If you are in the Midwest and have a run, a short anecdote, won a motorcycle, or what have you, you can see it in Mile Marker MMXI. You can e-mail me at fnabkey@msn.com or call me at 616.340.3223.

Steve Johnson, 57, of Polk County, Nebraska, finally finished his mission of visiting all 594 towns in the state. It took Steve eight years and 50,000 miles to complete his journey. During his journey he has beaten cancer, and met and married his wife Linda. As of this past Labor Day just 15 towns remained on his list, so he and Linda and some friends decided to finish the journey. The last town on the list was Monowi, population 1, where they met the one and only Elsie Eiler who also happens to own the town’s only watering hole… This sounds kind of fun: the inaugural Slick Willy’s Ocean Cruzin Biker Style. Free beer, booze and food are all included in the price. Also included is a free pre-cruise party in New Orleans at New Orleans Harley-Davidson and a chance to win a 2012 Street Glide provided by Suburban Harley-Davidson in Thiensville, Wisconsin. Proceeds from the event will go to the South Milwaukee Lions Club. The party is scheduled for January 20–28, 2012. Call 800.366.1985 or visit www.oceancruzin.com to sign up!… St. Croix Harley-Davidson in New Richmond, Wisconsin, has had some pretty good luck lately giving away motorcycles. Dealership owners Dell and Ginger Zehm presented Merle Stewart of River Falls with the Rev Up with 7UP and Captain America: First Avenger-inspired XL1200X during the dealership’s 2012 model year open house. Last year Doug Torbert of Woodbury won the 2011 FXDB Street Bob in the Harley-Davidson Visa Free Ride Sweepstakes… From Thunder Press contributor Jack Ryan: Congratulations to Meagan “Peanut” Korbecki on completing the Ford Triathlon in Madison, Wisconsin. Megan is the daughter of Starved Rock Harley-Davidson (Ottawa, Illinois) owners Tom and Sara Eden. Megan finished the course in 13:23:01… Jerald “Jack” Zallen (75) of Herrin, Illinois, was killed in a motorcycle accident when a pickup truck pulled into his path. What makes this important to report in my column is that in November 1965 Army Sergeant Jack Zallen fought in a bloody three-day battle in the Ia Drang Valley which was the first major clash between U.S. troops and the North Vietnamese army. Sarge will be interred at a later date at Fort Benning, Georgia. The Mel Gibson movie We Were There depicted that battle that took so many lives… The Parkview Church Motorcycle Club of Orland Park, Illinois, held their first CruZin for KidZ with Cancer Motorcycle Run to benefit the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation. There were 49 motorcyclists who supported this event and raised $1,685 to help children and teens fighting cancer. Colleen Kisel, the founder of the Treasure Chest Foundation, thanks everyone that was involved in this event. Treasure Chest provides a location for the kids that is warm, pleasant and relaxes them before their treatments… House of Bikes, a new motorcycle repair shop has sprung up in Danville, Illinois, after Gutterridge Harley-Davidson closed their doors, ending a long partnership with The Motor Company. Local car dealer Mike Petersak and Roger Gutterridge have gone into business and opened House of Bikes. The partners did a lot of renovations to a vacant building adjacent to Mike’s auto sales lot. Petersak bought all of the old dealership’s parts and accessories as well as the shop equipment and tools. For now it is a two-person shop but Gutterridge hopes to hire a mechanic in the spring… According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau motorcycle thefts have decreased over the last three years. The most-frequently stolen makes of motorcycles were: 1) Honda, 2) Yamaha, 3) Suzuki, 4) Kawasaki and finally 5) Harley-Davidson. The top five states with the most threats are 1) California, 2) Texas, 3) Florida, 4) North Carolina and 5) Indiana… Gayla Hicks was following 70-year-old William Kahley who was on his motorcycle heading home to Indiana in a heavy rain storm. As she was going to pass Kahley, Hicks said there was an explosion (lightning bolt) and pieces started flying all over. The doctors did not find any burns on Kahley. The lightning bolt ether struck his scoot or hit in front of him causing him to crash. Kahley is going to make a full recovery and according to his son Chad, a little bolt of lightning won’t stop his dad from riding again… John and Jill Parham have stepped down as president and vice president of J&P Cycles, the company they founded in 1979. They want to focus their time on family and John’s pet project, the National Motorcycle Museum in Anamosa, Iowa. I hope this doesn’t mean the end of our Wednesday morning breakfast ride to Cadillac Jack’s in Deadwood with Bruizer during Sturgis week has come to an end… 3,500 riders rode 115 miles under dark skies and rain to raise more than $500,000 at the Bikers for Babies Run in Kansas City, Missouri. According to Missouri March of Dimes spokeswoman Erin Kiekbusch this event has double the amount in dollars and attendees from any Bikers for Babies event around the country. Ed Hale and about 70 riders who call themselves Ed’s Posse formed to raise money for a home for developmentally disabled women, when that mission was completed they moved on to the March of Dimes. This year Ed’s Posse added $75,000 to the pot for Bikers for Babies. Bikers for Babies deal with premature birth and intensive care for infants at Saint Luke’s Hospital, Overland Park Regional Medical Center, Children’s Mercy Hospital and Stormont HealthCare in Topeka… I like to look at motorcycle VINs at swap meets and bike shows to find out their history. The VINs start with a 1HD code but if you see one with the 5HD code it is manufactured for the European market. This law has been on the books since 2003. I didn’t know that! That’s it for this month. It’s all about you, the Midwest biker. Ride fast, but ride safe.