Author: Randy "Stinger" Sheets

260 Days to KSU!

Now that the ‘DOG Days of Summer” are subsiding and as we celebrate Labor Day, back to school and football season we need to start thinking of what we need to do between now and next May to be prepared for the Midway Mission.

Hello FNG’s and Returning riders

Welcome to the Midway family! Let’s do a quick review of what our RFTW Organization is all about.

You do not need to be a veteran to ride, everyone is welcome! The ages of the participants range from eight to eighty. These include mothers, fathers, grandfathers, and grandmothers! Among the ridership you will find veterans, active-duty military, patriots, supporters, friends, and family.

“Is It May Yet”?

The Run occurs every May with the three coast to coast routes beginning around the middle of the month and culminating on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend. The fourth route “Sandbox”, begins on Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend. You will often hear members of the RFTW family lament, “Is it May yet?” because we are excited about this great ride and experience that we are preparing for you and wish it were May already.

Coast to Coast 2027
Ontario, California to Washington, D.C.

Midway Route:   Central Route:   Southern Route: All leave on Wednesday, May 19 – May 29 (10 days)

Wall to Wall
Washington, D.C. to Marseilles, Illinois

Sandbox Route:  May 30 – June 1 (3 days)

We Ride For Those Who Can’t

Run For The Wall began in 1989 as an effort by a couple of Vietnam Veterans who traveled across the heartland of America on motorcycles, talking to local radio, television, and newspapers about the fact that we had thousands of men and women still unaccounted for from all our wars.

The need for this awareness continues, so RFTW riders maintain this tradition every May by riding their motorcycles from “coast to coast”, and since 2022 from “wall to wall” honoring the men and women who served and paid the ultimate sacrifice from the gulf war conflicts.

RFTW does not give political speeches or stage demonstrations. Run For The Wall emphasizes its message by traveling through the United States in a safe and orderly manner, obeying traffic laws and treating all citizens with respect. Our motto is, “We Ride For Those Who Can’t”.

Raising public awareness is only part of the Mission of Run For The Wall. RFTW also gives veterans (from Vietnam and all wars and conflicts) the opportunity to receive the Welcome Home they so richly deserve, and an encouraging environment where they can further their healing process.

Many who have served our country, especially in combat, return with issues that may be unresolved. This can also extend to friends and families who have experienced the range of emotion and trauma associated with having a loved one go off to serve. RFTW riders find healing and camaraderie in the Run For The Wall family. They can finally start settling issues that have been put away for years.

Together We Ride

Run For The Wall is a motorcycle ride like none other. It is definitely not a party, but rather a mission of honor and an odyssey of patriotism and respect through the heart of the United States of America. On the Run we ride side by side (and in some cases staggered) in parade formation all the way. Each Route is led by a Route Coordinator and an Assistant Route Coordinator. At the head of the pack is the Missing Man formation.

The Missing Man Formation
The Missing Man Formation is a rolling salute to honor the memory of the fallen, KIA, MIA, or POW. Five bikes ride in formation with a space where one bike should be, symbolizing the person’s absence. On each leg of each route we honor a different individual in the Missing Man Formation. There is a short ceremony just prior to the departure of the pack and we SAY THEIR NAMES so that their service and sacrifice will never be forgotten.  Once again Midway’s MMF will be led by James “Juice” Brown so be sure to contact him at James.brown.cbrr@hotmail.com with potential MM riders contact information so that he can get their spot reserved.

You will also notice that the riders participating in the Missing Man Formation do not wave at onlookers while riding in formation. Their ride is solemn and sincere – a rolling salute. This is the highest form of honor and respect and serves as a stark reminder of those who sacrificed their future for that of our nation. May their memories always be a blessing and may we never forget that freedom is not free.

The main pack of motorcycles is divided into platoons. Each platoon is headed by a Platoon Leader and an Assistant Platoon Leader as well as one or two Tail Gunners to help pace the group.

While most of the vehicles are conventional two-wheeled motorcycles (of all makes and models), there is also a healthy contingent of trikes and three-wheel vehicles such as Can-Am Spyders – and even a few motorcycles and trikes who tow trailers. That said, we do allow 4-wheel vehicles to register and drive the route of their choice, with the proviso that 4-wheelers drive 15 minutes (give or take) ahead of the pack and not interfere with the parking or staging of the pack at any of the stops. (Alternatively, 4-wheel vehicles may drive behind the pack, behind the last man vehicle and any chase trucks/trailers, but we prefer that you drive out ahead….) Four-wheel vehicle participants will still be able to take part in all the RFTW activities, but you must remain safely out of the way of the motorcycle pack. Please consider that some fuel stops and/or lunch stops are quite compressed and room to maneuver any 4-wheel vehicle around the 300-400 motorcycles staged in tight quarters could be challenging. (Polaris Slingshot – Our Official Policy on Polaris Slingshot’s is that these vehicles are the size of and essentially a “small car” and will follow the aforementioned protocol of other 4-wheel vehicles.)

