"Chaplains, by the nature of who they are and what they do, work across denominational lines," he said. "My main focus is getting these guys saved and into a church."

A motorcycle rider since he was "a young guy," Gryder said he has found his niche reaching the biker groups though it took some persuading to leave his church job in McCamey.

"It took four years for me to say yes, but I had an opportunity with this to make a national impact," he said.

ACCEPTANCE AND COMMITMENT

Labeled in a culture that is territorial, very loyal, mostly patriotic and big into partying hard, Gryder said many bikers, even Christian ones, shy away from churches because of ridicule.

"A lot of times they don't feel comfortable... we're trying to build a nationwide database of churches that are biker friendly," he said.

Being part of the HonorBound ministry itself requires a commitment to following Jesus through a church... making it more than just a hangout for motorcycle fans.

"They have to be drug-, alcohol- and tobacco-free for a year and a pastor has to sign off that they faithfully attend and financially support the church. They also have to attend a personal evangelism course so they can reach someone for Christ," Gryder said. "I'm about training people for ministry."

The Rev. Darrell Trout, senior pastor of Harvest Time Church, said he has known the Gryders for years and began supporting the biker ministry right from the start.

"It's very effective... it reaches out to a lot of people," he said. "Our church was really open because I have the mindset as a pastor that what we do outside of the church is more important than what we do within it."

Trout said his church is open to accepting people from all avenues of life... something Jesus was known for in his earthly ministry.

"We feel like (Jesus would) be hanging out with the biker riders in the out and out," Trout said. "Bikers should be able to walk right in and sit on the front row with their tattoos on their neck or arm and not be looked down on."

MORE THAN A BIKER BUDDY

Motorcycle Chaplain Mark Rittermeyer from Lakeland, Fla., said the group participates in national rides and rallies to build a consistent rapport with bikers they're hoping to influence.

"We do various bike events at local churches and anywhere else. Basically wherever they'll gather bikes, we'll show up," he said.

The chaplains' life-style evangelism provides opportunities to share hope in a personal faith in Christ, Rittermeyer said.

"There will be an accident, a death, a fire, some traumatic experience that happens, and they don't know who to call on. But they remember the preacher guy, and they call us," he said. "We share with them that there is hope beyond their situation."

"Our goal is not to take people out of church but to disciple them so that they will remain in church and be a productive part of it," he said.