Let’s find your center in this Motor School installment. There is nothing more sublime than the moment you discover perfect balance on your motorcycle. (Photos by Kevin Wing) In an earlier column, I mentioned that my background was primarily in off-road riding and racing before I got into the police motorcycle thing. So it was inevitable that some of my lifelong dirty habits would bleed over into my techniques for riding heavy streetbikes. Hey, I was an old dog when I became a motor cop, and I had lots of old tricks. Of all the off-road skills that transferred into my urban traffic enforcement program, today’s class covers one of the best. Let’s kick it off with some game show trivia. I’ll go with “Motorcycles” for $200, please. How do you hold on to a motorcycle when you ride? “With my hands on the handlebar.” Sorry, that’s incorrect. The answer our judges were looking for? We control the bike (push, pull, twist, and squeeze the controls) with our hands; we hold on to the motorcycle with our legs. Thanks for playing, pick up your free copy of Green Smoothies for Life on your way out the door. Okay, that was the bell, please have a seat so we can begin. For today’s lesson, it’s important to understand that there is an optimal position within the rider cockpit that keeps the rider’s mass always balanced, minimizing the negative effects it has on the motorcycle when we experience weight transfer while riding on the street.  Let me explain: When we ride around on our motorcycles, we encounter forces of acceleration and deceleration. Do you ever find yourself holding on to the bars like a water skier under hard acceleration or performing an involuntary push-up against the bars under heavy braking? That’s weight transfer, and the less we can include our own mass in the exchange, the less it unsettles our suspension or impacts our traction, braking, steering geometry, and more. In short, the less we throw our weight around, the better. And maintaining a consistent center of balance within the cockpit is key. Now, to put this lesson into practice, let’s go to the land of make believe (or the garage) and do a visualization exercise while perched atop our motorcycles. With your bike standing straight up (either on the centerstand or balanced with both feet on the ground), pretend the motorcycle is one of those big exercise balls you see people balancing on at the gym. Counteracting weight transfer under acceleration with only one hand on the bar. Now play along, and in your mind, with your eyes closed and your hands off the handlebar, shift your body to the precise location on the ball (your seat) that puts you in the center of it. Pay attention to how far forward or back you are and imagine the ball moving around in all directions. Are you still balanced? If the answer is yes, this final position is ground zero. Bullseye. Home plate. From this point forward, this will be the spot you operate from when you encounter forces of acceleration and deceleration (weight transfer) that push and pull you as you go and stop. Oh yeah, you can open your eyes now. Let’s go ahead and gear up. I’m going to put you through an exercise that will force proper body position during weight transfer and help you develop a better sensitivity for when you get it wrong. This will allow you to self-diagnose and make the necessary corrections, because I can’t always be there to wave my pom-poms and get your special lemon drink. The Tank Drill: This is a 1st-gear, straight-line, less-than-20-mph exercise. Pick a safe, uncongested strip of roadway or parking lot that will allow you to ride 300 feet or more in a straight line without dealing with pedestrians, cross traffic, or road hazards. Start by pulling away from a complete stop and accelerating to 15-20 mph. Then use your brakes to smoothly and comfortably slow down to approximately 5-10 mph, but don’t make a full stop. Fantastic. Now, while still in motion, accelerate back up to 15-20 mph again. At some point in the process, you will need to turn around, so go ahead and do that in whatever safe manner you choose. That’s all there is to it. Great work, you’re a ringer. Oh, I forgot to mention… We are going to do this drill with your right hand on the bar and your left (clutch) hand resting on the tank. That’s correct: Only your throttle hand is allowed to grip the bar except during take-off and turnaround. Other than those two exceptions, your clutch hand must rest on the gas tank where I can see it. No cheating. Shifting your weight back counteracts braking forces, and the Tank Drill helps you learn to get it just right. You will immediately notice that to avoid pulling on the bar during acceleration (and generating an uncomfortable turning movement), you will be forced to move your upper body forward. Same goes for the braking portion, but you will need to shift your upper body weight back to remain balanced and generate no additional force on the handlebar. Take it slow, breathe, and concentrate on getting to a balanced centered position like you’re floating on top of the bike throughout the exercise. That’s how you’ll know you got it right. Rinse and repeat, look to the sky, and proclaim “Hallelujah!” Work this drill until you can comfortably maintain a place of perfect balance when encountering forces that occur while accelerating or braking without feeling the need to grab the handlebar with your left hand to offset any weight transfer. Keep in mind, the harder you accelerate and brake, the greater the weight transfer, which means your range of motion will need to increase within the cockpit to keep the magic carpet ride going. In time, the pushing and pulling pressure you exert through your hands will decrease as you gain sensitivity to weight transfer. And don’t be surprised when you have more comfort and dexterity at the controls too. Most important, now that you’ve quit upsetting the physics equation with your body weight, your bike will perform better and safer beneath you. That’s huge. If you want to watch a live-action version of this lesson, go to Police Motor Training with Quinn Redeker on YouTube and find “Perfect Balance On A Motorcycle – Balance Ball 2.0.” The Tank Drill is one of a few exercises I cover in the video, so feel free to fast forward – you won’t hurt my feelings. Quinn wears Lee Parks Design gloves exclusively. Find Quinn at Police Motor Training. See all Motor School with Quinn Redeker articles here. The post Motor School with Quinn Redeker: Balance Ball 2.0 appeared first on Rider Magazine.

Kirsten and Jason Clawson were married in 2022 after both losing their spouses to cancer. They now have a new blended family filled with love and memories. When the couple got married, Kirsten became the stepmom to Jason’s two boys, Boston, 17, and Cooper, 11. Their blended family grew a bit bigger with the arrival of Maisie, a daughter, in December of 2022. RELATED: Young Widower And Father Of 7 Breaks Down When A Stranger Walks Up And Hands Over $10k Both of Their Former Spouses Passed Away From Cancer Back in 2019, Jason’s wife, Valerie, 38, passed away from colon cancer. In 2020, Kirsten’s husband Cody, 43, passed from acute myeloid. Both of their spouses had genes that made them resistant to chemotherapy. They fought their cancers for the same amount of time, and both ran out of treatment options after nine months. Kirsten and Jason met in a Facebook group for young widows in their area. Then, they connected again through a dating app. “When I saw his profile I knew exactly who he was, so I felt very comfortable moving forward with communicating with him,” Kirsten told PEOPLE. “It was absolute magic the first time we spoke (and every day since).” God was leading the two of them together. After their separate losses, they found one another and created a beautiful life. Their relationship has room for mourning their previous spouses, who were so special to each of them, and they also have the space for remembering special memories from the past. They Recognize The Loss “We recognize the loss. We don’t ignore it or pretend it didn’t happen. We don’t get jealous of each other’s grief or love for their late spouse,” Kirsten says of their marriage. “We ask each other what they need, especially around difficult anniversaries, and then we provide it.” You can find photos of both Cody and Valerie around their home. They tell stories about them, visit the graves as a family, celebrate their birthdays, and remember the anniversaries of their deaths. Making for a healing home for Jason’s two boys. RELATED: She Thought Life Was Over After Burying Her Husband & Child, Then She Meets Widower Jason is a therapist, and that has been helpful to Kirsten. He has given her great advice on processing her grief. However, that doesn’t mean that grief is easier for him. “Many people think that because Jason is a therapist, grief was easier for him, which is absolutely not the case. He struggled like anyone else,” she says. In addition to losing their spouses, Kirsten and Jason Clawson have also gone through other types of loss. A year before Jason’s wife died, he lost a son to anencephaly. Seven months after Kirsten lost her husband, they lost his brother to the same cancer. Grief has been part of their lives, but they can grieve together. The Family Keeps Up Important Traditions The family keeps up