Registration

Registration for the 2027 Run For The Wall will open on September 11th, 2026 @ 8:46 a.m. (EST), 7:46 a.m. (Central), 6:46 a.m. (MST), 5:46 a.m. (PST)

Please put this on your calendar, make a cup of coffee and be ready when registration opens. We really need your support on this to gather data necessary for additional planning. Thank you, in advance for your support.

Pre-Paid Fuel                                                          

As in 2026, we will have the mandatory pre-paid fuel program for 2027. This proved quite successful and was well received by both the riders and our Road Guards and Fuel Team.  My leadership team and I are researching costs to come up with a fair cost that you can pay when you register or on siter in Ontario. If you’re a day rider and only have a few days to join us then your fuel cost will be prorated.  We hope to maintain the same cost as in 2026. This program is extremely important so that our road guards and fuel team traffic control personnel can get you quickly off the road, into the pumps and to the staging location as safely and efficiently as possible where you can get off your vehicle, get hydrated and use the facilities. If you are fumbling in your wallet for money to pay your fuel cost, it lengthens the time for each vehicle at the pump.

Opportunities

Are you interested in further supporting Midway Route this year? Do you like being a part of the planning process? So, if you are not an FNG and have gone all the way at least once then I have some awesome and rewarding opportunities for you.  Volunteer signup forms are on the RFTW web site or can be reached at this link.  Midway Route Volunteer Signup Form

Current team openings on Midway are:

Chaplain, Promotions, Ambassadors, Medical, Road Guards, Advance Team, Fuel Team, Staging, Asst. Arkansas State Coordinator, Asst. Oklahoma State Coordinator and Asst. North Carolina State Coordinator.

We would love to have you join us as a member of our leadership team!!  So fill out the Volunteer Signup From and we’ll get it to the team lead and they will be in contact.

Here we GROW!

Let’s all see if we can help grow our Midway riders for ’27.  Please reach out to your friends, family, riding buddies or anyone else who you think would like to be a part of the largest organized coast to coast ride in the world.   By convincing a fellow veteran to ride with you to acquire the healing this adventure provides to many veterans who are struggling with their service.

Feel free to promote the Run generally and Midway specifically.  Below are a few marketing collateral items you can use to help you “spread the word”.

• 2027 Large 11″ x 17″ Poster
• 2027 Small 8.5″ x 11″ Printable Flyer
• 2027 Rack Card
• Presentation Talking Points (Template)

Fund Raising

We can all help the Run by doing a little fund raising.  Feel free to solicit local motorcycle shops, VFW’s, American Legion Posts, local business, etc…  Anyone can help secure funds for Midway by interacting with any or all of those entities.  There are a few guidelines to follow so if you would like more information on the process please give me a jingle.   Randy.sheets@rftw.us.

RFTW 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.”

Please join our mission, get personally involved, pass the word and always remember the ones who went before us and some who made the ultimate sacrifice.

“Say their names”  “Never Forget”  “Tell their stories”

IS IT MAY YET!

Greetings Midway Family,

I hope your summer is going well!  We’re almost to September which brings cooler weather, the beginning of Fall and Fall Colors and football!  We also have some exciting news to share regarding our current Board of Directors.  After 5 years, John “Turkey” Staub is cycling off the Board as President and Billie “Bugs” Dunlap has assumed that position.  Alan “X-Box” Steiner is also leaving the Board after 3 years as Operations Director.

Also in transition on the Board are a few current Board members who are moving into new roles as well.  Ted “Boots” Kapner is leaving the Board and his position of Public Relation Director of 5+ years to use his skills as Assistant Route Coordinator for Central Route.  Ted will continue to Co-Host our Podcast with Tai “Hitch” Harmon so keep looking for those informative and sometime funny postings.  The podcast can be reached here.  RFTW Podcasts

Please join me in thanking these three fine folks who have worked very hard at leading and improving RFTW as we continue to successfully plan towards completing our mission, and it is a mission.

