And so it begins …
This morning, May 16, 2023, at 08:00, the Midway Route Riders set forth to remind our Nation that we owe a debt of gratitude and thanks to the American Veterans, Active-Duty Personnel, and to their Families, Friends, and Supporters. And sometimes America needs reminding of another group that deserves even more thanks and understanding. Those would be the people that have given their lives to defend our country. Just as important though, those brave Men and Women that were taken captive by our enemies, some never to be seen or heard from again. I am speaking of the American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action, otherwise known as POW-MIA.
To that end, 286 Riders left Ontario California, intent on reaching Washington DC in eleven days’ time.
Howdy! My name is Jim McCrain, although I am better known to the RFTW Riders as “Hoofer.” I have been asked to write up a daily SITREP (Situation Report) for the Midway Route that will detail what we did and where we went. I have accepted this great honor and will humbly try to relate the stories and events that I am privileged to hear and witness while riding with so many Patriots. I am not a Veteran myself, so to be able to ride next to so many of our nations BEST, and to have them call me Brother is an honor that I do not take lightly. I will do MY best to represent them. I thank them for their trust in me.
So lets begin.
Just what is Run For The Wall? I could tell you all of the little details about why the Run was staterted 33 years ago, how it has grown in numbers, what our official mission statement is, and all sorts of other things like that. But instead, let me just direct you to our main web page (www.rftw.us) where you can read this information at any time. Instead, let me give you the “short” answer. We Ride For Those That Can’t. These would be our Active-Duty military, many of our Veterans, and our (still) Missing In Action.
The Riders of Run For the Wall are intent on honoring all of the sacrifices that have been made by these people, and just as importantly, their Families. Yes, the Families of our Military serve as well! This year, the Midway Route Outreach Team (I will tell you a lot more about them later) will be giving our Riders MANY opportunities to personally visit with the Families of our Heroes. In fact, at several of our lunch and dinner stops, there will be some Gold Star Families there to dine with us. (For those that don’t know, a Gold Star Family is one that has lost a Family member in the service of our country.) A distinction that not a lot of people know (until they read something like this!) is that our Missing In Action Families are NOT necessarily Gold Star Families! If their Family member is listed as Missing, then they are NOT listed as deceased. So they do not have a Gold Star. They are kind of just “left out.”
But not by the RFTW Riders. We make a big deal out of honoring our Missing, and letting their Families know that we still care! AND we demand a full accounting of all our service members, from ALL wars. We cannot let the American People or our Government Representatives forget those that have sacrificed for our Nation. So every day, the Midway Route rides with what we call a “Missing Man Formation.” Basically this is a six-person “box” formation, except that one of those people is not physically there. There will be two Riders in the front and two Riders in the back. In between them is an open space that is being protected by a fifth Rider. This is the Missing Man Escort Rider.
The Escort Rider is the single-most honored position that AN RFTW Rider can have. THIS is the person that, for each leg of our daily ride, gets to choose WHO they are riding for, why they are riding for them, and gets to put a biography of that person in a special place of honor for all to come and see. AND THEY DO! Already today, I have seen most of our Riders come over to the Missing Man Formation and talk to the Escorts. I have personally talked to two of them today, and discovered that they are riding in honor and memory of a commanding officer, one that was the victim of an IED explosion and another that died from wounds after returning home. Our motto is that as long as we say their names, they are never truly gone, and DEFINITELY not forgotten!
Did I mention that we will not move an INCH without the Missing Man Formation? Yes, it is THAT important to us!
Something else that we do on the Midway Route is called a “Dignified Flag Transfer.” This year, we have several special flags that we are escorting across the country. But one in particular is transferred from one Rider to another at each one of our fuel or lunch stops. The folded flag is taken out of a protective case, handled only by someone wearing pristine white gloves. The flag bearer holds out the flag, which is saluted by the Outreach Coordinator. She then takes the flag, turns to the next escort, and the process is repeated. The flag is returned to the protective case, and the Rider returns with it to his/her bike. One Hundred miles later, we do this again. Every day!
Folks, let me tell you: we take this stuff pretty serious! Yes, we are out here riding our motorcycles, which we all love to do! But we know that these sorts of ceremonies need to be presented to the public so that more and more people can understand the issues that WE understand. We are basically Ambassadors for American Patriotism! (Oh yeah, we have an Ambassador Team, too. Again, I’ll talk about them later!) The RFTW Riders, ALL of them across our four Routes, feel the same way. We don’t just go through the motions. We mean it! The phrase “walk the talk” takes on a whole new meaning around here. We sing the National Anthem every morning. And I mean we SING it! Loud and Proud! We say the Pledge of Allegiance, EVERY DAY! (Remember doing that back in grade school?) How do I know that we are serious about this? I can see it in the eyes of a hot and tired Marine as he salutes our Flag. I can hear it in the voice of that old Army guy in the tattered hat as he croaks out a few of the words, and chokes up into silence on the others. I see the tears rolling down the cheeks of the Air Force veteran as he stands at attention as the flag moves by. And I see the smile of a beautiful young Lady that proudly carries and waves a small American Flag everywhere that she goes.
Yeah, we take this seriously. It’s what we do!
Amidst all of this serious stuff though, is a little levity. Without the ability to let off a little steam, or to decompress a bit, this Mission could quickly become emotionally overwhelming. So we DO have some fun! (Motorcycles equal fun! Remember?) We stopped to sing Happy Birthday to one of our favorite Road Guards. (Happy Birthday, Papa Mike!) We laugh and tell stories at each of our hydration and fuel stops. We eat REALLY well! THANK YOU to all of our supporters for the meals! The burgers at lunch, from “Mother Road Harley Davidson in Kingman Arizona were fantastic once again. And the pulled pork sandwiches served to us by the Boy Scouts of Flagstaff Arizona (at the VFW #1709) were delicious! (I am not going to mention the incredible brownies, because my wife might read this and she knows that I don’t need any more brownies!) We simply enjoy being in each others company!
Speaking of that, most of us were strangers yesterday. I am already seeing friendships being built that are going to last a lifetime. As the SITREP Author and the Route Photographer, I get to flit between all of the different platoons and “ease drop” on a lot of conversations. (Actually, I get invited into these conversations, and they ALL seem to be about ”stuff” that only good friends would know about.) We talk about the weather (of course!), and some sports, and the jobs or careers that we have had. We joke with each other, and take the crayons away from the Marines. (Don’t want them to spoil their appetites!) We use the phrase “Has anyone seen a black Harley?” a lot. We just like being around each other! We have already become a Family. I look forward to seeing how tight this Family will become over the next ten days! Bonds are being forged that will be unbreakable.
There is just so much that I want to tell you, but there isn’t enough time tonight. We rode for about 8 hours today, in HOT sunshine (104 degrees), had a rain shower that washed a “few” of the bugs from my windscreen, felt the temperature drop to 57 degrees, … and rode with dignity and honor.
That’s why we are here. We want to reaffirm our own Patriotism. We want to tell others about our experiences, good and bad, and how they have shaped us into the people (and Nation) that we are. We want to console each other over losses or hardships that we have endured, and we want to remind each other that we CAN get through ANYTHING as long as we stay true to each other.
I can promise you, we will!
Thanks for letting me ramble a bit today. Tomorrow, I will start explain more about “how” the Midway Route works, and all of the various Teams that it takes to get us safely from California to DC. But in the meantime, I will leave you with one of our favorite sayings: “How far are we going? ALL THE WAY!”
Cheers!
Jim “Hoofer” McCrain
Midway Route Photographer and SITREP Author
