Ray Sanders

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When the posse first formed in 2009, it was just me and Ray.

Sadly, in February 2022, at the age of 91, he went to the great motorcycle shop in the sky. Ray leaves behind his wife, Tina, and a whole passel of wonderful memories, many of them on two wheels.

Ray was married to Sarah’s first cousin, Tina. Yes, more than likely, everyone in Tennessee is a cousin of Sarah’s. It’s a good laugh line, and I’m quite certain it’s true. Tina and Ray lived near Knoxville, in Farragut, Tennessee, on the 12th hole at Fox Den Country Club.

I’ve been on five major rides with Ray — in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. We traveled across the country, from California to New York, North Carolina, Vermont and New Hampshire. More than anyone, he was responsible for introducing me to motorcycle touring. There wouldn’t be a posse today if it weren’t for Ray.

On our 2014 trip, we rode the Colorado Rockies. Ray had a premonition this would be his last major ride – and he wanted to go out in style by riding his favorite road of all time, Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. He was 83 years old on that trip, and still rode like a kid in his 20s — fearless, but with precision and safety. On that same trip, we rode to the summit of Colorado’s Mount Evans (now called Mount Blue Sky), the highest paved road (14,264 feet) in North America. His smile when we arrived at the peak was unforgettable, a grin from ear-to-ear.

Ray was not your typical biker. A career engineer, he was the first in his family to get an education beyond high school. Ray earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Kentucky’s Lexington campus — in mining and metallurgical engineering.

As a student at Kentucky in the late 1940s, Ray bought his first bike, a James, for $400. The James was built near Birmingham, England, and had a two-cycle, 125 cc engine. With 3.5 horsepower, it went from 0-30 mph in 12.5 seconds! By comparison, the Harley Ray rode in 2014 had a 1,690 cc displacement, and did 0-60 in 4.5 seconds.

Ray has ridden hundreds of thousands of miles on Harleys, BMWs, Yamahas, Kawasakis, and Hondas — all over the world. He was a certified riding instructor who taught Motorcycle Safety Foundation riding courses, and applied engineering principles to two-wheel travel.

In the later years of his life, Ray gave up riding, as his health kept him from pursuing his cycling dreams. Though no longer with us, he is a continual presence on every trip I take. It’s been a great ride, Ray.

Ray joined me — or perhaps I joined him — for the 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014 trips.

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