SARANAC — The Mountain Riders Motorcycle Club is hosting its third and final benefit ride of the season Sept. 17.

Most recently, the club hosted its annual “Fallen Angels” benefit ride last month, which saw a couple hundred bikers turn out to help escort 9-year-old Damien Sloan and his family from Plattsburgh International Airport back to their home in Westport, after he successfully finished his last course of chemotherapy for a rare brain tumor.

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Joe Rotella ride

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This upcoming benefit ride will look to support local resident Joe Rotella, who has been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy and pancreatic cancer.

Registration for the ride runs from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Lance’s Place in AuSable Forks, where the ride will begin. Each rider will be asked to donate $15, with an additional $5 asked for a passenger. All the proceeds raised from the ride, which takes a scenic route through the Adirondacks to a final destination at Cedar Hollow Lodge at 336 Ore Bed Rd. in Saranac, will be given to Rotella.

Additionally, there will be a meal offered at Cedar Hollow Lodge when the ride is over. Anyone — rider or non-rider — can stop by and donate $10 for a plate.

“I can’t stress enough that it’s open to the public, please come and help Joe. This is what it is about — for him,” Mountain Riders Motorcycle Club President, Pat “Click” SantaMaria, said.

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Benefit auction

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An auction will also be held at that location to raise money. Click said they are still looking for donated auction items.

In the past, they’ve auctioned off an electric four wheeler, deer hunting supplies, benches, wood carvings and cornhole boards.

“We’ll auction off anything,” Click said. “We have a lot of certificates (already) … gift baskets, and I’m sure this is going to keep going up the closer we get to the date.”

Those looking to donate items or money can contact Click at 518-570-0790. Specially-made t-shirts for Rotella are available for sale at $15 a piece, which can be obtained through Click as well.

“Anything to help Joe,” he said. “We sit down, count it (the money) all out and take it right to Joe, and we just show up on his doorstep one afternoon, knock on his door and hand it all right to him … it’s a great feeling actually. Especially when you see the payoff like when Damien came home.”

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Three rides per year

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Since hosting the ride for Sloan last month, Click said he and his club have received phone calls from several people asking for an event.

But, Click said, they only do three big rides per year, and they usually plan them out early.

“I appreciate people looking to us for this,” he said. “We get together in February with a lot of the clubs in the area, different associations, and we put together a calendar. With this calendar, there’s something every weekend that’s going on all summer long and we try to divide it up equally, so everybody gets a slot to do whatever it is they’re going to do a benefit for”

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Biker impression

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Click also hopes that these benefits will help show the community the true side of bikers.

“People all over the place see us riding … they kind of get the wrong impression on what we’re doing. We’re out here trying to support and help our community and I don’t know, they kind of look at us the wrong way,” he said.

“Some of us don’t talk the best, some of us don’t look the best, so we still get the stigma from people. I hear it all the time like, ‘God, you guys are a lot different than what I thought you would be.’

“Like I said, anything we can do to help Joe at this point, make him smile for the day, that’s what we’re going to do.”