{"id":2012,"date":"2021-02-24T18:06:28","date_gmt":"2021-02-24T18:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hiremaster.com\/trucking-news\/?p=2012"},"modified":"2021-02-24T18:11:15","modified_gmt":"2021-02-24T18:11:15","slug":"big-g-drivers-charitable-motorcycle-ride-gets-bigger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hiremaster.com\/trucking-news\/other-news\/2021\/02\/24\/big-g-drivers-charitable-motorcycle-ride-gets-bigger\/2012\/","title":{"rendered":"Big G Driver’s Charitable Motorcycle Ride Gets Bigger"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Al Muskewitz
<\/strong>
Tim Chelette\u2019s Big G<\/a> Motorcycle Ride has been growing at a record pace since its inception five years ago, but the introduction of a major player this year gives it the potential to reach unprecedented heights going forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
CHELETTE<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

For this sixth year on the road and the foreseeable future, the Ride has partnered with the Tennessee Trucking Foundation.

\u201cI\u2019m more excited this year than I have been in all the years, just because of the fact I know the passion I\u2019ve put in it the last five years and how much more this is going to be able help the children and families (the ride benefits),\u201d Chelette said from the cab of his Big G Express truck while waiting out an interstate backup outside Louisville, Ky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s Big G St. Jude Ride is scheduled for June 5. As usual, it\u2019s a 110-mile trip that starts from the Big G Express lot in Mt. Juliet, Tenn., and winds through the scenic backroads of Tennessee to Jim Oliver\u2019s Smoke House off I-24 in Monteagle. Registration is open from 7:30 to 8:45 a.m. with kickstands up at 9.

Registration fee is $20 per bike.

Last year\u2019s ride drew 148 bikes, many of them ridden by fellow truckers. This raised $25,000 for St. Jude\u2019s Children\u2019s Research Hospital \u2013 both records and about five times as large as the inaugural run. It raised $56,000 over its first five years.

By including the Tennessee Trucking Foundation, the charity arm of the Tennessee Trucking Association, the ride looks to take advantage of the reach and resources of the state\u2019s flagship association for truckers. He already has received calls from riders as far away as Indianapolis interested in participating. 

\u201cIt\u2019s getting ready to get really big,\u201d he said.

The former Tennessee Trucking Association Road Team captain and Driver of the Year has been working for several months to bring the TTA and TTF aboard. It fits right in line with the foundation\u2019s charitable portfolio that includes programs such as Big Rigs for Little Kids, Ronald McDonald House, Make-A-Wish Foundation and St. Jude.

\u201cWhen Tim approached us, I\u2019m like, ‘This would be a perfect fit.’ We\u2019re all about helping our children in Tennessee,\u201d said Donna England, the Tennessee Trucking Association\u2019s Vice President of Safety and Member Services. \u201cWe think this is a great cause. 

\u201cEver since he\u2019s done this ride we\u2019ve been involved with helping promote it. We know the folks there at Big G; super people. Tim, being the super person he is, when he approached us with it, it was one of those things like \u2018Hey, do we do this? \u2026 Yes.\u2019\u201d

In time, the ride\u2019s name is likely to transition to the Tennessee Trucking Foundation St. Jude Ride sponsored by Big G Express. It\u2019s important to Chelette that the ride keeps Big G Express a prominent presence in the name.

\u201cI said on the video we just made that even though we\u2019ve partnered with the Tennessee Trucking Foundation, Big G\u2019s always been the No. 1 donor,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll always have Big G. Big G is the one who\u2019s allowed me to do this.\u201d

Among the new elements this year, organizers will hold a contest among school students to design the event\u2019s T-shirt. The winner of the drawing will be announced in May, which is Teen Driving Awareness Month and Motorcycle Awareness Month. Tennessee State Troopers will escort the riders from start to finish.

Chelette will begin actively seeking donations from various businesses for door prizes and silent auctions in a few weeks. Among the items expected to be offered this year are a drone, challenge coins, several St. Jude backpacks and a hand-crafted quilt.

To learn more about the ride, contact Chelette at 615-308-7502 or timchelette@yahoo.com.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re already talking about next year,\u201d he said. 

Al Muskewitz is the Editor of Wright Media. He can be reached at musky@wrightmediacorp.com<\/em>
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Big G Express driver Tim Chelette leads the riders off the Big G yard to start last year’s charitable motorcycle ride through Tennessee.<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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