An unpleasant chapter finally closed!

As many of you have noticed, I have not been blogging as much as I normally do.

There are a number of reasons for that.  I have been dealing with a number of very time consuming and draining issues and late yesterday I got news that the most draining of them all has finally concluded.

On December 22nd of 2013, I along with 6 others were slapped with lawsuit papers by Ray Sasseville, Joan Hansen and Sturgis North.

Bernie Aubin, Steven Hammer, Vince Lewis, the Sicamous Chamber of Commerce, the Mayor of Sicamous and the City of Sicamous and myself found ourselves embroiled in a nuisance, shot gun lawsuit where in among other things, libel and slander were the predominant complaint.  It did not take very long for the City and Mayor of Sicamous to have the case against them dropped.  A few months later, the case against Bernie, Steve, Vince and the Chamber was dropped, leaving me the only one left to fight the case.

Over the course of the last two years I have seen the lawyer for Sturgis North et al be suspended, not once but twice. I attended the BC Securities hearing against Ray, his wife Edith and his accountant, Norm Keller. The result of that hearing was just recently announced.  Ray Sasseville was banned from trading for 5 years and fined $10,000, his wife was banned for 1 year and fined $5,000 and Norm Keller, their accountant was banned for 1 year and fined $5,000.  Click here to read more about the bans and fines.

Ray attempted to settle with me a month before his failed Merritt event by offering me passes and some cash to promote his event, he said that if I agreed, he'd drop the case.  In all good conscience, I could not and from that point forward all communications ceased.

My attorney, Rodney Chorneyko hit wall after wall attempting to move this case forward toward resolution.  In September of 2015, we finally got in front of a "judge" however, while the "judge" agreed the case could be quashed for want of prosecution, she did not like the way my lawyer had served Joan Hansen.  You see when Gerhard Pyper, their attorney was suspended, Ray filed to become self representing, Joan however, did not.

So, because Mr. Pyper was suspended a second time, Joan's file was in the hands of the BC Law Society.  It took several attempts to finally have Joan file as self representing, but the minute we were notified that it was done, Rodney served them all again and the culmination of that effort took place yesterday.

A consent dismiss order was signed and the lawsuit is now ended. I will not be getting any of my costs back, but then, even if I did get an order for costs, Ray's home is in foreclosure, he and his wife have $15,000 in fines to pay BC Securities and Mike Smith who has a judgement against Ray for $70,000 has, as of the best of my knowledge, not been able to collect on it. It is also my understanding that Ray paid $40K to the plaintiff in the Arizona Court case to end that lawsuit back in October/November of 2015.

Knowing all of these things about his financial standing I agreed to not go after costs, after all, the likelihood of collecting appears to be slim to none and any attempt to collect would be met with more costs.

FINALLY this lawsuit is over.

It's been a tough road to walk, but now I feel somewhat vindicated.

I don't feel victorious though,  I am not gloating or shouting with glee. I should feel like celebrating, but all I can think about are all of the people that to this date, have gotten none of the promised compensation over three failed motorcycle/music fests.

I do feel good though after all I have done my level best to educate people so that they could make sound decisions. I have been condemned and criticized by some and praised and hailed by others for my attempts to stand strong and support the truth and this community.

To those who felt I deserved to be sued because you feel I am too outspoken, too passionate, too opinionated; I say thank you. You have been the best teachers I could have asked for.

To those who supported me, some financially, I say thank you, for you shored up my resolve when I felt weak or guilty over what the stress was doing to my husband.

To those who still hold the bag financially over their dealing with Sturgis North I pray you overcome.

My only regret about the outcome of this case is that we never actually went to court.  I truly wanted my day. I wanted to be able to make public all of the copious documents and email conversations from those whose businesses and lives were adversely affected by their dealings with the Sturgis North event management.

I wanted to hear a judge say that I was within my rights to put together the information I did, that I did it properly and well, and that by offering Ray the opportunity to speak though he chose not to, I had ensured the integrity of the body of evidence I had pulled together.

I am happy to have this case over. I am happy to see the relief in the eyes of my husband. I am happy that I don't need the services of Rodney Chorneyko anymore but I am grateful to Steve Hammer for introducing him to me as Rodney has been relentless in getting this case closed.

I am grateful for so very much this morning.

Now I have one favour to ask all of you who ride.

Our 9th Annual Beat the PMS Blues entry has been extended because my Doctor, Dr. Feelgood says that I am not getting the massive dose of motorcycle photos that I need to deal with my PMS (Parked Motorcycle Syndrome.)  He says the number of entries we has so far is barley going to sustain me.

There are some MAGNIFICENT prizes to be won - a Drift Ghost S Camera from the Sports Camera Store, Swag from Nashville Bike Week, a set of Love-Jugs to keep your hot motorcycle cool, books from Chris Holesheck and survival gear from Prospector Central - that collapsable cooler/stool is a rally survival must have!

So please folks, enter your bike in our online show n shine and help me get through the PMS Blues - I want to smile again, I need to smile again and seeing all of your wonderful motorcycles will make that happen - I know they will! Click on the banner below to go to the show n shine page....

Have a great day everyone and if you are blessed enough to be riding today because of the climate you live in or are holidaying in - PLEASE, ride like everyone around you is blind and can not see you. (And think of we Canucks and those who live in cold snowy climates and BE GRATEFUL you can ride.)

Belt Drive Betty,
Editor & Rider



Disclaimer:
All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. The Belt Drive Betty Blog makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site & will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis.

Fort Saskatchewan AB Noise Lawsuit Update

I spoke with Mr. Richard Jones this morning regarding the lawsuit in Quebec that was referenced in his interview with Lindsay Morey of Sun Media last week. (http://www.fortsaskatchewanrecord.com/2014/10/09/city-sued-over-noise)

I asked him specifically about the lawsuit in Quebec he referenced in the interview above, with the quote below:

Begin Quote:
"Resident gave warning of lawsuit in February
In late February, the 99th Avenue resident stood in front of city council and said the noise situation in the Fort has become “grave” over the past 15 years.
Jones highlighted a precedent set in Quebec where the residents sued the government for $8 million over the same problem. END Quote

Since I could find no case in where a Quebec town had sued over motorcycle noise, which is what I thought Mr. Jones meant, I decided to contact him.

In fact, he was speaking of the ability of citizens to sue their city/region over noise issues when they fail to enforce the law.

The case he refers to transpired in Laurentides QC. The ruling in the lawsuit took place in 2004.

Here is a link to the decision in the lawsuit 2004 CanLII 45407 (QC/CS)   It is in French

From CBC: Ruling could hurt snowmobile tourism

Begin Quote: "In a decision that could cause ripples across Canada's winter tourism industry, a judge in Quebec has ruled that people living near a snowmobile trail in the Laurentians should be compensated because of noise levels.

