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Highlands Today

Heartland Riders Get $5,000 CRA Sponsorship

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By JOE SEELIG

Highlands Today

Published: March 30, 2009

SEBRING - While the Ride to the Heartland is about seven months away, fundraising by the Heartland Riders Association for this major downtown Sebring event has already begun.

Lora Todd, marketing director for the Heartland Riders Association, was at last Monday's Community Redevelopment Agency meeting requesting a sponsorship donation of $5,000.

"Last October the event brought 52,000 people to downtown Sebring," Todd told the CRA commissioners. "We had a very well behaved crowd. We're very proud of that."

Todd said there were no arrests.

The crowd included those who could be counted as "heads in beds" as well as "day-trippers," who rode in and visited for just one day.

Todd told commissioners that although it had received $2,500 last year it needed the additional funding to help make up a shortfall due to a large sponsor that pulled out last year at the last minute.

As a result the event lost money last year, she said.

The event this year will be held Oct. 2, 3 and 4.

"The times we're still adjusting," Todd said Friday. "We want to make sure the vendors will have time to set up. Starting in January we started getting inquiries from vendors who wanted to reserve a spot."

They've had vendors returning who were there last year, who loved it and wanted to come back. These included food, clothing, motorcycle parts and vendors who sold art work, such as airbrush specialists who would give bikes a custom paint job on the spot.

"One of the big things right now are LED lights you can put on so when your bike is parked you can have flashing lights," she said.

One vendor, Roar Motorcycles for Women, makes customized motorcycles the "fit a woman's frame," Todd said.

"I'm a very tall woman, about 6-feet, so it's not an issue for me," she said. "The main thing she liked about our event is that it was family-friendly. She sold four of her motorcycles that weekend."

Todd said her first ride was a Honda 750. She currently owns a Suzuki C-50T, an 802 cc motorcycle.

Todd said the Ridge Harley Davidson was a big supporter last year and she hopes to have them again. She was also grateful to Bernie Little Distributors, who sell them the Budweiser products and supply staff to keep the taps flowing.

The association has about 250 members; some from Highlands County, some are winter visitors and some come from as far away as Canada.

Anyone interested in a sponsorship or in making a donation to the Heartland Riders should call Todd at (863) 414-2851 or make checks payable to HRA, at P.O. Box 3611, Sebring, Fla., 33871.

Highlands Today reporter Joe Seelig can be reached at (863) 386-5834 or jseelig@highlandstoday.com .

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