Those of you that know me know that
I'm a bit of a wanderer. Despite being employed as a Dayton, Ohio, police
officer for 26 years, I roamed as far and wide as I could, every chance I
got. Sometimes, I underestimated the challenges associated with the road
to adventure and wound up in a fix. However, up to this point I've never
got myself into anything I couldn't think or force my way out of, knock wood.
Now that I'm retired I'm free to do what I please and in some ways it's quite
a change from what I'm accustomed to. I'm no longer a police officer and
I no longer perform a task that is useful to society. It's kind of like dreaming
about something for years, even decades, and then finding out it wasn't exactly
like what you imagined. Don't get me wrong, being able to spend time with
the kids/grandkids, ride my bicycle, run, and ride my motorcycle as much
as I please and still get paid is a good gig, it's just different.
IPMBA has always been a home to me even though the home office is in Baltimore
and the conferences move from place to place. So when I went to the IPMBA
Conference in Indianapolis, I was "home". While there are a great many people
in the organization I don't know, none of them are strangers. I believe I
have something in common with every bike cop out there and it's a great feeling
to be around them. Even better is being around old friends who literally
built IPMBA into what it is today. I was always in awe of my contemporaries
and still am. We only see each other once a year but there isn't one of them
I wouldn't strike out across country for to lend a helping hand.
I also got a chance to retire another IPMBA President, Jim Bowell.
Some may think I put him on the spot by asking him to come up and say a few
words, but nothing could be further from the truth. I wanted Jim to have
the same chance that I and other past presidents had. I also wanted the
membership to know that I was proud of the job he and the other board members
have done in guiding the organization. I'm confident that Dave
Hildebrand, the new president, along with the current board, will lead
IPMBA to even greater success. Speaking of success and why we achieved it,
without Maureen Becker I know IPMBA wouldn't be where it is today.
Thank you, Maureen, you have cared for something I love very deeply and I
appreciate it.
I'm in the process of moving to a warmer climate - Inverness, FL, or San
Antonio, TX, and in the meantime am just riding my bicycle and trying stave
off middle age. Speaking of riding, after several bicycle and motorcycle
experiments gone awry where I wanted to know the limit of the tires (think
hillbilly tire adhesion test), my back won't tolerate a regular diamond frame
bicycle anymore. So, I did what anybody committed to riding their whole life
would do. I "cowboyed up" and got a recumbent. Talk about a blow to the ego!
But hey, riding is such an important part of my life that I'll do anything
to continue. I do occasionally enjoy rolling up a on a pack of roadies and
joining in the pace line. On several occasions I've met with the "who the
heck is this Fred trying to ride with us?" After which, it's always fun to
throw it up in the big ring, bury them and then later give them the, "This
is my first bike since I quit smoking; I'm really just trying to get in shape
for the MS 150. Were you guys in a race back there? Some of you guys look
like those guys I see on Discovery Channel" act. Sometimes I crack myself
up.
Anyway, that's about all for now. I'm grateful for the opportunity to continue
my association with the stellar people of this organization and hope to see
many of you next year when I come home.
P.S.: If there are any bike cops in the Citrus County, Florida, area, I'd
like to hear from you. Please email me at Nomadmax
(at) hotmail.com.
© 2008 IPMBA. This article appeared in the Summer 2008 issue of IPMBA
News.
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