Mini Road Trip - Day 2 - POW-MIA Recognition Ride, Veterans Rally & The Wall

August 21, 2010
Colorado, USA

Colorado Springs, CO -- Yesterday was a great day. Today was a fantastic day! After a restful night at our super motel, we rolled out at 7:30 am to travel the few miles between Colorado Springs and Woodland Park where we would register for the 23rd Annual POW-MIA Recognition Ride. We rode in this ride for the first time last year in Winter Park. After a three year absence, the Recognition Ride would return to its roots in Cripple Creek, CO. From the looks of it, we would have perfect riding weather.

When we arrived, over 100 bikes were already in line. That might be a conservative estimate as the Patriot Guard bikes from Kansas and other big flag bikes were parked in another lot. They were packing us in like sardines... We shed our hoodies and pulled on our vests, surveying our surroundings. We spoke with an older Vet who rode in from Michigan. He said his family was worried because he rode off so far with a heart condition. He said he felt great and was having a great time. He looked it. We admired him and said as much. The pancake breakfast line was fairly long so we got in line and chatted with the people around us. We talked with another Vet who was in line for a cup of coffee. He asked if he could cut in front of me. I said for your service to our country sir, I will escort you to the front of the line. He laughed and proceeded to regale us with stories about his glory days in the Navy and talked about his Dad. Tim bought the man a cup of coffee when we finally got to that point. The pancakes were good and fresh off the grill. They served them up with little sausages so we made pancake burritos. YUM!

Shortly afterwards, we were glad we had arrived early. The registration area was congested and backed up for several blocks and continued that way the rest of the morning. The parking lot where we were located filled to overflowing. Registration began advising bikers to just ride on to the rally. We saddled up at 10:15 am, right on schedule. We were rolling just after 10:30, again right on schedule. Still more bikes were rolling in to register as we were rolling out.

Tim - POW-MIA Recognition Ride staging area - Woodland Park, CO -- I could have taken this picture four or five times and not capture the same bike twice over Tim's shoulder

We had a police escort which made getting through town easy. Streets were lined with people cheering and waving flags. We found that to be the case all along the way, where there was a pullout or drive or hillside, people were out to watch us ride by. Patriotism is not dead in the USA - it is alive and well in small town America and roaring in the hearts of thousands of bikers and Veterans all across the land. I have no idea how long the procession was behind us. I never saw the end of it. The procession in front of us stretched out for about a mile, maybe more. We were in about the first 25 percent of riders who had actually gotten registered before the ride commenced. I don't have the numbers yet on the number of registered riders, but it was far more than we saw last year in Winter Park.

POW-MIA Recognition Riders stretched out behind us further than we can see... wow!

The ride up went well. The day had warmed so we rode in shirt sleeves and our vests. I think rolling around the corner into Cripple Creek and seeing the streets lined with bikes and people - lots of people - took us totally by surprise. The crowd was huge and animated. People were screaming - rev 'em up. So, we did. Riding through that patriotic crowd... several of them reaching out to slap an open hand... many of them saluting or standing with hand over heart... and finally rolling under that giant flag at the end of the street is about as proud a moment as we've ever had.

Huge crowd cheers as POW-MIA Recognition Ride arrives at Salute to American Veterans Rally Cripple Creek, CO. The crowd screamed rev 'em up - so we did - grin.

Rolling down the next street, we found still others waving us on. And the bikes just kept coming. We found a spot to park on Myers Ave or what used to be Myers Ave. It is now called Masonic Ave. Our friends David and Megan were somewhere in the crowd we knew so we gave David a call. They were a few blocks back on the same street. We hooked up with them in a matter of minutes. They said the Veterans Parade was great and we are sorry we missed it, especially the fly-overs -- but we would not have missed that ride for anything.

FYI: Not all of the following pics are in focus (they are taken from the back of a motorcycle), but I included them anyway because those people standing on the side of the road cheering us on deserve as much recognition as we riders... they are patriots one-and-all. Here is a slide show of the POW-MIA Recognition Ride (100 photos):

Soon, we were listening to military speeches and patriotic songs and tributes to fallen and wounded soldiers. Members (I think it was 23) of the original group of people who founded The Patriot Guard in Kansas stood the flag line. Several wounded soldiers from Fort Carson were on-hand. Facts about their wounds and heroism were related. They were all Purple Heart recipients.

