Arnaldo Abreu, from Faial, died this year and one of his big dreams ended up being realized by his friends: the reactivation of the Moto Clube Ilha Azul (MCIA).

Jorge Soares took the lead after being elected for a three-year term. “I feel fulfilled. It was Arnaldo's will. And, if he were alive, I know he would like me to lead this group”, said the president of MCIA.

Eleven people make up the governing bodies of one of the oldest biker institutions in the archipelago - founded in 1992 - but practically inactive for the past ten years. These people are “united, hardworking, honest, very responsible and are very committed”, stresses Jorge Soares.

Basically, this tribute also makes the group official, with about 30 members, although it has existed informally for a long time. The Faial Motards Group was never official, but it organizes several activities based on the friendship that unites its members. Arnaldo Abreu was one of them and saw the reactivation of the MCIA as an opportunity to have the institution recognized on paper. “I am a lighthouse keeper, so I worked in several islands. Sometimes I used to tell Arnaldo that, as soon as he would come to work in Horta, we would be able to reactivate the MCIA. He had already started to take some steps in that direction. Then he passed away... and in the first meeting the group had after his death, I talked about this will that some people did not know he had”, recalls the newly elected president.

For now, the club has no headquarters, but any free space will do.

The new management bodies have just started their functions but they already have a list of ideas to put into practice, including giving blood, making a fundraising dinner for the purchase of a wheelchair, to be handed over to the Humanitarian Association of Firefighters of Faial, and to raise awareness among young people to motorcycling.
Soon, a tribute to their absent, but always present, friend will also take place.