In 1986 I purchased my home outside of Parry Sound, Ontario and decided that the nice detached workshop would make a great party spot for me and my rag-tag group of friends as well as a place to work on our motorcycles. By Spring of 1987 we had a home base and the Thundering Hearts Motorcycle Club was born. The name was inspired by the John Mellencamp song of the same name and was fitting, as the clubhouse was in a valley.
“…Ride that Harley-Davidson in the hot summer heat, Lord knows that I just love to ride… …In the valley of the Thundering Hearts”.
Initially we called it a motorcycle ‘enthusiasts’ club mainly because several of our members didn’t actually own a motorcycle, but were there for the comradery and the parties just the same. Over the next few years our official membership grew to about 15.
Our Spring Bash parties every Victoria Day weekend were a big hit and drew many of our biker friends from far and wide.
They were good times. We were young, reckless and enthusiastic.
By 1993 a series of events had come about which caused me to move away from my home and as several other members had moved away, sold their bikes or simply lost interest, the club faded into obscurity.
I had also been diagnosed with a chronic hereditary bone disease and as the years passed I became more and more disabled. By 1999, I hadn’t ridden a bike for a few years and eventually could not even work. Even just getting out of bed and walking was a painful struggle. Despite these setbacks, I managed to buy back my home and did my best to keep the tradition of the annual Spring Bash party alive.
By 2007 I had found the right combinations of medications, exercises and mindset to tolerate my pain and illness and had made great improvements. So much so that I began to think about getting another motorcycle, even if it was just to take short rides to town on. I bought a 1997 Suzuki Marauder that was mildly customized and it was perfect for me. My brother Derrick had bought a new Honda Shadow Aero and we soon began taking weekly rides for some cold beer and chicken wings over a few games of pool. I was able to ride without too much pain although my hips and back hurt constantly and my hand couldn’t grip and twist the throttle for very long. But it didn’t matter. I was loving being on a bike again and I found myself wanting to move up to a bigger bike more suited to longer trips. In 2010 I bought my Harley-Davidson FLHTPI and as soon as Spring 2011 hit, Derrick followed suit. We had made plans, the Hard Ride Tour and several charity motorcycle events and we made that happen. We reveled in our new-found love of motorcycling and reminisced about the glory days of the Thundering Hearts motorcycle club.
Our older brother Doc, who at one time was more of a biker than any of us, has recently expressed his desire to pick up another bike and join us on some of our rides and Derrick’s son Jon is considering trading his rice rocket for a Harley V-Rod.
This is looking to be the rebirth of Thundering Hearts. Charity toy rides and poker runs will be a big part of what the club is about. Plans for this year’s Spring Bash include asking guests to bring non-perishable food items that we can donate to the local food bank on behalf of the club. It’s a new start and the beginning of more great times and memories, in the valley of the Thundering Hearts.
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