We have some new additions to the board as well.  They are “Branda “Baby Doll” Huddleston as Secretary and Kirk “Pretty Boy” Olson as Public Relation Director.  Please check out the President’s posting on these changes and to get to know more about your Board members.  Here’s the link: RFTW Presidents Newsletter .

Finally, we have an open position on the Board which anyone can apply for.  It’s our Operations Director was recently vacated as Alan “X-Box” Steiners term has ended.  You can find out the requirements for this position at : Operations Director Application so if you are looking for a meaningful, but challenging way to support RFTWs mission and riders feel free to apply.

“Say their names”

“Never Forget”

“Tell their stories”

IS IT MAY YET!

My name is Randy Sheets, and my road name is “Stinger”.

I was honored to be your Midway Route 2026 Assistant Route Coordinator and even more honored to have been confirmed by the BoD as your 2027 Run For The Wall – Route Coordinator. I’m happy to announce that my nomination for your Midway Assistant Route Coordinator is Mark Brundage, road name “Ox” and your Midway Road Guard Captain is Ryan Long, road name “Pipes” were confirmed by the Board of Directors.

A bit about me, I’m an Air Force Veteran who served from 1976-1980.  My career field was in Telecommunications.  After basic training in San Antonio, I did my technical school at Keesler AFB in Biloxi, MS.  After tech school, I was stationed at Carswell AFB in Ft Worth, TX.  It was a SAC base at that time, and I always enjoyed watching the “Buffs” come and go as it meant freedom to me.  In 1978, I was stationed in Okinawa at Kadena AFB until I was honorably discharged in May of 1980.  After that, I turned my Air Force training into a career, first by working in the Cable TV field as a technician and eventually as the Technical Operations Manager with Comcast in Indianapolis for 17 years.  I then took a Sr. Sales and Engineering position in the field of video transport over fiber optics until I retired in 2023.

With respect to the Run, my FNG year was in 2014, the year of the first Midway route.  I rode in the pack in ‘14 & ’15 because, like a lot of our riders, I did not have enough vacation time to go “All the Way”.  In 2016 I gained another weeks’ vacation and my wife at the time asked me what we are going to do with that extra week and I replied, “I don’t know about you, but I’m going to Ontario”.  Once I recovered from the frying pan hitting me in the head I was able to go to Ontario.

2016 was my first year in Leadership.  I was a Tail gunner with the trailer platoon.  What an experience that was.  From 2017 on, other than the covid years, I was a Road Guard.  In 2024 & 2025 I had to tap out due to a hip replacement in April of ’24 and another medical issue grounded me in ’25.  I thought ’26 might be in jeopardy as I needed a redo of the previous hip replacement which I had done just 6 weeks before KSU in Ontario.  I was determined to ride, but hadn’t really ridden in 3 years as I was in some state of recovery from surgeries.  I must agree that it is true that if you don’t practice your skills by riding you lose them and this showed for sure during  the Run, so the moral of that is, besides hydrate, hydrate, hydrate, you need to practice, practice, practice!

You know that the Run, besides all the fun, camaraderie, seeing familiar faces, renewing friendships and meeting new folks, the Run, or as I like to say, the mission is to promote healing and demand a full accounting for our lost men and women who have not yet come home.

FNG’s – Friendly New Guys / Gals

Our FNG’s are the one thing that makes RFTW so meaningful.  Everyone is welcome to ride with us as having served is not a requirement.  If you go all the way or just a day or two you will find a caring and open atmosphere so, please keep coming back and tell all of your friends and family about RFTW and invite them to join us.

The 2027 route KSU is May 19th at 07:00 from Ontario, CA. Registration will open on September 11, 2026, and the hotel list comes out in early January.  The Midway Itinerary will be developed by our State Coordinators and released in early ’27.  Updates to follow on these important dates.  If you are interested in filling a Leadership position then go to the link and fill out the request form.   Volunteer Sign-Up – Run For The Wall®

As we celebrate America’s 250^th birthday this month and as we move forward, we must all remember that “Freedom isn’t free”, it was earned and is maintained with the blood, sweat and tears of our soldiers, sailors airmen, marines and patriots who have made America what she is today, a bastion of freedom and the envy of the world.

In closing, 2027 is going to be a remarkable year for the Run. We will continue the mission to promote healing among all veterans, their family and friends, to call for an accounting of all POW’s and those still missing in action, to honor the memory of those KIA from all wars and to support our military personnel all over the world.

Say their names.

Never forget.

This is why we ride.