The 2016 Jefferson Area Motor Squad Skills Competition was amazing. Afton and I were able to attend all 3 days this year. It was a little tricky considering she was being woken up for the day around 7 am and was not able to nap at home all 3 days. She was such a trooper. I made 2 onesies for her to wear for the competition. On Friday she wore a onesie with the JAMS logo on it (onesie with yellow patch). That was made out of a t shirt I won 2 years ago that I had stained. I loved being able to reuse the shirt! Saturday she wore the onesie in the pictures below. I found a picture of Paul at the motor competition (i'm guessing 2 years ago) and printed it on fabric paper. I had no idea how it would turn out and ended up being very pleased with the results. Everyone loved her little outfits. It is making me extremely excited for next years competition. A friend of ours is having a little boy in a few months and he will be rooting for his daddy next summer at the 2017 competition (His dad's a UVA motor officer). We were extremely lucky this year because the sun took a little vacation for a few days. It was still hot and humid but we did not have the sun beating down on us. HUGE blessing! I LOVE the motor competitions! I love having a chance to support my wonderful husband as he does something he loves. I love having motor officers from the surrounding area and up and down the East Coast come together in Charlottesville for several days. The police brotherhood is a wonderful thing to experience. I cant tell you how much I enjoy meeting other Police Wives and knowing that we understand a part of each others lives that few will ever understand. If you ever have the opportunity to watch a Police Rodeo, please take advantage of that opportunity!
My friend Lubna and her nephews came Saturday to show their support! Her nephews recently came to the USA as refugees from Iraq and Lubna wanted to show them that Police Officers in American are not the enemy. These two young men have been raised to fear those who should be protecting them. It warmed my heart knowing their future in our country was going to be amazing!
Paul rode his bum off. His brand new 2016 BMW R1200 RT-P arrived a few weeks before the competition so he did not have much time adjusting to the little differences between the new bike and the one he had been riding for quite some time. I tell everyone Paul is like a ballerina on a motorcycle. He is incredibly graceful and seems to glide through the courses with so much confidence and ease. Its an amazing thing to watch. I wont lie, I am so so so proud when I watch his ride and when I hear people comment on his riding skills!
Opening ceremonies were so fun to watch. Every year, JAMS supports a local charity. This year, they donated to the 9/11 Foundation. This foundation is outstanding!!! It was such an honor to be able to donate to them and help this foundation grow.
Afton and her daddy are so cute together!
Thin Blue Line sugar cookies are the BEST!!!!! I am so thankful my mom was willing to walk me through this recipe over facetime so I could make them for all of the motor officers on Saturday. I was extremely nervous going into this task for many reasons. 1. I have tried to make these cookies for years with zero success. 2. I have never used black food coloring and 3. I was giving these cookies to so many people that I love and respect. I wanted them to turn out the way I had imagined. Well, I'm happy to say they were delicious!!!! So soft, and exactly how my mom makes them. I ended up using food coloring paste and it was really cool. I wish the food coloring did not turn your teeth black... but they were so tasty and I did not get any complaints about people walking around with black teeth for a few minutes :)
Afton's cute onesie!
Chief Sellers retired a few days before the competition. The JAMS officers gave him the fairing from his motorcycle as a gift and all of the officers signed it.
Paul received 3 awards at the banquet on Saturday evening. The first was Division III Expert 1st place. The second was the Dave Purvis award (Dave Purvis is a motor officer who unfortunately lost his life). It is the award for winning the challenge ride (that was REALLY fun to watch!!!) and the third is was the Steve Grissom award. This award made me tear up when they announced Paul's name. It it the award for the best overall Motor Officer. Steve Grissom (aka, Pappy) is one of the most amazing men you will ever meet. He has been a mentor for Paul since he was a new officer with the Charlottesville PD and he has been supportive of Paul throughout his career. Paul looks up to Pappy not only as a mentor, but as a 2nd dad. I could see how proud Steve was when he presented Paul with the award. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful rodeo!!!!
I'm so proud of everyone who competed in this years competition and I cannot wait to see everyone again next year! Job well done everyone!!!!
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