[tkd]

Being new to the street riding scene and having been out of the bike scene for a while, I can tell you that some of the recent posts have made me ponder a few points.

As many of you said, I did not know Chuck at all, but I can respect his style. There is never a good time for anyone to pass, but there might be some comfort in knowing that he was doing what he had a passion for when he stopped being with us.

It certainly has made me think about my mortality a little bit as has biking in general. We all choose to get on a bike, no one forces us. Everyone one of us is inherently aware of the dangers and choose to accept them to some point. The only thing we can have some degree of control over is the amount of risk we expose ourselves to, at least in some fashion based on riding habits and styles.

In some strange way, we are a big disconnected family. I'm new here, but I felt strangely at home because of a common bond. Kind of like the way you get waves from so many other riders regardless of whether they are on a moped or the gnarliest custom on the planet. Almost a brotherhood. I think it's that same brotherhood effect that makes us all sad when a member passes. It brings us one step closer to the potential reality that we all know is lurking, but yet we dare to defy on a daily basis.

As many have said, when the time comes our existence will cease to be, sometimes abruptly, sometimes a little each day. It's not my place to say which is better, but in my heart, I know which is best for me.

The more I think about the recent events, the more I realize that riding makes me appreciate what I have and what I have done because lurking around the next curve is the nodding truck driver, the new gravel, or any of a host of other things that could take the experience of life from me.

I have always had a little something inside that has said "are you experiencing everything you could to the fullest"? I'm not old by any means, but lately I've been able to answer that question with the response "Maybe I haven't experienced everything to the fullest, but I'm pretty fortunate for all the things I have experienced".

For me, the recent events on the board have helped me decide to appreciate that I have experienced and enjoy what is happening today, because there is no guarantee that next month will ever get here.

Proud to be Kawanow junior member.