For A Brief Time, "Born To Be Wild"
Bikers come out in force to help youth
Carl N. Siemon, president of The Siemon Company, driving motorcycle in center foreground, prepares to lead the way at the start of the Watertown company's 100th anniversary motorcycle poker run.
WATERTOWN, CT — Tom Zummo Jr., 66, sat at a long table trying to fathom where the motorcycle poker run would take him and his passenger.
Along for the ride on Sunday's 65-mile scamper through Litchfield County was his 92-year old father, Tom Zummo.
"I guess you can get lost on your own or get lost with everybody else," Zummo Jr. politely laughed as he plotted the course.
"OK, where does Route 202 go?" he asked himself out loud.
The sunny, hot day was made for a ride in the country. On Sunday morning, the Harley-Davidson Road Kings and Softails, Suzuki Savages and the Yamaha Viragos lined up at The Siemon Company's parking lot for the company's l00th anniversary motorcycle run.
In all, about 140 machines, including at least one with a sidecar, would take part in the event to benefit Water-Oak Community Youth Center Inc.
"It's a beautiful day, and we're raising money for a great organization, " beamed Carrie Mahoney, Siemon's manager of the run who had to postpone the event from June 1 because of rain. "I was a little bit worried about the holiday, but they're coming out now."
The Zummos, from Newtown, were among the crowd. Tom Zummo, the father, said he read about the poker run at the Candlewood Valley nursing home and thought it would be "nice to join the crowd." So he came with his son on young Tom's Honda Valkyrie.
The elder Zummo, a veteran of more than 40 years on Wall Street, said he drove motorcycles in his day but now mostly gets his kicks as a passenger.
Riders of all makes and models were invited to participate, although Siemon loosely tied in its anniversary to that of Milwaukee's Harley-Davidson Motor Co., also a century old this year. There was no mistaking the Harley riders, as many sported black T-shirts emblazoned with the company logo or the slogan "Live to ride, ride to live."
"When I'm not acting, it gives me something to do," said John Calabrese of Watertown, a stage regular at the Clockwork Repertory Theater who tooled in on his Honda Shadow.
"I can't afford a Harley - I got kids in school," he quipped.
One of them is Michael Calabrese, 15, who was manning the youth center table and taking orders for pink flamingo lawn ornaments. The youth center's big push the next five years is to establish a permanent drop-in center for its activities. It currently holds monthly Friday evening coffee houses at the senior center.
Michael Calabrese said about 15 teens volunteer with the youth center, although many more usually attend the socials.
"We're going to be doing something over the summer," he stated.
Carl N. Siemon, president of the company that bears the family name, greeted and thanked the cyclists for attending. He said the event not only marked the company's 100 years of existence, but would raise funds for the youth center cause that would "get teens out from behind the TV, to socialize, and get them out into the community."
After cutting a large red ribbon at 10:15a.m. that officially renamed the former Princeton Road as Siemon Company Drive, Siemon boarded his chopper and, with Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild" blaring in the background, led the pack down the drive and toward the north. At various checkpoints the riders would pick up a playing card, and upon their return, those with the top poker hands would win prizes. A car show began at noon to coincide with the conclusion of the run. The Siemon Company, a family-owned world-renowned leader in the design and manufacture of advanced structured cabling systems, will continue its yearlong anniversary with an all employee picnic August 9.
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- About Siemon
- Established in 1903, Siemon is an industry leader specializing in the manufacture and innovation of high quality, high-performance network cabling solutions. Headquartered in Connecticut, USA, with global offices, manufacturing and service partners throughout the world, Siemon offers the most comprehensive suite of copper (unshielded and shielded twisted-pair) category 5e, category 6 (Class E), augmented category 6/category 6A(Class EA) and category 7/7A (Class F/FA), and multimode and singlemode fiber cabling systems available. With over 400 active patents specific to structured cabling, from patch cords to patch panels, Siemon Labs invests heavily in R&D and development of industry standards, underlining the company's long-term commitment to its customers and the industry.
- Press Contact:
- Brian Duval
- Marketing Communication Manager
- Siemon
- 101 Siemon Company Drive
- Watertown, CT 06795
- Phone : (1) 860 945-4380
- Fax : (1) 860 945-8503
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