LOVE RIDE: RIGHTEOUS RUMBLING BIKERS, STARS RALLY TO HELP CHILD LITERACY, FIGHT DISEASE.

Byline: Heather MacDonald Staff Writer

CASTAIC - Marian Santos threw open her arms wide as she whizzed under the underpass, her fingers flashing peace signs and her long hair whipping behind her.

``It's exhilarating,'' Santos, 36, said Sunday after biking 50 miles from Glendale to Castaic in the 17th annual Love Ride to promote literacy and raise money to find a cure for muscular dystrophy. ``Nothing like the wind in your hair. Nothing.''

Santos was just one of 25,000 bikers who made the trip along with a number of Hollywood luminaries, including comedian Jay Leno and actor Peter Fonda, who served as grand marshals of the ride. Both are longtime motorcycle enthusiasts.

``I was glad it's been cold,'' said Rita Koppenheimer of Wildemar, Calif. ``It was so clear, I thought I was in heaven.''

Crowds lined several dozen of the overpasses along the Golden State Freeway, waving signs greeting friends riding below and hollering their support over the rumble of the engines.

``Bikers rule,'' read one of many such signs tacked up on the fence on the Burbank Boulevard overpass.

Over McBean Parkway in Santa Clarita, one enterprising guy popped the question to his girlfriend via a sign fluttering over the freeway.

``I just hope she sees it,'' the man said, declining to give his name for fear his girlfriend, Carolyn, would, well, decline.

Others scanned the asphalt, pointing out the specialty bikes and squinting at the sun reflecting back at them from the bikes' chrome.

``The bikes are just awesome,'' said Andrew McCarthy, 15, of North Hollywood. ``I can't wait to be old enough to drive one. They just make you look cool.''

Participants gathered before dawn in Glendale, turning San Fernando Road near Los Feliz Boulevard into a sea of glistening chrome and black leather. The motorcycles took off after a ripping version of ``Born to be Wild,'' introduced by John Kay and Steppenwolf as the ``biker national anthem.''

``Its an ungodly hour to be playing rock n' roll,'' Kay joked, as thousands of leather clad bikers gulped coffee hoping to stave off the early morning chill.

In 1983, the ride was founded by Oliver Shokouh, the owner of Glendale Harley-Davidison, and has benefited the Muscular Dystrophy Association every year since.

``I started it because bikers have such a bad reputation and wanted to showcase them in a positive light,'' Shokouh said. ``I never expected it to turn into something this big.''

The ride was expected to raise more than $1 million, organizers said.

While waiting for the ride to begin, many bikers wove their way through the ocean of hogs, pausing to ogle the specialty bikes, many of them draped in red, white and blue and boasting eagle decorations.

``This ride is a big deal,'' said Matthew Thomkins of San Fernando. ``I spent the last two days polishing my bike. You wouldn't want to be caught dead out here riding a dirty or banged-up bike.''

Once at Castaic, the bikers scarfed barbecue lunches and boogied to the band Blood, Sweat and Tears. Creedence Clearwater Revisited headlined the concert, ripping into several well-known hits in front of the sweeping vista of Lake Castaic.

``It was a great ride,'' said Ralph Mahler of Huntington Beach. ``A little windy past the 14 Freeway, and a little cold, but otherwise it was perfect.

For many bikers, the annual event has become an easy way to keep in touch with friends and acquaintances - and to check out the latest styles of motorcycle chaps.

``It was much better organized this year than last,'' said Michael Malinsky of Mission Hills. ``There was no line for the food, and only a short one for the beer. You can't beat that.''

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9 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) LEFT: Robert and Ginger Young of Sunland kick back while waiting with about 25,000 others for the Love Ride to start Sunday at Glendale Harley-Davidson.

(2 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) BELOW: A full face mask helps motorcyclist Simon Jebian weather the early morning chill at the start of Sunday's Love Ride from Glendale to Castaic Lake.

(3 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) ``Tonight Show'' host Jay Leno signs a poster before hopping on his hog.

(4 -- 5 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) Bikers rumble down Los Feliz Boulevard on the edge of Glendale, left, after hearing Pat Boone deliver the national anthem Sunday to help kick off the 17th annual Love Ride fund-raiser.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer

(6 -- color -- ran in Valley edition only) Volunteers Jack and Sandy Moffitt of Sylmar dance to the retro sounds of Creedence Clearwater Revisited at Castaic Lake.

(7 -- 8 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Love Ride fans cheer from an overpass, left, as riders near their destination Sunday in Castaic. At right, bikers motor up the Golden State Freeway near Calgrove Boulevard.

(9 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Bassist Stu Cook leads Creedence Clearwater Revisited at a Castaic Lake barbecue following the Love Ride.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News