Club shares patriotism, passion for motorcycle riding

 

By GLENDA SANDERS, DAILY SUN

 

THE VILLAGES - Dave Rosen was 50 years old before he discovered a passion for riding motorcycles. His stepson had gone into the military and left his motorcycle in Rosen's care.

 

Rosen knew the bike needed to be ridden occasionally to keep it in good operating condition, but he wasn't anxious to hop on and take off. He had tried riding once in his youth and wound up hurt.  He sought the help of an experienced rider who gave him a few pointers and then told him to "just get on the bike and ride."Rosen has been riding ever since.

 For years he was a lone rider, what motorcyclists call an "independent." He wasn't sure he wanted to get involved in a club because he hadn't encountered a club that seemed to fit with his own perspective on life.

 

That changed when he was participating in a charitable poker run and encountered a group of bikers wearing vests with American flags on the front. 

 The flags piqued Rosen's interest. He was a U.S. Air Force retiree and a firm patriot.

He looked closer and noted the eagle and red and white flag stripe motif on the back of the vests. Those were colors he could relate to.

 He approached a member of the club and ended up talking to the national president of the U.S. Military Vets Motorcycle Club, which had been organized in Fort Lauderdale in 1987.

 What he heard about the club impressed him as much as their colors. All the members were U.S. military veterans and proud of it - just as he was.

 After talking to the president a bit, Rosen asked if he might be able to start a chapter in Homestead, where he was living at the time. He did and became the chapter president.

 Since moving to The Villages last year, where he works as a greeter in the sales department, Rosen has become involved with the Lake County chapter and serves as field training officer.The club meets twice a month and rides on the weekends.Rosen said the club likes to portray an image of honor, patriotism and duty to country.

 "We're not a secret organization," Rosen said. "As U.S. military vets, we are active in the community. We answered the call and we did our duty. That was our responsibility as citizens."

Riders in the club share two bonds, he said. "Our common bond is that we all love to ride motorcycles, and our common bond is we're all veterans," Rosen said.

As veterans, the members also feel a strong sense of responsibility to help others in the community. The club has participated in poker runs and fundraisers for such groups as Habitat for Humanity, Autism Society of Central Florida, and Faithful and True Ministries as well as collecting food for area food banks and toys for foster children. 

Club representatives often attend patriotic ceremonies in The Villages Veterans' Memorial Park as a way of expressing their own devotion to the country and a way of honoring fellow veterans.

 "The Villages has been wonderful in accommodating and welcoming us," Rosen said. "They've given us reserved parking for our bikes and made room for us to sit right up front."

 One member of the group, a U.S. Navy veteran, carried the Navy flag in the flag-posting portion of the Fourth of July ceremony.

 Rosen is pleased to have found a way to combine his patriotism and his passion for riding motorcycles through the U.S. Military Vets Motorcycle Club.

 "We ride because we love to ride," he said. "We ride for camaraderie. We ride for U. S. military veterans to show we haven't forgotten them."

 Glenda Sanders is a features writer with the Daily Sun. She can be reached at 753-1119, ext. 9245, or at glenda.sanders@thevillagesmedia.com.