important traditions that honor those they have lost. For Cody’s birthday, the family raises money to buy and donate shoes to students and families in need at various schools and shelters. Since Cody was a teacher and a soccer coach and he loved shoes, it was a fantastic way they could honor him. After Valerie died, Cody and his boys started gifting “sunshine baskets,” which are packages “full of bright and fun yellow items to cheer people up.” Kirsten says. They give them to people in the community who have experienced loss or had lives impacted by cancer. This has spread beyond where they live to other parts of the country. What an amazing way to give back to the community! The couple has started a social media account, “Light After Grief,” where they share tips, quotes, and a sprinkle of hope for those who need it. Kirsten also has a TikTok account, “Kirstenclawson,” where she shares updates about her family and the grief process. Her most popular video is one of Valerie’s mother with Maisie with the caption, “She may have lost her daughter, but she didn't lose our family, blood or not ” YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: She Was Widowed With 3 Kids At 25 But God Had Plans For Her And A Widower To Find Love Again Maisie is the Glue of the Family This is why they call Maisie the glue of their family, as she “glued our two worlds together,” Kirsten says. Turning two in December, the toddler is quite the miracle of their story. When Kirsten was 30, she was told he was unlikely to ever conceive children on her own. But she did. It can be easy to lose faith when tragedy hits, as it has in Kirsten and Jason Clawson’s lives. But they have turned their grief into helping others, sharing memories, and loving each other through it. Many prayers and blessings to this family WATCH: Kirsten and Jason Clawson’s Amazing Story @kirstenclawson Our story...with an unexpected twist. #godisgood #miracleshappen ♬ I Get to Love You – Acoustic – Mysha Didi “But they that wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31 LISTEN: Former News Anchor Spots a 90-Year-Old Working in the Heat | Dennis Quaid Shows Ronald Reagan's Rise from Small Roots h/t: People Featured Image Credit: TikTok/kirstenclawson   The post This Couple Found Happiness After Loss, and Now Have a New Miracle to Celebrate appeared first on GodUpdates.

Fox News’ Bret Baier reports that Donald Trump will announce his vice president today at the Republic National Convention. “He did confirm that he’s going to make a VP choice today,” Baier said. WATCH: WATCH: Bret Baier says that President Trump "did confirm that he's going to make a VP choice today." https://t.co/E9RY6dc7PY pic.twitter.com/bZ3QX9x0bP — Overton (@OvertonLive) July 15, 2024 NBC News reports: Former President Donald Trump is expected to reveal his choice for a running mate Monday as the Republican National Convention opens here. Bret Baier of Fox News reported Monday morning that Trump confirmed those plans to him in a telephone interview. “Yes, we’re going to get the VP today,” Baier said. “And he said there’s other things to come. I don’t know what that means.” A Trump campaign official deferred to the interview when asked for comment. Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, is focused on three finalists: Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota. But the search process has been closely guarded by the former president and top advisers, with everything from timing to the identity of his choice largely up to Trump himself. WATCH: JUST IN: Trump reacts to classified documents case and confirms he will announce his VP pick today pic.twitter.com/A858CRHxIc — Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 15, 2024 From the Associated Press: A defiant Donald Trump, having just survived an attempted assassination, enters the Republican National Convention having not yet announced his vice presidential pick — but he said he’d make that choice Monday. It remains unclear whether the shooting Saturday at his Pennsylvania rally has changed the former president’s thinking about his potential second-in-command. He told Fox News Channel host Bret Baier in a call that he planned to make his pick Monday. After the shooting, Trump’s choice carries considerably more gravity. If a bullet had struck just a little bit to the right, Trump likely would have been killed or seriously injured. The close call puts in stark relief the significance of a position that is a heartbeat away from the presidency. Trump has repeatedly claimed that choosing someone who was qualified to take over as commander in chief was his top consideration for the role. This story is developing. 

