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From the Associated Press:

Hutchinson, Kan. -- His goal a dozen years ago was an earnest one to save small Kansas mom-and-pop restaurants from atop his motorcycle.

Lindsborg resident Richard Kurtz recruited six people at that time to join him -- a small band of riders with just a few rules.

The destination would be a cafe in a small, struggling Kansas town. They would go every Wednesday, the day his wife gave him off from the motel they operated.

And like most motorcycle enthusiasts, they would travel rain or shine. It also helps that there was always good conversation and some of the state's best cuisine to sample when they arrived.

"I decided, why not get a group together and help these ma-and-pop places?" Kurtz said. "It's grown from there."

Twelve years later, the group that Kurtz dubbed ROMEOs -- Retired Old Motorcyclists Eating Out -- has split into roughly five clubs with nearly 500 members. All have the same purpose: to leave some bucks in Kansas' small towns.

"We're from all over," said Hutchinson member Tom Dearing, who noted there are members in all regions of Kansas, including from communities such as Wichita, Kansas City, McPherson and Concordia.

The Internet has helped spread the word, Dearing said. Each week, a regional club member puts a different destination suggestion on the club's website. Then someone calls ahead to warn owners they will be bombarded with customers.

Now Kurtz and the band are just hoping they're making an impact. Kurtz, after all, as a former small-town motel owner, knows independent small businesses can be a tough row to hoe.

"Once a town loses its cafe, grocery, it is dead," Kurtz said. "I thought I'd go look for places that could use a boost."

Trips this spring have included Buster's in Sun City, as well as diners in Luray, population 194; Haven, 1,237; and Wakefield, 980.

This Wednesday, however, the group made a different type of trip: They were invited to Hutchinson member Gibbo Pierson's home for an 85th birthday celebration.

More than 60 motorcycles lined the alley and street by Gibbo's residence and shop on Cole St., where they gathered in his backyard for a cookout.

Gibbo himself goes on the weekly jaunts, saying he has ridden a motorcycle for 58 years, logging more than 800,000 miles in 13 countries.

Technically, Gibbo, known in the region for his leatherwork, won't turn 85 until July 15. However, he said as he fried up hamburgers Wednesday for more than 100, "I wanted to do this when the weather was nice."