Calgary, Alberta, Canada is a city of some 750,000 people located in the southwest corner of the Province. Calgary is largely a financial and business center for Alberta's oil and gas industry and is also home of the world famous Calgary Stampede. Calgary has been called the "twin city" to Denver Colorado due to it's location relative to the Rocky Mountains, elevation, similar population size and characteristics.
Alberta Chapter "A" of the GWRRA has the distinction of being the first chapter in Canada. Three Goldwing owners, Chris Galambos, Bloyce Coles and Robert Denton met and decided that there should be a GWRRA Chapter in Calgary. The required 10 people were rounded up in July 1981 and the Chapter was Chartered in September 1981. The Chapter held a Birthday Party in Canmore, Alberta in 1982 and again in 1983 when it was dubbed "Wing Fling".
In 1984 the rally was listed in Wing World as the "3rd Annual Canadian Wing Fling". That was a very special event as Paul and Sam Hildebrand were invited and attended. Approximately 100 people attended the rally.
Robert Denton served as the Region "K" director until 1985 when Bloyce Coles took over the position. In 1987, GWRRA Canada Inc. was formed and Bloyce moved on to become the first "Canadian National Director." Wing Fling was held in Hope, B.C. that year which was also the first year that a "Canadian National Couple of the Year" was chosen. Ed and Til Hardy of Chapter AB-A were chosen as our first National Couple. They are still very active within Chapter AB-A today! As you can see, our Chapter has held many firsts.
The official colour of Calgary's sports teams is red. In keeping with that tradition, the unofficial uniform of AB-A is a red amd white western shirt, jeans and a western style vest where we proudly display the GWRRA Patch, ride pins, safety crests, tour maps, etc. In 1994 the Chapter started to record mileage ridden by most of the active members and racked up nearly 700,000 Kilometers in the first season, completely accident free.
Chapter AB-A has been very active and has continued to grow since it's beginning; holding the distinction of being the largest GWRRA Chapter in Canada each year since it's inception. The Chapter presently has about 120 member-families. The Chapter has always encouraged family participation and has several children and young adults who are involved in Chapter activities. AB-A has a strong contingent of women riders who are held in high regard by the members.
The next time your riding brings you to our neck of the woods why don't you give one of our members a call. We would love to hear from you. Check out our Meetings page to find out when and where we meet.