Calling themselves the Coalition for the Protection of the Environment of the Petit Train du Nord Linear Park, about 600 residents took the province, Laurentians municipal government and snowmobile clubs to court when the trail was approved seven years ago.

They filed a class-action lawsuit, arguing the snowmobiles were a source of noise pollution that affected their health." End Quote

From the report by Fasken Martineau DuMoulinAttorneys:

Begin Quote: On November 30, 2004, the day before the season opened, the Superior Court of Québec ordered the Laurentides regional county municipality to bar snowmobiles from using the P’tit Train du Nord linear park between Saint-Faustin-Lac-Carré and Labelle.

This injunction is the result of a class action filed by the Coalition pour la protection de l’environnement du parc linéaire “Petit train du Nord” – the group’s representative – and two designated members, Gérard Emond and Aline Thibauld-Emond. The Coalition was also seeking damages for neighbourhood annoyances suffered by members of the group in the 1997-1998 winter season. The defendants include the Laurentides regional county municipality, the Club de motoneiges Diable et Rouge Inc., the Club de motoneige de Labelle Inc., three insurance companies and the Attorney General of Québec. End Quote

The judgement from the same report - Begin Quote: Damages

The Court awarded a $1,200 indemnity to each member living within 100 m or less of the trail between the 1997-1998 and 2003-2004 winter seasons. This first amount was to be paid by the regional county municipality. The Attorney General of Québec was then ordered to pay the same amount for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 seasons. For their part, the snowmobile clubs were not ordered to pay any damages. End Quote
While Mr. Jones may feel the case in Quebec verifies that individuals have the right to sue government, I do believe that every case needs to move forward based on merit.

I am no lawyer, but when I look at what transpired in Quebec, and how the snowmobile trail came to be, I see no way to compare it to the case in Fort Saskatchewan, not even in regards to citizens having the right to sue a municipality. Other than noise being a bone of contention, I see no parallels here.

I am waiting for a response from the organization "One Square Inch" to see if it is true that they have offered to fund Mr. Jones lawsuit.

At the end of the day, our cities are getting noisier. The bigger our populations get, the worse it gets.

Our community, like all road user communities, has members within it's ranks that don't play well with others and those people are ruining it for everyone else. It happens within the tuner car community, the snowmobile community etc.

MOST Loud Pipes, when used respectfully, don't generally piss people off - I think we can all agree that this issue is not just about the pipes themselves but the person in charge of them and their use - the person controlling that right hand....

I truly believe that this whole issue would go away if we could just learn to share our communities better.

What say you?

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving Day.

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Dealing with lawyers and lawsuits - fun and games - NOT!

I recently posted a photo of Doc, my 2010 Ultra Classic with 9,800 miles on it, on Facebook, with the information that I am selling him in order to put a big chunk of money on the upcoming lawyers bills that I know will be arriving sooner than later.

A few people who although we are connected on Facebook, have not truly been following the story aka SAGA and took a few things out of context.

My goal here is to clear the air and update people on exactly where things stand.

For those who have not been following this misadventure, I am being sued by Sturgis North/Canada, Ray Sasseville and Joan Hansen for Libel, slander and defamation.

My reporting on Ray Sasseville and his history included links, screen shots and documents - you can read up on the history of the lawsuit here:
http://www.beltdrivebetty.com/community/bdb-defense-fund

No matter that what I reported was already in public domain and all I had done was put everything together in one place, Ray and his group decided to sue myself along with 6 others.

The shotgun lawsuit, initiated just before Christmas, included the Mayor of Sicamous, the City of Sicamous, the Sicamous Chamber of Commerce, Steve Hammer, Bernie Aubin, Vince Lewis and myself.

My attorney calls it a nuisance suit.

Nothing about this lawsuit has been straight forward.
Shortly after the suit was launched by lawyer Gerhard Pyper, Ray petitioned to self represent on behalf of himself and the company.  Joan however was still represented by Pyper.

In March we got an offer to settle from Gerhard Pyper.

The first six defendants took the offer they were given. Their offer was that if they didn't ask for costs, the plaintiffs would drop the suit.

The offer I was given was unacceptable.
They basically wanted a $250,000 gag order on me and for me to remove any reference to them off my site, out of my newspaper and to monitor social media and ensure that no one in my circle said anything about them. If I didn't they'd claim the bond money.

As a reporter, I have done my job well. I reported facts, provided evidence and asked people to educate themselves.   Nothing I wrote was untrue, nor written with malice, therefore it is not slanderous, libellous or defamation. I am covered under fair comment and freedom of the press.

Still, I must get before a judge for those freedoms to be exercised.
AND - that costs money and lots of it.

The latest developments in this case are that Gerhard Pyper, the lawyer for Joan Hansen was suspended and his law firm was closed down by the BC Law Society.  Ray is listed as self representing for himself and Sturgis North. Joan however is not represented by anyone at the moment.

Before I had a chance to send my counter offer to Ray, I got a second offer to settle from a new lawyer out of Kelowna named Greg Alfonsso.  That offer was for $1,000 cash and 30 four day passes that I could sell to offset my lawyers bills if I would market their event for them.  Again, in all good conscience I did not feel I could take this offer and so my lawyer had to rewrite my counter offer and sent it off to the new lawyer along with Ray and Joan.

To date there has been no response from any of the parties to my counter offer.

On top of that, the consent to dismiss orders for the others have hit a road block.
The only dismissal that has taken pace is that involving the Mayor and the City of Sicamous.
The other four parties paperwork was apparently never filed by Gerhard Pyper's office.
It took the BC Law Society this much time to determine this.  So now the other 4 parties will have to incur more costs to see if the original consents can be found, and if so can they be filed.

If not, then they too will face the challenge of getting the other parties to communicate and again it will cost them more money.

I myself, have recently sworn out an affidavit for my lawyer to use to have my case moved from Surrey to Salmon Arm/Vernon.  My lawyer will need to go to Surrey and petition the court to transfer the case. That means a minimum of a full day out of his office on top of the preparations for that hearing and the paperwork that will come out of that hearing.

He told me to prepare for $7-$10K for that portion of the bill.
The next step will cost far less as it will involve a hearing before a judge in Salmon Arm/Vernon where in we will petition the court to ask Ray and company, to post a bond for costs.

Then, if they do that we proceed to examinations for discovery, then to trial. If they don't post a bond, then the judge will examinee the case and potentially throw it out. At least that is my understanding on how this is supposed to work.  Each step of the way will cost a different amount of money and time.  I have been told to prepare for an over all bill of $50K from this date forward, so that I am ready for the long haul if this does go that way.

So that's where the legal end of things stand...now to deal with the money portion.

