This ride has been one of Kansas City’s largest charity rides for a number of years. Harrah’s Casino was the main sponsor of this year’s ride, and this was the first year you could pre-register online and shop their online store. Isn’t the Internet great!
I got there early to setup the Cycle Connections booth, and patiently waited for the hundreds of bikers to come pouring in. It wasn’t long before you could hear the rumble of bikes, which sounded like an approaching thunderstorm. But with the clear skies overhead and the sun beating down on us, I was relatively sure it was the sound of Harleys making their way down 210 Highway on their way to the casino.
Registration began at 10 a.m. and everyone received their free meal voucher, T-shirt, ride patch and a chance to win a mini pocket bike custom painted by Todd Allen. For every $50 in pledges a rider raised, they received additional chances to win. A continental breakfast was provided, or you could choose to go through Harrah’s breakfast buffet with a portion of your purchase benefiting the ride. There were also tons of great silent auction items on which you could bid, including a mini chopper, gift certificates to several great restaurants, motorcycle gear and lots more!
Shortly after 10 a.m., a local band, the Lost Dog began cranking out music on stage, and around noon, the road safety crew volunteers, wearing their lime green T-shirts gathered together to discuss the route and go over last minute safety issues. Since I was the only one available to work our booth that day, I was unable to make the ride, however I did recruit Toto of the Khrome Cowgirls to take photos for me from the back of Lindsay’s Road Glide.
Around 12:30 p.m. everyone fired up their bikes and headed to the first dice roll stop at Kearney High School. From there, they headed to Plattsburg for the second dice roll stop, then on to Immacolata Manor so everyone could visit the facility and see first-hand how their donations would be used. From Immacolate Manor, it was back to Harrah’s Casino where riders took advantage of their free dinner voucher, entered the free ride-in bike show and had one more chance to bid on the silent auction items.
As soon as the dice roll sheets were totaled, Slacker from 99.7 KY and Kevin Broderick of Gail’s Harley-Davidson announced the dice roll and silent auction winners. The high roll winner was Clara Wilson with a score of 71 and the low roll winner was Terri Colwell with a score of 30. Ed Hale donated $3,157.71, and was the highest individual contributor this year. Ed also won the pocket bike, which he really deserved. After the announcements were made, riders took their complimentary gaming voucher into the casino to try their luck. Harrah’s also offered riders a special Sunday night hotel package for those wishing to spend the night.
After all the dust had settled, this year’s ride raised approximately $24,000, with corporate sponsors contributing another $18,000, bringing the total amount raised to $42,000!
The Immacolata Manor, Inc. is a non-denominational, not-for-profit residential facility for women with developmental disabilities located in Liberty, Missouri. Immacolata Manor focuses on the values and principles of community membership, self-determination, human rights, and basic needs, so that the women will be supported and empowered to achieve their highest potential and to live their lives with dignity and respect.
Story by Mike Schweder
Photos by Mike Schweder, Toto & April
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