Page created by: Maureen Dime

My name is Maureen Dime and I’m reaching out to invite you to graciously donate to Parkinson’s disease research in my late husband, Steve “Rock” Dime’s honor. Since my husband’s passing in February 2021, navigating my journey of unimaginable grief has been the most challenging thing I have ever been faced with. Through the tears, I’ve focused on doing positive activities to honor him and his beautiful memory. Those positive activities began in late 2021, when I designed and created 173 tabletop holiday trees- raising over $48,000 in his name for The Michael J. Fox Foundation. This was my way to help make a difference in finding a cure for the disease that took away our dreams and everything he and I worked so hard to achieve for what was to be our next exciting chapter together, called retirement.

Our retirement was supposed to be filled with mornings out in the garden and in our greenhouse growing orchids. Afternoons on the beach, playing bocce ball and then cruising on our motorcycles to dinner somewhere to possibly catch a glimpse of the legendary “green flash” as the sun set over the Pacific. We had plotted out so many travel adventures and Harley road trips for our future- but then Parkinson’s crushed all of our plans. This disease stripped away his physical balance and strength and started to dissolve his adventurous and fun personality. Stripped away his balance and strength to walk to the beach where he loved to hang out and boogie board in the ocean. Stripped away his ability to walk through the magical garden we had created together. And stripped away his balance and strength to ride motorcycles. We had shared a deep passion for so many great hobbies together… but especially riding motorcycles.

So settle in and let me share a story with you. The story of a man and his motorcycles, and how I turned his passion into something I know he would be proud of!



“Keep the shiny side up” is what I used to always say to him as a safety “farewell” punctuated with our leather gloved high five as we straddled our motorcycles and rolled out onto the open road together.

Steve was in his late 40’s when he caught the fever. That day was unforgettable. It was a sunny afternoon in 1998 and the sound of the Pacific Ocean filled our sunbathed front porch. We were sipping champagne, he had a great cigar and we were designing the expansion of our east garden at our beach bungalow in Del Mar. We heard an engine roaring down our dead-end street, and to my delight, it was one of my hotel colleagues rolling by on her rad Harley-Davidson Sportster to say hello. We greeted her in the driveway with hugs and were instantly amazed at her open road free spirit. Taking off her helmet and with that twinkle in her eye, she told us about the twisty roads on her scenic ride to the coast. Seeing that cool bike really intrigued us… but especially Steve. As a teen, I had a Honda moped, Kawasaki three wheelers, Schwinn Stingray bicycles, anything on wheels thrilled me- and still does. But he had never ridden a motorcycle. He always said it was too dangerous, and he had too much to lose.

After she rode away- he was captivated. That night, he took the dive into the (fairly new) World Wide Web and immersed himself in the history of the Harley-Davidson Corporation. Just like the classic song written and sung by Peggy Lee, and the contemporary and equally rhythmic version that he and I loved performed by Madonna, he had a FEVER- for anything on two wheels… especially Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Tossing all caution to the wind, he was all in. Two weeks later, he bought his first Harley-Davidson Fat Boy. That was it. Steve had a fever to learn how to ride. And an old nickname given to him by his Del Mar buddies because of this physical strength, “The Rock of Del Mar” soon became just “Rock” in his new motorcycle world.

Now Rock was an amazing gift giver. When he got his first Harley Fat Boy, he bought me a brand-new Harley Sportster 883 Hugger. We both learned to ride, and we knew this activity was going to give us both a lot of enjoyment together. A few years later, he surprised me with a fresh off the show room floor purple Harley Low Rider on my birthday… because let’s get real- a gal only has one neck, two ears and ten fingers. I mean how many beautiful baubles, rubies and diamonds can a guy buy to dazzle his wife?

Enter the new phase of bedazzling. Between all of our bikes, we probably raised Harley’s company stock by a full point with all the customized parts and chrome additions we bought. His first Harley and every other one of our bikes became bedazzling projects. The more chrome on each bike, the better. The custom paint jobs became more imaginative, and the cooler our leather jackets became to match our types of bikes and riding moods. That fever forced us to hire California Closets Company to redesign the garage storage to accommodate the new tool bench, air compressor, battery chargers and all the sturdy hangers weighted down by our awesome riding leathers. This passion raised his fever, and he was a full-fledged two wheeled, weekend warrior.

