Dear Children’s Ride 13 Supporters:

 On behalf of the Imagine Guild of Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center, thank you for your support of Children’s Ride 13.  We appreciate the incredible support we receive from the motorcycle riding community every year.  We value each and every rider and realize the success of our event would not be possible without you.  With your help, we raised more than $600,000 for Children’s Hospital.

 2008 was a big transitional year for us and we made some exciting additions with our first concert.   We hope you enjoyed the Rock ‘N Ride concert and appreciate the feedback we’ve already received from many of you, and appreciate any additional input you can offer.  Your comments and suggestions are important as we want to provide a first-class event for our many riders and supporters.

 Being a transitional year, we needed to develop a new ride route.  The route we had developed with the Washington State Patrol (WSP) became final about a month out from the ride.  With hindsight being 20/20, we realize the new route should have been printed and inserted into each of the rider’s packets.  Since we’ve never had any issues regarding the ride route in the past we hadn’t considered the impact this might have.  Next year, we will have the ride route posted on our website, in the ride brochure and a copy in each of the rider’s packet. 

 Our number one priority is to ensure Children’s Ride 13 is a safe riding environment for all our participants.  We have a great working relationship with the WSP and they have provided a tremendous service to us for many years.  After the ride we learned about the collisions that occurred.  We are in communication with WSP to learn more about the collisions and the riders involved.  When the first incident occurred in the I-90 tunnel, many of you stopped to help and we thank you for your willingness to assist.  Unfortunately this unforeseen accident split the pack and many riders were lost taking

I-405 when they decided to get back in the ride.  By the time WSP had secured the accident scene and were able to give directions, many of the riders had left.  We offer our sincerest apologies to all participants for any confusion that may have occurred as a result of the detour.

 We would appreciate any feedback you have about the event, as we look to ensure that we provide a great experience for all participants.  Your e-mails can be sent to wendy.funicello@seattlechildrens.org and she will direct them to the leadership of the Imagine Guild.

 As we wrap up this year’s event, we are already planning for Children’s Ride 14.  We look forward to your continued support and hope to have you back next year!

 Thank you,
Jim Schulz, President
Imagine Guild of Children's Hospital