Night

An opaque balmy night.  On the grassy slope of Skip Fordyce's lawn stood a lone motorcycle, a Harley Davidson Iron 883.  Illuminated by the light of the Harley Davidson sign.  Bike night at Skip Fordyce was over.  It had been an incredible evening: an array of bikes had rumbled in, bands played, barbeque on the fire, people everywhere.  Engine fumes from the bikes still lingered in the air.  aHbe Racer's family was all present: Sammy, Cristin M., Larissa, Julius, Rowe, and Abe, eating and conversing.

Together, they had torn down the booth in seconds flat.  With the last remaining equipment loaded onto the aHbe Racer truck, all that remained was the motorcycle on the grassy slope.  As Rowe sat on the bike, ready to roll it down the hill, she reflected on the simple joys of life: family, bikes, business, food, and meeting new people.  On the sidewalk, Cristin M. and Larissa were getting their groove on with some hip-hop moves.  Smiling, Rowe turns on her engine and meets the others down the hill.   Against the backdrop of the glowing moon, all packed up and ready to go, Team aHbe Racer rides into the night.

aHbe Racer continues to be awed at how God is working in our lives.  Without His light, we would be stumbling around in the dark.  At church this past Sunday, we learned how to truly worship the Man, "who needs no introduction."  Humbled, we follow Him through the night as the wheels are spinning...

Plans

Sammy looked dismally at his parked bike in the garage.  Two months since he's ridden with Abe and Rowe.  Conflicting schedules and bad weather had made riding together difficult to plan: "Yah, let's ride this weekend, the weather should be good." Four days later, the weekend arrives: it's windy, rainy, and hailing.  "Ok, for sure this coming weekend!", a pause, "Oh no, I forgot I have to work!  Can't ride.  How 'bout next weekend??  Oh, you can't then?? Bummer!"  On and on it went.  Finally, just this past week, Sammy gets a text from Rowe, "Hey, are you free this weekend?  Help us with Bike Night on Friday, and let's all go riding Saturday."  Although Sammy had intended to move into his new pad, he spontaneously puts his prior plans aside.  "Who cares, I'm riding with Abe & Rowe.  It's been way too long!!" He texts Rowe back, "I'll be there!!  Make room for my bike in the booth, I have aHbe Racer stickers all over it!" 

Put your prior plans aside.  Meet us at the booth this Friday night, April 15th from 6pm-9pm @ Skip Fordyce in Riverside.  Join us on our motorcycle ride.  Team aHbe Racer will be reunited once again, while the wheels are spinning...

Tires

"Caught in the rain again!" the moto rider bemoans his unfortunate predicament.  Abe is riding his bike, speeding on the freeway, headed home from Los Angeles.  Trying to beat the ominous rain clouds that loomed above, but to no avail.  The sky opens up, and raindrops fall.  Plink...plink...plink.  The wind and rain combination produces a stinging effect, "Ouch!"  Abe mourns, and speeds up faster.  Unrelenting rain.  Slick roads...sleek pavement...puddles.  After an hour of misery, Abe finally reaches home.  Drenched.

A motorcycle's engine, torque, handling, design, and sound are among the first features that moto riders appreciate on a bike.  But a bike's tires are often taken for granted, although they are very important in the performance of a bike.  Without reliable tires, Abe wouldn't just be feeling the rain's sting, he would have been slipping and sliding all over the freeway.  Without dependable tires, he wouldn't feel confident in taking tight turns when transitioning freeways.  And without steadfast tires, he wouldn't be racing down the freeway in the rain, trying to escape a thunderstorm...

Up until last week, aHbe Racer was feeling overwhelmed with the daily aspects of running a company.  Abe has superb design and sales skills; Rowe is good at accounting and admin stuff.  But they realized they couldn't do it all themselves.  They needed a third person, someone who is great at business and finance.  In answer to our prayers, we welcome Brian to Team aHbe Racer!  He represents the tires on our bikes that will keep us on track, take us wherever God leads.  Racing down the freeway, at 200 mph...well, maybe not in the rain, though...while the wheels are spinning...

The booth

Journey with us to the heart of the booth:

  The aHbe Racer motorcycles are ridden to the event, followed by the aHbe Racer truck filled with event paraphernalia.  Upon arrival, the aHbe Racer Team hurriedly unloads the truck, sets up the E-Z Up, sets up the table and chairs, hangs the shirts, fills the displays. Brother and sister, working side by side. The motorcycles are parked on both sides of the booth.  Outlining the perimeter of the booth are the aHbe Racer shirts, on hangers, waving gently as the breeze blows between them.

Venturing inside the booth, we see the Team taking a break, munching out on some burritos.  The Team chats about how their day is going, they memorize Bible verses, they confess what they're struggling with.  Hugs, love, and noon-time prayer.  Throughout the day, potential customers stop by the booth, wondering what aHbe Racer is all about.  Each Team member, in their own way, shares the vision, depending on who they talk to: aHbe Racer is moto-inspired apparel...vintage motorcycles...passionate about riding...food box donations.  At the end of the day, the exhausted Team breaks down the booth.  Putting away the shirts, loading the truck back up, bringing down the EZ UP.  They ride back home, exhausted and tired, but deeply contented...

This is aHbe Racer's dream of community.  Living daily life with one another: eating, praying, working, serving, and reaching others.  On a mission, shoulder to shoulder, reaching across communities together.  Friday, April 15th will be our next event: Bike Night from 6pm-9pm @ Skip Fordyce in Riverside.  Meet us at the booth, while the wheels are spinning...

Reaching
Across
Communities
En
Route

Rest stop

Around the twisties of Ortega Highway...through the backroads of the San Diego countryside, down the freeway to the city...Team aHbe Racer rode and rode.  Half a day's worth of riding...enjoying each other's company, soaking up the sun's rays, relishing the soft breeze.  They hardly felt that they were getting tired.  As the day wore on though, the fatigue slowly set in:  Abe's hands on the throttle began cramping up, Sammy's back began feeling stiff, and Rowe's bottom was getting numb.  With Abe leading the Team, he recognized everyone's exhaustion.  As if on cue, he switches his right signal light on, indicating the riders are exiting the freeway. 

After a brief interlude at the rest stop, a cool beverage, and some stretching, Team aHbe Racer hops back on their bikes.  Rejuvenated.  With newfound strength, they race back up the freeway, through the backroads and around more twisties.  Riding until the sun sets...

We all need to momentarily exit the "freeway" and pull into a "rest stop".  To do nothing.  Just rest.  Leave behind our chaotic schedules and anxious thoughts.  Time out.  A breather.  Resting with Him so the wheels keep on spinning...