We found the speech given by retired Army Colonel, Bill McPherson about Huey helicopters really interesting. McPherson is a highly decorated combat veteran having served in Vietnam - both as an Infantry Officer and as a helicopter pilot, flying combat missions in the UH-1 “Huey” Gunship. He said Huey pilots back in the Vietnam era were known as "cowboys" and he related several stories that served to explain how they had acquired that label. He has completely restored a Huey and had it on display. It rolled through the parade that morning. Later in the day, that Huey would lead an honor guard of riders to The Wall in Victor.

I believe it was Pro-Promotions rally coordinator Jim Wear who read aloud a letter from a soldier named Kory who lost friends during the terrorist attack at Fort Hood, Texas November of last year. The soldier told the horrific story of that day from his perspective and then asked if Wear would see that something was done to remember his fallen friends at the rally. Roll call for the fallen soldiers was called including the unborn baby of one. A bell was rung after each name and a dove was released. It was very touching.

Near the end of the patriotic ceremonies, we ambled over to a food vendor and ordered lunch. David and Megan had already had lunch. David said the ribs weren't bad at one of the BBQ vendors. We ordered catfish and twisted potatoes (these were great) and a couple lemonades. After that, we spent the rest of the afternoon roaming up and down the hills of downtown Cripple Creek, wandering through the vendors, peering inside the casinos and generally enjoying the crowd. We purchased ice-cream from a group trying to raise money for something - I don't remember what. We watched an Old West shoot-out. Victorian-era strollers posed for photos. The sand sculptor was still hard at work on the sculpture.

Tim got a handshake and a thank you for your service from a man who passed by while we were sitting on a wall near the sand sculpture resting in the shade. Tim signed the Veterans Wall that will go up in the Motorcycle Museum in Colorado Springs. Since signing by proxy was allowed, I signed the wall for Dad.

Here is the slide show of the Salute to American Veterans Rally (55 photos):

Late in the afternoon, we decided it was time to ride to The Wall. This display was set up in the football field in the nearby town of Victor. We enjoyed the ride over. It has been many years since we visited historic Victor. We had forgotten the great road with the remains of the mining history scattered along the road and on the hillsides. We had forgotten the wonderful architecture of the buildings downtown.

Tim and Vickie at The Wall, Victor CO 2010

We parked in town across from a building whose side was decorated with the names of veterans from the area. It was called the Roll of Honor. Then we walked the short distance down to The Wall. As always, it is a moving sight. This was a first Wall experience for David and Megan and after explaining a couple of things about the displays, we left them on their own to explore it. Tim and I located the dog tag for Gary S Johnston, the son of our friends Nubbin and Angela who fell in Iraq in 2007. We said hello. Gary S is the reason many of us joined The Patriot Guard. We searched for Gary C Johnston on The Wall but we did not find him. I had the dates wrong in my head. We will say hello to Gary C in the morning when we return to The Wall. Gary C is Nubbin's brother who fell in Vietnam in 1970. We found Tex's guys and said hello to them. Tex (PGR buddy) lost many Blue Spader friends in a battle known as the Ambush of Srok Rung in 1967. Having recently read a book called Common Valor by S.T. Simms about the battle and those who fell during it, made finding them to pay our respects important.

While Tim was walking The Wall, he happened to stop near a man who was taking it pretty hard... Tim said the man tried to pull himself together and quietly apologized for losing it. Tim said, don't apologize - those guys you are visiting would be proud to know you remember.

Here is the slide show of The Wall (43 photos):

It was tempting to return to Cripple Creek for the night life of the rally, but we decided to ride down the mountain and find some dinner. The trip down went well and before long we were sitting at The Mason Jar Restaurant having a great meal with our friends. David and Megan will spend the night at the Mecca Motel as well. He stopped in this morning on his way through and booked a room. One of the owners, made certain they had the room next to us as soon as she discovered we were together. Like I said - this is a great motel. After a few beers and conversation enjoyed from those chairs in front of our rooms, we called it a night. Tim and I watched the end of American Graffiti while I shot off a couple of emails.

Tomorrow, we will return to The Wall and the rally before riding home. So far, this has been an amazing experience. And, we are proud to be part of it.