Welcome to the March newsletter.
This month we acknowledge both the National Medal of Honor Day March 25th and Vietnam Veterans Day on March 29th!
Why do you ride or participate in the RFTW Mission?
Our RFTW Mission is:
“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.”
This is why we RIDE; This is why I RIDE!
Until they all come home, until they are all accounted for, we must continue to Live a Life worthy of their Sacrifice! Say Their Names, Tell Their Stories, and Never Forget!
The planning and preparation for the RFTW 2024 Mission continues and I have a lot of different topics to cover in this newsletter so please, take your time and read the entire newsletter! The Board of Directors, Route Coordinators, and Asst. Route Coordinators held the spring “Face to Face” meeting Via Zoom this past weekend. I would call it a very productive and successful meeting. Most of our preparations have been finalized but our State Coordinators continue to make additional preparations at our stops and some are even adding special last-minute items for us.
By the time you read this, we will be down to less than 70 days until KSU on the Southern Route. For many, that means less than 60 days before they leave home and head out to join us in Ontario. As of the writing of this newsletter, we have a total of 345 riders and participants registered for the Southern Route. If you have not already registered, please do so as soon as possible. You can register HERE. ALL registration is conducted on-line via this website link so please register prior to your arrival to make things go smoothly and quickly!
Preparation and Safety
Now is the time, if you haven’t already, to get your bikes in tip top shape! Get them serviced, get them inspected, and make sure your state registration and insurance are all up to date and valid through the end of May 2024. Pack up your bikes etc. with everything you are taking and get out on the highway or interstate on a test ride. Make sure you’re familiar with how your bike is going to handle with the added gear. Make sure you can safely control your bike, stop, start, and tight turns while loaded! Be sure that everything is safely secured and will not become a hazard to other riders.
As you prepare your bikes or other modes of transportation, you also need to prepare yourselves, mind, and body too! This is NOT a weekend ride. Be sure you have your Emergency Information Form filled out – completely! It will be checked daily by your Team Leaders and/or Platoon Leaders. It is MANDATORY and you cannot ride without it. If you take medication, be sure that you listed it on your EIF and that you have enough of your prescribed medications with you for your entire trip.
It’s time for everyone to start hydrating! It is much easier to hydrate than it is to re-hydrate! Generally, it is recommended to drink a liter of water a day to stay hydrated. However, this can depend on your age, body, underlying medical conditions, and what physical exercise you are doing on that day. Being extremely thirsty, having dry mouth, fast breathing, fast heart rate, and/or low blood pressure are all significant signs of dehydration. However, what many of us will likely feel first is fatigue – both mentally and physically! Be aware and stay HYDRATED!
You will hear this mantra from now until we reach DC – Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate! 
I will add that just because you feel fatigued – both mentally and physically, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are dehydrated. This mission is demanding, and everyone is different. Bottom line is to be safe and be aware of the signs that your body is giving you.
Also, be prepared for any and ALL weather conditions, we do not stop to “gear up”. A perfect example is our ride into Odessa, TX in 2023. This picture depicts some of what the Pack encountered!
Southern Route Daily Itinerary
Our official Itinerary is scheduled to be published on the RFTW website on or about March 31, 2024. There are no changes to our Night stops as indicated in our Hotel List. Even though the 2024 Itinerary isn’t posted yet with the minute to minute timeline of our stops, you can check out the updated 2024 Southern Map & Stops here! The map has been updated and includes all of our stops including our new gas stops! There will not be any printed Itinerary’s available this year; for any Route. If you want a printed copy of the itinerary to carry with you, you will need to print your own once the Itinerary is published.
Southern Route FNG Zoom Meeting
A Southern Route FNG (Fine New Guy or Gal) Zoom meeting has been scheduled for March 13, 2024 @ 7pm Central. This meeting is for ALL 2024 SR FNG riders and participants. The SR currently has 110 riders and participants who have registered as FNG’s! An email has been sent to each SR registered rider who identified themselves as an FNG on their registration. If you are a SR FNG rider, please make every effort to attend this meeting. SR Leadership will answer any of your questions and provide additional information and advice to support your safe and successful mission. This meeting is especially important to SR FNG riders who will not be starting in Ontario, CA since they will not be able to attend the FNG meeting there. If you did not receive the email please reach out to me @ darin.lurch.koch@rftw.us or Mike Kyzer @ mike.kyzer@rftw.us
Missing Man Formation
Our Missing Man Coordinator has multiple openings to ride in the Missing Man Formation (MMF). If you are interested in riding the MMF, please send an email to Missing Man Coordinator Rick “Speed Bump” Shoaf at Rick.Shoaf@rftw.us. Rick will explain the process, requirements, and expectations of riding in the MMF during the run. This is open to all riders, not just FNG’s, and we are not excluding anyone including our volunteer Road Guards, Fuel, Staging, Ambassadors, and Platoon Leadership positions.
