DRIVEN BY LOVE ANNUAL CHARITY RIDE RAISES RECORD AMOUNT.Byline: Alex Dobuzinskis Staff Writer More than 22,000 motorcycle buffs hopped on hogs Sunday for a record- breaking charity ride - rumbling from Glendale to Castaic Lake Castaic Lake is a lake on Castaic Creek formed by Castaic Dam, in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, near the town of Castaic. The 323,700 acre foot lake (399,000,000 m³) is the terminus of the West Branch of the California Aqueduct, though some comes from the 154 mi² , where BB King and his guitar Lucille took the crowd all the way to Mississippi. The 22nd annual Love Ride raised nearly $1.5 million, the most ever for the event. The money will go to Hurricane Katrina  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. relief, a literacy program for children, groups that help victims of muscular dystrophy muscular dystrophy (dĭs`trōfē), any of several inherited diseases characterized by progressive wasting of the skeletal muscles. There are five main forms of the disease. , autism autism (ô`tĭzəm), developmental disability resulting from a neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain. It is characterized by the abnormal development of communication skills, social skills, and reasoning. and Down syndrome Down syndrome, congenital disorder characterized by mild to severe mental retardation, slow physical development, and characteristic physical features. Down syndrome affects about 1 in every 730 live births and occurs in all populations equally. , and other charities. ``The Love Ride is very much what it is. You love to ride your bike and you love to give back to your community,'' said Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez, D-Mission Hills. On the ride north on the Golden State Freeway The Golden State Freeway is a north-south freeway running through Kern County and Los Angeles County, California. Originally built as U.S. Highway 99, it was re-signed as Interstate 5 in 1964. , riders honked to supporters who gathered on overpasses to wave signs and to fire engines whose red lights blinked on and off. A regular ride participant, ``Tonight Show'' host Jay Leno Jay Leno (born April 28, 1950) is an Emmy-winning American comedian, writer who is best known as the current host of NBC television's long-running variety and talk program The Tonight Show. Biography Leno was born in New Rochelle, New York. joined other celebrities, including Peter Fonda Peter Henry Fonda (born February 23, 1940) is an Academy Award-nominated American actor. Fonda is associated with Western counterculture of the 1960s.[1] Biography Personal life , on the 36-mile trip. When they got to Castaic Lake, King thrilled the crowd, which grooved as the celebrated blues icon played with the lake in the background and a seven-man band backing him up. Leno joked with the crowd on a stage in Glendale before getting on his bike and kicking off the trip to Castaic. ``I don't normally ride with 75,000 other people ... that part is a little unusual,'' Leno said backstage in Glendale, exaggerating the number of riders. ``But it's OK; the women are attractive, the men are handsome,'' Leno said. Lining up along San Fernando Road San Fernando Road is a major street in the city and county of Los Angeles. It starts off in Castaic as The Old Road, passing through Santa Clarita and the Newhall Pass, where upon its intersection with Sierra Highway near the junction of the Golden State (I-5) and the in Glendale with thousands of other riders, Rod Kendricks of Newhall said he has been riding motorbikes since he was 11, when he put a lawn mower engine on a Schwinn Sting-Ray bike. Now the 50-year-old telephone splicer splice tr.v. spliced, splic·ing, splic·es 1. a. To join (two pieces of film, for example) at the ends. b. To join (ropes, for example) by interweaving strands. 2. rides a custom-built Harley-Davidson with a replica '62 frame. ``Just being in the air, being in the wind is almost like flying,'' he said. The event was organized by Harley-Davidson of Glendale. The total amount raised in this year's charity event surpassed the previous record by more than $200,000, said Kathy Wattman, a spokeswoman for the event. Wearing American-flag bandannas, Graham Binks and Gabrielle Nelson danced arm-in-arm to a Supertramp song as they waited to get on his Triumph motorcycle and head for Castaic. They met in New Mexico during Binks' cross-country road trip, and they heard about the Love Ride while back in Farmington, N.M. ``We looked at each other - the Love Ride? That sounds good, that sounds (like) where we're at,'' said Binks, 61, a retired Englishman who is touring the United States on his bike. Four parachutists with the Golden State Sky Diving Team landed at Castaic Lake to open the festivities fes·tiv·i·ty n. pl. fes·tiv·i·ties 1. A joyous feast, holiday, or celebration; a festival. 2. The pleasure, joy, and gaiety of a festival or celebration. 3. there. Parachutist Rick Thues, 52, got a good look at the event as he hurtled through the sky. ``It is awesome,'' Thues said. ``There are motorcycles everywhere you look. Every parking lot is full.'' King, who recently turned 80 years old, sat down as soon as he got in front of the microphone to play and mused about what the crowd might think of that. ``Now I'm a diabetic; got bad knees, bad back, head ain't much good either, can't remember anything,'' King said. ``But I'm feeling good today.'' King played the Mississippi-brand of blues he is famous for, going through a set that included ``The Thrill is Gone'' and ``All Over Again,'' and plenty of talking and joking with the crowd. ``It's just a wonderful event. The weather, the setting, the crowd,'' said Larry Porche, 50, who rode up on a 1992 Harley-Davidson FXE FXE Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (airport code) FXE Ferrocarril Mexicano, S.A. de C.V (Ferromex) . Alex Dobuzinskis, (818) 546-3304 alex.dobuzinskis(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 12 photos Photo: (1 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) A horned horned adj. Having a horn, horns, or a hornlike growth. Adj. 1. horned - having a horn or horns or hornlike parts or horns of a particular kind; "horned viper"; "great horned owl"; "the unicorn--a mythical horned beast"; motorcyclist makes his way up Interstate 5 to Castaic Lake in Sunday's record-breaking charity Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News (2 -- 3 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) Motorcyclists enjoy music, left, at Castaic Lake after completing the Love Ride. The headliner was blues legend BB King, above. John McCoy/Staff Photographer (4 -- 5 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) At left, Los Angeles firefighters and local residents cheer on Love Ride motorcyclists making the trek up Interstate 5 on Sunday. Above, motorcyclists are reflected in one woman's helmet. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News John McCoy/Staff Photographer (6 -- 7 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) Above, Paul Teutul of Orange County Choppers Orange County Choppers (OCC) is a custom motorcycle manufacturer founded by Paul Teutul, Sr. and Paul Teutul, Jr. in 1999. The company is featured on American Chopper leads the way. At right, bikers crowd Brand Boulevard for the start of the Love Ride. Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer (8 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) A pack of motorcycles including ``Tonight Show'' host Jay Leno makes its way up Interstate 5. (9 -- 10 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Motorcyclists enjoy music, left, on a sunny Sunday at Castaic Lake after completing the Love Ride from Glendale. Above, just some of the 22,000 participating motorcycle buffs make their way to the concert. (11 -- ran in SAC edition only) Cars on Interstate 5 find they are surrounded in a sea of motorcycles making the annual pilgrimage from Glendale to Castaic Lake to raise funds for charities. (12 -- ran in SAC edition only) A motorcyclist and his passenger wave as they trek from Glendale to Castaic Lake on Sunday. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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