Ours is a community newspaper that does a lot of charity work and as such, it does not generate huge money, basically it covers its costs and modest wages for myself and my staff. Without fundraising, the business would be at jeopardy.  So I had started tee shirt campaigns, donation drives, sold a company bike - a Johnny Pag, some art that was donated to me via an online auction and Blair Weber organized a Poker Run to help me.

At the end of May, on the Defence Fund Poker Run, I was involved in a mishap where my bike ended up getting totalled.

I lost control in a washout on a gravel road and another rider hit me from behind before I had gone down. Had that other rider not hit me, I would have only had to replace the front fender and lived with a battle scarred fairing.  As it was though, the bike was written off and the RCMP consequently charged the other rider with following too close.  The bike I bought to replace my Street glide with was purchased at Edmonton Harley-Davidson.  With what insurance gave me for my bike, some personal savings and $1,800 of the money from the poker run I was able to get another work vehicle.
(As a moto journalist, my motorcycle is a workhorse not a pleasure machine.)

I had no choice, if I wanted to keep the newspaper running, my source of income, not to mention my employees paid,  I had to use some of that money. I have managed to keep paying the lawyer because I was working and so eventually the $1,800 raised did go on the lawyers bill, but funny thing, those bills just keep coming.

Had I been able to put all of that defence run money on the bill at the time, I'd be about $1,800 closer to having him paid up towards this newest bill. As it stands, I owe him about $500 right now, since I was able to, yesterday, make a payment to him from the sale of SOA art in an online auction we held last month.

Because of the latest twists and turns of this lawsuit, I have an anticipated $7-$10K bill coming to get the venue changed from Surrey to Salmon Arm.

I also have a business loan and my motorcycle is but one piece of the collateral for that loan.
My banker has agreed that if I sell the bike, they will take 50% towards my loan and allow me the other 50% to pay my lawyer.

If this court case gets dropped, by some miracle, then I will just continue paying the lawyer monthly until he is paid off and use the remaining money towards another bike.

Nothing about this lawsuit has been straight forward nor does it remotely resemble normal practices according to my attorney.

I need to take some stress off of my brain so that I can focus and concentrate on doing the work my team and I do in and for the riding community.

If I can't put my focus on Belt Drive Betty Media and all of the support tools we offer the community then I and my employees will not have wages to live on.
This doesn't just affect me or my small staff, it affects the entire community that uses our events calendars, our newspaper and web sites as sources of information.

I am not asking for a hand out but a hand up.
I am willing to sell everything I own to defend myself if that's what it takes to see this thing through.

I am selling items like tee shirts, like so many businesses do, but instead of that money funding my business, like it does for other businesses, the tee shirt sales are helping to fund my lawsuit.

If you know anyone looking for a great bike with extended warranty, please put them in touch with me via bdbetty @ gmail.com  - fix the spaces.

If you are interested in purchasing a tee shirt to support the cause please visit: http://teespring.com/beltdrivebetty

I hope this clears things up for those who seem to be confused about this lawsuit, and what I am preparing for and why I am doing what I am doing.  I want to do the work I do, pay my bills, eat decently and enjoy life just like every other working stiff out there.  I want to be able to sleep at night without worrying about how I am going to come up with the money for the lawyer, a bill I know is coming sooner than later.

That's all!  By selling my bike, I can take the pressure off of the looming lawyer's bill and focus on the business and community.

By the way we have some great prizes up for grabs in our Capture the Gear Fail Photo Contest.

You could win a pair of boots and a helmet from Kimpex - a value of $300 for your first place photo and for the second place photo you could win a pair of Draggin Jeans!

Visit Our Contest Page to find out more!

If you are blessed to be riding today, please ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty,
Editor & Rider


Disclaimer:
All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. The Belt Drive Betty Blog makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site & will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis.

The last season of Son's of Anarchy and a great Art Auction

As many of you know this upcoming season of Sons of Anarchy will be the last.

And, as many of you know, I am in a lawsuit and need to raise the funds to fight the "charges" against me.  For those of you who don't know what the lawsuit is about, please visit my Defense Fund Page.

The reason that the final season of SOA ties into me being sued, is that a talented young man named Mark Mullen has donated an entire set of his pastels of the original cast of the Sons of Anarchy to my defense fund.

Mark met Charlie Hunnam through a family friend who was working on the set of "Pacific Rim" and when Charlie saw the renderings of Young Jax, Mature Jax and Clay he wanted to support Mark in his bid to go to college and help pay his way.  Charlie challenged young Mark to create the entire original cast and he did.  Good to his word, Charlie took them to the set and 8 out of 9 of these amazing pieces were autographed. William Lucking had already left the show and so was not available to autograph the piece of "Piney".

These prints are all accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and photos of Charlie Hunnam and Mark together.

I helped facilitate the auction of the originals and Mark decided to donate set number 25 of 25 to my legal defense.

Once season 7 of SOA is over, these actors will never again autograph anything as their character.

Besides this set, there are 2 or 3 other sets left to sell.  Once they are gone, they are gone!

The auction starts on Thursday July 17th with one piece featured every day.

I need to raise the funds to pay a lawyer to defend me.

Right now, my goal is to raise $10K, 3 of that is needed ASAP to pay for this latest lawyer's bill.
The other $7 is to cover the appearance of my lawyer before the courts in Surrey. 

Because of this lawsuit and my crash, my business has suffered. I am just getting caught up on three months of invoicing, marketing materials that have to go out and getting ready to finally mail our phone books out. It's been draining, time consuming and frustrating.

As another way of growing the business and services we offer:


I am offering 25% commission to all riders and or riding clubs who bring new businesses to the Rider Friendly Business Association.

If you are interested in making some money for your club or yourself, give me a call. I need sales people and reporters in every province!

If you are interested in promoting your community, your businesses, your events - get in touch!  bdbetty @ gmail.com
Fix the spaces!

Have a great day everyone, and please ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty,
Editor & Rider

The Sturgis North Lawsuit - the gift that just keeps on giving

Well folks, my lawyer has finally gotten word on what is happening with the Sturgis North Lawsuit and it's NOT PRETTY.

As many of you know, Ray Sasseville and Joan Hanson of Sturgis North, now Sturgis Canada are suing me for slander and defamation.

The suit originally had 7 defendants but Ray and Joan offered to settle with 6 of the defendants with no real caveat against anyone.  They offered to settle with me as well, but their offer was preposterous and I have been waiting for my counter offer to go to them.

My attorney wanted to ensure that all of the other lawsuits had in fact gone through the courts and were well and truly settled before he filed my counter.

And then the lawyer for Ray and Joan and Sturgis North, Gerhard Pyper was suspended by the BC Law Society.

Ah yes, this lawsuit is a gift that just keeps on giving...

The suspension of the lawyer representing Sasseville and Hansen complicates everything ten fold.

