Vol. 1 Issue 1 - April 2010, People To See

Boozefighters Chapter 80 - Timberjacks

By Ed Frulla   Sat, Mar 06, 2010

History, Brotherhood and Tradition.  Three simple words that comprise the core and essence of Chapter 80 of the Boozefighters Club MC.  Chapter 80 is a local chapter named the Timerjacks and is based in Warrensburg, NY.

The President of Chapter 80 is Jim Hull and he took some time to talk to us about the Chapter and its' history.

HISTORY

Before we can talk about the history of the Timberjacks Chapter we really need to look at the history of the Boozefighters MC as a National organization.

The following was lifted directly from the Boozefighters Chapter 80 Timberjacks web site.  I figure that they are far more capable of telling the story than I ever would be.

It all began in 1946 in a bar in Los Angeles, California, "The All American Bar" where returning WWII  war vets gathered  with "Wino" Willie Forkner, Vern Autry, Jack Lilly, Jim Cameron, J.D.Cameron, George Manker, Bobby Kelton, "Red Dog" Dahlgren,   "Dink" Burns, Gil Armas, Johnny Roccio, Johnny Davis, "Fat Boy" Nelson,  Lance Tidwell, and C.B. Clausen.

The club name came ironically from a man who never became a member; Walt Porter. Porter, who was a regular at the All American Bar, overhearing Forkner and others discussing possible names for their new club, ( after being thrown out of the 13 Rebels MC ) raised his head from the bar and said " The Boozefighters," all you do is come in this place and fight that Booze anyway. Thus was born THE BOOZEFIGHTERS MC.

In the small town of Hollister, California, in 1947, the Boozefighters made history. They had gone there to party and attend The Gypsy Tour. Riding their motorcycles up and down the small town's main drag, and into the local bars, notably Johnny's which to this day is a landmark in Hollister.

Barney Peterson, a photographer from The San Francisco Chronicle, staged the infamous photo of an unknown drunk (not a Boozefighter) on a motorcycle surrounded by empty beer bottles. The photo never ran in the Chronicle, but it made page 31 of the July 21St  1947 issue of LIFE Magazine, with the following caption" Cyclist Holiday: He and his friends terrorize a town"

In 1951 Harper's magazine writer Frank Rooney, inspired by the LIFE article, wrote a motorcycle story "Gang Takes Over a Town." Stanley Kramer a film producer/director, taking from Frank Rooney's story, produced his classic movie "The Wild One" starring Marlon Brando and Lee Marvin. Millions wanted to be a " Wild One" and from that day pursued the lifestyle, to this day The Boozefighters remain "The Original Wild Ones". 

The Boozefighters are not and have never been a 1% Club, we are one of the oldest active motorcycle clubs in the country, we believe in respecting the rights of all motorcycle clubs in a peaceful co-existence, and all members of the community. We enjoy the open road, the brotherhood, the heritage, history and good fun of our club. It is these ideals that have made us the most unique and honored club in the biker community.

The idea for Chapter 80 occurred one day when a group of local riders were attending a run.  Also at the run were members of the Boozefighters Chapter 60 and after some conversations, the group decided to see if they could form their own chapter.  With a little research the group was connected to the Northeast Representative of the Boozefighters National Organization.

They made their first ride as a prospect chapter on 9/23/06 and attended all of the Chapter 60 events as well as their own events until they received their charter from the National Organization.  They received their charter from the National Organization on 10/20/07 and celebrated by making their first ride as patch holders on that same day. 

A brotherhood can be defined as an organization of individuals who share a deep passion for some common ideal.  The primary purpose of Chapter 80 is to provide an organized venue for the members to pursue bikes, riding and the biker lifestyle.  To say that Chapter 80 succeeds in that would be a gross understatement.  The Chapter has activities virtually every month of year.  From their Cabin fever party in March to the Christmas Party in December, there is always something going on.  Once riding season starts, the Chapter or individual members are on the road almost every weekend.  If it is not a club ride, then individual members are off to attend different rides and events as representatives of Chapter 80. 

Three time a year the Chapter makes out of state trips.  Each year the Chapter attends the Rolling Thunder event held during Memorial Day weekend in Washington DC, they also make a run to Laconia Bike week and a run to Canada to ride and party with a Canadian Boozefighter Chapter.

The Chapter also has a weekend party at Sporty's Iron Duke Saloon in Minerva, NY.  It is held the first weekend in August and is aptly named the "We Ain't Going to Sturgis Party".  This years event is scheduled for August 6th - 8th.  Admission is $15.00 per person or $25.00 per couple.  There will be live music, great food and vendors as well as the usual biker games.  Be advised that there will be no sale of one day tickets and you can camp at the site if you so desire.  There is no additional fee for camping.  A good time is always had by all. 

Being part of the brotherhood that is Chapter 80 means that you are expected to fulfill your obligations to the chapter by participating fully in the Chapters' events and activities.  You have to earn the right to wear a Chapter 80 patch and you have to continue to earn the right to keep wearing the patch.  Being part of the Chapter 80 brotherhood is a commitment and should not be accepted lightly. 

TRADITION

The Boozefighters MC is an organization that is founded on tradition and each chapter is responsible for insuring that the traditions are maintained and perpetuated. 

The membership process is a classic example of these traditions.  Individuals who desire to be members need to contact the Chapter and indicate an interest in becoming a member.  The best way that I can think of to do this is to attend an event and indicate to the Chapter an interest in membership.  The individual will then be classified as a "Hang Around".  At this point in the process, the individual has no commitments or obligations to the Chapter. They can attend whatever Chapter events that they desire to attend.  After a month or two, the individual will be evaluated by the members to see if the individual is committed to the Chapter and its ideals.  If the members believe that the individual is, that individual will be declared a Prospect member.  The individual will remain a Prospect for a year at which time he will be evaluated for full membership.  During that year, the Prospect member must make two long term out of state trips.  Not everyone makes it from Prospect to Patched membership in a year, sometimes it takes longer.  Participation and attitude go a long way towards insuring acceptance.

Another tradition of the Boozefighters is the requirement that members must ride/own an American Made V-Twin.  You can ride anything you want but somewhere in your stable of bikes, there must be an American made V-Twin.

Another tradition that harkens back to the time frame when the Boozefighters was originally formed is the fact that this is a male only club.  Significant others of the female gender are welcome at events and are even acknowledged by the Chapter for their contributions to the Chapter by being patched but they hold no standing in the Chapter.

To me though, the best tradition is the tradition of helping your fellow Boozefighters and the community around you. 

Each November Chapter 80 holds a party in which all of the proceeds go to Operation Reindeer which provides gifts to the less fortunate children in the area.  If you were to visit the Chapter 80 web site and look in the gallery you will see where the chapter helped with the maintenance of the home of a Boozefighter who is unable to do the maintenance himself. 

History, Brotherhood and Traditon.  Those three simple words are more than likely what caused Jim to say to me "The best organization that I have ever belonged to.  Great people with a great attitude towards bikes".

For more information, visit the Chapters' web site at http://boozefighterschapter80.com.

By Ed Frulla