Platoon Leadership and Volunteers
Unfortunately, some of our experienced Platoon Leadership volunteers have had to withdraw from participating in the Run this year so we now have some openings available in Platoon Leadership positions. We need Platoon Leaders, Asst. Platoon Leaders, and Tail Gunners. If you have any questions about these positions or are interested in volunteering for Platoon Leadership, please submit a volunteer request here or contact Platoon Coordinator Kevin “Short” Short directly @ kevin.short@rftw.us.
We are also looking for additional volunteers to assist with the Fundraiser and 50/50 duties each day along the Route. Also, we are also looking for interested individuals to fill the role of SitRep writer and Social Media Representative. If you are interested in volunteering for any of these positions, please send me an email @ darin.lurch.koch@rftw.us.
Pre-Paid Fuel
For the second year the Pre-Paid fuel option will be available on the Southern Route. If you are riding from California to DC, we encourage all riders to take advantage of the Pre-Paid fuel option. As a direct result of the Pre-Paid fuel option, Southern Route saw a significant decrease in the amount of time it took to fuel the entire pack last year. Shorter waiting times in the fuel lines equate to more down time off the bikes for the riders and that means more time for hydration, snacks, and bathroom breaks!
Please keep in mind that the Pre-Paid fuel option applies to the 23 planned and coordinated fuel stops we will be making during the day while on our Mission. ALL riders are still required to fuel on their own filling their tanks prior to staging each morning. Whether you decide to top-off at night on the way to your hotel; or on your way to staging in the morning; you must still fill up your gas!
The Pre-Paid fuel option is $150.00. You can take advantage of the Pre-Paid fuel option early by using the Zelle payment app and sending $150.00 to Southern.Route@rftw.us If you use the Zelle app, please add “SR Pre-Paid Fuel 2024” in the Memo line. We will receive the notification of the payment and will have a list of those who have Pre-Paid at Registration in Ontario, CA.
You can also send a check to:
Run For The Wall Inc.
50 Fourth Ave #1445
Dayton, NV 89403
If you send a check you need to add a note about what Route you are on and what the check is for i.e Southern Route Pre-paid Fuel/Southern Route Luggage Fundraiser.
Fundraising
The Southern Route is offering a fundraising opportunity that may benefit all riders’ safety! Our newest fundraiser is the Luggage Fundraiser. The SR will have a dedicated enclosed trailer to transport luggage. This will allow riders to remove bags normally strapped onto their bikes and have them securely transported for them from our morning starting location to our nightly dinner stop. This adds to the safety of all riders by removing bags that could obstruct other riders’ view of bikes in front of them; preventing a rider from focusing on a loose item on another bike around them; removes the added weight allowing for better control of your bike while riding in formation. Riders will be required to drop off their bag(s) at the morning staging/breakfast location. Bags will not be available until our final night/dinner stop. Riders will be restricted to 2 bags per bike. A check-in/check-out procedure will be followed ensuring no-one absconds with a bag that is not their own. The cost will be $7 per day or $50.00 for all 10 days. A prorated rate may be available depending on your starting location. Ask at check-in! If you wish to take advantage of this new fundraiser, you can also prepay by using the Zelle app and sending to Southern.Route@rftw.us Please add “Luggage Fundraiser” to the memo section when submitting your payment.
If you plan to purchase the Pre-Paid Fuel and the Luggage Fundraiser all in one transaction; please enter both “SR Pre-Paid Fuel 2024” and “Luggage Fundraiser” on the memo line. If you are paying for more than one bike, please note that as well.
Another Southern Route fundraiser this year will be this patch. They will be sold beginning in Ontario and throughout the 10-day mission or until we run out. Each patch will be $5.00, and proceeds will be used to support our Veterans along the way.
FNG ride into Arlington National Cemetery
As you may have heard, we will have a very limited number of motorcycles allowed to ride as a group into Arlington National Cemetery on Saturday the 25th of May for a wreath laying in section 60. The BoD is still working on a fair and equitable way to determine who will be riding motorcycles into ANC. RFTW as a group is limited to 75 bikes (150 people on those bikes) total from all 4 Routes. It will likely be based on several factors which will be published once a final decision is made.
Ride into Riverside National Cemetery / March Air Force Base Museum in California
(Copied from the President’s Message). “As you may have seen in a FB post, Carol is working on the possibility of riders going to the March AFB museum following the ride the Riverside National Cemetery. This is a Tuesday event, with KSU tentatively scheduled for 0815 from the Elks Club. The Elks will be serving breakfast so our riders can stage, eat, and leave from the same location. Right now, the cost of entrance to the museum is $10, but Blaze is trying to get that lifted. If you are interested in going to the museum, please email Carol at carollolmstead@ymail.com so she can provide a head count. Rumor has it that the museum is planning to rope off a parking area for us.”
You must be registered and CHECKED IN to go on this ride, so get to Ontario and get Checked in on Monday the 13th.
Leave no one behind does not end on the battlefield!
If you or someone you know find themselves struggling with their mental health, please know you can contact the VA Veteran’s Crisis Line by dialing 988 then press 1 or text 838255 and speak or chat with a qualified responder.
Darin “Lurch” Koch
RFTW Southern Route Coordinator 2024
