COARSEGOLD – The parking lot at Madera County Fire Department Station 10 in Yosemite Lakes Park was filled with gorgeous bikes on Saturday morning as the Sierra Shadow Casters Motorcycle Club (SSC) and G’ma & Pappa’s Biker Apparel gathered to present a check for $6,200 to the volunteer fire department.
The presentation was the result of a cooperative effort between the SSC motorcycle club and G’ma & Pappas, who hosted a “Next Firefighter Up” motorcycle poker run fundraiser on Sept. 17, at the Coarsegold Village. The event drew some 144 motorcycles and 240 people.
Motorcycle riders from all over the Central Valley and the Sierra participated in a poker run event in the morning, then returned to the Village in the afternoon for a BBQ, live music and numerous prize drawings.
SSC president Mark Aston accepts a plaque of appreciation from Station 10 Captain Gus Lavell – photo by Gina Clugston
Gus Lavell, Station 10 Captain, expressed his gratitude by presenting a plaque to both the SSC and Gma’s thanking them for their efforts on behalf of Station 10, and Station 8 — located on Road 417 — who will share the proceeds.
“We had a blast,” Lavell told the audience. “There are a lot of us who have never been a part of anything like this, and it was amazing to see so many bikes and people there. We truly do appreciate it.”
Before presenting the check to Capt. Lavell, SSC President Mark Aston thanked the firefighters, the Ladies of the Lakes and the Station 10 Volunteer Firefighters Auxiliary, for volunteering at their own fundraiser by BBQing the food, serving it and helping with biker registrations.
Capt. Lavell says his station responded to some 300 calls in 2015 for everything from structure and vegetation fires to medical calls and auto accidents. He oversees 18 PCFs (Paid Call Firefighters) who all work a 9-to-5 “day job,” and remain on call year-round. Coarsegold’s Station 8 has about 6 PCFs.
Both companies are in constant need of new equipment or safety gear which is not always funded by the County due to budget constraints. This is the reason fundraisers such as these are so important.
Shadow Casters present $6,200 check to Madera County Fire Station 10 in YLP – photo by Gina Clugston
SSC Vice President Paul Hall told Sierra News Online that the entire event was an amazing success and that he hopes to do an even larger event in 2017.
The Sierra Shadow Casters Motorcycle Club is based in Coarsegold and encourages mountain bikers to ride with them. For more info about the club visit www.sierrashadowcasters.com or like them on Facebook www.facebook.com/sierrashadowcastersmc
