Pressed Shirt, Polished Steel: the DGR in Phoenix

The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride

Riders in pressed shirts and polished steel began gathering in Sydney, Australia in 2012, when Mark Hawwa imagined a themed motorcycle ride that could gather classic and vintage-style riders around a cause larger than the road itself.

Today, DGR rides take place in thousands of cities on the same day around the world to raise money and awareness for men’s mental health, prostate cancer research, and suicide prevention. In 2026, the ride was held on Sunday, May 17.

I’ve ridden the DGR every year since 2019. It is one of those rare motorcycle events where the ride slows down, the machines get smaller and older, and the riders show up dressed with care. Bow ties, suspenders, tweed coats, polished boots, classic bikes, café racers, Royal Enfields, Triumphs, and scooters all come together for a few miles of dapper witness.

By the time DGR started in Phoenix this year, the ride had raised over $14,000 for men’s mental and physical health, prostate cancer research, and suicide prevention programs.

For me, the DGR is more than style, though style matters. Years ago, a friend looked at my motorcycle and said, “Bikes are a lot like their owners.” She meant that my bike was sharp, clean, and cared for. That comment stayed with me. I began to see how a rider’s machine, clothing, posture, and presence often say something before the engine ever starts.

* Pressed Shirt Polished Steel the DGR in Phoenix *

That is what I love about the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride. It reminds us that style is not about wealth. Style is attention. It is care made visible. It is the pressed shirt, the polished steel, the old motorcycle brought out into the morning light for a cause that touches fathers, brothers, sons, husbands, friends, and riders everywhere.

In 2020, I entered a DGR photo contest with my Royal Enfield Classic 500. I forgot about it until a high-fashion British magazine, The Rake, began arriving in my Arizona mailbox. Later I discovered that my bike and I had placed tenth worldwide. The top winners received watches and prizes. I received the magazine, and something better than a prize: confirmation that care, presence, and a modest motorcycle can still hold their own.

***** It’s about medical issues and health, something that makes men feel vulnerable and act closed *****

and that’s why they ride. Vulnerability these days is riding on a motorcycle in the city, but doing it dapper style. It is slow, yes. It is polished boots and old-school manners. But underneath the good clothes and chrome is a serious purpose: men’s health, prostate cancer research, mental health, and suicide prevention. We ride so the conversation keeps going. We ride so men do not disappear into silence. We ride because sometimes a motorcycle, a clean shirt, and a public cause can open a door that ordinary words cannot.

Gregory Ormson pausing before the ride.