From the very beginning, the founders realized that although the three festival components — bikes, blues and barbeque — would be enough to put on a great event, so much more was possible. They wanted to hold Bikes, Blues & BBQ to a higher standard and give it a greater purpose. First, they decided that the rally had to be an event where everyone was welcome, including children, so it had to be family friendly. Second, the rally needed to give back to the community. Not only would the rally boost the economy, but the founders also felt the rally should donate the profits raised by the event to local charities. Third, the founders felt one last thing was needed to complete the rally festivities — a poker run dedicated to charity. Kathy Johnson, working with Meals on Wheels at the time, was contacted to see if she would be interested in hosting the poker run during the motorcycle rally. She agreed and did an amazing job establishing one of Bikes, Blues & BBQ’s finest events. The Poker Run is now hosted by the Fire Fighters Association, and over 1,200 bikes participate. Between the first and second year, the founders determined that the best way for Bikes, Blues & BBQ to give to charity was to become a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation, and to vote in a Board of Directors to help govern the event. The original board members were Richard Watson, Ken Mourton, Neal Crawford, Denny Tune, Charlie Goforth, Bill Ramsey, and Buddy Ledford.