The Secret Service blamed local police for failing to secure the rooftop where the alleged assassin shot President Trump Saturday. The agency said the rooftop was outside the perimeter it was tasked to protect at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Talk about deflection after a colossal FAILURE! The buck stops with the Secret Service, and the agency has resorted to the blame game for its egregious negligence. “Instead, securing and patrolling the factory grounds of AGR International Inc. — located about 130 yards from the stage where Trump was speaking Saturday — was the responsibility of local Pennsylvania police, Secret Service representative Anthony Gugliemi said, according the New York Times,” Chief Nerd wrote, citing the New York Post. “The Secret Service was only tasked with covering the grounds where Trump’s rally took place, with local police being recruited to assist with those efforts and secure the area outside of the rally,” the post added. “The Secret Service blamed local police for failing to secure the rooftop from which gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump, insisting it was outside of the perimeter the federal agency was tasked with protecting. Instead, securing… pic.twitter.com/YsweIUEtru — Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) July 15, 2024 More from the New York Post: But neighbors living near Butler Farm Show Grounds told The Post they were never visited by any law enforcement agencies — local or federal — in the days before or during the rally. “Nobody contacted me. Nobody. Nobody called me, nobody stopped here,” said Valerie Fennell, whose home backs up on the fair grounds and is just beyond a stand of trees from AGR. “I kinda was thinking that as close as my house is, that I honestly thought this might be part of a command station at some point,” she said. And it wasn’t just Fennell who wasn’t contacted by law enforcement — she said her entire neighborhood was bafflingly left alone despite their proximity to the rally grounds. “I was talking to my neighbors yesterday, and none of them had gotten a call. Or anything,” she said, while her sister, Debra, agreed. “I guess it’s kind of the same question that everybody has. I guess, as far as like, why that area wasn’t secure.” The lapses also apparently continued into the rally. Secret Service blames local police, says it was tasked with securing properties surrounding Trump’s Pa. rally https://t.co/d26hhn5Jx5 pic.twitter.com/mv3vOLw1B0 — New York Post (@nypost) July 15, 2024 The Washington Examiner reports: The Secret Service said that relying on local law enforcement for support is a common practice when managing event security. At least six officers from Butler County tactical units were included in the Secret Service’s counterassault team, which initially consisted of only two Secret Service members. Additionally, the Secret Service’s two sniper teams were supported by two local sniper teams. While Pennsylvania police confirmed officers assisted the Secret Service, stating it is routine when hosting high-profile government officials in town, they also emphasized that the federal agency ultimately oversees operations. “The Secret Service always has the lead on securing something like this,” Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said. “We work with them to provide whatever is requested by the Secret Service, but they’re the lead in that security,” he added. Isn't it the Secret Service's job to protect the President? Passing the buck to local police doesn't cut it. pic.twitter.com/6f62VTWFDN — Clown World (@ClownWorld_) July 15, 2024 Ultimately, the buck stops with the Secret Service.

