Habitat motorcycle ride will tour two counties

BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer

Motorcycle riders will once again be securing their helmets, revving up their engines and riding for charity.

The Western Monmouth Habitat for Humanity is holding its fifth annual motorcycle ride for affordable housing on Oct. 3 and organizers are hoping to top last year’s turnout of more than 200 motorcycle riders.

In the driver’s seats again this year are co-chairmen James Wishbow of Millstone Township and Tom Ross of Wall Township. The two have headed the event since its beginning in 2000.

Participants in the ride for Habitat have steadily increased over the years, beginning with 40 riders who raised $6,000 the first year and moving to more than 200 riders who raised $16,000 in 2003.

The ride keeps growing year after year, something Wishbow has been hoping for since he came up with the idea years ago. The organizer said he had seen other charity rides and that they all seemed to work so well that he wanted to adding this event as part of his involvement in the Habitat organization.

“The vast majority of bikers are very community oriented individuals and are very willing to give of their time for a charitable event,” Wishbow said.

The charity ride raises funds for Habitat for Humanity, an organization that rehabilitates and constructs homes for working people who might not otherwise be able to purchase a home. In addition to other criteria, applicants for the Habitat homes must promise a certain amount of “sweat equity” by helping with the actual construction of the home they are purchasing.

Wishbow has been involved with the organization for years and has served as a Habitat for Humanity trustee.

Participants in the Oct. 3 charity event will gather in the usual place, the Freehold Savings and Loan, 68 W. Main St., Freehold, beginning at 10 a.m. to register and check in. This year along with the participants’ ticket to ride, coffee and donuts will also be provided. The Rev. Scott Brown of Colts Neck will bless the riders and their motorcycles before they hit the asphalt promptly at noon.

Riders will travel through Monmouth and Ocean counties to raise funds for affordable housing. The one-hour ride will end at the Colts Neck Reformed Church, Route 537, according to Wishbow. Refreshments will be provided at the end of the ride.

Wishbow said he’s been riding a motorcycle for more than 20 years and is happy he found a way to couple his hobby with his desire to give something back to the community.

The fee to preregister for the ride is $20 for a driver and $10 for a passenger. After Sept. 27, drivers will pay $25 and passengers will be $15. A commemorative ride pin will be issued to the first 400 participants.

Wishbow said riders who raise $50 or more in sponsorship funds will receive a special event T-shirt. Those who raise $100 or more will take home a Habitat for Humanity sweatshirt and T-shirt, and those who have raised $500 or more in sponsorship dollars will take home a custom event denim jacket with the Habitat logo and an embroidered motorcycle.

Wishbow said a few riders last year raised more than $1,000 in sponsorship dollars. This year, riders who raise $1,000 will receive a special custom leather jacket with logo, a sweatshirt and a T-shirt.

The sponsors of the event are Freehold Savings and Loan, Trenton World-Class Harley Davidson, Harley-Davidson of Long Branch, Sam’s Club, Harley-Davidson of Ocean County, Mr. Cycle Parts, Northeastern Supply and Freehold Honda Triumph.

The rain date for the event is Oct. 10. For more information call Tom Ross, (732) 528-5991, or James Wishbow, (609) 259-6459.