According to the BC Law Society, they do not have a lawyer who is prepared to take on Mr. Pyper's cases and so Ray and Joan will be treated as self representing, as Ray had filed a motion to self represent even though Mr. Pyper was still handling their correspondence.

So what does this mean for me?

Well, we now have to deal with two individuals instead of one lawyer.

My counter offer should be in their hands shortly and once it is I will share with you the document that my lawyer sends out so that you can read for yourself whether there is any true substance to their claims against me or not.

If they do not accept my counter offer to settle, then I am looking at $40-50 thousand dollars to see this thing through.

The immediate need is to raise another $10,000.

That is to cover this new letter to go out, and the time my attorney is going to have to take out of his office in Salmon Arm to petition the courts in Surrey for a change of venue and a bond for costs.

According to my attorney, the Surrey court is a mess, it takes 3 months for orders to be filed - like the 6 we are waiting on from back in May!

It can also take, even with an appointment, up to three days for a lawyer to get in front of a judge to prove why a change of venue makes sense.

That's with an appointment - a date and time that he is supposed to meet with the judge!  We could get lucky and the appointment could happen on time, but apparently, there are many times where lawyers have had to stay over one and two extra days because a hearing before them took longer than scheduled.

My lawyer costs approx. $7,000 for every day out of his office!

My attorney does not hold out much hope for a resolution to this irritating case any time soon....

So we will be holding an on line auction for some amazing SOA art from an autistic artist named Mark Mullen.  Mark is one talented young man!

We helped him auction off the originals of the original cast members of SOA - all were signed by the actors except for Piney and now he has donated a set to me to help with my defense fund!

25 certified copies of this set were made and we will be auctioning off the 25th set!  All come with certificates of Authenticity!

I will let you know the particulars in the next few days!

I hope you have a fabulous day and remember to ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you!

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider









Disclaimer:
All data and information provided on this site is for informational purposes only. The Belt Drive Betty Blog makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, currentness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site & will not be liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis.

Rumours of my Retirement & Other REALLY Bizarre stuff...

I got a couple of emails today, one was from a friend I hadn't heard from in a while.

He told me that I sucked and that there was no way I should be retiring.  That he was invited to attend a poker run in support of me, being held as a way to discourage me from retiring.

And the other from a friend who was appalled that I hadn't shared with her that I was retiring.

Well folks I am here to tell you that I am far from retiring, I have far too much that I want to do in this community to think of retiring.

There have been times, since Ray Sasseville, Joan Hansen and Sturgis North decided to launch a shotgun lawsuit against 7 people, when I wondered if what I am working at means anything at all, if it's worth it, if it has value to anyone. But time and again the support and help that I have gotten from this community has reaffirmed that the work I have chosen to do is valuable to at least some.

I am scratching my head right now wondering who it is that is spreading the rumour that I am retiring.  We have begun editing the 2nd season of the TV show and I will be filming for it all summer, provided I have no other set backs, like the crash that has taken me off my work game for the past three weeks.

Our web sites are being overhauled, yet again and we have taken the newspaper to the digital realm entirely.  We are working harder than ever to bring the news and information that this community needs to them.

So the answer to the queries I have been getting is NO - I am not retiring.

I am taken aback by a strange turn of events in the lawsuit though. I am not sure what to make of it.

As you may remember, Sturgis North and company, had offered to drop their lawsuit against all seven of us that were named.  The other six defendants offer was straight forward, don't sue for costs, this goes away. My offer however included a $250K gag order, a removal of all reference to Sturgis North and company in my newspaper, web site and blog and that I monitor social media, my circle of friends and acquaintances to ensure no comments were made by them and allowed to stand, no letters to the editor etc....

I could not accept those terms and a counter offer has been prepared.
Since all of the other parties agreed to settle their cases, they had all signed off and sent their documents to the attorney for Sturgis North, Gerhard Pyper.

My lawyer was not going to send out my counter offer to settle until such time as all of the other suits had gone through court and were over.

We have been waiting for those orders to be signed for about 6 weeks now, a very long time for documents to take in being processed.

Well, today, I got an email from my attorney stating that the BC Law Society had contacted him to let him know that they had assigned a custodian to take over and wind down the law firm Pyper Law Group.
Gerhard Pyper is the lawyer of record for Ray Sasseville and Sturgis North.

My lawyer went on to express that the only reasons that a custodian would be assigned to a law firm was in the event of death, infirmity, suspension or disbarment. The Law Society is not allowed to tell you why a custodian is assigned.

So, I did some investigating and I found out that there were no obituary notices, and since there is was nothing in the news about this attorney anywhere, I went to the BC Law Courts web site and low and behold, Gerhard Pyper has been suspended.  (See the documents on the left)
According to the documents the lawyer was suspended pursuant to
Rule 3-7.1 of the Law Society Rules. But that didn't mean much to me and so I went and read up on that:

Rule 3-7.1 is

EXTRAORDINARY ACTION TO PROTECT PUBLIC

3-7.1 (1) An order may be made under this Rule with respect to a lawyer or articled student who is

(a) the subject of an investigation or intended investigation under Rule 3-5, and

(b) not the subject of a citation in connection with the matter under investigation or intended to be under investigation.

(2) If they are satisfied, on reasonable grounds, that extraordinary action is necessary to protect the public, 3 or more Benchers may


(a) [rescinded]

(b) impose conditions or limitations on the practice of a lawyer or on the enrolment of an articled student, or

(c) suspend a lawyer or the enrolment of an articled student.

(3) to (13) [rescinded]

(14) An order made under this Rule or varied under Rule 3-7.3 [Procedure] is effective until the first of


(a) final disposition of any citation authorized under Part 4 arising from the investigation, or

(b) rescission, variation or further variation under Rule 3-7.3.

I guess on Monday I will be chatting with my lawyer to see how much more this complicates things and how much more expense I will have to face over this suit because of this situation.

For those of you lucky enough to be riding this weekend, please stay safe, enjoy yourself, and remember, the charity you are riding for needs you - rain or shine....

I am hoping to be healed up enough by next week (June 21-22) that I can be on the be on the bike attending the GP Toys for Tots ride to Peace River.

There is also a bike blessing in town on the 21st being hosted by the Trench Wenches MC - one way or the other next weekend will be my first official ride since the crash...

If you want to find out what events are going on in your province of this magnificent land of ours, visit www.motorcycleeventscanada.com

Ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you and please consider dressing for the slide and not the ride...

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Re-evaluation time

Every now and then, something happens in your life that causes you to take a step back and re-evaluate your life, your accomplishments, failures, challenges and dreams.

The passing of a good friend and the comments of her husband gave me that pause this morning.
It was 3:30 in the morning where I live, when I read of the passing of my friend and I was gutted.

