2011 Mandatory and Birthday Party by Raoul
June/03/2011 Filed in: Event Summaries
For me, Mandatory 2011 was one of, if not, THE best of the eleven Mandatories I’ve attended. This one was special to me for two reasons: first, I was awarded my Lifer patch (a testament of both my endurance and love for this club) and second, I sewed a set of red rockers onto a brand new set of colors. These red rockers indicate my appointment as Internet Officer and member of the executive board. Now I get to sit at the front of the room during our president’s meetings and look into the eyes of the area and chapter leadership of the club. I’m pleased to receive this recognition for the work I’ve done as a white rocker and I promise to continue bringing the message of what life in the Gypsy MC is like in photos and words that describe our culture and history.
Gypsy MC Area A hosted this year’s Mandatory at the same location we used five years ago. By Friday, the site was in very good shape, thanks to area (and outside the area) members. The weather was magnificent - typical Texas heat and humidity but clear and cooler during the nights - not a drop of rain all weekend long. Big EZ did a terrific job orchestrating run preparation and daily logistics and Fort Bend members Donkey and Big Jones were on top of every request that was made during the event. Brazos Valley ran the fun runs on Saturday and Sunday and Surfside made the field events a big hit. Be sure and look at the photos of the field events - in this case, pictures are definitely worth a thousand words I might use to describe some of the variations on traditional events. Moscow President, Rat Bike Willie, put together an excellent set of graphics for the run T-Shirts. The CMA set up an area where kids could go and play while the adults did what we do. A big round of applause goes out to Area A for their efforts to make this year’s Mandatory a successful event!
By late Friday afternoon the campground was transformed into a city of neighborhoods made up of Gypsy chapters from Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Germany and Mexico. Goliad had their cannon and we all heard periodic reports from it’s firing, Our three Louisiana chapters occupied a corner lot. They put on a great show with Cajun food and Zydeco music played throughout the night. Fort Bend, Surfside and Cuero were camped along the lake and Nacogdoches was tucked away in the furthest corner of the campground. The woods were home to Houston, Moscow, Corpus Christi, Calallen, San Antonio and a lot more. We were all there, with red rockers and black rockers and retired lifers scattered amongst the chapter camps. Golf carts carried many of the members between campsites - lots of old friends visiting one another and new friends being made throughout the long weekend. Friday night was really the “Party Time” kick off for Mandatory - the bar was open and serving, bands played and League City rolled out their famous “shot block”. The party ran well into the night and the hard core amongst us didn’t give it up ‘til the following morning.
This is the first year Facebook has played a significant role in Mandatory. We’ve got about four hundred and fifty members in our Facebook group and the communication and excitement within the group grew as we got closer to Friday. Members were posting their plans for travel and entertainment they were planning for campsites parties. Posting information within the group allowed us to share information only within the club and maintain “club business” within only those who need to know. I think, as we become more experienced using Facebook, we’ll continue to find ways to use this tool for better communication within the club.
While a lot of members did the Saturday “Fun Run” the red rockers and presidents attended the semi-annual President’s Meeting. The Gypsy MC Museum rolled in about the same time the President’s Meeting was over. I helped Chuck set up a new digital photo display - we’ve now got two displays working - and the Erdin tribute that played on the flat panel monitor. After the trailer was set up I began talking to a prospect who’d been assigned to museum duty by one of the chapters. This conversation turned into a combination question and answer session and a history presentation for about a dozen members in the museum at the time. I’m always impressed with the level of interest that our members have in learning about the history of our club.
One of the highlights of the afternoon was an impromptu meeting that Silver Tongue had with a group of prospects before the Retired Lifer Meeting. An announcement went out that prospects were required to prepare for this meeting, i.e., to set-up the bar and serve drinks. I’d guess more than half of the club’s prospects volunteered to help. After they’d prepared for the meeting Silver Tongue began talking to them about what it was to be a member of the Gypsy MC. This informal conversation took the form of a classroom presentation and a Q&A. Silver Tongue drew me into the conversation and it was evident that we had an audience that was extremely interested in learning more about our club’s culture. You can bet that both Silver Tongue and I will both be talking to Hap about what we can do in the future to build on this positive experience.
