100,000

[Klem]

Some time Friday Oct. 2, our website will have 100,000 hits. I know no big deal and a year or two down the road it either won't exist or will have had a million hits. Some of you have ask about the Romeo history and I have even been asked if we started the Cassoday first Sunday. (I don't think so.)
I'll give you all a little history lesson and Richard can feel free to correct or add to my text.

Before we were the Romeos it was an unnamed group that went to lunch on Wednesday. Jack Robinson in Hutchinson had and still has the FSSNOCS, Four Stroke Singles National Owners Club. Not sure but I don't think Jack had a certain day or frequency to go to lunch but he would have lunches around for the thumper folks. Jack turned over the reins to Bucky for the lunch thing and you all know Bucky, he rides anything. So the thumper restriction came off and the invitation went to whoever he knew. Well Bucky went on vacation and ask Richard to take over and never had to worry about it again. I don't have a time frame on all this but in the late '90s.

Richard used email to notify riders and all you had to do was ask to be put on the list. When I started going on the rides in 1999 there would be from 10 to 20 or so at a ride. There was still no name. That came when my wife, Becky was reading the comic strips and there was one about old men meeting for supper. Being raised with some other name the old man said we were Romeos, Retired Old Men Eating out. She brought it over and said "This is you". I said no we're Retired Old Motorcyclist Eating Out. I presented it to Richard at the next ride and he didn't warm up to it right away. But a week or so later he entered on his email that we were the Romeos.

It was about that time that the group started growing. We went from 20 to 30 to 40 riders in a short time. Richard was still the only one that was sending the emails or setting up rides. My nephew was running a silk screen shop in Emporia and he printed up the first shirts for us. Using a picture taken from one of Jacks old rides at Potwin Kansas. (At least I think It was still Jacks). The guys liked the name, most liked the shirts and things kept growing.

I got involved first during the winters. Most of us don't like to ride 100 miles or more when it's cold out, but we will ride a short distance. Sometimes I would contact Bucky, sometimes he would contact me. Bucky would say something like " Hey it's going to be 40 degrees tomorrow why don't you put something out." I would email the guys in the area that we normally swap jokes with and four or five would meet for lunch.

Then one day I was minding my own business at DeSoto, when Harry, Larry and his other brother Larry cornered me and said we want you to set up some rides closer. Richard's rides are fine but we just can't ride 150 miles each way every week. So we chatted for a little bit and came up with if it was going to be over 100 miles to where Richard was going I would come up with some place closer. My first goal was to stay within an hour of Topeka/Lawrence. This went on for a couple of years until there were as many coming to my rides as Richard's. So I went full time on every Wednesday. Some of the guys were upset that I split the group and to be honest so was I. But the truth of it within a year both groups were so big that we wouldn't have fit anywhere as one group. I do miss seeing some of the riders from the west, and often think about joining them from time to time. But then I feel a little obligated to go in the ride I arranged.

A few of you know about the computer horrors that Richard and I went through. When you get your weekly email, you don't realize that so are 150 in my case or probably 200 in Richards case are getting it also. This large size of address book left us open to every virus that existed. We each lost hard drives and hand problems with the providers. But for now that seems mostly worked out. So that was part of the reason behind the website.

The web site that Jerry so kindly set up for us actually had goals. All the goals have been met, some with more success than others. The goals, (not necessarily in order of importance) are.

1. To provide an easier means of posting rides than emails. To make it easier for expansion within a group or to add a group.
(Let's face it, we love going on lunch rides and like to share. The more groups the more people having fun)

2. To provide a place where we can share our experiences, our trips or just fun rides.

3. To provide a place where we can easily contact others to set up rides, trips, or events.

4. To provide a one stop information center for riding in this area, (Kansas, Western Mo.)

Most of this is doing well. Richard and Bob use the website for all their lunch ride notifications. Various riders have shared glorious trips with pictures and narrations. About any problem you have will be addressed by someone. Trips and RTEs have been set up and successful. I see nothing but good things for the Romeos in the future. With the split in the Central groups, both groups are growing. The new Kansas City group will eclipse the Eastern group within a year.

So when you see Jerry Tuesday or Wednesday, give him a big thanks for working so hard on the Website. While you are at it, do the same for Roger Shores. He has spent time and effort to provide the google maps on the web site. And he contributes most of the pictures for the Eastern and K.C. rides. He also sacrifices himself to try out most of the places for the K.C. group in advance. (That's a tough job, look what it did to me.) Don't forget Richard and Bob on the Central side. Richard has put in time for a lot of years and Bob is learning this is fun but not as easy as it looks. As for me, I get my thanks every time I see a room full of happy people. Not often a person can do so little and have a good effect on so many.

Don

Tags: #keepers #history

[rlhess]

Thanks for the History Don. The web site is a great success. I truly enjoy the photos and the stories that some of the riders post. I now have two favorite days of the week...Tuesday with the KC group and Wednesday with the Eastern Group

[Klem]

I was chatting with Jerry this morning and noting the fact that we have gone over the 600 mark in members to this website. We also noticed that we are getting close to a million and a half hits. Not so much compared to some sites, but it took us a year to get the first 100,000.

The website started with The Central and Eastern Kansas groups. Kansas City joined in soon and the Central split North and South. Corwin's hit and miss became the South Eastern and Texas joined in. Now Arky has the Arky group. Cathy is still around for the group in England but they don't post much. There have also been a few start but not stay. The problem with so many people is they can't deal with our lack of structure. Imagine, no rules, no dues, no one in charge.

There have been a few changes over the years. The dummy that sets up the rides became the Ride coordinator, sounds better doesn't it?

If you get bored go back through the forums and see the changes over the years. There is some interesting stuff that people posted years back. One of the forums that gets little use lately is the Introductions. If you are new or just haven't introduced yourself this forum gives you the place to do it.

Thanks for your participation

Don

[hoser]

Thanks for the History lesson, Don. I remember the first RTE I attended, It was during the time Harry and I were working at Washburn University. We were enroute to Colony, and we got lost and ended up in Westphalia, so we were a little late for lunch at Colony. Hope to attend many more, I usually make at least on a week. Hoser