A lively, wildly loving gal, Sue Woodhouse made everyone who knew her smile.  She loved goofy animal videos, especially if they were of cats and she made everyone she touched feel wonderful, special and loved. Her husband Mark, a great guy and the man Sue shared her life with for 32 year was looking back on their time together and wondering if he had done right by his love throughout all those years, if he made her feel special...put her first enough.

I watch the fires in California that are affecting friends, consuming homes and memories and my heart breaks a little more.

I watch the encroachment of Sharia Law around the world and I wonder to myself why are we allowing it? What will the fate of strong willed women like myself be when Sharia Law is enforced around the world?

I look at the way electronic communication has altered our society and not entirely for the better and I long to be hugged, to hear the voices of my friends instead of just reading their words.

I see the way our Veterans are treated, the jobs they are sent to do and the indignities that so many suffer when they come home and I wonder why they defend this country.

I read daily of the deaths of fellow motorcyclists right around the world and I wonder again...

My life has on some levels, become overwhelming, between the situation in my family, the disgusting nuisance lawsuit from Sturgis North and a host of other set backs, I have never felt so vulnerable, so small, so insignificant. And yet... I know that it will all work out.

I love my job, the one I created for myself after a huge set of changes in my life a number of years ago.

Being the editor of the Busted Knuckle Chronicles, helping charitable causes and riding clubs to market themselves, telling the stories of the riding community, it fills me in a very special way.

But there are huge costs to what I do. There is the toll it takes on my husband, the time away from him, my daughter and how one dimensional I have become.  According to my daughter I don't know how to talk about anything but my work and motorcycles. I can't say she is wrong.

This lawsuit that Sturgis North started against me chaps my arse for a lot of reasons.
And it has made me look at the community I live and work in, in a far different way than I have until now.

All my riding friends and the people I serve in the riding community talk about freedom.
Our country is broken - yes it is better than a lot of places, but that doesn't mean it's healthy.
Our "justice" system is a legal system - there is little about it that is just.

Freedom, what is it, really?

Freedom of the Press, Freedom of Speech - these are two "FREEDOMS" that are the foundation of our country and yet, here I am, having resources and time consumed fighting a lawsuit that is truly a nuisance suit.

I have been fighting this suit for 5 months now. I can't tell you the hours, the agony and the money it has already cost and how much more I and my family have to face.

If my counter offer to settle, which should go out next week sometime after the draft letter is revised, is not accepted, then I am looking at $50,000 to see this thing through. The only thing to be gained by this case going all the way to court, is having my name cleared.  There is nothing to countersue for and there are so many suits ahead of this one that even if I did countersue and win, it's just throwing good money after bad.

I wonder, is it worth it?  I really do.
I have mulled a number of ideas around in my head...

Perhaps it is time to sell the business, maybe if I didn't have to spend the many hours a day that it takes, I'd have the energy to fight this suit and raise the funds it's going to take to prove that I have only shed light on the facts about the owners and management of Sturgis North and that everything that was found and shared came from public domain.

Hell, if I sold the business, I might be able to fund this fight on my own without being reduced to flogging tee shirts and asking for donations.

But as my husband pointed out in one of our many long conversations about this business of mine, I love what I do, helping people, networking, supporting and eating, breathing this community.

And if I didn't do it, he knows I wouldn't be happy.

I have gotten a lot of support from the riding community.
I have gotten almost enough to keep lawyers bills and research assistant bills fully paid for.
I have gotten letters of support and lots of prayers being raised and I know they are working.
I know that there are people who value the work that I do and as long as it has value, then I am happy and grateful to do it.

It is after all because of my job, this business, that I got to be friends with a gal like Sue Woodhouse and her man Mark.

It is because of this job that I am connected socially to over 13,000 people on Facebook, many that I have been blessed to ride with, hug, talk to...

It's hard to balance everything, my husband at times feels cheated by this community and rightly so.
I can't tell you the number of times I have been on the phone helping some event coordinator or mediating for different parties, reaching out on behalf of new riding clubs and making introductions while my husband has fallen asleep in front of the TV waiting for me to be ready to go out for supper or just spend some time with him. Then there are the hours and miles I get to put on my motorcycle.

As a man that loves to ride, he has moments of envy that sometimes turn to resentment and I fully get that. Last summer he was a motorcycle widower for 92 days.

If I had a team of more than two supporting me in this business, then maybe I could find some balance in my life and be able to do right by my husband, my daughter, myself and my community.

I need sales people, I need a marketer and a graphic designer and another web person to support the gal I have before she burns out from the workload.

The business is too big for the team we have, for us to be able to look after our customers and advertisers the way I'd love for them to be cared for. I need sales people to help grow the business so I can afford the other support staff I need.

So, the best way for me to strike balance is to put out the call for sales people.

We need people in every province of Canada that are interested in selling advertising part time or full time.

They need to be strong communicators, good with computers and people.
They need to understand the power of social networking and be willing to use it to help our advertisers.
They need to love helping this community grow and prosper.
The pay is 25% commission, and I offer training, support and leads.

Our paper also needs reporters, community minded people who like to write and want to help this community, it's charities, it's riding clubs, it's tourists and businesses get the exposure they need to grow. There is no pay other than the satisfaction of helping out and most times free admission to events.  The ideal person is associated with a group, riding club or association that wants exposure OR a person who attends a lot of rides, rallies or just does a lot of touring.

In some cases we trade advertising for articles.

There are those out there, I know, who like both sales and writing and those people would be ideal for the positions we have to offer.

Until I can get a team behind me to help me grow the business and its revenue,  I will have to continue fundraising to fight this lawsuit, and I will have to cut back on some of the other things I do in order to make my husband feel the love and value I feel for him and be successful in defending myself.

I finally took some time to contact Global News and share with them the information on the lawsuit.
After all, the suit could affect all reporters if I had to default because I couldn't pay a lawyer.

I am burning out and I need to face the fact that I am not getting any younger.
I want to attract the right person to manage the business, to one day take over the business, ideally a national rights organization for riders would be the right candidate to buy the business and have all of the support tools we have already developed be available to a larger portion of the community and help fund the organization.

I love this community and I love my husband and daughter and while I know that I won't always make everyone happy, I want to make as many as I can, happy, starting with my family.

If I had a team it would happen all the faster!

If you are interested in joining the Belt Drive Betty Media team, reach out to me at
bdbetty @ gmail.com (fix the spaces)

If you live in the Edmonton, Nisku region of Alberta, I hope you will join us for the Freedom of the Press Defense Fund Run on May 24th at Blackjacks in Nisku.

Join our Event Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/events/1464993630399921/

And if you don't live in the region but would like to support the cause, you can buy a teeshirt through Tee Spring: http://teespring.com/SupportBDB2 or donate to my defense fund: http://www.beltdrivebetty.com/community/bdb-defense-fund

I hope your day is filled with love, family and friends and that when you pull the covers up at the end of the day you can smile with satisfaction over the day you've had as you drift off to sleep.

