The Ball and Chain Riding Club was the brainchild of our founder and president, Ed Konzen. He and his wife, Cindy, had been members of the local Harley Owners Group for many years, but thought it was time to branch out and form their own riding club.

During their years with HOG, they put together and led a “Prince and Princess Ride” every Friday and invited couples to go for a short ride, ending with dinner at a nice restaurant. What a great way to kick off the weekend after a week of work!

The rides were a huge success with the HOG couples and got Konzen thinking, “Why not form a couples riding club? Not just one that rides on Friday nights, but one that rides whenever the weather permits?”

On Sept. 27, 2017, Konzen created a Ball and Chain Riding Club Facebook page and invited several of his motorcycle-riding friends to become members—70 to be exact.

He immediately started researching restaurants and less-traveled roads and posted the Friday night dinner rides. There also were Saturday and Sunday rides.

Konzen tried to accommodate all members in different phases of their lives, so there was something for everyone. Short rides and longer rides, Friday evening rides, early Saturday rides and Sunday midday rides. We became an AMA-chartered club on May 29, 2018.

As participation increased, we wanted to feel unified and look like a riding club, so Konzen engaged a graphic artist to design a logo that would be synonymous with the club, capitalizing on the couples theme.

The result was a skeleton bride and groom logo.

In 2018, Konzen planned an epic trip to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, including stops in Mitchell, Murdo, Wall, Scenic, Interior, Rapid City, Keystone, Hill City, Deadwood, Lead, Custer City, Belle Fourche and Sturgis.

We visited the Corn Palace, the famous Wall Drug Store, Mount Rushmore, Spearfish Canyon, the Black Hills National Forest, Crazy Horse Memorial, Custer State Park (where they saw a herd of buffalo) and the Geographic Center of the Nation.

And what would a trip to Sturgis be without a stop at Full Throttle Saloon and Buffalo Chip?

We also ventured to Wyoming and managed to find a city on State Route 24 called Alladin, with a population of 15. The trip was an adventure of a lifetime.

In September 2018, Konzen also planned a three-day weekend ride to Rutland, Vt., including a trek to Mount Equinox and many back roads, taking in the fall foliage and scenery. We made a quick stop at Vermont Teddy Bear and some enjoyed ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s in Burlington.

Also during 2018, the club experienced many wonderful rides in and around Hudson Valley in New York, as well as rides in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Club members have visited too many Harley Davidson dealerships to count, dined at more than 30 restaurants—including the famous 1950s-style Chatterbox Drive-In Restaurant in Augusta, N.J., which closed over the Labor Day weekend. And we’ve been to more than 50 Dunkin Donuts!

All in all, we are a tight knit group, with one goal—to ride! We all love the biking lifestyle and culture, and describe ourselves as just a bunch of people looking to have a great time who can’t wait to see what 2019 brings!

Debbie Capicotto rides with the Ball and Chain Riding Club is an AMA associate member from New Windsor, N.Y.