Ridin’ for Survivin’ Aubrey Hoskinson Memorial Poker Run – A Brief History
By Brian “Rocco” Manning
January, 2008
Aubrey Hoskinson was a beautiful young lady whose life and dreams were tragically cut short by a rare form of cancer, rhabdomyosarcoma. And while her passing was painful and sad, her brace battle and spirit strength inspired a campaign to preserve our memories of her and give hope to children and families who face a similarly difficult path today. Aubrey began working weekends at our Rocklin store in her early teens. Always cheerful and consistently outgoing in her interactions with customers and coworkers, her kindness and smile came to be an anticipation of brightness on Saturdays and Sundays, maybe even to the point of being taken for granted. Aubrey worked in our MotorClothes Department helping customers select and buy jackets, gloves, boots, collectibles, etc. One thing that sticks out in my memories of Aubrey was a weekly ritual she engaged in every Saturday. In those days at the original Rocklin store, we had a combination coffee bar/customer lounge back by the Service Department. After the store opened and all the motorcycles were pushed out, Aubrey would clear the furniture, dispose of accumulated trash and bring out the mop and bucket. She’d clean the floors, police the coffee service area, tidy up and return things to their proper places. Her MotorClothes Manager (and Mom) Carol would simply announce that it was time to “Hit it!” Aubrey would go about her business immediately, without symptoms of duress and with nary a display of the resentment a typical teenager would present for such a menial assignment. Aubrey’s attitude and its reflection in her work remain in my memory as benchmarks of her personality. The coffee bar was never taken care of so capably before it became her task, and it never attained its weekly gleam when she was no longer here to take care of it. For me, this is symbolic of the world before and after Aubrey. It also irrevocably defines the world in between.
The initial Aubrey Ride took place in the spring of 2003. A group of people represented by two local motorcycle clubs organized it to raise funds to help with Aubrey’s astronomical medical bills and the financial effects her illness placed on her family. I went on that first ride and remember mostly that it poured down rain. Nonetheless, a significant crowd participated and the event raised around $10,000.00 to help Aubrey and Carol.
Aubrey passed away in July of 2003. Her mother Carol wanted to keep her memory alive by continuing the ride that took place to help her as she battled her illness. At the time there was very little community awareness of childhood cancer and a scarcity of resources available to support patients and families living through this tragic experience. The first ride took place on Aubrey’s birthday, April 24, 2004. My memories on the planning are a bit foggy. I do remember that Carol wanted to raise funds to support the growth of a pediatric hospice program for the Sacramento area. I mapped out the route and actually went on the ride from Folsom to Lake Amador and back to Rocklin via Ione and Granite Bay. We raised some money and gained a whole lot of experience that would help us the next time around. We held a motorcycle sweepstakes and gave away a Road King. It was a great day.
In the Fall of 2004, key players came into an arena that now comprises the core group of the ongoing event that bears Aubrey’s name. Dani Donnachie (a hospice nurse), her husband Bruce, Robyn Raphael (who lost her 5-year old son, Keaton, to cancer) founder of the Keaton Raphael Memorial, and Carol gathered around tables in Aubrey’s Rocklin coffee bar late in 2004 to plan a ride for the spring of 2005 that would preserve her legacy by raising funds to help children and families confronting the challenges of childhood cancer. As a representative of our Rocklin and Folsom dealerships, I was summoned to join them, and the rest, as it is said, is history. At the time it seemed to be just another task for poor-old-me, a chore to be added to an already impossibly huge duty list. Little did I know at the time that my involvement was a gift, an opportunity to be a part of an ongoing miracle. The “Second Annual Aubrey Hoskinson Memorial Poker Run” was the real beginning of greater things to come. Our “Core Group” grew as the weeks went by, and it became apparent that we were working not only to organize a motorcycle ride, but also to take awareness about the heartbreak of childhood cancer to the Sacramento region. Corporate sponsorships, vendors at the after-ride party, raffles, bike games and dreams of a “big” ride began to form. Ride day came on Saturday, April 23 (cold and rainy, and a big disappointment from a motorcycling perspective), and the support was unbelievable. About 120 soaked souls braved the elements and faithfully followed the route, but they and a whole bunch of other folks somehow landed at the Folsom store for the after-ride party. 27 vendors endured the downpour out in the parking lot and we brought the food, the raffles and the bike sweepstakes indoors. In spite of Mother Nature’s unkindness with the weather we raised $10,000.00.
Having learned from some of the planning pitfalls in 2005, we set out to plan the 2006 ride determined to streamline things and make the affair “bigger and better than ever.” Nonetheless, it was a whole lot of work, fraught with unforeseen snags and egos to smooth, but we were blessed with beautiful weather and a huge turnout of over 800 riders. We had changed the ride day to Sunday (April 30), in hopes that the weather gods would act more favorably. Bingo! A beautiful ride through the foothills was followed by a rockin’ party at our Folsom store, a successful raffle and a happy bike winner. The bike winner had a story of his own to support the miracle of the event. He got up that morning intending to go on the ride, but his motorcycle was broken. He decided to drive over to the party anyway to enjoy the festivities and be a part of the goings-on. He bought one motorcycle sweepstakes ticket. He won a 2006 Softail. Go figure. The event raised $30,000.00 for the Keaton Raphael Memorial.
The 2007 ride was very similar to the 2006 ride, except we reversed the start and destination locations and held the party at our new Rocklin store. Over 700 riders attended on Sunday, April 29, and we had another great day of riding, food, music, raffles, a dunk tank and fun, raising over $15,000.00. One of our non-riding party-goers won a 2007 Street Bob, and after taking the Motorcycle Safety Training Course and tumbling over a few times, she’s now a seasoned rider, on the road and having a blast.
2008 promises to bring repeat fun in a great motorcycling and fund-raising event. We’ve shortened the poker run route in order to assure that everybody gets to our Rocklin store to enjoy the festivities, the food, the raffles and the motorcycle sweepstakes. Be sure to save the day. And take the time to check out the Keaton Raphael Memorial, at www.childcancer.org, to discover what an awesome organization we support. We want to make this annual event the biggest spring charity ride in Northern California, and we invite you to be a part of it.