If you are blessed to be riding today, please ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty
Edito & Rider

Sobering News

I spent the weekend in Salmon Arm BC with the BC Lone Wolves at their Show 'n' Shine and Motorcycle Awareness event and I had a ball while there.

Watch this coming Thursday's Busted Knuckle Chronicles for the low down on that show!

The drive down had some tense moments with inclement weather. The trip saw me in snow, freezing rain and sleet a good portion of the way and from Mount Robson on nothing but rain until Clearwater.
The trip home was uneventful until I hit Valemount and from there until 40 K from Jasper I was in snow, from the Hinton/Grande Prairie turn off to 15 K before Grande Cache the road was glare ice!

It was a harrowing trip and I am glad to be home safe and sound.

While I was in Salmon Arm I was able to finally meet my Lawyer, Rodney Chorneyko and he and I had a frank discussion about the Sturgis North, Ray Sasseville, Joan Hansen libel/slander lawsuit.

We will be sending out my response to their offer to settle soon.  They want a $250,000 gag order on a journalist/publisher and editor - ME and that goes against the freedom of speech laws in this country. If I fail to agree to that they are going to petition the courts for a gag order on me until this lawsuit is settled - the good news is I get to talk to the judge if they try that, so it their request for a gag order will undoubtably fail. If I was to accept their current offer to settle, I set a dangerous precedent for all journalists in Canada so fight I must and I will.

I am not allowed to share with you my response letter as of yet, as the other side's lawyer hasn't gotten it yet, but let me assure you that my counter offer to settle is very fair minded.

The bad news is, I need to raise another $50,000 if this lawsuit doesn't get settled before then as it will drag out for a long time. As it stands, right now I will need to raise another $5,000 to see this through to what I am hoping will be the end of this stupidity. But, if it goes past this letter that the lawyer sends out, then it will take upwards of $50K!

My attorney advised me that I will never get anything from these people and that even if I was to counter sue, I would be completely wasting my money. He sighted the Michael Smith suit, where in Michael won a judgement for $70,000 lawsuit against Mr. Sasseville and has not been able to collect on it.

He explained that he does not want me throwing good money after bad and that there is no such thing as true justice - that ours is a legal system and not a justice system.  He said there would be no justice for the little people who have been hurt financially by this event and it's coordinators unless somehow the RCMP were to be willing to open an investigation into these people and he does not see that happening either.

So, there you have it - the new goal for my defense fund is now $50K on top of what I have already spent!  I have to be prepared for going long haul on this. To do otherwise would be fool hardy!

I can't do that without this community helping me.

If you support me, and it turns out they accept my counter offer and this thing is finally over, anything after the lawyer is paid off and Ali is given some money for the bike we sold, then the funds will be put to use is such a way that the biker community will appreciate!

I hope you will join us for the Freedom of the Press Poker Run and Silent Auction May 24th at Blackjacks in Nisku AB - Kickstands up will be at 10 AM for the Poker Run and the 50/50 draws & BBQ will begin at 3 pm at Blackjacks.  We will also be raising funds for Doug Jenson who was recently diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease - he needs an electric hospital bed and lift - about $8,500 in equipment!

I am looking for vendors and silent auction items - so contact me at bdbetty @ gmail.com (fix the spaces) if you'd like to take part!

My husband is on his way to the U of A to go see his MS Neurologist as the Prednisone does not seem to have stopped what's going on with him the way it has in the past.

Please keep him in your prayers because although you all are a great support system - he is my rock and without him, I will be lost!

Have a great day everyone,

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

When the going gets tough...

I am reeling after a series of set backs and I am having to re-evaluate everything Belt Drive Betty Media does and how it does it.

I had a major advertiser whose marketing had been all approved and set up cancel their ads for no  reason and with no notice. That advertiser has caused a 5 week delay in the release of our Rider Friendly Phone Book which will finally go to the press room this week once adjustments to the book are made.

This is not a delay I could have foreseen and I deeply apologize to all who have preordered the books which won't start arriving now until the middle of June. We will be releasing the App shortly for the phone book shortly so that will help out those with smart phones.

The ramifications of this advertiser backing out of their agreement will be far reaching in this little company.

This same advertiser was supposed to be a sponsor of the TV show "Ride Like a Local" on Eastlink TV and their cancellations have caused me to cancel the show with Eastlink TV - I do not have enough time to find other advertisers for Eastlink as my schedule is just too full and busy right now. Had this happened 2 months ago, it would not have been an issue but at this late date, there is not a lot I can do except re-group.

I am looking at airing the show on YouTube only for the 2014 season with episodes beginning as soon as I have time to start editing the film footage I already have. In the end this might be a good thing as I will be free to promote the show and make it available to those in regions where Eastlink TV is not an option. It will depend on my remaining sponsors for the show and how our talks go.

So, stay tuned for the decision on "Ride Like a Local" and what form it will take as soon as I can share that with you.

I also have to decide if I am going to take this company to court for breech of contract or just take it up the arse without a whimper.  Considering the physical state my husband is in, I will probably just have to let it go as I cannot put any more stress in his life.

On top of that disappointing news, came some condemnation from a person who feels that I should just not respond to the Sturgis North lawsuit against me and that there can be no fight if I just don't show up for the battle. I was accused of being a bad wife because I know that stress and MS patients do not mix and that sure gave me pause for thought.

My husband has MS and the stress of that lawsuit has caused a flaring of this hideous disease.
This person suggested that I was a bad wife for putting him under such stress and that I should just not respond. This person either does not understand how lawsuits initiated by others work OR they truly think that my fighting for the Freedom of the Press is not a valid fight.

If I was to not respond to the lawsuit, it would mean these people would win by default and that would mean that Belt Drive Betty Media and all of the charity work we do would be forever ceased.
It would also affect other journalists as it would set a legal precedent that is very dangerous.
So I sit here this morning examining my business and my life.

I am asking myself many questions and am hoping to find some inspiration and guidance from the riding community.

The Sturgis North lawsuit was initiated by Ray Sasseville and Joan Hansen to cause me grief, money and to shut me up. It's doing a good job on two out of three fronts.

The organizers of the newly rebranded Sturgis Canada do not appreciate the information I have disseminated to the riding community and they really don't want the truth about the players in the event brought to light.  Although they are suing me for defamation and slander, I have backed everything up I have ever written with evidence and nothing they are suing me for is actionable as it is all from the public domain - this lawsuit is truly a nuisance suit.  I have done my job properly.

I feel awful that my business, my chosen profession is causing my husband to relapse.
And I am now in a quandary - do I accept the offer to settle which sees me with a $250K gag order on me as a journalist and allow the setting of a dangerous legal precedent for all journalists but ends the stress for my husband?