Kirsten and Jason Clawson were married in 2022 after both losing their spouses to cancer. They now have a new blended family filled with love and memories. When the couple got married, Kirsten became the stepmom to Jason’s two boys, Boston, 17, and Cooper, 11. Their blended family grew a bit bigger with the arrival of Maisie, a daughter, in December of 2022. RELATED: Young Widower And Father Of 7 Breaks Down When A Stranger Walks Up And Hands Over $10k Both of Their Former Spouses Passed Away From Cancer Back in 2019, Jason’s wife, Valerie, 38, passed away from colon cancer. In 2020, Kirsten’s husband Cody, 43, passed from acute myeloid. Both of their spouses had genes that made them resistant to chemotherapy. They fought their cancers for the same amount of time, and both ran out of treatment options after nine months. Kirsten and Jason met in a Facebook group for young widows in their area. Then, they connected again through a dating app. “When I saw his profile I knew exactly who he was, so I felt very comfortable moving forward with communicating with him,” Kirsten told PEOPLE. “It was absolute magic the first time we spoke (and every day since).” God was leading the two of them together. After their separate losses, they found one another and created a beautiful life. Their relationship has room for mourning their previous spouses, who were so special to each of them, and they also have the space for remembering special memories from the past. They Recognize The Loss “We recognize the loss. We don’t ignore it or pretend it didn’t happen. We don’t get jealous of each other’s grief or love for their late spouse,” Kirsten says of their marriage. “We ask each other what they need, especially around difficult anniversaries, and then we provide it.” You can find photos of both Cody and Valerie around their home. They tell stories about them, visit the graves as a family, celebrate their birthdays, and remember the anniversaries of their deaths. Making for a healing home for Jason’s two boys. RELATED: She Thought Life Was Over After Burying Her Husband & Child, Then She Meets Widower Jason is a therapist, and that has been helpful to Kirsten. He has given her great advice on processing her grief. However, that doesn’t mean that grief is easier for him. “Many people think that because Jason is a therapist, grief was easier for him, which is absolutely not the case. He struggled like anyone else,” she says. In addition to losing their spouses, Kirsten and Jason Clawson have also gone through other types of loss. A year before Jason’s wife died, he lost a son to anencephaly. Seven months after Kirsten lost her husband, they lost his brother to the same cancer. Grief has been part of their lives, but they can grieve together. The Family Keeps Up Important Traditions The family keeps up important traditions that honor those they have lost. For Cody’s birthday, the family raises money to buy and donate shoes to students and families in need at various schools and shelters. Since Cody was a teacher and a soccer coach and he loved shoes, it was a fantastic way they could honor him. After Valerie died, Cody and his boys started gifting “sunshine baskets,” which are packages “full of bright and fun yellow items to cheer people up.” Kirsten says. They give them to people in the community who have experienced loss or had lives impacted by cancer. This has spread beyond where they live to other parts of the country. What an amazing way to give back to the community! The couple has started a social media account, “Light After Grief,” where they share tips, quotes, and a sprinkle of hope for those who need it. Kirsten also has a TikTok account, “Kirstenclawson,” where she shares updates about her family and the grief process. Her most popular video is one of Valerie’s mother with Maisie with the caption, “She may have lost her daughter, but she didn't lose our family, blood or not ” YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: She Was Widowed With 3 Kids At 25 But God Had Plans For Her And A Widower To Find Love Again Maisie is the Glue of the Family This is why they call Maisie the glue of their family, as she “glued our two worlds together,” Kirsten says. Turning two in December, the toddler is quite the miracle of their story. When Kirsten was 30, she was told he was unlikely to ever conceive children on her own. But she did. It can be easy to lose faith when tragedy hits, as it has in Kirsten and Jason Clawson’s lives. But they have turned their grief into helping others, sharing memories, and loving each other through it. Many prayers and blessings to this family WATCH: Kirsten and Jason Clawson’s Amazing Story @kirstenclawson Our story...with an unexpected twist. #godisgood #miracleshappen ♬ I Get to Love You – Acoustic – Mysha Didi “But they that wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31 LISTEN: Former News Anchor Spots a 90-Year-Old Working in the Heat | Dennis Quaid Shows Ronald Reagan's Rise from Small Roots h/t: People Featured Image Credit: TikTok/kirstenclawson   The post This Couple Found Happiness After Loss, and Now Have a New Miracle to Celebrate appeared first on GodUpdates.

Donald J. Trump will announce his vice president pick on Monday to the public.

NFL wide receiver Jacoby Jones, who helped the Baltimore Ravens win the 2013 Super Bowl by scoring two touchdowns, has died, his former teams announced on Sunday.

An undetermined number of witnesses reported seeing what later turned out to be the assassin crawling along the roof of the building 400 feet away from where Donald Trump was speaking. They told the police as he crawled along the roof and allegedly the Secret Service. According to The Washington Post and other media reports, […] The post Recap: The Debacle of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.