Later, Saturday night dinner was served - chicken fried chicken and steak, corn and mashed potatoes. I ate everything I could and still threw out so much food my sweet mother probably stirred in her grave. After dinner the crowd began gathering for the award ceremonies. Several raffles were drawn and we remembered Erdin-Erdin who’s memory this year’s Mandatory was dedicated to. The award ceremonies continued with USA and Lifer patch awards and the associated photo opportunities. After the Lifer/USA awards were made, Hap made a Hall of Fame award presentation to Chuck, a twenty-eight year member who has served the club as chapter president, area vice president and international vice president. Check out photos from the USA/Lifer and Hall of Fame awards in the Photo Gallery.
After the awards the band cranked up, the bar continued serving and chapters continued hosting their campsite parties throughout the night. The campsite was quiet the next morning until about eight o’clock when members began to stir and those who were traveling home began to break camp. Those who stayed either nursed hangovers, rode the historical marker fun run or laid back at their campsites and visited with members as they drifted through the campground. The parties on Sunday night were a lot more sedate - more like campfire conversations than Mardi Gras extravaganzas. Those who stayed until Monday helped clean up the campgrounds with many of the Area A members.
For Gypsy MC members who read this account of Mandatory and have gone through the album in the Photo Gallery, you know this year was a great party. For those of you who are not Gypsys, you’ve gotten a glimpse of what life in our motorcycle club is like. Our annual Gypsy MC Mandatory and Birthday Party is absolutely the big event of our year - it’s akin to a family reunion that is opened to members and invited guests only. Makes me glad I’m a Gypsy and also makes me look forward to future rides and parties!
Raoul
While a lot of members did the Saturday “Fun Run” the red rockers and presidents attended the semi-annual President’s Meeting. The Gypsy MC Museum rolled in about the same time the President’s Meeting was over. I helped Chuck set up a new digital photo display - we’ve now got two displays working - and the Erdin tribute that played on the flat panel monitor. After the trailer was set up I began talking to a prospect who’d been assigned to museum duty by one of the chapters. This conversation turned into a combination question and answer session and a history presentation for about a dozen members in the museum at the time. I’m always impressed with the level of interest that our members have in learning about the history of our club.
Later, Saturday night dinner was served - chicken fried chicken and steak, corn and mashed potatoes. I ate everything I could and still threw out so much food my sweet mother probably stirred in her grave. After dinner the crowd began gathering for the award ceremonies. Several raffles were drawn and we remembered Erdin-Erdin who’s memory this year’s Mandatory was dedicated to. The award ceremonies continued with USA and Lifer patch awards and the associated photo opportunities. After the Lifer/USA awards were made, Hap made a Hall of Fame award presentation to Chuck, a twenty-eight year member who has served the club as chapter president, area vice president and international vice president. Check out photos from the USA/Lifer and Hall of Fame awards in the Photo Gallery.
After the awards the band cranked up, the bar continued serving and chapters continued hosting their campsite parties throughout the night. The campsite was quiet the next morning until about eight o’clock when members began to stir and those who were traveling home began to break camp. Those who stayed either nursed hangovers, rode the historical marker fun run or laid back at their campsites and visited with members as they drifted through the campground. The parties on Sunday night were a lot more sedate - more like campfire conversations than Mardi Gras extravaganzas. Those who stayed until Monday helped clean up the campgrounds with many of the Area A members.
For Gypsy MC members who read this account of Mandatory and have gone through the album in the Photo Gallery, you know this year was a great party. For those of you who are not Gypsys, you’ve gotten a glimpse of what life in our motorcycle club is like. Our annual Gypsy MC Mandatory and Birthday Party is absolutely the big event of our year - it’s akin to a family reunion that is opened to members and invited guests only. Makes me glad I’m a Gypsy and also makes me look forward to future rides and parties!
Raoul
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