July is our month of Independence, but that in my opinion is just for the celebration of fighting for our Freedom from the crown.  Instead of a celebration of freedom day and/or weekend, I would think that in this day and age that this holiday is a reminder this time of year that we cannot just “set it and forget it” like a Ron Popeil rotisserie.  Our Freedom and our rights are fluid in nature, ever changing.  Freedom and rights come and go with the changing of the guard in all aspects of local, state, and federal politics. Because of this ever-changing nature of our rights and freedoms, we still have to fight like hell to keep our rights and freedoms and prevent them from being stripped away.  Nothing is without a price.  Nothing stays new forever. Freedom is not an exception to that rule.  Your bike, your car, your domicile, your body, and everything else that is new once takes effort to keep in good running order.  Oil needs changed, air filters need cleaned or changed, tires need rotated and replaced occasionally when they are beyond their usefulness.  Same thing with our Freedom.  Our Freedom needs a checkup and some maintenance to keep running in tip top shape.  I admit that in the past I, like many others took freedom for granted.  I let my Freedom “oil change” exceed the recommended miles.  I have been a part of elections that allowed “old tires” to continue to run beyond their usable lifespan. I got too busy with life to make sure that my local politics “air filter” was allowing my engine to breathe, and next thing you know, the local political engine is choking out and running poorly.  Take your Freedom seriously! Keep tabs on things going on around you and make your voice heard.  I know not everyone has the ability to go to local council meetings, board of supervisors’ meetings, or gravitate toward the state or federal capitals on a regular basis, so if you cannot, please support those that will do so on your behalf.  Support organizations that fight for your rights to maintain our motorcycle way of life, like the Motorcycle Riders Foundation. Join or be a part of your state motorcycle rights organization. Participate in your local, state, and federal elections if you are legally able to do so.  Be informed and be heard! I wish each one of you the happiest of Independence Days, and hope you take a moment to reflect on what that means and what you can do for your own Freedom preventive maintenance.

I would also like to thank our beloved sponsors of the magazine for helping us keep going for so many years.  We cannot do this without our advertisers, and we request that you check them out, darken their doors, and tell them that Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa sent ya!  Also, if you run your own business, or know one that should be on our pages, let us know!  You can contact anyone on the staff page and they can get you hooked up!  Our publication is funded by ad sales, and we are always wanting to reach farther to more places to get the word out about businesses and events here in Iowa.  Please help us keep bringing you the most up to date motorcycle information in the State of Iowa!

We wish all of you a safe and wonderful Independence Day, and an even better month of July!  Get out and about on those two and three wheeled machines of Freedom!  Be safe, see you on the flip side!

Vernon Schwarte

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Proud Editor/Owner Thunder Roads Magazine of Iowa

Proud Owner Thunder Guns West and Thunder Guns

IMDA Board Member

Iowa COC Legislative Officer

Quote of the Month: “A rider is not just someone who rides, but someone who feels the freedom of the road with every turn.” Anonymous