Time to get off the fence!

It looks as if the time for fence sitting is over. Fence sitting??? Yes, I have been sitting on the fence trying to decide whether to ride by own bike or once again ride on the back of my good hubby's bike.

This week I received an email from Chicken Joe, Assistant Route Coordinator, Southern Route, Run for the Wall, stating:

"Eyes,

You have been placed into a Tail Gunner position in the 4th Platoon with Robert "Old School" Reavis at the Platoon Leader.  He is excited to be able to take you into the platoon."

So that's it folks, I will be riding myself. The slow speed maneuvering has been my only struggle. It's a big bike and when it's slow going I feel like it's going to fall over. I have been out riding every Friday and Saturday for months and will continue to do so until May 13, when the run officially begins.
I am excited!!! Please follow along with us as we "Ride for Those That Can't" on our journey to the Vietnam Memorial.

A Practice Run like no other

The Practice rides continue as I prepare to ride my own bike on the 2015 Run For the Wall. Today we decided to ride bikes to San Juan Capistrano where I was to participate in the Swallows Day Parade with my Chapter of The Daughters of the American Revolution.


Kind of fun to mix two very different events that share so much in common. Daughters of the American Revolution motto is, God - Home - Country the organization is all about patriotism, honoring and remembering our veterans and preserving the heritage that founded this country.

 Run For the Wall's Mission Statement: To promote healing among ALL veterans and their families and friends, to call for an accounting of all Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action (POW/MIA), to honor the memory of those Killed in Action (KIA) from all wars, and to support our military personnel all over the world. The two complement each other quite well.

You might be wondering if I rode in the 1776 period costume. I'll just leave you wondering :) 

Only 52 days left to practice, are you ready? 

Organizing a 50th Vietnam War Commemorative event. Trying to decide which coin to give to the Vietnam Veterans attending. Which do you prefer? The Vietnam Veteran Not Forgotten or the 50th Anniversary Coin?

Run for the Wall on my own Harley

After the amazing experience I had on Run for the Wall last year and seeing all the women riding their own bikes I decided to come home and give it a try. I first took a rider safety class and suffered through the lines at the DMV to get a motorcycle rating. Then my good husband bought me a used Yamaha which I rode for a few months. Then it was time to graduate to the big leagues and buy a Harley Davidson. I like the blue one :D my husband measured me, measured the bikes and finally chose a bike for me. 

You would think that would be it and I would be able to ride it, but no. It had to be lowered in front and in back. I had to have a custom seat made, that put me an inch and a half closer to the ground. All that was done so I could touch the ground while riding. Don't want to topple over. Then new handle bars so I could sit back in the seat instead of up on the gas tank. And finally the last change was a shorter windshield so I could see over the top of it. Phew, all the changes and upgrades took a long time. 

The one upgrade that shows me how much my husband loves me are the heated handgrips. They are heavenly. I highly recommend them. I feel warm all over with the heated grips.

Finally the bike fits me and I fit the bike and we are ready to ride. I have been practicing every week hoping I have the skills to ride myself on the 2015 Run for the Wall. 

Photo Selection

I have been looking at "Run for the Wall" photos almost all day to the point that I am dizzy. It is so hard to choose which photos will make the cut and which will not. I thought I'd share a few nice ones I came across today.

A park Ranger makes a rubbing at the Vietnam Wall

Paying Respects at The Wall

Every time I visit a National Cemetery I am reminded of the price of freedom. 

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.

Lost in a sea of Harleys

No matter how hard I tried to triangulate our location, after every lunch break I would lose our black Harley amidst the hundreds of other black Harleys on the ride.  This picture shows perfectly how easy it was to become lost in the sea of Harleys. Before next year I need to devise a new system cause triangulation didn't work so well.