Hollister
– Jimbo Welch always promised himself he wouldn’t follow in the
footsteps of his father, a hard-partying biker.
Hollister – Jimbo Welch always promised himself he wouldn’t follow in the footsteps of his father, a hard-partying biker.
But he found himself, nevertheless, drawn to the motorcycle’s allure.
“I said I’d never be a biker because of the way my dad lived,” Welch said. “But it was always in my heart.”
Welch’s strong Christian faith seemed to clash with stereotypes of the biker culture – one centered around drugs, alcohol and other illegal activity.
“I always figured I couldn’t do it because of who I am as a Christian,” he said.
But then Welch heard about the motorcycle club Bikers for Jesus, a club combining the love of the ride with deep Christian values.
Now Welch is the president of the Modesto chapter of Bikers for Jesus. Through the club, he wears his strong faith in Jesus on the sleeve of his leather biking jacket.
Christian motorcycle clubs such as Bikers for Jesus were hard to miss at the Hollister Motorcycle Rally. Clad in leather, some covered in tattoos, members of various Christian clubs could be mistaken for any other motorcycle group at first glance.
But in place of the words “Hells Angels” or “Boozefighters” emblazoned on their jackets are the club names “Soldiers for Jesus” or “Bikers 4 Christ.”
One man wore a patch proudly stating, “These are my church clothes.”
“Except being saved by Christ, we’re exactly the same as other (clubs),” said Black Sheep Harley-Davidsons for Christ member Skip Baydo, the Livermore chapter’s vice president.
Rick Eckharet, of Soldiers for Jesus out of Reno, estimated there are at least 100 different Christian motorcycle clubs throughout the United States. At least 10 were represented at the rally, many with individuals from different chapters throughout the United States.
The groups minister to bikers at rallies such as the one in Hollister, offering prayers and alternatives for bikers.
Baydo explained how many people are drawn to the Christian clubs because they want to turn their lives around after years of partying. This was echoed by members of other Christian motorcycle clubs.
“There are a lot of people looking for something different and looking for a change in their lifestyle,” Eckharet said. “We know that we’re called to do this and reach out to the rougher guys.”
Many clubs promote an alcohol-free lifestyle. The Soldiers for Jesus Web site points out that many of its members were “bikers of the old world, some were drug addicts and alcoholics, some were convicts and … some were just lost.”
Christian motorcycle clubs promote a ministry where these “bikers of the old world” feel comfortable, Welch said.
“We’re out there for those people who wouldn’t feel comfortable in a church maybe, who wouldn’t feel like they belong,” he said.
Welch said the clubs promote the idea that it doesn’t take drugs, alcohol or sex to make you happy.
The club members provide support for one another, in case they are tempted by various vices.
“We hold each other to a high level of accountability,” said Mike “Whip” Whipple, sergeant of arms for the Fresno chapter of the Soldiers for Jesus Motorcycle Club. “It’s more than a support group.”
But the stigma associated with being a biker is sometimes difficult to leave behind. Eckharet said he often gets stereotyped by police officers and other people as being “up to no good.”
For people like Eckharet and Welch, the stereotypes matter less than their work.
“We’re not concerned about (the stigma),” Eckharet said. “Our goal is to just meet the needs of the biker community.”