Do I continue to fight for the truth to be fully exposed and my good name as a journalist cleared?
And if I do, at what cost to my husband and marriage?

If ever there was a rock and a hard place this is it.

So, if you were in my boots and you knew you had done nothing wrong, that you had evidence (proof) to back up everything you said and wrote, but the stress of the lawsuit was causing your spouse to relapse, what would you do?

I have talked to my husband at great length about this situation and he is as torn as I am.

I love my job, my business, the riding community and my husband, I can't see my life without any of those elements in it.

I feel like I am in hell right now and I can't see the forest for the trees.
It's hard to take a step back and evaluate everything with so much emotion at play.

Your thoughts on this topic might just help me make a good decision because you might come up with suggestions and ideas that I have been unable to come up with on my own or in discussions with my husband - we are both too close to the situation to see the other alternatives that might be out there.

Your feedback and ideas would be deeply appreciated.

Now to other news:

In Manitoba, a former high ranking member of the Hells Angels MC has been released on early - FULL parole now that he is no longer a member of the club.

In Ontario, there have been two separate motorcycle crashes, the one was a single motorcycle crash where the rider died and the other crash, also a single motorcycle crash saw the rider air lifted to hospital with serious injuries.

In San Francisco, a female only "Outlaw Motorcycle Club" the Devil Dolls Motorcycle Club was barred from vending at a gun club event this past weekend.

There are many more articles in the news feeds which may be of interest to you over on www.beltdrivebetty.com, where our work is keeping you informed.

Have a great day and please remember, ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you and if you are blessed enough to be riding today, please consider dressing for the slide and not the ride.

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Two more crashes mar the beginning of riding season

Two more crashes mar the beginning of riding season, one in Regina, SK and one Barrie, ON.

The one in Barrie involved a single motorcycle and the rider had to be airlifted to Toronto.  The rider apparently lost control and went into the ditch from an off ramp.

The one in Regina involved a car and a motorcycle at an intersection. That rider went to the hospital with minor injuries and no other details are available at this time in either crash.

Our skills are rusty and we are all eager to ride after a harsh winter, but folks - extreme care has to be exercised. Drivers aren't looking for us, there are untold amounts of danger on the road like potholes from HE Double Hockey Sticks, cracks, ice, sand, gravel and people on their cell phones.

I too have been eager to get out there and have in fact been on my bike twice and while our roads here are in not too bad of shape, I had to use all of my defensive riding skills and be super aware because it was obvious that people weren't ready to see bikes and the roadways do have some terrible potholes.

I really do get the angst one feels, but please people, be hyper aware and be dressed for the slide not the ride.  If there was ever a time to be fully geared up, its now.

There are many wonderful motorcycle awareness videos being circulated in the riding community and it is my hope that people are sharing them with the non rider, just sharing in the riding community is not going to impact awareness much.

The Sturgis North Lawsuit - an Update

Now onto a little bit of personal information regarding the Sturgis North, Ray Sasseville, Joan Hansen lawsuit...I read the draft of the response my attorney is sending to the above mentioned parties and while I cannot divulge the information as of yet, I will tell you that I am absolutely thrilled with my lawyer's response.

I am looking forward to actually meeting him in May when I head out to the BC Lone Wolves Show "n" Shine!  I also need to give Steve Hammer from the Summer Stomp a great big hug for agreeing to share his attorney with me because this man knows his stuff and pulls no punches - I like that!

I like that a lot!

I am truly looking forward to sharing that letter with you all when the time is right, because it does put everything into clear perspective!

I am preparing for the long haul on this and raising as much money as I can so that I can afford each lawyers bill as it come in.  If I end up raising more money than I need, I have decided that I will be donating the excess to charity.

Here are the ideas I have been kicking around...

1 - there is a little girl in Edmonton with a rare form of cancer who needs alternative therapy
2 - my good friend Doug Jenson needs an electric hospital bed as Lou Gehrig's has him deteriorating rapidly
3 - start a fund to help some of the creditors that were left behind by the parties who are suing me
4 - put the money into a park or some other service/equipment that is needed in Salmon Arm

For Ali, whose bike was just sold to build up my defense fund, I intend to help pay for her and Gator's cruise next year - their first real holiday in almost 8 years.

The need to continue raising funds, to be prepared to meet my accusers in court is vital, I cannot stop working at raising funds. But if I raise more than I need to pay the lawyer and research assistant, I want to take that money and do some good with it.

I welcome your input, after all, it is you who have been helping and supporting me.
It is your money and I feel you should have a say of where the excess, if any remains, goes.

Here are the links to the two tee shirts we are currently selling to raise some funds with:

 http://teespring.com/supportBDB4
 &
http://teespring.com/SupportBDB2

I am going to sign off by sharing this quote that was sent to my by my friend Ian on Facebook...

Wise words for anyone facing a challenge...thanks Ian!

Have a fabulous hump day and if you are blessed enough to be riding today, please remember to ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you and please, consider dressing for the slide, not the ride.

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

A Gag Order on ME & YOU, The Riding Community

Two days ago I received, along with the other 6 defendants in the Lawsuit launched by Sturgis North, Ray Sasseville & Joan Hansen, a letter from their attorney that in effect offers to drop the entire lawsuit against 6 of the defendants if they agree to waive costs. If they agree the only caveat is that they are not discuss the settlement.

I then got a special letter directed at me only, with an offer to settle that is much different from that of the other defendants.  The notice starts on the bottom of one page and spills over the another hence why it is here in two images:

If I understand their notice, they are saying that if I shut up and never utter another word about this group of people and the event, if I remove every instance of mention of the above group and event off of my website and out of my newspaper and blog, then they will drop their lawsuit.

BUT, if I publish ANYTHING about the event or the people - directly or indirectly, they want me to agree to pay them $250,000.  

So what that means is that we would not be allowed to print letters to the editor or link to any news articles about the event or people noted in the suit. 

This is effectively A Gag Order on ME & YOU, The Riding Community 

As the Editor of a newspaper how in the H E Double Hockey Sticks do they think I would agree to that?

If I fail to agree to their demands they are going to apply to the courts for a cease and desist order that will gag me AND YOU from speaking of them or the event until we go to court as I will not be allowed to publish letters to the editor that people send in if it refers to the above mentioned parties!

Now the other defendants in this suit would, in my humble opinion, be crazy not to take the offer given to them. After all why should they throw good money after bad?  There is no gag order on them other than not to discuss the settlement and although I am no lawyer, I really see no reason why they shouldn't accept. And they have.

Here is a screen shot of page one of the letter to me - because of the way the text flows on the page I am having to do this in 2 screen shots.

They claim that I wanted to be a part of a social network they were attempting to launch called Bitchin Bike. They claim that I turned on them before the 2012 event, and that I turned on them because they would not buy a ride map in our community phone book.

