News and Media Coverage

Media Contact: Stephen V. "Stone" Anthony - (603) 608-3321

4/3/2009	Host Name:  Lupus MCTD Show Name:  Stone Anthony~President & Founder Suzuki Owners Club of North America The Suzuki Owners Club of North America is family oriented, with events each month of the riding season. The charity they support is the Alliance For Lupus Research (ALR).
03.04.09 - 10:09 am	Local business working to encourage, support motorcycle safety awareness by Andrea Schneider Stone Anthony, President and founder of the Suzuki Owners Club of North America (SOC), along with Joe Summers, Treasurer of the SOC Veterans Rider Group accepted a trailer donated by Homesteader, Inc. to be used on their Safety Awareness Tour of Tennessee. Anthony and Summers are pictured here with Dion and Anthony Mountain in front of the trailer Homesteader donated to the cause. slideshow NEW TAZEWELL—Homesteader, Inc. will be supporting motorcycle safety awareness as one of the sponsors for the Suzuki Owners Club of North America’s (SOC) safety awareness tour of Tennessee. The SOC, an organization of Suzuki Brand motorcycle enthusiasts, is presenting an event called the 2009 Tennessee Roadway Safety Awareness Tour. The tour will consist of 76 cities in 76 days. According to information from the group’s official website www.suzukiownersclub.org, “The focus of the tour is to get everyone on the road to be attentive to motorcyclists, as well as other vulnerable road users when many more riders are taking to the streets. The more important part of this effort is to increase awareness among the non-riding majority.” Beginning on March 2, 2009 the SOC will be touring the state of Tennessee stopping at various locations in cities across the state. The tour will stop at a variety of different venues including Suzuki dealers, Homesteader Inc. dealerships, and Advance Auto Parts stores, to name a few. The tour will stop in Claiborne County at the Homesteader, Inc. dealership on May 4 and will be at that location from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. At each stop the SOC will be selling tickets for a two giveaway bikes. Tickets will be sold for a chance to win one of two 2009 Suzuki C109RT motorcycles. The two giveaway bikes will be transported from city to city in a trailer donated by Homesteader, Inc. The trailer will also house two vintage Harley Davidson bikes. All the proceeds from giveaway ticket sales will be divided for various funds including the Alliance for Lupus Research, American Red Cross (Tennessee Chapters), the Wheels through Time Motorcycle Museum, Motorcycle Awareness Foundation of Tennessee, Bikers against Child Abuse, and the SOC. For more information on the tour visit the SOC official website at www.suzukiownersclub.org and click the “Cruising for Awareness” link.
Released on Monday, March 02, 2009	Governor’s Highway Safety Office Kicks Off Tennessee Roadway Safety Tour Event Reminds Drivers to Stay Alert for Motorcycles NASHVILLE – The Governor’s Highway Safety Office is urging motorists to keep an extra eye open for motorcycles on Tennessee highways. The GHSO joined state and local law enforcement, the Motorcycle Awareness Foundation of Tennessee and the Suzuki Owners Club of North America in Memphis today to kick off the Tennessee Roadway Safety Tour. The tour, which will make 76 stops across the state in the next 76 days, is designed to highlight public awareness by reminding everyone to stay alert for motorcycles sharing the road. “Motorcycle fatalities have more than doubled in the last 7 years and the overwhelming majority of these deadly crashes occur in the spring and summer months,” said Governor’s Highway Safety Office Director Kendell Poole. “These riders are your neighbors, co-workers, and friends and we want to keep them safe.” The number of motorcycle fatalities in Tennessee jumped from 42 in 1998 to 148 in 2007. In the last decade, motorcycle deaths across the nation have increased 127 percent. “Driver inattentiveness and other distractions can create a scenario that causes many of these avoidable crashes,” said Colonel Mike Walker, Tennessee Highway Patrol. “With a little extra vigilance, I believe we can dramatically reduce the number of lives lost in motorcycle accidents.” The Tennessee Department of Safety’s Motorcycle Rider Education Program approves courses and instructors across the state. To find out more about the program and courses offered, go to http://news.tennesseeanytime.org/node/1022. The Tennessee Roadway Safety Tour will make 76 stops in 76 days beginning today through May 17th. It will take riders over Tennessee roadways with visits to towns in cities from Memphis to the mountains of East Tennessee. For a complete list of events and locations, please visit www.suzukiownersclub.org. ### For More Information Contact: Kendell Poole GHSO Director 615-741-2589 OR Julie Oaks TDOT Public Information Officer 615-741-9930 Julie.A.Oaks@state.tn.us

24' SOC TN Safety Tour Mobile! Donated By: Homesteader, Inc. Enclosed Trailers

The 2009 Tennessee Motorcycle Safety & Awareness Tour... A Coordinated Effort/Partnership!
The following organizations have partnered with the Suzuki Owners Club to make the tour possible...

• Motorcycle Awareness Foundation of Tennessee

• Nashville Area Red Cross

• Tennessee Highway Patrol D.A.R.E. Program

• Tennessee Highway Patrol Safety Division

• Tennessee State SOC Chapter

• Tennessee Truckers Association