We had such amazing adventures on our motorcycles. Together, we explored the twisty roads of southern California and beyond. Breakfasts in Ramona, stopping for a slice of pie in Julian and lunch rides to Palm Springs. We mapped out and packed up for extended weekends exploring Hearst Castle, met thousands of other riders in Pasadena for the annual LOVE RIDE Charity event with Jay Leno as the Grand Marshal, and explored the wineries throughout Napa and Paso Robles. The thrills rolling along through the Imperial Sand Dunes, and those crazy fun days and nights in Laughlin and Las Vegas at annual motorcycle rallies are unforgettable. There were riding adventures with friends to soak up the magic of notable Arizona towns, including Sedona, Santa Fe, Prescott and that old copper mining town, Jerome, which still makes us all belly ache from those hilarious memories. As well as cruising through some of Utah’s most majestic national parks, like Bryce and Zion. Those out-of-this-world towering formations and that iconic scenery was the pinnacle of riding for us.

And yes, we all attended the 100th year anniversary celebration during the 2003 Harley- Davidson bash in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Lucky us! Rock and I got to meet Willie G. Davidson, the grandson of Harley-Davidson co-founder William A. Davidson during our week-long visit and spent quality time with him and even got his autograph. We knew Willie G. had designed a unique bike in the late 1970’s and that we were in the company of a HD royalty! After that trip, Rock went on a quest to find a Harley-Davidson XLCR in good condition, and he finally did in 2007. He loved that collectable bike designed by Willie G. like no other. He regularly road it on group rides with the San Diego Antique Motorcycle Club and was he was so honored and thrilled when it took first place at the La Jolla Concours d’Elegance in 2015.

Riding with Rock was epic.

He had great riding buddies. From vintage cafe racers- to the guys on their customized choppers and baggers. Saturday morning breakfasts started at The Waterfront in San Diego, and from there, the sound of those old Nortons, BSAs, Indians, and the Harley XLCR fueled his passion for Saturday and Sunday cruises throughout SoCal. Then there were the long-distance Harley guys with those customized Fat Boys, Road Kings, Springers and BMWs. Always ready to take off from our seaside driveway for multi day road trips to Sturgis, Daytona, and from Del Mar to Canada and back. Each stop during those “hall pass trips” added another waitress story from some little restaurant in Nowhere, USA, where his gift of loquacious gab with the staff gave him ideas for a future coffee table book he swore he would write in his later years. A book recalling his open road adventures, which he would title “Waitresses I Have Met.” Those days of riding the roads less-traveled treated this band of riding brothers to road weary dinners, ending with late night cigar sessions, fueled by jokes and storytelling- all capable of bringing every one of these great guys to tears from laughter. The thousands and thousands of miles he racked up on his motorcycles were pure joy for him. A “ride it like you stole it” level of joy. We both knew old age wouldn’t allow us to be in our leather saddles forever, so he rode each journey like it was his first- with that feverish passion.

Then…in early 2019, Rock was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, and the physical changes and neurological effects tragically stopped him in his tracks.
Due to Parkinson’s, my husband was forced to retire from his VP position at a software company and he lost his physical strength to ride motorcycles. It was absolutely devastating to watch my Rock, who was so smart, so full of life, so active and strong as a bull be stricken with this horrible disease. It wasn’t fair. We both stopped riding and focused on his health. We now spent time driving to various doctor appointments instead of riding motorcycles. And slowly, we came to grips of how awful this disease was and what is does to the human body and mind.

Sadly, one by one, we sold all of our motorcycles, with the exception of his Harley-Davidson XLCR. For some reason, Rock could not let that Willie G. designed motorcycle go.

At 68, Steve “Rock” Dime died in February 2021.

After he died, I secretly struggled how I was going to weave together his love of the ocean, San Diego, along with his feverish passion for motorcycle riding. How would I find a fitting way to honor his memory with the bike he never wanted to sell? His beloved Harley-Davidson XLCR. But then one-night last fall, I was sitting in the garage amongst his diving gear, boogie boards, riding jackets, helmets and the XLCR motorcycle, and as I watched a video clip on my phone of the “Tribute Drive By” from back in 2021- that’s when it all came to me.

Have you ever heard of a “Paddle Out” or a “Tribute Drive By” for someone who has passed on? Let me explain.

A paddle out is a spiritual practice within the surf culture. It's a traditional Hawaiian tribute to the life of people who’ve passed away. The paddle-out is a floating memorial held in the ocean, usually just a few yards from the shore, where surfers and other water sports participants honor someone they cherished. Paddlers often carry flowers and Hawaiian leis on top of their boogie boards and surf boards to the place where they will celebrate someone's life. As they arrive at the selected location, surfers form a circle, say a few words, maybe sing songs and set afloat the flowers and leis they carefully paddled out with. The circle aims to represent the way the ocean brings people together with a common passion for nature and their love for the ocean. He had participated in a few paddle outs when fellow ocean lovers had passed on.

