Getting on a motorcycle has always been a crotch-rattling experience, and nearly 80,000 people worldwide are going to dress all dapper (usually in tweed), and grab the handlebars for a good cause this month.
In the Tampa Bay area, just under 90 riders are registered for this month’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) and have already raised more than $14,000 for men’s mental health and prostate cancer research. In 2024, riders started in St. Pete and ended up in Tampa, but details of this year’s route are available only to those who register and fundraise.
Whoever rides in the Bay area will follow the lead of Tai Truong’s Ronin Vintage crew, which has hosted for the last 11 years. Truong—who used to own St. Pete bar Sake Bomb—traded up from Vespa VBBs after seeing his brother Devon ride Harley Davidson Evolutions and Triumph choppers.
Devon died in August 2014, two weeks after his family learned of his stage four liver cancer. Tai told the DGR blog that he rides for Devon, and lives for him, too. Now, Tai helps organize bike shows and vintage helmet art exhibitions in Devon’s memory, with proceeds often going to local organizations like CASA Pinellas.
Tai told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that Tampa Bay’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride has raised more than $250,000 to date, as part of a global all-time haul of more than $56 million, which DGR sends to prostate cancer-supporting organizations that assist clinical registries, biomedical research, vets and first responders, and mental health.
The ride will end at Bayboro Brewing Co. in St. Petersburg where am afternoon of live music will close the festivities.
