30,000 motorcycles to hit road - Expect traffic delays durin
Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2006 11:03 am
30,000 motorcycles to hit road - Expect traffic delays during Sunday Toys Run
Monday, December 11, 2006 - By Sallie James - South Florida Sun-Sentinel - sun-sentinel.com
The volunteers working at Pompano Harness Track on Sunday have a tricky job: Getting 30,000 motorcycles safely out the gate and on the road for the 19th annual Christmas Toys in the Sun Run.
When you're dealing with a noisy parking lot jammed with thousands of rumbling motorcycles, there's not much room for error.
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"It's first come, first leave," said Joey Quinter, the sergeant at arms for the Fort Lauderdale chapter of the Wings of Gold Motorcycle Club, who will be helping move the riders out. "It gets done like clockwork, because we only have a short amount of time."
Sunday's ride, with its traffic-stopping motorcycle entourage, is bittersweet this year because its founder, Robert Amchir, 67, died Wednesday of complications related to leukemia. Riders will be wearing memorial patches in Amchir's honor during the gigantic run.
Early Sunday at the harness track, motorcycle club members will direct arriving riders where to park, lining them up front wheel-to-back wheel in quarter-mile-long rows, 20 motorcycles across. Motorcycle club members will be on hand to make sure overly eager riders wait their turn.
"There is zero tolerance for fooling around," Quinter said.
The procession pulls out of Pompano Harness Track at 9:45 a.m. Sunday and ends 26 miles away at Markham Park in Sunrise. Organizers estimate the parade will take about 31/2 hours from start to finish.
"The only words I can use to describe it are `unforgettably amazing,'" Quinter said of the sea of motorcycles.
Events at Markham Park include an array of live entertainment, vendors and displays.
And if you're planning to catch a flight on Sunday or attend the 1 p.m. Dolphins-Patriots game at Dolphin Stadium, leave early. Otherwise you risk getting stuck in a traffic jam as highways close for the thousands of toy-laden motorcycles flooding southbound Interstate 95 and westbound I-595.
"We try to make sure that we give everyone alternate routes," said Broward Sheriff's Office Sgt. Pete Geary, who is coordinating traffic for the event. "Anybody who wants to go to the airport should take the turnpike to I-595 east."
Geary said officers will be stationed at 41 positions along the route, including 100 motorcycle officers from Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.
"We monitor how the motorcyclists act. If we have someone who is reckless or acting careless, we escort them out of the parade," Geary said. "If they are seeing an officer every couple hundred yards or more, they have a tendency to ride smart and ride safe."
The run, founded in 1987 by Davie resident Amchir as a way to raise money and goods for children's causes, has grown from 700 participants to more than 30,000. Over the years, the event has raised $6.5 million and collected more than $20 million in toys. A primary beneficiary is Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood.
Amchir, whose funeral service will be Friday, was president of the South Florida Presidents Council, an umbrella organization of motorcycle clubs and organizations, which organizes the Toys Run. Amchir also was national president of the Wings of Gold Motorcycle Club.
Amchir's son Dave will take over his father's Toys Run responsibilities and intends to keep the event going.
"He'll be carrying on his father's legacy," said Dave Amchir's wife, Debbie.
Monday, December 11, 2006 - By Sallie James - South Florida Sun-Sentinel - sun-sentinel.com
The volunteers working at Pompano Harness Track on Sunday have a tricky job: Getting 30,000 motorcycles safely out the gate and on the road for the 19th annual Christmas Toys in the Sun Run.
When you're dealing with a noisy parking lot jammed with thousands of rumbling motorcycles, there's not much room for error.
LocalLinks
"It's first come, first leave," said Joey Quinter, the sergeant at arms for the Fort Lauderdale chapter of the Wings of Gold Motorcycle Club, who will be helping move the riders out. "It gets done like clockwork, because we only have a short amount of time."
Sunday's ride, with its traffic-stopping motorcycle entourage, is bittersweet this year because its founder, Robert Amchir, 67, died Wednesday of complications related to leukemia. Riders will be wearing memorial patches in Amchir's honor during the gigantic run.
Early Sunday at the harness track, motorcycle club members will direct arriving riders where to park, lining them up front wheel-to-back wheel in quarter-mile-long rows, 20 motorcycles across. Motorcycle club members will be on hand to make sure overly eager riders wait their turn.
"There is zero tolerance for fooling around," Quinter said.
The procession pulls out of Pompano Harness Track at 9:45 a.m. Sunday and ends 26 miles away at Markham Park in Sunrise. Organizers estimate the parade will take about 31/2 hours from start to finish.
"The only words I can use to describe it are `unforgettably amazing,'" Quinter said of the sea of motorcycles.
Events at Markham Park include an array of live entertainment, vendors and displays.
And if you're planning to catch a flight on Sunday or attend the 1 p.m. Dolphins-Patriots game at Dolphin Stadium, leave early. Otherwise you risk getting stuck in a traffic jam as highways close for the thousands of toy-laden motorcycles flooding southbound Interstate 95 and westbound I-595.
"We try to make sure that we give everyone alternate routes," said Broward Sheriff's Office Sgt. Pete Geary, who is coordinating traffic for the event. "Anybody who wants to go to the airport should take the turnpike to I-595 east."
Geary said officers will be stationed at 41 positions along the route, including 100 motorcycle officers from Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.
"We monitor how the motorcyclists act. If we have someone who is reckless or acting careless, we escort them out of the parade," Geary said. "If they are seeing an officer every couple hundred yards or more, they have a tendency to ride smart and ride safe."
The run, founded in 1987 by Davie resident Amchir as a way to raise money and goods for children's causes, has grown from 700 participants to more than 30,000. Over the years, the event has raised $6.5 million and collected more than $20 million in toys. A primary beneficiary is Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood.
Amchir, whose funeral service will be Friday, was president of the South Florida Presidents Council, an umbrella organization of motorcycle clubs and organizations, which organizes the Toys Run. Amchir also was national president of the Wings of Gold Motorcycle Club.
Amchir's son Dave will take over his father's Toys Run responsibilities and intends to keep the event going.
"He'll be carrying on his father's legacy," said Dave Amchir's wife, Debbie.