Mentorship ride to kick off 101 Critical Days of Summer

  • Published
  • By Chris McCann
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Want to hone your skills after the long winter and meet fellow bikers on JBER?
The annual mentorship ride is a chance to ride around the installation and then up to Eklutna Lake Recreation Area with people who share your passion.

The event begins with registration at the JBER-Richardson skating pad near the car wash at 9 a.m. May 23. Some refresher academics and exercises can help riders review skills, and the ride proper begins at 11 a.m.

"The most important thing for us is networking," said Tech. Sgt. Monty Seelye, a ride organizer. "It's a chance to rub elbows with other like-minded individuals."
Several riders are Motorcycle Safety Foundation rider coaches. They will be leading academics and exercise portion of the morning.

Last year the ride attracted about 50 motorcyclists, but Seelye said he estimates there will be about 150 bikes for this year's ride.

The event is part of the "101 Critical Days of Summer" campaign, the Air Forces's name for the Department of Defense-wide program which recognizes that summer fun brings with it an increased risk of accidents.

Running from May 25 through Sept. 4, the program "calls attention to the tragic loss and injury of [service members] during summertime and to make them realize safety is personal for their families, friends, co-workers and themselves."

The goal is to have no preventable mishaps and an injury-free summer.

Tech. Sgt. Jason Ott of the 176th Logistics Readiness Squadron is an avid rider.

"I didn't get my bike out until three days ago," Ott said. "In the beginning, I take it slow and re-hone my skills ... after about a week of short rides and taking it easy, I'm back to normal. Now I'm using my bike to commute to work."

Ott advises other bikers to do the same.

"Take it easy and have a long season," he said.

May 23 is the start date for JBER, and it starts with a cleanup of foreign object debris, from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. The Safety Fair, at Hangar 1, will host informational booths by local organizations and JBER personnel. The fair begins at 8 a.m. and lasts until 1 p.m.
From 9 to 10 a.m., the JBER-Elmendorf theater hosts a quarterly flight safety meeting.

Commanders at lower levels will be conducting briefings for personnel in their units.