In January of 2012 at a meeting with Ray, Joan and a couple of others, held after the Vancouver Motorcycle Show we discussed ideas for improving and promoting Sturgis North.  I offered them a Ride Map in my phone book and showed them how they could cover the costs - it is the same proposal I deliver to many a tourism consortia.

Ray wanted me to bring my Rider Friendly business partners into his Bitchin Bike Social network to give them more exposure.  I was willing to look at it but at the time Ali and I were only a few weeks away from status walls and other tools being available on our own web site.  The deal Ray had offered at an earlier meeting in Calgary ended up being far different at the second meeting and I expressed that since people couldn't seem to remember what they said, I'd bring a tape recorder to the next meeting.

I received a Sturgis North Leather Jacket and an Alive Drive for Bitchin Bike at that Vancouver meeting, with Ray welcoming me to their team.  I told Ray that I needed to do my due diligence before I agreed to become part of anything.

I went home, looked at the Bitchin Bike Network and emailed Joan and told her I had no desire to be a part of it. That I would sponsor the event but I did not want my logo on the Bitchin Bike Network that came with my sponsorship package.

I was later told in an email that because they owed their printer money the best way for them to recover good faith with him was to allow him to sell ads in and print their new ride guide - fair enough. I already had enough partners for a regional ride map, so if they didn't want to be involved no problem. As a sales person, I face rejection and acceptance everyday - it's nothing new.

I have all of the emails that detail the discussions and they are on their way to my lawyer.

I also produced the Sturgis North Newsletter for them in the newspaper in 2012 - so I am unsure how my "barrage of lies and half truths started when they were unable to provide me with a social media partnership and the requested $8,500" in 2012 - BEFORE the event.

I have posted links here to the four posts about my attendance at the 2012 event, the first one talks about the police presence and how it destroyed the Great Canadian Bike Rally and was even more oppressive at Sturgis North 2012.

July 20th - 2012
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/07/how-do-you-destroy-good-motorcycle-event.html

The second article deals with my impressions of the events...

July 23rd - 2012
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/07/my-impressions-of-motorcycle-events-in.html

The third article involved my impressions of the 2012 event in Vernon and even in it I give the organizers the benefit of the doubt. I disseminated the event and identified everything that I saw as a challenge that would need to be addressed before a 2013 event could be contemplated.

July 25th - 2012
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/07/sturgis-north-2013-is-in-planning.html

The fourth post deals with the stats from the RCMP and my discussions with 2 officers

August 2nd - 2012 
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/08/stata-from-rcmp-regarding-sturgis-north.html

It is not until August 17th 2012  after speaking with the BC Liquor Board that I started delving into the conduct of Ray Sasseville and why the Liquor Board and RCMP had placed such hard sanctions against the riding community.
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/08/some-hard-truths-about-travesty-called.html

Then on November 9th - 2012, I wrote about some of the things I was learning about event organizer Ray Sasseville:
http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2012/11/sturgis-north-2013-will-you-support-it.html

I will be fighting Ray, Joan and Sturgis North in court as the only defendant.

I REFUSE to be gagged by these people. I refuse to allow them to attempt to gag the riding community either  - $250,000 if I print anything one of you says - get real...

Watch for a major fundraising auction on Facebook that will start very soon, because this IS going to be expensive and I intend to have the money to see it through and have my day in court.

I didn't pick this fight, but like John says - I intend to win it.

If you are blessed enough to be riding today, please ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Lawsuit Saga Continues

As many of you know, I am being sued by Ray Sasseville, Joan Hansen and Sturgis North.
They claim, my reporting of the doings of their CEO Ray Sasseville is defamatory, libellous and preventing them from earning a living in the motorcycle community.

Visit my defense fund page for all the information on everything I have ever written on them including the evidence I am allowed to share publicly.

According to my attorney, Ray wants to drop the suit as it pertains to the City of Sicamous, the Mayor of Sicamous and the Sicamous Chamber of Commerce.  So we shall see how that ends up.

The hearing to move the case to Salmon Arm happens on the 31st of March.

My research assistant and I have continued to investigate Sturgis North and all of it's various names and owners including the newly trademarked Sturgis Canada.  The trademark went through on February 28th of 2014.

Apparently because Sturgis SD never registered their trademark internationally (meaning here in Canada), Mr. Sasseville has all the right to use the name Sturgis and now that he's trademarked, there can be no question.

I came across interesting news from Jonathon Sasseville, one of Ray's three sons, on Plenty of Fish, a dating site. He claims to be the head of security and part owner of Sturgis Canada.

I wonder what his investment in the company is.

Before the lawsuit I was still investigating the doings of the people involved with Sturgis North now Sturgis Canada and I intend to continue following them to see if the little people from year's one and two of this event will ever get paid off.

It will be interesting to see if we ever learn who the new investors are in Sturgis Canada and what kind of bands they line up, they say there will be a big announcement on the 19th of March.

Writing about them is a double edged sword for me as I am giving them airtime I would rather not, but I still have a defense fund that needs help and letting you all know that I am not giving up in my pursuit of the truth is important to me.

I need to sell 224 more tee shirts to pay my lawyer this month and will need to raise the same for next month, then I should have a lull until we get to court.

My lawyer asked me about a countersuit but from what I have seen in the court documents, even when you win a case with these people, it appears that collecting is rather, difficult.  The lawsuit launched by Ray's wife Edith as the Power of Attorney for Marjorie Sasseville (Ray's Mother from what I am told), has gone nowhere and it's for $140,000.

Michael Smith's lawsuit was won but from what I am lead to understand he has not been able to collect as of yet, that one is for $70K and there has been no movement on the Vernon Motoplex suit which is for somewhere around $450K.

And so, the Lawsuit Saga Continues....

My head is spinning with all of this.

I never started this fight but I will tell you that I want my day in court and to have a judge tell me I have done my job properly. I want to see the people who are owed money paid.  I want to see wrongs righted.

So folks, if you were in my boots, what would you do?

Waste more money to countersue and hope you can collect?  

The other thing my lawyer asked is if they offer to drop the suit against me would I be prepared to absorb the costs and walk away?

You know, I have no idea how to answer that question.

If I thought I had this community behind me and willing to help me fight, I'd continue on because I want my good name cleared by a judge and I want the people involved exposed - I have more knowledge that what I can share publicly and none of it is good, and if I don't get to court, that evidence will remain forever buried.  

I am looking for ideas and advice.  

My little business has always been run like a non profit and has always paid things forward into the riding community where I make my living.  I don't have a reserve to fight this kind of stuff.  I am $1,600 away from being able to pay this latest bill. 

What do I do if I can't raise that money?

Represent myself I guess....

If anyone has any ideas, I am more than willing to hear them...

If you are fortunate enough to be riding today, please ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty

Editor & Rider