RFTW -2 days, check-in & Meetings

Hahaha, check out that outfit. This is what I will be wearing for the next 13 days.

We arrived at the host hotel in Ontario, checked in and attended the Platoon 4 leadership meeting. Super informative, and well run. I think Platoon 4 has the best Platoon Leader of any Platoon and am thankful I was assigned as tailgunner to "Old School" he was organized, gave clear instructions and expectations.

He shared with us his story, actually many stories. I will share them at some point but not tonight.

As a tail gunner I have a few jobs. Check the gear on every bike in our platoon, make sure nothing is going to fly off while on the road and to stay alert to road conditions, traffic and that the platoon is moving down the road without any issues. The tail gunners are also to  give the Platoon Leader a count of how many bikes are in the platoon every morning. Relay any messages from the front of the pack to the back. That's incase the CB radios can't transmit the distance, we might be spread out for a couple of miles.

Tonight I have to memorize ALL the hand signals, there WILL be a test in the morning. I also had to hook the orange sleeves onto my vest. I am not to leave my hotel room without the lovely orange hat and orange sleeves. (putting those on my vest was a bit of a challenge).

Well, off to bed, we have another meeting at 8:00 AM and at 9:00 AM.  Then we have to add the Platoon stickers, tail gunner stickers and registration tie to our bikes.

#1 Tour of Honor - Hawaii

Wow, what a ride, we grabbed the #1 Hawaii title. 

We decided to participate in the Tour of Honor Motorcycle ride while we were in Hawaii. The Tour of Honor is a self-directed ride to memorials and monuments around the United States. You can visit as many sights as you want on any route that you choose. Trophies are awarded to the first three riders to visit seven destinations in each state. The #1 trophy had not yet been claimed for Hawaii so we decided, what the heck, let's do it! 

We rented bikes out of Waikiki and began our ride at 10:00 a.m. Luckily the young man working at the rental shop suggested we visit the sites in town last as we would be going against traffic at the end of the day.   

Today I am going to share with you the sites we visited and some of our experiences. To meet the rules of T of H you must take a picture of your rally flag and bike with the same view as posted on the T of H website. Which explains the unusual pictures. 

Please note: We were not prepared to ride motorcycles while we were in Hawaii so we did not have proper motorcycle clothing. Don't do as we do, do as we say! Wear long pants, gloves and a long sleeve shirt when you ride. 

Our first stop was to Punchbowl Cemetery. It is an ancient warrior cemetery located in a volcanic crater overlooking Honolulu. A wide staircase extends from the floor of the crater to the "Court of Honor" flanked on both sides of the staircase are ten "Courts of the Missing that include 28,778 etched names of soldiers MIA from World War II, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War. 

From Punchbowl Onward to Pearl Harbor

Bikes aren't allow on the ferry boat to the Arizona Memorial so I had to get a picture of the bike and the rally flag in front of the sign. The ride organizers are very careful, NO CHEATING! 

 

The official photo to prove I was there. 

I

USS Missouri Memorial, required photo

The USS Missouri is moored on Ford Island. It served from World War II through Desert Storm and is a highly decorated battleship, best known for hosting the Japanese surrender ceremony that took place on Tokyo Bay, September 2, 1945

Now we ride to the opposite end of the island to Haleiwa.   

Wailua-Kahuku War Memorial located at Haleiwa Beach Park. 

This was the easiest of all the memorials to visit. It is located just off the side of the road, we pulled off the road and parked. No ferry ride, no shuttle...

This is a memorial to all the local veterans that gave their all in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

The most difficult photo was in Kaneohe at the Marine Corps Base

It might not look tricky but remember when I said "do as I say not as I do" well how we were dressed came into play here at the Marine Corps base. We rode up to the guard at the entrance and told him we wanted to see the Pacific War Memorial. He took one look at us and said, "I can't let you ride on base without, long pants, long sleeves, gloves..." We had to park our bikes outside and walk past the guard tower, obtain a visitor's pass and then walk over to the war memorial. When we received the visitor's pass we were told, "do not take pictures of anything but the war memorial".

This made it a little difficult to get a picture of our bikes anywhere on the base. Luckily the judges ok'd our entry with the photo we submitted.  Better luck to the next riders that try to get a picture on base.

Off we go to HUNT for the B-17 Memorial 

By the time we went looking for the B-17 Memorial, the sun was setting, the wind was picking up and it was getting cold. This monument is located at the Pali Lookout but we were  not sure exactly where. The monument is just a little plaque on the side of the ramp at the lookout. The road to the top of the lookout is one of the most scenic roads on the island. This is one spot we never would have ventured to if it weren't for Tour of Honor. 

I was  nearly blown off the side of the volcano trying to get this picture. 

Since we could not take our bikes to the monument we took this picture to prove we were really there.  I know the rental helmet and bike are dorky. Not at all like my Harley or Shoei.

The final stretch - back to Waikiki where the day began

   Hahahah, this picture could have gotten us a ticket or thrown in jail. Downtown Waikiki is very crowded in the evening. There was no place to park so we rode into the park on the sidewalks. Parked in front of the monument, snapped this picture and got the heck out of Dodge. Desperate times call for desperate measures. No way we were not going to get this last picture. I guess Hawaii Five-0 was busy somewhere else :)

This memorial honors four different regiments comprised totally of Japanese-Americans, who fought for the US in World War II.                

What a day, what an honor to visit the sights on Oahu that honor those that sacrificed so we can enjoy the freedom of living in this great country!!!
A big thank you to Jim McCrain and Robert Reavis for suggesting Tour of Honor to us.
I can't wait till the organizers list us as #1 for Hawaii.
Thank you to my great husband that willingly participates on these crazy patriotic adventures. You're the best of the best!!! 

One little muffin

One little muffin can represent so much. The good folks of Meridian, MS served the riders breakfast at the Lauderdale County Agricultural Center. It didn't seem to be a very affluent community but these good people baked hundreds and hundreds of muffins for us. It was extremely touching.  Such a simple, humble gesture showed how much these good people appreciate the sacrifices made by our veterans.

Check-In

Tip-of-the-day:  Forget about mascara for the next 10 days and carry a handkerchief. I was told this as I stood there crying. 

Shirley, a very kind efficient volunteer checked us in. When she was done placing our wristbands on and explaining the rules of the road she handed me a sticker and said, 

"this is why we ride" The sticker (pictured below) Is of a young man named Bowe who was captured in Afghanistan June 30, 2009. Shirley went on to tell us the terrorists bring him out and parade him around occasionally. 

My eyes welled up with tears. Imagine if this were your son. I would move heaven and earth for my child. I don't understand why something can't be done to help this young man who has been in captivity for nearly 5 years. Breaks my heart. I also don't understand why every tree in America does not have a yellow ribbon tied around it. What am I missing? 

Then I was given a plastic arm band with the name, Sgt Joseph A. Matejov, living casulaty, USAF 2-5-73 Laos. What the heck is a living casualty? Makes me sad for the loved ones that have no closure. 

Just a couple stories that we heard today. So I am leaving the mascara in the make-up bag and keeping my handkerchief close. 

Staging tomorrow at 5:45 am :( I am not a morning person, it's gonna be a challenge.