Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/1490466
22 | WheelsOfGrace.com | #65 Almost one year ago to date, I joined a local Hog Chapter and started riding again a er a 15-year break. From November 1, 2021 through the end of the year, I started making a good pace for riding and rode about 5000 miles. I remember when I first joined the chapter, I heard about people going to Sturgis, so I decided to look up how many miles to get there. It was over 1300 miles, and I remember thinking to myself, "There is no way I would ride that far on my motorcycle." Fast forward about 10 months later, and not only did I go to Sturgis, but we also did a 4700- mile journey there and back. I guess I've come a long way! This year, I'm happy to report that I've picked up the pace a bit and I'm currently si ng at about 38,000 miles this year alone. I'd say that I've come a long way from my first scare of a 1300-mile trip. I guess once you start ge ng out there to see America the beau ful, it starts inspiring you to ride more. When I started asking people about their trip to Sturgis, I received all sorts of posi ve and nega ve comments. I was expec ng that the city might be something like Sodom and Gomorrah and girls would be walking around topless and people would be doing, God knows what there. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I got there but I was told not to bring my daughter :-) I decided that I would go and use my blinders to keep me focused on my real mission…ministering to other bikers who need Christ. Surprisingly, when I got there, it wasn't as bad as everyone was describing, although there were a few pre y crazy people walking around at mes. They were half dressed, wearing some crazy ou its. Fortunately, there was no outright nudity or some of the crazy things I was warned about. My wife was also concerned about my going there because of some of the stories she heard. I told her, "Honey, I am going there to represent the Black Sheep Motorcycle Ministry and I will be ministering to people there." Although she was a li le bit reluctant to my going, she gave me her blessing. I ended up riding there with three of my road captains from the Hog Chapter. Although these guys weren't Chris ans, they definitely were some pre y cool guys that I got along with very well. The Lord has been especially pu ng one of those men on my heart to be a godly example to and I was curious to see what God would do with my me riding with them. Our trip in whole was a total of 12 days and we set out for the trip of a life me. We spent four days riding the long route to Sturgis, five days in Sturgis, and we pushed three days to get home. We ended up ren ng a house about a half a mile from downtown Sturgis. Although we went downtown every evening, we spent the days riding and seeing the sights around South Dakota. One of the things I no ced about the town was that the Hells Angels had a pre y big presence Sturgis Road Trip By Tom Sheltraw Sturgis Road Trip 22 | WheelsOfGrace.com | #65