A few weeks after Rock died, I got a call from one of the antique motorcycle riders asking me which Saturday morning and what time they could come over for a quick visit. They wanted to stop over on their way out on a local ride and pay their respects. We nailed down a date and on that Saturday morning in early March 2021, I had the fortune of having my three dearest childhood friends from out of town staying with me, and I invited some close friends and neighbors over to hang out in the driveway with us and to say hello to the guys who were coming by. We were all still in shock and our hearts were very heavy from Rock’s recent passing. As we waited for their arrival, we mulled around, in and out of the garage eating the donuts one of the guys brought in his honor because he knew donuts were the one treat Rock would enjoy on a rare moment. Then all of a sudden, the music of his favorite- Bruce Springsteen playing in the garage, along with the constant sound of the waves of nearby Pacific Ocean were both drowned out by the low hum of motorcycle engines. To our surprise, there was a parade of over forty motorcycles, old and new, riding slowly towards the house! One by one, those Nortons, BSAs, Triumphs, BMWs, Indians, Ducatis and Harleys swarmed our dead-end street and formed several arched rows of bikes with their engines rumbling low. Rows of bikes facing the driveway, facing me, our friends, our neighbors and his café racer riding jacket draped over his garage stool. Then, with a signal from Rick’s leather-clad arm raised high up in the air for all riders to see, as if he was the conductor of this metal symphony, his hand signal raised the rumble to a 30 second roar of engines and bike horns blaring in honor of their friend and club member. It was a stunning show of appreciation and their valued friendship. The sounds of the different bike engines and unique horns, coupled with the looks on the faces of Rock’s riding buddies with their bikes gleaming in the SoCal sunshine brought us all to tears. The gazes from under their helmets all turned, as if in formation, were fixated on his riding jacket and on the smiles of everyone standing in our driveway. It was bold and loud, and it was amazing. Something I will never forget. None of us there that day will ever forget it.
The decrescendo of the engines brought every fast-beating heart back to a somewhat normal pace with the low rumbles once again. And as they stood there, straddling their iron horses, they waved to us, and the lumps in our throats and the tears in our eyes gave us such a rush of pure joy! As fast as they got there, each of the riders adjusted their gloves and goggles, cracked their throttles wide open and started up the street to kick off their day long ride in Rock’s honor through the twisty roads of San Diego’s scenic east county. As they rode off, I threw air kisses of gratitude to the riders, bidding each of them a “Keep The Shiny Side Up” farewell, and our friends and neighbors waved and chanted “Rock On” at the top of their lungs as each bike faded from our line of sight from the driveway and out onto Hwy 101 where those engines roared up the Del Mar coastline until the last one faded from earshot. The “Tribute Drive By.” The spiritual practice between motorcyclists. Their traditional tribute to the life of a fellow rider they loved who has passed on.

Fast forward. I figured out what do with his Harley-Davidson XLCR. I figured out how to honor the love he had for riding, and for that particular bike, for San Diego- the city he loved, and to once again, personally fundraise in his honor to help find a cure for Parkinson’s disease.

I’m thrilled beyond measure to announce I’ve gifted his Harley-Davidson XLCR motorcycle along with a monetary donation in his honor to the San Diego Automotive Museum! On March 31, 2025, Steve “Rock” Dime’s Harley-Davidson XLCR Cafe Racer arrived at the museum, with some of his vintage riders and Harley buddies in attendance, and his cousin Michael accompanied me with the bike. That is a day we will never forget. Now, the XLCR motorcycle is on display at the museum alongside other impressive motorcycles and cars as part of their permanent collection.

In the spirit of giving, I have established this (time sensitive) personal fundraiser to once again help raise money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s research in Steve “Rock” Dime’s honor. I hope you will join me and give a donation on this site- at whatever level you can afford to give. Please share my link to support my fundraiser. We all know this disease effects so many. Let’s do this together and be a part of helping find a cure. Please donate what you can. No donation is too small.

My wish going forward is if you have the opportunity to visit Balboa Park in America’s Finest City, the city he loved, I hope you’ll visit the San Diego Automotive Museum and look for Rock’s bike. Perhaps it will be on display for you to see. Oh… and after you have generously donated to this fundraiser, I hope the next time you hear a motorcycle engine, you’ll think of Steve “Rock” Dime. Remember the Tribute Drive By and send a shout out to him or a fellow rider you know. Just fill your immediate world with good vibes and give a shout out with my mantra. Shout out “Rock On!”

Riding with Rock was epic. I miss him every day.

I thank you in advance for your generosity, and I wish you good health and joy as you "keep the shiny side up" in your own life.
Ride In Peace Rock.
Steve “Rock” Dime
1952-2021

(Please Note) When donating online, Venmo, wire or by check, please use: Steve Rock Dime's name in the Tribute Type listed on the donor page.