SOUTH BRANCH WATERSHED ASSOCIATION Event Highlights

2005 "Ride for the River" Motorcycle Poker Run
See also: Event Photos | Event Sponsors

Motorcyclists traveled 65 miles through the watershed of the South Branch of the Raritan River to protect clean water on Saturday May 21. The ride, which benefited the South Branch Watershed Association, drew support from nearly 150 motorcycle riders and over 50 businesses. Major sponsors included Williams Harley Davidson-Buell, the Clinton Station Diner, Economic Concepts and Fuze Beverages. Riders set out from Spruce Run reservoir on a sunny spring morning with route directions and map to follow. The reservoir is an important water supply and recreational resource within the river's watershed. The route took riders through the beautiful and varied segments of the watershed in Hunterdon and Morris Counties, from the rolling hills of the Piedmont in Clinton, Union, Alexandria, Franklin Townships and Lebanon Borough to the Highlands in Lebanon, Washington and Mt. Olive Townships and Califon Borough. The route followed many of the "River Roads" throughout the watershed and crossed the South Branch Raritan River at multiple, picturesque locations. Many of the riders are watershed residents while some came from more distant watersheds in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. One rider, Joe Lustig flew up from Port Orange Florida to participate in the event. Many professions were represented in the riders, including a group of fire fighters on their bright red Harleys.

$25,000 was raised to support South Branch Watershed Association programs. The mission of the Association is the preservation of the natural resources of the South Branch Raritan River and its watershed. The watershed spans Hunterdon, Morris and Somerset Counties. The Association provides environmental education to schools, land use professionals and the general public; performs stream monitoring; conducts research on stormwater treatment; provides community well testing programs; and assists municipalities and counties with land use and open space planning. A recent initiative is enlisting businesses and golf courses in the watershed to adopt river friendly land management practices.

The ride was a "poker run" where participants collected playing cards at five stops along the route to yield a poker hand. Card stops were located at Clinton Station Diner, Rollin’ Fast Cycle Sports and Williams Harley Davidson as well as at two river crossings on the South Branch River. Cash prizes were awarded to the top two hands, and gifts donated by local businesses were awarded to all participants. The ride ended at the picturesque Lebanon Memorial Park where the band Second Nature donated their time to entertain the attendees and Fuze beverage gave out drinks and souvenirs.

Don Einhorn, the Association’s Executive Director, stated the event was a tremendous success. "We greatly appreciate the support of the riders and sponsors of the Ride for the River. So many volunteers work so hard to make this event happen. It is important that people see the resources we are working so hard to protect. Providing people with a fun way to do this helps build support for our watershed protection efforts."

The Ride for the River was supported by over fifty corporate and individual sponsors (see below).

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PLATINUM		Williams Harley-Davidson / Buell www.williamshd.com Clinton Station Diner www.clintonstationdiner.com Economic Concepts, Inc. www.economicconcepts.com
GOLD		AMEC Earth and Environmental, Inc.    (www.amec.com) Amy S. Greene Environmental COnsultants    (www.amygreene.com) Arora and Associates, P.C.    (www.arorapc.com) Carl Resnick Kinsey Associates    (www.kinseyassociates.com) Musco Lighting    (www.musco.com) Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas    (www.pbworld.com) Princeton Hydro LLC    (www.princetonhydro.com) Richard Grubb & Associates, Inc.    (www.richardgrubb.com) Rollin Fast Cycle Sports Aprilia/Victory    (www.rollinfast.com) The Stover Foundation Exxon Mobil Corporation    (www.exxonmobil.com)
SILVER		Air Professionals, LLC    (www.airprofessionalsnj.com) Art of Framing Baked in Telluride (www.bakedintel.com) Clarke Caton Hintz    (www.ccharchitects.com) Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT    (www.coldwellbankercommercialnrt.com) Community Foundation of NJ    (www.CFNJ.org) Conserve Wildlife Foundation    (www.conservewildlifenj.org) Dover Pools & Supply    (www.doverpool.com) Flemington Granite and Architectural Supply    (www.FlemingtonGranite.com) Frankly My Dear - A Hot Dog Emporium    (www.franklymydearhotdogs.com) Gail Rosen, C.P.A.    (www.gailrosencpa) Garden State Laboratories    (www.gslabs.com) Giordano Halleran and Ciesla    (www.ghclaw.com) Greenbaum, Rowe, Smith & Davis, LLP    (www.greenbaumlaw.com) Greenman-Pedersen, Inc.    (www.gpinet.com) Harley-Davidson of Essex    (www.hdessex.com) Horton/Fine Agency    (www.jamesaconnors.com) James Toyota Scion Hummer    (www.jamestoyota-scion.com) JC Landscaping    (www.jc-landscaping.com) Jon Fellgraff A.I.A., Architect Kephart's Christmas Trees Liberty Hill Realty, Inc. Medina Consultants, P.C.    (www.medinaconsultants.com) Najarian Associates    (www.najarian.com) Ol' West BBQ Paul Carpenter Associates    (www.pcairnoise.com) PNC Bank    (www.pncbank.com) Prestige Environmental, Inc.    (www.prestige-environmental.com) S. Greene Second Nature Band Stowaway Self Storage    (www.stowawayselfstorage.com) Team Graphic    (www.teamgraphic.com) The Doggett Corporation    (www.doggettcorp.com) Thomas F. DiBianca, Esq. Thomas L. Yager & Associates Unity Bank    (www.unitybank.com) Williamson Marketing Communications Withum Smith & Brown    (www.withum.com)
Donations		AAA Aesthetic Press    (www.walterc.com) Bear Paw Leather Blue Cactus Southwest Kitchen Bohren and Bohren Associates    (www.bohrenandbohren.com) Clinton Canoe and Kayak Crystal Springs Water    (water.com) Foolish Fox Tavern Made To Order Main Street Massage Max Spann Real Estate    (www.maxspann.com) Pine Creek Miniature Golf Pinelands Nursery    (www.pinelandsnursery.com) Sharp Fitness The Bagel Club Tirpok Cleaners Unbcle Pete's Restaurant Viridian Environmental Consultants    (www.viridianinc.com)