Military service requires numerous sacrifices: leaving home, spending time away from friends and family, risking your life on a daily basis, and having to postpone the things you wanted to do or learn how to do. If you or someone you know is in or has been in the armed forces and always wanted to learn how to ride a motorcycle, Harley-Davidson has good news.
Between May 16 (Armed Forces Day) and September 13, the company is “offering all current and former U.S. military free Riding Academy motorcycle training” through its new “‘Learn to Ride’ program, [which is] open to active-duty, retired, reservists and veterans.”
Harley-Davidson announced the initiative on the flight deck of the USS Yorktown in Charleston, South Carolina. That served as the perfect spot for U.S. Army veteran, Wounded Warrior Project Alumnus, and Tri-Glide rider Heath Calhoun, along with six riders who are also in the military, to demonstrate basic motorcycle riding exercises.
To “Learn to Ride,” stateside members of the military need to go to a Harley-Davidson dealer or surf on over to www.h-d.com/militarylearntoride. If the Riding Academy is not offered in a certain area, Harley-Davidson will give whoever the would-be military participant happens to be an H-D gift card with a credit on it equal to the cost of the course.
Should a friend of yours happen to be deployed outside of the U.S. and want to take part in the program, no problem. They just need to submit a registration form by September 13 to get a voucher (good through 2016) for free motorcycle safety training.
Here’s some more good news: Harley-Davidson’s alliance with the Wounded Warrior Project, aka Operation Personal Freedom, designed to help servicepeople with post-traumatic stress disorder live better lives, includes a new Harley-Davidson MotorClothes collection. Ten percent of the sales of the items in that collection will support the WWP and national H-D dealer events “focused on welcoming and celebrating our military heroes.” For more information about Operation Personal Freedom, go to www.h-d.com/military.
The scene from above the flight deck of the USS Yorktown — six veterans and active-duty military ride the H-D Street 500 as Harley-Davidson announced it is offering current and former U.S. military free Riding Academy motorcycle training in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., Wednesday, May 6, 2015. (Mic Smith/AP Images for Harley-Davidson)
Debi Cole, from James Island, S.C., rides the H-D Street 500 aboard the USS Yorktown Wednesday, May 6, 2015, in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., as Harley-Davidson announced it is offering free Riding Academy to all current and former U.S. Military. (Mic Smith/AP Images for Harley-Davidson)
Tamika Whitfield, member of the U.S. Air Force, from Charleston, rides the H-D Street 500 aboard the USS Yorktown Wednesday, May 6, 2015, in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., as Harley-Davidson announced it is offering free Riding Academy to all current and former U.S. Military. (Mic Smith/AP Images for Harley-Davidson)
The scene from on the flight deck of the USS Yorktown while six veterans and active-duty military ride the H-D Street 500 as Harley-Davidson with the H-D Street 500 as Harley-Davidson announced it is offering current and former U.S. military free Riding Academy motorcycle training in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., Wednesday, May 6, 2105. (Mic Smith/AP Images for Harley-Davidson)
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
