Motorcycling Loses One of It's Champions.

Ron Shepard, State Coordinator for the Idaho STAR motorcycle safety program, died suddenly of heart failure at home on February 20, 2008.


Ron, with his wife Beth, came to Boise in 1996 to help implement the rider education program for Idaho. It became one of the premier rider education programs in the nation.

It is difficult to list all of the things Ron did for motorcycling and motorcyclists in the short space. His life was motorcycling, locally and nationally. Ron believed in the motorcyclists' rights movement. It was bikers, for the most part, who made rider education happen. Ron was supported by the SMROs in his home state, ICMS, ABATE of North Idaho and ABATE of Idaho. Ron worked nationally with the Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) in getting federal fundings to the sate motorcycle safety programs. The 2010 money has his fingerprints all over it. Ron participated in MRF seminars.

Ron was chairman from 2002 to 2004 of the National Association of State Motorcycle Safety Administrators (SMSA) which he helped organize. He was with the Motorcycle Safety Foundation from 1974 until he came to Boise in 1996, all the while training others and organizing training programs.

Ron was one of those people without whom motorcycle safety would not be as good as it is today. Thousands have been trained by Ron and multi-thousands more benefited indirectly from his commitment.
The motorcycle procession at his funeral was a token of the respect riders held for Ron. Ron as interned in the Veterans Cemetery with military honors and the patriot guard (US Air Force). One wonders what it's like to ride the twisties in heaven where the sun always shines on the likes of Ron.

I have reprinted this article, in it's entirety from the Motorcycle Riders Foundation's May/June issue of the MRF Reports.

KZCSI

Very sorry to hear that,, there aren't enough good MC advocates out there.

This deserves to be in the fallen riders area I think.

RIP, Ron, and Godspeed. Hopefully someone has already stepped up to continue your good works and help the sport for the next 30+ years as well as you did in the pst 30+.