Memorial Day weekend serves as the kick start to many seasonal sports in the area.

Although summer doesn't commence officially until June 21, motorcycle enthusiasts have been revving their engines since the break of warm weather in recent weeks.

One group in particular is embarking on their ninth ride of the summer season on June 8.

The Lehigh Valley Cruisers meets every Sunday in the parking lot in front of the Bagel Bunch, Routes 100 and 309, Heidelberg Township, to have a quick bite before hitting the tarmac.

Motorcycle enthusiasts, including Gus Erickson of New Tripoli, Bob Meyer of Macungie and Mark Schlicher of Breinigsville were members of the Lehigh Valley Motorcycle Group until last year, when the website expired and no one was available to take over.

The smaller sub-group, dubbed the Sunday Morning Cruisers, approached Erickson about starting their own site at meetup.com, a social networking website designed to help connect people with mutual hobbies.

"We didn't want to limit ourselves to just Sundays, so we changed the name to Lehigh Valley Cruisers," Erickson said about the transition to the new riding group he founded in February.

Erickson said the name stems from the style of riding the members practice, more of a casual cruise rather than a race to the finish.

"It's about the quality of the ride, not how fast we get there," said Gina Marks of Lehighton, who is in charge of maintaining the website.

She, Schlicher and George Hahalis of Bethlehem spent their Sunday mornings during the winter months designing and scheduling rides for the season.

"As road captain, it is up to Schlicher to research the route, road conditions and any stops along the way," Erickson said.

"Safety is the number one priority," he said.

Although wearing a helmet is not a requirement for membership, almost all of the 30 members wear them.

Since 2003, motorcyclists are permitted to choose whether or not to wear protective headgear if he or she is at least 21 years of age and has either two years of riding experience or has completed an approved motorcycle safety course.

"Both motorcycle fatalities and crashes dropped last year from the year before and overall crash fatalities are at historic lows," said PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch, in a Motorcycle Safety Awareness press release May 6.

The importance of such safety hit home when Erickson crashed his bike April 25.

Although Erickson, known to fellow riders as "Sarge," due to his position as a staff sergeant in the Vietnam War, was in bright spirits surrounded by members who showed up to celebrate his release from the hospital.

"The helmet definitely saved my life," Erickson said.

After spending four weeks in the hospital, Erickson said he is eager to heal and make up for the rides he missed.

Of the 47 scheduled for this year, most of the rides are geared toward mercy missions and charities.

May 17, the group road their iron horses to Wehr's Dam, Orefield, to present former member, Mark Grimm, with a drive by and a bandana signed by members.

Grimm has stage 4 cancer and the mercy mission was requested by his daughter, Melissa.

"It was really touching for me," said Halalis Sr., advisor for the group. "The guy 'teared up' when we gave him the bandana with everyone's name."

The group also participates in Wyatt's Jamboree, a motorcycle run and classic car show that raises money for Wyatt Newhard, 9, who has stage 4 neuroblastoma.

Participants in the ride gather in the Northwest Center parking lot to register for the motorcycle run.

Schlicher said the group also participates in Ride for Adam, another charity ride in honor of Adam Recke, 16, who has Niemann-Pick Type C, disease an incurable, juvenile form of Alzheimer's.

The ride, scheduled for Aug. 16, starts at the Schnecksville Fire Company and features a poker run and picnic to raise money for the rare and terminal disease.

Although the average season for riding idles between April and November, the group braves the cold to collect toys for underprivileged children in the A.B.A.T.E., Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education Toy Run, Allentown.

"We'll do the toy run no matter how cold it is," said Marks.

"Cruisers" say giving back to the community and helping people is the best part of the rides, which average 120-150 miles.

Members travel as far as Reading to Bethlehem, to join in the weekly meet up, which almost always includes a cruise for cuisine.

"There's nothing more rewarding than that," Schlicher said. "Riding is great, but when you can help people, that makes all the difference."