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Bikers ride to remember Worrell
by Rick DeClue · News · September 03, 2015
Family, friends and acquaintances of former Mayor Mark Worrell gathered their motorcycles in West Branch Saturday for a “Memorial Ride for Cubby!”
First, the numbers: The group counted 63 participants riding 41 motorcycles and one car along the four-legged tour from West Branch to Mechanicsville, Stone City, then Stanwood and ending in Sutliff.
The ages of most riders appeared to range over 40-plus years from men and women in their 20s to, well, older.
After an inch and a half of rain overnight Friday, the group rode under heavy clouds, but on dry pavement.
The ride was timed to celebrate Worrell’s birthday Monday, Aug. 31. He would have been 53.
Worrell’s wife, Kathy, said everybody had a safe ride, and added, “It was just a great day.”
Davie Meredith and Tim Moore helped organize the ride, mostly by spreading the news over a dedicated Facebook account. Tim was unable to participate, since it would have been a long ride from Puerto Rico.
As another nod to organization, riders were handed tickets as they gathered at Herb and Lou’s Pizza in downtown West Branch. The tickets were for door prizes from Harley Davidson accessories to a rainbow of colored bandanas.
Bikes ranged from smaller non-Harleys to some seriously customized “hogs.” One had what looked to represent the back-end winged design of a ’57 Chevy.
The real diversity, though, was in the people that came to honor the Mayor and enjoy a ride.
John and Connie Paul now live outside of Tipton and work in Iowa City. Connie was a classmate of Worrell’s at West Branch High School. She said she and Paul both work in Iowa City, so they do not stop in West Branch often.
“But we had to today,” Paul said.
Bill Leggett had known Mark at least since his days as the West Branch Police Chief from 1978 to 1982.
Along with Kathy Worrell and three daughters – Mandy, Samantha and Stephanie – there were other family members.
Kathy’s uncle, Russell Streets, was there to ride with his partner, Francis Boline. Streets recalled a long trip that he made with Mark in 1995. He wanted to introduce Worrell to a group of biking buddies in Colorado.
He described Mark as mixing a little business with pleasure when he traded his bike for a newer model belonging to one of the Colorado riders, and rode that bike home. The trip led to Mark becoming friends and, later, elk hunting and fishing buddies with the western riders over the years, Streets said.
In one case, some of these ties came together Saturday. Kathy Worrell said she and Mark purchased the bike of Jim Burrix about a year ago. Burrix, who lived in Colorado, had passed away at age 62 from a heart attack.
When Mark passed away earlier this summer, Kathy had sold the bike at auction to Dave Martinson. Saturday, Mark’s daughter Mandy rode with Martinson in honor of her father.
After the ride, Kathy Worrell spoke of shedding a lot of tears, how difficult it was with Mark not being there, and how much she appreciated the support that she and her girls have received.
Asked whether there were plans for an annual ride, she said, “Oh yes, there will definitely be a ride next year.”
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